Julia MacDonald
Julia MacDonald

@julia_m_mac

8 Tweets 4 reads Oct 07, 2022
The most inspiring startup of the last 30 years:
Grammarly
Back in 2009, the founders started with zero.
Today their company is worth $13,000,000,000.
Here are 6 proven techniques to build a billion-dollar business with no capital 👇 🧵
🔹 Find a Real “Pain”
Ideally your own.
The more basic - the better.
• Grammarly helps to communicate
• DoorDash helps to get food
• Uber helps to get around
Look at the Maslow Pyramid 👇
The lower you go, the bigger the market.
🔹Test Cheaply
You’re launching a T-shirt store - what's the cheapest test you can run?
Most say:
“Buy a sample of T-Shirts and try to sell them”
How about:
• Write 50 forum posts about your T-shirts
• Spend $50 on Facebook T-shirt Ads
Validate the value, then double down
🔹Combine Strengths
Grammarly had 3 co-founders: 2 business and 1 tech expert
The result?
Different skill sets & perspectives. New ideas & solutions.
Like J. Maxwell said:
“Teamwork makes the dream work”.
🔹Start Small
“You must learn to crawl before you can walk”
Solve 1 problem for 1 person.
Grammarly initially served students. Now they serve the world.
All great things come from small beginnings.
🔹Hire Slowly
Many founders fall into this trap:
They hit $1m+ in yearly revenue, fundraise…and start hiring
Suddenly revenue growth slows. It’s time to pivot.
But how?
The money is gone, the new team has the wrong skillset…
Go slow to go fast.
🔹 Build for Free
Grammarly used free channels to expand their business:
• Referrals
• Partnerships
• Content Marketing
This helps you to:
• Stay flexible
• Keep costs low
• Build relationships
TL:DR
6 proven techniques from Grammarly to build a billion-dollar business with no capital:
• Hire Slowly
• Start Small
• Test Cheaply
• Build for Free
• Find a Real Pain
• Combine Strength

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