Solo Founder (Non-Engineering/Programmer Background)

[necromanicide_x]

YC App closes on April 7th and I want to apply.

I've worked for YC grad company as their growth marketing manager and was responsible for literally bringing their users to the platform. I've worked at startups Seed-Series D and managed up to $2.4m annually in marketing budget.

I want to launch a company similar to my former employers but done in a more transparent, economical way by providing solutions to private citizens rather than corporations. I know the KPIs to be met, I know the market, and I know how to acquire users since I will be a potential direct competitor to them. (Think Uber vs Lyft with them being Uber and me being Lyft).

I am working on building the website today but do I have a shot at getting into YC since I've worked for a grad company before and will be building a similar company in the same vertical? What else can I do to improve the odds of my application?

 

[monkeypaw2]

@necromanicide_x Everyone has a shot, don’t be discouraged.

I got an interview as a solo non technical founder, I had revenue though. I ultimately didn’t get in as what I wanted to build would require a dev team. This was in 2020 right after lockdown.

There are certainly examples of people beating the odds.

 

[frankie4493]

@monkeypaw2 Impressive that you even got an interview! Would you mind sharing some details about your background or what you were working on? It seems they have a very strong preference to technical founders - I would go so far as to say in looking at some of their content I almost feel disdain from them towards non technical founders. I'm actually quite glad they removed the "what's one system you hacked successfully" question.

 

[monkeypaw2]

@frankie4493 YC is amazing, all we have to do is check the scoreboard, right? The numbers are there.

They are the best at what they do, by some margin. They certainly have a preference for being able to build product in house, they made that clear to me in their message, and lots of their videos say the same. I was an executive for a series of large companies in my field, healthcare, but without the technical expertise to build my product myself. I’ve since pivoted and built a new product myself with no code tools.

I’m giving consideration to applying again this week. Not sure yet.

 

[frankie4493]

@monkeypaw2 Best of luck! Me and my cofounders just submitted again today (2/3 non technical). Fingers crossed!

 

[hirono]

@monkeypaw2 Thanks for sharing. About how much revenue did you have? Since you had some traction and revenue, why was not having a dev team in place a problem? Why could they not invest knowing that at some point the dev team will be hired?

 

[monkeypaw2]

@hirono Some of it was consulting, too much, but $40k month

 

[amtnick12]

@necromanicide_x If this is truly what you want to do, go for it!

I applied as a non-tech solo founder for W23 and did not get in even though I was creating pretty much the same company I built (as the first employee) in a different country which became a unicorn. Though I submitted a late application after the deadline.

 

[savemelord]

@necromanicide_x

What else can I do to improve the odds of my application?

Launch the website, find customers, and validate your idea by asking if they would buy it. Show some demand metric that your approach can be better than your former employer.

Good luck, and have fun.

 

[frankie4493]

@necromanicide_x Perhaps showing some progress with using a dev team, if the idea does hinge on technical work being done? I saw content from them at some point that essentially said if you are non technical and need a dev shop or paid contractor to do the work being described, they'll lean consider you much more strongly if that's something you're already doing successfully.

Certainly sounds like its within your skill set! Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[chelseamc]

@necromanicide_x

https://www.reddit.com/r/ycombinator/comments/12dgz0c/review_my_application

 

[kheumann]

@necromanicide_x

What else can I do to improve the odds of my application?

Apply with a co-founder who compliments your skills or also understands the market in a similar way.