Startup Q&A

I'd love to hear if you have any thoughts on this @Daniel Rouquette @Chris J "The Only CEO with a Mohawk" Reed - 1,600 LinkedIn Recommendations !

Depends what you're starting. A restaurant..you have the lease, the equipment, furnishings, stock, staff.. That's thousands upon thousands.  

Good question.

I would suggest you ask why you want to go into an accelerator before deciding which are best. Different accelerators have very different sylabus (some have none) and therefore the outcomes are very varied. In addition, some accelerators ask for equity in your company which you may not wish to give up.

Once you know your parameters, it's time to do the research. I suspect 99% of people who are looking to get into an accelerator shouldn't even be trying! In my view, you're better off discovering if there are customers for your idea rather than spending the time in an accelerator.

Good to know about Ozbargain. Nowadays, many entrepreneurs start a business without programming experience and background. For one, the skill can be learned if they have the drive. And another reason is the abundance of local and overseas programmers available. In this growing gig economy, you can easily hire app developers, website programmers, UX designers to build the product you need.

Hi Andrew,  If you are in Australia then the BEC's (Business Enterprise Centres) are a good resource.  They have business advisors on staff that will meet with you and advise you on what free resources are available.  I would also try googling strings such as 'shoestring start-ups'  'free business resources' etc.  Good Luck!

Not an easy question to answer, Richard. But if you get really stuck, there are marketing consultants and identity firms whose job it is to do this.

You will want your business name to: help you stand out from your competition; provide recognition for your company, and; steer potential clients toward hiring you.

In my own experience, there are several qualities that help make a great business name. It should be:

• meaningful – say something about who you are and what you do
• future-oriented – permit growth and change
• memorable – easy to say and spell
• visual – looks good when presented graphically
• unique – able to be trademarked and owned

There are many different categories of naming – descriptive; metaphoric; acronym; family; fabricated, among others. The trick to selecting the right type can sometimes lie in knowing who your target market is and what are their particular problems.

In other words, positioning.

Great question James. I still work full-time on top of my several ventures.

Ideas for part-time work:

• Freelancing - provide services you know on a freelance or contract basis. This can work great for business advice, design work, PR, social media management, copy writing, blogging
• Waiting tables, Bar Tending or Barista - these jobs typically have fairly good flexibility for hours and times if you need to work around business meetings or such.

Hi Vikas,

I agree with much of Steve's comments. Talking to people is the best way to ascertain if your idea has legs. If people get excited by your concept, and start elaborating on your idea or making suggestions on what you could do with it, it may suggest you're onto something conceptually.

Have a clear idea of your target market and get out there as much as possible.

Ask people for honest answers. There are meetup groups in most cities these days that allow you to engage with other entrepreneurs and share advice with one another.

I would suggest mixing your face-to-face interviews with online surveys. Ask people if they'd use the product or service, how much they would pay for it, how often they would use it, etc.

Further to this, I would suggest a few things:

• Start a Facebook page, create some content and drive interest. See if people get excited and if you can gather a following.
• Create a landing page for your business (just set up a cheap one) to give your concept some credibility.
• Ask for expressions of interest and collect a database either through social media or on your website. This means when you go live, you've got an audience ready to market to.
• It may also be worth looking at Kickstarter or GoFundMe also.