Understanding Startup
A startup is a company or any project undertaken by an entrepreneur to develop and validate a scalable economic model. Two or more entrepreneurs can be together in it to build a unique product or service and then bring it to the market.
Stages of a Startup
As other business-related things, all the business have life cycles which depends upon some main factors responsible for the growth.
The six specific stages of a startup are also one of them.
Stage 1: Concept and Research
Many people have many ideas, but the implementation of those ideas is sporadic. Still, it is an excellent idea that not only gets off the ground but finds its perfect audience. Before any others tap, you should first research your target audience so that you can process what is more valuable for your target audience and what they expect from you? Do people interest in your product for quality or your exceptional services? What are the main problems to be solved? Is your idea already out in the marketplace, or it's a new one?
Answering all these questions must be included in research into your potential competition and industry. You must know after involving factors in actions that how these should help the customer. You have to create a business plan and a statement that set goals for the company's development in the future.
Stage 2: Commitment
After concept clarity and research, stage 2 is a commitment to moving from the idea to the company. Put research into practice, create a prototype, develop a process, and start building a team. You must secure the funding and continue to refine your business model. Work on a product with initial marketing to drum up some reviews, then launch.
Stage 3: Traction
Traction is also named validation which is considered as the first year of a startup. In this stage, you begin to get a word out about your product and gain your first customer. You have to find out whether or not your company is viable before the company start to grow. Your primary focus must be on increasing your customer base and attending the product-market fit you researched earlier in this stage.
Stage 4: Refinement
In the refinement stage, you are receiving and soliciting early adopters' feedback than using that feedback to continue refining your product and service. You can analyze how you improve your services. What are your customer reviews on your services and products? The main focus is on expanding aspects of your product that is more beneficial to your customer. The first time of interaction with the customer goes a long way toward establishing credibility and building trust. Show your interest in your customer’s needs. Refining your process with more efficient means is a must. Test your strategies such as track conversion rate, social media analytics, and any other data you can use to make your decision.
Stage 5: Scaling
Scaling is also named growing. Scaling is the stage for you to increase your customer base and offerings, and your company itself.
You repeat on what's working and put processes into place to work faster—optimizing your marketing strategies to pull in customers and increase your conversion rates efficiently. Ensure that your staff is well efficient to support your growing workload. The questions arise, such as how and when will you hire more employees? What about drawing your physical premises and technological infrastructure? As refinement and scaling requires considerable awareness about your process, and as a leader, this likely means limiting on delegating and non-essential task you are performing.
Stage 6: Becoming established
Suppose a company is no longer a startup but has turned into an established enterprise. In this stage, you see considerable growth and keep an eye on the increasing customer control and loyalty, testing and refining your strategies, and further developing strategies.
Conclusion
All steps of growing a startup into a profitable business require attention and effort as there is no gain even if you show minor negligence. Skipping steps of business development will take you nowhere.
