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4 Entrepreneur Success Stories to Learn From

• 20 Jan 2022

Entrepreneurship is a risky but potentially rewarding endeavor. According to the online course Entrepreneurship Essentials , 50 percent of startups last five years, and just 25 percent survive 15.

“For every Amazon.com or Uber, there are scores of companies few can remember,” says Harvard Business School Professor William Sahlman in Entrepreneurship Essentials.

So, what separates successful ventures from those that fail?

“When a company succeeds, it’s because it has discovered and made the right moves along the way,” Sahlman says. “It has found out how to create and capture customer value.”

If you’re exploring entrepreneurship or in the early stages of launching a venture, it’s important to learn from others to avoid common pitfalls and discover which decisions impacted a company’s survival. Here are four stories of successful entrepreneurs to inspire your entrepreneurial journey.

Access your free e-book today.

4 Successful Entrepreneur Stories

1. adi dassler of adidas.

Some of today’s biggest brands started with humble beginnings, and no one embodies this better than Adidas founder Adolf “Adi” Dassler.

Dassler’s shoemaking career began in his mother’s washroom in a small town in Bavaria, Germany. It was there that Dassler began designing and cobbling shoes and decided he wanted to make the best possible sports shoe for athletes.

While there were plenty of shoemakers at the time, Dassler was committed to standing out in the market by gathering feedback from athletes about what they looked for in a shoe, what pain points could be improved on, and how they felt about his early models.

This feedback allowed Dassler to craft an athletic shoe that was highly valued by his customers and gave him legitimacy when he registered “Adi Dassler Adidas Sportschuhfabrik” in 1949 at 49 years old. It was that same year the first shoe with the soon-to-become-signature Adidas three stripes was registered.

Dassler’s vision to create the best shoe for athletes proved itself in 1954 when the German national football team won the World Cup final against the Hungarians—while wearing the new model of Adidas cleats.

“Their unbelievable victory would be heard around the world for decades to come,” Adidas states on its website , “and it made Adidas and its founder a household name on football pitches everywhere.”

Since then, Adidas has grown into an international brand known for high-quality athleticwear. Dassler’s story sheds light on the importance of listening to target customers about their dreams, needs, and pain points.

“Adi Dassler’s secret to success had an additional personal ingredient: He met with athletes, listened carefully to what they said, and constantly observed what can be improved or even invented to support their needs,” reads Adidas’s website . “The best of the best trusted Adidas and its founder from the beginning.”

Related: 5 Steps to Validate Your Business Idea

2. Whitney Wolfe Herd of Bumble

After leaving dating app company Tinder and an abusive relationship in 2014, Whitney Wolfe Herd was inspired to create an empowering dating experience for women.

“For all the advances women had been making in workplaces and corridors of power, the gender dynamics of dating and romance still seemed so outdated,” Wolfe Herd writes on Bumble’s website . “I thought, ‘What if I could flip that on its head? What if women made the first move and sent the first message?’”

Wolfe Herd, along with dating app Badoo co-founder Andrey Andreev and former Tinder employees Chris Gulzcynski and Sarah Mick, designed a dating app that requires women to make the first move in heterosexual matches.

The brand took off—largely on college campuses—and the app reached 100,000 downloads in its first month.

As its user base grows, Wolfe Herd remains a strong advocate for gender equality and sexual harassment prevention, building in-app features that block hate speech and blur inappropriate images. Wolfe Herd and her team also lobbied the state of Texas—where the company is headquartered—to pass a law prohibiting the sending of unsolicited lewd photos, which passed in 2019 .

“I’m more dedicated than ever to helping advance gender equality—and putting an end to the misogyny that still plagues society,” Wolfe Herd writes in a letter to Bumble users . She later adds, “I want nothing more than for your connections to be both meaningful and healthy.”

Wolfe Herd’s story serves as a reminder to use your own life for business inspiration and use a cause you care about to differentiate your product and brand in a saturated market.

Related: How to Identify an Underserved Need in the Market

3. Melanie Perkins of Canva

In 2007, Melanie Perkins was working a part-time job while studying in Perth, Australia, teaching students how to use desktop design software. The software was expensive, complex, and required a semester’s worth of instruction to learn how to use, prompting Perkins to ask, “Is there a way this could be simpler and less expensive?”

Perkins’s goal to create an affordable, simple, online design tool was originally turned down by over 100 investors—it wasn’t until three years into her pitching process that Canva received its first investment.

Perkins credits this investment to a shift in her pitching strategy: She began leading with the relatable problem Canva aims to solve.

“A lot of people can relate to going into something like Photoshop and being completely overwhelmed," Perkins said in an interview for Inc . "It's important to tell the story, because if your audience doesn't understand the problem, they won't understand the solution."

Today, 60 million customers use Canva to create designs across 190 countries.

Perkins’s story reflects the importance of effectively communicating the value of a business idea , as well as the tenacity and resilience required for entrepreneurial success.

Related: How to Effectively Pitch a Business Idea

4. Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Andy Hunt, and Jeff Raider of Warby Parker

One example mentioned in Entrepreneurship Essentials is that of innovative online eyewear company Warby Parker. In 2008, Wharton MBA student Blumenthal lost his prescription eyeglasses. He was reluctant to purchase a new pair because they were so expensive. He also didn’t want to visit an eyeglass store.

