If you and your team happen to know key people in high places (“high” in terms of their position in your industry, or “high” in terms of the number of zeros on the investment they want to give you), then fantastic. You’re ahead of a lot of people. If you don’t, being tirelessly committed to leveraging your existing network and seeking out opportunities to make connections with powerful people is part of your job description. Either way, having an ability to form new relationships and nurture and maintain existing ones is important for the vitality of your business.
2. Money
Kind of a no-brainer, but had to throw it in here because it is definitely a thing startups need to succeed. Just how much money you need can vary – maybe it’s as little as $50k or many millions of dollars – and there are a lot of different ways to get it. Whether it’s seed money from your own pocket, angel investments, or small-business loans, figure out which path to funding is best suited for your company and pursue it. Seriously, you need money. First point could help you get the second point clearly.
3. Team
A common mistake new business owners make is thinking as long as they can get their hands on a big enough chunk of money, they can plop it in a business checking account and surely it will suffice to cover their expenses. This is wrong and stupid and no - we’re not even going to pick nicer words to say that. It is crazy important to have a super detailed budget before you spend a single penny. If you aren’t an expert at budgeting, enlist the help of someone who is. Considering that a lot of startup CEOs tend to be more “big picture” thinkers, crunching numbers is not a popular favorite task. As such, is too often glazed over. Just…don’t. Every area of the business should be carefully accounted for and the budget should be adhered to as closely as possible. Speaking of which…
4. Find a location and build a website
Your startup company needs a physical address and a web address.
Whether it’s offices, retail space, or a manufacturing location, you need to buy or lease a property to operate your business.
A well-designed website not only enables you to get more customers and allow future customers to learn more about what you can do for them or let them place orders from you, it can also build up a much-needed brand identity and generate the customer loyalty all start-ups rely on.
4. Marketing strategy
Two fundamental truths exist when marketing a startup. One is that a great product alone is not enough to succeed. The other is that no amount of marketing will make a crap product gain a mass audience.
“Nothing kills a bad company faster than good marketing”
Successful startup marketing requires that you have both a great product and great marketing.
5. Excellent Customer service
Increase customer loyalty. Increase the amount of money each customer spends with your business. Increase how often a customer buys from you. Generate positive word-of-mouth about your business.
6. Focus
Focus & Discipline to establish legal frames, manage available resources and clean processes for control and audit.
7. Believe
It does mean that as startup founders we have to think about what our belief system is. Do you believe in your product? Do you believe that you have a mission to solve a certain pain in the market? Do you believe in a certain way of doing business, treating customers, and treating employees?
If you do need a website or your business needs a website, we’re here to bring your dreams to live. Contact us.
Kindly reach out on WhatsApp directly and let’s make this decision your most important and best investment post 3 years.
Disclaimer: Full credit to the writer, and the associates.
