Author: Lmrank Han, Alliance Dao core contributor

Compiled by: J1N, Techub News

I recently gave a keynote at Solana Breakpoint, with the goal of providing as much valuable information as possible to cryptocurrency project founders in a limited amount of time. My talk was well received, so I wanted to take the time to elaborate on it so that people can quickly benefit from it.

Start by solving small problems

Start by solving a small problem or designing for a small domain. Instead of targeting a massive market from the beginning, founders should focus on solving a small, specific problem. This approach is usually contrary to VC advice, as they often push entrepreneurs to target large markets. But it is recommended that you focus on small problems that affect a small number of users, the few who use your cryptocurrency product every day. There are thousands of new products released every day, and you should use as many of them as possible to understand the pain points that everyday users encounter. In this way, you can discover real problems that really need to be solved.

Don’t follow the crowd

By the time an idea is generally accepted, the market is often saturated. Take Polymarket for example: now that they have proven the feasibility of prediction markets, there are hundreds of teams developing in this space. It is a good time to innovate when Polymarket is the leader, not after the space is proven. When competing with established products, your product must be ten times better than theirs to stand out. So, focus on areas that are not fully explored, with less competition, so that you have more freedom to experiment and enough time to build a unique product.

Focus on serving early core users

Find a core group of early users, around 25 to 50 passionate users who really care about the problem you're solving. By focusing on meeting the specific needs of these users, you can build a solid foundation and cultivate real advocates. These early users will provide you with valuable feedback, helping you to iterate and improve your product quickly. This process will help you gradually and organically grow your user base over time. If people like what you've created, they'll likely naturally recommend it to their friends and family.

Verify the feasibility of the theory before investing in it on a large scale

Before investing significant resources, like money and time, validate your core assumptions with a minimum viable product (MVP). An MVP is a simplified version of your product that should focus on solving the main pain points you've identified. You want to release a product that is bare-bones but good enough for you to gain useful insights so you can decide whether to continue investing more or move on to other ideas. An MVP also allows you to get feedback from your users faster, and sometimes you'll even learn something completely unexpected. Additionally, launching a product quickly gives you an edge on the competition, because there's a good chance that others are thinking about the same idea, and usually the first product to launch grabs the initial attention.

Validate your idea within a month

Time to market is critical. You should strive to develop and release your MVP within 30 days to capture the heat of your idea and start collecting user behavior data as soon as possible. Rapid deployment forces you to focus on the most core features and avoid the time, manpower and material waste caused by over-planning.

Get involved, don’t rely on automation

In the early stages, one-on-one interactions with users are more important than building a perfect product. You should interact directly with users, handle customer support yourself, and manually perform tasks that will be automated in the future. These efforts will help you build strong relationships with your initial batch of users and gain a deep understanding of their needs and behaviors. This approach not only allows you to build and launch products quickly, but more importantly, it gets your product into the hands of users as early as possible.

Don’t create everything from scratch

For entrepreneurs of cryptocurrency projects, it is better not to develop core infrastructure by yourself, but to choose to cooperate with existing products or use existing tools to simulate the products you eventually want to provide. For example, instead of developing your own AMM, it is better to directly use ready-made AMM products (such as Uniswap or Raydium) to implement certain functions. This can save resources and allow you to focus more on perfecting your real core product or service.

Don’t do a big rollout unless you have 50 core users

One-on-one conversations with users are invaluable when building your initial user base. You can contact potential users one by one through email, social media platforms (such as Twitter direct messages), or community forums. This approach allows you to interact directly with users who are willing to try your product and get accurate and honest feedback from them.

Actively seek feedback from users to iterate the product

Maintain an ongoing dialogue with your users. Regularly engaging with your users for feedback can reveal insights you might not have considered. Use this feedback to incrementally improve your product to ensure it continues to meet your users’ evolving needs. Creating this feedback loop is important because it keeps you connected to your users’ needs and helps you build products that users truly love. For example, Alon of Pump.fun reached out to 3,000 users via Twitter private messages before Pump gained traction.

Correctly judge user feedback information

While user feedback is important, you need to interpret it with caution. Users may not always be able to accurately express their needs, or the solutions proposed may not be consistent with your product vision. Therefore, you need to use your judgment to identify the real problems behind the feedback and solve them in a way that is consistent with your product direction.

Ensure 50 to 100 new active users per day

The goal is to gradually increase daily active users (DAUs), with 50-100 DAUs as an initial milestone. This steady level of user engagement indicates that your product is gaining traction and becoming a part of users' daily activities. You'll want to keep a close eye on metrics like retention and engagement to ensure you're building sustainable growth.

Public disclosure of business models

Once you have a stable user base, it’s time to start focusing on monetization. You need to develop a clear business model that explains how your startup will generate revenue. Whether it’s through transaction fees, paid features, or token sales, a clear business model is essential to attracting investors and ensuring long-term survival.

Optimize marketing strategies by analyzing user behavior data

Data is your ally. Dive into your data to understand what drives user acquisition, user engagement, and retention. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your business goals. Use this data to make informed decisions that help you optimize your marketing strategies, product features, and resource allocation.

Perseverance

Persistence pays off. Don’t be too bothered. You should contact potential users, partners or investors many times. You can use various channels such as email, private messages, group chats and social media to expand your influence. Entrepreneurship usually requires constant expansion and promotion of interpersonal networks. Always maintain a vAlways Be Closing mentality and be ready to make cooperation or transactions at any time.

Take a break when you complete your goals

Recognize and celebrate every milestone, no matter how small. Whether it’s launching a new feature or reaching a certain user target, celebrating these milestones will help you and your team keep morale high. In addition, taking breaks will help prevent burnout so you and your team can stay productive for longer periods of time.

Focus on work

There is no substitute for hard work. Building a successful startup requires dedication, long hours, and a willingness to go the extra mile. Your commitment and dedication will set an example for the team, and it can be the difference between success and failure. Think of it this way: if your competitors are spending 7-8 hours a day on their projects, how many hours are you willing to invest to win? I’m not suggesting that you work harder by simply working more hours, but let this thought motivate you to work smarter to win.

Protect your control over your company

Be mindful of how much you give away in the early stages. In the early days of a startup, it may be tempting to give away large amounts of stock to secure funding or attract talent, but retaining control of the company is important for future growth. You can consider other incentives and negotiate terms that align with your long-term vision. Ultimately, as a founder, you should retain enough stock to be able to reap the rewards of your early hard work in the future.

Limited financing allows you to learn to make better use of resources

Getting modest funding forces you to prioritize what’s important and learn to make the most of your resources. In the initial stages of a startup, it’s usually recommended that you raise a maximum of $500,000 to $1 million. Operating on a lean budget forces founders to find innovative ways to solve problems. This self-discipline can help you build a more sustainable business model, while also making you more attractive in the eyes of future investors. Jeff Bezos famously used a door as a desk as a reminder to save time and money.

Spend your money wisely

Adopt a frugal mindset in all aspects of your startup. Carefully scrutinize every expense, avoid unnecessary overhead, and focus capital on areas that will directly drive growth. A frugal approach can extend the life of your company's capital and provide you with flexibility to respond to unexpected challenges or market changes.

Choose your core team members carefully

Expand your team carefully. Each new employee should take on a key role that has a direct impact on the success of the company. Smaller teams are more nimble and easier to manage without the complex management issues that larger startups face. Keeping it small allows you to adjust direction quickly and maintain your company culture. If you hire too many people, your company culture can quickly deteriorate.