What is the billion-dollar idea about? You need to test run or carry out analysis to be sure it will succeed.

Get a lawyer friend to register a Limited Liability Company for you. It won't cost more than N90,000. After that you can apply for trademark which
usually takes 5years to come out, but then you can start your business while you strategize your plans.

Web based startup is good if you have something new that solves a problem not same old website with poor design and concept.

Finally make sure you have mapped out your revenue model that will be constant in at least two different ways.

cheeers!

expert101: What is the billion-dollar idea about? You need to test run or carry out analysis to be sure it will succeed.

Get a lawyer friend to register a Limited Liability Company for you. It won't cost more than N90,000. After that you can apply for trademark which
usually takes 5years to come out, but then you can start your business while you strategize your plans.

Web based startup is good if you have something new that solves a problem not same old website with poor design and concept.

Finally make sure you have mapped out your revenue model that will be constant in at least two different ways.

cheeers!

For a web-based startup, I suggest starting out first before registering an LLC. Most startups over in Silicon Valley did not start there, many started out in a youth's bedroom.

Which leads me to my next point, carrying out an analysis or test run is one way a on-the-ground startup is a money-guzzler than a web-based startup. There's hardly any formal analysis to do if you indeed have a unique idea and have done ample research yourself.

Oh, and the problem I foresee is the design and funding factors. Except you're a web developer yourself, you'd be spending quite a lot to getting anything near contemporary design. You could get a good developer to be part of your team, so you wouldn't have to pay a flat rate, else be ready to stick to 2010 web designs in 2013/2014.

Last but more importantly, the uniqueness of your idea contributes little to the success of a startup, if there's no drive, creativity and a clear direction slated out. Without those qualities you definitely would end up with an expensive failure.

With regards to your concern about your idea being stolen, welcome to Nigeria; a trademark may be awarded but a trademark is not a patent. Trying getting the backing of a capital fund or rich relative/friend, else you just have to start off and see how it goes. From what I know, geniuses usually have a couple more ideas up their sleeves. And your unique idea today would be a shadow of it's evolved form in 5 years, if you get that far.

Lord.

LordAdam:

For a web-based startup, I suggest starting out first before registering an LLC. Most startups over in Silicon Valley did not start there, many started out in a youth's bedroom.

Which leads me to my next point, carrying out an analysis or test run is one way a on-the-ground startup is a money-guzzler than a web-based startup. There's hardly any formal analysis to do if you indeed have a unique idea and have done ample research yourself.

Oh, and the problem I foresee is the design and funding factors. Except you're a web developer yourself, you'd be spending quite a lot to getting anything near contemporary design. You could get a good developer to be part of your team, so you wouldn't have to pay a flat rate, else be ready to stick to 2010 web designs in 2013/2014.

Last but more importantly, the uniqueness of your idea contributes little to the success of a startup, if there's no drive, creativity and a clear direction slated out. Without those qualities you definitely would end up with an expensive failure.

With regards to your concern about your idea being stolen, welcome to Nigeria; a trademark may be awarded but a trademark is not a patent. Trying getting the backing of a capital fund or rich relative/friend, else you just have to start off and see how it goes. From what I know, geniuses usually have a couple more ideas up their sleeves. And your unique idea today would be a shadow of it's evolved form in 5 years, if you get that far.

Lord.

This i Nice. Good talk

LordAdam:

For a web-based startup, I suggest starting out first before registering an LLC. Most startups over in Silicon Valley did not start there, many started out in a youth's bedroom.

Which leads me to my next point, carrying out an analysis or test run is one way a on-the-ground startup is a money-guzzler than a web-based startup. There's hardly any formal analysis to do if you indeed have a unique idea and have done ample research yourself.

Oh, and the problem I foresee is the design and funding factors. Except you're a web developer yourself, you'd be spending quite a lot to getting anything near contemporary design. You could get a good developer to be part of your team, so you wouldn't have to pay a flat rate, else be ready to stick to 2010 web designs in 2013/2014.

Last but more importantly, the uniqueness of your idea contributes little to the success of a startup, if there's no drive, creativity and a clear direction slated out. Without those qualities you definitely would end up with an expensive failure.

With regards to your concern about your idea being stolen, welcome to Nigeria; a trademark may be awarded but a trademark is not a patent. Trying getting the backing of a capital fund or rich relative/friend, else you just have to start off and see how it goes. From what I know, geniuses usually have a couple more ideas up their sleeves. And your unique idea today would be a shadow of it's evolved form in 5 years, if you get that far.

Lord.

Nice. Let me add in a little stuff, for a web based start up. Most of the the time (about 95% or so), your idea is not a unique or new stuff. Thousands of people might have thought about it and some might be implementing it.


Next, please know your limitation, don't try to be a jack of all trade. Then look for a co-founder that share the same dream or is not interested more in cash but to make a cool and successfull product. He will have to cover up your limitation. Mark zuckerberg did that, but in his case he got a C.O.O .

When you want to hire a web developer, you should hire one that can build a great website but as simple as anything to use. Oh i almost forgot scalability, efficiency, blah. You won't just hire a joomla freak or some other guys to get you a site at 15k. You would also need atleast a basic knowledge of the some technical stuff.

Forget about some stuff you read on techcrunch, etc. The stuff there and here are quite different.

elvis10ten: Nice. Let me add in a little stuff, for a web based start up. Most of the the time (about 95% or so), your idea is not a unique or new stuff. Thousands of people might have thought about it and some might be implementing it.


Next, please know your limitation, don't try to be a jack of all trade. Then look for a co-founder that share the same dream or is not interested more in cash but to make a cool and successfull product. He will have to cover up your limitation. Mark zuckerberg did that, but in his case he got a C.O.O .

When you want to hire a web developer, you should hire one that can build a great website but as simple as anything to use. Oh i almost forgot scalability, efficiency, blah. You won't just hire a joomla freak or some other guys to get you a site at 15k. You would also need atleast a basic knowledge of the some technical stuff.

Forget about some stuff you read on techcrunch, etc. The stuff there and here are quite different.

Great additions. However, about the stuff on Techcrunch, don't exactly forget them, just keep them in mind.

If and when your web-based startup becomes successful, those stuff would apply to you. For example, the guys in Jumia, OLX, IrokoTV use those stuff on Techcrunch and more, else it'd be hyper-difficult to secure VC funding.

I get the point, and it's not my intention to mislead the OP or a reader: start off simple along the lines of the comment I quoted (things are always different here), but keep the best practices stuff from Techcrunch in mind (or so you can remember your diary, evernote, Skydrive, GoogleDrive etc); so when you're successful you'd apply them.

The world is going global, and I do hope we join the train rather than make ours, same way we want our Universities to be like them, we should try to model our businesses (more like in the long-term) to fit worldwide best practices. It's more applicable for web-startups.

Just my 2 cents. Actually just take it with a grain of salt.

Lord

Hey Man!

Choose a unique name for your site first. You can research online on how to get an awesome name for your company. Then go ahead to register it at CAC- A lawyer can do that for you at 100K. Register a domain name to match it.

You cab apply for Trade Mark which will cover your Business Logo not idea. Online IP is not applicable here. Go ahead and create your site and start promoting it before some geek out their steals your idea or even launches before you do.