7 Reasons You Should Enter a Startup Competition

[schong]

7 Reasons You Should Enter a Startup Competition

One of the hardest parts of starting a new business is getting it off the ground. Raising startup funds, learning the ropes and finding those first few customers is not easy. Success takes hard work and hustle – but if you know where to go and what to do, the process gets much easier. Entering a startup competition can be a powerful experience for a startup or new business. It can be a great way to build momentum for your idea during that critical first year. Winning comes with a lot of perks, but even if you don’t win, you won’t leave empty-handed. If you’re looking for a competition that’s right for your business, Each of these competitions can help you get your business off to a flying start, or take it to the next level. Here are a few of the reasons you should consider entering a startup competition.

1. Gain Exposure for Your Business Startup competitions are a great way to tell others about your business, gain exposure, and find new customers. There are several ways you can use competitions for marketing, branding, and PR. First is the obvious: You get to brag about it! Email your past and present clients. Put together a press release and personally drop it off at local newspapers and radio stations. Email relevant bloggers and offer yourself as an interviewee. Some competitions even include community voting, so you have an opportunity to stir up your fan base by inviting them to participate. Sharing your involvement in a startup competition, no matter what the outcome, demonstrates your commitment to your company, how you are creatively growing your business and that you’re looking for ways to serve your clients better. Second, depending on the competition, chances are that few (if any) of your direct competitors will be one of the entrants. If the competition has a final celebration event, you’ll probably find yourself surrounded by tons of new business opportunities. Be sure to bring plenty of business cards and get ready to mingle! You never know who you’ll meet. There are a lot more ways to unearth new business and PR opportunities during startup competition events. Award ceremonies are usually crawling with press and bloggers on the prowl for an interesting story - be prepared to give them one. Of course, winners receive a whole lot more attention, but entrants also have a story to share. So if you happen to win an award, brag about it and enjoy the spotlight! If you didn’t make the cut this time, you can still approach the press with an original and interesting story. Oh, and be sure you’re ready for the new business that will be heading your way.
2. Network with Savvy People Startup competitions are packed with ambitious guys and gals just like you. Whether they are just getting started or have been at it for years, they all started with an idea and built it from scratch. They’ve all made plenty of mistakes, acquired knowledge and skills along the way and have endless information and perspectives to share. Rub elbows, shake hands, ask questions and take note! Each interaction may just save you from having to learn lessons the hard way. And remember, sometimes the biggest “aha” moments come when you’re sipping coffee with strangers.
3. Spark Your Creativity Entering and attending startup contests will get your creative juices flowing. The actual process of entering the competition forces you to put your business on paper, organize your ideas and brainstorm the possibilities. In some cases, application reviewers will provide you with unsolicited (and priceless) feedback. Attending the competition events will kick your ideas into hyperdrive so you can push your vision to the next level. Listening to passionate business leaders and exposing yourself to new perspectives will inevitably spark your creative spirit. You’ll walk away with a notepad packed with tons of to-do’s... and even some time-saving don’ts!
4. Set (and Achieve) Goals It’s not easy to enter a startup competition - and that’s a good thing! Chances are you will need to polish up (or write the first draft of) your business plan and answer thought-provoking questions as part of the application process. This process will force you to think critically about every aspect of your business, nail down your vision, assess the competitive landscape, define your value proposition and set short term and long term goals. Face it, submitting an application to a startup competition forces you to focus and refocus on your overall strategy, which may be one of the most valuable aspects of entering.
5. Practice Your Elevator Pitch (over and over) If you don’t have your elevator pitch down perfectly (or don’t know what it is), now is the time to practice! While attending a startup competition, you will have dozens of opportunities to tell people about your business. Your elevator pitch is a 30-second summary that quickly and simply defines your business and its value proposition. It can make the difference between a potential investor losing interest or giving you his personal email and phone number. Be sure to practice your elevator pitch beforehand! Make it brief, unique, and memorable. Test-drive your pitch among friends and colleagues. Watch people’s reactions as you share it. Are they intrigued? Do they want to know more, or do they walk away after you give your spiel? Don’t be afraid to test a few versions of your elevator pitch to figure out what works best. Remember, practice makes perfect.
6. Connect with Advisors and Industry Mentors We all need a little hand-holding from time to time and startup competitions often provide the support and instruction new businesses need. Some competitions require contestants to meet with knowledgeable business advisors as part of the application process. Others match competition winners with exclusive business coaches and investors. If you’re smart about it, you can probably find incredible mentors just walking the floor during the competition events or awards ceremony. Bottom line, startup competitions are a great way to find tried-and-true advice.
7. But Wait, There’s More: The Prizes! Winning comes with bragging rights, and more! Prizes for the startup profiles we profiled range from $2,500 cash to $100,000 grants, plus non-cash prizes including free business services, access to VC’s and mentors, headline exposure to business communities and numerous PR opportunities. Combined, the startup competitions listed in our guide are giving away more than $3.3 million in cash and prizes! Every kid in the little league gets a trophy. You could say the same goes for startup competitions, but you walk away with a lot more than a certificate of participation! Every startup competition has dozens of stories of businesses that took off after participating. With so many competitions to choose from, the only question left is, which one is right for you? Are you planning to enter a startup competition? Here is a good recommendation for you. Have you ever had the perfect idea and you built your own startup and you didn't know how to get funded or you didn't know how to find your perfect mentor and whom can show you the light at the end of the road we have have the solution for you!!!

