Tag Archives: bootstrap

Episode 8: The Importance of Small Wins w/Ivan Lopez

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Episode 8 features Ivan Lopez, founder of AB Press Optimizer and Project Conductor.  Ivan shares his tale of bootstrapping a large product, only to reconsider and do a smaller one instead.  By doing so, Ivan managed to get a small win quickly.  The momentum from that win bolstered his efforts to do a larger project.

My friends, I must apologize – WordPress ate my show notes.

I’m publishing the podcast without notes because Ivan’s story is a good one and deserves to be heard.  The concept of shifting gears to earn a small win instead of committing to a huge project is one that’s really catching on.

Proper show notes will be re-created and  posted later.

AB Press Optimizer – Ivan’s small product; The Easy Way to Increase Conversion in WordPress
Project Conductor – Ivan’s larger product; Helping You Get Your Project In Tune

 

Episode 4: Software Product Marketing & Design w/Brian Casel

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Ready for more talk about bootstrapping? Brian Casel joins us for the 4th episode.  We talk about Brian’s experience developing and releasing 2 Saas apps (and more!). We also get to cover some practical aspects of keeping on track through a bootstrapped product launch. As if that weren’t enough, Brian and I also cover some good nuts-and-bolts material regarding software product marketing & design, planning your work, and more.

Bootstrapped Product Talking Points

  • how Brian’s new book can help bootstrappers understand – and benefit from – the marriage of software product marketing & design,
  • the importance of planning your work and patience,
  • allowing yourself to develop as a professional before going out on your own,
  • why copywriting is absolutely critical to a bootstrapper
  • the new direction Brian plans for his freelancing work

Brian also shares 3 concrete action items that he recommends to aspiring bootstrappers looking to move measurably closer to their own bootstrapped product launch (and dovetail with your software product marketing needs).

Speaking as an aspiring bootstrapper, I found Brian’s interview answers really valuable.  In particular, Brian’s dedication to planning his goals out ahead of time really speaks to me.  This is a practice I already use with my consulting projects, and for some odd reason I haven’t fully applied this practice to my product endeavors.  Have you?

Design for Conversions – Brian’s new book about software product marketing & design
ThemeJam – Brian’s first bootstrapped product business; premium WP/e-mail/website themes
Casjam.com – Brian’s personal blog
RestuarantEngine – Brian’s bootstrapped product; a Saas site-builder for restaurants
SweetProcess – Brian’s other bootstrapped product; a Saas app for documenting your procedures and systemizing your business

FreelanceSwitch – Freelance Advice and Freelance Jobs
Mixergy – Learn from proven entrepreneurs
Public Beta – an online learning community for entrepreneurs by entrepreneurs
StartupsForTheRestOfUs – Rob Walling’s bootstrapper podcast
Adii Ienaar – co-founder of WooThemes
StudioPress – Premium WP themes
Jason Shuller – Creator of Press75
Evernote
The T-Shaped Web Marketer (via Moz)
The Cascading To-Do List (how to get BIG things done) – how Brian makes things happen with his work
SmallSpec – Christopher’s bootstrapped product for painless functional specs; join the launch list