Difficulties promoting a business-oriented startup
This month, the Internet community was quite pleased with the statement by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that the government plans to promote the introduction of modern Internet technologies in Russia. A tangible problem of our Motherland is its inert attitude towards modernization. Observations of specialists show that the cause of the death of many IT start-ups is not the poor quality of the product, but problems with the promotion of technology to the market and the legal insecurity of companies.
In this article I want to share the story of the promotion of one of our company's projects.
The idea of ​​the project is the creation of an online booking system for companies providing services in various fields (it has already been described in more detail at Habré here ). Most startups share their focus on Internet users. But our startup initially meant close cooperation with companies that conduct business offline. The main objectives of the application - to attract new customers and improve the efficiency of the company. Such specificity of the project requires to be sure of the usefulness of the product before its mass implementation.
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As a test version, an application was written for one European SRT, with which we already had experience of cooperation. Practice has shown that using the application was effective for this company. “Since we commissioned a pre-recording system, the overall organization of work and the efficiency of using lifts have improved. It was possible to increase the total number of sales by 40% at the peak of seasonal work due to better filling of the work schedule, ”commented Executive Director Runar Greadsson.
The project was planned to be promoted in parallel not only in Europe, but also in Russia and Ukraine, which I want to tell you about. We began the advertising campaign in the Russian market with a search for competitors. As it turned out, at the moment there are online booking services created specifically for a particular institution (hairdresser, cafe), there are also many implementations of booking tickets and hotel rooms. Separately, there are urban portals with lists and contact information of companies. Nothing resembling an attempt to link a structured directory of service businesses with interactive booking was found. The absence of competitors, of course, is a big plus, but, on the other hand, it clearly indicated that the market is not yet fully ready for such a product. Consequently, full-scale advertising from scratch was needed.
Investors were allocated a limited amount for the promotion of a startup, so costs had to be strictly regulated and a creative approach was needed to solve problems. For example, we refused to advertise in the media and outdoor advertising, as it was quite a costly and risky investment. For the formation of public opinion (that is, to encourage people to trust online booking services, and companies should be considered a good form to provide such a service) for a long time.
For the initial stage, our company chose a less costly option: several sales managers were hired to familiarize potential customers with our offer and study the demand. After the first week of communication, we came to the following conclusions: computer illiteracy is still very common (especially among older people). Despite the availability of the necessary communications and reliable Internet providers, people are in no hurry to navigate the Internet. The reason, most likely, is psychological - the reluctance to change anything in the paperwork, the fear that the information will be stored “somewhere on the Internet” and not in the usual notebook at hand. There is also no motivation and understanding of how IT technologies can increase the company's profitability. This is especially true for managers of small and medium-sized companies.
Nevertheless, we decided not to abandon this category of partners, since larger firms were primarily interested in the popularity of the site and the number of already registered companies. Consequently, it was first necessary to gain some initial base of small companies. To attract them, we decided to change our positioning: we focused not on the booking system, but on placement in the catalog of companies and providing the site as additional advertising. We also conducted detailed consultations on the use of the application, and sometimes even came with a professional camera and took the necessary pictures. Since the trust factor played an important role in the registration of a company, at the very beginning we mobilized all contacts of the company's employees.
The next step was to attract large firms and networks of companies. For the presentations, we prepared printed products, also took care of modern technical equipment, so that regardless of the circumstances it was possible not only to hold a slide presentation, but also to show the system in action online. And, if possible, immediately conduct company registration and necessary consultations.
Another way to promote the project, which we plan to actively use, is reselling. The first partner himself contacted us (their company planned to develop a similar application) and offered to sell the code. But our company is more interested in partners who will be engaged in marketing. Therefore, at the moment cooperation at the negotiation stage.
As mentioned above, consumers are not quite ready to use high technology to conduct business, so often the response of companies was lower than expected. Nevertheless, we plan to continue to attract customers. For example, a press release is currently being prepared in print media. In parallel, the development department is engaged in the creation of additional plug-ins specific to certain categories of services, improving usability and design. From the very beginning of development, we were ready to face obstacles in the promotion on the market, however, we are confident in the usefulness and convenience of the project for Internet users, and also made sure of its effectiveness for enterprises. Therefore, we have great respect for the position of the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, that the trends in the introduction of Internet technologies will be strongly encouraged.
The reason for the article was the following information:
In this article I want to share the story of the promotion of one of our company's projects.
