You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

Have a Burning Business Question? Ask the Expert: Matt Williams. The man that shadowed Jeff Bezos and later became the founder of Pro.com is looking to take your questions about leadership, scaling, funding, building a team, raising venture capital and determining product-market fit.

By Andrea Huspeni

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Just because entrepreneurship is considered a "hot" career path, doesn't mean it's easy. From determining product-market fit to building a team and scaling, founders are forced to go down an unknown path, one that provides little guidance.

Luckily, Matt Williams is here to give us a helping hand.

Williams is the founder and CEO of on-demand home-marketplace Pro.com. Launched in 2014, the company has raised $17.5 million from the likes of Maveron, Madrona and Andreessen Horowitz. It has 60 employees and has received more than $300 million in job requests.

Related: The 3 Key Elements to Make Your Business a Success

Pro.com isn't Williams' first rodeo. Williams' entrepreneurship journey started in the '90s, when he founded LiveBid.com, a software solution that was used by traditional auction houses to allow Internet buyers to bid during a physical auction. He ended up selling his startup to Amazon in 1999 and spent more than a decade managing several of the online retailer's divisions, including its web store, consumer payments and tech alliances. He also served as "executive" shadow to Jeff Bezos, who later made a personal investment in Pro.com.

Williams eventually left Amazon to take over the CEO position at Digg in 2010. During his time there, the company's metrics improved. After Digg was sold in 2012 to Betaworks, he joined VC firm Andreesen Horowitz. During this bout he served as Entrepreneur in Residence, assisting a number of the firm's partners while preparing to launch Pro.com.

While he has experienced successes in his career, Williams knows that entrepreneurship is a tough path.

"Being an entrepreneur can be a lonely job," he says. "Having advice and mentorship from those who have gone through it before can provide a sense of grounding, focus and direction, especially when it's in the face of dense fog or murky waters."

Related: How to Keep Leaders Focused on a Company's Most Important Metrics

Fortunately, he has signed on to be our expert for the month of July, and we couldn't be more excited. As someone who has started a company from scratch and also run large verticals, he is open to answering a variety questions. Think: leadership, scaling, funding, building a team, raising venture capital and determining product-market fit before you launch.

Submit your questions in the comments section below or tweet us, using the hashtag #ENTexpert. One topic will be selected by the editors of Entrepreneur and addressed by Williams in a weekly writeup.

Related: How to Keep Your Team Focused on Purpose, Identity and Alignment During Growth Spurts

Andrea Huspeni

Founder of This Dog's Life

Andrea Huspeni is the former special projects director at Entrepreneur.com and the founder of This Dog's Life.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business News

James Clear Explains Why the 'Two Minute Rule' Is the Key to Long-Term Habit Building

The hardest step is usually the first one, he says. So make it short.

Side Hustle

He Took His Side Hustle Full-Time After Being Laid Off From Meta in 2023 — Now He Earns About $200,000 a Year: 'Sweet, Sweet Irony'

When Scott Goodfriend moved from Los Angeles to New York City, he became "obsessed" with the city's culinary offerings — and saw a business opportunity.

Living

Get Your Business a One-Year Sam's Club Membership for Just $14

Shop for office essentials, lunch for the team, appliances, electronics, and more.

Business News

Microsoft's New AI Can Make Photographs Sing and Talk — and It Already Has the Mona Lisa Lip-Syncing

The VASA-1 AI model was not trained on the Mona Lisa but could animate it anyway.

Leadership

You Won't Have a Strong Leadership Presence Until You Master These 5 Attributes

If you are a poor leader internally, you will be a poor leader externally.