The first thing a startup should do is find a stable, sustainable, business model which will actually turn a profit and will work for the future.
Without a sustainable income one could argue this is an illusion and a glorified hobby.
Trying to figure out what your customers want and creating an easy to use product for them to create revenue is a great start.
- [?] This paragraph is a bit iffy.
One can only be certain they found their business model if they validated the model and both the growth hypothesis and the value hypothesis.
The Value Proposition Canvas could be a helpful tool.
Reference
Ries, Eric. The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses. 1st ed, Crown Business, 2011.
Highlights or timestamps
The main goal of any start-up is to find a business model that is profitable and sustainable.
— ^fcfff8 from The Lean Startup
If you want your company to be more than just a temporary pet project that will sooner or later dwindle and die, you must find a way to acquire customers and earn money by serving them
— ^c9e8d8 from The Lean Startup
turn their desires into constant revenues.
— ^d71a36 from The Lean Startup