It can be difficult for startup founders to see the starting line amidst the tornado of information we have access to these days. With that in mind, I put together some of my favorite resources that I believe will help budding entrepreneurs at the onset of their journey. Enjoy!
Timeless Articles From Tech Icons
- Paul Graham Essays: Paul Graham is a renown venture capitalist and co-founder of Y Combinator. He’s written some of the most thorough treatise on tech subjects that you’ll find from any expert in the field. One of my favorites is How to Get Startup Ideas.
- Marc Andreessen Articles: Another great VC, Marc cofounded Netscape and has invaluable information on his blog. He hasn’t authored new posts in some time, but most of the old ones still ring true. This guest article by Ben Horowitz that explains the difference between Angels and Venture Capitalists is a must read.
Useful Marketing Guides
- SEO and Search Marketing: Great beginner’s guide created by Moz inbound marketing and analytics. This one is specific to search engine marketing and SEO.
- Hubspot Marketing Guide: A more comprehensive guide covering multiple online marketing topics by another online marketing authority.
- Primer: I’m not sure why more people aren’t raving about Primer. It’s probably one of the most undervalued guides to marketing, and it’s developed by Google. Primer is an app that delivers powerful marketing concepts and tactics in what they call “bite-sized” lessons in 5 minutes.
Recommended Reading
Morgan and I have written, covered, or referenced other important guides for founders before. Here is a list of some of the best ones including guides that help with one of the first steps every founder has to go through: finding a name.
- Recommended reading for startup founders
- Popular podcasts and audiobooks
- What founders should know about buying domains
- Quickly spotting bad domains
- Protecting your domains and data
- How to negotiate buying a domain name
- Does your name past the domain test?
Continuing Education
In addition to following news sites like Techcrunch or discovering the best new things in tech via ProductHunt, it’s imperative to continually read content from fellow entrepreneurs.
- Feld Thoughts: This is Techstars cofounder and VC, Brad Feld’s blog. He writes about topics closest to him that often involve trending tech news and strategies.
- AVC: Fred Wilson has been in the tech scene for decades. His regular commentary on salient tech news, as well as the entrepreneurial tips that stem from his broad investing experiences are both entertaining and priceless.
- Reddit: Part of continuing your education is participating in a niche community. Ask questions, present your thoughts, and debate your strategies with your peers. For domain name investors, I always recommend the largest and most active one, NamePros (I’m the Managing Director there). For startup founders, I recommend diving into the following:
Have other vital guides or recommended reading for entrepreneurs? Let everyone know in the comments section.
Now this is a great resource! There is a little bit of everything in here for new start-ups to sink their teeth in. I’m drooling already and not even half way through all the reading materials.