We told you a couple weeks ago that CQ UniDoc was to be featured during the Innovation Showcase. It was a good opportunity and learning experience.
Prior to the event, we had taken some baby steps towards commercializing the product. Since the event, I have been thinking about the overall business strategy for UniDoc. And I need to spend more time on this.
In the meantime, I thought I’d share some tips that I read about things a startup should do to get to the next level. I shared some tips from a few articles: From Contest to Company: 6 Tips for Taking a Startup to the Next Level, 5 Sure Signs a Startup Firm Will Succeed, and 12 Rules for Building Your First Profitable Startup. While the tips provided are not unique to medical device startups, they certainly apply.
- Baby steps matter – Don’t be afraid to take baby steps and fail quickly
- Has validated customers - A successful startup scales its growth on the basis of proven, steady and paying customers.
- Sell something - If your company isn’t selling something, you have a project, not a product.
- Replace part of your customer’s workflow with a better solution – Look at your prospective customers’ current business processes and identify steps or tasks of theirs that can be simplified, automated, or eliminated.
- Don’t Plan for Exits or VC Money - Focus on selling your product for a profit.
Reading these articles has provided some food for thought for me regarding UniDoc. I hope these help you too.