Think you’re onto something BIG, and surprised you’re receiving so many NO’s from investors?

It can really make you second guess yourself, and shake your confidence...

… but it shouldn’t!

Receiving a LOT of NO’s is natural.

You may be tempted to listen to the feedback after receiving some NO’s and think you just need to launch your product, change your business model, or grow your customer base, and then you’ll be more attractive to investors.

Guess again.

The reason you receive for the NO and the feedback you get may not be aligned.

Why?

Because at the end of the day, investors are human. They don’t want to hurt the feeling of a first time founder, and don’t want to seem rude in case they want to invest later.

Yes they just might invest later.

So how can you tell what is really going on?

Well that’s what we’re going to debunk in today’s episode of Build! To help us out I’ve invited Ooshma Garg who is the CEO and Founder of Gobble (https://www.gobble.com/), and Danielle Morrill who is the CEO and Founder of Mattermark (https://mattermark.com/). They've both recently become investment partners at XFactor Ventures (https://www.xfactor.ventures), an investment firm that's focused on investing in female founders and mixed-gender teams. 

We’re going to help get comfortable with receiving NOs and deciphering what they really mean.

You’ll learn:

- How Danielle and Ooshma learned to keep their spirits up despite all the NOs they received

- How to be politely persistent with investors who won’t bother taking a meeting with you

- The various tests investors put first time founder through

- How to maintain a relationship with an investors even after they say NO

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 53: Why Investors Keep Saying NO To Your BIG Idea

All this month we’ve been exploring how startup fundraising is changing and why it’s going to continue to change in 2018.

We started off by talking about why you don’t want to reach out to an investor when you just have an idea, how to evaluate if seeking investment make sense for your business, and in the last episode why no matter how great your idea or business is you’re still going to receive a lot of NOs.

After what might seem like endless reality checks, I’ve saved the best episode for last: we’re going to be talking about what it’s going to take to get your first check from an investor ;)

Ooshma Garg  and Danielle Morrill are back. Ooshma is the CEO and Founder of Gobble (https://www.gobble.com/), and Danielle is the CEO and Founder of Mattermark (https://mattermark.com/). They've both recently become investment partners at XFactor Ventures (https://www.xfactor.ventures), an investment firm that's focused on investing in female founders and mixed-gender teams.

In this episode you'll learn:

- Some of the uncomfortable activities you’re going to have to do find that first investor

- How to approach the topic of check size

- How to leverage that first check and attract additional investors who may have been on the fence

- What the investment partners at XFactor Ventures are looking for and the types of startups they have already invested in

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 54: What It’s Going To Take To Get That First Check From An Investor

It’s a new month and with it a brand new theme for our upcoming Build episodes! When designing products we often think about usability: how easy to use a product is. But we often overlook another aspect of product design: accessibility. So all this month we’re going to dive into accessibility.

One reason accessibility gets overlooked is because we think it’s a challenge to prioritize it given a company’s size and resources. We may think accessibility makes sense for a big company, but a startup that is getting off the ground just doesn’t have the resources to incorporate it. 

Well, actually that’s not true...

In fact, accessibility maybe just the differentiator you need when it comes to product design that is going to give your product a competitive advantage and increase adoption!

And in today’s episode, we’re going to explore what accessibility is, why it’s important for any size company to incorporate, and show you how to do an accessibility audit for your product. 

To help us out, I've invited Laura Allen, who is the Accessibility Program Manager at Google for Chrome and the Chrome operating system. 

You’ll learn:

- What accessibility is and how it’s different from usability

- How accessibility influences user adoption of products

- How companies will benefit by incorporating accessibility into product development process, priorities, and core values

- Examples of common accessibility issues that impact all of us at various moments in our lives

- How to do an accessibility audit for your product and the 4 important principles to consider each time


Here are some additional resources to checkout that Laura mentioned in the video:

- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/

- Vox Media Accessibility Checklist: http://accessibility.voxmedia.com/

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 55: Why Accessibility Needs To Be Prioritized In Product Design

Wasn’t last week’s episode on accessibility in product design enlightening (https://soundcloud.com/femgineer/episode-55-why-accessibility-needs-to-be-prioritized-in-product-design)? Well get ready for more!

