Loic Le Meur’s Ten Rules For Startup Success

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1. Andrew
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 1:40 pm

   Fantastic advice!

2. Jason
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 1:40 pm

   #1 and #10 - best advice.

3. Loic
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 1:42 pm

   Thanks Michael. Loving the “even though he is French” ahaha

4. Sarah Meyers
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 1:50 pm

   Great profile Loic. I like #6- be the first to recognize the problem. It is helpful to have the advice of others to guide you through your mistakes. It’s not about the mistakes we make it’s about how we make up for them that counts.

5. naysayer
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 2:02 pm

   thank you captain obvious!

6. will
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 2:04 pm

   The little snide french insult diminishes you (yes I know it was a joke - not funny)

7. will
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 2:05 pm

   I always liked

   “any idiot can come up with a great idea, it takes a genius to recognize it”

8. #5 is right
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 2:06 pm

   I would hardly call this extraordinary information.

   It is all true…but kindergarten level stuff.

9. MA "le pew"
   

   December 5th, 2007 at 2:14 pm

   MA’s, “So even though he’s French, his advice, when given, is worth listening to.”

   Always putting down others. It’s now your trademark, Michael. Your character is now so transparent… sad little man.

   Goodbye TC, this reader has had enough.

10. Siva Nadarajah
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:17 pm

    I want to say that this is GREAT advice…but I will hold off for a few years and if this comment chain is still open, I’ll let you know.

11. Matt S
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:18 pm

    great idea, I fully agree!

12. Mr.Chips
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:22 pm

    And the Eleventh Rules reads: “Pray”

13. hyprocracy
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:24 pm

    Pretty interesting that lots of English speaking people listen to the advice of a French. If we see what people comment the Le web 3 organized by Loic Le Meur, 90% negative, just two words: good luck!

14. Rosa
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:34 pm

    it’s 100 mahalo posts for jason and now we will see 100 posts for seesmic - already had a loicweb conference post this week.

15. Harold
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:37 pm

    Good advice but does selling (for presumably not that much money) to SixApart and putting on a conference qualify you as a “success”? Surely more successful then most, but not exactly setting the world on fire. I’d like to also hear advice like this from people who have taken multiple startups to either liquidity or to some sort of broad recognition.

16. lawrence
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:37 pm

    people say those are obvious points, yet most - if not all, fail because of one or more of those they commit

17. techcrunchreader
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:45 pm

    Salut Loic, très bon article. Je ne savais pas que tu étais déjà rendu à la mise sur pied de ta cinquième entreprise.

    Les points 7-8 et 9 sont d’excellents conseils pour les entrepreneurs qui n’ont pas les mêmes moyens que ceux financés avec l’argent des VCs.

    Bon succès avec Seesmic et LeWeb.

18. AnonTroll
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:47 pm

    Damn good words of wisdom. Now if only someone can train the VCs to think like that, I might have a shot at getting funded

19. Pran Kurup
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 2:49 pm

    Simple and nicely put.

20. Nat
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:08 pm

    I totally agree with this wisdom. Simple wisdom we sometimes complicated it.

    Nat
    http://www.workersinc.com

21. EH
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:16 pm

    #8 (and others poo-poohing the list): If this is such kindergarten advice, what do you consider to be high-school level tips? College?

    It’s one thing to be condescending, it’s quite another to do it from a position of knowledge. Do you have any?

22. damon
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:17 pm

    yes, captain obvious, but worth repeating none the less

23. Webby
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:25 pm

    ‘7. Don’t spend time on market research. Launch test versions as early as possible. Keep improving the product in the open.’

    Couldn’t disagree more, this becomes an excuse for laziness, cutting corners, and ultimately hurts the experience for early adopters. Rapid-prototype cycles may be a great development practice, but only isolated far from any production/public systems.

    ‘9. Don’t plan a big marketing effort. It’s much more important and powerful that your community loves the product.’

    This statement is very optimistic at best and naive at worst. Nothing is more proven for wide-spread brand promotion than a fairly sophisticated marketing scheme (e.g. media ads).

24. em
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:31 pm

    good reminders. like I always have to remind myself my mom is a woman and the sun rises from the east. is it still?

25. Tom
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:33 pm

    Snore! @ “even though he’s french”. Go eat some more freedom fries!

26. Aweb
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:34 pm

    “even though he’s French”

    That was not needed…

27. Chris
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:37 pm

    It’s very funny to see Loic Le Meur and Sam Sethi on the same page of TechCrunch but not on the same article!

28. Andrew
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:39 pm

    That “even though he’s French” comment was random, in pretty poor taste and not really funny.

