The Most Successful Startups and their Insightful Lessons
New business ventures can be hard to sustain, especially if there are well-established companies in the market. Many variables come into play when considering why some startups succeed while others fail. No concrete plan can guarantee that a new company will prosper even when it has the funding capabilities. Nonetheless, several startups have had incredible success in their operations, and they offer a few lessons that an individual, investor or not, can learn from. Borrowing some of the strategies that these startups have implemented can paint a picture of how to go about handling your financial practices such as your trading with CMC Markets.
Uber
With a valuation of $51bn, Uber is an app and is the highest valued startup globally. It works by allowing people to hail for taxi rides using their mobile devices where drivers of private vehicles get into contracts with Uber, and the app connects them to potential customers. The idea of a ride-sharing app is an ingenious one where the company does not need to invest in vehicles; only find suitable car owners. Uber has spread to numerous countries, providing business opportunities for locals and solving transport problems for inhabitants. The lesson Uber offers with its success story is that consumers are always open to alternatives, especially in areas where the current players are lax. Uber has not been without challenges, and most of those have been complaints from customers, which the company has taken measures to address.
Xiaomi
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer entered a market that was already saturated with players such as Apple, Samsung, LG and Huawei already making waves. However, Xiaomi started operations in 2010 and is currently worth $46 billion and the second most valuable startup. One of the reasons for its wild success is because the company leveraged the online platform and created a prominent e-commerce base. Xiaomi also concentrated on building a loyal market in China first before moving to other regions and has used social sites to bring exposure to the brand. Lesson learnt- use what is available to establish a market share and don’t always duplicate rival strategies.
Airbnb
The website allows holiday goers to find accommodation from locals who have room to spare. Airbnb changed the way people traveled and disrupted the hotel industry by offering affordable accommodation options, not to mention convenience. Airbnb has thrived because it focused on reducing the budgets of people on holiday. The accommodation has often been one of the biggest financial obstacles when traveling, and it can be difficult to look after the larger properties on your own. If this is the case, then Airbnb Management can look to help. They can help maximize profits and support you with the cleaning, all to support you in finding the best way to get more from the booking. Even with a market filled with competitors, there are opportunities to provide solutions to issues that the current players may be ignoring.
Square
The startup is among the top twenty of the world’s most valuable and that has been possible through its unique approach to business. Square provides a way for mobile merchants to process credit card transactions by customers. Sellers get the mobile app and the card reader free from Square, and that is one strategy that has increased its customer base. The takeaway here is that not every product or service has to be paid for so that a company can make money. Square also saw a huge gap in the credit processing sector and filed it with its mobile devices.
Palantir
Currently valued at $20 billion, Palantir is a software company that provides analytics solutions to government contractors and federal agencies such as the FBI and NSA. Fraud is an age-old problem that plagues different industries. The California-based startup developed software that analyses data and detects fraud. Surprisingly, the company did not use sales reps to promote its software. Again, the idea of solving an existing problem, especially a common one, always works. However, the quality of the product or services will determine how well that goes.
Dropbox
The idea of coming up with a file sharing tool when there were already so many of them on the market that no one really cared about seemed like a preposterous one, at best. However, Dropbox has gone on to become one of the most successful startups with a valuation of over $10 billion. The cloud service enables users to store data and sync files with other people. What Dropbox did differently from all the others was to provide value and consistency in its services, which are some of the greatest drivers of success in any business.