Frank Gruber 
Startup Mixology 
Tech Cocktail’s Guide to Building, Growing, and Celebrating Startup Success

Shake up the market with these key ingredients to a successful
startup

Entrepreneurship starts with an idea and a dream: a dream of a
better world for others, and a life less ordinary for yourself.
These days, more people than ever are full of world-changing ideas
and, thanks to technology, have the means to bring them to life.
But many ideas remain just ideas, and many dreams just dreams.

Startup Mixology is first and foremost a book about
turning your ideas into action. From the cofounder of media company
Tech Cocktail, a veteran entrepreneur and investor who was named
one of the most connected people in tech, this book covers the
basic ‘ingredients’ of winning entrepreneurship. No abstract
theories here — it shows you how to tackle everything from
idea generation to launch to marketing to funding and how to start
getting things done.

Once you’ve taken that first step, the journey has only begun.
Startup Mixology tells it like it is — and it’s not
easy! You’ll learn about the harsh reality of starting up: what
happens when you offend your customers, get no attention, or run
out of money. These are the stories you don’t always hear in the
media.

In the end, Startup Mixology is an optimistic book. You
can do this — and you can have fun doing it, too.
Every chapter also shows you how to enjoy the journey along the way
– because if you don’t, what’s the point of it all? From cake
baking to workations to llama parades, you’ll learn how
entrepreneurs around the world stay sane, reduce stress, and
celebrate the positive. This may seem fluffy, but it’s actually one
of the biggest secrets of successful startups.

Inside, you’ll find the stories of companies like Maker Bot,
Word Press, Zappos, Basecamp, Uber, and more. Hear in their own
words how they survived the startup phase, and learn from the
straightforward and conversational Frank Gruber, who has met
thousands of entrepreneurs and watched them grow their
businesses.

In many ways, entrepreneurship will be the most difficult
undertaking of your career. But if you can find the right balance
of hard work, support, and celebration, it can also be the most
rewarding. Startup Mixology takes you through the whole
process from start to finish, so you can begin the incomparable
journey of turning your great ideas into great startups.

Table of Content

Foreword Tony Hsieh ix

Introduction 1

Part 1 GETTING STARTED 5

1 Entrepreneurial Mind 7

2 Ideas 21

3 Action 31

4 Formation 47

Part 2 PRODUCT 59

5 Product-Market Fit 61

6 Launch 73

7 Metrics 85

Part 3 TEAM AND PEOPLE 95

8 Team 97

9 Culture 109

10 Celebration 123

11 Relationships 135

Part 4 SALES AND MARKETING 147

12 Marketing 149

13 Sales 165

Part 5 MONEY 179

14 Bootstrapping 181

15 Funding 193

Part 6 GROWTH AND CHANGE 211

16 Failure 213

17 Success 223

Conclusion 237

Acknowledgments 239

References 243

Index 247

About the author

FRANK GRUBER grew up in the Midwest heartland and is an
entrepreneur, new media journalist, and investor. His alma maters
include Purdue and Northwestern respectively. He cofounded Tech
Cocktail in 2006, which has grown into a hub for the creative
class, offering tech startup focused news, events, and resources.
Frank has built and launched products for the masses while at AOL,
Tribune, and Classified Ventures along with startup efforts like
Thankfulfor, Splog Reporter, and more. As a journalist his works
have been featured in a number of top media publications. He was
named by Forbes as one of the most connected people in tech.
Frank is also a Venture Partner with Crystal Tech Fund.