14 Common Mistakes That Can Kill Your Startup

1. Your product is not something adequate numbers of people/firms want.

2. Your product has virtually no differentiation from others that already have significant traction.

3. You're jumping into an oversaturated market; one that's dense with competition.

4. You've launched the MVP too early and burned through your cash reserves.

5. You've waited too long to launch. Your team is disenchanted and you're almost out of cash.

6. You've put together the wrong team. There's way too much conflict over product design, marketing, price structure, or they simply clash.

7. Hiring the wrong programmers.

8. You're trying to raise a Seed or A Round too early.

9. You're trying to raise too little or too much.

10. Your burn rate is far in excess of what you thought it would be.

11. The sales function isn't vested in anyone so, as the CEO, you're forced to bring in business rather then run the firm.

12. You've raised from VCs/Angels you clash with.

13. You're in the middle of nowhere. You might not believe that, but your chances of raising the investment you need to scale is significantly conditioned by your location.

14. Your Go To Market strategy isn't fleshed out and doesn't corellate with the resources you need to execute.

(NB., this is far from a comprehensive list)

#startupguy

Every day the clock resets. Your wins don’t matter. Your failures don’t matter. Don’t stress on what was, fight for what could be. #startupguy

You're a startup; it's the greatest idea since sliced bread, but you can't secure a round! Why?

Each week, I receive 50-150 contacts from startups. If I'm extremely lucky, one every month or two, may have the ability to attract investors. The overwhelming majority have 1 or more of these characteristics:

1. No traction. Zero revenue. VCs and most Angels fund businesses, not ideas. Idea + traction = business.

2. They've jumped into an oversaturated competitive landscape without meaningful product differentiation.

3. There's no team. Investors want to be assured that if they put in money, there's a probability, given prior sucess of the CEO and team, of execution.

4. The Business Plan is nonsense. It fails to meet either the test of common sense or due diligence.

5. The Go To Market strategy, an absolutely key component of the BP, that's reflected, extrapolated, in the financial projections, is either missing or macro.

6. The financial projections are developed by nothing more than "if I sell X, then my gross revenue will be Z."

7. They're a service firm, not a product startup. Typically, some form of outsourcing. Investors want a profitable exit, typically via acquisition and that's more likely to be problematic.

#startupguy

Hard work always beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.

Most of us agree talent matters. In fact, many experts dispute the notion that hard work overrides talent every time.

The caveat: hard work must be the common factor for anyone seeking to be successful, regardless of talent.

No amount of talent can supersede hard work. If you have natural ability, don’t expect it to automatically generate success. It won’t.

#startupguy #startupmzansi #hubspot

#askstartupguy: "I have a Startup Idea, how do I proceed to bring it to life"

Here is my reply :
Start. Start and Start….

There's a majority of people who have Amazing Ideas but they don't START Those ideas die in the mind before it comes to the “real” world. Go back to year 80s or early 90s, one couldn't imagine these ideas….
“driverless cars”
“bullet trains”
“robots”
“Facebook”

Any idea can shape “real” when it is STARTED and executed otherwise it will remain as an idea.

Why majority of people don't start?
1. People laugh on you when you tell them your idea. You don't have people around who can say “YES” and motivate you. (Actually, they laugh at you because they tell you THEIR LIMITATION not “yours”
2. There is no resource to build your idea and you have to RESEARCH. Resource can be anything like a #team, Computer or Product and also includes your “skills” as resource. Today my #startupmzansi team is my asset.
3. You don't have a mentor or a guide. I know its NOT EASY to find mentor when you ask for ADVICE from every senior entrepreneur and visit every startup event and meeting all seniors. In my case, my first entrepreneur-turned-investor was my mentor because he himself run 3 companies, two failed, one sold. Thanks to him whatever I know today "The Real" just because of him only. Even you can travel your journey alone but a mentor will make that easy and enjoyable. I remember when we both become friends, he started reading "my silence" over the phone when nothing was working Find your Mentor today. (Check out #startupapp

What you should do to start?
1. Research on your ideas.
2. Search on Google.
3. Finding answers from Quora
4. Sharing on Facebook.
5. Networking on Linkedin.
6. Use our StartupApp
7. Join Startup Mzansi to get access to the best resources

After doing above tasks, I am sure you would have replies to the following questions
1. About The Real Problem
(is it real or big problem)
2. The Solutions
(existing somewhere or you are the first one)
3. The Business Plan
(where is the revenue to sustain or how to create wealth)
4. About The Market
(where you can scale fast)
5. About The Investor
(which investor to reach for your idea)

START TODAY.

