COVID-19 has debilitated the global economy over the last few months. This pandemic is predicted to be the biggest hit to hit the global economy since World War II. The crisis continues ravaging small businesses specifically startups across the globe.

For a long time, statistics have painted a grim picture for the survival of startups in normal operating environments.

In light of such data, it follows that startups will suffer in the new business landscape created by the pandemic. This post looks at the impact this crisis might have on startups and how these ventures can improve their fortunes post COVID-19 crises.

The startup scene so far

Over the last few months, the global crisis has virtually wiped out supply chains, thus crippling most startups. Most startups rely on the latest technology to streamline their operations, and any hitches in supply chains affect operations.

Worse still, access to capital has crippled many of these businesses. In China, where the effects of the pandemic were first felt, venture capital dropped drastically from 50 to 57 per cent. If this drop in investor capital is replicated globally, it will wipe out US$28 billion in startup investment. Already, reports indicate 41 per cent of startups globally have little cash to survive more than three months during this crisis.

Add to this the fact that many startups laid off full-time employees since the beginning of the crisis. Many others have suffered a decline in revenues since the COVID-19 crisis hit.

While stimulus packages have become the order of the day, many startups don’t expect any help from policy relief measures. They might not be big enough to enjoy such assistance.

Strategies for startups to grow post COVID-19

While things are tight in the startups’ business landscape, this also presents an opportunity to rethink business models and find ways to survive. There seems to be no respite in sight even as countries start reopening cautiously.

Also Read: How do you optimise the customer experience during a festive rush?

If you own a startup or you plan to launch one in this environment, there are some factors to consider to acquire new customers. Take a look.

Analyse the impact

It’s hard to foresee an industry that will remain unchanged post-COVID-19. Your startup must invest heavily in research to determine what has changed to adapt to the new normal. You have to ask yourself not only how this crisis has affected your business but also how it has affected your target customers.

An objective evaluation will show where you stand in terms of operational readiness to continue with customer acquisition. You should also assess your key risk areas for your startup and also review the company’s financial vulnerabilities.

The data you collect from your research should be the springboard to any changes you make in your customer acquisition strategy. As a startup, you have a leeway to try new methodologies in customer acquisition. However, you need quality data to guide you on the best tactics to acquire customers.

Audit and adjust customer experience

This crisis has given a massive boost to digital marketing, but the situation in terms of customer experience is nowhere near ideal. Many startups pre-COVID-19 used their online platforms to complement their land-based operations.

For such startups, this crisis presented a big challenge as transitioning to full online operations came with myriad challenges. With lockdowns, restrictions on movements, social distancing, and other measures to counter the new coronavirus, most customers moved online.

They expected the best experience but in some cases, businesses were struggling with the avalanche of orders.

What’s worse, the breakdown in supply chains meant many startups could not deliver products. Businesses must understand what went wrong during the crisis to improve their customer acquisition rates.

Start by learning how your target customers feel about your service levels before the crisis and during the crisis. You should carry out surveys to learn what customers expect and build your customer acquisition strategy around these expectations.

Rehash your content strategy

These are no ordinary times, and as such, your business cannot continue using the same content as before. Create content with a more personal touch if at all you want to attract new customers. Post-COVID is not the time to boast about cutting-edge technology and your revenue projections. Instead, you must show empathy with your customers who have suffered through this time.

Your marketing team must go back to the drawing board and create a content strategy that’s honest and transparent. There’s no harm in showing your vulnerabilities because everyone has suffered terribly over the last few months. However, you should also display your resilience and willingness to stand with your customers at all times.

Use a robust and versatile content marketing strategy that includes blogging, social media, e-books, guides, and other types of gated offers, video production, and email marketing. All these techniques have high rates of success and ROI in acquiring new customers.

Leverage social media for customer acquisition

Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media networks play an integral in promoting consumerism today. Social media is bound to become even more critical post-COVID-19 with social distancing measures expected to continue for a long time.

In this new normal, businesses have to find the easiest contact points with their target customers. Social and digital marketing is a smart strategy if you want to acquire new customers. You can use these platforms to showcase your products, show social proof, and boost brand visibility.

Also Read: How Tokpedia’s VP of customer engagement managed his customers during the pandemic

With the right social media content strategy, it’s easy to get people talking about your brand. It is an easy way to boost engagement levels by talking to prospects and providing crucial feedback.

