It’s no secret that most startups fail. But what’s less obvious is when they fail. Spoiler: it’s usually long before they launch.
In this episode of SaaS That App: Building B2B Web Applications, Aaron Marchbanks and Justin Edwards sit down with Evan Shubin, a serial entrepreneur, startup operator, and founder of Results.now, to explore the hidden reasons why the vast majority of B2B tech startups flame out before they even get their product in front of real users.
With decades of startup experience and over 25 launches under his belt, Evan pulls no punches about what makes or breaks an early-stage startup. From skipping customer discovery to obsessing over features nobody asked for, Evan reveals the common traps founders fall into and how to avoid them.
The #1 Mistake: Falling in Love with Your Idea
Startups often begin with a eureka moment. But according to Evan, assuming you’ve nailed a real problem from day one is a rookie move. Instead of building first, founders need to talk to people. Lots of them. Evan champions “blue-sky” customer discovery: asking open-ended questions like “What do you hate about X?” to uncover pain points before ever touching a wireframe.
The National Science Foundation’s I-Corps model, which recommends 100 interviews a week, is his gold standard. Why? Because your first 10 interviews are often misleading, people want to be polite, and everyone loves a good startup story. Real insights come from volume and consistency.
MVPs: Fast, Dirty, and Necessary
Once you’ve validated the problem, the next step is to build an MVP as fast and cheaply as possible. This is where tools like Figma shine. You can create clickable, non-functional prototypes that let you test assumptions without writing a single line of code.
But even here, founders mess up. Evan warns against overengineering the MVP. Many want to build a fully polished product before launch, but in his words: “Don’t let the great get in the way of good enough.” A minimal feature set is the goal, just enough to get user feedback. Anything more is a waste.
Why Founders Should Stop Charging Early Users
You might think getting revenue early is a good sign. Evan disagrees. Charging for a pre-MVP product slows growth. The goal at this stage is adoption, not cash. In fact, one of Evan’s startups failed precisely because they insisted on monetizing too early.
Instead of obsessing over revenue from day one, focus on gathering feedback and understanding how users engage with your product. In many cases, that early traction will matter more to investors than actual dollars.
Choosing the Right Development Team
Once you’re ready to build, selecting a technical partner becomes critical and tricky. Evan admits he’s had more bad than good experiences with dev shops. His advice?
- Look for firms that have been around for 5+ years
- Seek out teams with a high volume of past projects
- Get references not provided by the team themselves
He also shares a geographic tip: avoid development shops fat on government contracts, like many in the DC area. They often lack the hunger startups need. Offshore devs? Totally fine, if there’s a native English-speaking project manager between you and the engineers. Without that, communication breaks down fast.
Avoiding the “Nice to Have” Trap
A common reason startups fail is building something that’s just “nice to have” rather than a must-have. Evan once acquired a cool software product in the trade show industry, thinking he could sell it to his 70 happy clients. He couldn’t. It was a nice-to-have, not a solution to a shark bite problem.
The lesson? If people aren’t desperate for your solution, they won’t pay for it, and they won’t stick around. Engagement and retention matter more than downloads. Don’t just measure vanity metrics. Track if users actually come back and use your app regularly.
Final Thoughts from Evan
Evan reminds us that starting a company is inherently contrarian. You’re betting you can do what others have failed to do. That kind of confidence is essential, but it needs to be paired with discipline, humility, and relentless testing.
So if you’re thinking of launching a B2B web application, take Evan’s hard-won advice:
- Validate the problem thoroughly
- Build fast, dirty MVPs
- Choose partners wisely
- Focus on adoption, not revenue
- Don’t fall in love with your idea
Most importantly? Know when to double down, and when to walk away. Because at the end of the day, the startups that survive aren’t the flashiest or the best funded. They’re the ones that listen, adapt, and solve real problems for real people.
Evan’s Background
Evan Shubin is the founder of Results.now, a pioneering fractional C-suite operator for startups, and co-founder/COO of Half a Hire. With over 25 years of experience launching and leading startups, he has helped build and scale more than 25 ventures across esports, AI, and web applications. A respected voice in startup operations and product development, Evan brings valuable insights on building software that solves real business problems, drawing from his extensive experience as both an operator and investor in the B2B technology space.
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