10 COMMON
MISTAKES THAT STARTUP AND SMALL COMPANIES MAKE
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Young companies have small margins for error. Mistakes made early on can
sink a company before its gets off the ground. Below is a list of 10 common
mistakes made by young, small companies. In the list below, I use the generic
term “product” to refer to either a product or a service.
Over the next few posts, I will expound on these ideas; for now, here is
the list:
1.
“Drinking Your Own Brew” – Overestimating the Enthusiasm for Your Product/Service – thinking your
product is more special than your customers perceive.
2.
Not Validating Market
Demand – thinking that your product is a “winner” before making
sure you get a solid base of people who agree
3.
Starting to Work with
Customers Too Late – only engaging with customers when
the product is ready for sale.
4.
Underestimating the
Difficulty in Penetrating the Market – not expending
enough effort to reach customers and to get them to try the product.
5.
Overestimating the
Product’s Uniqueness – related to “drinking
your own Brew” this refers to not taking competition into account, where
competition can be another product or service, or whatever customers are using
today.
6.
Underestimating the
Effort Needed to Build the Product – promising to
get to market before you can actually finish the product.
7.
Hiring the Wrong Kind of
People – hiring “big-company types” who are used to having a
support staff to help them do their work.
8.
Not Focusing – being tempted by side projects and spreading yourself too thin to focus
on developing your company’s main value proposition
9.
Not Pricing Correctly – under or over-pricing the product may inhibit adoption.
10.
Not Having a Long-term
Vision That Scales –having a “one-trick dog” that does
not lead to future sales
In the entrepreneurial spirit of “under-promise and over-deliver,” here are
two more mistakes young companies make:
1.
Never Finishing the
Product – the “never time to do it right, but there is always
time to do it over” syndrome. Constantly redoing the product but never
finishing it.
2.
Not Offering Employees
Enough Fun – sadly, a common quality of many startups – despite
what you read in the pubs.
Disclaimer – as a veteran in Business Coaching and
Mentoring, these are mistakes I have seen time and again. If you have some
additional ideas, feel free to comment.