29. iHero
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:40 pm

    Wow — and I thought I was cynical.
    Thanks for the post Mike.

30. SamWise
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:45 pm

    @18: No doubt. I never presented before a VC that wasn’t focused on money.

    If your business doesn’t require start-up cash = low barrier to entry. If you have your own cash (Loic’s prior exit), it is easy to say “these 10 things all are you need”.

31. Steve Ballmer
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 3:46 pm

    RULE #1
    Partner with Microsoft!

32. Phil
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:09 pm

    A reminder that entrepreneur is, after all, a French word.

33. patricia
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:17 pm

    Loic’s Frenchness is part of his charisma. Along with his optimism, imagination and humor. He’s just a very appealing …um… melange.

    And his ten rules reflect the simplicity of approach that’s been quite successful for him in the past.

34. Automatt
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:32 pm

    Michael, your advice is sometimes useful, even though you’re an asshole.

35. Johnny Bench
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:32 pm

    This was a really good post. Probably most appreciated by people who have started companies. Though there should have been a #11 and #12.

    #11 - do NOT take Venture Capital.
    #12 - see #11.

    btw- imo, #5 is where most young companies fail. Oh, and I don’t mean bring in a Harvard CEO either. I’m talking about the day to day warriors.

    Lastly - …”So even though he’s French, his advice, when given, is worth listening to.”

    ***beautiful line:)

36. Jacue Peppen & Julia Childs
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:37 pm

    @32 Phil

    Thanks for letting us know that.

    But, did you know that “Freedom” is an American word? Yes, we bailed out the frogs in World War II. Otherwise, they would be speaking German.

    

37. jonathan
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:40 pm

    I agree with 23 regarding points 7 and 9, as well as 2:

    “2 - Share your idea. ….Meet and talk to your competitors”.

    While it is good to get as much feedback as possible, this is silly advice if your idea is unique but easy for others to implement.

    Good luck trying to raise capital if you follow this advice.

38. Alon
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:43 pm

    The only thing I can respond to the sarcastic remarks before is the following:

    There is a huge difference between common sense and common practice.
    Knowing without practicing gets you nowhere.

39. Tiit
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:45 pm

    These are great points.

    However, I have to disagree on point no #2 “Share your idea. The more you share, the more you get advice and the more you learn. Meet and talk to your competitors.”

    Please. This is one of those “do as I say, don’t do as I do” things.

    We all would love to hear our competitor’s ideas before they’ve been launched, right?

40. Ryan H
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 4:55 pm

    @30

    Not necessarily. Barriers of entry can encompass many things, such as not having prior relationships in the market, lack of technical or market expertise, some physical necessity not present in your region, such as a resource regional necessities, etc. Also, everybody focuses on money, but the fact is that the large majority of start-ups never receive VC or angel funding. Despite this, a lot of companies have been very successful. That tells me that the low cash requirements doesn’t necessarily equal a non-feasible business because of lack of barriers of entry.

41. Phillip
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 5:00 pm

    This list is great but it doesn’t mention the most crucial topic:: MAKE USE OF YOUR AVAILABLE RESOURCES!!

    By the time you get to a VC for funding or whatever route you take, they’re gonna grill you. If you have a big idea, great. If you haven’t exhausted every possible resource in your control, not great and you blew the meeting.

    An example?

    Well, Sun Microsystems has a whole program for startups that include x64 servers, scalable solutions, free tech support, events etc. Any startup should check this out before they put together a presentation. You could be up and running for months this way. Think about it— http://www.sun.com/startup

42. Phillip's mom
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 5:04 pm

    Yes Phillip, you’re right. Thank God you pointed that out. Now THE truth is finally straightened.

43. Ablewise Free Classifieds
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 5:51 pm

    Great advice that sounds too romantic. But where is the money? Simple exciting space just do not cut it.

    No market research? How do you know it the service or site can get the mass it requires?

44. Andy Schweig
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 6:03 pm

    What about the addendum to point #2:

    #11: If the person who happens to give you advice is named Duncan Riley, do the exact opposite of what he says.

45. Strange concept
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 6:44 pm

    Here 10 startup success.

    1. Choose your one company that you like to get acquire (Microsoft, Google, Yahoo or ASK.)
    2. write coolest product what competitors can’t beat.
    3. Avoid VC or getting Angle money.
    4. More creative destruction can hurt billion dollar company.
    5. Always use GPL.
    6. Never use your real name. Reason, Cyberbullies… Assassination… Ramson…
    7. Contact your college buddies to help you test drive the product.
    8. Don’t forget to advertise
    9.Wait for email or phone calls from Microsoft, Google, Yahoo… Money will come.
    10. Don’t forget to get lawyer. you own 10% of company. Never sell yourself full.

