5 Must-Haves For Every Tech Startup
Regardless of the industry you’re working in, starting a business isn’t easy. Competition is strong and the customers are looking for something more than a simple product. What they want is a unique approach that will set you apart from the rest of the herd.
It’s imperative to make long-term plans and to treat every move you make as a part of a larger strategy. Create a vision of what your business will be and implement it from day one.
A budget
Businesses are often waiting for the money that will let them realize all of their dreams. Things sometimes work that way but, more often than not, you need to deal with a lot of uncertainty and plan your budget one month at a time. Before you start a business create a detailed long-term budget, but also make a lot smaller ones, covering the bases for the foreseeable time.
The main thing to realize is that cash flow is much more important than savings. Having money coming in on a regular basis is the only way to make sure your business will go on.
Market research
You need to know who your clients are before you can make a connection with them and before they can trust you. Luckily, people leave a visible trace online and you can tap into that. It should go beyond knowing the age, gender, and salary of your visitors and followers. Dig deeper and find out about their relationship to other brands or even their favorite books or movies. That way you can cultivate an aesthetic and make your brand about something more than just selling things. Your brand could become an integral part of their lives.
An office building
Choosing an office building is much more complicated than it might seem. An office should be functional and allow you to conduct business according to your needs. It should also be a place to meet and impress clients. The very location and style of the building should reflect your company and the way you want it to be perceived by those you’re working with. The building you choose will also dictate the culture to be cultivated in your company.
The transfer to the new facilities should be treated as an event in itself, promoted and organized by a professional property management company.
Customer services
Startups, especially those dealing with technology and pitching to young and fashionable clients – forget about customer service. It’s overlooked because there’s a feeling that everything could be looked up online and the clients are willing to make the effort and research the product themselves.
This is wrong and that kind of attitude will quickly drive the customers away. It’s important to create customer services right away and to provide them on every available channel and medium (from apps to standard no-charge phone calls). The people you hire for this task should be both meticulous and willing to communicate with clients in a friendly and helpful manner.
Security
Once you start a business security issues are going to be on your mind all the time. This refers to both physical and cyber security because you’re probably vulnerable on both fronts. Start by creating limited access zones of your company. Startups are usually small and everyone involved can be trusted. Once the business gets bigger, some aspects of decision making should be left only to those who are in the loop. It’s also good to create a two-point authentication system, which will use the personal devices of your employees to prevent identity theft.
Don’t jump into starting a business. Have all of your bases covered before you make the jump and face challenges with a solid plan.
