John Osher: 17 Mistakes Start-ups Make

John Osher is a “serial entrepreneur” who has developed literally hundreds of consumer products, from energy saving devices to baby products, toys and candy, and household appliances. He has built and sold several successful businesses to major companies and is most popularly known as the guy who brought the “five dollar electric toothbrush” to the world. Launched as the SpinBrush, in only fifteen months, it became the top selling toothbrush in the U.S. He started Dr John’s toothbrush company in 1999 and sold the venture to Procter and Gamble only two years later for $475 million.

Here are the “17 mistakes start-ups make” according to him:

• Failing to spend enough time researching the business idea to see if it’s viable.
• Miscalculating market size. Entrepreneurs say, ‘The market size is 50 million people. If I only sell to 2 percent, I’d be selling a million.’ But most products sell less than 1 percent.
• Making a commitment on sales projections that were wrong. Created costs that require those projections to be met. Run out of money.
• Overprojecting sales prospects.
• Making cost projections that are too low.
• Hiring too many people and spending too much.
• Lacking a contingency plans.
• Bringing in unnecessary partners.
• Hiring for convenience rather than skill requirements.
• Spending half their time doing something that represents 5 percent of their business.
• Accepting that it’s “not possible” too easily.
• Focusing too much on volume and company size rather than profit.
• Looking for somebody to tell you you’re right.
• Lacking simplicity.
• Lacking clarity of your long-term aim and business purpose.
• Going after too many targets at once.
• Lacking an exit strategy.

# Source: 17 Mistakes Start-ups Make
# Via: ValleyWag