[hai2ashwin]

Danielle (if you read this), I was rooting for you to succeed (as a fellow entrepreneur in the same space). I hope you would write soon on what worked and what didn't.

Data business is hard for a few reasons:

1. Data is a commodity until it is not. People's contact information is a 'done to death' problem but not solved yet (and probably not solvable completely)

2. Data is capital intensive

3. Data businesses (and the modern ones at that) are more annuity businesses and less like SaaS. Monthly recurring patterns take time to emerge and you need investors that understand this dynamic. They will if you prove that your core hypothesis works and customers are buying more (if not following a strict monthly pattern).

4. You need to have enough money and execution speed to prove your hypothesis. Unlike software where customer development and execution discipline can help you launch a good product, in the data business you need to stitch partnerships early on with data sources. That's not easy.

You tried. Again, I'd love to read your reflections on what you could've done differently.

[confiscate]

+1 I too was also rooting for you, Danielle, since the early days when you started Referly before pivoting to Mattermark. Back then there was not a lot of YC companies, and even fewer female YC founders to root for.

+1 to a reflections blog post! Hope you succeed in the future--the best is yet to come.

[droopybuns]

+1. You had an impact.

[randfish]

+1 Also rooting for you Danielle - and always will be. Can't wait to see what you do next, and if I can ever be helpful, don't hesitate to ask.

[matco11]

+ same here

Also, I’ll miss the newsletter

[nedwin]

The author of the newsletter is now publishing the “OnDeck Daily”. Basically same awesome content, different name.