Rapid Innovation Group blog

"In a startup success is in a 'to-learn' list not a 'to-do' list"

In the presentation below Suneel Gupta, Groupon's VP Product, gives an interesting perspective on "managing hypergrowth" in a company that became the fastest in history to reach $1bn in revenue.

Whilst large organisations typically manage projects by thinking about 'to-do' lists, Gupta (referencing Sean Ellis) says that in startups it makes much more sense to think about 'to-learn' lists.

I like this distinction because it recognises the fact that growth-stage companies constantly come across new challenges that are not yet fully defined. As a technology Founder/CEO your role may change from designer to developer to salesman to recruiter to manager within the space of a year.

It's difficult to know specifically what you have to do until you've started doing it, so think about what you have to learn instead.

See the full video by clicking below.

Current trends in the startup world

Over the past few weeks, I had the chance to research some interesting topics including recent developments in startups. I was really intrigued by some of the trends that are circulating within the area and I have decided to highlight a few in this post:

Global startup funding is on the up

Globally, more than 400 companies received funding in Q2 2011. Although the US has traditionally been stronger in the amount of funding it provides and the number of companies it provides this to, Europe is growing both in terms of funding and startups. Over $1 billion was invested in European startups alone in the last few months. 

Investors are pouring their money into social media, IT and energy

Looking at the Calibre One Index review released this week, a large amount of investor funding was awarded to companies in the social media, IT and energy sectors. The group of companies within the social media sector consisted not only of consumer-focused services, but also many B2B products and services. In particular, these B2B companies focused on using social media-based platforms to track customer sentiment, to increase ad exposure and maintain its integrity, and to make use of social media channels more efficient for marketing purposes. Other funded B2B companies also provided cloud computing and related systems management solutions. Additionally, a significant amount of funding was given to many companies based in alternative and efficient energy technologies.

Startups can help reduce the current unemployment crisis

Companies had a variety of purposes for the funding that they secured. Among these are:

• Improving existing products or services


• Creating new product lines


• Expanding sales locally and/or in a foreign market


• Growing the business by building up their team

The last point is particularly interesting as the majority of companies that recently secured funding stated that they are hiring more people in order to expand their operation. This includes candidates with experience in technical expertise, sales, marketing and other divisions. Furthermore, these companies and their growth plans ranged in sizes. Some were companies with less than 10 people looking to double their workforce by the end of the year. Others were more medium-sized companies that already had been successful in one local area and were looking to open one or more offices in other cities.

Despite the recent negative news about the lack of prospective growth in the global economies, there is real potential within the startup market. More startups are securing funding, and they are providing strong opportunities for job creation that will only have a knock-on effect in other areas of business.

On a personal note as an entrepreneur, it is exciting to see that the possibilities are looking up.

6 steps to run a successful series of webinars for lead generation

A good way of allowing potential customers to get a feel for your product or service and for your company, without feeling under pressure that they might be hassled by a salesman, is running a series of webinars. This is particularly true in the B2B world, in which it is less likely that you have a demo or trial version that customers can play with before buying.

Webinars allow you to make a presentation to a large audience over the internet, answer their questions, conduct surveys, and develop a reputation of thought leadership in your industry. The most commonly used platform for growth-stage companies to do webinars is currently GoToMeeting, and I would say that the webinar series run by Hubspot on marketing are a good example to follow.

But you will not get the most benefit out of running a webinar series if you simply show up and deliver a presentation. Here are 6 steps you should aim to do well if you want to get the best return.

1. Pick the right topic

You should always have a target audience and an objective in mind when coming up with a webinar topic. Are you trying to find potential customers that are nearly ready to buy from you? Are you trying to educate the customers of a reseller of yours? Are you trying to build a reputation for thought leadership with one of your key target customers?

Identify topics that are useful to you during your sales process. Webinars take time so you should try to see them as a way of generating content that can be used in different situations. They should not be seen in isolation: build on other whitepapers or blog posts that you have written.