The idea came to him in the middle of the night, and he emailed three friends—Gilboa, Hunt, and Raider—immediately: Why not start an online company to sell prescription glasses at an affordable price?

They set to work, and Warby Parker was poised to launch just after the four founders graduated with their MBA degrees in the spring of 2010—that is, until GQ reached out to Blumenthal about writing an article to be published on February 15 of that year. The founders sped up their process and launched Warby Parker’s website the same day the article was printed .

The article called Warby Parker “the Netflix of eyewear,” driving interested customers to the new site in droves. The founders’ one mistake was forgetting to add a “sold out” functionality to the website. The waitlist for Warby Parker eyewear grew to 20,000 people, and the company hit its first-year sales target in three weeks.

"It was this moment of panic but also a great opportunity for us to provide awesome customer service and write personalized emails to apologize and explain," Blumenthal says in an interview for Inc . "That really set the tone for how we would run customer service."

A few things set Warby Parker apart from the eyewear market at the time:

• Its online model : A new way of delivering the product helped it break into a stagnant industry
• Its affordable prices : A pair of Warby Parker frames with prescription lenses cost $95—much less expensive than other brands at the time
• Its home try-on program : This enabled customers to try on five pairs of glasses and send back the pairs they didn’t want to purchase.
• Its commitment to giving back : For every pair of glasses purchased, Warby Parker donated a pair to someone in need

Warby Parker donated its millionth pair of glasses in 2019 and continues to be an example of innovation in an existing market.

Why Learn from Case Studies?

Reading about the trials, tribulations, decisions, and successes of other entrepreneurs is an effective way to gain insight into what your experience could be like. What common threads do you notice in the aforementioned examples? What characteristics do these successful entrepreneurs share ? Use their experiences as blueprints to inform your strategic approach and in-the-moment decision-making.

When building your entrepreneurial skills, seek out courses that incorporate case studies into their teaching method , such as Entrepreneurship Essentials. Not only can you imagine yourself in their situations, but you can take their wisdom with you on your entrepreneurial journey.

Are you interested in honing your entrepreneurial skills and innovation toolkit? Explore our four-week Entrepreneurship Essentials course and other online entrepreneurship and innovation courses to learn to speak the language of the startup world.

About the Author

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Entrepreneurship: case studies.

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Entrepreneurship cases, journals of case studies.

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Case studies are usually short articles describing real-world business examples that illustrate a particular problem or principle in detail. There are many cases available online for free or for a fee, and you can also search the library catalogue and selected databases below.

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Entrepreneurship Case Studies

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Berkeley Haas Case Series

The Berkeley Haas Case Series is a collection of business case studies created by UC Berkeley faculty

Entrepreneurship

Connect-in-Place: Startup Disrupts Socializing and Learning During COVID-19

Two UC Berkeley students forced into online classes during COVID-19 realized - due to their volunteer experiences championing educational equality - that younger students (K-12) could suffer social isolation and reduced learning opportunities. So, the undergrads brainstormed how to tackle new educational and emotional challenges pre-college students faced due to pandemic restrictions.

Medinas Health: Building a Medical Equipment Marketplace

This case centers on the startup Medinas Health, a technology company based in Berkeley, California that aimed to increase the efficiency of the medical equipment market in the U.S. Chloe Alpert, Medinas Health’s CEO, envisioned a more sustainable healthcare industry and aimed to reduce waste and improve the financial bottom-line of hospitals.

Niantic Labs and the Professional Entrepreneur in the Silicon Valley: Google, Pokémon Go, and Beyond

This case series focuses on the entrepreneurial career of John Hanke, a 1996 MBA graduate of the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley and a professional entrepreneur.

International Data Spaces: A Collaborative Organizational Moonshot

Led by ThyssenKrupp CTO Reinhold Achatz, IDSA is an organization that seeks to set, diffuse, and implement a dominant global B2B data standard.

Maire Tecnimont: The Creation of NextChem

Maire Tecnimont is an international leader in the engineering and construction of industrial plants.

Goodbaby: How a Chinese Underdog Became a World Leader Through Open Innovation

Goodbaby is an industry-leading manufacturer of juvenile products. Under a variety of brand names, nearly a third of the strollers in the world are designed and manufactured by Goodbaby.

Barça Innovation Hub: Getting the Ball Rolling on Innovation

This case study follows the Spanish football club, FC Barcelona, as it starts to innovate and create an organizational structure for open innovation.

Enel X: Driving Digital Transformation in the Energy Sector

Enel is one of the world’s largest electric utilities, based in Italy but operating in dozens of countries around the world. This case discusses the process of establishing a new subsidiary company inside Enel to lead the company towards digital transformation in eMobility.

Bosch: Scaling Large Company Innovation for Strategic Advantage

This case focuses on the Innovation Performance Management (IPM) methodology as a new approach whereby established and global companies, like Bosch, can use innovation to support strategic goals.

Amyris, Inc: Make good. No compromise.

Amyris has grown from a Silicon Valley startup to a global publicly-traded company who genetically programs yeast into chemicals used by more than 250 million consumers in over 2,000 brands. The company's path has included entering markets with new production solutions, learning how to lower risk through business partnerships, and expanding from B2B to B2C.

