Starting a new business venture is an exciting time – it’s time for you to finally reap the benefits of years of study in your chosen field. However, with giant companies already towering over the computer industry, it can feel like a pretty daunting task to build your company from the ground up, release it into the world, and become recognized as a lead player. Luckily, there are things you can do to help you boost the credibility of your startup. Whether your startup is being run from your laptop in your basement or you’ve got yourself property and some steam behind you, these lessons will be invaluable.
Display Your Credentials
All the powerful and successful startups have a CEO who is synonymous with their company. Let your client base know that they are dealing with a master. You may have worked hard towards a masters in computer science online, and it got you so far, so let people see it. Even though you’re not a fortune 500 CEO just yet, if you start acting like one from the get-go, then people know you’re serious.
Be Actively Involved
Early on in your startup’s journey, as the founder/CEO, you need to be central to company operations. You should be actively involved in building your first customer relationships – this will give you the chance to gain first-hand feedback for improvement as well as give new clients a passionate face to your business.
Involve the Right People
You may end up stretching your budget hiring the perfect candidates, but the return will be more than worth it. Having individuals that have an impressive portfolio within the brand-building sector will speak for itself. They will bring their expertise to the table and implement their know-how to your business to deliver the best results.
Goal Settings
Once upon a time, you looked ahead and thought about where you wanted to be. If that was to have started your business, then you already made it. However, your business is now just starting up and needs a set of goals to work towards and keep it grounded. Perhaps there is an award that you’ve always dreamt of winning or a publication that you’re passionate about; what can you do to make sure that your company reaches this dream? Checking back in on yourself and your goals helps you to remain motivated.
When you set your goals, it is important not to set yourself up for failure. You can do this by setting up SMART goals. These are goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound (SMART). These goals help you to keep track of your progress, and because they are more manageable than larger goals, they pay you a wave of satisfaction when you have completed a goal. This will, in turn, increase your productivity and help you to establish your business within a tough market.
A Social Media Presence
Almost everybody uses social media, with lots of workplaces having set up groups on Facebook for employers to keep in touch – it is fast becoming a necessity. One of the best ways to reach a wide target audience is through social media. Therefore, you must write up a well-thought-out social media strategy for your startup. Whether you choose to do this yourself or pay someone else to do it, dominating the social media world will go a long way to increasing the credibility of your company.
A Website That Slaps
Quite often, a person’s first impression of a business is through its website. If your website looks messy and is riddled with typos and ads then people are likely to leave. You need to articulate what it is your business does in an easy-to-understand way. You have 50 milliseconds to impress your audience. This is how long it takes people to decide whether or not they will stay or leave. So, it’s worthwhile putting a lot of work into your website. For the potential return business, you could even hire someone to design your website. A website that looks professional and catches the eye will help your startup increase its credibility.
An Easy Process
Now that you’ve put out a fabulous website and potential new clients are browsing your content, you need to make sure that they can do this easily. If there are too many hoops to jump through to access your product, then this could put people off and they will take their business elsewhere. After all, one of the best ways to build credibility is to make sure your product/business is flawless from the get-go.
Spread the Message
Clients that enjoy your business will return, and they might tell a couple of their contacts about your business – but this could be a slow way to grow business as a startup. As we’ve discussed previously, billions of people are on various social media platforms. By reaching out to influencers you will increase your brand’s credibility.
Influencers are reputable people within a particular community that uses social media to reach their fans. If you want to set trends, this is how to do it, because people are more likely to buy something that is recommended by someone they trust.
Crafting Partnerships
Although using social media to spread your message is the most beneficial for your startup, it is also the costliest and there is always a chance that you might not get a return on your efforts. So, put in some research hours and find out who the successful players are within your niche. Reach out to them on various platforms and attempt to build a rapport with them. If you can get your business endorsed by a successful entity, then your credibility will rocket.
There are no limits to how you can increase your startup’s credibility, but hopefully this has laid down some foundations for you to build from. Whichever way you choose to go about increasing your startup’s credibility, stay up to date with current trends so you can make the most out of them.