    After successful agreement. You have too options: Keep million or keep billion dollar.

    If you choose to keep billion dollar. Don’t forget to buy bodyguards. You really really need one. Rememeber:
    Mahatma gandhi… bang..bang…
    Bill Gates pie in face.

46. Timelord
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 7:44 pm

    As a staunch New Zealand rugby fan, I have resistance to anybody from France this year, but Loic is one of the few exceptions…

    I have been following the Seesmic development and find Loic’ insights and advice inspirational. Much of what he suggests goes against convention, yet seems to be working really well for him.

    I look forward to hearing, watching and reading more on what he achieves. All the best.

    Timelord

47. hyokon
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 8:50 pm

    We see this kind of wisdom a lot. They are good ones, but there shouldn’t be that many rules.

    At the end I believe in only 2 things. An idea for some and a passion. The better the idea and the more persistent the passion, the better chance of success.

    Any thing else, you can break “rules” - took too long time to launch, surveyed so many people - but still can succeed.

    Luck must be the third, but you cannot control it.

48. Ouriel Ohayon
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 9:20 pm

    Mike, what do you mean by “by even though he’s French”

49. Minneapolis Web Design
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 9:24 pm

    I would also add to that, don’t take on debt, and if you feel you must, do it sparingly.. the new Jag can wait. Pay Cash, Less Risk.

50. Naufal
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 9:51 pm

    I just started my own company. w started with no capital but I believe I have great products/services lined up. I true-ly believe what you have just said.
    years ago I would have been afraid to do anything about it, and it gotten to a point that if i don’t do it. someone else will, and benefit from it.

    I sincerely appreciate sites like yours. It has been my motivator and moral support and gave me the strength to leave and start on my own.

    Thank you.

51. Sipboy
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 10:13 pm

    This is mostly trial and error stuff we realize after many failures and few successes. Good advice for people who are just starting, but if you have had success or failure many times most of this info is marginal at best. I can admit that it is a different animal from a bricks and mortar standpoint compared to the online environment. I would be careful of using this info in physical space, but good stuff for anyone trying to make it in the online space.

52. David Litsky
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 10:35 pm

    “Don’t focus on getting rich. Focus on your users. Money is a consequence of success, not a goal.”

    IMHO this is a terrible bit of advice.

53. whoopie
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 10:45 pm

    this was old news years ago.

    here is some more “advanced” advice:

    once the barrier to entry is low enough, jumping over it is a waste of time

    the real breakthrough entrepeneurs are not working on the web going in to 2008.

    techcrunch will be in the same position as VCs - you’re going to have to go back and study high school chemistry if you want to have a clue in the next set of markets. how many valley VCs are even remotely qualified to comment on someone’s solar or batter startup?

    someone here tell me…websites, who gives a shit at this point? if you want larry/sergey level money, you are better off trying to figure out a way to get me to work for 1/100 the cost and 1/100 the pollution for which i do so presently. no one gives a shit about new websites anymore, its turned into a playground for late-arrival posers

54. DJ Hyjak
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 11:01 pm

    Wow so many humorless people here.

    3. Build a community. Use blogging and social software to make sure people hear about you.

    I hear this a lot but this is easy to say and very hard in practice.

55. Confronted
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 11:10 pm

    @Jacue and Julia: grow up. Europeans are not eternally going to be grateful, and danger for you is looming elsewhere. Thinking in stereotypes is only going to accelerate your downfall.

56. 42mb.com
    

    December 5th, 2007 at 11:58 pm

    Inspiring, I read it earlier in telegraph blog.

57. Microkid
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 12:33 am

    The “even though” remark, distastefull as it is, makes it clear that Michael is plugging one of his buddies here. A little too much of that on TC lately if you ask me.

    As for the Yanks pissing on the europeeons - at least we don’t live in a third world country run by a dictator, suckers!

58. Bad Grammar
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 12:51 am

    “So even though he’s French, his advice, when given, is worth listening to.”

    Hmmm…. Very strange Neo-Californian-republican accent. I think this means….
    We should listen to French tongue other than English.

    1. Yes, more freedom fries
    2. Yes, miss Teen USA inspire us all.
    3. Yes, this another dumb American blogger who can’t find France
    4. Yes, We can find France on Google map.
    5. Yes, America like us; France don’t exist in map. Heheh. Lol.

59. Kikerberg
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 1:50 am

    Rule #11: Surrender!

60. Martyn Walker
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 1:58 am

    Great stuff but Nº 1 is a contradiction, finding a simple, exciting, empty space IS a revolutionary idea and Nº 7 is like entering cave of snakes with your eyes wide shut.