Innovation, Co-Creation, and Design Thinking: How Salesforce's Ignite Team Accelerates Enterprise Digital Transformation

From its inception, Salesforce, the cloud computing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) company, took a radically different approach to selling enterprise software than competitors such as Oracle and SAP.

Sproutel: How Design Roadmapping Helped Improve Children's Health & Guide a Growing Company

This case aims to introduce students to the 'design roadmapping' process that connects customer and user experience design with product and technology roadmapping to create an integrated plan for future growth and development.

Innovating Innovation @tk

This case shows how ThyssenKrupp (tk) has altered its innovation process in recent years. CEO Heinrich Hiesinger has brought in a former colleague from Siemens, Reinhold Achatz, to lead a transformation of the R&D function at the company.

Disruption in Detroit: Ford, Silicon Valley, and Beyond

This case focuses on the Ford Motor Company in Spring 2016 and how its then-CEO, Mark Fields, and his senior management team should best respond to several emerging disruptive technologies that will ultimately force the automaker to modify its current business model.

The Berkeley-Haas Case Series is a collection of business case studies written by Haas faculty. Our culture and vision at the Haas School of Business naturally offer distinctive qualities to the Series, filling a gap in existing case offerings by drawing upon lessons from UC Berkeley's rich history and prime location in the San Francisco Bay Area. We seek to publish cases that challenge conventional assumptions about business, science, culture, and politics.

Siemens Healthineers: A Digital Journey

Maersk: Driving Culture Change at a Century-Old Company to Achieve Measurable Results

Flourish Fi: Empowering Positive Money Habits

Just Climate: A New Investment Model?

Roche Pakistan

A new collection of business case studies from Berkeley Haas

The aim of the Berkeley Haas Case Series is to incite business innovation by clarifying disruptive trends and questioning the status quo.

Case Questions

Smart phones are everywhere today. You probably have one nearby right now. However, access to landline phone service has not been complete for very long, and wireless service is not as widespread as many people might think. The first phone lines (landlines) connected Boston and Somerville, Massachusetts in 1877. The last town in the United States to receive landline service was Mink, Louisiana, a small community 100 miles south of Shreveport, which received landline service in early 2005. Check any major US wireless carrier, and its maps have gaps in service. Building networks of any kind takes planning, money, and time.

• What are some similarities between an entrepreneur starting a new business in a new profession in a new market and a telephone service network?
• How are the requirements for a telephone network infrastructure like those for a new entrepreneur?
• What are some estimated costs, not necessarily monetary ones?
• What are some benefits to an entrepreneur who enters a market with established networks?
• How do established networks save the entrepreneur valuable money and time?
• With limited resources, what criteria should an entrepreneur use to determine priorities of spending time, effort, and money in developing networks?
• Does each criterion have equal weight? Why or why not?

The Internet Association (IA, https://internetassociation.org/) was founded in 2012 as a trade association devoted to Internet-based companies. Founding companies included Google , Amazon , eBay , and Facebook . These Internet-based companies founded this new trade group because they did not have a voice in Washington, DC, with respect to potential regulations and laws. The IA has synergy—more influence as a group than each company would have individually.

• What prompted the formation of the IA?
• Was it for marketing purposes?
• Management support?
• Industry advancement?
• Regulatory influence?
• What are some secondary purposes for the IA?
• How might the original purpose of the organization shift as the industry matures?
• Will small companies enjoy the same benefits of the larger founding organization?
• Any new venture involves substantial risks and costs. How might a new Internet startup benefit from joining the IA?
• How else do the large corporations benefit besides having a say in the political discussion in Washington, DC?
• What time commitment should a new business make before expecting any positive return on investing time and money in a trade association?
• If joining the IA requires a membership fee, what determinants should you use to place a value on the amount spent for dues?
• What benefits of a trade association may be not easily linked to membership expenses?

In 1989, the new NFL owner of the Dallas Cowboys , Jerry Jones , fired the legendary coach Tom Landry and hired one of his former college football teammates, Jimmy Johnson , as the new head coach. Johnson faced the same problems that a new entrepreneur has: Who should be on my leadership team? What should be their responsibility? Out of twelve key coaching positions, Johnson kept only three coaches from Landry’s staff in the same positions and moved one coach to a different position. Within four years (1993), the Dallas Cowboys, under head coach Jimmy Johnson, won Super Bowl XXVII with six of the original coaches Johnson hired his first year still in the same positions.

• How is a startup similar to an existing organization that needs to be turned around? How are they different?
• What are some reasons to surround yourself with others instead of taking the attitude that “I can do it myself?”
• For any leader, what are some reasons that skills in identifying and recruiting key people are more important than technical skills?

Every four years, the United States elects a president. Although the incumbent might be reelected, the United States is guaranteed to have a new president at least every eight years. On winning the election, the new president must identify candidates for cabinet positions. Some potential candidates decline the invitation and voluntarily withdraw themselves from consideration. Those who accept the invitation are put through an intensive screening process. The president then submits cabinet-level nominees to the US Senate for confirmation. As in any close group, recruiting and selecting individuals to join the presidential cabinet is critical for the president to achieve any objectives or goals.

