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JUMPSTART
JUMPSTART
FOUR WAYS
to Kill Your Startup
There are at least four
not-so-obvious mistakes
that most startups and
entrepreneurs make,
which have the most
significant impact on
their success.
1. STICK TO THE DREAM
Mush
Panjwani
After spending time with hundreds of
entrepreneurs and startups in Hong
Kong during the last 14 months, I am
beginning to see a clear pattern. Most
of them are struggling to survive; many
quit and either jump to another idea
or go back to a ‘job’ and very few are
actually successful: i.e. happy with the
results and consistently growing.
Some of the obvious reasons for most
startup failures are:
•
•
•
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Lack of a great product or idea
– something that really solves a
problem
Lack of passion – ‘is that what you
really want to do with your life?’
Lack of skills or resources – selling,
marketing, product
Lack of focus – doing too many
things at the same time
But there are at least four not-soobvious mistakes that most startups
and entrepreneurs make, which have
the most significant impact on their
success. So if you want to kill your
startup, or fail at your next big project,
do one or more of the following:
Experts
You have dreams to build a successful business, make lots of money,
travel the world, retire early, make a difference and create something
that changes lives… We all do. And that’s where all achievements begin,
but only if you progress to the next step and convert your dreams into
goals. A dream is a general wish, but a goal is a specific target with a
clear deadline.
The first question I ask when I am helping a startup is: ‘What’s your
financial goal for this year?’ And hardly anyone can give me a straight
answer; for example, ‘I want to earn $50,000 in profits by the end of
2014’, or ‘I want to start making monthly profits of $30,000 a month by
October 2014’.
Who do you think has a better chance of success? The guy with just
a dream of ‘I want to travel the world one day’, or the guy with a goal of
‘I am going to take two weeks off in Nepal in April 2015’? It’s the same
with business.
So, either just stick to the dreams, or move to the next step and
convert your dreams for the business into goals that are specific and
time-bound.
2. NO NEED TO PLAN
Create a great product or service, show it to lots of people, stay
focused, be passionate, don’t give up and be flexible… That’s all good,
but not practical without a detailed plan.
Proper planning is only possible when you have goals. If you only
have a dream of getting healthier and fitter, you can’t make a plan.
But once you set a goal - for example, ‘I want to lose 6kg in six weeks’
- then you can move on the next step and plan for the diet and exercise
required to lose a kilo per week.
It’s the same with your startup. You need to have a precise financial
goal, backed up with a plan. For example, if your goal is to make
$50,000 profit a month, your plan will include:
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Monthly expenses?
Revenue goal? (profit plus expenses)
Number of clients needed?
Number of proposals to be sent?
Number of presentations to be given?
Number of people to meet?
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One of the most important skills you
need to develop as a startup is time
management. I’ve been following the
“4-D Principle” for years; to work less
and get more done and to focus on what
really matters.
Then, of course, you need a sales and marketing plan to figure out how
to reach that many people every month, a solid concept of how to present
your product/service to them, how to convert at least 30% of them into
clients and how to price, etc. This is important regardless of the type of
product or service that you are offering.
3. MAKE
MARKETING THE
PRIORITY
4. DO
EVERYTHING
YOURSELF
Yes, marketing is essential. But
many entrepreneurs spend so much
time, energy and money on creating
the best websites, great social
media, amazing presentations and
proposals, that they don’t have any
time left for selling.
Successful startups know
that they need to reach out to
prospective clients instead of
waiting to be found, that phone
calls are better than emails and
that personal meetings are far
more effective than phone calls.
Marketing alone won’t help you
achieve your goals. You must ‘sell’
your products/services actively.
And you must do it yourself, with
lots of passion.
Organizing database and
sending newsletters is not selling.
Calling up potential clients, setting
up meetings, presenting your
products, services and proposals
face-to-face is selling. If that’s
outside your comfort zone, then
get some customized sales training.
Get help in developing an effective
sales script and do some roleplaying to build confidence before
facing real clients.
If your goal is just to survive or
die, then stick to marketing alone.
As an entrepreneur, you
have to do everything
yourself: selling, marketing,
accounting, product
development… right? Wrong.
Even if you had all those
skills, there’s only so much
time in a day/week. So you
are sure to compromise on
one or more of the areas
and find yourself stressed,
drained or guilty.
OK, so what’s the answer?
Non-paid interns. There
are lots of students in Hong
Kong who would love to
get some work experience
whilst studying. Established
corporates won’t hire them
because of their lack of
experience and the effort
it takes to train them. You
should. Start with university
students in your own family
or friends’ network; check
out university websites for
internship programs and
advertise on student forums.
There are also special summer
internship programs that
bring hundreds of students or
graduates to Hong Kong every
year to work without pay.