61. Json
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 4:47 am

    To all you morons taking offense to Mikey’s “even though he’s French” comment…

    11. Have a f*cking sense of humor, for Christ’s sake.

62. Bruce
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:04 am

    “Even though he’s French” ??? What a lame attempt at humour, a cheap shot.

    If he were black, would you have said “Even though he’s black”? No, I didn’t think so - racism is racism. You should be ashamed, “even though you’re American”.

63. Bruce
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:05 am

    @Microkid:

    Umm, hello? Bush = dictator, dimwit.

64. Marly
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:09 am

    @Json: Not only is it offensive, but it exposes the unilateral view that has become a stereotype of the US everywhere in the world except, it seems, the US.

    Which is strange and confusing to people outside the US at the moment considering that us.gov appears to be trying to conquer half the world at the moment.

65. NatC
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:39 am

    As a French not taking serious offense, I’d just say:
    Michael, wait until your DNA shows you’ve got French ancestors.

66. Json
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:56 am

    @ Marly: Well, you didn’t really elaborate on what the “stereotype of the U.S. everywhere in the world” is, but I’ll assume you mean “ignorance.”

    Speaking of ignorance, you just made an douchenozzle of yourself equating the aims of the American government to that of the American people.

    Thanks for playing.

67. Json
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 5:59 am

    @ Bruce: It’s not the same thing at all. White people “racist” against white people, eh? Buy a f*cking dictionary.

68. XOOST
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 6:21 am

    GREAT! already posted on Twitter as: Just discovered: “Ten Rules For Startup Success” http://tinyurl.com/yoebu5

69. Hanni
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 6:32 am

    TC sucks with his joke. We don’t come here to get that. @json How do you german eradicating jewish?
    I guess if th e joke was about black TC would have the black comunity on his ass…
    I know why stupid american make joke on french: we got nice test, nice wine, get the girls anytime and we are smart enought to say 10 words wich is double that the average in usa…
    At the end of the day, we can spread french culture with honor…
    and stop talking WW2, or I throw you history in the face but not sure you can go further than 100 years…except for the cow boys stuff.

    a reader who quit TC…

70. Json
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 6:47 am

    @ Hanni: I dont even have the patience to answer to your simplicity.

    “a reader who quit TC…”

    GOOD! Why are you (and the rest of the haters) reading an AMERICAN website about (predominantly) AMERICAN startups, anyway? Guess we aren’t so “stupid” after all, huh?

    Go try and make your own Silicon Valley, you peasants. We could use the competition–we’re bored.

71. Bruce
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 6:49 am

    …and stoopid.

72. Joe T.
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 7:40 am

    Some of these tips are good, but I disagree that a revolutionary idea will “never happen”. True, they are rare, but saying it never happens ignores reality. Also, every successful start-up is not necessarily based on “community”. LeMeur is focusing on the vast, bloated middle of the start-up bell curve.

73. Jean-Michel Decombe
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 8:57 am

    Some people should develop a thicker skin when it comes to humor. It’s not like the French never joke about Americans, anyway.

    Some people think that this list is a full of duh! Well, the simplest ideas are always the hardest to put in practice, and they are always worth repeating over and over. So, nothing wrong with that.

    However, I am quite certain that a counterexample could be found for each point in the list. For instance, Steve Jobs, who is among the most successful entrepreneurs of the last century, clearly disagrees with #2. Indeed, he is well known for his secretive ways.

    Therefore, the list should be taken as a series of points to make sure you address when you develop your startup. But you might end up doing the opposite.

74. Geeks are Sexy
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 10:38 am

    “So even though he’s French, his advice, when given, is worth listening to.”

    What does having good ideas / advices have anything to do with being French?

    Anyways, clearly a ploy to get people commenting…

75. Davis Seal
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 11:55 am

    Great list. The best is #5. Surrounding yourself with people better than you is a wonderful learning experience.

76. Michael Arrington
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 12:23 pm

    on the french comment - Loic is a good friend and knew it was a joke, as would anyone with a sense of humor. I fly to Paris on Sunday for Le Web, just wanted to tweak people a little. I understand that many French people don’t understand the humor when people make fun of them. That’s part of why it’s so funny.

77. Gaz
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 1:53 pm

    Rule #11: Buy low / Sell High !!!

    you ought to be able to make a lot of money in the stock market, with that rule.

    There are no 10 rules for startup success, no 5 rules or 150 rules either. So don’t bother with the simplistic and worthless business advice.

    Take one of those rules maybe and discuss it in depth, otherwise apply rule #12: Keep your 10 rules to yourself.

