How he get the idea for Rightnow technologies

How does he test the business idea

From where he got the money for the business
Difference between sales and shipping
How much business need to be build before shipping first product
What are problems to get an investment for early stage ideas
Did right technologies ever raised external funding
Which function new company need (sales, marketing, engineering or
finance)

Gianforte vision
1) Build your business on a legitimate, real world value proposition

Internet going to disrupt that how customers communicate with the

companies, and Rightnow technologies can help in that regards.
You never in a position to learn when you are totally confused
We cant deal with the email from customers, as distribution channels is
collapsing companies vision was to hire more people
Putting questions on the website and see how customers interact with them
RIghtnow technologies never had a product rather just the idea
Iterative process with 400 calls featturate entrepreneurs need to boil the
ocean. It matter more on what you got before wants and desire of the
product
It takes 45 days with minimum viable product and knowing what customers
really want
Instead of building whole apparatus the company just build a feature
First reasons discovery process rather than business plan development

2) Initiate sales learning process sooner than later

Second reasons forced start to sales learning curve sheet of paper initial
offerings people confuse selling with shipping
Taking the order

3) Dont waste money, make it

The guy started the organic groceries renting the space, he just went door
to door and got the orders first, only overhead was the bicycle, and then he
bought a station wagon outgrew the garage at parents space. On
weekends open the retail. So that he can move to new place, and shut down
the original door to door service.

4) Accelerate time to market and time to profitability

 6 months writing business plans and 6 months trying to raise money
still not clear that you got the stupid idea
5) Be less likely to make big, financial mistakes -
When you dont have money you cant make a big mistake
False sense of security led to dot com bubble

6) Force yourself to unconventional thinking

7) More freedom and flexibility only masters you want whom you trying
to serve customers, pushed out of the business coz its being back by
the VC

8) Own much of what you create if not all

Why not raise VC

1) Safety net of VC masks the hard questions you want to ask from your
business or its viability
2) Raising money takes time away from customers
3) Adds additional number of masters whom your company trying to
serve
4) With money you can make a fatal mistake
5) Money removes spending discipline
6) Fixes your exit strategy if you want it or not
7) You sell equity very dearly

Sales Job # 1
That will tell that people want to buy
Make a quick web page and grab orders
First 6 employees very quickly
Sales is life blood of the idea
Telesales appropriate lines 800 line number
Dont be cheap
Find a tactic and build a strategy around it
Business is like war - making bullets and shooting bullets building a
product and selling the product and everything else is to support this mission
There is always another way
Class of customers people who own dogs for example