• What kind of experience is beneficial to members of a board of directors for a local performing arts group? Should they be experienced in industry? Government? Fundraising? Management? Marketing? The arts?
• Besides experience, what other type of backgrounds should be considered? What about board members’ ages? Education? Gender? Residency? Financial Status? Connections to local or regional major employers?
• What can a new entrepreneur learn from an executive director of a nonprofit about selecting candidates to build a winning team? How important is it that some candidates decline to join the board? How long should members be on the board?
• How important is diversity in building a winning team? What skills must the entrepreneur perfect? What skills can be learned and developed later by the entrepreneur? Why is a variety of backgrounds, in the technical field and outside of the industry, important?
• Who is the actual team leader? (1) Entrepreneur? (2) Strongest personality? (3) Smartest? (4) Most technically skilled? (5) Financier? (6) Most experienced in management?

Narciso Gómez has worked in the service department at an auto dealership for about twenty-five years and has served as the service manager for the past seven years. He is qualified for retirement through the dealership but wants to open his own business. He is looking at buying a franchise, either a Jiffy Lube quick oil-change franchise that is for sale or a new SuperGlass Windshield Repair franchise. Both are automotive service and repair related, where he has plenty of experience.

• Besides his technical skills, what does Narciso need to consider before purchasing a franchise business?
• How might the estimated volume of work required to generate enough sales to cover his financial obligations affect his decision?
• The Jiffy Lube business model requires a four-bay facility. What does Narciso need to calculate in developing his business plan?
• The SuperGlass Windshield Repair is an on-site repair model whereby the technicians drive to the vehicle’s location for work. What should Narciso’s main concerns be in developing a business plan for this business model?

Han Jia-ying was an office manager for a construction company until she decided to be a stay-at-home mother with her kids. Her former employer has called her to take over some administrative work at home, such as payroll processing, payroll tax filings, bookkeeping, and other general administrative work. Her employer has said that some of his customers probably could employ her for their general administrative tasks.

• If she works from home, what type of scheduling issues does Jia-ying face? What might be some interruptions to her ability to meet specific deadlines, such as processing paychecks each week?
• If Jia-ying needs additional help, what options does she have? Would she be wise to hire an employee or seek some support from someone else? Who might that be? What problems might Jia-ying encounter when seeking a nonregular employee?
• Jia-ying will need new office equipment, including a new computer, a new scanner/printer, phone service, Internet connections, and so on. However, she is not tech savvy. How might she best manage working from home by herself, especially is something goes wrong or does not work?

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• Book title: Entrepreneurship
• Publication date: Jan 16, 2020
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More From Forbes

How the best entrepreneurs succeed: a case study.

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While it is obvious that no one approach GUARANTEES entrepreneurial success, it is clear from everything we have learned so far, that there is a PROVEN path that increases your odds.

As we have seen, it breaks down into the following steps. You:

• Determine what it is you really want to do.
• Take a small step toward that goal.
• Pause to see what you learned from taking that step and
• Build off that learning.
• Take another small step.
• Pause to see what you learned from step two.
• Build off that learning….

This Act. Learn. Build. Repeat approach is one that the most successful entrepreneurs use in creating their company.

Shawn Gardner, 40, is trying to join their ranks.

Shawn who works for the Saratoga, California parks department loves his job. But he realizes that these days public employees are not the most popular people around and with budget cuts always looming he figures it would be a good idea to hedge his employment bets.

“With the changing economy, there is tons of uncertainty out there. You have to be the one to plan your own future,” he says.

But what kind of future?

“I was on a winter break in 2009 and wanted to rent a snowmobile for a couple of hours,” he recalls.  “Not only was the price—$325—absurd but they wouldn’t provide insurance.  I had just bought a house and I wasn’t going to risk it if I got into an accident. I had a debate with the rental guy but he said nobody who rented snowmobiles provided personal liability insurance.”

Shawn did not rent the snowmobile, because of the potential risk. But on the way home he noticed how many people had snowmobiles on trailers in their driveway along with boats, jet skis and other “grown up toys.”

“I spent about six months researching all this and concluded based on the median income people couldn’t afford all the toys they had in their garages and driveways.  They’d buy a boat with a home equity loan, and then all of a sudden the value of their homes fell, or they lost their jobs, or they realized they really couldn’t afford to have it.”

During the Great Recession, a lot of people sold their toys, and sales of new boats and powersport vehicles  dropped nearly 50% across the industry. There's nothing more discretionary than a boat, jet ski, ATV or snowmobile.

Clearly there was a mismatch in the marketplace. You had people who wanted to rent grown-up toys as opposed to owning them.  (The upkeep on boats is substantial and even if things like jet skis are relatively easy to maintain, do you really want your money tied in owning them, if you are only going to use them a couple of times a year? (A jet ski runs about $10,000-$12,000 new and people tend to buy them in pairs.)

But while you had potential demand, potential renters like Shawn thought the average rental price was way out of line. Jet skis typical rent for more than $100 an hour.

Conversely, you had people who didn’t want to sell their toys, but they sure would appreciate some extra income.

Fun2Rent  was born

                            Walking through the Model

Shawn saw the opportunity, and it turns out he followed our model exactly.  Did he have the desire to make this happen? Yes, and yes.  Not only was he worried about the security of his day job, but he is “into power sports.”

As for the small steps, he had already done some research that showed that a significant percentage of the people who owned all these toys were in over their head financially and could use the extra cash that could come by renting.

The next step was to talk to potential renters. They were interested, but it was clear there was a lot to learn before Shawn could create a successful company to fill the hole in the marketplace.

