Don't Outsource. Period. While there are big drawbacks with outsourcing related to building internal expertise the real reason I would never outsource at your stage is the need for speed and flexibility. Per your description, you are an early stage start-up with a MVP that is gathering data....
There are tons of Free QR code creators (or low cost). You could create a coupon, assign unique QR codes for each affiliate (place them on cars), and scan them in store to give proper credit to the affiliates. The only problem I see with this is: human nature. We forget things, lose things, and...
There's a fine line between persistence and simply being an annoyance, however I've seen some great examples of people balancing these properly. Usually this comes with the ability to be very human and personal. One way I've seen this done is with old school hand written letters. On a few occa...
We ALL like to pay as little as possible but we're happy to pay $4 for a latte from Starbucks because a, caffeinated beverage is worth more than that at that time and to that person. Prove the value. Prove that your software is worth (either saving them money or making them money) 2X or 5X or 1...
Create something new that builds a strong connection (brand) with customers. See Bonobos, Betabrand, Huckberry. You can always increase traffic and conversion rates if people like what you're selling.
Generally you don't vest if they're not employed. It doesn't make sense if you think about it -- vesting means "you earn more and more of this amount unless you leave." But they're not employed, so how would you know whether they've left?
I agree it really depends on what you are trying to achieve. It can take sometime to source the right person to do the job. I disagree that you should only outsource to a freelancer if you have a one off project. My designer is a freelancer and I have been using her for several years because I...
Typically open-source projects that end up generating a profit have an active product that's already being used. So step 1. Is to open source it and see if anyone uses it - then you can make money in a bunch of ways. Checkout Wordpress, MySQL, Linux for examples - but typically it's providing p...
Take a look at the core of what you need to know here: http://startupfashion.com/fashion-ecommerce-website I answered these questions for those starting their own eCommerce store, and that is a great resource for you to get going! Feel free to reach out to me directly for more tips, we can set ...
That's a great question. First, congratulations for bringing a nutritional product to market and getting initial sales. That's a huge feat in itself, so well done. Second, my question would be this - why do you believe that you need to get on the shelves of UK retailers to go mainstream? And wh...