by Daniel Rovira

As the co-founder of itcher, I know the first couple of years in a start-up can be up and down, but it is important to persevere if you really believe in your product.

We’ve grown itcher from a seed of an idea into something that hopefully changes the way people watch movies, read books, listen to music and play games.

For those who don’t know yet, itcher is an entertainment recommendations app that allows users to rate different titles in order to get new and accurate recommendations based on individual’s personal taste.

Below you will find must-know facts we have learned over the last couple of years and will help you to get started with your own project.

1. You Have to Refine Your Core Idea… Many, Many, Many Times

The first milestone you should aim for is really refining your idea.

That means understanding who you are as a brand, what you believe in and what your aims are. A big milestone for itcher was getting a clear image in our heads of what we wanted it to be. We are always developing and tweaking, but working on that initial outline was important to get us started.

An idea is only that until it has been refined - then it is a pitchable start up.

2. Think You’ve Got Your Pitch? Think Again!

Pitching your idea for the first time is a turning point. You’ll learn what investors are looking for and where you need to research more (you’ll also find that telling someone about your project will make you hungrier for success).

Be sure to use your first pitch to learn; each of your many pitches works as an opportunity to improve the next one.

Use your first pitch to learn; each of your many pitches works as an opportunity to improve the next one

Pitching itcher for the first time reaffirmed the reasons why we wanted to update the entertainment landscape and we haven’t looked back since.

3. An Audience Might Not Come For Free

A brand is nothing without a following, particularly in a digital age.

Work on creating an online space for your followers and, if relevant, use it as an opportunity for SEO, but think about what is right for your brand. In our case, we created itcher Magazine.

Work on creating an online space for your followers

Hitting 250,000 new users per month was definitely a milestone for itcher. Knowing a quarter of a million people had used our site every month was not only satisfying, but also encouraging.

You’ll have to put in the effort and hour to build an audience, but it’s a price worth paying.

4. You Have To Launch Before That Next Tweak...

You can only plan for so long: sooner or later you need to get your product out there.

Your first version will rarely be perfect, and the feedback from your target market that will make it stronger for the next release. Since, we've since released v.2 of the itcher app.

We've improved vastly since those beginning days, but our very first version (v.1) taught us more about the mobile app world than we ever could have ever imagined.

5. Aim To Reach a Milestone Within Your First Month (No Matter What)

When creating a start-up you can see very clearly how people will benefit from your innovative ideas. It is important to strive for some kind of numerical milestone that can measure that success.

Work on creating an online space for your followers

Whether we are talking about number of units sold or number of downloads on the app store, do set a quantitative goal that you can track. In our case, we’re looking forward to when we reach the millions of downloads.

Get Your Start Up Moving

I hope you enjoyed these tips and find them useful for your business.

If you would like to stay up to date with itcher’s progress, you can find us on Twitter and Facebook or our Blog (add links).

References:

http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/08/how-to-refine-your-business-idea.html

http://www.peterjones.com/business-guide/pitch-your-idea-for-finance/

https://blog.kissmetrics.com/fan-base/

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249477