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  3. How do you start a company with 5000$ - any ideas? any opinions?

How do you start a company with 5000$ - any ideas? any opinions?

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  • S Smart Not Clever

    assuming - the idea is reasonably good.the product is ready.it's all hosted on a dedicated server.it only needs to sell.i just cant figure out how to sell. dont belive in online advertising.now if you could add furher opinions to that

    K Offline
    K Offline
    Keith Barrow
    wrote on last edited by
    #23

    You don't beleive in online advertising, and you are promoting a website :WTF:. You could try putting an advert in the Evening Chronicle[^] with a cut-out and keep coupon for reductions to entice people. I'll be right back with more ideas when I've changed the fuse on my sarcasm-o-meter.

    Dalek Dave: There are many words that some find offensive, Homosexuality, Alcoholism, Religion, Visual Basic, Manchester United, Butter. Pete o'Hanlon: If it wasn't insulting tools, I'd say you were dumber than a bag of spanners.

    S 1 Reply Last reply
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    • S Steve Westbrook

      During the dotcom days, entrepreneurs had to raise $5 million to try stupid ideas. Now I’ve proven that you can do it for $12,107.09.

      Wow, that's a huge savings on trying out stupid ideas!

      J Offline
      J Offline
      Jim Crafton
      wrote on last edited by
      #24

      I guess it's a bit like applauding someone for having "skill" after winning the Lottery. Hell I could win a couple of million with by purchasing a lottery ticket today, surely that's a far better return on investment? If it's a stupid idea, and everyone with a shred of common sense knows this, why on earth are you wasting time on it? It's celebrating mediocrity.

      ¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! Personal 3D projects Just Say No to Web 2 Point Blow

      R 1 Reply Last reply
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      • R Rama Krishna Vavilala

        You do not even need $5000 in that case. :)

        S Offline
        S Offline
        Smart Not Clever
        wrote on last edited by
        #25

        come on ! i am waiting ! - ask me "what exactly are you selling? give us a hint"

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        • M Mark_Wallace

          Great! Send me your credit card details, mother's maiden name, etc, and I'll forward the money to you!

          I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!

          A Offline
          A Offline
          Abhinav S
          wrote on last edited by
          #26

          :)

          Me, I'm dishonest. And a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest.
          Honestly. It's the honest ones you want to watch out for...

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          • K Keith Barrow

            You don't beleive in online advertising, and you are promoting a website :WTF:. You could try putting an advert in the Evening Chronicle[^] with a cut-out and keep coupon for reductions to entice people. I'll be right back with more ideas when I've changed the fuse on my sarcasm-o-meter.

            Dalek Dave: There are many words that some find offensive, Homosexuality, Alcoholism, Religion, Visual Basic, Manchester United, Butter. Pete o'Hanlon: If it wasn't insulting tools, I'd say you were dumber than a bag of spanners.

            S Offline
            S Offline
            Smart Not Clever
            wrote on last edited by
            #27

            t's not that. It's not exactly a website. it's a software as a service. Advertising by itself is a random poor process of reaching people - the probability of a hit and conversion stand good only if it's a common service or some airline ticket booking stuff. In my case it's a Software application - hosted as a SaaS.Need some people with patience to understand it.

            modified on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 10:53 AM

            1 Reply Last reply
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            • J Jim Crafton

              I guess it's a bit like applauding someone for having "skill" after winning the Lottery. Hell I could win a couple of million with by purchasing a lottery ticket today, surely that's a far better return on investment? If it's a stupid idea, and everyone with a shred of common sense knows this, why on earth are you wasting time on it? It's celebrating mediocrity.

              ¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! Personal 3D projects Just Say No to Web 2 Point Blow

              R Offline
              R Offline
              Rama Krishna Vavilala
              wrote on last edited by
              #28

              Jim Crafton wrote:

              If it's a stupid idea, and everyone with a shred of common sense knows this, why on earth are you wasting time on it?

              There is no such thing as a stupid idea. There are ideas which succeed and make you money and ideas which do not.

              D J 2 Replies Last reply
              0
              • R Rama Krishna Vavilala

                Jim Crafton wrote:

                If it's a stupid idea, and everyone with a shred of common sense knows this, why on earth are you wasting time on it?

                There is no such thing as a stupid idea. There are ideas which succeed and make you money and ideas which do not.

                D Offline
                D Offline
                Dalek Dave
                wrote on last edited by
                #29

                Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

                There is no such thing as a stupid idea.

                Oh yes there is! We all enjoy The Darwin Awards, they all start with a stupid idea!

