How Startups Invest Their Money and Where
Monday, February 3, 2020, 6:00 AM | Leave Comment
For every problem we face, there’s likely a startup with an innovative solution offering to fix it.
The problem often lies in overcoming numerous obstacles in the competitive startup arena, from finding and allocating optimal funds, marketing and branding, all the way to ongoing research and development.
That is why the key difference between startups that fail within the first few years of their beginning and those that actually overcome all those obstacles lies in managing their finances effectively.
Startups need to be versed at proper funding investments so as to ensure their own survival, but also to evolve their business properly.
Managing expenses, recognizing perfect investing opportunities, reducing costs along the way, and spotting drains are just some of those essential elements of proper money management.
In case you’re about to join the world of startups, we can break down the process of key investments so that you can get a better understanding of the segments in which such businesses should pour their budget in order to grow.
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Ongoing market research
Based on pure innovation, startups need to not just come up with an edge that lets them penetrate a market. They also need to maintain and refresh that edge as that very same market evolves, which it will. For your brand to maximize its potential to innovate, you should always stay in the know on the latest market trends, forecasts, and predictions.
Continuous market research is essential for startups to succeed, and it’s certainly one of those underestimated segments of running a business that can put your company at risk. Prevent such hurdles by keeping an eye on the market, your target audience, and your competition – and you’ll be able to position yourself in such a way that your brand never loses its relevance.
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Bookkeeping and accounting
Like many other business owners, you’re not qualified or educated to wear all of the hats needed to run a successful startup, and there’s absolutely no shame in recognizing your limitations. In fact, the sooner you notice that there are certain roles you’re not fit to be in, and that they are pivotal for the existence of your startup, the better off you’ll be, and the same applies to your business.
This especially refers to accounting roles, since money management is the key to, well, better money management, or in this case, smarter investments. Having a strong CFO and a cross-functional team of skilled financing experts can make all the difference when the time comes to make certain cuts, reduce expenses, and allocate your budget in a smart and effective way.
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Funding diversification
To make money, you need to spend some, and this principle is the foundation of all business decisions you need to make. When you’re looking for ways to expand your budget without overburdening your current creative capacities or pushing sales more, you can actually look for other lucrative opportunities to increase your startup’s income through various investments.
One of those profitable opportunities includes investing in cryptocurrency mining and accompanying hardware, so that you can use the gear yourself and generate more income for your business. This opens a door for your startup to also receive cryptocurrency investments and payments from customers and investors all over the world if need be, and to give your business an income source to boost all other departments that will help you grow.
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Customer service
Happy customers are the ultimate goal of any business, and startups are no different. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling a unique app to a niche market, an eco-friendly product for families with moderate income, or a smart toy for kids with learning issues – you need to go above and beyond to not just deliver on your promise, but make sure that every customer touchpoint is spotless. Investing in customer service from a multitude of angles is definitely a profitable move.
When you have well-trained, friendly customer agents that actually resolve customer issues, social media managers who use these platforms to help customers, and convenient chatbots on your website to shorten the problem-solving times, you get a winning combination that not only makes your customers happy, but also boosts your reputation.
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Branding and marketing strategies
There’s no business without a brand. Without one, you’re merely running a temporary operation with zero potential to earn recognition or awareness in the market that’s already saturated beyond all reason. That is why the most vigilant of all startups always reserve a certain amount of their funds for branding their business properly, and then launching various marketing campaigns to ensure greater brand visibility across the board.
When done right, branding and marketing investments come with such a high ROI that any startup owner will recognize their benefits immediately. Better-qualified leads, website traffic, improved engagement, and social media growth all lead to startups that will generate increased profits and a stronger foothold in the industry. Ultimately, branding and marketing are the two areas of investment you cannot afford not to make if you want all other investments to make sense at all.
Smarter investing decisions can help you not just preserve but enhance and grow your startup over time. To make sure that you’re choosing wisely when allocating your funds, use these as your basic guidelines for optimal investment choices and fuel your startup with all of the resources at your disposal.
Throw us a like at Facebook.com/doable.financeAuthor BIO
Lauren is a regular Bizzmark Blog author that has many articles published with the main focus on clients who want their brands to grow in the fast-changing and demanding market. Her personal favorites are successes of small businesses, startups, and entrepreneurs. She goes through life with one strong moto – Kindness, always.
