Be Different or be dead

July 16, 2011

3 easy things you need to know for startup success

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3 easy things you need to know for startup success.

So you have a cool idea that you think people will love. You think it will make you lots of money. You want to start your own business.

How do you go about it?

Here are 3 things you should do to at least increase your chances of success:

1. Make sure your idea is different

Before you do anything to move your new idea forward, make sure it’s different from what others in the market are doing. If you don’t have an idea that offers people something different from what other products are available, you will most likely be one of the startup failure statistics.
If your idea is the same or similar to what others offer, you simply won’t get noticed. Your competitive strategy should be based on uniqueness: to be the ONLY one that does what you do.

2. Keep your planning horizon short

Think in terms of what you want to achieve over the next 24 months. Your financiers may want a 5 Year Plan but you need to keep your eyes on short term goals. execution is critical and is enabled through a focus on “What am I going to do in the next 30 days?”.
Remember: the 5th year of a 5-year plan won’t show up if you can’t find a way to navigate through the vagaries of the near term.

3. Create a base of support for your idea

You need to garner a crowd of supporters for your idea. People who love it. People who want you to succeed. People who are willing to commit their time and energy to spread your word to others.
Use them to start your marketing efforts. It’s the most inexpensive and effective way to get going. And if you have trouble organizing a group of support for your idea then maybe it’s not a good idea.

Key concepts: ONLY competitive positioning, monthly goals and fan marketing.

Good luck!

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 7.16.11 at 10:00 am by Roy Osing
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