Dear programmers, Why haven't you created your own Facebook, instagram or any other idea you have?

What do you think are your limitations.


Seun,lalasticlala,mynd44

Drybones:
Dear programmers, Why haven't you created your own Facebook, instagram or any other idea you have?

What do you think are your limitations.


Seun,lalasticlala,mynd44

We have created many. Just waiting for it to blow.

Nigeria does not have her own silicon valley like the U.S nor Toronto tech like Canada... All we have is computer village
On a more serious note... Developers here in Nigeria do not have a good playing ground compared to their foreign counterparts.

Drybones:
Dear programmers, Why haven't you created your own Facebook, instagram or any other idea you have?

What do you think are your limitations.


Seun,lalasticlala,mynd44

I'm not really sure, but I think here in Nigeria, we tend to be more inclined to jobs and pay and overlook the potential of ideas.

I mean most of us here are really really skilled, some even better than our foreign counterparts, but it's the ideas they come up with, innovations, value addition, etc that sets them apart.

Mind you, I never said getting a job is bad, I just answered the question OP asked...

"Why haven't you created **your own** Facebook, instagram or any other idea you have?"

Code is not the problem but distribution is. A tech startup is still a startup and startups are hard. A lot would have to go into it to make it a success. You need a team, frontend developers, backend developers to build out your APIs, UI and UX designers. We are in the age of not just functionality but shit has to look good. Marketing to get users. Marketing isn't cheap. A lot of developers make this mistake, they spend months to years building what they think could be the next Google without thinking of distribution. How do you get users? How do you monetize what you are building? These are hard questions that need to have answers before you start. Time is very limited. If you spend a year building something that is useless. A year of your life has gone that you will never get back again.

As a programmer I prefer to think on a micro level. I only want to build shit I can build by myself and distribute on already known platforms. Stuffs like wordpress plugins, Shopify apps, Magento extensions. SAP apps and Salesforce apps. Distribution is taken care of with this platforms while I only worry about marketing which isn't that difficult once I can get something up there. Besides some billion dollar startups have grown out from this platforms. Docusign started as a Salesforce app. UI path started from the SAP app centre. Micro level thinking.

It takes a lot to create a tech startup.
First comes the knowledge of programming, which is required to put together the required
tech stack to create a performant application.
Then next comes the business of programming which like every other business includes but is not limited to: validation, achieving product market fit, marketing, acquisition channels, customer retention and growth methods
To achieve the second stage, you will need a lots of experience under your belt; or at least somebody with lots of experience there as a cofounder.
Else, you will create trash.

p.s.: Talking about numbers, you don't necessarily need a team unless you're limited in tech which itself is not bad. In that case, you're screwed. Thats why it's good to have spent the years before taking that adventure. It helps to keep cost down at least a 2-man team i.e. tech and marketing. I built my product myself, zero external help, schema design, frontend, backend, UI/UX and cloud deployment and it took me 6mths+, cos i had a 9 -5 alongside.
It currently has over 250k+ lines of code.

The idea is there but the finance/investors is the problem.
Africans are not ready to support their own as far as tech is concerned.

dawnomike:
Nigeria does not have her own silicon valley like the U.S nor Toronto tech like Canada... All we have is computer village
On a more serious note... Developers here in Nigeria do not have a good playing ground compared to their foreign counterparts.

U forgot our computer village doesn't deal in tech

Starting from small

I'm building an app for my faculty... I intend turning it Nationwide later and add a lot of features...

That's my startup

I have started building this project of mine (the dream) since 2017 and I finished before middle this year, I have a team but funding dey yab us all...
No money, we still dey search sha...
the target na 300K or 200K+

currently now na only 29K man don get...

aronski:
I have started building this project of mine (the dream) since 2017 and I finished before middle this year, I have a team but funding dey yab us all...
No money, we still dey search sha...
the target na 300K or 200K+

currently now na only 29K man don get...

300k is nothing o. The money have finished on one Google ads campaign and you never pay salary. If you need funding very badly and you feel your idea is solid apply to y combinator.

tensazangetsu20:

300k is nothing o. The money have finished on one Google ads campaign and you never pay salary. If you need funding very badly and you feel your idea is solid apply to y combinator.

I haven't launched it yet, we have a plan. That amount will help us, and what is "y combinator" pls

aronski:


I haven't launched it yet, we have a plan. That amount will help us, and what is "y combinator" pls

It's a startup accelerator.

tensazangetsu20:

It's a startup accelerator.

Ok, am reading about it now...
Yo! my team are few of my course mates. Though I built the program on my own but when I got to school I had to invite them in. though they are not good in coding like me but they know how to manage systems I built (e.g. control panels for the program etc.)

is there any way again, the y coordinator is away, no 9ja base?

aronski:

Ok, am reading about it now...
Yo! my team are few of my course mates. Though I built the program on my own but when I got to school I had to invite them in. though they are not good in coding like me but they know how to manage systems I built (e.g. control panels for the program etc.)

is there any way again, the y coordinator is away, no 9ja base?

y combinator doesn't care if you're in Afghanistan, of course, they do . .
but you get the point