A few decades ago, it was likely that someone thought there would be more robots than humans in the 2020s. They might be thinking of humanoid robots. But, we are at the advent of the steady rise of the robotics industry.
Robotics, for the longest time, are necessary yet supplementary tools for other industries. Its invaluable role paves the establishment of its industry. As the pioneer companies continue to grow, startups are starting to appear left and right.
If you are interested in investing in this industry, we compiled a foolproof plan to start your successful robotics startup.
Here is a four-step plan towards a successful robotics startup:
1. Create an Actionable Business Plan
A well-crafted business plan is always the anchor and foundation of a successful business, regardless of its industry.
In the case of robotic startups, creating a business plan requires more research than usual. The industry is relatively fresh, and the products and services it offers are for a niche market.
The basics of creating a business plan include streamlining your business’ profile. At this point, any general or blanket statements are unacceptable. Instead, it is imperative to specify your product or service offering and your target market.
Define Your Product
Does your company produce robotic arms? Is it for construction or manufacturing? Or, is it for medical procedures? It is essential to narrow down this very basic detail so that the development of your company strategies and goals follows the same line of thinking.
Your product or service offering is also the focal point of all your advertising materials. Marketing agencies for startups will make sure that this information is enough to catch the general public’s attention. A detailed and properly defined product offering will invite more people to engage with the ad rather than a vague and confusing product offer.
Know Your Target Population
Next in line is the identification of your niche market. Robotics companies appeal to both end-users and manufacturers. Startup robotics companies usually appeal to one over the other to focus all resources and efforts on that.
In defining your target, you can also improve your product to fit their needs best. Also, it’s important to note the other companies and suppliers they have worked with before. Finally, it can help when you profile your competitors.
Establish Your True North
Establishing the sole and primary goal of your company often comes off as something given. But, most of the time, keeping this goal in mind gets covered by other thoughts and ideas to speed up the business’s success.
Knowing your company’s primary goal from the beginning lines up all your strategies, goals, and action plans until you finally achieve it. It will refrain you from investing in other products and actions that will not benefit the company, especially when it requires more money than it brings in.
2. Identify Your Competition
Once you enter the market, all the existing businesses run in the same competitions as you, but at different levels. Therefore, it’s vital to conduct a competitor analysis and determine which companies are your closest competition.
When determining which ones are your direct competitors, consider the product or service offering. Then, consider only the businesses that offer the same products or services to the clientele. Also, make sure that their target market is the same as yours or something similar.
Moreover, take note of when they established their business. As a robotics startup company, your closest competitions are, of course, other startup companies. So look into the different companies that share the same establishment date as yours.
Also, consider the companies that were established three to five years before yours. In this way, you are experiencing similar situations that are comparable.
Almost all of these details are available online, so it’s fairly easy to do now. First, look into their websites, Facebook pages, and LinkedIn profiles.
3. Create an Accurate Financial Report
In the early stages of your startup company, don’t go easy in creating your financial reports. Funding is the most critical factor that can make or break any startup company.
Make sure to record all transactions. List down, manually or digitally, all financial transactions—both in-flow and outflow of money. Then, track where each outflow goes and determine where the cash in-flows come from.
An essential part of creating financial reports is the forecast of expenses and returns. For startup companies, create a forecast for shorter time frames. For example, predict your business’ finances for the next month, the next three months, and for the next six months.
Having a more staggered view of your finances over the following months provides a better insight into adjusting your current expenses. It will also alert your team if you are on the brink of losing more money than gaining it. At this point, you can start scanning or formulating other methods on how to generate more money.
4. Seek Out Investors
When it comes to generating more capital, one of the available options is to seek out investors. Significant companies in several industries are open to investing in startup companies.
Say, for instance, the automobile industry. If your product is a piece of robotic equipment that can help an integral part of the manufacturing process, then take a shot and pitch your services to them. When successful, this will result in a symbiotic relationship between both companies.
Most startup companies exhaust their finances quickly during the first few months of operations. Investors provide these startups the much-needed headstart to entirely go operational without the fear of going bankrupt after every crucial decision.
Angel investors, in particular, are privately-funded investors that fund small-scale business startups. In most cases, these angel funders ask for a percentage of ownership equity from the business once it earns more.
Let’s say your company aims to produce smaller-scale robotic contraptions. But when the demand for it started to pick up, your production cannot keep up. Funding from private investors might solve that problem for you.
Final takeaways
Startup businesses in any industry follow similar plans on how to succeed in their field. However, the first few years for any startup prove to be the most challenging. The brand is not well-known yet, the funding is shallow, and the operations are still unstable. There are many hurdles, but success is possible and reachable by following the following steps listed above.
From a well-crafted business plan down to scouting different funding sources, startup robotics companies will flourish. As the demand for these products and services continues to increase, these startups will continue to deliver.