The goal of the last episode was to give you solid understanding of accessibility, and all the things you could think about when designing a product with accessibility in mind. But we understand it might be a lot to tackle, which is why in today’s episode we’re going to boil it down into 3 key tips that are critical and will make a big impact.

Laura Allen is back to enlighten us. Laura is the Accessibility Program Manager at Google for Chrome and the Chrome operating system. 

As you watch today’s episode you’ll learn:

- Why thinking about accessibility is not just one person’s job, but a team effort

- How to integrate accessibility into your product development process

- How to engage users and discover communities that are ready and willing to test products for you!

Here are some additional resources to checkout that Laura mentioned in the video:

Web Accessibility Udacity Course: https://www.udacity.com/course/web-accessibility--ud891
A11ycasts with Rob Dodson - YouTube series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNYkxOF6rcICWx0C9LVWWVqvHlYJyqw7g

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 56: 3 Key Tips To Keep In Mind When Designing For Accessibility

In the last two episodes of Build we tackled why accessibility needs to be prioritized in product design and the three key tips that are critical and will make a big impact on your product adoption. 

This week we’re going to answer two questions that inspired this series from one of our audience members Jane, we chose these two because we figured they might also be on your mind!

Jane wrote: 

Poornima, 

Thanks for tackling a wide variety of topics when it comes to building software products. One area that I'm curious about is accessibility. 

As a user experience designer, I know accessibility is important, but I've struggled when it comes to balancing out accessibility across devices and also making mobile apps interactive and fun without compromising on accessibility. 

How should I go about thinking about web versus mobile and balancing out fun and engaging interactions with accessibility in mobile apps? 

Sincerely, 
Jane 
                    
Jane thank you for writing in! 

Laura Allen who is the Accessibility Program Manager at Google for Chrome and the Chrome operating system is back and together we are going to be answering Jane’s questions in today’s episode.

As you watch today’s episode you’ll learn:

- What are the similarities and differences when it comes to designing for accessibility on web versus mobile devices

- How to balance balance out fun and engaging interactions versus accessibility on mobile devices

- The various types of accessibility testing: manual versus automated and tradeoffs associated with both

Here are some additional resources to checkout that Laura mentioned in the video:

- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/

- Android Developers SIte: https://developer.android.com/index.html

- iOS Human Interface Guidelines: https://developer.apple.com/ios/human-interface-guidelines/overview/themes/

- Android Accessibility Scanner: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.accessibility.auditor&hl=en

- Lighthouse: https://developers.google.com/web/tools/lighthouse/

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 57: How To Balance Accessibility And Interactivity Across Devices

I’m sure you’re aware of the talk and debate around the topic of diversity and inclusion. Maybe it’s left you feeling frustrated, tired, or downright apathetic…

I get it.

Much of the emotional rollercoaster stems from the challenges of navigating conversations with your teammates and peers on top of your day-to-day responsibilities.

Plus you’re probably wondering: Are these programs actually working?

You know how much I love busting myths! So in today’s Build episode, we’re going to talk about the issues specific to tech and provide you with some strategies for navigating those tricky conversations with your teammates and your peers. We’ll also dive into what isn’t working and why.

If you're curious about starting a diversity and inclusion initiative at your company or participating in another organization, then keep an eye out for the next episode where we'll do a deeper dive into a number of best practices. 

To help us out I’ve invited Melinda Epler and Wayne Sutton, who are the founders of Change Catalyst and Tech Inclusion (https://changecatalyst.co). 

As you watch this episode, you’ll learn the following:

- Why we may shy away from talking about diversity and inclusion

- How shaming people and companies doesn’t help the cause

- Why awareness isn’t enough — how to shift to being more process oriented

- Why it’s hard to take action individually and how to get support

- How to know if diversity and inclusion are worth it

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 58: How To Navigate Conversations About Diversity And Inclusion in Tech

We’re probably all aware of the famous proverb: “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

I think it’s very apropos when it comes to diversity and inclusion efforts. Too many of us think that having a diversity and inclusion initiative within our company will produce the change we want to see in the world.

