Advice on starting a Web Agency

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Hi,
I am gonna graduate this May with a Business Degree. I plan to start a small web agency where we can build productivity web apps for local businesses. I plan on doing it with a partner.

I want advice from people in the startup realm and working in the startup environment, to give me insights on getting started. And share advices. Anyone with insights , I will be glad to hear some advice. Thanks

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Common questions every startup should be able to confidently answer, positive or negative:

  1. As an investor, why should I give you my money when there are other, arguably more well established, options?
  2. Does the market you are entering need the solution you are providing?
  3. What solutions does your market already have to the problem you’re addressing? Why is your solution different/better?
  4. Can your business survive 6 months without making a profit? What about a year? (this is a harsh reality for many new business’)
  5. Do you have a clear plan of how you want your business to progress, do you have a backup plan for when certain things fail?
  6. Does your company have a fail-system? Or in other words, can your company safely “fail fast”
  7. Do you have a positive track record you can show to give your skills credibility?
  8. What business connections do you have, and what business connections are you actively trying to make?
  9. How would you describe your company culture, and what are you specifically doing to promote that culture?
  10. What percentage of your business model is dedicated solely to marketing? Is this considered normal for your target market?
  11. Is your idea stealable? In other words, how easy is it for someone with more resources, more money, and more connections to do exactly what you are for less cost and more profit. (A negative response to this type of question is actually the number 1 turn off for the investors in Shark Tank.

I VERY highly recommend you read The Lean Startup. AKA the Holy Bible of the startup.

I would also recommend Design for Hackers. It’s geared toward web design but it’s a fantastic book on learning what makes successful things successful, and what distinguishes them from just “good ideas”

Lastly, please read this article about minimum-viable-solution. It’s a 10 minute read but it will change the way you see problems.

Hope this helps, and best of luck :ok_hand:

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MaRS has tons of resources…

they have a 101 series that can be viewed online… tons of good info (I went in 2015 and got the cert)

MaRS site

their library

Edit: ooOoo looks like they rebranded it! It’s now more online and more of a course…

was weekly webinar sessions discussion panel etc… now seems to be a 5 week online course

promo vid rah RAH!

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Thank you very much. Now I think I need something like this. I will definitely check on these. One thing tho, I am from Ghana where the tech industry is still very young.

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Thanks I will definitely check it out, looks promising