Successful Online Start–Ups For Dummies

Make your online start–up business a success! Thriving online enterprises take more than just a good idea. Successful Online Start–Ups For Dummies helps you put together a sound plan for your venture, set up a strong company structure, and attract the right funding for your online start–up. Whether you′re already in the game or at the think tank phase, this book provides specific know–how to make your online business successful and get your company investment ready. Accelerate your product research and validation — build your product wisely and get ready for your launch date Understand what it takes to find a killer idea — identify a viable market for your products and test customer preferences Measure your progress — track your performance indicators and overall growth Know what investors are looking for — attract capital at seed and growth stage Include exit options in your strategy — discover how to keep adding value to your business for a larger return upon sale Open the book and find: Guidelines for creating a one–page business plan Tips on how to avoid common mistakes Advice on company finance and governance Ideas to help grow your start–up and turn a profit How and when to expand into other markets Plenty of useful templates and case studies Learn to: Launch your online start–up Attract the right backers Grow your business strategically Know where to go for support and advice

Introduction 1 Part I: Following Your Dream 7 Chapter 1: Understanding the Start–Up Journey 9 Chapter 2: Starting as You Mean to Go On 35 Part II: Getting Your Start–Up Started 67 Chapter 3: Setting Up Shop: Products, Paperwork and More 69 Chapter 4: Launching Your Start–Up: The Early Days 99 Chapter 5: Gaining Traction: Ramping Up Your Start–Up 121 Part III: Growing Up 139 Chapter 6: Recognising Your Limits 141 Chapter 7: Growing Strategically 167 Part IV: Chasing the Pot of Gold: The Reason Your Start–Up Exists 195 Chapter 8: Starting to Make Money: The Post–Profit Stage 197 Chapter 9: Achieving Your Start–Up Vision and Cashing Out 215 Part V: The Part of Tens 235 Chapter 10: Ten (Plus One!) Mistakes That Cause Start–Ups to Fail 237 Chapter 11: Ten Ways to Boost Your Start–Up Resources 245 Chapter 12: Ten Things Investors Look for in Your Start–Up 253 Appendix A: Finding Support for Your Start–Up 259 Appendix B: Templates 263 Glossary 275 Index 279

Stefan Korn is an internet entrepreneur and co–founder of WebFund—a successful private investment firm for online start–ups. WebFund runs an accelerator program that trains web entrepreneurs and helps them get their start–ups in the best position to pitch to investors within three months.