A Practical Bootstrapping Guide Startup & Small Businesses !

So let me start by saying that when it comes to startup bootstrapping, some entrepreneurs do it out of necessity. Without significant capital or willing investors, when there’s no other alternative. While other entrepreneurs bootstrap their startup by choice, and not just to minimize risk.

When you bootstrap, ideas matter more. Innovation matters more. Teamwork matters more. In a nutshell everything else matters more than the actual capital for a startup at the beginning.

Having stated this, please let it be known that everything I state in this article are my personal opinions and nut necessarily laid facts or rules that should guide your personal decision. A lot of the content in this write up are personal executed bootstrap hacks that I have embarked upon in my many years of trying and failing in this startup hustle.

I decided to bootstrap my current company because the business model didn’t require enormous amounts of capital or extensive research and development — and because bootstrapping made us be more creative and smarter about how we tested ideas.

I like the shift in perspective bootstrapping creates. VC-funded businesses are all about growth. Bootstrapping creates a different sense of urgency; not only do you need to go to market quickly, your primary focus must be on revenue. (Without revenue you simply can’t keep the business going for long.) And since revenue is the lifeblood of your business, you must create a sustainable business model. If your startup doesn’t relatively need a great sum of seed capital to kick off, then why look for capital when you can raise the capital via your early revenue earnings

So I have these bootstrap hacks and guides that can help your already startup that is already in bootstrap mode or for future founders considering bootstrapping the

1. You need your family and friends (Non Monetary) support more than their financial support.

Yes you heard me right, rather than asking family and friends to part with their hard earned money to support your start up idea, they can offer you much more valuable support such as being your referral and marketing evangelists. Just imagine if you had 5 or more family and friends that regularly use your startup’s explainer video feature as their WhatsApp status or Facebook video. It will ultimately bring in positive results.

2. Co-Working Space Versus Working Remote from Home

Let’s face it, both home working or using co-working spaces are fantastic options to help get you out the office.

I mean I don’t know about you but I would much rather be in charge of my own schedule then having to get into the office at a set time.

With more of us working from home (in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic) a lot of us are now asking which one is better.

Working from home is a much better option for remote workers than working from a co-working space as a bootstrapping startup. But as a team that wants to get more done, a co-working space may be the way to go.

3. Raise money for your actual individual startup needs rather than raising money for the startup as whole.

So now let me break this down for you, lets as assume you want to kick off a new startup and you need to raise money urgently. It is a whole lot easier to list the items you need and try to raise money for them individually rather than shopping for a lump sum that you believe you need to kick of the idea. So it’s easier to raise money for a laptop, an internet modem, a pull up banner and marketing materials from 4 different people rather than raising a lump sum for all your needs and more from one person.

4. Do not take your very first or initial customers for granted.

Since you are bootstrapping you may as well follow certain thumb rules of engagement. Now your first paying customers are prime assets, they should be treated as a big deal because they are the very first customers to part with their money to give your start up idea certain validation.

Why are they important to your journey you may ask ? Oh well, they hold a pivotal key for you to acquire more customers or users like themselves. They know one or 2 more friends of theirs that may need your product or services. So you need to treat them with uttermost care and pampering to get that important customer testimonial and referral that you desperately need kicking off.

5. Yes you need good PR, but not paid PR. So keep it symbiotic and mutual beneficial with your PR Sources.

No doubt you need good PR and I know that good PR may cost money in most cases but not in all cases. So you need to put in the work to get free PR from as many tech startup or business focused blogs and media sources that you can engage. And a very important recipe for getting this PR offering a value that is irresistible that even the PR sources and blogs would love to partner and exchange for feature in their publications.

6. Do you really want to be a solo or lone ranger ? if you want to go far, get co founders or partners.

So this is a mistake a lot of young start up founders and entrepreneurs make. They decide to go on the journey alone. Nothing bad in deciding to go solo. But just in case we all remember that popular saying If you want to go fast, Go alone. If you want to Go Far, Go together.

