13 startup red flags to avoid

The reality is that most of the startups generally  fail.

The purpose of this article is to make the reader aware of the 13 red flags which every startup should avoid. The article below gives summary of the recurring problems which is generally seen in the flawed startups in order  to avoid them for the purpose of  maximizing  the  odds of success.

The 13 to be avoided things are :-

1.      A small or an unscalable idea. Investors generally  tend to have bias against ideas that generally  throw out the largest nets which is thus  possible in terms of the  potential customers. They would however  much rather back the next Google, whose product generally appeals to everyone and also to  anyone, however  than a small niche business that only however  appeals to a very narrow market.

2.      Wrong market positioning. Often times, the entrepreneurs generally  launch the businesses which they generally  think are good ideas.  But they also  never took the time in order  to properly research the market.

3.      No go-to-market-strategy. Entrepreneurs are however  typically so focused on building their product, that they generally  don’t think that it is  far enough which is  ahead to their go-to-market strategy, and as to how that would help them in order to achieve a proof-of-concept in order to attract growth capital.

4.      No focus. It is generally  hard enough in order  to launch one business, yet alone one must always try to launch the  multiple businesses at the same time. One must not be , the jack-of-all-trades – or else one would end up being a master-of-none.

5.      Know when to cut losses. If one is  trying to paddle upstream, no matter as to  how hard one paddles , the current would generally  take one backwards. Entrepreneurs generally need to know when as to when  pivot is required, while there is also still enough capital in the bank and also  enough time in order  to implement the changes.

6.      No passion or persistence. If an entrepreneur generally  does not exude the passion about their product, they will however  never love their startup enough in order to get through the good times and the bad. One needs thus needs to have a persistent mindset that is  regardless as to what hurdles get thrown the  way, one is going to figure out a way through them.

7.      Wrong or incomplete leadership. One must however never try to put a Fortune 500 team inside a startup, because they generally  don’t end up  typically thinking  like startups. Investors generally do not want  back a person, they however  want to back a complete team -- in case one gets  hit by a bus.

8.      An unmotivated team. The management team generally needs to have the same incentives as the founder, and also putting 15 to 20 percent of the company into the hands of the employees will however be a lot more motivating and is  also loyalty instilling.

9.      No mentors or advisors. Entrepreneurs should however  not be considered as  “lone wolves.” They however  also  need in order  to understand they are generally  not in this battle themselves. Many of the  cities have generally  established the startup ecosystems for them in order  to tap into for mentors.

10.  No revenue model.  Many startups may however not have a revenue model day one. But there should however  better be a clearly communicated revenue plan for down the road. That revenue plan generally  needs to be material enough, which is generally based on the  credible assumptions, in order to make it enticing for an investor in order  to get excited and also in order  to justify the  current valuation.

11.  Less capital than needed. First of all, one must make sure that he is raising enough money out of the gate. That generally means raising enough in order to build the  product and in order  to achieve the proof of concept. Preferably, that amount is generally  large enough in order to at least carry it generally  for the next 12 to 18 months. Whatever amount of  capital one may think he will need, double it for a cushion, as the  things always go wrong.

12.  No long-term roadmap to ROI. Whether one is  investing in his own business, or raising capital from outside investors, one would generally need a clear roadmap to at least a 10-time return on the  invested capital.

13.  Bad luck or timing. Sometimes, businesses generally  fail for no fault of their own (e.g., due to economy). During bad times, it is thus  often best in order  to go into “hibernation,” waiting for the  conditions in order  to improve so one  can live to fight another day.

However , the founders of LegalRaasta a startup which provides legal services have over powered these hurdles and have ended up in  providing more than 100 + services . One doesn’t even have to go out , as it provides online services .

Choosing LegalRaasta is beneficial as :

1.      It has , 30+ offices in India

2.      It has 10+ years experience

3.      It helps to save your time

4.      There is a cash back guarantee

Some of the services which it provides are :

1.      Tax Filing/TDR - GST Registration , GST Return, ITR , TDS Return filingBusiness income return , Bulk return filing , Revised return filing , Respond to tax notice

2.      Company Formation - Pvt. Ltd., Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) , OPC registration;

3.      Registrations - DSC, Trademark, Patent , Copyright

And many more services . 

This article has been contributed by Simmi Setia, Content Writer at LegalRaasta, an online portal for GST Software, GST Return Filing, GST Registration, Section 8 Company Registration, Nidhi Company Registration, IEC Registration, Fssai License, File ITR Online.