There are many reasons why a startup idea could turn out to be the worst decision you have ever made. A whole 9 out of 10 of them fail. And it isn’t always because the idea is just plain stupid. This guide is going to show you some of the many reasons why your startup idea may be something you should consider deleting before you waste any more of your money on it.
Does it Have a Target Audience?
This is the first question you should be asking. If you lack a target audience, you are not going to last long because your marketing base will either be too small or won’t exist at all. Rarely is it a problem of not having an audience. The issue is that the audience isn’t big enough. You have aimed for too much of a niche.
You must conduct market research before you invest too much money into a new product or service. Customer surveys issued to different demographics are perfect for finding out how much appeal you have to various aspects of society.
Is the Money Right?
The money is always going to be a factor, no matter how much you want to avoid admitting it. There’s little point in launching a business if you can’t make money from it. But there are multiple ways that you can mess up when it comes to money.
First of all, you may find yourself in a situation where the price point of your product or service is less than what it costs to make or deliver. You are running at a loss. This is fine in the case of a loss leader, but if that’s your main business idea you’re mathematically guaranteed to go broke.
You also need to figure out whether you can afford to run with the idea in the first place. Some business sectors require an enormous investment to get it off the ground. If you are trying to create a new car, for example, you must have millions backing your company or you don’t stand a chance.
Again, this is down to simple research and an honest look at your own resources. If all you need is CRM and a shared coworking space, you should have no problems
Have You Thought About the Trends?
There are people who are in their niche for the short-term, and that’s completely okay. This is entirely normal because many people are quickly launching a business, taking advantage of a trend, and then moving onto the next fad. It’s a viable business strategy, but it’s a fast-paced one and requires you to have an intimate understanding of your target audience.
This isn’t for everyone. If you have a great startup idea that you want to take from conception to success, you must think about the trends.
The trends are integral in two senses. First of all, the timing of your business has a great influence on whether you will succeed. If you are launching a product at a time where the trends are against you, you’re flowing against what your target audience actually wants.
The second way a trend could be integral to your success is if your product or service is actually a trend itself. It can make you money, but don’t expect it to make money in the long-term, except in a small minority of cases.
Use social media as a prime estimate of what’s trending now in your niche. Take advantage of the right keywords and hashtags in order to see what people are talking about and what’s popular.
Do You Have the Experience?
Deciding to run with a startup idea mainly requires you to study the market conditions and your target audience. Now this guide is going to turn to you. Anyone can have an idea. Anyone can spot a problem and then come up with a solution for it. Not everyone can execute it.
You must have the experience in order to launch your startup. If you lack experience in your target niche, you either have to abandon the idea or find someone with an idea.
It’s hard enough to run a startup without trying to learn about your industry at the same time. Ideally, you should have already functioned in your industry in some capacity prior to beginning your new startup.
Startups have an extremely low success rate. Many startups could avoid these problems simply through researching their target markets long before they actually decide to throw money at the issue. This can highlight most problems before any damage is done.
What startup idea do you have in mind?