7. Before you jump on Facebook Ads, Here is a quick check list

So in case you want to start running Facebook ads for your startup or business. You should make sure the following are in place ……..

• Set up Facebook Pixel to properly track your ads. …
• Choose the right marketing objectives. …
• Choose and properly segment audiences. …
• Use multiple Facebook Ad formats. …
• Optimize for placements and delivery. …
• Bid and budget optimization. …
• Creatively design your ads. …
• A/B Split Testing.

8. As a bootstrapping business or startup, Referrals and word of mouth leads are a gift from above therefore never take them for granted and in fact develop sales funnels around them.

9. Avoid unnecessary media hype and PR.

So I know how easy it is to get carried away by small victories and wins. Achieving certain set milestones and goal. When you achieve this goals, avoid spending money on unnecessary media hype and PR to give potential investors wrong signals. When the time is right they will discover you.

10. Social Media will make you unstoppable and invisible so use it right!

In this day and age, of social media and digital marketing. The world is at your reach thanks to social media so you should use it to the best of your ability. Organic growth and traction via social media is priceless. So make the very best of it as a bootstrapping entrepreneur.

11. Build strategic alliances and partnerships that benefit both parties.

Now this is the second leg of the strategic alliances and partnerships discussion that I had earlier written about when it comes to PR and Publicity from media sources and blogs.

Now lets cover alliances and partnerships with other startups and businesses that can be mutually beneficial to your growth. I would use one of my startups as an example. At eInvites.app, we discovered we needed Printers and Print shops to reach a lot of our target customers so we decided to create marketing affiliate programs that could allow print shops and printers earn a commission for recommending our e invitation platform to their existing customers.

12. I hope you know that Angel Investor or Venture Capital funds isn’t free money ?

So this is basically a rhetorical question that you and I already know the answer. AI/VC money isn’t free money and please don’t get it twisted that it is. So if you are yet to come to terms with this, please have it at the back of your mind that this isn’t free money so you get your act together.

13. When exactly are you ready to raise money (Investor funding) ?

So this is a question I often ask younger aspiring founders of startups, what exactly do you need investor money for ? And in case you are yet to raise funds, at what stage of your business or startup do you need investors to join the party. You are in the best position to answer these questions but please not that it’s safe to already be earning revenue before you make these decisions.

14. Start bookkeeping on time and ensure your income & expenses are well documented.

Ok a lot of us suck at this but, every well structured business and startup will have to pass this litmus test when it comes to scaling the bridge from bootstrapped startup to an Angel Investor or VC backed startup that is now raising seed or series A funding.

15. You are the number one brand ambassador of your startup

This is a no brainer when it comes to marketing yourself and startup, ensure you have branded merchandize such T shirts, face caps, mugs, bumper stickers for your car and so much more that promotes your startups website at the slightest opportunity. Don’t forget you are not paying priceless publicity.

I always go on both local and international flights wearing my startups branded t-shirts or base ball caps. And always have a business card or A6 flyer to share to a co passenger or 2. You just never know where your next user or customer is coming from.

16. Learn how to use your WhatsApp Status and Facebook Stories like a Rockstar.

Now this is probably one of the most quiet, cost effective ways that startups and new businesses can engage potential users and customers without even putting to much work or effort. WhatsApp Status supports pictures, text and even videos. You can easily use the 30 seconds time span to tell customer engaging stories or explainer videos.

17. Jumping on Tiktok for creating viral challenges for your product or service isn’t a bad idea, your competitor probably thinks it is, so you have an edge.

In conclusion , it took me a few hours to actually write this from my previous experience bootstrapping every single startup I have attempted. There are no rules to bootstrapping game, but when it comes to building products we can all agree that start up founders need to focus on the core rather than the startup funds. My personal view is become a revenue generating and attractive to investors before you start a romance with an Angel Investor or VC backed fund.

I hope you find this relatively useful. And in case you do, kindly show our new startup www.einvites.app some love with a share or like on our IG page @einvitesapp