A seminar on “Tangible startups: Digging deep to create a startup culture” held by Positioning Mag compiled some fascinating tips on crucial business decisions to inspire the young guns.
1.Be the answer to a pain-point
This might not seem new, but it is always the starting point for developing an app that has a chance of success. Uber and Grab saw a weak point in the traditional taxi services, then they turned it to become an opportunity. Think of a business in which your startup is a new Unicorn with an interesting concept. For instance, Airportels is a transportation and baggage drop service for tourists who have checked out of their hotel but are not yet required at the airport, who want to get the best value out of this chunk of their remaining time.
2.Innovation must be flexible
Creating a business with technology which has limitations in the next step of development may in turn limit future growth. Innovation must be flexible enough to respond to the challenges of creating growth. For instance, a locker operated by an app might be not only a temporary storage space, but also a pick-up point for products and packages.
3.Clear goals
A classic problem of many startup entrepreneurs, especially imaginative tech nerds. They might be interested in many opportunities simultaneously, causing confusion and a lack of focus in their ideas. This has been a stumbling block on the way to success for many startups.
Charal Chearavanont shared his experiences as CEO of Snapask. “To begin with, funds were limited and we had to make do with just a few staff. We were multitasking on every little detail. To avoid confusion, we had to have clear goals and we prioritized. We needed to know what we wanted to do, what was our purpose and why we’re doing it, to work within a limited time and not get confused.”
4.Patents are essential
The innovation behind a startup must be an original idea which can be patented to allow the business to grow safely. The idea must be sold as communication which reaches customers, and there must always be more innovation to stay ahead of the young generation who are following.
5.Willpower
The advice of Thanawat Malabuppha, CEO and founder of priceza, a price comparator website, is that passion has a natural law to stimulate inspiration and perseverance. Startup people have to be highly passionate to fight with despair when a business is still incubating.
6.Create an open system
Creating an open source system is an important part of growing customers quickly. For instance, Tuk Tuk Pass is a new concept of Travel Tech combining the ideas of Online Travel Agencies (OTA) which is open source, allowing tourists on social media to share their experiences. This has helped create online marketing in the place of buying online advertising.
7.Think differently, quickly
Who would have thought that the business of space satellites could be a startup, such as the Thai-founded, globally renowned space technology company, Mu Space & Advanced Technology Founder Warayut Yenbamrung saw an opportunity for flexible satellites that could change their orbit. Having dared to think differently, he had to implement the idea quickly with a clear roadmap and coordinate the teamwork of expertise in each area to achieve his dreams.
