Priyanka Vazirani
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Introduction
On this episode of The Entrepreneur Ethos, we have a fascinating interview with Priyanka Vazirani. The discussion covers a wide range of topics related to entrepreneurship and building successful ventures. Priyanka shares her experiences and insights as a co-founder of a social startup and her current role in creating a platform for content distribution. The conversation starts with an exploration of how her team curates and summarizes content from trending topics on social media. Utilizing Chargebee and AI technology, they work 16 hours a day to provide scheduled and non-time-sensitive content for their users.
Priyanka emphasizes the importance of complementary co-founders and the need for trust and shared vision in building successful partnerships. During the interview, the importance of discoverability and instant visibility in capturing users' attention is discussed. Priyanka highlights the unique selling point of her platform, providing a glimpse of content to help users decide if it's worth investing their time in. She also shares statistics on user engagement, with 50% of daily active users clicking on at least one piece of content. The conversation then shifts towards Priyanka's journey as an entrepreneur.
She shares her experience starting a social startup called Benefactory, which successfully ran campaigns in India and the US. However, negative media portrayal led to a decline in participation in one of their campaigns. The discussion explores different business models, successful book strategies, and the value of building a community for entrepreneurs. Towards the end of the episode, the host expresses gratitude to Priyanka for sharing her insights and experiences. They invite listeners to share and review the podcast, join the email list, and check out the host's book "The Entrepreneur Ethos."
Timestamps
[00:01:14] Finance journey led to social impact startup.
[00:03:40] Epsilon appeals to both Gen Z and Millennials.
[00:10:11] High school friends turned cofounders in startup.
[00:11:15] Friends start endurance events, fascinating cofounder dynamics.
[00:16:54] Dashboard curates, AI summarizes, content scheduled. 24/7 coverage.
[00:18:55] Everyone is a media company; find distribution.
[00:21:37] Longer content still important for browsing. Discoverability key. Preview before committing.
[00:25:33] Different skills, divided tasks, shared vision. Volv: Gen Z and millennial go-to app.
[00:31:52] Sanpar's newsletter had a powerful referral engine.
[00:35:33] Involving customers in the product development process.
[00:37:39] Great convo, thanks for being on show
Key Topics
- Introduction to the podcast and guest speaker Priyanka Vazirani
- Discussion on the team's access to a dashboard showing trending topics on social media
- Explanation of the editorial team's role in determining important and interesting content
- Overview of the tools used for summarization, including Chargebee and AI technology
- Explanation of the process involving curation, summarization, and going live with content
- Insight into the team's operating schedule, including weekends and breaks
- Speaker's experience in starting a venture focused on endurance events
- Discussion on the appeal and motivation behind tackling new challenges
- Importance of complementary co-founders and the reasons for startup failure
- Emphasis on trust and shared vision in co-founder relationships
- Speaker's journey of starting in high school, parting ways, and coming back together for their current venture
- Exploration of interests in high school and early interest in business or entrepreneurship
- Acknowledgment of the importance of long-form content with a focus on discoverability
- Unique selling point of the platform in providing a glimpse and instant visibility for users
- Mention of the high engagement with 50% of daily active users clicking on content
- Explanation of the browsing experience and comparison to "try before you buy"
- Speaker's pursuit of a finance career after business school and conversation with friend Shannon
- Creation of social startup Benefactory and successful campaigns in India and the US
- Negative media portrayal impacting participation in a US campaign
- Examples of successful business models such as newsletters and premium subscriptions
- Discussion on the app "With The Band" and its value in connecting with fans
- Potential of this model for creators
- Importance of pre-launch marketing and gathering feedback for successful products or books
- Characteristics of successful books aligned with reader preferences
- Challenges and value of building a community as an entrepreneur
- Case study of Emily Wise and the success of building a community with Glossier
- Conclusion of the conversation, thanks to the guest, and mention of Pete from The Neuron Daily
- Emphasis on getting noticed and distribution
- Call to action for listeners to share, review, join the email list, and check out the book
- Invitation for questions, recommendations, and feedback from listeners
- Discussion on every person and startup being a media company themselves
- Challenge of finding and publishing content for a wider audience
- Introduction to the platform and its goal of complementing creators' work
- Explanation of the summary and link-out model without taking away from creators
- Focus on becoming the go-to app for quick tech content for Gen Z and millennials
- Description of the company's organization and complementary skill sets
- Importance of reaching the same vision with different ideas on how to achieve it
- Mention of Sanpar, the newsletter, and the referral engine
- Discussion on the "Trends" newsletter focused on in-depth research
- Comparison of word-of-mouth referrals and "dark social" to random ads in terms of trust and effectiveness
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