My idea is beyond this, but the basic gist is to create several stages. 'Alpha' 'Beta' 'Live' '10' '#'. So if a person is very interested or wants the finished product, etc, then there's a variety of matching options.
However it'd really depends on what the offer is. This is an indirect suggestion to do some marketing 101 ;)
I recently blogged an interesting approach by an app (called livepath) which let people buy into a beta account. Whenever the beta was a bit further developped he dropped the pricing a bit. Here's the link: http://blog.thegodfounder.com/post/5894377639/lifepaths-sign...
Minecraft creator took the inverse, charge more as software entered alpha to beta to gold. I suppose the high initial cost until normal cost makes sense in a reverse dutch auction if you got the hype.
Well done! Congrats on your launch. I thought about a similar service too when I was pregnant and spoke with a few mommies and moms to be and abandoned the idea. I found the mommy network of family and friends giving you used baby clothes is a huge competitor.
With that being said though, I would probably try this service out, if I weren't in Japan. But I'd give it as one-time gift. Not sure I'd pay a monthly subscription for it.
I just had a baby myself (2 months ago) and would have LOVED this service during my pregnancy. I too tried using Amazon, but it sucked. So, I ended up going with Babies R Us, wasn't pleased with their service at all.
Blogher would be a great source for you to find testers and get solid feedback from a group of mommies and mommies to be :). Also, one thing that I liked about Amazon and Babies R US however, is they had list recommendations. It may be a good idea for you to add some cool lists to you site such as "Top 10 Must Haves for Green Moms" or somethng like that. I was clueless when registering and appreciated the guidance of the lists.
I'll be sure to promote it here in Tokyo to the American moms! Good luck with your pregnancy!
Perhaps the title should read, "What Stops Women from Becoming Founders? I was hoping to read an essay on women who are already founders and their challenges (as the title implies).
I am a founder and will be launching my start-up soon, and I have a newborn. I am truly thankful that I can stay home, take care of my baby and continue working on executing my idea.
I agree with Jessica's points and appreciate her sharing her personal experience, however, there aren't specific to women.
IMO, what can really stop a female founder from pushing their idea through to execution is:
Seriously, when facing these three factors, you must be absolutely certain about your idea and driven to keep it moving; especially when it's easier to hold your sweet baby all day and simply throw in the towel.
To answer the question outright, yes. Popular topic these days on HN. I am a 29 year-old female founder expecting my first child soon, based in Tokyo and I applied to YC recently.
I have been blessed with an incredible support system. My husband and I both worked hard and saved over the last four years, my technical co-founder is an experienced parent of two in his 40s, the community here in Tokyo has been unbelievably supportive and, not to mention my family and close friends who are all aware of my YC application and have agreed to help us in both relocating to the valley and helping us on a rotating schedule to support us and help with our baby, if we are indeed selected.
We have the resources and the support, as Jason has suggested is most critical. I personally think this is a perfect time for me to pursue my start-up, especially in Japan. Women in the workplace and policies here are still significantly behind those in the US.
I've always taken huge risks and gone after what I wanted. This is no exception.
Thanks! I really want to get it to the point where it can look into your friends lists to generate lists as well.
For instance -- What're my girlfriends favorite movies that I've never seen? Or What are my friends favorite movies of all time (that I have seen or haven't seen)? In the end it's all about keeping track of what you've seen, and helping decide what you should see next though, so it might have Netflix integration so I don't have to reinvent the recommendation wheel either. What movies you'll like is only half the equation though -- the other half is what people you know are actually watching!
