investors, idea, angel-investorsI have an idea of which I am very confident about and I’m thinking to execute it. But my concern is that I don’t have much time for it, since as a process I have to learn first whatever I need to build it with and only then I can execute. But that is very time consuming.
So can I hire guys who can develop the idea for me?
I will give them equity shares. And if yes then, will an NDA work for securing the idea, from them? (I don’t want to patent an ‘idea’).
I will hire good developers and it will be obvious that they are better then me. This will then raise the following question: if I have just the idea and take care of investment how can I take more equity then them?
Will investors approve this? That I’m doing nothing and getting big chunk of equity.
And if I’m hiring a very good developer then is there any chance that he can walk away and execute my idea? As he can also find investors… And work on the project as I am doing.
In theory:
I've seen multiple posts around here with similar questions, but I'll help answer this one. I would recommend you first work on an MVP (prototype) of the idea if it is an software application you can use some of the resources below:
A working prototype is worth more than an idea.
Once you have a working prototype, present it to friends, family and the potential customers. Use the feedback to tweak the MVP and finally try to generate signups by setting up a launch page. This is a form of validating your idea and prototype.
Below is a great real world blog post about validation and surveying future customers:
http://www.kilometer.io/blog/talk-to-your-future-users-before-building-the-product/
Once you can prove your idea - now a prototype - has customers willing to invest (time or money) into your product, then I would recommend looking into the development portion.
I am pretty much just skipping to 4 in a round about way.
An idea is only valuable if it can make money.
And it can only make money in the long run if it is protectable.
Protectable:
What you need to do if you have not done it already is create a business plan. This is very important for two reasons: The first reason is that even though you may not have the actual product in hand, a business plan is the blueprint to your business. The other reason a very well developed business plan is important is that you can have something that is presentable to investors. When we talk about presentable, you also need to include a powerpoint highlighting the most important pieces of your business and most importantly “HOW WILL THE COMPANY MAKE MONEY?”.
When it comes to equity, you can really only give someone real equity when the company has been registered to your town or state as an actual entity and not just an idea. Even more important is that you never give out more than 50% of your company. That way you will always be in control.
You also have to consider that investors are interested in how your idea will make money as they are interested in the team that you have put together. Instead of hiring developers right now, network and pitch your ideas to normal people and see if they are interested. See what skills they have and you can offer them to work with you and help you develop it. This way you and your team can present the business plan to the investors. Also with a team, securing equity from developers who can steal you idea will become easier.
It is possible that hiring someone that may be better than you can take the idea away, so go ahead and create that NDA. Also do not give out the idea to the developer in its entirety. This means, have them develop your idea in pieces, those pieces will add up to the MVP(Minimum Viable product), which you can than share with investors. You also have to learn to take risks in how you execute your idea and who you put trust in.
I felt the same way as you when I had my ideas, but with a lot of online research and dedication I have learned skills necessary to start executing them. Good luck!
This is a great question.
I think your can hire a guy to qork on your idea. However, your idea should be more innovative when it come to the idea and not the technical side. Because, if you take a very advanced technical thin where not any developper can do it will be a problem to maintain this idea in the feature. Example: SaaS products like website visitors tracking or Web Analytics should be built by the founder.
If the innovation is coming from the idea which is really revolutionary and implementing it is simple go for it...
Cheers,
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