Employees are your biggest asset

Whether you have managed to retain all employees or not during this crisis, you have to appreciate the critical role they can play post-COVID. In a startup, employees are like family, and most of them work hard to realize the dream of the venture.

You can promote user-generated content to target new customers after the crisis. From reviews, testimonials, behind-the-scenes to COVID-19 safety videos, try creative ways to bring employees into your campaigns.

Increase engagement

This crisis has reduced human contact and many people miss going out and talking to their family and friends. You should consider using this opportunity to increase engagement through handwritten cards, check-in phone calls and personalised emails to your target customers.

You can also create contests to increase customer feedback and engagement. Now that most people will shop online, make sure you share these contests across multiple channels. The bottom line is to communicate clearly and transparently and always be available to give feedback.

Optimise your website

Post-COVID-19, you can expect more people to shop and seek many other services online. For this reason, you must optimise your website and make it more customer-friendly. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly, provide multiple seamless payment options, 24/7 customer support, and comprehensive product and service description.

You should also find ways to integrate martech into your customer acquisition strategies. There are plenty of helpful tools out there that can support you with this.

The COVID-19 crisis has devastated the global economy. Due to their vulnerability, startups have suffered a lot during this crisis, with many collapsing. However, there’s a window of opportunity for the resilient ones post COVID. With these tips, it’s possible to revive the fortunes of your startup through customer acquisition. 

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Curlec,  a Malaysian fintech startup, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from 500 Startups, according to a press statement.

The fresh funds will be used by the company to grow its Malaysian operations through product development and market expansion especially in Southeast Asia.

Established in 2018 as a bank-to-bank (B2B) payment system that brings direct debit facilities to businesses of all sizes, Curlec builds technology on top of the direct debit B2B payment infrastructure in order to offer easier debit access to smaller companies.

“Our vision has always been to enable businesses of all sizes to access the previously inaccessible Direct Debit system,” said Zac Liew, co-founder of Curlec.

Small to medium-sized businesses can often face trouble while accessing the direct debit system. That is because the system has mostly been paper-based while other custom-developed software needed to deal with individual banks.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: OVO, Dana in merger talks; gojek CTO Ajey Gore resigns; Fincy raises US$11M; Tuas Capital, The Hive to launch SEA startup fund

Curlec allows businesses to utilise its platform via a simple API that automates the entire collection workflow, putting companies in control of their cash flow and when they get paid.

During the global health pandemic, the startup claims to have experienced an acceleration of merchants moving to subscription businesses models. This was because more founders have realised the value of obtaining more predictable sources of income in the future.

“As the market continues to evolve, we are also expanding our vision further also to help businesses grow by enabling them to enter the subscription economy firstly in Malaysia, and then Southeast Asia,” said Liew.

“In light of Covid-19, we continue to see growth in our offering, with many traditional businesses having to shift online. Despite the lockdown in Malaysia, we are continuing to average 20 per cent month-on-month growth this year in transaction volumes, which just highlights the current demand that businesses have to move towards online recurring payments,” he continued.

During the pandemic, many fintech companies in the Southeast Asian market experienced a rise in popularity as the customers become more careful about cash transaction and moving their shopping activities online.

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Image Credit: Curlec

 

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This article is published in partnership with Startup SG, an initiative of Enterprise Singapore that provides comprehensive support for startup development in Singapore.

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It takes an entire village to support the startup community. When COVID-19 hit, it took a toll on human lives, and also the lifespan of companies, especially startups. 

We immediately saw an urgent issue that we wanted to resolve – to support startup founders. Amid the tragedy and uncertainty ran a strong undercurrent of hope, the startup community responded with strength and resilience. 

This was when Mentor for Hope was born.

Mentor for Hope is a programme aimed at raising money for charity while matching founders and mentors together. Through carefully curated mentorship sessions and workshops, we wanted to inspire founders and the public to pay it forward through donations and support our beneficiary charities, Willing Hearts, and Beyond Social Services.

