Being young and successful is possible to reach. However, building a startup can be very challenging. It is very common for the founders to be highly excited to get started. However, the reality of building startup is not as sweet as it looks. Many founders have gone through various stages. It is important to know what stages a startup founders should be aware of. Thus, everything can be more anticipated and prepared. If you plan to build a startup, make sure to know every essential stages so you will be more ready of what to do to have smooth journey.
Essential stages of building a startup
Every business is unique and has their own characteristics. However, there are main stages of building a startup that every founder should be aware of regardless of what kind of startup they are planning.
Finding the real problems
The very first stage of idea discovery is finding the real problems. By identifying the problem, you can offer effective solution using your product or service. By knowing the problems, the idea of solution will rise. Make sure that the problems relate and are relevant to the customer’s pain and struggles. Only then your idea will give more impact to your customers’ life. You can execute this stage by conducting proper interview so you know who your customers are, what their problems are, what products they are currently using, etc.
Discovery
The next stage is idea discovery. It doesn’t have to be expensive ideas. You also don’t have to aim for big issues. Even if you can just find ideas to solve common problems, it is just fine. The important point is whether or not your idea is truly relevant to the problems of the customers you want to address in the first place. Since you have found the problems through the first stage, finding ideas can be a lot easier.
Problem/solution fit
The next stage is problem/solution fit. It is the stage where you will find out whether or not the solution can truly solve the problems. However, it is too risky to move forward to product development right away. Thus, you have to come up with irresistible offers. You may need to go for product design or prototype. The point is to create something that can make customers interact with your product. After finding out product value proposition, you will know whether or not the customers will stay committed to use your products later.
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Market fit
The next important stage is the market fit. In this stage, you need to collect data. You can do it using digital metrics that can tell you possible customer’s behavior. For example, the metrics will tell about the possibility of your customers recommending the products to their friends or families. The point is to create product that people need. After this stage, you will have to go through the growth’s stage in which you start with the plan to expand. It has other kinds of challenges you should be prepared of.
