June 2020 - Rafferty Pendery

5 Tips for Avoiding Common Entrepreneur Mistakes

Jun 16, 2020

Avoiding common entrepreneur mistakes when you’re just getting started can be a challenge. It seems like there’s so much to know and so little time to learn it all before you need to get your startup off the ground. When it comes to providing tech entrepreneur resources or entrepreneur tips that will help your business succeed, we’ve got you covered. Consider some of these as ways to avoid the most common entrepreneur mistakes.

Don’t Be Afraid to Try Something New

Over 40% of new entrepreneurs in the United States are women, according to data from Kauffman. Women-owned and supported businesses are growing at twice the rate of male-owned businesses. It’s never a bad time to try something new because there’s always a chance that you’ll change the world or at least inspire others to join you.

Have a Business Plan

There are so many tech entrepreneur resources available for entrepreneurs who want to make their mark in the tech industry. However, if you fail to plan out your business model and strategy, you’ve hurt yourself from the start. Take some time to plan out your business so that you know your mission and what drives your business to be better.

Know Where the Money Is

It’s always smart to cultivate investors for your startup so that you know how you’re going to finance your business. You have to think about how you’re going to pay salaries, get insurance, expense company essentials, and more. The more you understand about your company’s cash flow, the better you’ll be prepared for a rainy day.

Build Your Company Culture

More and more companies are beginning to work from home permanently as company cultures across the world adapt. You have to decide what kind of company culture you’re going to foster at your business. What kind of legacy do you want to communicate with your employees? It doesn’t matter if you have two employees or twenty; you need to know what the culture will be from day one so that everyone starts off on the right foot.

Find the Right Partners

You can’t do everything on your own. Sometimes, utilizing tech entrepreneur resources isn’t enough. You owe it yourself to spend time finding a business partner who will work with you and help you carry the responsibility of your business. Looking for more tech entrepreneur advice? Contact our team today to get started.

6 Ways Your Tech Startup Can Beat the Competition

Jun 10, 2020

If you’re thinking about starting a new business in the tech industry, you’re not alone. In fact, the tech industry is one of the most competitive fields out there nowadays. However, there’s good news, too. Nearly 80% of the new small businesses started in 2014 made it to their second year. You just need to figure out how to make your startup a success to get there. But, before you become a tech entrepreneur, there are six ways to get a leg up on the competition. Here’s what they are.

Make a Useful Product

This may seem like an obvious tip, but many common entrepreneur mistakes include making a useless product or one that doesn’t hold a candle to their competitors’. You should have a good product that you would want to use. If you don’t, no one else will want to use it either. Even if you think you have a good idea, you should test it out first. If you can’t live without it, chances are others won’t be able to either.

Keep It Simple

When there’s a lot of competition for business, customers can become overwhelmed by their options. You’re more likely to win over those customers if you keep it simple. You should have a clear message and simple instructions. No one wants to deal with confusion or have to search for answers about a product.

Set Yourself Apart

When you enter a competitive market, the chances of getting lost in a crowd are high. You should figure out what sets you apart from your competitors early on. Have a completely different technology, business model, or user experience. Play up those differences to win people over.

Reach Out With a Tech Entrepreneurship Blog

You probably already know to market yourself and find your target clients. A great way to do that is by starting a tech entrepreneurship blog. A tech entrepreneurship blog allows you to reach out to potential clients as well as potential advisors. You should be letting people know about you, your business, and your product. Offer them useful information and you will be more likely to stand out from your competition.

Don’t Waste Time

While you should know what your competition is, don’t waste too much time trying to figure them out. Your time is better spent improving your own product and marketing yourself. You also don’t want to lose your uniqueness, which can happen if you start mimicking what your competitors are doing.

Make Friends

Another idea to beat the competition is to not beat them at all. Instead, make friends with your competition. You never know, a partnership or collaboration on a project could make you both successful.

In some instances, too much competition can mean that you won’t succeed. However, if you follow these simple steps, you’ll be a formidable opponent.

What You Need to Remember to Be Successful as an Entrepreneur

Jun 8, 2020

There are as many as 15 million Americans that are full-time self-employed. Now more than ever it’s possible to have a career as an entrepreneur. Unfortunately, many people try and fail to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality. It’s important to keep in mind a few key entrepreneur tips to increase your chances of success. Here’s what you need to remember to be a successful entrepreneur.

