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Comment by ryanwanger | Hacker News Reader

Are all tech meetups like that? At the Boulder New Tech Meetup, every company is asked how they will make money. No one boos - it's acceptable, and completely expected.

I think it's a common misconception that every web company is innovating, when most are just using existing tech to solve a problem (or provide a solution that is better than the existing ones).

If you're developing some new technology that will change the world for the better, then I don't care if/how you'll make money. Otherwise, it matters.

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I have mixed feelings about the money question. On one hand, it's good to hear if the founders have thought about it and have a realistic answer. On the other, there are so many different ways of monetizing things, many of them are obvious to anybody who's experienced in business, and the exact way in which a particular new business does it is probably not too important. Whatever works, works. And they may even have to try several different things to see which is most effective. But the "how do I monetize this" aspect is generic and reusable across many different types of businesses. It's generally not part of a startup's secret sauce. The product, the service, the "what problem are you solving that people will pay you to solve" element is.

Btw, I also attend Boulder New Tech Meetup regularly. Awesome series of events. However, as I write this I realize I just missed the Colo Green Tech Meetup tonight -- gah!

I think that any entrepreneur needs to evaluate their position before they ever enter an industry. Walking blindly into business is rarely a mistake people can afford to make.

You need to either asks yourself (1) can I generate insane conversion or users or (2) how will I monetize the business. If you can generate the user base that Facebook, Twitter or drop box has then monetization is irrelevant because any effective and intelligent management team can devise a business model when the customers have already walked into the store. I can't remember exactly but I think Ron Conway said that you don't need a business model when you have traffic like google's.

But if you can't generate the users, then you need a plan to take to the bank. So, I think that if the ny tech meetup can't be realistic then it's like masturbation. It's great until you realize that you're screwing yourself lol.

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