Starting Up

The resources founders actually use.

Every essay, video, podcast, book and tool behind 1,327 answered founder questions, in one place, each with a note on why it is here.

What founders use most, ranked by how many answers lean on it.

  1. A practical list of traffic channels, from updating old posts and targeting long-tail searches to communities and email, with... ahrefs.com Article · Article 21 Proven Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website Ahrefs
  2. Ahrefs' guide to content marketing: what to write, for whom, how to promote it and how to measure it. ahrefs.com Article · Guide Content Marketing: A Comprehensive Guide Ahrefs
  3. A framework for choosing which content to make first, by audience, intent and business value. backlinko.com Article · Guide Content Marketing Strategy: How to Prioritize in 2026 Backlinko
  4. A step-by-step marketing plan guide with a free downloadable template covering goals, audience, channels, budget and measurement. blog.hubspot.com Template · Guide and template 6 Steps to Create an Outstanding Marketing Plan (with free templates) HubSpot
  5. A September 2026 guide to primary and secondary market research, personas and competitor study, with AI prompts and a template. blog.hubspot.com Article · Guide How to do market research (with AI prompts and a template) HubSpot
  6. The US government's plain guide to market research: demand, market size, economic indicators, location, saturation and pricing,... sba.gov Article · Official guide Market research and competitive analysis (SBA) US Small Business Administration
  7. India's official open data portal: datasets from ministries and states on households, businesses, agriculture, health,... data.gov.in Tool · Data portal Open Government Data Platform India Government of India
  8. Google's research agent in Gemini, which turns a prompt into a research plan, browses many sources and returns a cited report... gemini.google Tool · Product page Gemini Deep Research Google
  9. A step-by-step guide to a business proposal: title page, executive summary, problem, solution, pricing and terms, with examples. blog.hubspot.com Article · Guide How to Write a Business Proposal (examples and template) HubSpot
  10. A practitioner guide from a proposal software maker on structure, pricing presentation and closing with a single next step. betterproposals.io Article · Guide How to Write a Business Proposal: Step-by-Step Guide Better Proposals
  11. A step-by-step guide to press release structure that suggests keeping a release to around 400 words. semrush.com Article · Guide How to Write a Press Release: A Step-By-Step Guide Semrush
  12. Upwork's own explanation of its freelancer fee, which ranges from 0% to 15% per contract, with worked examples of pricing so... support.upwork.com Article · Help page Learn about the Freelancer Service Fee (Upwork) Upwork
  13. Video · 10 min Watch this to get your first 5 customers Alex Hormozi
  14. Video · 12 min Make Your First ₹10,000 Freelancing in 30 Days as a Student Ishan Sharma
  15. Amazon India's affiliate program: share links to Amazon products and earn up to 10% in advertising fees on qualifying purchases. affiliate-program.amazon.in Tool · Program page Amazon Associates India Amazon
  16. The current commission table for Amazon India affiliates, October to November 2026: beauty 8%, apparel 7.5%, books and sports... affiliate-program.amazon.in Article · Fee schedule Associates Program Advertising Fee Schedule (Amazon India) Amazon
  17. The terms you accept as an affiliate: what counts as a qualifying purchase, payment about 60 days after the end of each month... affiliate-program.amazon.in Article · Agreement Amazon Associates Operating Agreement (India) Amazon
  18. Flipkart's affiliate commission table by category, for example 8% on fashion and lifestyle, 5% on books and general merchandise... affiliate.flipkart.com Tool · Commission table Flipkart Affiliate commissions Flipkart
  19. India's advertising self-regulator's guidance for influencers and creators on disclosing paid and affiliate relationships so... ascionline.in Article · Guidelines ASCI influencer resource Advertising Standards Council of India
  20. Video · 12 min Amazon Affiliate Account Kaise Banaye (How to Create an Amazon Affiliate Account) 2026 Make Better Videos with Kunal
  21. Google Cloud's startup program: a $2,000 Start tier for startups founded in the last two years with a working product, and up... cloud.google.com Tool · Program page Google for Startups Cloud Program Google Cloud
  22. Microsoft's startup program, which releases up to $150,000 in Azure credits over time as a startup shows progress and Azure usage. microsoft.com Tool · Program page Microsoft for Startups Microsoft
  23. Cloudflare's program of up to $350,000 in credits for a year, starting at $10,000 for companies that have raised under $1 million. cloudflare.com Tool · Program page Cloudflare for Startups Cloudflare
  24. NVIDIA's program for AI startups with free cloud credits from partners, preferred pricing on NVIDIA hardware and software, and... nvidia.com Tool · Program page NVIDIA Inception for Startups NVIDIA

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Playbooks

A goal, and the route through it a step at a time.

