Week 2 - MBA 6101 - Ascend Your Start-Up

 

Hello,

An idea sparks a business, and that idea manifests itself in the form of a product or service. In its first iteration, the product or service only needs to be unique, something that sets the start-up apart from other competitors. Helen Yu advises that the first product does not need all the bells and whistles that future iterations will have, instead the first product should represent the why of the start-up’s existence (Hu, 2021). This Minimally Viable Product presents to the market the opportunities the start-up can offer the consumer but done so in a simplified form. This distills the ideas of the start-up into the simplest message in the form of the product.

Helen asks the following questions to which a successful start-up must answer for their product; who cares about the product, is there other products in the market, and what type of team is needed to accomplish the goals (Yu, 2021)? The who cares question asks who is the product made for, or what value is this product to bring to the customer. This is the value proposition of the product. Understanding who the target customer shapes how this product is marketed. To know where the start-up’s product fits in the market is also necessary to gain insight into the market and existing completion.

If there are similar products which offer the same value, the start-up may want to reconsider its product, and try to find a way to differentiate it from others.  All of this requires a unified and effective team. The team is put together based on what the start-up wants to accomplish versus what the team wants to accomplish. With a defined product, as well as target audience, then the team is composed with members who are most able to make the product a success. With a solid team, progress can be made as the start-up marches forward into the market.

 

Citations:

Yu, H. (2021). Ascend your Start-Up, Conquer the 5 Disconnects to Accelerate Growth. Made for Success                 Publishing