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Why Your “Better Mousetrap” Isn’t Selling (And What To Do About It)
You've built something demonstrably better, yet sales cycles drag on forever and enthusiastic prospects go dark. The problem isn't your product—it's that you're underestimating the single biggest obstacle between you and revenue: human beings really don't like change.
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The Feel Good Conference Mirage
Early-stage startups build exciting new products and then seek to launch them into the marketplace successfully. This commercialization process often involves attending conferences to raise awareness of the innovation. The energy and enthusiasm of conference attendees are intoxicating until follow-up time.
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What’s in a Name?
Naming your high-potential startup is one of the first actions of a co-founding team. The selected name captures the essence of the fledgling company as you go out into the world raising money, connecting with partners, and ultimately selling to customers. It is a more critical and strategic decision than many realize, so let’s examine some lessons learned regarding this…
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Careful What You Wish For
High-potential startups are practically defined by their ability to rapidly grow their revenue, so naturally, startup founders and CEOs feel tremendous pressure to get on the revenue train. However, be careful what you wish for!
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References and Testimonials
Entrepreneurs face challenges introducing innovative products, needing to derisk the process for prospects and secure early adopters with testimonials and references to build broader confidence.
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Crawl Walk Run
High-potential startups are ultimately successful as they transform innovative product and service offerings that address important unmet needs into profitable businesses. One of the significant value step changes occurs when the startup begins to connect the dots and advance commercially into its chosen target market.
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The Double-Edged Sword of Competition when Fundraising
Sophisticated potential investors always ask about a startup’s competition. A well-developed answer is essential because “no competition” is not a good answer, and “too much competition” is also challenging.
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Pricing Strategy
One of a startup’s most significant decisions is pricing strategy. This decision is critical because it sits at the nexus of so many different dimensions in the startup’s strategic positioning, and coming up with a good, balanced solution for all these dimensions is so strategic. Failure to solve this well can cripple or kill a startup.
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The Rocket Launch Feeling
This is a post about a feeling. A feeling that comes as you build a high-potential startup rocketship. One of the most exciting and terrifying times in developing a startup is when you can feel that rocket trembling on the launch pad, with fuel burning fast to generate the massive thrust required to begin to move and transition into enormous…
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Free Is Not Inexpensive
Innovative startups, by definition, are introducing a change into the world. And change is never easy. While each startup’s market is unique, all will be seeking to induce potential customers to take a risk, and consider making a change from their current status quo. Yet while the trial may be “free” in terms of paying for the product, remember that…
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Are We Ready to Ship?
Sometimes the work of a startup seems overwhelming – especially as the moment of truth of shipping a new product for the first time approaches. When that happens, it is time to break down and characterize the problem(s) – and then systematically work for acceptable solutions.