Founded by Elise Tan in April 2020, who was inspired by an article on venture capitalists in France who were hosting virtual office hours for startups. Elise was joined by Janet Neo, who expanded on this idea to raise funds for charity while providing office hours to mentor startups through this period. She gathered a team of like-minded peers in the community, including myself, Minh Vu Hong (Qualgro Partners, based in Singapore), Clinton Swan (Codelex Legaltech, based in Singapore), Aparna Saxena (Torajamelo, based in Indonesia), Gwen Sim, Sharon Yeo (TalentTribe Asia, based in Singapore), Roy Ong and Ajith Isaac (STRIVE, based in Singapore). 

The small idea gained traction not just within the startup community but also garnered the support of the oscar@sg fund through the Temasek Foundation.

So far, over S$25,000 has been raised in three weeks, with over 200 mentors and 300 startups who have participated and benefited from the campaign so far.

A startup that has benefited is Intellect.co, a Singapore-based digital health company building a new form of digital therapy that is more affordable and accessible to the masses. Theodoric Chew, co-founder of the firm, was matched to Janet Neo, a mentor with vast experience in sustainability and mental health startups.

Also read: Meet Mentor For Hope, the startup mentorship programme that will donate 50K meals for those in need

“We benefited tremendously from the insights and expertise she generously shared over a few calls. She helped push us to think in a much bolder and exciting manner. She also plans to provide us with introductions in the industry”, said Theodoric Chew, CEO, Intellect.co

Other support for the ecosystem

As Saison Capital provides both equity from the VC fund, as well as debt from the parent company across the region, we were able to get early indicators of how different industries were performing across different countries, especially in the current situation. 

Aside from mentorship, we also understand that startups needed the right talent to tide them through this period. 

One of the first problems that we wanted to solve quite quickly was that individuals were getting laid off. Over a weekend, a few friends and I created SEAcosystem.com, which helped match great people who got laid off from COVID, with startups who were still hiring.

Being part of the Singapore startup ecosystem, we are able to tap on the vast network and get the support of 25 other funds. Together, we managed to gather a database of over a thousand people, and list over 400 jobs on the platform, with many matches happening within days and even hours of jobseekers listing themselves on the platform.

Pivoting to capture opportunities amid uncertainties

What I have learned over the past few months is that some of the best startups were very quick to identify what some of the longer-term implications of COVID were, especially under the assumption that COVID and COVID-related behaviours from businesses and consumers were likely to stick around in some form over the next few years. 

Such companies then built business units or pivoted completely to serve that segment, and were able to internalise that some of their business strategies could not be salvaged piecemeal, and really had to see fundamental revamps.

For example, to meet the global shortage, Structo, a 3D printing startup, taps on its 3D printing technology and strong product development expertise to pivot from manufacturing dental/orthodontics applications to produce COVID-19 nasal test swabs. Another example will be Move.AI, an AI-powered software, that was hit by the travel restrictions to China (largest robotics and AGV market) to deploy their solutions, quickly shifting resources to internal development.

They had enhanced their software platform such that project implementation can be done remotely from Singapore. This also puts the company in a better position to cope with a possible surge in demand eventually, as they foresee an uptake in usage of robotics in a post-COVID-19 world. 

In the immediate period, companies have been able to realise that their customers, businesses, and individuals, are human too and are equally uncertain about the future. Great startups have been able to capture immediate growth opportunities and rally customers and investors around them, by creating a narrative about how the industry is likely to evolve, and how they and their products will continue to be a big part of their lives.

Continued efforts to support startups beyond COVID-19

While the plan is currently for Mentor for Hope and SEAecosystem.com to be an initiative for COVID-19 specifically, we have been eager to continue at least the spirit of community building and have partnered with Asia institute of Mentoring (AIM), who will, over the next three months be hosting a mentoring programme dedicated to improving the state of mentoring for Singaporean mentors and founders.

We hope that these initiatives can continue to sustain and grow as more partners join us.

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Co-living operator Hmlet expands in Japan, appoints new CFO, CTO

Hmlet, Singapore-operated co-living startup today announced it is adding 168 rooms within five new properties across Tokyo. The collection of properties is split into studios, private one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments, accompanied by common spaces to foster a sense of community.

Centrally situated and close to public transport, the properties are located in Sengoku, Iwatomocho, Takadanobaba, Sangenjaya as well as the famous Harajuku area. Hmlet Japan also introduced new ways to provide hassle-free living through a tailored-to-members’ requirements monthly fees, while furnishings, utilities, and maintenance can be customised.