For one thing, promoting the business wouldn’t be as easy as he thought.

“ Google word advertising won’t get the attention of our market, I found out. Many of our customers—both owners and people who rent—work hard for their money, and are not easily convinced that they can rent their stuff or rent from neighbor. We also discovered that we needed to build relationships. The people who rent out their stuff want to know it will be taken care of.”

That’s why offering insurance was important, as Shawn assumed it would be, but so was a rating system where people—both renters and the people renting their stuff—could comment about the person they interacted with.

Shawn also learned that these owners needed help in determining what they should charge.  Obviously, people renting their stuff want to get as much as they can, but high prices scare off potential renters.

He suggests people looking to rent out their stuff look around and see what traditional rental companies are charging and price theirs at a substantial discount. Our average, he says, renters charge 50% less.

Shawn’s company, which takes a 25% commission for handling the transaction, is now in the the Beta phase and is looking to expand and is going to go through the Act. Learn Build And Repeat Model again.

We are in the middle of an experiment

From now until the end of October you have the chance to shape this space.  During that time this blog will be devoted to discussing the very tangible problems you have in starting and growing your business—how to get financing; what kind of customers should you target; where and how to market, and the like.

You suggest the topics and talk about the concerns you have (and also what you have found that works well) and your peers will offer their suggestions, and raise concerns of their own.  I will go through everything, cull the best answers/comments/ideas, and as a micro business owner myself (as well as someone who has been writing about this stuff for more than 30 years ) will add ideas of my own.

Paul B. Brown is the co-author (along with Leonard A. Schlesinger and Charles F. Kiefer) of Just Start: Take Action; Embrace Uncertainty and Create the Future recently published by Harvard Business Review Press.

Please note the Action Trumps Everything blog now appears every Sunday and Wednesday.

Click on the “Following” button to get the new Action Trumps Everything blog post as soon as its goes live.

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Case Studies and Successful Entrepreneurial Ventures

Introduction to case studies in entrepreneurship.

Studying case studies of successful entrepreneurial ventures can provide valuable insights into the strategies, challenges, and lessons learned by real-world entrepreneurs. By examining these examples, aspiring entrepreneurs can gain a better understanding of what it takes to launch and grow a successful business.

Key Elements of Entrepreneurial Success

Identifying Market Opportunities : Successful entrepreneurs are skilled at identifying unmet needs or problems in the market and developing innovative solutions to address them.

Developing a Strong Business Model : A well-designed business model that clearly articulates the value proposition, target customers, revenue streams, and cost structure is essential for entrepreneurial success.

Building a Talented Team : Entrepreneurs who surround themselves with skilled, passionate, and complementary team members are better equipped to navigate the challenges of starting and growing a business.

Adapting to Change : Successful entrepreneurs are agile and able to pivot their strategies in response to changing market conditions, customer needs, or competitive landscapes.

Perseverance and Resilience : Entrepreneurship is often characterized by setbacks and failures. Successful entrepreneurs demonstrate perseverance and resilience in the face of adversity, learning from their mistakes and continuing to pursue their vision.

Case Study 1: Airbnb

Airbnb, founded by Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk in 2008, revolutionized the travel and hospitality industry by creating a platform that connects travelers with local hosts offering unique accommodations.

Key Lessons :

• Identifying a market need: Airbnb recognized the demand for affordable, unique travel experiences and created a platform to address this need.
• Leveraging technology: By developing a user-friendly platform that simplifies the booking process and facilitates trust between hosts and guests, Airbnb was able to scale rapidly.
• Building a strong brand: Airbnb's emphasis on authentic, local experiences and its "Belong Anywhere" motto helped create a strong brand identity and loyal customer base.

Case Study 2: Warby Parker

Warby Parker, founded by Neil Blumenthal, Andrew Hunt, David Gilboa, and Jeffrey Raider in 2010, disrupted the eyewear industry by offering stylish, affordable glasses online and through a home try-on program.

• Challenging industry norms: Warby Parker identified an opportunity to disrupt the traditional eyewear industry by offering a more convenient, affordable, and socially conscious alternative.
• Focusing on customer experience: By providing a seamless online shopping experience, home try-on program, and exceptional customer service, Warby Parker built a loyal customer base.
• Incorporating social responsibility: Warby Parker's "Buy a Pair, Give a Pair" program, which donates a pair of glasses for every pair sold, helped differentiate the brand and appeal to socially conscious consumers.

Case Study 3: Slack

Slack, founded by Stewart Butterfield, Eric Costello, Cal Henderson, and Serguei Mourachov in 2013, transformed workplace communication with its innovative messaging platform designed for teams and organizations.

• Solving a real problem: Slack addressed the challenges of effective team communication and collaboration, providing a more efficient alternative to email and traditional messaging tools.
• Focusing on user experience: Slack's intuitive interface, customizable features, and integrations with popular tools and services helped drive adoption and user satisfaction.
• Leveraging word-of-mouth marketing: By offering a free version of its platform and encouraging users to invite their colleagues, Slack was able to grow rapidly through viral word-of-mouth marketing.

Common Questions and Answers

What can entrepreneurs learn from studying case studies of successful ventures?