78. Gil Borman
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 4:46 pm

    Why this is not the best advice:

    1. Don’t wait for a revolutionary idea.

    BS revolutionary ideas do happen. The real trick is to find something that is defensible and actually adds value.

    2. Share your idea.
    This is utterly foolish you need to protect your core ideas

    3. Build a community. Use blogging and social software to make sure people hear about you.

    Great for websites, just about useless for any other business

    4. Listen to your community.

    No listen to your customers not to what ever yob shouts loudest on your blog.

    5. Gather a great team.
    After four bad ideas he finally comes up with one good one.

    6. Be the first to recognise a problem. Everyone makes mistakes. Address the issue in public, learn about and correct it.

    here he gets two in a row

    now for le creme de le merde!
    7. Don’t spend time on market research. if something has no value to a market it is worthless- unless you are just puffing up your number of users before passing the feces to a Web 1.0 buyer

    Launch test versions as early as possible.
    Great send out a defective product your customers always want that and will reward you by moving to a competitor who takes their time and gets it right

    Keep improving the product in the open.
    why have a business and product plan? just wing it! that is hwo all great products are made

    8. Don’t obsess over spreadsheet business plans. They are not going to turn out as you predict, in any case.

    translation: be flexible you cant predict the future. Why didn’t I think of that? The discipline of building that plan is what makes company’s function properly rather than crater when the inevitable change comes It also separates kids who should not be in business from adults who actually know something

    9. Don’t plan a big marketing effort. It’s much more important and powerful that your community loves the product.

    Marketing is important because word of mouth is not everything

    10. Don’t focus on getting rich. Focus on your users. Money is a consequence of success, not a goal.

    a no brainer

    So six of his ideas are just useless, dangerous and counterproductive or not going to build value and two are just self evident business truths and two others are ok advice that may not fit your circumstances.

79. Tyler
    

    December 6th, 2007 at 8:11 pm

    Nice list, short and sweet.

80. Yannick.net
    

    December 7th, 2007 at 3:26 am

    Don’t know Loic, don’t care for him. But “Even though he’s French”?? Are you freaking serious? What next… “even though she’s a woman” or “even though he’s black”? Wow. Retarded line for such a progressive blog.

81. Yannick.net
    

    December 7th, 2007 at 3:28 am

    Oh ya… and try the “it was a joke thing” on the black community too… See what they think.

82. Bohol
    

    December 7th, 2007 at 8:27 am

    The market is so unpredictable but market research is so predictable.

83. Pepe
    

    December 9th, 2007 at 2:08 am

    Of course the frenchs never make fun of americans. The Colosseum would be full of adverts if it were american, americans cannot spot X in a map because it is not needed as Tomahawks already know the path, etc, etc.

84. David Gillespie
    

    December 9th, 2007 at 7:21 pm

    Great list, have re-blogged and am using a few comments to get points across this week at work.

    “Don’t plan a big marketing effort. It’s much more important and powerful that your community loves the product.” LOVE IT!

85. aurelien
    

    December 10th, 2007 at 2:18 am

    Hey men ! so many comment on a private jokes between two friends (Loic and Michael) am I dreaming…
    Well; I m french; I usually read TC in French but I just come up to read this one and I can tell that even if I m french, it s quite easy to see it s a joke/

    Note for Michael; we, french, do like when other do jokes about us so you
    So you can remove the comment “many French people don’t understand the humor when people make fun of them”… Ask Loic ; you ll see.

    About the advices; i think they re good for Web companies maybe not for a real product which has a long life cycle

    Back to work now for me… Bye and nice debate !
    I may come back and read the following..

86. extreme webmaster
    

    December 12th, 2007 at 9:33 am

    Good advice. I have read about some of the points he stressed out here on various blogs, but this stuff must be repeated, because people tend to forget. A great reminder and motivator.

87. Glen Hopkinson
    

    December 19th, 2007 at 9:20 am

    Not so sure about point 8. The biggest mistake a startup can make is to believe if you create a good product everyone will beat a path to your door. Yes, if it’s totally great or revolutionary maybe word of mouth will out, but the reality is that for us mere morals a balance between developing an even better product and selling what we have at any point in time has to be struck. Remember out of 10 people, one will buy your product just for the hell of it or they thought it was something it wasn’t, one will never buy it no matter how good it is and the other eight could generally take it or leave it. How many of those eight you convert into customers and at what cost will dictate how successful you are! We run a loan scheme (see http://www.connectyorkshire.org) where we help young technology companies become sales ready and it’s been a great success at helping them to cross the chasm from early adopters to hitting the mainstream. This ain’t about technology it’s about sales and marketing.