9 Tips to Grow Your Startup in a Competitive Space Date:   Friday , June 03, 2016 With a vision to deliver offbeat and exciting holiday possibilities like wildlife tours, farm stays and royal heritage experience options for travel enthusiasts, Smartstay offers unique homestay options and holiday packages on the concept of Alternate Tourism Hi there! If you\'re reading this, you are either an entrepreneur with your own startup, or simply keen to understand what the fuss is about! Either way, if you\'re looking for tips to grow your business aggressively in the face of entrenched competition, just read on... 1. Find an Unmet Need: Despite the massive explosion in online products and services, it is still a great idea to start off by simply \'building a better mousetrap\'. That\'s right, the fundamental premise driving any venture should cater to a stated or unstated consumer need. If your business idea doesn\'t solve your user\'s problem, you should probably get back to the drawing board to find the one which does. 2. Build a Strong Product: Once you\'ve got your head around the need gap you want to address, give a long hard thought about how your product should look, behave and (most importantly) interact with the consumer whose problem you\'re solving. Remember, if the user doesn\'t immediately see what you\'re selling, your solution, however brilliant, is doomed to fail. 3.Stay Different: Understand that you\'re entering an exploding ecosystem, with millions of businesses pitching themselves to increasingly-fragmented consumers strewn over the digital landscape. To make life tougher, users\' attention spans aren\'t what they used to be, and it\'s getting worse every day. It is just not enough to be different and expect customers to \'get it\', it is vital to look immediately attractive at the online equivalent of a passing glance. So understand what appeals to your audience, and keep working hard at staying relevant, engaging and being unique. 4.Embrace Change: In a single minute, 571 new sites are launched, 204 million emails sent and 216,000 photos shared on Instagram worldwide. In this hyper-evolving world, your biggest trap is being egoistic about your original idea. Learn to accept changes in market or behavior dynamics, and continuously evolve to stay \'on trend\',else you could be obsolete before you know it. On the other hand, quick acceptance and effective change can be great friends on the path to success. 5.Partners = Progress: Let\'s face it, you\'ll always have days when you\'re strapped for hard cash to fuel your growth ambitions. Rather than crib and moan, try identifying and approaching potential allies who are working towards the same audience with non-cannibalistic product. Some of the most spectacular progress stories have strong partnerships at their core and these typically deliver results without soaking up funds. 6.Find Great Investors: The best investors not only see value in your idea and give you funding, they actually work to make you succeed. Having involved investors is an excellent route to getting a fresh perspective, locating potential business allies and occasionally breaking new ground as well. 7.Keep Listening: OK, so who is undergoing a massive evolution right now? - consumers (and their needs), vendors, business models, market dynamics, competition, purchase dynamics, delivery platforms...phew! With so much change all around, you need to stay approachable at all times and pay attention to what your network is telling you: sometimes, the deepest business insights and game-changing ideas can come during an informal discussion with your investors, partners or customers. 8.Keep Questioning: How can we grow more? Is there any business opportunity we are not tapping? What are our consumers saying about us? And most importantly, how can we be the best in what we do? 9.Persevere: All entrepreneurs work hard towards the mythical \'pot of gold\', but you can\'t have a rainbow without rain! Instant success is a pipe-dream, so be prepared to face adversity. There will be tough times in product deliverables, financial position or team dynamics. It\'s YOUR commitment, mental ability to cope and inner self-belief that will tilt the balance towards success or failure. Staying quality-focused, differentiated, agile and determined in this increasingly information-overloaded world can truly be cornerstones of your personal roadmap to success.