From Idea to Product: How To Succeed Without Investment
Entrepreneurs around the globe are familiar with the common conundrum of having a great idea for a product but difficulty securing investment for launch. Rapidly growing start-up Bokafix recently launched an app that is already seeing huge traction in its first stage and shows positive signs of becoming the most convenient and reliable experience for customers looking for tradespeople on the market. The home improvement app now embarks on its first investment round to raise €2.5 million in seed funding, with which the company expects to grow and expand its team.
“I won’t say that we haven’t had to make sacrifices and prioritize at several points along the journey, but we have such great pride in what we have accomplished and in the rest of our team who have joined us along the way and who also believed in our product, giving us continuous validation that we are on the right track,”
Bokafix CEO Natascha Cox said.
Retain a Larger Stake Longterm
It can be difficult to pursue your product idea without financial backing from investors, but there is one positive to going it alone: getting to launch without taking on outside investment gives you more buying power when it comes to shopping for investors. No early outside investment also means you retain a larger stake in your company down the line.
If you believe you have a great idea and work smart and hard to develop it without giving away equity at the start, you stand to reap serious financial benefits in the long term, but you must excel at building your product and a capable team, to build that advantage.
Focus on Product Development
Without having to focus on pitching and managing external stakeholders, you have the ability to devote the majority of your time to product development, providing you with the ability to be more hands on and in to the details which is often needed at earlier stages and in companies where there is not a lot of process and structure. Having this time means you can get further along in the development stage and ultimately have more bargaining power when it comes to later stage investment negotiations.
Build a Dedicated Team
You don’t have to go it alone, even if you don’t have investors yet. Building a dedicated team on a shoestring budget gives potential future investors an indication of how dedicated, driven, and successful you can be. This shows that you have the ability as a Founder to make people believe in your vision and the skills to keep them on board, a vital quality that is a transferable skill when it comes to building a loyal customer base.
Your team can not only help you develop the product and fill in your competence gaps, but also perform market research.
Working with a team helps to find focus areas early on, for example identifying what pain points your product solves for your target audience, an ideal price point, and what’s missing from your customer journey.
With a great team by your side, you can take your idea to a product without outside investment, but you must be willing to do the research and put in the work to optimize your idea for success.
