While you’re writing your software, building your value propositions, or seeking new customers and followers, try finding and focusing on the right tipping points for your startup’s success.
For a want of better terms, let’s call them false positive and positive Tipping Points. False positives are the things that create good feelings for you and your team, nourishing continued hard work. They get you message momentum and positive sentiment but true business momentum? Definitely positive but they don’t tip. I believe another name for it is progress. Positive tipping points put you in position for your next business phase.
Here are a examples of false positive Tipping Points:
Good Press, favorable reviews, retweets, shared FB posts: Everyone loves you in public. They like the idea behind your product and your idea of value creation. Do they create a tipping point? Without a doubt, they do a great deal for awareness and help build credibility. They build an expectation in the minds of potential customers and investors. You’re competing for attention. There’s no doubt about it.
New Feature Releases and Upgrades: Another great thing. A milestone for your business. Your development team has pushed the rock up the hill and gotten the code done. Customers are expecting to try it out and are excited to do so. How many people are waiting for the new features or your next release before they make a purchase decision? If you think about it, you might be a little disappointed with the answer. Should you create awareness by doing targeted messages? Absolutely.
New Partner Agreements and Contracts: You have just signed a partner agreement with an influential integrator. They’re going to take you to market. That’s great! It adds to your credibility in the marketplace. You can issue an incredibly auspicious press release and analyze the traffic.
Here are examples of Positive Tipping Points. Find them – exhaustively:
You’ve completed your Minimum Viable Product: The customers that told you what MVP was? Tell them you’ve done it and you’re waiting for them to implement it and write you a check.
A 25% increase in closed business: Whether its the whale or a discounted-price customer. Starting from zero, one closed sale is a tipping point that will, hopefully, lead to the next. 25% - that’s a tipping point!
Your enthusiasts have transitioned from liking you to endorsing you: Real product endorsements come from those folks who have recommended you to their consumers or they’ve purchased your product or service. The big tip? Somewhere in the process of loving you, you received a check.
Your Partners are selling your product: They’re convinced that having you as a partner increases their value stream and they’ve decided to realize its value by closing business.
By now, you’ve probably noticed a theme. Without being a buzzkill about positive events at your organization – all those things that are necessary or help you to reach a goal, they’re only progress. The right goals have a dollar sign in front of them. The false positives aren’t really tipping points, they just serve to influence when the actual tipping point might occur.
Next up? The value of influencers, customers and partners and getting them to help you tip.
