1. Which world-problem is your startup trying to solve and how did you come up with the idea?

Brands know content is valuable and the best way to connect with their consumers, but they struggle to understand just how valuable, what is the ROI of their efforts. My co-founders and I started NewsCred back in 2008 before content marketing really took off, our idea was to provide a new revenue stream for publishers, while also providing marketers with relevant content licensed through publishers that they typically couldn’t get otherwise. Now that content marketing is central to the marketing engine, opening up new opportunities, we’re focused on using our technology and expertise to help marketers understand their strategy – what’s working, what’s not – so they can work their way along the content marketing maturity curve. With NewsCred, marketers also have the tools to plan, create – licensed and original content – distribute, and measure their entire content marketing at scale, and prove content marketing ROI for their business.

2. Did you find the funding exercise manageable or a nightmare? Tell us when you felt there was a real breakthrough.

I’ve been through several rounds of funding and of course, each round has its challenges, but overall I’ve learned a lot and built up great relationships along the way. The first round was tough because I did not know a single investor and we were in Switzerland. But we caught a lucky break because I networked my way to an investor named Fred Destin in Geneva. After a lot of hustle, I managed to get lunch with him, and he introduced me to AngelList, and we were one of the first companies mentioned/listed there. The moral of the story is that fundraising, like most things, is about hustle.

3. With the startup growth, are you noticing a corporate culture evolution? And if yes, what are the tangible signs of it?

It’s a very exciting time, we’ve grown a lot from our little one-room office to employing 200 people around the world. And yes, as we’ve grown our needs have changed, resulting in further change. We’re not becoming more corporate – but we certainly have a better process and team structure. Not everyone is a ‘jack of all trades’ anymore and people have a singular mission. However, there is a great deal to be said about the culture of a small company and as a team – the entire company that is – we work together to ensure the values and hard work that got us to where we are today are not lost as we grow.

4. If you could go back a few years, what would you do differently? Do you think that what you would have done differently applies only to your startup, or could be a one-fit-all advice for other digital startups?

It would have helped a younger me to know that hearing the word “no” isn’t always a bad thing. The best pieces of advice I ever received, which applies to everyone – not just a business or a startup – is that if you’re not being told “no” enough then you’re not pushing hard enough.

5. Of all the marketing activities you have done (events, competitions, articles, advertising, crowdfunding, etc), what do you think gave the best return of exposure and why?

It’s going to sound a little self-promotional, but if I’m being honest our content site, Insights has really been one of our greatest marketing drivers. It provides a source for us to connect with our customers and educate other marketers, regardless of if they are customers or not. It also serves as a place of inspiration and ideation. When I look at the hard numbers, as all executives do, our content generates approximately 40% of NewsCred revenue helping to drive our social following to more than 100k followers on Twitter and 20k on LinkedIn as well as our newsletter subscription base, which is also over 100k. We also put on a killer content marketing event every year, #ThinkContent, and this year marked our fifth anniversary for the event.

6. 50% of all startup do not make it past 5 years and close. 53% aim to sell, ideally to larger corporations. 46% of the founders start a new one, sometimes on the ashes of the previous one. And 16% aim to launch an IPO. If you could fast-forward in the future, what do you think will realistically happen to your company?

When and if we think market conditions are right for an IPO, we may explore that option but today we’re focused solely on growing our business. We want to build an enduring, profitable business that makes our customers wildly successful!

Read the article now “Nature vs. Nurture: Are Startups All the Same?“

Or read the other interviews.