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| We're all taking a longshot |
I have been hearing and reading a lot about the difference
between a startup and starting a business of late, and I am getting a bit sick
of the artificial distinctions being made. I call all new businesses startups,
and I don’t care how many dictionary definitions and semantic/pedant emails you
send me. Here’s why.
Both varieties share 90% of the same problems, with the 10%
difference being whether the product is new or not.
Even that is artificial, as very very few startups are a
genuinely new product. They are more often better versions of existing products,
amalgamations of existing products or online enabled existing business models.
I have seen successful franchises set up in a new country
and lose millions. Why? Because while their concept may be popular in one
country in another it may fail dismally. Starbucks ongoing inability to thrive
in Australia is a good example.
Just because a product already exists is no reason to assume
that it will be easy to sell. Too many in the ‘startup’ tent throw rocks at
normal businesses.
For both kinds of business, the problems of establishing and
growing a business are identical.
- Your business model needs to make sense
- Customers need to buy your product
- You need to hire employees and you are relying on future income to pay for them as you don’t have the money yet.
- Raising capital is hard – many promise but few hand over the dough
- Getting your marketing message right is hard.
- Getting your website right is hard – nobody gets this right first time
Basically business is business – we are all going through
the same learning curve on the same issues at the same time – maybe it’s time
to share experiences instead of throwing rocks at each other.
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