Why most startups fail and here’s how not to

All we know for sure is that it’s over... You’re building an elephant... You’re building an elephant... your competition will hitthe market with a good... Capturing 20 percent of the ma

you wake up one morning and it’s

all you can see

And then, one day, for no specific

reason

it’s gone

Really

“ Anyone know what happened to

Whatchamacallit? ”

All we

know for sure is

that it’s over

Truth is, most of the time, it

failed because of the same

reasons so many other

startups fail

There will always be

special

individuals who find exceptional

their business

majority of startups fail in

#1 Not

understanding the user

Your plans are based on what

you think the user wants

maybe you even have a few buddies who thought

and how they

Be careful about telling them

Be careful about telling them

this usually backfires

#2

Too in love with the

tech

You love adding features

“Wouldn’t it be awesome if

You’re building an elephant

You’re building an elephant

Maybe users

Keep it to

and market -test

before you

features

Getting this

wrong has

massive

knock-on effects

# 3

Launching

too

slowly

perfect

Remember Always

and

your competition will hit

the market with a good

Hence

keep it lean

get to market fast

and

add functions

as user demand warrants it

# 4 No

real sales strategy

Capturing 20 percent of the

market is not a strategy

Who will

be your

first

customers?

How do you

reach them?

What does it require

to close

the deal?

How many

sales people

do you need

to do this?

What will the sales number

look like based on all of

this?

Brush past these questions

and

you will

overestimated your revenue

#5 The market is too

small

Remember you may face

competition

even in that niche

and

end up with a potential

market that is just too

small to support a

sustainable business

Make sure your market is

big enough

and growing

( And (I know what’s on your mind)

#6 Basic

copycat

Enter the many thousand Groupon clones around the world

Working international

concepts have been launched

groupon sosasta

Fashionandyou

Doing this in a busy

market because you see current players making tons of money is a sure recipe to burn cash and

stay small

so

Be different, not “the

# 7 Fast burner

You ramp up your costs for

a big development team to

you expect

The revenues don’t happen

and

you’re suddenly burning

money faster than a new MP

planning gala dinners

Get into the market with the

basic product and start

generating revenue

When the conversion metrics show you’re getting

it right

then you can grow the spend

There are more reasons why

startup businesses fail

But

these are the most

important and common

Of course

the

way not

is to not start

Fortunately

you’re not scared

and now you’re just a

little a little more likely to

make it

@Abhishekshah