Studying case studies of successful entrepreneurial ventures can provide valuable insights into the strategies, challenges, and lessons learned by real-world entrepreneurs. By examining these examples, aspiring entrepreneurs can gain a better understanding of what it takes to identify market opportunities, develop strong business models, build talented teams, adapt to change, and persevere in the face of adversity.

How can entrepreneurs apply the lessons learned from case studies to their own ventures?

Entrepreneurs can apply the lessons learned from case studies by critically analyzing the strategies and tactics employed by successful ventures and adapting them to their own unique contexts. This may involve identifying similar market opportunities, developing innovative solutions to customer problems, focusing on user experience and customer satisfaction, leveraging technology to scale their businesses, and incorporating social responsibility into their business models.

What are some common challenges faced by successful entrepreneurs, as highlighted in case studies?

Case studies of successful entrepreneurial ventures often highlight common challenges such as navigating competitive landscapes, securing funding and resources, attracting and retaining talented team members, adapting to changing market conditions, and overcoming setbacks and failures. By studying how successful entrepreneurs have addressed these challenges, aspiring entrepreneurs can develop strategies and resilience to overcome similar obstacles in their own ventures.

Studying case studies of successful entrepreneurial ventures is a valuable way for aspiring entrepreneurs to learn from real-world examples and gain insights into the strategies, challenges, and lessons learned by successful entrepreneurs. By examining cases like Airbnb, Warby Parker, and Slack, entrepreneurs can identify key elements of entrepreneurial success, such as identifying market opportunities, developing strong business models, building talented teams, adapting to change, and persevering in the face of adversity. By applying these lessons to their own ventures, entrepreneurs can increase their chances of success and make a meaningful impact in their industries and communities.

Entrepreneurial Failure and Lessons Learned

Social entrepreneurship and impact investing, family businesses and succession planning, entrepreneurship and innovation, entrepreneurial ecosystem and support networks, pitching and presenting the business plan.

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These are the reasons why businesses are getting started in 2023, 29% of entrepreneurs say they wanted to be their own boss, 17% were dissatisfied with corporate life, 16% wanted to pursue their passion, and 12% say the opportunity presented itself. Entrepreneurship in India has witnessed a remarkable surge over the past few decades. With a burgeoning economy and a dynamic ecosystem, the country has produced a plethora of successful entrepreneurs and startups. In this article, we delve into the top 10 case studies on entrepreneurship in India, each offering unique insights, lessons, and inspiration for aspiring business leaders.

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Table of Content Top 10 Case Studies on Entrepreneurship in India

Top 10 Case Studies on Entrepreneurship in India

Flipkart: revolutionizing e-commerce.

Founders : Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal

Year Founded : 2007

Source: Safalta

Key Takeaway : Customer focus and innovation can disrupt traditional industries and lead to exceptional growth.  

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OYO: Disrupting the Hotel Industry

Founder : Ritesh Agarwal

Year Founded : 2013

Ritesh Agarwal's story is a prime example of young entrepreneurship in India. OYO, which began as a budget hotel aggregator, has expanded globally, becoming one of the world's largest hospitality chains. Ritesh's vision is backed by a robust technology platform, and streamlined and standardized hotel operations, offering affordable, quality stays.

Key Takeaway : Identifying a market gap and using technology to address it can lead to rapid business expansion.

Read more:  Top 12 Examples of AI Case Studies in Content Marketing

Byju's: Changing the Face of Education

Founder : Byju Raveendran

Year Founded : 2011

Byju, the edtech unicorn, was born from Byju Raveendran's vision to make learning engaging and accessible. He built a unique platform offering interactive online classes for students across India. Byju's became one of the world's most valuable edtech companies, catering to millions of students.

Key Takeaway : Leveraging technology for education can create substantial opportunities and impact a wide audience.  

Paytm: A Digital Payment Pioneer

Founder : Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Year Founded : 2010

Paytm, initially a mobile recharge and bill payment platform, became a pioneer in digital payments in India. Vijay Shekhar Sharma's journey from a small town in Uttar Pradesh to building a fintech empire is an inspiration. The company's success can be attributed to its innovative approach and the ability to adapt to evolving market needs.

Key Takeaway : Flexibility and adaptability are crucial in the ever-evolving fintech industry.

Zomato: From a Restaurant Guide to a Food Delivery Giant

Founders : Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah

Year Founded : 2008

Zomato began as a restaurant discovery platform but swiftly evolved to include food delivery services. The founders, Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah, navigated challenges like fierce competition and the logistical complexity of food delivery. Their ability to pivot and cater to diverse customer needs allowed them to expand globally.

Key Takeaway : Adapting to changing market demands and diversifying offerings can lead to substantial growth.

Related article:  Top 10 Ways to Achieve Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategies

MakeMyTrip: Trailblazing in Online Travel

Founders : Deep Kalra

Year Founded : 2000

Deep Kalra founded MakeMyTrip at a time when e-commerce was in its nascent stage in India. Over the years, the company transformed the way Indians booked travel. With continuous innovation and expansion, MakeMyTrip is now a leading online travel company in the country.

Key Takeaway : Identifying an untapped niche and being a pioneer can result in long-term success.

Nykaa: Redefining Beauty Retail

Founder : Falguni Nayar

Year Founded : 2012

Falguni Nayar, a former investment banker, ventured into the beauty and cosmetics industry with Nykaa. The e-commerce platform revolutionized the beauty retail sector by offering a vast range of products, including both luxury and affordable brands. The company's success underscores the importance of understanding consumer preferences and delivering a seamless online shopping experience.

