How to start a Startup
This article is to give you a brief tip on how to start a startup. Let start by differentiating a Startup from a Company.
A company is an organization which sells a product or service in exchange for revenue and profit.
A startup is a temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model.
That being defined, lets see the steps to follow to build out a successful startup that can turn to a company.
Step 1: Articulate your idea
Step 2: Define who your customer is.
Step 3: Avoid competition
Step 4: Go for monopoly
Step 5: Build your prototype.
Let me briefly elaborate on the steps one after the other:
Step 1: Articulate your idea:
Describe your idea to yourself. A great way would be to begin by answering these questions:
- What is the problem you want to solve?
- Who experiences that problem?
- How do you want to solve that problem?
Step 2: Define who your customer is:
You will have to define whom this startup is aimed at. Understanding your customers is the key to building products that your customers need. Your customers are the ones,
- who have similar needs.
- to whom you could deliver your solution at a similar cost.
- who would buy it at a similar price.
Define your customer’s persona: A customer persona is a generalized perception about your customer. Here are some questions which will help you define your customers better:
- What is their age group?
- What is their gender?
- What is their occupation?
- What are the pains that keep them awake at night?
- Where do they live? (city or village. etc.)
- How strong is their financial background?
Step 3: Avoid competition:
Nothing is more lethal than a startup competing with an established player. Think about the numerous startups in e-commerce that have failed, all because they were competing against the incumbents like Flipkart, Amazon, and Snapdeal.
However, if you still wish to compete with them, make sure that your product is at least 10 times better. Think of Apple iPod vs. every generic MP3 player. Why did Apple win?
Step 4: Go for monopoly:
Monopolies are highly disregarded in our society. Our societies make them look evil because they can control the price and the product availability. However, in the startup world, monopoly is required to sustain. Let me give you a few examples of monopolies, and you figure out why they are still in business.
- Google Search
- Microsoft Windows OS for desktop
- Unilever
Step 5: Build your prototype:
- Start by designing what you believe (hypothesis). It can be a tissue paper prototype.
- Build what you scribbled on the tissue paper. It can be the first version of your website. Don’t dwell on the features and how your product looks, early adopters don’t mind initial product flaws. However, make sure that what you are building does solve your customer problem.
- Ship it to your early adopters. This can be done by bringing your early adopters to your office and giving them a first-hand experience.
- Analyze carefully how they are using your product. Look for non-verbal clues; are they confused, annoyed or do they have a smile on their face? At this stage don’t hesitate to ask questions. Their feedback is your goldmine.
- Learn from their feedback. Identify what made them confused or made them say ‘wow’. From this learning improve your product and reiterate from Step 1.
Important tips
- Have a Mentor
- Network because you will be as big and successful as your network
- Build, Measure, Learn and Grow
- Build a team and avoid hiring as much as you can unless you don’t have a very important skill in your team.
