Episodes

  • How to Validate Your Startup Idea Before You Build

    How to Validate Your Startup Idea Before You Build
    May 23 2026
    In this episode of The Pre-Seed Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle a question every idea-stage founder faces: how do you know your startup idea is worth building before you write a line of code? They break down the concrete validation method used by the founders of Buffer, who built a landing page and collected email signups before the product existed. Lucas explains the 'smoke test' approach—selling the promise before the product—and shares specific metrics that signal real demand. Luna pushes back on the limits of landing page validation and offers a complementary tactic: running a concierge MVP with five paying customers. They discuss Dropbox's famous demo video as a validation case study, and walk through the minimum thresholds that suggest an idea has legs. If you're sitting on an idea and wondering whether to quit your day job, this episode gives you a repeatable framework to find out without spending a dime on development. #StartupValidation #IdeaStage #PreSeed #Buffer #Dropbox #SmokeTest #MVPMinimumViableProduct #ConciergeMVP #LeanStartup #FounderAdvice #BusinessIdea #NoCode #CustomerDevelopment #PreRevenue #ProductMarketFit #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • How to Legally Split Equity Before You Have a Cofounder

    How to Legally Split Equity Before You Have a Cofounder
    May 23 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna tackle a topic every idea-stage founder dreads: how to split equity with a cofounder before the company has any real revenue or product. They break down the concept of vesting schedules, discuss the Slicing Pie model for dynamic equity splits, and walk through a real example of what happens when a founding team of two splits 50-50 but one person drops out after three months. Lucas explains why a four-year vesting schedule with a one-year cliff is the industry standard and what happens if you skip it. Luna shares a cautionary tale about a founder who had to buy back 40% of his company from an early cofounder who barely contributed. They also talk about restricted stock agreements, 83(b) elections, and how to have the 'breakup conversation' on day one instead of waiting for it to explode. By the end, you'll know the concrete legal steps to protect your startup's equity from day one. #CofounderEquity #StartupLaw #VestingSchedules #FounderAgreement #SlicingPie #EquitySplit #83BElection #RestrictedStock #IdeaStageStartup #PreRevenueEquity #FounderBreakup #EquityProtection #StartupMistakes #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #PreSeedPodcast #Entrepreneurship #LegalForStartups Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    10 mins
  • How to Price Your First Pre-Revenue Startup

    How to Price Your First Pre-Revenue Startup
    May 22 2026
    Episode 5 of The Pre-Seed Podcast dives into the tricky art of pricing for idea-stage startups. Lucas and Luna explore why pre-revenue founders often undervalue their offering, using the real-world case of Buffer's transparent pricing experiment and the lessons from Atlassian's zero-sales-team model. They break down cost-plus, value-based, and competitor-based pricing, and explain why charging based on perceived value—even without a product—can signal confidence to early investors. The hosts also tackle the psychology of anchoring, the danger of pricing too low to attract early users, and how a thoughtful pricing page can serve as a proxy for market validation. If you're a founder struggling to put a number on your MVP, this episode offers concrete frameworks and a memorable rule of thumb: double what you think and test from there. Plus, Luna challenges the 'free forever' tier strategy with data on conversion rates and customer lifetime value. #PreSeedPodcast #IdeaStage #StartupPricing #Buffer #Atlassian #ValueBasedPricing #CostPlus #MarketValidation #FounderAdvice #VentureCapital #PricingStrategy #PreRevenue #StartupTips #BusinessModel #SaaS #LeanStartup #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • What VCs Look for in Solo Founders vs Cofounder Teams

