IPitch Articles Archive
Sales Tips for Startups
By Gareth Rose on Sunday, September 26th, 2010
I met with a couple of technical guys the other day who are about to launch their startup. I was giving them a few sales tips which made me think of writing this article.
In a startup where both founders are technical, generally, I would encourage you to initially get out and try to sell the product/service yourselves. You’ll learn a lot quickly. You’ll get direct customer feedback early on which is vital, and later when you bring in a sales team to sell for you, you’ll understand the sales cycle and be in a much better position to manage them. Obviously if you can co-found with a person experienced in sales that’s even better!
A quick note on product/service and the market. As a startup I gather you’ve done your market research, you’ve got out and spoken to your likely customers and you know about their problems. You know the size of the market. You’ve analysed your competitors and you know how your product or service compares. If you’ve got an awesome product/service that customers love [and are willing to pay for], you’re in a good position to sell.
With that in mind, here are the sales tips:
Startup Profile: Agenda [TheAgendaDaily.com]
By Gareth Rose on Thursday, September 9th, 2010
‘Agenda’ is a free daily email connecting consumers with the best places in their chosen city. Agenda delivers recommendations and once weekly deals for Restaurants, Nightlife & Things to Do.
IPitch: What problem is your business or idea trying to solve?
Agenda: Today, lifestyle media is restricted to web magazines, print or niche blogs. In the lifestyle context, these mediums are less trafficked and the customer less engaged.
It is connectedness that is required. Advertisers want an ongoing conversation and real ‘paid-up’ customers not just a one-time single touch point. And, customers want to see ongoing value from their engagement.
For Brand Advertisers: Agenda offers ongoing and daily access to an affluent, influential audience using magazine quality editorial and design.
For local business: Agenda offers risk free advertising with broadcasts to an eager lifestyle oriented audience. With no up-front costs businesses leverage our customer base to sell-thru’ their offering.
We actualise lifestyle experiences for our customers!
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