1. Don’t fear failure

Many people, including Raffy Pendery, have had failures when it comes to making their business a success. Bill Gates, one of the most successful tech entrepreneurs in the world, had his first business called Traf-O-Data fail before he was successful with Microsoft. Walt Disney started a business called Laugh-O-Gram that eventually went bankrupt in two years. The point here is that you’ll probably make a lot of mistakes when it comes to starting your entrepreneurial journey. Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks and try different ideas. If some of those ideas fail, learn what caused those failures, and use it to help make your business more successful in the future.

2. Be patient

As alluded to in the point on failures, success takes time. If you’re an entrepreneur starting a business as an international public speaker, you’re not going to be speaking to an arena full of people in your first speaking engagement. Similarly, if you’re trying to be a tech entrepreneur, you’re not going to create the next Google or Microsoft overnight. It’s important to be patient and work hard on a daily basis. It’s through persistence that entrepreneurs like Bill Gates and Raffy Pendery eventually became as successful as they are today.

3. Grow your knowledge

As an entrepreneur, you’re going to be doing a lot of the work when it comes to your business. While it’s helpful sometimes to hire someone to take care of complicated tasks, it’s also good to learn how to take care of them yourself. You can find online classes to take on subjects such as graphic design or bookkeeping. With the knowledge you gain, you might save money not having to hire someone to do those tasks for you. Raffy Pendery has also mentioned the importance of mentors. They’ve been on the path you’re on now, and can provide a wealth of knowledge that can help you avoid common entrepreneur mistakes.

The number of new entrepreneurs have continued to grow in the last few years. With the rise of the internet, there are more opportunities for people to succeed in starting their own business. Keeping all of these tips in mind can help you be more likely to succeed as an entrepreneur.

7 Pieces of Tech Entrepreneurship Advice to Grow Your Startup

Jun 5, 2020

Every year, there is a new bunch of entrepreneurs that join the tech space seeking to leave a mark in the industry. In fact, technology startups in the U.S. have grown 47% within the last decade. However, the rapidly shifting digital space makes the industry difficult to navigate. With that in mind, here are seven tips to guide you through your entrepreneurship journey and help you avoid common entrepreneur mistakes.

1. Drop the ‘Startup’ Name Tag

Your business can’t remain a startup forever. Set a goal to develop your ideas and mold them into a business quickly. 22.5% of small businesses fail within the first year. A study by CB Insights shows “no market need” as the leading cause of startup failure. Ensure your brilliant idea can be monetized with a firm plan on the critical aspects of the business.

2. Build a Diverse Team

Surround yourself with a team of tech experts with diverse education and professional backgrounds. Take time to choose a top team that understands your vision. You need employees who will offer invaluable tech entrepreneur advice to help you stay relevant in the market.

Overall, always be open to new ideas and be ready to listen to opposing ideas from your team members. They might have some insight you had not considered.

3. Work on Your Mindset

The median time for venture-capital-backed startups to reach IPOs is eight years, and five years for full acquisition. The entrepreneurship journey is not an easy feat, with lots of ups and downs. Through the emotional rollercoaster, you need to remain positive. Maintain confidence in the ideas and beliefs for your company. Learn from your entrepreneurship mistakes.

4. Conduct a Thorough Market Research

You’ll need to reach out to your target market fast. Drop the stealth act and talk to potential customers about your product or service. The earlier you learn about your market needs, the better you can pivot your business to serve the clients better.

5. Grow Your Network

Once you get immersed in the business world, it may be challenging to make time to network. However, a robust network of like-minded individuals may offer fantastic tech entrepreneur advice that may help in running your business. Get yourself a mentor. A senior with experience may help you learn the ropes much faster than heading out on your own. The network will also offer a sanity check on your ideas by providing an outside perspective of your business model.

6. Work on Your Communication Skills

Communication is a key ingredient to the success of any business. Learn to listen to your team keenly. Asking the right questions may help you get useful feedback for the running of your startup. Trust your team. Don’t micromanage. Effective communication may help smoothen the process as you interact and engage with others.

7. Take a Leap of Faith

The day-to-day running of your operations will demand that you make tough decisions for your business. Kick out your fear and take the plunge into the unchartered space. Seek out more information to help you make informed decisions. The road to success may not be smooth, but you have to believe in your vision for the company. At times, this includes taking a leap of faith into unchartered areas.

In Conclusion

The tech space continues to change with disruptive innovations coming up every day. Using these pieces of tech entrepreneur advice may help you move up the ladder to success. Raffy Pendery can guide you on how to succeed as a tech entrepreneur.