

Ask HN: single person startup funding - gftd

Hello,
Ive been working on a startup for at least a year. I'm a single person startup. It is a technology/Internet focused company. The product I'm creating is pretty ambitious and large. It is not a typical social network or tools for selling things online kind of website. It is something much more complicated and technical. What is the chance of me getting a venture capital by pitching this product. The product is not totally 100 percent done, but is in pretty tangible shape. I'm in a close position where I can talk to venture capitals. Some of my family members are kind of skeptical that I can get it done, but I trully feel like it is getting closer to be done. Iwould need a large server, some graphic design company to design the logo nd images. I also would need a ad company to create a name, because Im not very good with company names and logo designs. My main focus is bring this product to little more maturity nd sell it fora decent amount or continue to develop it. Funding I.m looking for I think is around 100k.<p>What is my chance of getting a funding. What would the Vc s would ask. Would they be skeptical that a single person can get it done. What is the chance and steps that could be taken.<p>Apologies for my grammar/ writing mistakes. I'm writing this on iPad
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BrandonMTurner
All starts have very small chances no matter what.

Moreover, I think a cofounder would serve you very well based on some of the
things you said. (Granted, with few details of your actual product, I could be
completely wrong.)

"I would just need a large server" - Another technical cofounder could
probably help you with the real scaling problems you will have if you get
traction. And sadly, in most technical products, simply having a large server
is not enough.

"I would need ... some graphic design company to design the logo and images. I
also would need a ad company to create a name" - A creative / design focused
cofounder would be of really great use. This is going to cost you a lot of
money you probably don't need to spend.

"I.m looking for I think is around 100k." - A business knowledgable cofounder
could really ground you here. A VC would not do a deal this small. That is not
interesting to them at all. A seed investor, angel, super angel, whatever they
are called might be interested but it would really help decide to invest in
you if you have someone that has a real grasp on business projection and how
much money you will really need.

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gftd
Thanks for your answer. Your answer is close to what I was thinking. It
confirms it.

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rush-tea
My suggestion would be that since you are a single founder, the best would be
to finish the very minimum viable product that can attract your potential
investors. if you think a graphic design is required, then do it. You can
outsource logo design cheaply to Asia. Logo design would be something that is
more on creative side, imagination doesn't require education, so everyone is a
genius if they can pour their imagination into black on white, vs if you are
thinking of outsourcing technology development.

as for large server, have you look into AWS? Amazon Web Services is an
excellent server solution, Yelp is using AWS. I read somewhere that one of the
things that Facebook regrets is that they invest on their own data center vs
doing a cloud like in AWS.

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gftd
I looked into AWS, but I think in the end I would have to have my own server
that I can manage. Thanks for your insight.

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chris_dcosta
Doing the server thing yourself? You will be getting into a whole different
ball game with your ISP! And that requires a decent revenue stream.

Please take the advaice, even the biggest players out there are using AWS,
it's just a far simpler solution for a startup.

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abbasmehdi
> _Some of my family members are kind of skeptical that I can get it done_

Most people who tell you something can't be done are saying it because they
don't want you to do it, people who truly want to see you succeed will tell
you how to overcome your weakness or carry on despite it - they will never
want to deter you by saying it can't be done. This is a personal observation -
so don't let anyone shape your opinion there.

Secondly, VCs don't give just a 100k (thy usually give a million plus), angels
do smaller rounds - get on AngelList or something similar.

Why do you not have a cofounder? (your posting screams you need one).

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gftd
I don't have a cofounder because I don't think there are a lot of people that
are on the same page as me around here. Most of them might not be interested
and won't devote a sufficient time to the project. I thought I can get it done
faster and without hassle. I know all the code and cofounder might slow it
down a little bit.

Thank you for your answer. Your answer helps.

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kayhi
Chance would put close to zero - ideas to improve it.

Finish the project. Get a logo and name, you can change them. Get some
traction.

Why do you need funding? What is the money going to be used for?

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jaequery
your chances are slim

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mudge
I am curious. What is the product or service?