The other advantage to webinars is that they can be a two-way conversation - not just a one-way presentation. For instance, if you are developing an ROI model for your product or service then you could use a webinar to gather feedback and insight from practitioners in your industry.

2. Pick the right date

A typical drop-out rate (the proportion of people who register for but then do not attend the webinar) for webinars is anything from 30-50%. Find out in your sector whether people are more likely to attend if it is on a Wednesday rather than a Friday, and whether it is over lunch or at the end of the day. Don't organise it at the same time as a major industry conference or sports event if you suspect that they might draw your customers away.

3. Publicise the webinar

Identify who you want to attend. It might be primarily potential buyers from one company, or one sector, or one country. It might be anyone who has attended one of your previous events, or everyone in your marketing database to whom you've spoken in the past and with whom you want to reopen a dialogue.

Find out where those people will be and go to them to publicise the webinar. Think about posting on relevant LinkedIn groups and Twitter, and certainly your website, blog, and newsletter.

4. Prepare for the webinar

Once you have a list of attendees, go through it an identify the key individuals from that list. You might have 50 attendees but if one of them is a key decision maker in a target customer account then you should tailor your webinar to ensure that she receives the right messages.

Identify individuals who are regular attendees to your webinars or events. Think about sending them a note before the webinar thanking them for their continued interest and asking them whether they have any particular questions that they would like to raise. If those people are supporters of yours then you might be able to ask them for referrals or for support in developing future webinar ideas.

Prepare your answers to the questions you expect to come up. This also gives you an opportunity to kick off the Q&A section with a confident answer to a prepared question, to encourage others to come forward.

Prepare any collateral or documentation (such as the presentation slides) that you will send to the audience afterwards, so that it is ready to go within an hour of finishing the webinar.

5. Execute the webinar

If you have the resources to do so it can be interesting to conduct a discussion in parallel with your webinar on Twitter. Create and share a hashtag on Twitter, share it with your audience, and allow them to discuss your webinar with each other and to raise questions with you.

Usually webinars are divided into two-thirds presentation and one-third Q&A. The first two-thirds can also be used to conduct surveys, gather feedback, and ask for questions.

Tell your audience exactly how you will follow up with them and what you would like them to do next. For instance, you can invite attendees to your next event or ask that they join whatever social networking groups of which you are part. If you recorded the webinar then let the audience know when it will be available. Provide your contact details in case anyone wants additional information.

6. Follow up

Send out your marketing collateral as soon as you can after the webinar. Then send individual responses to any unanswered questions. Ensure that you send the collateral to everyone who registered but did not attend.

GoToMeeting provides an 'interest rating,' which allows you to benchmark and qualify attendee interest in a webinar on a scale of 1 to 100, based on their proprietary algorithm, which I imagine will take into account for how long each person attended, whether they responded to survey questions, and whether they were doing other things whilst the webinar was running. You can use this as one way of prioritising your follow-up. The individuals with a high interest rating are likely to want to be involved in future webinars so consider asking them for input to the next topics.

If there were any key individuals in your target customer accounts amongst the attendees, or amongst the no-shows, then consider passing their details to your sales team to follow up personally.

Finally, collect all the names and add them to your CRM system, so that you do not lose the contacts that you invested time in locating.

This is a lot to think about for any growth-stage company but, as with any demand generation tactic, you should always be looking to optimise the return you get from your limited resources.

Exploring new lands: How to succeed in taking your product abroad

Expanding a business by ‘opening up shop’ in a new country can be a daunting yet exciting opportunity. Some of RIG’s clients work with companies based overseas. As a result, I’ve had the opportunity to listen to some of the questions brought up when discussing how to suitably approach prospective clients. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

Do your research

Although your product may be successful in your home country, entering a market abroad can pose different challenges. For example, your target market might already be more advanced in your field. As a result, being aware of your unique selling points is key in differentiating yourself from others already in the crowd.

Focus on their needs

This point ties into the comment above. Be aware that a client in a different country will have different needs. Their demand for your product will be determined a variety of factors such as the existing market, their operation, their budget, etc. It is important to be open to your client’s suggestions without compromising the quality of your product or service.  

