Maximizing Efficiency: Engineering Insights for Non-Technical Founders
Written on
Chapter 1: The Importance of Non-Scalable Solutions
In the world of startups, a familiar narrative often unfolds: aspiring entrepreneurs leave their jobs, invest months into product development, and then launch, only to find themselves with zero customers. This leads to financial strain and questions about what went wrong.
The core issue lies in their focus on engineering, attempting to replicate the polished applications they admire without recognizing that those products are the result of extensive iterations and collaboration among countless engineers. Early versions of popular apps were not as refined as they appear today.
Founders should not attempt to mimic the strategies of large tech firms due to limited resources. Instead, they need to prioritize efficiency by trimming features, embracing imperfections, and limiting the development of their Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to a month or less.
In this piece, I will outline three engineering strategies to expedite your MVP launch:
- Start with no-code solutions
- Substitute engineering tasks with operational tasks
- Gather emails before fully developing your product
These techniques can save you significant engineering hours, allowing you to concentrate on sales and establishing distribution channels.
Section 1.1: Embracing No-Code Solutions
A common misstep for founders is to rush into hiring engineers. Most MVPs can be created independently using no-code platforms that allow users to drag and drop features without needing technical skills.
For instance, when building a website, numerous no-code builders are available, making it unnecessary to start from scratch. The same goes for marketplace startups, where various templates already exist.
As I frequently advise clients, "More code means more complications." Coding can be challenging, time-consuming, and costly; thus, leveraging no-code options is advantageous. Here are some of my preferred no-code tools:
- Website Builders: Umso.com (my favorite), Ghost, Notion + Super.so, Kajabi, Webflow
- Testimonials: Testimonial.to
- Design Templates: Canva
- Intake Forms: Typeform
- Scheduling: Calendly, Acuity Scheduling
- Email Collection: Umso, Carrd, ConvertKit, Notion + Super.so + Chilipepper
- No-Code Mobile App Builders: Flutterflow, Wappler.io, Adalo, Appgyver
I managed to create a consulting landing page in just two days using Umso.com.
Section 1.2: What If the Perfect No-Code Solution Is Missing?
Founders sometimes claim that an adequate off-the-shelf solution doesn't exist due to missing features. However, it's possible to utilize no-code tools for certain aspects of a product and only code the features that are lacking.
For example, Rahul Pandey and Alex Chiou, creators of the career mentorship app Taro, although trained engineers, still maximize existing solutions. While their app lets users ask Rahul questions, they created a separate Slack community to manage announcements rather than developing a new notification feature.
These two ex-Meta engineers, despite their capabilities, find ways to minimize workload by merging existing tools. By avoiding redundant development of notification features, they save considerable engineering time and can redirect their efforts toward their main product.
Pro Tip: Always explore existing libraries, templates, and tools before starting any new build.
Chapter 2: Prioritizing Operations Over Engineering
Travis Kalanick, the former CEO of Uber, famously stated, "Product is slow, but ops is fast." Founders can often address problems more swiftly through manual means than waiting for engineering solutions. Thus, engineering should be reserved for situations that truly require it.
Patrick Collison of Stripe serves as a prime example. When he launched Stripe, he didn't create customer onboarding flows but instead installed the software manually on users' computers, sparing engineers from unnecessary UI work.
By handling tasks manually, founders can validate the necessity of features. If support requests signal a need for a feature, it indicates that investing in engineering is justified.
In many cases, the features that founders think are essential are actually rare occurrences. It’s often more efficient to manage these manually rather than attempting to engineer solutions for infrequent issues.
Example: Handling Edge Cases Efficiently
When my partner and I acquired RecordJoy.com, we prioritized monetization through payment plans and found ourselves needing account creation features. During this process, we identified various small features required, one of which was a "Password Reset" option.
Due to time constraints, we omitted this feature, resulting in only two customer emails requesting password resets over the course of a year. Addressing these requests took ten minutes total, compared to the days it would have taken to build the feature. This illustrates how small tasks can accumulate, making it critical to assess whether certain engineering tasks are necessary.
Chapter 3: Building an Email Collection Page First
To reduce engineering time, consider launching your MVP as an email collection page initially. This approach offers several advantages:
- Creating an email collection page is quicker than developing a full product. You can have it live within a day or two, which allows you to start driving traffic to your site sooner.
- There are diminishing returns on engineering efforts as you delve deeper into your product. Most products resemble a funnel; the more clicks required, the higher the drop-off rate. A one-page email collection page focuses your efforts on the most trafficked area.
- This email list may serve as the basis for your future product, as many successful businesses began as newsletters before evolving into full-fledged offerings.
Example: The Success of AppSumo
AppSumo, a marketplace for affordable software products, began as a newsletter. Noah Kagan, the founder, didn’t fully commit to the current site until 2019. The initial version in 2010 was simply an email collection page.
By gathering email addresses for three years, he amassed a list of over 150,000 contacts, driving substantial traffic and revenue through email campaigns. His newsletter provided immediate value to customers, unlike a website that might take longer to attract visitors.
By combining the email list tactic with the operational approach mentioned earlier, Kagan initially onboarded software companies manually. As the demand grew, he automated this process through his website.
Many founders would have jumped straight into building a marketplace and faced a "cold-start" dilemma, lacking sufficient users on both sides. Instead, Kagan validated demand through his newsletter, allowing him to justify the engineering efforts for his website.
Final Thoughts
It's crucial for founders to understand that engineering transcends mere coding. It’s about solving business challenges in the simplest possible way. By utilizing existing solutions, prioritizing operational tasks, and leveraging email newsletters as an MVP, you can circumvent engineering headaches and expedite the launch of your next big idea.
I'm rooting for your success!
The first video titled "How To Manage A Tech Company As a Non-Technical Founder" provides insights for founders on effectively leading a tech company without a technical background.
The second video titled "Advice for Founders Who Can't Code" offers valuable tips for non-coding founders on navigating the tech landscape.