Growth Lensing help startups to be successful. But what does that mean and what part is in the hands of the entrepreneur, and what part in Growth Lensing?
At Growth Lensing we believe the key pillars for being a successful entrepreneur is:
-Having the capacity to execute
-Having a great idea
-Having the much needed support for your idea
It is on the latter where Growth Lensing steps in and can provide the much needed experience and bandwidth. In this blog I wanted to highlight 6 classical challenges we see in the startup seen.
1 Cutting corners everywhere
Startups are short on cash and high on ambition. To achieve goals you can do them ‘half way’ or the right way. Cutting corners here and there is part of being an entrepreneur and is ok. But if your entire mission is to not make any structural investments in things like technology, Q&A, Customer Success, Digital Marketing and other processes you will find yourself in a configuration that does not drive success. Know when to cut corners, know when to spend.
2 Perceiving websites as ‘just websites’
The only way you can create Digital authority is to use your website. The looks, the content and the associated Digital authority will determine the level of trust you create for your buyers. More about trust later. Your website is the ultimate first impression and it also serves as a ‘hook’ to start real terrain conversations with leads and near future buyers. Frankly, almost all Business transactions in the startup world will precede a ‘Digital Trust’ funnel. Invest in your website and the associate Digital Marketing.
3 Tunnel vision on closing that deal versus building recurrent revenue
You need recurrent revenue, it is the holy grail. Configure your Business Plan entirely on winning Customers that will stay with you for at least 3 to 5 years. This requires post deal attention, it requires a pre deal mindset that is not only about the quick kill. Gaining customers come at a cost, so make sure they stay on board for a very long time. A high churn rate can kill.
4 Not using any government grants
Many governments around the world help startups with loans or grants. Use it. They are often entirely risk free and can be of critical value at the very early stages of your Business Development. For example, Growth Lensing export services are for 50% refundable by the Australian government grants. Investigate the grants, work with an expert on it and get that machine working for you. If grants are there, use it.
5 Hiring staff that require learning curve and drive risk
Getting new staff on board would be a sign of progress. But what most entrepreneurs underestimate is the huge learning curve most staff need. Also, hiring can lead to some serious risk in terms of costs and productivity. Of course, hiring and fostering Human Capital is of the outmost importance for any startup to grow. But the speed and eagerness of hiring should be done with great caution. Spreading and mitigating risk on this level can be done by experts that either cost the same (or less) and that have very high material knowledge of the field you wish to hire. Also, the run up time to results are obviously much shorter.
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