Be aware of the country’s business culture

How do you approach prospective clients? Interestingly enough, when you want to convince them of the key benefits of your product, the way that you attempt this can easily be overlooked but it makes a significant impact. Are they used to a punchy sales pitch or do they prefer a long talk? Are they more responsive to an e-mail, phone call or face-to-face meeting?

Does your target country have particular business etiquette or protocols? Learning more about your prospective client’s culture can show them that you are keen in meeting their needs, not the other way around. Furthermore, this shows that you’ve really taken to the time to invest in building a fruitful business relationship.

The money game

Do you have a sufficient cash pool to take your business abroad? Have you made a detailed outline of the costs associated with such a move? Really knowing what the process entails when building up your business in a foreign country and being realistic about your budget can potentially save you from a lot of trouble in the long run.

Language barrier

Does your technology have a language element that would need to be accounted for when aiming to expand in another country? Being able to make your product easy to use will be a key decision factor in closing a deal.  Be realistic about your ability to meet this client need and be aware of the resources you will need to achieve it.

While all of this may seem familiar or even like common sense, sometimes it is the small details that can put you ahead of the curve.

7 lessons in 7 weeks...

So this is my last week at Rapid Innovation Group. Time really flew by. It seems like it was only yesterday that I walked into this office for the first time. Although it felt very short, I learnt a lot of lessons. This week, I decided to expand on 7 lessons I learnt at RIG in the 7 weeks I had here as an intern...

Lesson 1: The software and technology industry is booming...

The first thing I came to notice was my lack of knowledge of the software and technology industry. Particularly in the UK and US, there seems to be an outburst of start-ups with very innovative solutions to real problems (average Joe would only know of the large corporations). What was interesting to learn was that well-known systems integrators and oil refineries tend to differentiate themselves by adopting technologies by innovative start-ups, which is the feedstock of this outburst. It has been fascinating to learn the details of these industries. 

Lesson 2: Communication with clients is hard but crucial

Finding myself talking to clients about my 'fairly limited research' on PCI compliance of telephony systems was a difficult change. However, it has taught me an important lesson. How you present your knowledge and how you gain the respect of your clients, by proving that you are capable of undertaking an important task, is harder than it may seem but it is certainly crucial. As one of our interviewees, Fanny Dolo, also mentioned: you build professional relationships by firstly showing focused knowledge over a certain field and secondly undertaking a difficult task from beginning to end.

Lesson 3: You need to respond well to "elevator tests"

There were times where I was asked something quite specific, something I should have really known the answer for. But I froze with no answer because it was not in a presentation format where I had memorised everything I wanted to say. An important lesson was to try and prepare myself for such situations - not only being prepared for planned presentations, and be confident even if the answer is "I don't know."

Lesson 4: Thorough research is important

Getting research done quickly so you can move onto the fun stuff is clearly not the right attitude… Well… it was not so clear to me when I first started! Thanks to my team mates’ patience and support, I learnt that speed is not as valued if there is lack of precision. One must find the right balance.

Lesson 5: Business tools can make work much more efficient

Business tools that Rapid Innovation Group has created and utilised make day-to-day tasks very efficient and organised. I learnt how to create an action register, a three month plan, and a key account matrix, besides learning how to use customer relationship management software, a cloud drive, an internal communications software, calendar share on outlook, and more…

Lesson 6: Identifying benefits of client acquisition

How to categorise the unique selling points of Rapid Innovation Group and the clients we are looking to bring into our business is hard. However, what is really challenging is identifying how and to what extent each side would benefit from such a partnership. 

Lesson 7: How to write a blog

 Though this may seem irrelevant, I believe it is a crucial skill. What I discovered in writing blogs is that identifying the audience and their interests is key. For example, I would suspect that if you have read until this point, you are either a Rapid Innovation Group employee, looking to become one, or you know Rapid Innovation Group very well. Having written about thirty posts with various themes have given me the skill to attract attention, keep people interested, and make sense in writing (I hope!). 

