10 Tips for a Startup

At a startup, the astmosphere is different. Things are moving fast. Here are 10 tips to apply:

Every employee is a potential channel through which the brand can be exposed – all employees should use their personal network

1. Personal social media – Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook
2. WOM

To be successful startup, all employees need to be on the same page

1. Especially support departments and business sides as they tend to have different perspectives
2. Company-wide meetings
3. All employees know all other co-workers names and most importantly their role
   1. This will allow for more effective and efficient conversations
   2. Employees will know who to communicate with if they want something done or they discover a problem

Act as an owner – all employees should question processes continually as if they were the owner of the company

1. Just because a process exists today, doesn’t mean it’s the optimal process
2. The startup environment encourages new ideas (even from interns) so aim for ideas to improve the company at a high level

Build meaningful relationships wherever you go

1. You never know how beneficial they will be in the long run

Taking breaks with coworkers can be important

1. Some of the best ideas come from a casual conversation between coworkers

Don’t let lack of data or uncertainty paralyze

1. Often the prior experience or data in an area doesn’t exist, and leaps of faith are necessary

 ALWAYS keep the customer in mind

1. Every project should relate back to the customer in some way
2. Start initiatives that have every employee thinking about the customer
   1. Have them work in customer care

Negotiation is key

1. Startups are low on resources by definition. Just because a price is given doesn’t mean that that’s the lowest they can offer. It may be easier to save the company money than many realize

Twitter is key, personally and professionally

1. Brand awareness
2. Creating a personal brand

Test everything – it’s a way to learn and it’s often data driven