Looking for Right Hand Person and my story so far(full time startup job)

When I started working on the idea of RingAd, some time around October last year, I setted some goals for myself for 3 months. I planned to make something very quickly, there were certain things involved, the server side application, the web frontend and the android application. My idea was to make something very very quickly and spend most of the time on business sides of things. I was working out my home town and I was working alone. There is very good friend of mine Abhishek Jain, when I was in Bangalore and planning to move back to Rajasthan, during August, we talked that we would work together on something when I go back to Rajasthan and I decided that I wouldn't be making anything related to web (but I couldn't follow up on this particular thing :D) . When I moved back to Rajasthan, I had this idea of RingAd and I talked with Nitin ,about it, he was very excited about it, in fact we discussed in length about how to develop it and who would handle what part. And then I moved to Phalodi. I decided to put up a webpage of RingAd, Nitin Booked the domain and we had a landing page, which I designed in couple of hours.

Then I talked with Abhishek about this thing, he sounded excited. Abhishek decided to look at the social media side of website, we didn't put enough information on website till then, but it was just enough information. Abhishek started doing some campaigns on facebook and twitter, mainly was to put up some comments, posts on android related pages, forums and discussions etc. Our idea was to not to make something in vacuum and to gauge the interest in the idea from the intended audience. We put up a facebook like button on website. There were more than 100 likes on page in the first week of our launch of landing page, all due to the efforts of Abhishek alone. I was quite impressed and it also helped me to decide on pursuing the idea. Meanwhile I was learning android development and getting recharged at home, it was my first visit to home after my previous startup went down. Me and Abhishek discussed and brainstormed on various marketing ideas, agreed upon some ideas, ridiculed some ideas, executed some and discarded some.

Nitin, couldn't continue to work on RingAd, because of some personal reasons. After one month, we updated our landing page to put up a better designed landing page and little more information, Abhishek suggested that we should put up a better page and more content, since we have got some user attention. I finally decided to do it, I made second version of landing page and put it up, it took around 5-6 hours this time, but the result was good. I also decided to see if we could get patent on some of the technology we are developing, so I contacted a friend of mine, I met him while I was in Bangalore, who is a patent lawyer. I sent him an initial draft of patent and he worked on it to make a patent application for us.

Then in November, I registered for unpluggd event and nominated RingAd to showcase there. We got short-listed among top 30 startups out of 200+ applications they got. Top 10 startups were invited to showcase on stage, we were not among them. But that was fair enough, we didn't have any product ready then. The android app was just a working prototype and proof of concept, a landing page with signup for early invites and around 100 signups. I went to attend Unpluggd to network and see other startups. Fortunately we were given a chance to present to Nexus Partners about our idea in back stage meeting, it was good experience, I was of course not expecting anything.

From Pune I decided to go to Bangalore for a quick visit. So I landed back to Bangalore on 21st November. I was planning to go to Startup Center in Chennai from there. That trip couldn't happen. While back in Bangalore, I met with some really very interesting people, Anand Babu from Gluster, Venky from plivo, Sameer from morpheus and few others. I had decided that I would be using every day in Bangalore for doing interesting things and moving forward and would make decisions quickly. I was planning to go back by 10th December.  Morpheus had deadline for their 7th batch applications on 28th November, I put in my application.

During my 20 days in Bangalore, till 10th December, I worked upon the release version of our android app, created the whole API on the server side, which would be used in the application. I had total focus on the design aspect of everything, from website to app to icons. I knew that if I pull off a really good design, only than I can stand some where. So the work started to develop the new frontend, the app user interface, icons, banners etc. We were facing a problem of how to get ringtones done for our advertisements, I decided to experiment with a marketplace on our website where freelance music composers can be connected to advertisers. After finishing it up, I sent some emails to few mailing lists and googled to get contacts of freelance music composers. I wasn't sure how it will go, but I was surprised to get really good response from indie music composers. India is full of talent indeed. So, one big problem was solved, we now have number of music composers to work with.

Abhishek had taken a full time job at some good organization, so he couldn't continue to work with me full time, but he's still helping me on every bit he can, his initial help really helped me to pursue this idea.

Some time around 15th December or so, I got an android market developer account, at that time I was ready to put the app in market. I had 3-4 design revamps of app before the final version. My plans to go back home were getting delayed but for good reasons. In the last week for December 2011, I released the app in android market. I announced the app release on various android forums, mailing lists, facebook and twitter.

The first reaction from users was very exciting and people appreciated app, concept, design and execution. It was really good to hear great things on your first release. Flat 3 months from the day I started, I was able to release the app, I was quite happy about it, because I know, it's just one small step. Releasing fast and focusing on a great execution was my goal for those 3 months, I am glad I was able to achieve it.

It's a start, a good start. The last day of 2011 was the most exciting day, we had a small party at my home in Bangalore and was pleasantly surprised to get news of being part of themorpheus batch 7. More good things.

Now is the real challenge. Starting up is tough, I know, but I know that even more tougher is to go to the next level. It's just too hard. I have started up earlier and have experience from it, which helped me in executing better this time while starting up. But the next level is hard, I've never done this before, so it's more challenging, exciting and unknown. Good thing is I've with me now people who have been their and done that, to advice on time when I require. That's really amazing thing to have.

Next is, I am now looking for someone who can join me full time at RingAd and marry this idea, willing to take it to next level and give everything it takes, along with me. If you are the right person which matches my synergy and have the similar passion level, you are someone who is itching to quit your job to do something challenging, out of this world, you are ready to dive into unknown and come out with diamonds, why are you not? Please do yourself a favour, let's talk.

Please go through this excellent blog post from Sameer about who I am looking for. http://www.guglanisam.me/dont-look-for-a-co-founder-go-find-a-right-ha

What you get? Some pay, some equity and a chance to chase the dream, entrepreneurship is a dream, let's chase it together. Join the party. Write to me at shreekant[at]ringad.net or ping me on twitter @skbohra123

PS- we would be working out of this beautiful penthouse style small apartment in Bangalore, so, there's another reason to quit ;)