On a more personal note…

It is scientifically proven that the extent to which people adopt different accents in speech is dependent on how much they like the accent, and more importantly how much they like the person with the accent. I think the same could be said about work… I loved working within the closely bonded team here at Rapid Innovation Group, which is why I learned so much in a very short period of time. It was not only because of what the job entitled (i.e. accent), but also due to the very welcoming and always supporting team here (i.e. the person with the accent).

On that note, I would like to say bye by thanking everyone here at Rapid Innovation Group for making me feel welcome, always giving me a helping hand when in need, being understanding of mistakes due to inexperience, and giving me the opportunity to learn and finally make an impact.

 

Choosing the right start-up company

We recently had the opportunity to speak to Fanny Dolo, WISAFORCE’s Key Account Manager and Head of Marketing in the UK. We asked her to tell us more about her reasons for joining WISAFORCE and what she thinks are the key qualities to consider when deciding to take on a role in Marketing and Sales for a technology based start-up.

“WISAFORCE provides an application that allows companies to monitor their customers’ activity on their websites and that allows them to interact directly with customers. If a company’s representative notices that the customer may be having difficulty locating something on their webpage or filling out a form, they can speak to them directly via pop-up messages or chat windows. 

"This platform has been particularly successful with e-commerce websites in the past. It also really boosts online sales conversion rates. Normally, the conversion rate for a website is about 2% compared to about 15% in a store. The reason for the discrepancy is that customers can speak directly to a sales representative in store but they cannot do that online. There are two ways to solve this problem: by using virtual agents, which answer questions based on a database of keywords and have about a 60% rate in answering the question correctly; or by using a service like WISAFORCE that provides real agents, which is more interactive and effective. 

"When joining a technology start-up, it is important to know how the technology works by asking for a demo. In this way, it helps to understand if the technology is efficient, if there is a market for it, and if it will be easy to sell. WISAFORCE answers a clear need; nothing like it in France existed at the time, however, the UK market is more evolved.

"Checking the culture of the company, especially in a start-up, is essential when choosing a company to work for. You want to be in line with the company values and how people work together. You want to be able to trust the people you work with. When you work in a small company, you own the work that you do. In a way, your project becomes your baby. Working in a start-up, you can’t really hide from your responsibilities like you sometimes can in a big company  and the results are directly linked to your performance. Ultimately, where you want to work depends on your personality.”

How to give your startup more power when selling to corporates

A friend of mine used to run a technology project at Tesco, working alongside a growth-stage technology company. Whenever he phoned that technology company, he represented Tesco with the full weight of its brand and its revenue potential: his calls would be answered at all hours of the day. On the other hand, even the CEO of the technology company was seen as only one element of a much wider project, from which my friend would shortly move on to the next one.

There seems to be a clear imbalance of power here. I think that this can sometimes arise from the very understandable eagerness as a growth-stage company to prove yourself and your product or service to the best and the biggest in your sector.

But growth-stage companies should remember that they have power too. And this should be reflected in your approach to potential customers.

Compare these two approaches:

1. We have a really great product; we have experience in your sector and a proven ROI; we can save you £1m within the first year. Based on your characteristics x, y, and z we think you might be a good fit for us. We'd love to open a dialogue with you to see whether we might be able to help you


2. We have taken funding from VC investors in order to demonstrate in the next 12 months that one of the major players in this sector can save £1m within the first year through using our product. We're going through a process of identifying which the best company would be to partner with to generate this proof. We feel based on your characteristics x, y, and z that you might be interested in exploring this with us.

The second approach creates a sense of scarcity: the startup is choosing the customer not the other way around. There is an opportunity here to save £1m, the entrepreneur is saying, but it's not open to everybody. The offer won't be around for long because our investors need to see a return. It's then up to the potential customer to convince the entrepreneur that they are the right people to capitalise on this opportunity.

Give yourself more power when selling to corporates by remembering that your resources are limited and so you have to be just as careful to select with whom you work as your customers are.

What it is like to be a marketing and strategy consultant

As a fresher in sales and marketing, I have had the chance to discover the expectations from relevant industries thanks to my internship at RIG. Also, what goes on backstage of growth-stage companies is relatively unknown and my experience here has taught me some interesting and important lessons.

