This week's additions focus on founder stories, strategy, and finance, with new digests from Founders, Acquired, and Ahrefs. Highlights include Eighth-grade dropout who didn't strike it rich until age 50 An LGBTQ community service — not Lyft or Sidecar — invented peer-to-peer ride sharing.

Case studies

Podcast

Kirk Kerkorian: From penniless dropout to billionaire dealmaker

Founders March 31, 2019

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Case studies 10

Business models 7

Resilience & grit 6

• Eighth-grade dropout who didn't strike it rich until age 50
• Never invest in a business you don't control — cost him $160M
• Same playbook, bigger scale: buy cheap, add expertise, sell at peak

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Case studies

Podcast

How Lyft survived a decade of near-death to go public

Acquired March 30, 2019

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Case studies 10

Fundraising & VC 7

Pivoting 5

• An LGBTQ community service — not Lyft or Sidecar — invented peer-to-peer ride sharing.
• Uber's self-destruction doubled Lyft's market share after near-death by undercapitalisation.
• Lyft loses money on every marginal ride, not just at the fixed-cost level.

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SEO

YouTube

Keyword research that drives traffic and conversions

Ahrefs March 27, 2019

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SEO 10

Conversion rate optimisation 6

• Search volume is irrelevant if the keyword has no business value
• Target all four intent stages, not just buyers ready to purchase
• Reverse-engineer competitor top pages to find untapped keyword gaps

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