Startup Discount for Buyer's Guide Entries
Generally, RP Photonics is quite restrictive concerning discounts, because we want to have a fair price system. We would consider it unfair to give discounts to those asking, while letting others pay more. However, under specific conditions, we grant discounts:
Startup companies can obtain a 25% discount for the advertising package in the RP Photonics Buyer's Guide. With that, RP Photonics takes into account that startups often have a financially difficult situation, and that for them it is more challenging to convert the obtained leads into profitable sales. Besides, we have a sympathy for startups, which are often run by particularly motivated persons and are important for the economy, often driving innovation more than established companies.
Our rules are simple:
- The discount is 25% on all orders for our ad package which are issued within the first 25 months after the official start of the company. The advertising period can well extend beyond those 25 months – effectively you can profit for up to three years.
- A startup is considered to be a really new company, not e.g. something created by renaming a company or splitting off a part of a bigger company. What he have in mind is typically a small company, founded by one or a few young people with limited financial resources but ambitious goals. In case of doubt, we reserve the decision on what is accepted as a startup.
Otherwise, startups profit as any other suppliers from the many strengths of RP Photonics marketing offers – beginning with the enormous popularity of our digital resource, featuring the unique combination of a comprehensive high-quality encyclopedia with a well worked-out buyer's guide and ending with our diligent and helpful support. We don't just sell a package, but take care that your entries make sense. You will profit from a strong partner, having both access to a huge target audience and substantial experience with online marketing.
Importance of Marketing for Technology Startups
Obviously, effective marketing is of particular importance for startups. They need not only to develop their products, but also to find sufficiently many customers for generating a flux of income before they financially run out of steam.
Many founders are technical or scientific people, who find it natural to mostly focus on getting their first products developed. Some of them are at high risk of neglecting the marketing side, thinking that finishing their products must have the highest priority. Although having market-ready products is obviously the first necessary condition for any sales, the mistake is to ignore that the marketing efforts take some time to have a real impact. Basically, one needs to build up a brand which gains some credibility on the marketplace. Few customers would be prepared to purchase a product straight away from a company which they have never heard about before. This is particularly so in the technology sector, where the detailed properties of a product are usually not so obvious before one buys it.
Therefore, it is highly recommended to start the marketing early – beginning with the creation of a brand and a convincing website, immediately followed by a digital marketing initiative to make it known to the business community. Both branding and lead generation must be worked on.
Startup founders sometimes wonder whether they can afford to invest some moderate percentage of their starting funds into the marketing. They should actually rather wonder whether they can afford not to do it. Of course, one should always check carefully how to spend the money; it should obviously be something which really works and not only looks nice.
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