The startup journey will be enjoyable.

Best Wishes!

#startupguy

Dear young entrepreneur. #startupguy #motivation

Looking for information about funding for a food start up#opportunity # freedom

Hi Startup Mzansi Family!
It great to see ourselves growing everyday and how we support and impact the life of fellow entrepreneurs in a positive way. I am thankful to each one of you for contributing your time and efforts in building StartupApp. How you follow the rules and help others in the community, play a major role in building your your trust score and what you can expect from the community Kindly go through the rules given below, and make sure you abide by them.
???? ??? ??? ?? ????/??????? ?? ???? ??? ???? ??? ????????
> Your startup related need/requirement with clear details.
>The problem that you are facing at any stage of your startup - we are there to help you.
> Share knowledge/ Experience/ Opinions/ your startup details
> Any startup related to blogs, posts, links, images, videos, question, discussion. However If all you say (or write) is self-promotional, you will be out soon. It must add value to the community.
???? ??? ??? #Hashtags ??? ?????? ??? ????? ??????? ? ????.
#startupintro - To introduce yourself
#startuppitch - To introduce your startup with the community
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???? ??? ?? ???? /??????? ( ??? ???? ?? ????????? ??? ???? ??? ?????)
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> Affiliate/referral link, Selling databases /fb likes/other digital assets , Festival celebration posts.
> Fb Page/profile posts links will not be approved. If you want to share, share the content link/ directly through the original source. ??? ?? ? ??????? ?? ??? ??????? ?? ??? ??????????? ??? ???? ??? ??????? ????????.
> NO self promotion is allowed on the post people seeking advice and suggestion but service.
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> As we work hard to make the platform more secured and spam free, I also request you all to help us in building the awesome culture here. As a part of it, ????????? ???????? ??? ??????????? ??? in ?????????? ????????? ?? ??? ?????????. If your sole aim to join group is promote your product and service, we will have to block you.
> All posts are reviewed before getting published so don't waste your time if it's not not as per rule.
> If you are helping/ getting help from any other community members appreciate his/her time and efforts by letting admins know/ sharing an appreciation post.
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You will be permanently banned if you have 3+ pending posts.
??: The platform is closed, feel free to invite any of your friends who can add value to the community / need help in his startup/career. That’s it for this long post. We hope we were able to convey our new set of rules to you and you'll help us in our endeavours by being a responsible Startupper and contribute your share to a better community and a better Startup Mzansi. Cheers!
PPS: All content shared in this closed group belong to the respective owners. Please contact us at hello@startupmzansi.app to discuss.
???? ????,
Startup Mzansi!
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#askstartupguy

There are some misconceptions about freelancing, a few questions I get asked and an exaggerated sense of utility that comes with the job.

Here are some common questions and answers:

1. Is it okay to work for free when you start out with freelancing?

- Yes, only if the client allows you to showcase the work done with them on your portfolio. Do this only when you're starting out.

2. Am I killing the market if I offer my services for 1/10th of what others seem to be offering?

- No. This will offend many, but when you offer your work, it'll offer value. You might charge R1000 for a logo while your competitors charge R10,000.

Somewhere else, someone will be charging R100,000. So there is never a fixed price.

You can find average charges online but they're an estimation.

If offering services for cheap isn't illegal, then there is nothing to worry about.

But yes, at some point, you'll also find yourself charging clients significantly more over time.

3. This agency said that their in house editor earns R20K per month so they cannot give you that much. They're offering me less. What should I do?

- So many things to cover here.

If they're being so open and mentioning how much someone is earning at their firm, then maybe you should be wary of your own privacy.

If they have an in house editor, it's sketchy they would ask for another one, even if there's a lot of work to cover.

Most likely, they're lowball-ing you to get a better deal. Even try and check if they have an onboard editor or not.

Your experience and quality isn't the same as someone else's. It's a ridiculous comparison and you shouldn't agree to their terms. It won't go well.

4. I see content writers on YouTube earning $5000 every month. Even graphic designers and video editors. How is that possible?

- Firstly, your earnings differ from region to region. Secondly, there isn't any proof or credibility.

Most YouTubers won't show how much they are making - sometimes you'll see a screenshot and even that can be faked.

But, what if I told you that a select few actually make as much as they say?

Yes, they do, but it's a nice little secret that shouldn't be let out.

It's a small circle of freelancers that do this, and they will never mention it in their videos, posts or blogs.

They might tell you that their main source of income is let's say, content writing, but they work on something similar, without disclosing that info.

#startups #freelancing #startupmzansi #startupapp