

Ask HN: How to get max out of an accelerator program? - dudeofjude

Hi All,<p>I have got into one of the prestigious accelerator, resident program.<p>I have a B2B, SaaS product, with one paying customer, and a buggy MVP. The product is sort of CRM for a niche, with inbound marketing via social promotional features etc.<p>I am pre-product&#x2F;market fit stage.<p>The folks over here are very resourceful, and well connected.<p>What all should I do, to maximize the returns from the program.<p>What should be my targets for the next 3 months?<p>What actionable items should I define to be achieved?<p>Thanks for your advice.
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paulorlando
This is a question everyone going into an accelerator program should ask
themselves before, throughout and after the program. From running a startup
accelerator off the beaten path (in Hong Kong), I can tell you that the
startups that got the most out of it were those that were coachable, social
(but not too social), kept in contact by asking for help when needed, and
maintained momentum. I wrote about this here:
[http://startupsunplugged.com/startup-programs/four-simple-
th...](http://startupsunplugged.com/startup-programs/four-simple-things-that-
make-a-better-accelerator-experience/)

There is a lot of hype out there about startup accelerators. And overall, it's
really early to know how things will go with the many different programs that
exist. Some of the data that's out there is just inaccurate. Here's another
post on when an accelerator succeeds: [http://startupsunplugged.com/startup-
data/when-does-a-startu...](http://startupsunplugged.com/startup-data/when-
does-a-startup-accelerator-succeed/)

For me in a program that was pretty new, I judged success as all the startups
finishing feeling that they had achieved multiples of what they would have
done if they had not joined the accelerator. That and being noticeably
stronger companies.

In any program, at some point you'll probably get feedback that you don't want
to hear. You could either reject it outright and keep doing whatever you were
doing before, or you could consider why you were given the feedback (whether
or not you agree with it), or you could be open-minded and willing to accept
that you don't know everything yet. Use the mentor network but don't fall
victim to mentor whiplash (where you get pulled in 100 different directions by
mentors providing opinion-based advice). You should know your business and
customers better than anyone else, so take all advice with the understanding
that you will have a different perspective than other people.

It's hard for me to give you really specific actionable items that you
request, because everyone's situation is different. For all I know, in 3
months, you'll have changed to a B2C product in a totally different market...