Find an idea worth pursuing Spot problems worth solving and find the one that actually fits you. 4 steps Validate before you build Get real evidence people want it before you write a line of code. 4 steps Understand your customers Talk to real users, define who you're for, and read the market clearly. 4 steps From idea to first customers The idea-stage spine: find a problem, prove it, talk to customers, and land the first ten. 4 steps Build an MVP without code Ship a first version with no-code tools before you hire anyone. 4 steps Build and launch your first product Turn a validated idea into something real people can use. 6 steps Find and work with developers Hire, brief, and work with builders without getting burned. 4 steps Name and brand your startup Name it, design an identity, and say what it does in a line. 3 steps Build a landing page that converts A page that loads fast, earns trust, and turns visitors into signups. 4 steps Get your first customers The scrappy, unscalable work of going from zero to your first paying users. 5 steps Sell it yourself, founder-led Reach out, run the conversation, and close before you have a sales team. 4 steps Grow with content and SEO Compound reach with content, search, and a founder audience. 3 steps Grow with paid ads Spend that returns: the channels, metrics, and loops behind it. 4 steps Price and package your product Charge for value, package it right, and check the numbers work. 3 steps Bootstrap instead of raising Fund growth from revenue, and keep control of your company. 4 steps Raise your first round Understand the game before you pitch: whether to raise, from whom, and on what terms. 5 steps Find a co-founder, split equity Find the right partner and split equity without regret. 3 steps Set up the company right Incorporate, split equity, protect your IP, and make your first hires. 4 steps Survive founder life Mindset, burnout, the leap, and the parts nobody warns you about. 5 steps Build in India The India-specific playbook: schemes, government, enterprise, and the local market. 5 steps

The questions founders start with

What are good startup ideas in India right now? The ideas Indian investors are backing in 2026 sit in a few places: AI built into one industry's daily work (vertical AI for B2B, where software fu... Beginner 5 resources → How do I find product-market fit? Narrow until a small group cannot do without you, then widen. Pick the segment where usage is strongest, talk to those people every week, and chang... Intermediate 9 resources → Do I actually need a co-founder, or can I go solo? You don't strictly need one, but the data says teams outlast solos: complementary skills, shared load, and someone to argue you out of bad calls al... Beginner 3 resources → How do I build an MVP for my startup, step by step? Write down the one assumption that kills the idea if it is wrong, then build the cheapest thing that tests it and get it to real users within weeks... Beginner 9 resources → Which tool should I use to analyse qualitative data like interview notes? For a founder with a dozen interviews, Gemini Notebook, which is free, or Claude, free or $20 a month on Pro: load the transcripts, ask for the rec... Beginner 6 resources → How do I get my first client as a freelancer? Your first client is most likely someone who already knows you or someone they know, so start there before marketplaces. 1) Pick one service for on... Beginner 6 resources → How do I decide how much to charge for my product? Stop guessing and stop pricing off your costs, price off the value the customer gets and their willingness to pay. Talk to customers about pricing,... Beginner 3 resources → Should I raise venture capital or bootstrap my startup? Raise VC only if your business needs a big pile of cash to reach escape velocity before someone else does, and if a 10x-in-a-few-years outcome is g... Beginner 3 resources →

Questions for your situation

The Aspiring Founder The Idea-Stage Founder The Builder The Launcher The Grower The Student Founder The Indie Hacker The Technical Solo Founder The Non-Technical Founder The Domain Expert The Women Founder The Anywhere Founder The Corporate Switcher The Repeat Founder
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