How to stay relevant in the 21st century
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In this episode you’ll learn:
- Why you should never worry about people stealing your ideas
- The 4 attributes that drive a creative entrepreneur
- The 2 vital attributes any successful business needs
- How research and testing will help you find your focus
- Why you must not give up on your dreams
Ali Clabburn is responsible for creating the largest and most successful car sharing service in the U.K.
Developed from humble beginnings, involving a turkey shed, Ali describes the challenges and successes of his journey as a creative entrepreneur.
In this episode, you’ll hear about the biggest challenges for startups now and the ingredients needed to succeed with your big ideas.
Ali explains why he set up Liftshare.com to solve his own problem and why having the right support behind a product or service is critical to success.
Items mentioned in this episode (quick access):
Early days
[0:00:53] Introducing this episode: the first in-person chat for Inspirational Creatives.
[0:01:52] Liftshare.com. From student squat, to turkey shed, to a renovated Eastern Electricity building in Norwich.
[0:02:37] Ali describes how his ideas for Liftshare.com began. School trips. Dusseldorf.
[0:03:40] Bristol, England. How Ali couldn’t afford to get back home again.
[0:04:15] Ali’s friend Joe who is now in Kenya. Simple beginnings on the internet.
[0:05:42] Studnets.com.
1998
[0:06:05] Freshers fairs. Encouraging people to sign-up. 6-month business plan.
[0:07:15] Ali shares the two vital attributes every successful business needs.
[0:07:40] Helping out Glastonbury festival 1999. Critical mass. Match-making.
[0:08:45] Bidding for the first tender. Finding a demand overnight.
[0:09:17] Rolling out the new model. London. Leeds.
[0:10:08] Working in a post room to fund development.
[0:10:35] Eric Ries book The Lean Startup.
“I remember reading The Lean Startup…we were the lean startup.” – Ali Clabburn
Initiatives that work…and those that don’t
[0:10:57] Changing the business model having listened to customers. Ideas that didn’t work.
[0:11:57] Building a minimum viable product.
[0:12:19] The mindset of a startup: what you must retain to succeed.
Positive disruption
[0:12:45] Setting up a competitive arm within the same company.
[0:13:36] How disruption is improving his business.
[0:14:04] Looking after the consumer first.
[0:14:40] Customer’s needs and wants changing quickly. Brand. Experience. Knowledge base.
The mindset of an entrepreneur
[0:15:35] Ali explains what he believes is at the core of being an entrepreneur.
[0:16:03] Spreading himself too thinly.
[0:16:26] Seeing amazing opportunities that will make many people rich.
[0:16:50] Four attributes that drive a creative entrepreneur.
[0:17:26] Ali describes the importance of the values of Liftshare.com.
[0:18:41] Rob asks Ali whether he recognised, at an early age, if he was going to be an entrepreneur. Fixing his sister’s bike. Go-karts.
“It’s about caring about something enough to be willing to want to do something about it…being brave enough to give it a go…to love learning…and to not worry about…the financial reward.” – Ali Clabburn
Inner resourcefulness
[0:19:26] Being the son of a turkey farmer.
[0:19:50] Setting up Liftshare.com to solve his own problem.
[0:20:43] Getting involved in the environmental movement.
Start sharing
[0:21:00] The fun of sharing. Common sense.
[0:21:56] Why customers love Liftshare.com.
[0:23:02] Their biggest challenge.
[0:23:17] Community. Marketing. Raising awareness. A network of champions.
[0:24:10] The biggest challenges for startups now.
Staying relevant
[0:24:40] The benefits of working with a London based agency.
[0:25:00] A whole new business model.
[0:25:40] Ali describes his biggest challenges.
[0:27:00] Why having the right support behind a product or service is important.
[0:27:45] How a competitor made the market completely valueless.
[0:28:22] Ali explains the importance of early market research for any startup.
[0:30:24] What Ali would have done differently.
The learning and tweaking cycle
[0:31:12] Ali describes how he persisted in the early days of Liftshare.com.
[0:31:55] Finding a coder. Implementing ideas. Learning fast.
[0:32:12] A/B testing.
[0:32:49] Creating an amazing market by changing stuff every day.
[0:33:00] Getting as much feedback as possible. Getting people to sign-up.
[0:33:50] Getting 1,000 followers in the first year.
[0:34:06] Enabling 120,000 shared trips a day.
Meeting The Queen
[0:34:18] Winning the Queen’s award in 2008.
[0:35:10] Winning the Business in the community and environment award.
[0:35:55] Prince Charles. Sir Steven Redgrave.
[0:36:25] Rob asks what advice Ali would give to his younger self.
[0:38:20] The one thing Ali is nervous about.
[0:38:30] What Ali is excited about.
[0:39:50] Ali shares where you can find out more about him and his work.
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Links and resources mentioned in this episode:
If you enjoyed this podcast, you’ll also like:
- Ali on How To Create Happy Customers With Disruptive Innovation
- Chris Brogan on Owning The Game You Want To Win
- Anything is Possible with Michael Gebben
- Greg Hartle on Solving Problems with Curiosity, Resilience and Grit
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