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Ask HN: YC rejection

5 points by golubevpavel ↗ HN
Just got rejected with http://www.appodeal.com/, mobile ad revenue optimizer.

I applied with the following video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdR_2AODciE&feature=youtu.be

Even though we are very close to break even and have a verified business model and growing fast, it did not work out.

I guess single founder is one of the reasons.

"adtech" I imagine, could be another reason.

May be I just did not do well on the video.

Anyway, would love to hear feedback from the community and will continue to grow the company.

15 comments

[ 3.5 ms ] story [ 47.3 ms ] thread
golubevpavel
Frankly speaking, this is my second rejection to YC. In 2013 we applied as a team of 4 with a secure mobile instant messenger.

We did get an invitation to the interview, however did not pass it. I guess last time we did not convince them, the our team could execute. Official response from Paul, however, stated, that we lacked a well-done marketing plan.

petervandijck
You lacked a marketing plan or you lacked a road to market? Do you remember how it was phrased? (Just curious)
angersock
The only feedback you need is from your customers--everything else is just bullshit and navel-gazing. Unless pg or sama is going to cut your company a check (and your rejection suggests that they won't), their approval or acceptance shouldn't matter to you one iota. That you didn't get into YC doesn't matter, and doesn't reflect poorly on you or your business.

Get back to work. :)

golubevpavel
Well, I believe it is worth it to stop talking to customers and coding for a moment and try to analyze, why the heck you did not get approved to YC.

I'm not upset, actually it's a good thing that I don't have to give out 7% of my company for $15k. But nevertheless, worth it to analyze.

[dead] angersock
Why is it worth it to analyze?

Again, they're not your customers.

If your goal is to get into YC, analyze. If your goal is to build a successful business, don't analyze. Anything else is masturbation.

reviyou
it's no longer 15k for 7%, isn't it? it's 120k

no sane developer would trade his idea he spent several months working on for just 15k, even if it's YC. That's not how investor's market is right now.

golubevpavel
I was not aware of that :)
reviyou
sorry, I don't think it makes you feel any better :)

but hey, make a first million, have a successful exit - next time apply with a billion dollars idea - they'll take you seriously!!

reviyou
Yes single founder is definitely an issue for them, However I am surprised they didn't even invite you to the interview. Are you currently in US? Could be a reason.

Anyway looks like you are doing great, if you ever want to do something together - let me know, I'd love to know more about how many people you guys have and for how long have you been operating etc.

I am getting a sense that you either should have a strong founders team or a lot of traction\revenue with an opportunity to become very big. In your case maybe having a team of people also "too late for YC", and you can become successful on your own.

I also heard that they don't like video made of pieces, who knows what some alumni might not like when he sees your application.

Regards,Alexandr Alex@reviyou.com

golubevpavel
Thanks for the feedback. I would love to learn more about your product. Lmk if you want to meet for a coffee in SF downtown.

Yeah, I live & work in San Francisco at Rackspace co-working space on Folsom. It's a great place to be. Definitely recommend to everyone.

Always glad to share about myself & Appodeal.

I've been working on it for almost a year now.

There is a team of 12 super strong developers in Russia & Ukraine, that have been working with me for 4 years already. Very loyal. I myself have a strong technical background and remote teams management experience.

Business & sales team consists of me, my operating director and a first sales guy we are going to hire next week and we are all here in SF. So we have a pretty strong tech team (because we don't compete for developers with Google/Facebook). And we have business presence in SF as well.

Traction is pretty good too. We've launched in January and already have $200K monthly revenues and some net revenues as well. Each day we receive 15-25 new sign ups and retention is close to 100%. We are about to launch aggressive marketing this month.

reviyou
Also even if you have a cofounder - it really matters for YC what your guys accomplished, strong technical experience doesn't matter much, i believe they are looking for stanford\mit grads or somebody with a strong\successful business experience so that they can make a safe bet.
golubevpavel
Well, I was looking for a co-founder, but I did not find the right fit. Nowadays it does not make sense to give out 50% of the company to a random guy, that's why I hired a business developer and offered an option.
atroyn
YC is not in the business of 'safe bets'. You need only look at the backgrounds of many of YC's most successful companies to see how wrongheaded that perspective is.

Full disclosure: Several friends have done YC, none are Stanford/MIT, all first time founders.

shortoncash
How did you get the revenue you have today?

I'm just curious how you started this thing and developed it.

sidcool
I like your idea. But sadly I am in no position to help you. I wish you good luck!!!