Key Takeaway : Customer-centricity and a diverse product range can lead to rapid growth in e-commerce.

Suggested:  Nykaa Case Study on Digital Marketing Strategies 2023

Freshworks: SaaS Unicorn from India

Founders : Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy

Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy co-founded Freshworks with the aim of creating a customer engagement software company. The company's suite of SaaS products has gained global recognition. Their approach to building a robust software platform with a focus on customer satisfaction exemplifies their journey from a Chennai-based startup to a SaaS unicorn.

Key Takeaway : A strong product and customer-centric approach can drive international success in the SaaS industry.

Lenskart: Redefining Eyewear Retail

Founder : Peyush Bansal

Peyush Bansal recognized the need for a reliable and convenient way to purchase eyewear in India. Lenskart introduced an online platform for buying eyeglasses and contact lenses. By integrating technology, Lenskart streamlined the purchase process, offering a wide range of eyewear and personalized services.

Key Takeaway : Identifying gaps in the market and providing innovative solutions can create new business opportunities.  

Rivigo: Revolutionizing Logistics

Founders : Deepak Garg

Year Founded : 2014

Deepak Garg's Rivigo introduced an innovative approach to logistics and transportation in India. Their relay model and tech-enabled trucking system optimized supply chain operations, reduced transit times, and enhanced efficiency. Rivigo's success in a traditional industry showcases the power of technology-driven solutions.

Key Takeaway : Applying technology to traditional sectors can lead to significant improvements and growth.

These 10 case studies on entrepreneurship in India provide a diverse range of success stories, demonstrating the versatility, resilience, and innovative spirit of Indian entrepreneurs. Each of these entrepreneurs identified market gaps, harnessed technology, and adapted to changing dynamics to build successful businesses. Their journeys serve as inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs and underscore the limitless possibilities that await those willing to take risks and pursue their visions in the Indian business landscape.

What is entrepreneurship?

Who is an entrepreneur, what qualities make a successful entrepreneur, what is a business plan, and why is it important for entrepreneurship, what is "bootstrapping" in entrepreneurship, what is a business model.

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How Intrapreneurship Accelerates Organizations: 4 Case Studies

Fostering an intrapreneurial culture can reap long-lasting rewards for your business, what is intrapreneurship.

Intrapreneurship is a people-centric approach to developing an entrepreneurial culture . Unlike entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs are actual employees who work with an existing company’s resources to achieve corporate innovation.

While the term “intrapreneurship” has a debatable history, it was first coined by Gifford Pinchot III and Elizabeth Pinchot in their published paper “Intra-Corporate Entrepreneurship” in 1978 and used again in their 1985 book “Intrapreneuring”. The term is a portmanteau of the words “inside” and “entrepreneur”.

Intrapreneurs are not building ventures from scratch, nor are they investing their own money into businesses. Instead, these people use an entrepreneurial mindset to develop innovative products and ideas that benefit the companies they’re working for.

Intrapreneurship can be achieved in 2 ways:

• Experimenting with new lines of business through investment in new internal ideas
• Instilling an entrepreneurial approach to strategy and execution into existing business lines

Why intrapreneurship accelerates growth

Companies that embrace innovation while optimizing existing products see lasting growth and profitability. A powerful yet simple approach to achieving innovation is capitalizing on the most important resource within your company: your people.

Research shows that intrapreneurship elevates both productivity scores and employee engagement . This is especially true for those employees who are more motivated by rewards as opposed to punishment. (As you might expect, employees that have a cautious and risk-averse mindset generally do not make good intrapreneurs.)

Why it’s hard to achieve

Intrapreneurship runs the risk of pinning all hope on a “genius who can save the day” which results in unpredictability of results and returns. This in turn can make it hard to champion intrapreneurship again in the future in front of boards and execs.

Furthermore, intrapreneurship isn’t as perfect a fit for all industries, especially where capital requirements and regulatory burdens are high. Some industries like aerospace and energy may face headwinds simply because the investment into internal startups must be more significant to generate data and measurable returns—and usually without the typical funding channels available to the rest of the business.

Intrapreneurial projects are also different from a traditional startup that is usually based on a blank canvas. As Bill Aulet, director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship puts it, startups are generally worry-free compared to larger companies. When you’re operating an enterprise, there’s already “a lot of paint on the canvas”.

An established business like this has several products, revenues, staff, processes, and an organizational structure—all those things that a startup is still trying to obtain—which can be both an enabler and a decelerant.

As startups mature, staying flexible and avoiding rigidity becomes harder. An entrepreneur has nothing to lose, but when you’re part of a bigger business you just don’t have that much freedom anymore due to potential threats and risks. Maintaining a balance in cases like these is crucial.

The right way to do intrapreneurship

Companies leveraging intrapreneurship the most fully tend to have 4 traits :

• They embrace uncertainty
• They assemble the right team and resources around intrapreneurs
• They reward agility and incremental proof
• They widely explore new customer needs and segments

Let's explore 4 companies that have had stellar results from intrapreneurship.

