7 Growth Hacking Ideas that will Boost your Startup

Published on: 08 January 2019 Last Updated on: 08 August 2019
Hacking Ideas

Everyone is always looking for new and fresh ideas in business to develop solutions for problems or to address a market need. Ideas that have never been thought possible before are the seeds that plant startup companies. Startups are usually small and financed by one or a handful of individuals. The risks are high but when startups succeed, they succeed exponentially and some ultimately become unicorns. Some unicorns you may be familiar with which are valued at over $1 billion dollars are Uber, Xiaomi, and Airbnb.  Today’s business landscape is encouraging enterprising people to establish their own startups since communications and technology are advanced enough for people to bring their ideas not only locally but worldwide. To grow your startup quickly and gain millions of customers to increase sales and revenue you should follow some startup growth hacking ideas.

1. Offer something for free:

When you offer something for free, demand for it quickly increases. It is a proven human instinct that people will snatch up anything that’s on discount more so anything that is free. When people take the free products and services you advertise and introduce it to a wider audience, you set the stage for your products and services to be part of people’s lives and sooner they develop a familiarity with it or even a dependence on it. The effects of offering something for free is very powerful and has an instant effect on your business: you build your user base much more quickly and speed up customer acquisition.  You can actually build revenue when you offer something for free by offering upgrades to products and services at a cost.

2. Increase funds to expand your business:

If you believe in your products enough, you can get like-minded people to invest in it through crowdfunding. Crowdfunding helps you interact with people who already have similar ideas and it gives you better knowledge if your products and services will generate interest.

Crowdfunding sites such as Kickstarter have raised $220 million dollars from 61,000 launched products. Prepare to make a video pitch of your product, what makes it valuable or useful, and why you need support.

You can go the traditional route and apply for a loan in a bank or a choose fast and convenient online cash advance. For a startup you may qualify for a small business loan, however, you may need to meet some financial requirements to qualify depending on your bank or lender. Typically, they will look into your credit score, annual business revenue, and the number of years you have been in business.

3. Work hard:

If you believe in your vision you must work hard to make your startup a success. You have to commit and regularly review your business plans and be constantly diligent and passionate about your business. Do your research to refine your products and services to make it more competitive. Take care of your colleagues and employees since they will have a large role in your success.

4. Feedback matters:

Feedback matters in a startup to create a culture of openness and awareness. Feedback helps your team or employees know what behaviors to change so they will always be in their topnotch performance. Concurrent with that, feedback from your customers is gold. Knowing how your market reacts to your products and services gives you leverage in adjusting, modifying or continuing with the products and services you have already established.

5. Leverage the distribution channels:

Consider the different distribution channels you want to use and make sure to devise a strategy to maximize profits in that channel. Do not confine yourself to one distribution channel because it may impede growth and scalability. Go for multiple channels to increase the possibility of getting more sales. Do not allow one channel to grow out of control at the same time do not restrict it since this will reduce market access. You should follow the best strategy that will work for your company in each channel.

6. Launch a program to reward loyal customers:

You can give gifts to your loyal customers such as pens and giveaways that have your company’s logo on it or you can give away some of your services and products for free at a given time of the year such as holidays.  Regularly giving gifts to your customers will increase brand awareness and loyalty. Your customers can give you leads, giving you more reach and visibility.

7. Marketing:

Marketing can help boost your startup immensely. One viable way to start your marketing campaign is referrals through friends, family, and influencers since they convert leads much faster. You can also opt for partnering with a bigger brand for projects where you can mutually benefit.

Read Also:

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

View all posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related

Image

Businessman Seyfeddin Rustamov is main beneficial owner of chemical company ‘Metafrax’

The Russian newspaper ‘Kommersant’ recently announced that the 55-year-old businessman Seyfedding Rustamov is the main beneficial owner of Metafrax, one of the largest chemical companies in Russia and Europe. Rustamov, born in Azerbaijan, is now a resident of the US, together with his wife and three children. Since the year 2000, he has been actively involved in the chemical industry. He is the manager of the Russian company MetaHolding, which holds this year 94% of Metafrax’ assets. This makes Rustamov the main shareholder of Metafrax. Metafrax is with multiple companies in both Russia and Europe the largest producer of methanol, formaldehyde and synthetic resins in Russia and Europe. The headquarters of the company are in Gubahka, Perm Region Russia. Seyfeddin Rustamov already became the beneficiary of the chemical plant at the headquarters in Gubahka in 2014. This was made public during a presentation on a large-scale project at Metafrax, which has an estimated cost of around 800 million euros. This large-scale project is the development of an ammonia, urea and melamine plant construction. Right now, the company is still in discussion with banks about the financing of this project. Metafrax has an annual revenue of over 660 million USD (5 billion rubles). Every year, the company receives around 80 million USD from investments. The products of the chemical company are shipped to as much as 50 countries worldwide. The company used to keep its beneficiaries secret from the public. The main shareholders would be represented by the chairman of the board of directors, Armen Garslyan. The company has now presented information on its main beneficial owner to the public, because of changes in legislation. Changing requirements of Russian and international compliance laws now made it necessary for the company to reveal this information. A domain with the name of Seyfeddin Rustamov was registered on ‘Go Daddy’, one of the biggest registrar of domain names, on the 18th of September, 2017. Before MetaHolding became the biggest shareholder of Metafrax, the Cypriot company ‘Lipanet Ltd’ was the main major shareholder of the company. Other shareholders were ‘JSC Sibur’ and the Panama-registered ‘Mirvac’. Armen Garslyan told the Kommersant that Seyfeddin Rustamov, as the main beneficial owner of Metafrax, is involved in the global decision-making process of the company. He called Rustamov a ‘vigorous leader, who knows what we are doing, what our targets are and who accompanies us on our way towards them’. Rustamov is besides chemistry, also taking part in philanthropic activities. He and his family support a number of non-profit foundations in the areas of health preservation, cancer control, and transplantology. The foundations Mr. Rustamov and his wife are involved in including the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the Inova Health System Foundation and the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Besides charities that have to do with health, they also contribute to charity sports events, the National Museum of Women in the Arts and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington. More details here.

