Growing A Successful Startup In Africa

I should let you know now that this won't be a step-by-step guide on building the next unicorn in Africa. Rather, I will look at a few of the entrepreneurs Knowledge Bandits has interviewed and talk about things I've noticed that got them to their funding round.

Particularly in Africa, being a startup is quite challenging. As I draw from episodes that have been aired on Knowledge Bandits, I notice similarities in the challenges entrepreneurs face.

The Idea

And that's exactly what it is. Just about every entrepreneur on Knowledge Bandits has said the same thing. One guest put it poetically, "Ideas are worth pennies. What's valuable is the vision. Share your ideas, but protect your vision."

Not particular to Africa, we see that aspiring entrepreneurs are hesitant to share ideas. I've talked with a few people that made prospective partners and investors sign NDA's before engaging in any conversation. Often times, this is where the conversation ends.

At the same time, you don't want give away every detail of your competitive advantage to the world. A good practice is to speak with people who can provide some sort of value. Don't shop around for praise. The best advice you can get comes from deploying your MVP and analyzing customer feedback. As a startup founder, your priority is bringing your product and company to life and everything you do should be around this, not showering yourself with admiration.

The Network

Talking with an entrepreneur, he said, "You'd be surprised the number of strangers that ask for funding." His amazement was based on the fact that people wanted money without establishing a relationship.

As someone who frequents startup events, I've heard the same things from almost every investor—you won't get funded without establishing a relationship.

Startups are all the buzz right now, but some seem to forget that the risk involved with investing in a startup is high. Couple that with a less transparent and relatively infant startup ecosystem, raising money from angels in Africa can be hard.

When building your startup, realize that finding funding will probably take longer than you expect. Through meeting people and establishing a network, you'll find that referrals are key. However, be prepared to either persevere or pivot.

The Execution

For each of these entrepreneurs I mentioned earlier in the article, I noticed four things they had in common before they raised money. They set clear goals, planned, but didn't over plan, executed quickly and remained focused.

Setting clear goals forces the startup to know what the main objective is. The startup founders knew they would need money at some point and they worked on building something that would be a compelling case for investors. To set clear goals, you need to establish a milestone—this will provide guidance in setting goals that lead to that milestone.

Planning but not over planning means you don't spend time on trying to make everything perfect. These entrepreneurs realized that chasing perfection in the early days would be futile. They did the best they could but made sure to move quickly.

Executing quickly involves setting clear tasks and job descriptions for all involved in the startup. These entrepreneurs don't duplicate efforts because there is an element of trust and planning that provides efficiency.

Finally, the entrepreneurs that have been able to raise money to continue to build their companies have remained extremely focused. They really don't spend time on anything that doesn't push towards the milestones they have established. As they've met resistance, they either push until there is a positive response or they pivot quickly.

Like I said, this isn't a guide, but rather things I've noticed from talking to entrepreneurs who are doing cool things in Africa.

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