Many unsuccessful founders believe their business failed because of a "market problem." They think it's "the market" that wasn't ready for their product or that "the market" made the wrong choice. This line of thinking is a dangerous —and most of the time completely false— perspective to take. It's not a market problem. It's a … Continue reading Don’t blame the market; blame your marketing
Author: Arvid Kahl
I write about bootstrapping, audience-building, and building in public at The Bootstrapped Founder.
Formerly FeedbackPanda (exit/2019)
Wrote Zero to Sold, The Embedded Entrepreneur, and made Find your Following.
On Saying No
If you try to build an audience on social media, you'll quickly learn that attention is an incredibly scarce resource. People are busy. They won't even look your way unless you can offer them something unique. And yet, we founders have a hard time focusing our own attention. Why do we keep reading through each … Continue reading On Saying No
The Risks and Illusions of the “Post-Exit Retirement”
Building and selling a business is a blessing and a curse. While it catapults founders into a very different financial situation, it also shifts what gives them purpose and passion and allows for lasting impact. Chasing these elusive virtues causes many entrepreneurs who thought they could retire to get back to work — or it … Continue reading The Risks and Illusions of the “Post-Exit Retirement”
Permission to Follow Up: The Difference Between Owned & Borrowed Audiences
Email newsletters aren’t new — they might be one of the oldest forms of digital mass communication. I certainly remember signing up for them in the late 90s, when social media didn’t exist. But they’re back with a vengeance because they allow for something that got lost in the age of social media: direct and … Continue reading Permission to Follow Up: The Difference Between Owned & Borrowed Audiences
Consulting in Public
Building in public is becoming a popular way to build a business. But how about consulting in public? Can entrepreneurs go beyond talking about their business? Can they conduct their business out in the open? Rand Fishkin recently asked Patrick Campbell —who just sold ProfitWell for $200 million— to help him with their pricing. Immediately, … Continue reading Consulting in Public
Founder Stories are Powerful Assets
Your founder story is much more valuable than being reduced to a slide in a pitch deck. Your story is a unique and unclonable asset that can turn from a mere list of accomplishments into an opportunity generator through the power of compounding and public expertise-building. When you share your story not only after the … Continue reading Founder Stories are Powerful Assets
The Forever Transaction
Next time you're at a gas station or a convenience store, and you're ready to pay, look at all the things they shove in front of you, hoping to sell you yet another high-margin product: sugary snacks, soft drinks, processed foods, lottery tickets. They call this the "impulse sales zone:" every single item is a … Continue reading The Forever Transaction
Building in Public and Legacy
Philip Larkin, the renowned British poet, famously decreed on his death bed that all his diaries should be destroyed. During his life, he even wrote five full-length novels and burned every single one of them right after completion. Larkin allowed for nothing but perfection. Meanwhile, I regularly share the crudest drafts of my work on … Continue reading Building in Public and Legacy
Parasocial Relationships: Imaginary Friends of the Social Network Age
There are a lot of one-sided relationships on social media. They have many names: superfans, otakus, and stans. When you intimately know the personality, likes, dislikes, and the entire personal history of a person you've never met and never had any one-on-one interaction with, you're likely in a parasocial relationship. These are the imaginary friends … Continue reading Parasocial Relationships: Imaginary Friends of the Social Network Age
Should Freelancers Offer Free Trials?
Recently, I have gotten a lot of offers from freelancers and consultants to do some work for me for free. In an ideal world, we’d offer our services to a prospect, and they’d gladly pay for them. But the reality is quite different: many freelancers have a hard time finding clients, and some have come … Continue reading Should Freelancers Offer Free Trials?