For @Codecademy's first 4yrs, we were in the
every wk. Those weeks, we made $0. The past 4 years, we've been out of the headlines. Now, we've raised $40m, our first raise in ~4yrs.
How'd we go from the center of the hype cycle to the brink of bankruptcy and back? Read on...
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We pledged to do things differently this time: we focused not on vanity metrics, but on real metrics. We stopped tracking press mentions and started tracking how quickly we could get to cash flow positive. It felt impossible, but we made it happen 18 months later.
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For the past 4 years, we've built Codecademy to be a generational *and* sustainable company. We've built a $50m+ revenue business, controlling our own destiny, all while avoiding the hype we'd built the first four years of the business.
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This time, we raised
not on hype, but on substance, with a business growing nearly 2x/yr scale, with a growing market and a product that helps millions of learners access economic opp. But we know the truth: fundraising doesn't mean much. Here's what does:Pokaż ten wątek -
Building a sustainable company: raising money doesn't make you sustainable. Understanding how to make more than you spend does.
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Ignoring the hype: I find this one hard myself. Every day, one of your competitors is in the news or goes viral on Twitter. Don't pay attention. Your Twitter followers don't pay the bills. If someone *really* wants something you've built, they'll pay you for it.
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Most startups die of self-inflicted wounds, not because of their competitors. Keep your head down and focus less on competitors and more on product market fit. Hire the right people and remember that the user is your customer, and your investors and journalists aren't.
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We've learned these lessons
@Codecademy, but have tons more to learn. One of the hardest things in startups is to be persistent, but it's easier when what you're building makes the lives of tens of millions of learners better. Come join us: https://www.codecademy.com/about/careersPokaż ten wątek -
To read more about where
@Codecademy is going:https://medium.com/about-codecademy/codecademys-quest-to-connect-learners-to-economic-opportunity-71a194206a8d …Pokaż ten wątek
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congrats! Your story touch me! I've been on social media detox/absence since I joined SY cause I wanted to focus on the company. Prob the best decision ever <3
Dziękujemy. Twitter skorzysta z tych informacji, aby Twoja oś czasu bardziej Ci odpowiadała. CofnijCofnij
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@benadida related to our previous conversation. Sometimes I feel hype and virality tactics applied that contributed to early stage high valuations is also a big risk..this thread shows the other side of the story..Dziękujemy. Twitter skorzysta z tych informacji, aby Twoja oś czasu bardziej Ci odpowiadała. CofnijCofnij
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Wydaje się, że ładowanie zajmuje dużo czasu.
Twitter jest przeciążony lub wystąpił chwilowy problem. Spróbuj ponownie lub sprawdź status Twittera, aby uzyskać więcej informacji.
to stay alive. All the press clippings didn't add up to enough $ to demonstrate we'd built something people would pay for.