#StartupsEverywhere profile: David Baxter, Founder, Big Pixel
This profile is part of #StartupsEverywhere, an ongoing series highlighting startup leaders in ecosystems across the country. This interview has been edited for length, content, and clarity.
Helping Entrepreneurs Launch and Grow Their Ideas
Launching a startup is hard, but Big Pixel—a strategic design and development firm based in Raleigh—is hoping to give founders the resources and support they need to succeed. The firm works with entrepreneurs to streamline their ideas and produce engaging user experiences that are needed to attract customers and attention. We spoke with David Baxter, Big Pixel’s Founder, to learn more about his company’s work, the Raleigh startup ecosystem, and what policymakers can do to support startup success.
Can you tell me a bit about yourself and your background?
I have been a developer for 20 years. I started out right right after I graduated from Texas A&M in 2000, at the peak of the first dot-com boom. I graduated with a degree that was basically a mix of computer science and business and went into consulting. I worked in Houston building energy trading platforms, but I got bit by the design bug fairly early—way before there was really the idea that software could be beautiful.
However, as time went on and design became more important, I became the user experience (UX) design guy in my consulting role. I started to develop an expertise in building and designing interfaces. I eventually made it up to Raleigh and on different projects I was slowly able to marry my two passions of design and development. In 2010, I left the accounting division and started a new division to build custom software for clients. Every once in a while a new startup would come in. I found I really loved working with entrepreneurs and when I started Big Pixel in 2013 I decided to continue that path and primarily work with startups.
Tell me more about your firm, Big Pixel and the work that you do?
Big Pixel is a development and design consulting company that works with startups and established corporate partners. We focus on helping our clients with new initiatives and strategies. By going out on my own, I was able to create a unique company where design is core to our being. Whether working with a startup or an existing business, our goal is to partner with them and show them what technology can and can’t do.
Big Pixel has worked with more than 20 different startups over the last seven years in some capacity. Whether it’s advising, UX design, or building the entire tech stack, help them build their businesses from the ground up. We’ve helped create several lifestyle businesses, which in my opinion, are greatly overlooked within the startup space. We really try to push companies to focus on revenue, because the user acquisition strategy has repeatedly been shown to be very risky. We want to build companies that allow business owners to make money. We do it all, from fleshing out the startup’s idea, to consulting on monetization, to designing the platform to make it a great UX, and then developing the app to the proper scale that’s needed to succeed.
Entrepreneurs are by nature very optimistic and they have grand ideas, but they often have little money. We consult with them and we help them narrow their vision down into something valuable. So we whittle sometimes broad ideas into a spark that is worth building. If we want to truly help startups, we have to tell them when they’re not ready to launch and scale so they can do their homework, maybe raise more money, and then come back when they’re positioned to succeed. Our job is to give them the best chance to succeed.
How can entrepreneurs build startups outside of the major coastal tech hubs, particularly in the south?
I am a member of a co-working space called HQ Raleigh, and we’ve been there almost since it started. And just embracing the local community and using the local resources available to you—like a co-working space and your other local businesses—is huge. Being a startup is very challenging, and the community is vital to its success.
Most of the midsize Southern cities have a strong sense of identity and community. They’re all in it together and are proud to be from these places. People in the South are very friendly, so it's easy to network. You never know what’s going to happen in a meeting, but if you put yourself out there and create connections then it makes it infinitely easier to succeed. These smaller cities in the South are really great for developing a meaningful network. The communities are open and there is very little ego. What they’re sometimes missing is a failure culture that the big boys in New York and San Francisco have developed. If you fail in the South, you tend to disappear, which is a shame because people who have failed often have a lot to teach.
What are some of the characteristics of startups that are able to scale and grow past the early stages of development?
You know you’re an entrepreneur when “the slog” doesn’t scare you.Almost every entrepreneur believes that when they turn the lights on to their idea, that everyone will immediately flock to it. But that’s not realistic. What separates success and failure is when you can get through the slog of the first few years and make people care. Most people fail during this slog. Making people care is really hard, but it is truly the entrepreneur’s only job.
That first year or two does not give the startup a lot of positive feedback. Revenue is low, you don’t have a lot of customers, and everyone is telling you that you’ve built the wrong platform. But if you push through that, and use all of that hardship to learn and improve, then you will be well-positioned to succeed.
It requires a passion beyond wanting to just sell your company. For example, when we first meet with a startup that wants to work with us, a “yellow” flag is when, in the first meeting, they are already talking a lot about selling. A startup likely won’t survive the slog if they are overwhelmingly focused on selling their company in five years. They need to be passionate about what they are doing.
What resources, support and assistance do startups and entrepreneurs need from policymakers in order to thrive?
A great example of a local resource is the co-working space that I mentioned, HQ Raleigh, which was created by the city of Raleigh about eight years ago. They wanted to get involved in the local startup ecosystem, so they started HQ through public-private partnerships and created this community space for startups. It was spearheaded by the local government, and that's awesome.
I’m generally a small government kind of guy. But nudging startups in the right direction and creating valuable partnerships is something that the government is uniquely situated to do. I think creating a space where it is safer to fail, and where you can raise capital without having to worry about some of the investment strings is very important.
Another good example is the NC Ideas grants program, which lets startups apply for seed capital to get started. Along with that capital comes connections in the entrepreneurial space, which can have something like a small “Shark Tank” effect. Beyond the money, it's also important to have the government telling people that they back you and believe in your idea.
The government has a very powerful megaphone, and if they use it well it can be transformative. If we invest in startups and small businesses, then the commercial market for entrepreneurial investment will be multiplied in terms of revenue. If we give startups resources that teach them “how to fish,” then we can raise everyone—especially minority and women-owned businesses—by making it easier for them to raise money and safer for them to fail and learn from their mistakes.
What are your goals for Big Pixel moving forward?
The coronavirus pandemic has forced Americans to embrace tech in new ways. That is our speciality. We help entrepreneurs and business leaders discern what tech can and cannot do. So we want to be a safe place for entrepreneurs. We want to be a resource in the community that can help businesses tackle the pandemic, and help startups survive this change in the economy.
All of the information in this profile was accurate at the date and time of publication.
Engine works to ensure that policymakers look for insight from the startup ecosystem when they are considering programs and legislation that affect entrepreneurs. Together, our voice is louder and more effective. Many of our lawmakers do not have first-hand experience with the country's thriving startup ecosystem, so it’s our job to amplify that perspective. To nominate a person, company, or organization to be featured in our #StartupsEverywhere series, email edward@engine.is.