In addition to Japan’s expansion, the startup has also appointed Rajive Keshup as its CFO, and Pramodh Rai as its new CTO, effective June 1.

Rai was previously SVP, Product & Technology in the company will now lead Hmlet’s technology platform buildout, data governance efforts and drive business efficiencies.

In Keshup’s new role as CFO, he will continue to lead the finance, accounting, investments, corporate strategy, legal teams, and be responsible for securing and maintaining supply-side relationships with landlords or developers.

Also Read: Singapore’s co-living startup Hmlet enters Japan, to sign 1,000-plus rooms in next 6 months

Enterprise Singapore, Singapore Standards Council introduces new e-commerce guidelines

Under Technical Reference 76, Enterprise Singapore and the Singapore Standards Council have announced new e-commerce guidelines to help build trust and transparency in online transactions.

Also Read: Singapore unveils two initiatives to help 12,000 people learn about AI

Rachel Peng, founder of Shopavision, a B2C hybrid shopping media platform that automates the connection between brands and consumers, lends her insight:

“The new guidelines may be a barrier to entry for small businesses as well as individuals who own micro-businesses when it comes to digitalisation. It would also be challenging for online marketplaces to ensure that all merchants on their platforms abide by these guidelines,” said Peng.

“However, these guidelines, in general, are good practices that will serve to protect consumers who shop online as it will also enable online merchants to build better trust with their customers. This is key to running a successful e-commerce business,” Peng added.

In the report by The Straits Time, Lucas Tok, a marketing and retail lecturer at Singapore Polytechnic, said the launch of the standard is “a step forward for the industry as a whole”.

“While it may take some time for businesses to adopt these practices, given that some have only just started their digital platforms, the guidelines will help them develop a customer-centric approach,” he said.

Meanwhile, merchants on Shopavision also commented on the matter. Janson Chan, CEO of merchant Mushroom Kingdom said that the guidelines are a good checklist that can help merchants who are not familiar with e-commerce get started. “It may actually help them with certain blind spots when it comes to transacting with customers online. By presenting information clearly, it is likely to help online merchants in their business as customers will have fewer questions about a certain product and more ready to make immediate purchases,” said Chan.

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Image Credit: Hmlet

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India’s Jiffy.ai lands US$18M Series A investment to help businesses automate manual tasks

Jiffy.ai, an enterprise automation startup based in Kerala, has raised US$20 million in Series A funding from Nexus Venture Partners, according to AnalyticsIndiaMagazine.

Other participating investors include executives from tech companies Charles Goldman, CEO of AssetMark; Richard Galanti, CFO of Costco; Sri Viswanath, CTO of Atlassian; Tony Thomas, CIO of Nissan Motors; and Bob Ward, the former COO SunGard Wealth and Retirement.

The fresh funding will be used for research and development, scaling, and global expansion across the United States, Europe and Southeast Asia.

Jiffy.ai is a software company that offers an AI-powered intelligent and integrated platform to help businesses automate manual tasks. Its solutions are designed to make customers operations more time and cost-efficient.

In a press statement, founder of Jiffy.ai, Babu Sivadasan, said that the company’s overall goal is “to promote sustainable, compassionate entrepreneurship”. He further added that the founding team is aligned around this core belief that the company has a huge responsibility to give back to the community through our social programmes and build a better workplace for the future leaders.

Jiffy.ai is currently working with companies to upskill and provide job training and placement programmes for people whose positions are presently displaced.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: OVO, Dana in merger talks; gojek CTO Ajey Gore resigns; Fincy raises US$11M; Tuas Capital, The Hive to launch SEA startup fund

Edvizo raises US$150K+ to help students search for coaching institutes

Edvizo, an early-stage edutech startup, has raised over US$150,000 in a seed round from Inflection Point Ventures, according to a press statement.

The Bangalore-based startup will use the new capital to improve its platform and current data quality.

Unlike other edutech companies who focus on schools and universities, Edvizo plans to tap into India’s coaching centres. These centres are extremely popular in the region with nearly 71 million students utilising its help to pursue mainstream competitive exams.

Edvizo acts as an online marketplace to search, compare and enrol in the best institutes for competitive exam preparation.

Currently, the company claims to have around 2650 institutes in its platform with over 50,000 registrations.

 

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