Here is a list of expectations that were not obvious as a newbie, but became clearer in hindsight, and lessons learnt about the culture at Rapid Innovation Group:

• Sales and marketing requires a lot of background research. It is not always about cold calling, and certainly not at RIG. Generating a marketing strategy and researching the target companies in order to build a concise and accurate engagement makes up a significant part of the sales and marketing process.


• Research and preparation needs time. Doing things quickly does not get you as far as you may think in this field. I came to understand that an analytical approach is more valued in this industry than getting something done and dusted fast, without paying attention to detail.


• Although independent work is appreciated, you should understand what is really necessary and expected from you. I think most people have the tendency of finding the opportunity to take a leap ahead to produce something that can add value. However, your time may be more precious to others than you think. So being in good communication with your colleagues may prove more imperative.


• Try to “fit in” to the office but don’t hide your real personality. If your personality is not a good fit, then you are probably not in the right place. At a growth-stage company like RIG, it is unlikely that you will find somebody who shares majority of your thoughts and habits, and that is probably intentional. The fact that you are different adds diversity to the company and one would benefit by embracing that.


• Asking for help is usually not a bad idea. Here at RIG, everybody likes to help one another, and they will happily give you a hand when you need it so you can save time and avoid embarrassment later.


• A little less conversation, a little more action. If you are into the chatty culture, taking long hours over lunch and spending a lot of time talking about your weekend in the office, you will find yourself struggling here at RIG, like at any start-up. However, what makes RIG unique is that if you come and work to your best potential, you can leave early enough to be able to enjoy the rest of the evening with your family and friends. You are never burnt-out as long as you stay disciplined throughout the work hours.

Good entrepreneurs are risk-averse

Ask a man on the street what he thinks about entrepreneurs and risks. He’ll likely say that entrepreneurs thrive off risks. In reality, the best CEOs of start-up companies are very risk averse; their skill lies in their ability to mitigate risk.

We are currently helping a client raise funding and design a go-to-market strategy for a technology it is building. A focus on risk mitigation has been central to this strategy.

Historically, a company at this stage would have faced two key risks:

1. Technical – can a solution be built to specification? Will it work?


2. Market – will the market adopt the technology? Will it do so within acceptable timeframes and costs? Is there a product / market fit?

In today’s environment, investors are much less concerned about technical risk. They assume the system can be built to requirements. Their key questions are all around market adoption, and this was the area our strategy looked to address.

Step one – market selection

The solution, once built, will be applicable across a wide range of markets. We began by selecting a niche one for initial deployment. This way the solution can be built precisely for this market, from the ground up, and therefore compete by being better able to meet precise user-requirements than the generic solutions of its competitors.

The market was selected because it will face new legislation in the next 18 months: no driver is stronger than a legislative one, where the result of non-compliance could be a criminal conviction. Our strategy is for the solution to enable companies to gain assurance of and demonstrate compliance to the legislation in the most cost-effective and straight-forward manner. Currently there is no effective solution on the market to enable them to do this.

Step two – partner selection

Our second step was to form a partnership with a major ($2bn turnover) services company, operating across a wide range of markets, and currently number two in our chosen market. We will build them a solution ‘free of charge’ (i.e. fully funded), they will input user-requirements and market it to their customer base. This partnership will mitigate market risk in the following ways:

1. The resulting solution will have the endorsement of a leading market brand


2. The system will be ‘best-of-breed’ in terms of precisely meeting user requirements, thanks to the partner’s input of expertise during the build process


3. Most crucially, there will be a ready-made large customer base (i.e. that of the partner’s) to enable a smooth path to revenue upon product completion 


4. There will be a significant reduction in terms of marketing spend due to the partner’s ability to promote to its customer base. The partner’s current number two position in a strategically important market means it is strongly motivated to leverage the incoming legislation to gain a leading position – our client's solution will be a chief enabler for this


5. Market development – subsequent target markets are also served by the partner