What are the top start-up business mistakes?

[ejansse2]

Here was my problem, try to follow me with the explanation.

Two concepts: Truffle Pigs and Waiters. A truffle (high-end mushroom) was a delicacy, very expensive and hard to find as they grow underground, therefore if someone is able to find one and sell it, it can be quite lucrative. Apparently, at some point an entrepreneur who might pursue these truffles for a living found that female pigs could find them. Therefore, if you were in the business of selling truffles, you'd be smart to have a truffle pig on your side.

Waiters. Why, when a waiter comes to your table to try to "sell" you wine, "sell" you dessert or mushrooms on the side, are you okay with it? It's because you are at the restaurant for a reason and agree, in essence, to be "sold to". However, the waiter has a problem...he/she can only operate effectively in this clearly defined situation, where one expects to be sold to. She basically receives orders, fulfills the customers want, but does not go out and bring the customer into the restaurant; this is the job of the Truffle Pig.

As I see it, Truffle Pigs get customers in the door and Waiters make them feel welcome, talk to them, develop relationships with them, and make them feel good. I think this is a valuable observation for any new company - where are you allocating your resources? For us, we were spending all of our time and energy being Truffle Pigs, and no time being waiters. We were bringing in many prospective clients but converting only a small fraction of them into sales. I quickly learned to value of developing relationships with customers and ensuring that once there is interest (or the customer's foot is in the door), then I need to develop the relationship and cater to the specific needs of each customer.

Think about this when you're starting your new business. It's one thing to bring people in the door or get interest, it's another challenge altogether to convert that into a sale.

[eaglesheila]

Great post!!!

Doing the bussiness just for the money rather than the passion to see it grow.
If you have the passion, u will persevere even when you make losses..... But if its just about the money its easy to give up.

[994ebooks]

People buy things they don't need and in turn lose money. 5-6 sellers accounts, 35 ebooks to help them, expensive web design, etc.

[WestonBergmann]

One of the biggest start-up mistakes is poor product differentiation. Product differentiation is the most important lesson a young <a href="http://www.thebusinessgreenhouse.com">entrepreneur</a> must learn. PD is the process of positioning your company to stand out amongst competition. You must be able to put into communicatable words in the simplist fashion why your company is better and different then others out there. You do so through a unique selling proposition or competitive advantage which is basically which tells your customers what you have or can do that others arn't, or can't. To learn more about entrepreneurship check out <a href="http://www.thebusinessgreenhouse.com">The Business Greenhouse</a>

[hkcsseo]

I really like the layout, and your information is very thorough.

Thanks,
Adam

[pcdoctor]

There's a lot of factors mistakes people can make when it comes to starting up businesses. One of which could be no business plan or a poor plan. If you are alone, then it could be a lot harder as well to run a business.

[AOCenteno]

1. No business Plan
2. Not enough runway (need to have money for 6 months to a year, depending on income projections
3. Not having a team or people behind you

[jcl21]

The reason why most businesses fail is because they try to walk before they crawl. That is, they try to be everything to everyone, and yet cannot satisfy a core market. Cuil attempted to compete with Google, but failed because it established no identity in the marketplace, it was just like any other search engine. If Cuil had not compared itself to Google, it would had stood a better chance of solidifying its ground (highly unlikely in the search engine market).

[naren1]

I agree with you starting the new bussiness & running it successfully is always tough, but if there is a will there is a way

[muzaffer]

I would like to add few points like lacking in basic skills, loosing interest after sometime, taking business as hobby, not showing persistence etc.

[bestsellers]

We are looking forward to reading more of your comments on:

What makes your list of top start-up mistakes? Anyone else want to add some ideas to the new list?

[llcollins82]

I think not having a mentor and seeking advice from people who have been there and can offer you valuable knowledge and experience. Having said that, I also think it is so important to work with a company that can help you in your business incorporation endeavors; a company that specializes in small businesses and works with you to help see your start-up company succeed.

[nonnerkay]

Not having self determination can really kill a business fast! Not to mention loss of intrest in your own dream/vision!

[rejoice]

rushing into things is a bad idea too

[Iamnotsatisfied]

Not being realistic in numbers... i.e. profit forecast and etc.