Keep startup idea a secret? • Hacker News Board

Re: Keep startup idea a secret?

#11

Post by gregw100 » Fri, Nov 04, 2011, 12:39 AM UTC

frankwong wrote: post #9

NS's offer to build your site is just a gimmick. If you want a couple of html pages of about us, contact us, homepage, etc. it would be fine. But I can't see any startup that can use that type of service to build anything meaningful. I would definitely stop talking to NS immediately. As for your programmers, NDA would have helped. But also don't lose sleep over it. I am a programmer and have worked with many other pr…

Hi Frank, That gives me more piece of mind. I've only given three programmers FTP access, though I've since restricted them. I've also explained to them that I'll be willing to rehire them once I can afford it, so that should give them more of an incentive to wait, rather than try to build their own versions. Also, I interviewed the programmers first and felt that they were trustworthy (though you never know for sure). I'm glad to hear that you've never encountered programmers stealing ideas.

Being of high moral integrity myself (in my opinion), I wouldn't expect someone even closely like-minded to steal my idea, but I feel like my site has such high potential that it may be one of those things that even someone with moral integrity can't resist stealing.

By the way, is there anywhere that I can find developers to build my site who would accept a stake in the company rather than cash?

Re: Keep startup idea a secret?

#12

Post by gregw100 » Fri, Nov 04, 2011, 12:44 AM UTC

tadfisher wrote: post #10

gregw100 wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hi Tadfisher. That puts it in more perspective. NS really has no incentive to make my site shine and, even worse, if the site blows up they might, as you say, take it hostage. I think I'm going to cancel the service before they begin the website. Honestly what really sucked me in was this sales guy on the phone telling me that the best idea for me at my stage while seeking funds is to get the site up so that venture…

If your idea is good, you can find developers who will work for a stake. They may not be full-time, because everyone needs to pay the bills, but they are out there. By having this "keep my idea secret so no one can steal it" rule at the forefront, you'll never find those developers. That doesn't mean you should make a HN post with your entire idea diagrammed and annotated. All you need is a gist; "a social bookmarkin…

I've come to that conclusion that I can't keep my idea a total secret, otherwise it will never see the light of day. At first I was entirely vaulted. As for the site, it's a social network with a focus on businesses rather than people. I've spent countless hours drawing up the blueprint, so there are literally over fifty other services that I believe the site could incorporate which all have a huge potential upside. It's very frustrating to have all these ideas but not know how to implement them. I've already spent thousands of dollars on developers, but I don't want to go completely broke.

Re: Keep startup idea a secret?

#13

Post by tadfisher » Fri, Nov 04, 2011, 12:59 AM UTC

gregw100 wrote: post #12

tadfisher wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If your idea is good, you can find developers who will work for a stake. They may not be full-time, because everyone needs to pay the bills, but they are out there. By having this "keep my idea secret so no one can steal it" rule at the forefront, you'll never find those developers. That doesn't mean you should make a HN post with your entire idea diagrammed and annotated. All you need is a gist; "a social bookmarkin…

I've come to that conclusion that I can't keep my idea a total secret, otherwise it will never see the light of day. At first I was entirely vaulted. As for the site, it's a social network with a focus on businesses rather than people. I've spent countless hours drawing up the blueprint, so there are literally over fifty other services that I believe the site could incorporate which all have a huge potential upside.…

Try college students. Seriously, I knew so many CS/SE majors who needed projects to work on that would mean something on their resumes.

Many colleges have an undergrad "capstone" program where entrepreneurs can pitch their ideas to teams of students, who may spend 1 or 2 quarters building a product in lieu of a thesis. This might be a good place to start.

Re: Keep startup idea a secret?

#14

Post by gregw100 » Fri, Nov 04, 2011, 1:04 AM UTC

gregw100 wrote: post #12

tadfisher wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If your idea is good, you can find developers who will work for a stake. They may not be full-time, because everyone needs to pay the bills, but they are out there. By having this "keep my idea secret so no one can steal it" rule at the forefront, you'll never find those developers. That doesn't mean you should make a HN post with your entire idea diagrammed and annotated. All you need is a gist; "a social bookmarkin…

I've come to that conclusion that I can't keep my idea a total secret, otherwise it will never see the light of day. At first I was entirely vaulted. As for the site, it's a social network with a focus on businesses rather than people. I've spent countless hours drawing up the blueprint, so there are literally over fifty other services that I believe the site could incorporate which all have a huge potential upside.…

I couldn't reply to your last post, so I'm replying directly above it.

That's a good idea. I've thought of that, but 1. I'm not a very outgoing person and don't know if I would be great at pitching an idea and 2. It seems that students wouldn't bring the quality that professional programmers do. That's definitely an option though. Thanks.