Yes, it’s a necessary step, but sadly many initiatives and programs have failed to get off the ground and make a mark.

Why?

The first culprit is stopping at intentions and not really thinking through what is needed in terms of budget, resources, and timing.

The second culprit is not being realistic about expectations. Really asking the question what do you expect to see at the end of a year from a program and is that achievable?

Just like we build a business case around running an experience when it comes to our product, process, or policies, the same rigor needs to be applied to diversity and inclusion initiatives.

In today’s Build episode, Melinda Epler and Wayne Sutton, who are the founders of Change Catalyst and Tech Inclusion are back. 

We’re going to talk about best practices and what to look for if you are interested in starting a program at your company or participating in one outside.

So if you’re thinking about starting an employee resource group or another program, or want to know how you can improve an existing program, you’ll want to watch this episode to learn:

- Why it’s important to start with a business case — just like you would for any product, process or policy change in a company

- Why you can’t expect immediate results, but it’s OK to celebrate incremental progress 

- What to do when people within your organization say no to your proposal 

- The microchanges you can be putting practice daily as you lead and work with teams

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 59: Why You Need To Rethink Your Approach to Diversity And Inclusion

What’s probably the MOST popular and frustrating question you’ve come across when building a product: “How long do you think it will take to do task X?”

It’s frustrating on so many levels…

First, we need to produce an “accurate” estimate. If it’s off, there goes our ship date!

Next, we need to give a response that seems “realistic”, i.e. is going to meet the expectations or deadlines set by someone else.

Third, we need to be a fortune teller and anticipate things that come up in the course of completing task X. 

Finally, we have to do it the moment we’re asked because we’re expected to know how long any task will take.

I don’t know about you, but despite building and launching a number of software products over the past 14 years, I still struggle with estimating how long a task will take to complete.

There are a number of approaches and methodologies that have sprung up over the years such as Waterfall, Agile and Lean whose goal is to provide a framework that helps engineers, designers, and product managers to estimate how long something will take to build and ship. However, as you’ve probably experienced, each one of these misses the mark.

In today’s episode we’ll dive into the aftershocks you may experience when it comes to following one of these approaches and providing product estimates. 

Next week we’ll tackle an alternate approach that may seem too good to be true…

To help us out, I’ve invited Hiten Shah, who is the founder of a number of software products such as Crazy Egg, Kissmetrics, and his most recent project is called Product Habits (https://producthabits.com/).

As you watch the episode you’ll learn the following:

- Why we suck at estimating even if we’ve been doing it for a while

- Why we’re surprised each time our product estimates miss the mark

- What happens if we decide to “pad” our estimates

- What happens when we get rid of estimating altogether

- Why a task we think a task is 80% complete but really it’s more like 50% complete 

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).

Episode 60: Why It’s Hard to Provide Accurate Product Estimates

I don’t know about you but I HATE kale… That stupid leafy green vegetable with the ANDI score of 1000. It’s really hard to chew, and any time I see it on a menu, I skip it! But I get there are a lot of kale converts who go around saying, “Eat your veggies, especially kale!” 

OK, I know what you’re thinking, “What does this have to do with building software products and product estimates?”

Everything.

Just like we have to buckle down and eat our veggies (including kale) to stay healthy, there are a number of things we need to do in order to have accurate estimates that will ensure shipping a product consistently.

In the last episode of Build (https://youtu.be/Nw2808kLl3Q), we mentioned how a number of the current approach fall short. If you were left wondering what to do next, don’t fret, because in, today’s episode, Hiten Shah is back. He’ll be introducing a new approach to coming up with product estimates, and it’s coincidentally called the EAT method.

As you watch the episode you’ll learn:

- How to perform each step of the EAT method — Explore, Adjust, and Task

- What you CANNOT do with this approach

- How this approach reduces ambiguity, which is the #1 cause of delays and scope creep

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Build is produced as a partnership between Femgineer (http://femgineer.com/) and Pivotal Tracker (https://www.pivotaltracker.com/). San Francisco video production by StartMotionMEDIA (http://www.startmotionmedia.com/design/).