Don’t swap a business model for hype

During the first wave of internet start-ups in the 1990s, a majority of the businesses being created actually had business models.

Certainly this was due to the high start-up costs that demanded the founders have a way of making money, and most importantly for the investors, generating a return.

During the second wave we have just experienced, a majority of businesses were being created without a business model, due to the low start-up cost which allowed for the agile development movement. If they did have a business model, it was generally based on advertising.

As Rupert Murdoch once said, there is not enough advertising in the world for all of these businesses to succeed.

Somewhere along the way, entrepreneurs forgot that a sound business model is needed to create a company that will stand on its own two feet.

Figuring out a business model later became the status quo and an accepted start-up methodology.

Only when a start-up has extraordinary early growth can an entrepreneur put product development and user experience first and business model second.

Whenever a crisis occurs it reminds us of what we had forgotten and forces us to focus on fundamentals.

Don’t compare yourself to Google, Facebook, Instagram or any other hyped successful internet company; only ever compare yourself to yourself.

Build your business the old-fashioned way with a sound business model where you simply spend less than you earn.