Wire Framing, User Testing, & The Dreaded Lurgy
Wire Framing, User Testing, & The Dreaded Lurgy
Plus, some awesome updates from The Fund Midwest!
Damn, it’s been a rough two weeks. Why?
I caught the dreaded lurgy.
I had no idea what the lurgy was before I came down with it. Here’s what I’ve learned. It’s fierce. It’s relentless. It’s British. And it’s imaginary AF.
But that doesn’t mean I didn’t suffer!
Noun
lurgy (plural lurgies)
(Britain, slang) A fictitious, highly infectious disease; often used in the phrase "the dreaded lurgi", sometimes as a reference to flu-like symptoms
I spent the better part of the last two weeks in front of my computer or in front of my TV, bingeing (yeah, it has an “e”) the shit out of Better Call Saul.
Alright people. Here we go. I’m going to tell everyone who will listen.
If you watched Breaking Bad and loved it, then started Better Call Saul but didn’t get into it, give it another go.
I made this mistake. I didn’t “get it” the first time I tried to watch it.
I’m glad I gave it another go because it’s SO. DAMN. GOOD. So good that I actually splurged and spent $9.99 buying Season 6 on Amazon after watching the first five seasons on Netflix. I couldn't wait to finish it.
Create series trailer below (without spoilers), created by a fan. That’s how much people love this show.
Better Call Saul starts off a little slow, but that’s because the backstory matters. The character development throughout the series is amazing (as per the usual from creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould).
Long story shot, watch the damn show. And if you’re from Pittsburgh, listen for the few “jagoffs” thrown in over the seasons. Because of course, one of the characters (Howard Hamlin) is from the Burgh.
And BIG bonus points: They did the ending of this series right. It’s basically perfect.
One of the reasons I caught the dreaded lurgy two weeks ago is because I gifted myself (for my very recent birthday) a brand spanking new, full-suspension mountain bike.
And this is a rule with me. As soon as I buy a bike it’s either an immediate illness, a moderately serious injury, or a long streak of horrific weather.
I’ve managed to squeeze in three rides while battling the lurgy. The most important question I have is…
Do I look sweet?
As always, big thanks to Aaron, Katharine, and John (pictured above) at Kindred Cycles for always making sure I have the right steed for the ride.
Happy Monday!
Let’s get to it.
The other thing I spent a lot of time doing over the last two weeks is wire framing a mobile app.
The main focus right now: user onboarding.
Also known as, the most important part.
I love building wireframes (see below). The process really taps into the little engineering / problem-solving part of my brain. It flips my ADHD hyper-focus switch to on real fast.
We’re almost done with the prototype. Now I’m looking for a handful of people to run through a user test with me over Zoom.
Are you a parent of a child under 18?
Do you have 15 minutes to spare the week of December 12th?
If yes, grab a 15-minute slot on my calendar.
Speaking of user testing…
I’ll be talking about user testing in my next edition of Microdose Marketing, one-minute reads and a few great links on specific marketing topics, delivered weekly.
Have you seen the first two editions? If not, check ‘em out!
Yep, the team over at The Fund Midwest is still cranking away, making investments through the end of the year.
As we approached the end of our first full year working as a team of General Partners, we decided it was time to revisit our flow. Because you know me, I love good flow!
🏆 Our goal: Create more transparency around our requirements, process, & timeline.
First, we decided to create a page that provides founders with more details on The Fund Midwest.
And yes, I used Notion to create it.
Second, we included a form that EVERYONE has to fill out to be considered for funding. It’s embedded in the Notion page.
Collecting everything through five different people / email addresses just wasn’t working. This will solve that problem.
Third, we’re switching up the cadence in which we make investments.
We used to vote weekly. Now, we’ll be voting monthly. Since this is a big change, we created a calendar to share all of the important dates associated with our fundraising cadence. Application deadlines, interview weeks, pitch days, and due diligence time.
If something doesn’t feel like it’s working for you and your team, take the time to talk through it and brainstorm ways to make life easier for everyone.
There are always solutions.
Grapefruit Health, founded by Eric Alvarez, is the latest edition to The Fund Midwest portfolio.
And we're stoked to have them in the community!
Over the past year, I’ve highlighted a bunch of the founders (and startups) from The Fund Midwest portfolio.
OpenVia
Character
REZA
BeyondRanked
Warp World
Historically, I told the story.
I decided to flip the script on these features moving forward. Instead of ME telling you about the startup, I’m going to let THE FOUNDER fill you in. I mean, they know it best!
Eric from Grapefruit Health was willing to be the first on this.
So here we go, meet Eric Alvarez.
In the interview, I asked five questions:
Tell us about your startup.
How did you find your first team members?
What’s been your biggest fuckup?
What’s one piece of advice you give to every founder?
What’s your superpower?
Check out the post here. Lots of great advice and insight in Eric’s responses.
That’s all for now.
Until next time,
✌️Lynsie
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