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1. No single value proposition
More and more people are creating startups and some have even explained why everyone should one day become an entrepreneur. The fact is that a lot of people are getting into this field and the competition is fierce. So you need to ask yourself, “Is your XYZ service really different from the ABC service?” The customers are the final referees and will tell you what they really think.
Solution no. 1
Adopt the “Lean” strategy to the end.
The Lean Startup strategy has emerged in recent years as a refreshing alternative to creating new businesses. Instead of a complex business plan, which predisposes you to follow a strategy that no one adheres to, you launch a minimum viable product on the market - whether it's a simple landing page, an email, or a few lines of code - then you pivot and make adjustments based on the reactions of your early users or the evolution of your market.
Make sure to monitor your results and data right from the start.
In the world of digital visibility, it is essential to be constantly aware of your web presence and how your customers perceive you.
- If your website is too slow, you're losing customers and opportunities.
- If your website isn't user-friendly on all platforms, you're compromising your chances from the start.
- If your website does not have tracking data from the start, you waste opportunities and Throw away your money through the windows, etc...
2. Not keeping track of your expenses
Les uncontrolled spending And the mPoor revenue management are among the biggest problems for start-ups.
Startup owners erroneously assume that by creating an offer, they are bound to get a lot of sales.
But there's no guarantee that customers will buy your product or service, and even more so if you haven't had a meticulous approach to your upstream market for Know the traction of what you offer. Test your offer with your potential customers through interviews or data collected from your website or social networks.
Not knowing where the money is going is setting the stage for a resounding failure.
Solution No.2
One of the main keys to the success of a startup is controlling its finances. And one of the ways to do this is through bootstrapping, that is, paying by exploiting your resources and a portion of the income generated.
Whenever possible, this should be your first financing option.
3. Insufficient funding
One of the main reasons why startups fail is that new entrepreneurs always underestimate the costs that will be required to implement their business vision. In addition, they also overestimate the amount of expected sales. This double penalty leads many new businesses to close their doors before they can even start.
Solution #3
Les entrepreneurs need to plan initial start-up costs as well as the first two critical years of operating expenses.
4. Focus on non-essential items
Startups are known to tend to invest in ancillary expenses that, ultimately, do not contribute to the financial prosperity of the company.
Paying too much for rent, labor, and equipment is a sure sign of poor management, especially if you don't have sufficient cash flow. Other seemingly legitimate expenses can also turn into a big financial abyss if you're not careful. Building a large, highly complex, custom-developed website, hiring a lawyer to register your trademark, or incorporating your young business are all expenses that can be deferred, as they do not help you generate revenue.
Solution #4
Avoid paying for non-essential items that don't really add to your original value proposition. Opt for the virtual as much as possible. For example, by hiring through Fiverr or Upwork, or by using as much as possible the free (or cheapest possible) versions of the tools allowing you to move forward quickly in your business.
5. Indulge yourself by forgetting about the market
Startup owners can be their own worst enemy. The dysfunction of a founder at the head of his company can lead to systemic failures throughout the company.
The reason a business fails is often linked to why the owner started their business.
Do you want to make a lot of money? Will you have more time for your family? You won't have to respond to anyone anymore? While these are advantages that some entrepreneurs Successful people get after years of hard work, these are no reasons to start a business.
Too often, the entrepreneurs fail because they are trying to solve a problem for themselves rather than for others. They see starting a business as a way to make money, escape routine, or follow their passion. And in doing so, they are overlooking the first principle of Entrepreneurship : By solving other people's problems, we empower ourselves.
Solution 5
That doesn't mean you can't come up with good ideas by trying to meet your own needs. In fact, many successful businesses are born just that way. However, what many aspirants entrepreneurs And some small business owners don't realize, it's the selfish nature of their reason that's compromising their ability to succeed.
Make sure you always validate your market and your customers consistently, at every stage of your business's maturity. An offer that only meets your needs and not those on the market will unfortunately never work.
6. Benefits that take too long to understand
You have a great idea that you think will change the world! That's great, but most new entrepreneurs fail because they don't communicate their new product or service clearly, concisely, and convincingly. Put yourself in the shoes of the potential customer and ask yourself, “Why should I buy this product and how will it solve my problem?”
Solution 6
Science tells us that people prefer the easiest path to reach their end goals. Think of it in terms of “the effectiveness of action” and the balance between benefits and costs. Clearly think about how much effort it will take for your visitors to get to your site, get what they need, and leave? Keep it as simple as possible.
7. The inability to innovate
In the absence of a clear disruptive business strategy, today's organizations are facing the same fate: extinction! Think of Kodak, which owned the camera market for years but couldn't adapt to digital technology.
Many business leaders also lack sales or marketing expertise in a world where these skills are being revolutionized through digital technology. They are doing “as they have always done”, it is a huge mistake.
They often have well-established habits when it comes to doing certain things.
This is especially true for seasoned business owners. For the new entrepreneurs, be careful not to fall into this trap. And to be fair, it's not just business owners. This is the case for everyone. It's human nature, and we're all guilty of it at some point in our lives.
Solution #7
By keeping your business at the forefront of the latest technology trends, you will increase your chances of success, maintain your competitive edge, and reduce your risks of being the victim of an upheaval.
But innovation is not just about technology.
To transform themselves, business founders need to train in the skills they lack, hire qualified employees, or outsource tasks to competent professionals where appropriate.
8. The fear of failure
Fear of failure can cripple efforts before they even start. Don't go down that road. On the contrary, stay optimistic and focus on the positives and value proposition of what you offer to change the world.
Keep this number in mind: 72% of people have already experienced impostor syndrome.
Change lanes or take the plunge to undertake are professional but also human adventures. Fear and discomfort are normal. Undertake It's knowing how to put yourself in danger by pushing yourself into your own limits. Moreover, it is when you are not in your comfort zone that you will evolve. You will become better and much more quickly than you can imagine.
Solution #8
Keep in mind that failure isn't always bad if you can learn from your mistakes and turn them into lessons. Fast failure is an approach that recognizes that some of the best achievements are the result of hundreds of failures; innovatively, it means that failing quickly can also lead to rapid learning and better chances of long-term success.
9. Not the right team
Some startups and small businesses are founded by one person, but others are started by a few people or co-founders.
There are numerous success stories in which school friends came up with a common idea and where each person contributed a different know-how or skills that complement each other.
But for all Uber, Paypal, Facebook, Shazaam, it exists Also a lot other much less successful stories, where starting a business with your friends doesn't work.
Many successful startup stories attribute having a diverse team with different skills as one of the reasons for their success.
But some businesses that have failed will say things like “I wish I had a CTO from the start” or wish the startup had “a founder who likes to go “find customers.”
Solution #9
You can't evolve a venture without a smart team, but the chemistry has to be good. The founding team must know how to build a product on their own, be agile and complement each other.
If this were not the case, it would be wise to change teams and surround yourself with other co-founders so as not to have shortcomings that too many failed businesses suffer from for too long.
How not to fail in creating your business?
While failure statistics can be a source of anxiety for some business owners, they can also help entrepreneurs to recognize potential risks and pain points and to adapt their business strategy to take account of and deal with these problems.
READ MORE: The 9 main reasons why startup lead generation failures
