MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

Blavity aims to create products and experiences that celebrate black people, addressing the unique challenges faced by black individuals and people of color that the industry often ignores.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I realized that no one was designing products specifically for black people, despite the numerous problems they face that are overlooked by the industry.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

We started Blavity as an email newsletter, curating the top 10 things black people needed to see each week, which included videos and other content.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

Initially, we faced challenges with our website as users preferred YouTube over our platform, leading us to pivot our strategy based on user feedback.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I believe in failing fast and adapting quickly, which is essential in the technology space, especially in consumer social media and community engagement.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

We prioritize understanding our audience's needs over our own assumptions, which helps us create content that genuinely resonates with them.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

To grow our community, we focused on promoting creators and their work, ensuring that we provided resources and support to help them succeed.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

By empowering creators and focusing on community growth, we have been able to build a passionate audience that actively engages with our content. About 50% of our content comes from the community, which has its challenges, but in the long run, it's scalable and empowering for users to share their stories and ideas.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I made the mistake of comparing my startup to competitors who had already raised money, which led to unrealistic expectations about my own fundraising efforts.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I realized I wasn't ready to raise funds because I didn't have the right story; investors couldn't understand the ecosystem I was trying to build with Blavity.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I didn't sell my story well to investors, which led to challenges in raising funds, but eventually, we built a strong case that made it hard for them to ignore us.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

We bootstrapped for a year in San Francisco, which was tough, and when I raised our first round, it mainly went to cover expenses I was already paying personally.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

Now, my role focuses on people, hiring, and sharing Blavity's story, as we are a unique mix of media, tech, and culture.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

Blavity is a media company and lifestyle brand with conferences like Afrotech and Empower Her, and we recently acquired a company focused on Black entertainment news.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

We decide what to test based on numbers and traction, and we found that creating a separate brand for women allowed us to grow faster than our main brand.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

I advise female founders, especially Black women, to be unapologetic about their big vision and not to wait for validation from others.

MD

Morgan DeBaun

08/03/17

@ Y Combinator

Don't ask for permission or wait for someone to tell you it's okay to pursue your goals; embrace your potential and take action.

Morgan DeBaun on Reaching 20M Millennials - With Kat Manalac at the Female Founders Conference

Takeaways