Having been involved with quite a number of startups in my journey as an entrepreneur, l have experienced scenarios that emphasise theories that my economics teacher tried to drum into my thick skull – l finally am convinced that it’s more the ideas, the team to execute and the timing or readiness of the market which matter most (or should) to the entrepreneur and not money.
Here are three points to get you thinking and hopefully to convince you why money is not your biggest problem.
Ready Market – The relationship between demand and supply underlie the forces behind the allocation of resources. This means that all things being equal, supply will adjust itself to meet the demand that is being created. The principle then satisfies the assumption that a financier (equity investor or lender) will always be found to fund an entrepreneur who has a great product or service that the market requires. So stop and ask yourself, is there a real/potential demand for your product or service?
Your Philosophy – l believe that in any market, you can either buy and sell or sell and buy. The problem is that a lot more people are used to the former which requires you to buy say goods, before you can sell to someone else for profit. My 15+ years in agency business has taught me however that you can sell something you don’t even have and then fulfill the order to a client that needs it. In order words, you use the buyer’s money to finance the business and there is also suppliers credit in trade. What business philosophy do you hold?
Winning Team – The influx of Private Equity and Venture Capital firms as well as Angel Investor Networks confirm the fact that there is oodles of money for businesses than we know; but investors invest in teams not ideas. Leticia Browne of Ghana Angel Investor Network [GAIN] says – “Our network of Investors are very “hungry” for good deals [ideas that are backed by great teams]. Unfortunately, only few of all the startups that come through our doors have the right teams to execute”.
Credit: Servled