Startup Istanbul- https://startupistanbul.com/

Etohum organizes the biggest and most impactful entrepreneurship dedicated events in Turkey. Startup Turkey and Startup Istanbul are the two of them. Startup Turkey and Startup Istanbul are the demo days of the selected tech startups, which gathers executives, investors and chosen startups from Europe, Asia, and MENA. For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco Every year, Etohum is selecting the most promising startups from thousands of applicants. These teams are trained and mentored for an acceleration period of 3 months. Etohum works with world-class mentors, including advisors from Silicon Valley, the heart of entrepreneurship.

• Startup Istanbul is in Fall (18 - 21 October 2019)
• This year 7th edition.
• First Startup Istanbul was May 2013.
• Startup Turkey is in Spring (26 - 29 April 2019) - Startup Turkey is 11 years old.

startup growth #techcommunity

• 140.000 startups applied in the last 2 years
• 200 different countries
• 60 + countries are represented at the events - Both events are global demo days For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco
• The event language is English
• Only selected Top 100 startups can present their startup
• There is 6 stage selection/evaluation process Who attends to our events?
• Main participants are
• Startups - Investors
• Venture capitalists - Angel investors
• Accelerators
• Governments (Estonia, Lithuania, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, etc.) - Corporations
• Mentors
• Media
• Related parties (Lawyers, Technoparks, Service providers, ISP companies etc.)
• Others (Students, academicians

Expected participants

• 1.000 participants are expected on the 18th - 21st of October
• 500 Entrepreneurs
• 200 Investors / Mentors
• 100 Corporations / Government officials - 100 Related parties
• 50 Media
• 50 Others.

Our Websites

• Etohum.com (Turkish accelerator site)
• Startupistanbul.com (event site)
• Startupturkey.com (event site)
• Startany.com (application process / selection) - Startupist.com (blog site)

For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco

Social Media Chanels

• Facebook/startupistanbul
• Youtube/startupistanbul
• Twitter/istanbulstartup
• Linkedin/startupistanbul
• Instagram/startupistanbul
• Vimeo/burakbuyukdemir
• Telegram/startupistanbul
• Whatsapp - Groups
• Click-meeting - Online Meetings and Webinars - Appear.in - internal / 1-1 meetings For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco
• Slack - internal communication
• Mailchimp / Sendgrid - emailing

4 days Program

18 October (Friday)

-Excursion (Boat Tour) -Kick off night

19 October (Saturday)

-Demo Day Top 100 Startups -Mentor-ship

20 October (Sunday)

-VIP Brunch -Rehearsal Top 10 Finalists

21 October (Monday)

-Conference Day -Startup Istanbul Challenge Finals -Exhibition

Venue

• Uniq Istanbul - http://www.uniqistanbul.com/ - 18 October - Boat Tour, Bebek
• 18-19 October - Uniq Lounge
• 19-20 October - Uniq Glassroom
• 19 October - VIP Brunch, Tarabya

Tıcket categories

• Startup 100 / Exhibiting - 3 tickets included - Investor tickets For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco
• Conference Day Pass
• Group tickets
• VIP tickets
• Media Passes
• Student
• Government
• Academician
• NGOs

Tickets pricing

• Investors & Companies & Others - €325
• Startup Top 100 - €660
• Exhibiting Startups - €480
• Startup Conference Pass - €90 For Registration-https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco

Tiered pricing by timing proximity to the event

• 2 for 1 campaign - 9/10 July
• Super Early Bird - 31 July
• Early Bird - 31 August
• General Admission - Regular tickets - 30 September - Latecomer - 15 October
• Last Minute - 17 October
• Onsite - 18 - 21 October Want to be the first to grab tickets to this year’s Startup Istanbul? Register up for super early tickets. #startupistanbul #startups For Registration - https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco

 

[logann]

@schong How can non-technical people contribute to a start up competition?

 

[schong]

@logann You can contribute from business side like management and fund raising or you can be an early investor in these events you can even attend as a student and it's a great opportunity to meet investors and CEOs of startups and mentors from all over the world if you are interested in joining as an early bird please follow this link https://en.xing-events.com/e/eewnco

 

[logann]

@schong So as an MBA student, what could I actually contribute that specific weekend? I'm not interested in joining this particular startup weekend, but just asking in general.

 

[daniel3112]

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