THE ULTRALIGHT STARTUP

A rising entrepreneur in the tech world shares a new strategy to build a successful startup with just a little bit of money and a lot of creative thinking.

In recent years, as companies like Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare, and Dropbox have sprung out of nowhere to become global sensations, the world of tech startups has become hotter than ever. The bad news is that everyone wants to be the Next Big Tech Startup. The good news is, with barriers to entry as low as they've ever been, anyone can try. The Ultralight Startup shows how to build an astoundingly successful tech startup with nothing but a good idea, a little money, and a lot of passion. Drawing on the lessons of well-known startups, as well as his own experiences, Jason Baptiste walks would-be tech moguls through every stage of the process, from testing a concept to acquiring customers to determining the best pricing model, in a cheap, practical way. Baptiste knows first hand that you don't need an MBA, a trust fund, or even experience running your own company. His most recent venture, OnSwipe, which he co-founded in mid-2010, earned its first $1 million in seed funding after just five months and has been heralded as one of "10 NYC Startups to Watch." Among his strategies: Build the product you wish you had: When Dennis Crowley originally came up with the concept for Foursquare, he was simply trying to figure out a way to keep track of what his friends and former coworkers were up to. Chances are, if you wish a product existed, someone else will be willing to pay for it. Don't worry about perfection at first: Startups win on speed. It's more important to gain feedback quickly on an early version of your product than it is to tweak it to death. Try your idea out on a few people before you launch and use their advice to make it as good as possible later. The Ultralight Startup is a comprehensive, easy-to-follow guide that will prepare any entrepreneur to take their idea to the next level.

Jason L. Baptiste is the CEO and co-founder of OnSwipe, a platform that gives publishers a way to rendercontent on mobile touch devices. In 2011, he was named one of the Best Young Tech Entrepreneurs of the year by BusinessWeek, and OnSwipe was selected as one of eleven inaugural participants in TechStars, a program for rising tech entrepreneurs. Baptiste is also the co-author of OnStartups.com, a popular blog and community for entrepreneurs. He has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Mixergy, TechCrunch, and other publications. Visit JasonBaptiste.com