I’ll never forget my first meeting with a venture capitalist.
I was certain that I had all the bases covered, dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s.
A great presentation, believable figures, hot market, capable team, frontrunner technology…
And yet, when it was time for the Q & A, one recurring question damn near wrecked the whole thing:
“Yes yes, very impressive, but exactly HOW are you going to enter this market?”
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought that one through.
I suppose it seemed too obvious – of COURSE we’ll make waves since everything’s primed for it.
And yet – you’ll actually need to have a true and tested way to enter that particular market, stay there, and eventually lead the market.
As in:
- Have a relevant list of prospective customers primed to work with you
- Have an existing ‘sugardaddy’ of a client that will instantly lift you to dominate
- Have PROVEN demand for your product, so that you’ll sell as soon as product is ready
- Have a partner enlisted who will shorten your path from nobody to leader – and even sell for you
And so it goes on. I think you get the idea.
These days I’ll never go for new business until I know for sure how I’ll be able to enter the market.
And then dominate that category, preferably.
So my advice to you is: if you can’t find a proven way to enter the market you’re getting into, look again.
And if you still can’t find one, ditch your plan. It’s not worth it.
It’s hard enough to make a new business work from the ground up, so make sure you won’t be trapped with nowhere to go.
Think about how your venture will fit in the existing landscape, and through what specific actions will you grab your first and most important batch customers.
And take good care of them, too. You’ll remember them for life, I’ll guarantee you that. 🙂
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