                ------------------------------------ I will never again mention that I was the poster of the One Millionth Lounge Post, nor that it was complete drivel. Dalek Dave

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                • S Smart Not Clever

                  outsourcing marketing is too expensive !

                  H Offline
                  H Offline
                  hammerstein05
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #30

                  You have to make a decision here. You don't want to use the internet to market, but outsourcing marketing is expensive. You've only got marketing the product to generate sales left to do from what I see, so if you trust in your products success, $5k on marketing is nothing. Is your product an online product, or a physical one? If it's online, why not a google ad campaign and a well developed website? If you post on forums, make sure your website is mentioned in your sig with a link directly to your product (don't go overboard, be subtle) and I would imagine that would drive some sales your way.

                  S 1 Reply Last reply
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                  • S Smart Not Clever

                    what if everything is done- idea is big. product is ready. registraion is all done. only need to sell.how do u do that with 5000$ ?

                    M Offline
                    M Offline
                    Mechanical
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #31

                    Smart-Not-Clever wrote:

                    what if everything is done- idea is big. product is ready. registraion is all done. only need to sell

                    [0] Spend some money on marketing. [1] Make a simple, easy to navigate website. [2] Do a lot of SEO. Have the SEO people write about your product in blogs etc - Complete lies will work better. [3] Offer all kinds of businesses (big and small) - Different license types for people with different amounts of money. [4] Put up a trial version to download and test - Make it less buggy - Bugs in trial version will kill your product.

                    NULL

                    S 1 Reply Last reply
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                    • S Smart Not Clever

                      How do you go about starting a company with 5000$ - any ideas? any opinions?

                      R Offline
                      R Offline
                      R Giskard Reventlov
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #32

                      Write a business plan. Even if you ar enot trying to sell the idea or raise money it gives you a route map of things you have to do to make the business work. Include a marketing plan, an executive summary(the whole thing in 2 paragraphs) and, last but not least, construct an elevator pitch: can you sell the idea in 30 seconds? If you can't it probably does not have any legs - if you can't explain it you don't understand it or it's incomplete and not yet viable. I've started ventures on less than that: some worked, some bombed big time. You don't try, you'll never know. Good luck.

                      Tychotics "The dinosaurs became extinct because they didn't have a space program. And if we become extinct because we don't have a space program, it'll serve us right!" Larry Niven

                      S 1 Reply Last reply
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                      • H hammerstein05

                        You have to make a decision here. You don't want to use the internet to market, but outsourcing marketing is expensive. You've only got marketing the product to generate sales left to do from what I see, so if you trust in your products success, $5k on marketing is nothing. Is your product an online product, or a physical one? If it's online, why not a google ad campaign and a well developed website? If you post on forums, make sure your website is mentioned in your sig with a link directly to your product (don't go overboard, be subtle) and I would imagine that would drive some sales your way.

                        S Offline
                        S Offline
                        Smart Not Clever
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #33

                        That's a good one -the signature one !- btw the product is a online version & a Lan version.The other day i saw a few posts - saying "shamelessly advertising my product".is that allowed and ok ?

                        D 1 Reply Last reply
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                        • S Smart Not Clever

                          assuming - the idea is reasonably good.the product is ready.it's all hosted on a dedicated server.it only needs to sell.i just cant figure out how to sell. dont belive in online advertising.now if you could add furher opinions to that

                          E Offline
                          E Offline
                          Ennis Ray Lynch Jr
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #34

                          A prime, #1 way to reach people that is why so many do it. Conferences, shows, seminars, anywhere your target is you have to be giving out cards. Get good business cards to not those crappy laser printed ones.

                          Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. A man said to the universe: "Sir I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "The fact has not created in me A sense of obligation." --Stephen Crane

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • S Smart Not Clever

                            That's a good one -the signature one !- btw the product is a online version & a Lan version.The other day i saw a few posts - saying "shamelessly advertising my product".is that allowed and ok ?

                            D Offline
                            D Offline
                            Dalek Dave
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #35

                            Shameless and Obvious Advertising Breaches The Spirit of the Law and the Letter of the Law. However a small link in the sig and a namecheck is common and not overly frowned upon. As said above, subtlety works better than a slap in the face, and less is more.

                            ------------------------------------ I will never again mention that I was the poster of the One Millionth Lounge Post, nor that it was complete drivel. Dalek Dave

                            S 1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • R Rama Krishna Vavilala

                              Jim Crafton wrote:

                              If it's a stupid idea, and everyone with a shred of common sense knows this, why on earth are you wasting time on it?

