Startup Mistakes That Almost Always Lead to Business Failure

Startup Mistakes

• The newest startup doesn’t accept the technology change.
• As per Forbes, approximately 29% of the startups couldn’t solve the complex conundrum of managing finances.
• Vacillate to take a risk, and lack of experience leads to business failure.

Somewhere you must have heard about the failure of a startup, but do you know why the small businesses end up early? Business failure isn’t something you want to think about when you start a business. There are various factors equally responsible, and there is a broader difference between- decision making and implementing decisions in business activities.

One poor decision can hurt your potential for success or set you back. Unfortunately, there is no fool-proof plan to reach 100% startup success, although a few crucial measures can minimize the risk with higher possibilities of success.

Success and failure are two sides of the coin- if you want to turn the table towards your side, it becomes essential to avoid a few illogical startup mistakes, and most startups lose their grip at the commencement of the business. This is why they join the list of Famous Startup Failures.

Here are a few essential measures that boost the startup and maximize the success bar-

Be Prepared to Face Legal Challenges

The first thing to be precise about when starting the business is the kind of business you want to set up. Then, depending on the structure, the industry is formulated- whether it could be a partnership, sole proprietorship, private limited company, a public company, or a limited liability partnership. For every business structure, specific legal requests should be followed. For example- a limited liability company has to be registered with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs under the Limited Liability Partnership Act 2008.

Also, ensure that all the required agreements relating to the startup- Articles of Association, Memorandum of Association, and co-founders agreement- are in place. This also guarantees that no legal complications are left when a dispute arises in the future.

After a particular procedure, a business license is required to run a business without disruption. For example, a startup engaged in the food business has to obtain a food safety and health license. The conditions mentioned in the license have to be fulfilled. Failure to the prescribed conditions can lead to license cancellation or hefty litigation.

Undervalued Your Products or Services

It has been observed that a lack of confidence in your ability and fear of failure causes you to under-price the product and services. It undervalues your planning structure, motivation, and capability. This might be a difficult path because it undermines the exceptional value you bring to the table and opens up the possibility of resentment. Also, recovering from undervaluing your goods becomes essential because it helps you identify the best entry price of your product for what you’re selling.

Lack of Passion/ Losing Focus

Innovative ideas lead to the company’s growth, but what if ideas change or you lose the focus on the goal set? CNN report also suggested- that approximately 65% of the startup post-mortem founders found a lack of passion and conflict among co-founders. Also, the lack of knowledge of a domain was a key factor for failure, no matter how good an idea is.

Doughbies, a cookie delivery service in the US, raised $670,000 in on-demand cookie service in 2014. It failed because of a lack of interest from its founders and team. At the beginning of their business, the company appeared to be doing well, with 36% gross margins and 12% net profit at shutting down. CEO Daniel Conway said, “Although there was not massive growth, we were not sure to run the business for a longer time. Finally, we shut down our business because our team is ready to move on to something new.”

Poor Marketing

Knowing your market and the target audience, how to convert them to leads, and ultimately customer satisfaction is one of the reasons for a successful business. Market strategy, survey, and research should be implemented for any business before launching the product. Unfortunately, it is also a common failure among founders who liked to build a product but who didn’t relish the idea of promoting the product.

Once you’re sure about the business line-up, it is essential to do marketing and advertise your product on a larger scale. Mind diversion leads to business failure and financial loss.

Lack of Investment

Money and time are the two important finite things that need to adjust judiciously. So now the question is how to spend money wisely? As per reports by Reuters, approximately 29% of the start-ups suffer from a failure in the first year of their business.

In September 2019, augmented reality (AR) startup Daqri shut down after burning through more than $250M in funding and failing to raise a new round from investors.  The European budget airline WOW air also met a similar fate.

Starting a startup is easy, but continuing and funding for a long time are problematic. To sustain in a market, you should have a reliable team that can respond and works according to business requirements.

Pricing/Cost Issues

Pricing is art for startup feats, and startup post-mortems highlight the difficulty in pricing a product. And to eventually cover production costs but low enough to bring customers in.

Common startup mistakes are made with the price of running a company- which is calculated as too high compared to the revenues generated. The company should not focus on huge profits but also take care of the cost. The company spends money in different categories, including labor, production, sales, and marketing costs. The majority of the startups suffer from cost issues because they cannot mark out the correct price of the product because of the competition in the market and most of the companies fail to keep an aggressive pricing strategy.

These are a few essential and effective measures to avoid startup failure with the above information. As a result, small-scale industries become effective and contribute to the country’s economy on a larger scale. All you need is to take precautions and calculative risks while implementing plans and executing strategies.

Karan Jain

Born in the family of entrepreneurs and have inherited the same. Started building applications in order to pay for my tuition. Later founded a tech company, marketing agency, and media outlets.