Why startups often fail?

From past few months, I had been busy with work and households. Today, somehow I managed to write this -

Why startups often fail?

I have been working with a startup from last 2 years and it takes guts (ofcourse with perseverance, dedication, hardwork, good idea and the baap of all - the investor) to run a startup. That too, one involving software at the time when the salary standards in India are booming and you have limited cash in hand.
There are a number of reasons why startups may fail -

1. the product/service you are offering is not useful. Ofcourse, you should have not come long way creating the product or service. But if you justified the idea and had conviction and went ahead to develop the product or service only to find at the end that your assessment was wrong. Or in other words, that you could not sell it!
Yes, selling matters. Whatever be the product/service, if you know how to sell it, then go for it. That’s the first and foremost thing I guess. A startup fails if it doesn’t know how to sell itself. A very good example is - the sales team trying to sell the product not yet released inspite of selling the available products of company. I may be wrong, but as I see it from business point of view - why to propagate about the product that’s in pipeline when you should sell the ready products. You are losing two things in such a case - 1. a prospective customer who could have bought the available product
2. Selling ideas and not products!

2. Knowing how to sell is not enough in the long run. You can sell a number of units in the first go. But, the company will sustain itself in the long run only if it has a quality product in hand.
Having a good sales team is a prerequisite. You may not have a good product. But atleast you wont face the agony of not being able to sell a perfect product. There are many good examples where companies have failed NOT because of what they were selling but how they were selling.

3. Now, you have good HOW and WHAT, but still a startup can fail. How? You don’t have a good
customer service. After you sell the product, the company doesn’t have a post - sales department for handling customers. Angry/dissatisfied customers can ruin your brand image and at times cost you a lot lot more than you ever imagined - ultimately collapsing the company.
The first three are very basic - HOW to sell, WHAT to sell and AFTER SALES.
Another crucial factor is WHEN You SELL? i.e. whether you are able to make what you want to sell at the right time.

4. Startups can fail if takes too long to make the product generally available. Timing is also important. If a product is in engineering stage too long, it demoralises the engineers, lessens confidence in the company i.e. it affects the attitude and overall environment in the company. Even if the company has lot of liquid, but if it takes too much time to finalise the product features, or the features are changing every two months - it gives a very bad picture of the market assessment team and infuses frustration.

Second factor is if there are too many competitors in the market and they sell the same thing you intend to sell. That might validate the market at the first place. But fact is they are eating your market share, they get recognition first in the market, they become the pioneers in the market. Its like you might have started running first, but who finishes first is the winner.

If you think of a startup as your life - you can easliy relate these as -
The product or service of the goals of your life. For eg. Achieving good marks in your exam.
You work hard to achieve your goal. So studying hard is not the only thing - studying right and at the right time is more important. If study for Algebra today for a history exam tomorrow, how can one expect to get good marks in civics?

©Sweta Gupta

My Bday

It was my birthday. Manish decided to give me a surprise by calling all our friends for a party. It was a great evening. All friends around. Its such a nice thing to have all close friends around you. It was indeed one of the best momemts. I realised that day that the best gift one can give oneself is a friend. I missed other friends who were unable to join me due to some or the other reason. Here are the few pics -

Manish unwrapped the much awaited large cake box. The cake was amazing - very beautiful flowers carved on it - it was a flower basket. It was as tasty as it was beautiful.
Before ki sab toot padte cake par, I cut the cake!

We had dinner at Banjara Hills. During the celebration, Deepak in between lost memory and started considering Mubin as Supriya. As usual, everybody was pulling each other's leg. College memories were afresh - where everybody would wait for an opportunity and then there would be a splash of laughter!

After dinner, we decided to go to Sujata Mastani for a coool Mastani. Few friends parted to their home and other came to Sujata @ Kothrud.

Here, Gadkari and Baba shared the mastaani like anyother couple does:).

Gawai became Paresh Rawal from Hera Pheri.

Poem

Finding a pearl in sea
Finding gold in a mine
Finding the greatest invention
To write about life is more difficult.
Life intrigues me so much
It confuses, it affirms me
It muses, it concerns me
At times it works, other it fails.


Like a toddler
I can go on and on
Singing about life
When the life has just begun.
I never thought I will write
And Speak my mind
Enjoy the thoughts
That had always bothered.
And make others nod
That they too had faced.
They never faced life,
Only searched through it
For treasures and wealth.


Like a river I flow
Through the plains and curves
For “that” reason in life
Unaware of Life is Flow
Unaware of Life in Flow.
When I meet the ocean
It strikes, oh! This was life.
But nonetheless, I pour
Rush into the sea
For I had realized, life is also to give.

© Sweta Gupta

The Dark Horse

This is my attempt at Flash Fiction. I had submitted this entry at Kala Ghoda Festival.
Theme: Black Horse

With fear and hope I walked into the grandstand. I glanced at the track and the past races flashed in front of my eyes. It had all started with having fun with friends by betting on horses. How I had followed tips and sheer luck had made be wealthy. How my confidence had increased race after race, and how I would boast of myself in friends. I had just started riding the horse of greed!

How fun became an obsession, I realized only the day before when I bet everything and lost all. And there I was; all gloomy at the Junior Champion Stakes that day!

The thin pocket pinched me!

I touched the only money left in my pocket - five hundred dollars. The thought of losing it made me feel sick. If only greed hadn’t gripped me at the highest the day before, I would have been beaming with winning attitude again.

With trembling hands I placed the bet at the course bookmaker window, “Win on Reaffirmed”.
There was something about Reaffirmed that I bet on him again inspite of his betrayal the day before. My heart was pumping hard. Once again my fate was in the hands of the same stallion.

The race started. First Samurai was leading and Reaffirmed was at five. It looked tough for Reaffirmed to win. Reaffirmed tried hard and managed at third position. In the last lap, it was unbelievable to see First Samurai and Reaffirmed neck-to-neck. Both crossed the finishing line together. Both thought, he won the race!
First Samurai was declared the winner by jury. Reaffirmed lost.
I was pondering, my heart asking me questions, “Was it a sheer luck? was it the fraction (100$ for every 2$) I bet for? Didn’t I choose the Wrong Horse?

© Sweta Gupta