                              There is no such thing as a stupid idea. There are ideas which succeed and make you money and ideas which do not.

                              J Offline
                              J Offline
                              Jim Crafton
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #36

                              Completely disagree. There are stupid ideas. They may still make you money, but only because there are enough gullible people out there to buy into it. Giving massive loans to people without the income to pay them back is a stupid idea. Some people made money off it.

                              ¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! Personal 3D projects Just Say No to Web 2 Point Blow

                              D R B 3 Replies Last reply
                              0
                              • J Jim Crafton

                                Completely disagree. There are stupid ideas. They may still make you money, but only because there are enough gullible people out there to buy into it. Giving massive loans to people without the income to pay them back is a stupid idea. Some people made money off it.

                                ¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! Personal 3D projects Just Say No to Web 2 Point Blow

                                D Offline
                                D Offline
                                Dalek Dave
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #37

                                Jim Crafton wrote:

                                Giving massive loans to people without the income to pay them back is a stupid idea.

                                Banks for example?

                                ------------------------------------ I will never again mention that I was the poster of the One Millionth Lounge Post, nor that it was complete drivel. Dalek Dave

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • J Jim Crafton

                                  Completely disagree. There are stupid ideas. They may still make you money, but only because there are enough gullible people out there to buy into it. Giving massive loans to people without the income to pay them back is a stupid idea. Some people made money off it.

                                  ¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! Personal 3D projects Just Say No to Web 2 Point Blow

                                  R Offline
                                  R Offline
                                  Rama Krishna Vavilala
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #38

                                  Jim Crafton wrote:

                                  Some people made money off it.

                                  Then in their context it was not a stupid idea. It was an idea which made money.

                                  Jim Crafton wrote:

                                  there are enough gullible people out there to buy into it

                                  That, my friend, is marketing.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • R R Giskard Reventlov

                                    Write a business plan. Even if you ar enot trying to sell the idea or raise money it gives you a route map of things you have to do to make the business work. Include a marketing plan, an executive summary(the whole thing in 2 paragraphs) and, last but not least, construct an elevator pitch: can you sell the idea in 30 seconds? If you can't it probably does not have any legs - if you can't explain it you don't understand it or it's incomplete and not yet viable. I've started ventures on less than that: some worked, some bombed big time. You don't try, you'll never know. Good luck.

                                    Tychotics "The dinosaurs became extinct because they didn't have a space program. And if we become extinct because we don't have a space program, it'll serve us right!" Larry Niven

                                    S Offline
                                    S Offline
                                    Smart Not Clever
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #39

                                    No one is going to invest a dollar in my firm.It's just destined to start from nothing. The question is how? and when ? - can it be codeproject ! ______________________________________________________________ Redefine Defnition - (welcome to the next level of programing) [ T&C Vectors] [Enterprise Nervous Systems]

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • M Mechanical

                                      Smart-Not-Clever wrote:

                                      what if everything is done- idea is big. product is ready. registraion is all done. only need to sell

                                      [0] Spend some money on marketing. [1] Make a simple, easy to navigate website. [2] Do a lot of SEO. Have the SEO people write about your product in blogs etc - Complete lies will work better. [3] Offer all kinds of businesses (big and small) - Different license types for people with different amounts of money. [4] Put up a trial version to download and test - Make it less buggy - Bugs in trial version will kill your product.

                                      NULL

                                      S Offline
                                      S Offline
                                      Smart Not Clever
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #40

                                      advise taken well - _____________________________________________________ Redefine Defnition - (welcome to the next level of programing) [ T&C Vectors] [Enterprise Nervous Systems]

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • D Dalek Dave

                                        Shameless and Obvious Advertising Breaches The Spirit of the Law and the Letter of the Law. However a small link in the sig and a namecheck is common and not overly frowned upon. As said above, subtlety works better than a slap in the face, and less is more.

                                        ------------------------------------ I will never again mention that I was the poster of the One Millionth Lounge Post, nor that it was complete drivel. Dalek Dave

                                        S Offline
                                        S Offline
                                        Smart Not Clever
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #41

                                        Now I have to start working on my - Reputation ! :) _____________________________________________________________ Redefine Defnition - (welcome to the next level of programing) [ T&C Vectors] [Enterprise Nervous Systems]

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • S Smart Not Clever

                                          How do you go about starting a company with 5000$ - any ideas? any opinions?

                                          R Offline
                                          R Offline
                                          Ray Cassick
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #42

                                          Send me the 5k and I will tell you. :)


                                          LinkedIn[^] | Blog[^] | Twitter[^]

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