From the lack of resources and planning to poor timing, hundreds of startup ideas fail each year due to different reasons. However, that doesn’t mean that it won’t work the next time.

Here are a few reasons and lessons we can learn from.

Incomplete Market Research
Market research is complex, and even more so with FinTech companies which are usually not direct-to-consumers.

For any new ideas, there are usually three problems that are setting you up for failure: duplicates, dead-ends, or discreet competitors (which is the biggest threat, cause you won’t even know about it until much later).

Inadequate Capital
If there’s one thing entrepreneurs know well about, it is the hustle of getting capital and making sure the steady stream of cash flow. However, not many would realise how quickly millions can be spent right from the start and it only takes a few bad decisions to go from “good” to “bad”.

For instance, a company raises money expecting to generate revenue at a certain date. As they develop further, they realise that this expected date will be pushed back.

Have wiggle room and ensure that you have financing equal to twice what you need. Not only that, additional rounds of funding should take place much earlier than expected to avoid the halt in your capital.

Sales Before Branding
Ever went online and got so put off by the company’s website that you didn’t even bother about their solutions? We all have, which is why first impressions count. Customers are getting more savvy each day and have evolved their expectations - which also play a role in their purchasing journey.

Some look into your omni-channel experience, some consider your core values, and some simply want to know what CSR activities you’re a part of.

Hence, before you shoot off your sales pipeline to achieve the highest revenue, take a step back to work on your corporate branding.