How to launch a startup? After all, no one wants to spend years and a lot of money on a business that will eventually fail. However, to put it mildly, the statistics are disappointing. According to the Startup Genome Report , 92% of startups die. And these are just the numbers that we know about, imagine how many ambitious startups have not even gone beyond the basement or garage.
Business is always a risk, but what do experienced entrepreneurs who have launched successful companies know that the founders of unsuccessful projects don’t know? Let's find out what kind of startup cast your future business should have, and what a startup is.
What is a Startup: Definition and Key Aspects
In short, a startup is a young company that is rapidly developing based on innovative technologies. The defining aspects are different and everyone has different definitions, but here at Owlab we want to highlight these distinguishing features:
- The age of the company. Startups are young ambitious companies with a bold idea.
- Fast growth. Startups are not focused on quick payback, but on capturing market share, rapid growth and scalability of the business model, which will bring more profit in the future.
- Innovations. Startups offer the market unique and innovative technological solutions.
- VC. Venture-backed startups are startups that receive venture capital funding. With outside investment, a company can grow quickly and save money.
- Loss ratio. Often, in such business models, all funds are invested in development, focusing on future profits.
- Team. A close-knit, ambitious team united by a common goal and dream.
When should I outsource development work startup? The answer is as soon as possible. A good business partner in the form of a startup bussines development company at the initial stages will allow you to launch an MVP as soon as possible and attract investors and quickly grow into a large company. Examples of startups that have grown into large companies: Apple, Facebook, Instagram, Uber, Snapchat. OK, that's sorted out, so how to start a profitable startup? It is important to identify some startup development phases.
Why is it Important for a Startup to Start Well?
The reasons for startup failures are different, but often they come down to the same thing. The Owlab team has identified the 5 most common ones.
Top 5 Reasons Startups Fail:
- Insufficient demand. Sometimes ideas are too “daring”, so much so that in the end no one needs the product. By developing a product for a non-existent market, companies are simply wasting a resource.
- The inability to adapt. New technologies emerge every day, so flexibility and adaptability are key to the survival of a startup. It's like the wild - adapt or die.
- Inefficient allocation of resources. If the manager does not know how or does not know how to effectively manage funds or where to attract new investments, the project is doomed.
- Slow growth. The morale of the team quickly drops if you stagnate in one place. Lack of funds for rapid growth can bury even the most promising startups.
- Burnout. Many leaders or even entire teams experience physical and emotional burnout, especially when there is no visible success. Pay attention to it.
What Questions Should You Ask Yourself Before Launching a Startup?
Owlab is a startup business development company that has been on the market for over 10 years. During this time we managed to work with more than 140+ projects. Thanks to this experience, we have deduced logical questions that an aspiring entrepreneur should ask himself in order to know how to start a profitable startup and identify key startup development phases.
- What is the main direction of your company?
- What needs of potential customers should your business fill?
- What niche and what market are you going to occupy?
- How will your product solve your customers' problem?
- What is the economic model of your business? Why should it bring you profit?
The success of your startup will depend on your first steps. Your preparation + a bit of luck = a successful startup. It is up to you whether you make it into the top 10% of successful entrepreneurs or whether your idea goes unnoticed.
If you need not only a development company, but also a reliable business partner, please contact us. Such large and successful products today as Spark Keys, Speakly and many others have been released under our wing. You can learn more about them on the Case Studies tab.
Startup is Painkiller
We often talk about the needs of your potential customers, but let's take a closer look at what we mean. Think about how you can solve the client's problem here and now. The buyer does not care what the headache pill looks like, the main thing is that it works. The same is true with your business.
For example, take the SmiHub service, which allows you to anonymously view stories on Instagram. The idea is simple, but covers the needs of a certain group of people. You can create your own service that will cover the shortcomings or add tools for another product, as SmiHub did.
There are many other similar examples, so you can adopt a similar principle that will allow you to launch a successful startup. We also recommend that you pay attention to mobile app development, because almost everyone has a mobile phone, and the field of mobile technologies is actively developing. So how to launch a mobile app startup?
To launch a mobile app startup you will need everything we talked about above, with the exception of one thing - an experienced development team. In this, you can rely on professionals from a startup business development company such as Owlab. Mobile app startup development is a complex task that our team can help you solve.
Conclusion
In this article, we partially answered the question “how to start a profitable startup” and only gave a superficial idea of the key aspects. However, even this is enough to outline the main issues and understand what mistakes should not be made. Owlab wishes you success in your business and we hope you found this article helpful!