READ MOREDetails
Crowdfunding

Six Tips for Crowdfunding Success

Almost every start-up company these days considers crowdfunding as an avenue to receive funding. It is possible that an entrepreneur has already exhausted traditional sources of funds such as bank loans or peer-to-peer loans, and that crowdfunding is already the last resort to get a much-needed push for success. Fortunately, there are several crowdfunding sites to choose from, and each of them has unique features that work for specific types of campaigns. One of the main advantages of crowdfunding sites is that they will allow you to see the big picture and learn first-hand how your product or idea gets received by your target audience. Depending on how good or how poor the initial reaction by users is, you can make improvements and adjustments to increase your chances of success when the time comes for you to launch to a mass market officially. But you need to keep in mind that the crowdfunding formula doesn’t always work for all, no matter how unique or exciting your idea is. To increase your chances of success, consider the following tips. 1. Learn from other successful campaigns: You don’t always need to rely on your own devices to come up with a successful campaign. Copying and tweaking the ideas of other successful entrepreneurs on crowdfunding sites can help you get the boost you need. For example, you can test how well your backers respond to different kinds of rewards, or you can watch videos and success stories from other campaigns. 2. Do a lot of self-promotion: While crowdfunding sites will do a minimal amount of promotion, you can’t expect this to be enough marketing for your campaign. You’ll need to do the legwork if you want your campaign to reach media personnel, get featured on social media sites, and gain as much traction with users as possible. 3. Produce a stunning video: It is a proven fact that investors on crowdfunding sites prefer to watch short videos regarding campaigns they are supporting. If you want to attract a large following for your product or idea, you need to begin by producing a high-quality and content-rich video about your campaign. 4. Don’t make hasty decisions: Timing is also essential if you want to be successful in your crowdfunding campaign. There is generally no perfect time to launch a campaign, but you need to make sure that you have devoted enough time to develop your idea before you start asking for support from backers. 5. Plan your strategy after launching the campaign: If you don’t have a plan of action after starting the campaign, you may find yourself lost regarding the next steps you need to take. You need to have a contingency plan when you encounter challenges and, if possible, hire a marketing manager who will handle the promotional aspects of the campaign. 6. Patience is key: Aside from doing what you need to do to tap backers and investors for your project, you also need a considerable amount of patience and perseverance to succeed in crowdfunding. You can’t expect a miracle to happen overnight. In crowdfunding, there is no set timeline, and every step of the way is a learning process. Read Also: Six Pointers To Starting A Successful Business What Are The Benefits Associated With Crowdfunding For Businesses?

READ MOREDetails
Irrigation Business

How to Start an Irrigation Business?

Recent economic issues and the unwarranted spread of COVID-19 have demonstrated how fragile the economy is. Of course, the fragility of the economy directly affects your job security and future prospects. It can be disturbing and worrying when you realize that the job you love may not be there tomorrow. That’s why many Australians are looking at new prospects and opportunities. Unsurprisingly, the vast majority of these are based on self-employment or creating your own financial opportunities. That’s why you may be considering setting up your own irrigation business. There is certainly a demand for it. Every year the temperature heats up and people need water, it doesn’t matter if it’s large scale farmer, public spaces, or private individuals with large gardens/small fields. You’ve got the right plan, now you just need to start your business. Financial Planning This is potentially the most important part of the process. You need to look at what your costs are, who your customers are likely to be, and what sort of income you can expect to make. In this sort of business, the costs are relatively controlled. You’ll need to invest in good traveling irrigators. This will allow you to move between places and distribute the water for your customers. Of course, you’ll need to allow for insurance costs, fuel costs, and consider where your water is coming from. But, you’ll also need to consider the number of customers you’ll be able to help yourself. It’s likely that you’ll want additional equipment and manpower to service several customers at the same time. The issue then becomes whether you have enough space to store all the equipment or whether you need to hire premises. This will drastically increase your costs. It’s important to take your time when creating a budget, you need to think of everything and then add a little extra for unforeseen emergencies. Once you’ve established the costs of getting started and running the business for a year, you can use that figure as the number of funds you need to get started. Then, you’ll have to start speaking to finance companies to raise the capital you need. Advertising The moment you commit to the business idea you need to start attracting customers. There are various ways of doing this from going door-to-door, to posting information on the internet. You will want your own website and you will need to reach out via social media. But, your customer base is certain t be local. It’s worth taking the time to get to know some of the people in your area. You can give them the personal service that larger companies struggle with. Test Run Once you’ve got your finance sorted, customers becoming interested, and your equipment has turned up, you need to do a test run. This ensures you know what you are doing with the equipment and get the job done efficiently and effectively. That is essential if you want repeat business and referrals. This isn’t the cheapest business to start, but profits can be significant, it just takes a little hard work. Read Also: Have You Been Laid Off Because Of Coronavirus? Here Are 5 Income Earning Opportunities For You Optimize Your Small Business Revenue by Taking These Steps

READ MOREDetails