    What VCs Look for in Solo Founders vs Cofounder Teams
    May 22 2026
    In this episode of The Pre-Seed Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle a question every idea-stage founder wrestles with: does going it alone kill your chances of raising a first check? They dig into data from a 2025 study showing solo founders raised 22 percent less on average across pre-seed rounds compared to two-person teams — but also that solo founders who land a lead investor see higher valuations per dollar raised. Lucas breaks down the specific risks VCs flag for solo operators: founder dependency, decision fatigue, and the lack of a built-in sounding board. Luna pushes back with examples of successful solo-funded startups like Basecamp and Mailchimp, and the hosts explore how the definition of 'cofounder' is shifting in an era of fractional talent and AI copilots. They wrap with a practical framework: investors don't necessarily need a cofounder — they need evidence you've filled the gaps. If you're a solo founder wondering whether to find a cofounder or just work harder to prove you're enough, this episode gives you the lens VCs are using mid-2026. #SoloFounders #CofounderTeams #PreSeedFunding #IdeaStageStartups #VentureCapital #StartupAdvice #FounderDynamics #EarlyStageInvesting #SeedFunding #BusinessStrategy #Entrepreneurship #FounderMarketFit #Basecamp #Mailchimp #GitHub #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ThePreSeedPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • How to Build an Investor-Ready Pitch Deck Before You Have a Product

    How to Build an Investor-Ready Pitch Deck Before You Have a Product
    May 21 2026
    Lucas and Luna dive into what it actually takes to build a pitch deck when all you have is an idea. They break down the single most important slide for idea-stage founders — the problem slide — and walk through real examples from Airbnb, Uber, and a startup called Flow that nailed it with zero revenue. Lucas shares a specific framework: the 'before-after-bridge' structure that turns a vague concept into a compelling narrative. They also discuss how many slides you really need (spoiler: not twelve), the biggest mistakes first-time founders make with market sizing, and why investors at the pre-seed stage care more about your insight than your traction. Luna pushes back on the obsession with financial projections and they land on a practical checklist founders can use before sending their deck anywhere. No fluff, no jargon — just a clear playbook for turning an idea into a deck that gets a first meeting. #PitchDeck #IdeaStage #PreSeed #StartupFunding #VentureCapital #FounderAdvice #Business #Entrepreneurship #Airbnb #Uber #Flow #ProblemSlide #MarketSizing #Traction #InvestorMeeting #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ThePreSeedPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • Why Most Investors Pass on Idea-Stage Founders

    Why Most Investors Pass on Idea-Stage Founders
    May 21 2026
    In Episode 2 of The Pre-Seed Podcast, Lucas and Luna break down why so many idea-stage founders get rejected — and what the ones who get funded do differently. They walk through a real case: a fintech founder who raised $500,000 with nothing but a deck, a waitlist of 200 users, and a clear thesis on a regulatory shift. The conversation covers pattern-matching in early-stage investing, the difference between traction and conviction, and how to frame risk so an angel says yes. Along the way, they discuss how the current market — May 2026 — has reshaped what pre-seed investors actually look for, from revenue signals to founder-market fit. If you're building before product-market fit, this episode offers a concrete look at how the first check actually gets written. #PreSeed #VentureCapital #StartupFunding #AngelInvesting #Fintech #FounderAdvice #Business #Technology #StartupStrategy #FundraisingTips #IdeaStage #FirstCheck #InvestorMindset #PitchDeck #Traction #FounderMarketFit #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    10 mins
  • How Two Founders Snagged Their First Check

    How Two Founders Snagged Their First Check
    May 19 2026
    In this first episode of The Pre-Seed Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of how two first-time founders secured their first $250,000 check from a micro VC. They break down the exact pitch deck slide that got the investor to say yes, what the founders got wrong on their first try, and why most pre-seed funding comes from people you already know. The conversation covers the difference between pre-seed and seed rounds, the role of warm introductions versus cold outreach, and the surprisingly low bar for traction at this stage. Lucas shares data from a recent survey of 100 pre-seed investors showing that 70% of first checks come from existing relationships. Luna pushes back on the 'just network harder' advice, asking what founders with no network should do. By the end, listeners will know one concrete thing to do today to start building their pre-seed funding pipeline. #PreSeedFunding #MicroVC #FirstCheck #StartupFunding #PitchDeck #FounderStories #SeedRound #VentureCapital #EarlyStageStartups #FundraisingTips #WarmIntroductions #NetworkEffects #InvestorRelations #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #PreSeedPodcast #IdeaStage Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins