7 Common Mistakes That Startups Often Make

New business owners are nervous, excited, and ambitious. You want to start selling your products or services as soon as feasible. It's easy to be so focused on goals that you ignore other business necessities.

1. Not developing a cohesive brand identity.

The first mistake that new businesses make is not developing a cohesive brand identity. Your brand is the very first thing people see and it sets the tone for all future interactions with your company, so it's important to get it right!  

Your brand identity should be an expression of who you are and what you stand for as a business. It will help customers understand what makes you different from your competitors, allowing them to trust that they'll be getting something unique when they choose to work with you instead of another business in your field. A cohesive brand identity includes all of these elements:


  • A strong name
  • A recognizable logo
  • Consistent colors and fonts
  • An overall look and feel that is professional and trustworthy
  • Engaging social media content that amplifies your brand voice*
  • A strong brand voice* that is consistent across all touchpoints

*A brand voice is a consistent way of speaking that represents a brand in all communications. It should be reflective of the brand's personality and values, and be consistent across all channels.

An example of a brand voice would be if a company always used friendly, colloquial language in its communications, regardless of the medium. This would make the brand seem approachable and down-to-earth.

image displaying a document with Xs on it

2. Not having a web presence that is mobile friendly.

Mobile-friendly websites are essential, and here's why:  

  • Mobile Internet usage in the U.S. has grown to 64% (as of Q1 2017). If you're not catering to this growing number of mobile users, you could be missing out on a large portion of your potential customer base and profits.
  • Mobile Friendly Websites Are Essential For SEO. If you want to rank higher on Google search results pages (SERPs), a mobile-friendly site is an absolute must! The reason for this is that Google now uses its algorithm MobiRank which checks the speed at which your website loads and whether or not it is optimized for mobile devices. If it doesn't meet their requirements, then your website will rank lower than other sites with better scores in this area.

Here at Puzzlcat, we prioritize search engine optimization (SEO) and mobile friendliness (MFF) while designing our webpages.

Get in touch with us!

3. Not having effective accounting software for your business.

Whether you're an established business or just starting out, good accounting software is an essential tool for managing the financial side of things.  

It's also one of the best ways to keep track of where time and money are going so that you can make adjustments as needed. And when it comes to choosing between different options, there are plenty: QuickBooks, Xero Online Accounting Software (or Xero), FreshBooks online invoicing service, Wave Accounting—the list goes on.

4. Not having an effective marketing plan in place from the beginning.

The importance of marketing cannot be overstated. It's the driving force behind any business, and it's crucial that you have an effective marketing plan in place from the beginning. Your plan should include a budget and timeline, as well as strategies for how you will reach your target market.  

The most successful businesses are flexible enough to adjust their strategies along the way based on what they learn through their interactions with customers.



5. Master your strengths and outsource your weaknesses.

If you try to do everything yourself, you will quickly become overwhelmed and bogged down in the details. This will hurt your business because you won't be able to focus on the big picture or move forward. It's important to delegate tasks and build a team that you can trust to help you grow your business.  

6. Without a signed contract, you may have problems with business partners

If you do not have a written agreement with your business partners, you could be opening yourself up to a lot of potential problems down the road. For example, if there is a disagreement about who owns what percentage of the business, or what the responsibilities of each partner are, it can be very difficult to resolve these issues without a written agreement in place.  



Additionally, if one partner wants to sell their interest in the business, or bring in new partners, it can be difficult to do so without a written agreement in place. Having a written agreement with your business partners can help to prevent these types of problems from arising, and can help to keep your business running smoothly.

7. Not defining their target market

Startups need to define their target market and know who their ideal customer is. Without this information, it is very difficult to create a marketing strategy that will be effective.  

Following are a few examples of business sectors and their intended target market:

  • A business that sells luxury cars would target high-income earners.
  • A business that sells everyday items like toothpaste would target most people since everyone needs these items.
  • A business that sells gourmet food would target people who are willing to spend extra money on high-quality or unique items.

Conclusion

The key takeaway from this article is that starting a business takes time, money and lots of hard work. It can also be very stressful at times if you don't plan ahead or have a good support network in place. By avoiding these 7 mistakes, you'll have a much better chance at success!  



If you're starting a new business, the last thing you want to worry about is the technical details. Let our team of experts handle the nitty-gritty for you so you can focus on what you do best - running your business! We'll take care of your website development, SEO, and all the other technical details that go into making your business a success.

Contact us today and let us help you take your business to the next level!


We are a South African software start up, and would appreciate a Share of this information if you found it helpful <3

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter