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3 Powerful Lessons From Australia’s Most Successful Online Startups

By Bernadette Schwerdt

Having interviewed over 100 of Australia’s top digital disruptors, you learn a thing or two about how to build an online business. Here’s three tricks of the trade I picked up talking to those who have been there done that.  

  1. Create a Minimum Viable Product(MVP) to test your idea:

Even the most disruptive of the disruptive get started with the most basic of MVPs.

David Rohrsheim, General Manager of Uber Australia and New Zealand, revealed the inside story behind Uber’s start in Australia.

“At the start, Uber was just me and my colleague. We drove over to the taxi rank at Sydney Airport, to the big ‘holding area’ where all the taxis wait in between jobs. We put a flier under the windscreen wipers of each taxi. The flier was an ‘expression of interest’ asking them to get in touch if they’d like to become an Uber driver. We’d hoped that some drivers would see it as an opportunity to get more work and we’d get a pool of drivers to test our MVP out.”

It worked. They got enough drivers to create an MVP and they rolled it out in a small test launch that led to the Uber juggernaut we’ve come to know and love.

  1. Give away things for free:

Few people are willing to buy anything, especially software, services and information products, without knowing how it works. That’s why we should be open to giving away free content (things that in the past you would have charged big bucks for) such as a report, an eBook, a webinar or a video series. Free content helps build trust but remember it has to be of high value and high quality.

A good example of this is DropBox. They built their database rapidly by offering their users an extra 2GB of storage if they shared the site with their Gmail contacts. What can you offer your network that’s so valuable they’ll share it willingly? 

  1. Focus on one customer at a time

Most start-up’s grapple with finding customers, especially if there’s no marketing budget to speak of.  But often, they try to find hundreds of customers when they should be focussed on finding just one.

One of the key issues at the heart of this is the belief  that ‘if I just write one fantastic blog, my database will explode … if I just get on one TV talk show, I’ll be inundated with sales … if I just create one amazing video, it will go viral and I’ll get 100,000 Facebook fans overnight’. Unfortunately, for most, it just doesn’t work that way.

When Kate Morris, founder of online beauty retailer AdoreBeauty.com.au started out, she had no customers at all but when she got one she was committed to serving them to the best of her ability.

“Sometimes, people are so busy trying to dominate the market with media releases, events and multiple products they forget that the essence of business is finding and then serving, one customer, and then another, and then another. And, of course, one customer leads to two customers, and two customers lead to four and so on.”

In our haste to find 100, or 1000 customers we often overlook the one customer right in front of us, pleading with us to take our money.

Success leaves clues so why reinvent the wheel you can learn from those who have gone before you. Take a leaf out of the book of these big disruptors and see if it makes a difference to your business.

 

Source: Dynamic Business

Testimonials

  • Vanita Aloda

    Restaurant Owner

    Ritchie Cruz is my Accountant. We have a solid 10 year relationship.

    Ritchie as always provide me with honest and efficient service.

    Is a great communicator, always replies efficiently to…

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  • Jonathan Yeoman

    Director, Technical Design Company

    This is a new business startup and Cruz&Co. have provided great help, guidance and reassurance from the beginning.

    Ritchie has provided us with excellent service and…

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  • Jonathan Fambart

    Business Tax – Travel Industry

    Cruz & Co was introduced to me this year and it was the best decision for my sole trader and personal taxation affairs. Ritchie the…

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  • Dr Krish Perananthan

    Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry

    Ritchie was recommended to me by my father and I have also continued to recommend him to my friends. He is reliable, efficient and has a…

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  • Jae Kwon Yoo

    Business Tax – Electrical Contractors

    Ritchie is awesome. He is very professional and responsive and he is always there to help you. He even replies during weekend. He needs some…

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  • Zac Fryer

    Director, Import and Distribution Company

    Ritchie Cruz provides and high level of accounting expertise and goes above and beyond in answering any queries we have.

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  • Kellie Pincham

    Director
    Automotive Parts Retailing business

    Cruz & Co offer a great professional and friendly service. Ritchie gave me confidence running the business knowing that he was readily available for…

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  • Napoleon Guines

    Director, Travel Company Operations

    Ritchie Cruz and Co are accommodating and have excellent service.

    Cruz & Co have impressed me the most is due to their efficient service.  They are…

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  • Daniel Robey

    I have and continue to recommend Cruz and Co to many businesses and individuals who are looking for a business advisor and accountant that goes over and above…

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  • Regina Wang

    Business Tax – Beauty Salon 

    Ritchie has been managing my tax matters as a sole trader for 2 years+. Always very responsive to my questions and make effort to reply…

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  • Home
  • About
    • Meet the Team
    • Our Clients
    • Testimonials
  • Services
    • Tax Consultant and Compliance Services
    • Small Business and Sole Trader Accountant
    • Outsourced Accounting Solutions
    • Business Structure
    • Outsourced CFO
    • Working Visa Refunds
  • Resources
    • Tax Refund Process
    • Client Assistant Schedule forms
    • Downloadables
    • Helpful Links
    • Rental Property Cashflow calculator
    • SMSF Tax Refund Process
  • Contact Us
  • Blog