Matt Douglas: Launching MyPunchBowl's Party

By Behance Team

MyPunchBowl's Punchbowl, and Signing the Incorporating Documents

As creative entrepreneurs, Matt Douglas and his team have endured the struggles and triumphs of getting a new company off the ground. Sometimes you get beaten down, but you must stick with it...

MyPunchbowl.com presents a new approach to at-home party planning that is easy, comprehensive, and personal. Matt's team wanted to simplify the planning process for every stage of the party (from sending invites and choosing catering to renting equipment and planning an after party). Behance caught up with Matt to discuss how he turned an idea into a growing company. Mypunchbowl now has a loyal user base and was just featured in the Wall Street Journal.

Matt understands the sheer perspiration required to make ideas happen. "The hardest thing to do when you begin a startup is to keep at it everyday. There are always people around you who will tell you that it can't be done, it won't succeed, and who point out every weakness in your plan. I've had days where I feel like giving up altogether. I've had meetings that I walk out of feeling that there is no reason to go on. Here's my advice: on those days, close your computer, go to bed early and get back to it the next morning. Half of being successful is just showing up."

Seek motivation and navigation through feedback. "I'm really motivated by customer feedback and input. I love getting emails from people who are using the product, especially the people who are eloquent in their descriptions about how they are using MyPunchbowl. I care very much about user experience, so I spend a lot of time watching people use MyPunchbowl. Nothing can take the place of real user feedback."

The cool features aren't always the right features. "We figured out which product features were absolutely necessary. This is much harder than it sounds: we had to figure out what features would resonate with users, and we had to make sure we had a story to tell the press. It's really hard to cut features, but it's a critical step in the process to get your company off of the ground."

"The bottom line is this: if you are truly passionate about what you are doing, and if you are absolutely committed to seeing it succeed, then it will. You have to approach everyday with the goal of making some forward progress. If you make incremental progress everyday, it will start to add up."