The idea of ​​the project is the creation of an online booking system for companies providing services in various fields (it has already been described in more detail at Habré here ). Most startups share their focus on Internet users. But our startup initially meant close cooperation with companies that conduct business offline. The main objectives of the application - to attract new customers and improve the efficiency of the company. Such specificity of the project requires to be sure of the usefulness of the product before its mass implementation.
')
As a test version, an application was written for one European SRT, with which we already had experience of cooperation. Practice has shown that using the application was effective for this company. “Since we commissioned a pre-recording system, the overall organization of work and the efficiency of using lifts have improved. It was possible to increase the total number of sales by 40% at the peak of seasonal work due to better filling of the work schedule, ”commented Executive Director Runar Greadsson.
The project was planned to be promoted in parallel not only in Europe, but also in Russia and Ukraine, which I want to tell you about. We began the advertising campaign in the Russian market with a search for competitors. As it turned out, at the moment there are online booking services created specifically for a particular institution (hairdresser, cafe), there are also many implementations of booking tickets and hotel rooms. Separately, there are urban portals with lists and contact information of companies. Nothing resembling an attempt to link a structured directory of service businesses with interactive booking was found. The absence of competitors, of course, is a big plus, but, on the other hand, it clearly indicated that the market is not yet fully ready for such a product. Consequently, full-scale advertising from scratch was needed.
Investors were allocated a limited amount for the promotion of a startup, so costs had to be strictly regulated and a creative approach was needed to solve problems. For example, we refused to advertise in the media and outdoor advertising, as it was quite a costly and risky investment. For the formation of public opinion (that is, to encourage people to trust online booking services, and companies should be considered a good form to provide such a service) for a long time.
For the initial stage, our company chose a less costly option: several sales managers were hired to familiarize potential customers with our offer and study the demand. After the first week of communication, we came to the following conclusions: computer illiteracy is still very common (especially among older people). Despite the availability of the necessary communications and reliable Internet providers, people are in no hurry to navigate the Internet. The reason, most likely, is psychological - the reluctance to change anything in the paperwork, the fear that the information will be stored “somewhere on the Internet” and not in the usual notebook at hand. There is also no motivation and understanding of how IT technologies can increase the company's profitability. This is especially true for managers of small and medium-sized companies.
Nevertheless, we decided not to abandon this category of partners, since larger firms were primarily interested in the popularity of the site and the number of already registered companies. Consequently, it was first necessary to gain some initial base of small companies. To attract them, we decided to change our positioning: we focused not on the booking system, but on placement in the catalog of companies and providing the site as additional advertising. We also conducted detailed consultations on the use of the application, and sometimes even came with a professional camera and took the necessary pictures. Since the trust factor played an important role in the registration of a company, at the very beginning we mobilized all contacts of the company's employees.
The next step was to attract large firms and networks of companies. For the presentations, we prepared printed products, also took care of modern technical equipment, so that regardless of the circumstances it was possible not only to hold a slide presentation, but also to show the system in action online. And, if possible, immediately conduct company registration and necessary consultations.
Another way to promote the project, which we plan to actively use, is reselling. The first partner himself contacted us (their company planned to develop a similar application) and offered to sell the code. But our company is more interested in partners who will be engaged in marketing. Therefore, at the moment cooperation at the negotiation stage.
As mentioned above, consumers are not quite ready to use high technology to conduct business, so often the response of companies was lower than expected. Nevertheless, we plan to continue to attract customers. For example, a press release is currently being prepared in print media. In parallel, the development department is engaged in the creation of additional plug-ins specific to certain categories of services, improving usability and design. From the very beginning of development, we were ready to face obstacles in the promotion on the market, however, we are confident in the usefulness and convenience of the project for Internet users, and also made sure of its effectiveness for enterprises. Therefore, we have great respect for the position of the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, that the trends in the introduction of Internet technologies will be strongly encouraged.
The reason for the article was the following information:
“To appreciate the time of people", - with such a demand, Dmitry Medvedev appealed to ministers and governors. “The introduction of modern Internet technologies should cover all spheres of life, especially medicine and education,” the president said. “Computers are absolutely indispensable for distance education. make it possible to make an appointment with the doctor on the Internet, maybe get a video consultation. " He demanded to make electronic diaries in schools and electronic cards in medical clinics in the near future.
Source: Official site of the President of Russia
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/99010/
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