6 Popular Business Tips Your Startup Should Ignore
Make sure any advice you follow is actually suitable for your organization.
As a new entrepreneur launching your first company, you may feel overwhelmed at times by the massive amount of resources and information available — not to mention the fact that virtually every person in your life will try to give you their two cents on how you should run a successful business. So how do you know which advice to follow and which to discard, for the sake of your startup?
These six entrepreneurs share some of the most common business advice that they vehemently disagree with and why. After all, no two businesses are alike, and what works for one is in no way guaranteed to work for all.
Focus on growth before profit.
Investing all your efforts into driving growth instead of profit does not seem to be a particularly sound strategy either. According to Future Hosting CEO Vik Patel, focusing on massive growth before profit “benefits venture capitals who gamble on at least one massive exit amidst all the startups that don’t make it.”
Instead, Patel chose to focus on growth by building a great product that people would pay for at a reasonable margin. “That way, the business sustains itself and can focus on providing value to customers over the long term.”
Marketing isn’t important if product is good.
“I get it, I get it. Without a good product your startup with fail. Guess what — if no one knows it exists, it will fail as well,” says Chris Van Dusen of Bota Hemp. That’s why marketing plays a crucial role in the growth of your business and a loyal customer base.
“Hire excellent marketing people to help get the product in front of the right people. Then work with the product team to understand why people truly use your product, develop your unique value proposition and engage with potential customers,” he explains.
Read the rest of the article at Inc.com