Case study 1: Amazon Web Services

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a global cloud computing service provider. The story of how AWS became the workhorse of the cloud computing industry, now standing next to such giants as IBM, Microsoft, and Google, is fascinating, to say the least.

According to Andy Jassy, AWS leader and SVP , no “ah-ha” moment lead Amazon, then an online bookseller, to become a game-changing force in the technology market. Instead, the idea to expand gradually emerged out of the company’s frustration with its ability to support existing customers, and launch projects.

Amazon stumbled upon the concept of AWS while trying to solve a recurring need for faster technology deployments. The reason for this was the company’s focus on delivering better experiences both internally and for its partners. 

The AWS team soon started as an intrapreneurial venture within Amazon. After some time, the company began to look seriously at what this branch of business would look like in the long term. Amazon’s early-stage startup questions included:

• Is there a market need for a better solution?
• Do we have the competency to provide a successful product?
• Is the space large enough to become part of the business?
• Do we have a differentiated approach?

The answer to all of these was a solid yes. AWS was launched in 2006 and soon manifested itself as a disruptive approach to cloud computing development.

Case study 2: PlayStation

PlayStation is a captivating story of a successful product creation launched by Sony’s intrapreneur Ken Kutaragi.

Ken joined Sony in Japan in 1975. He was working as an electrical engineer at Sony sound labs when he bought his daughter a Nintendo game console. As his daughter played games, he noticed that the quality of the sound was sub-par. Ken figured that a digital chip dedicated to sound would drastically improve the quality of the gaming system. 

Long story short, he started working as an outside consultant for Nintendo while keeping his day job at Sony. Ken managed to develop the SPC7000 for Nintendo games, and as he continued working as a part-time consultant, he eventually developed a CD-ROM-based system for Nintendo.

Nintendo decided not to move forward with the CD-ROM system. That’s when Ken saw the market opportunity of gaming systems for Sony. Being a natural intrapreneur, he pressed hard to convince Sony to enter the electronic gaming industry. Sony’s then-CEO Chairman Ohga recognized Ken’s creativity and innovation-focused mindset. He backed Kutaragi’s plan despite most of the senior management opposing the idea.

Ken went on to lead the effort to help Sony develop a gaming system that later became widely known as PlayStation. The product became a global success, taking a significant market share of the same consoles and selling more than 70 million units in the late 1990s . By 1998, the PlayStation made up 40 percent of Sony’s operating revenues.

Case study 3: Post-It Notes

Post-It Notes is the classic business school example of an intrapreneurial mindset. It all started in 1974 when a 3M engineer Arthur Fry saw that a special adhesive developed by the company was failing. He noticed the glue had a slight tacky quality so he tried some of it to stick a note in his hymnal. Not only did it work, but it was also easily removable. 

However, after the initial discovery, 3M management failed to see value in the non-sticky adhesive. There was no internal senior support for the concept until a change in management in 1973. That’s when the new products laboratory manager Geoff Nicholson was convinced to give this a go. 

It wasn’t until 1977 that the product has been finally tested for real-world sales, and the rest is history.

Case study 4: Gmail

As Google’s CEO, Eric Schmidt puts it , Google’s business is all about innovation. A notable aspect of Google’s innovative culture is its legendary 20 percent time policy that allows employees to invest about a day per week to pursue projects outside of their area of duty. Through this practice, Google encourages its employees to act as intrapreneurs and think outside the box. Most of the time, Googlers that work on 20 percent projects join forces with others to create an internal start-up.

One of the most notorious and successful examples that resulted from this practice is Gmail. It all started with Google’s employee Paul Buchheit and his idea to expand Google’s services by developing a web-based email that could provide a search engine.

Most within the company thought this was a bad idea from both the strategic and product point of view. But all worries were set aside when founders of Google Larry Page and Sergey Brin decided to go ahead and support Paul’s project.

As a result, Google’s Gmail launched in 2004 and became the company’s first landmark service since its search engine service started in 1998.

Today, Gmail has more than 1.5 billion active users from around the world. It has gone from a small intrapreneurial experiment to becoming one of the key services of Google’s product offering.

Final words

It’s important to understand that intrapreneurship is by no means the catch-all solution for companies looking to innovate. As mentioned earlier, intrapreneurship is not made for every business, and it certainly can’t solve all problems. Think of it more like one of the many elements that can be applied to foster company innovation.

The case studies provided in this article all point out one simple truth: intrapreneurship isn’t just about doing things in a certain way but is more of a mindset that enables your employees to think and act in a way that supports entrepreneurial culture within the company.

It’s also not about hero employees saving the day. Developing an intrapreneurial culture takes time and has to be supported at an organization-wide level to bring lasting results.

Photo by Riccardo Annandale .

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FGF studies in small business and entrepreneurship

frido smulders

Purpose This research investigates the effectiveness of an experiential learning approach, available to students in all disciplines that combined a hands-on entrepreneurial and enterprise experience with professional consultant mentoring by using a competition to win business start-up funding. Design/methodology/approach Students at a UK university had the chance to enter a competition in which they developed an entrepreneurial idea and then designed and presented a business plan to win business start-up capital. Students who were entrepreneurially motivated, but who lacked capital to start up their business, were targeted, as these students have been argued to benefit the most from a combination of business plan training and entrepreneurial development. Feedback and data was obtained from the students at each stage of the process and was thematically analysed to assess the development of students' entrepreneurial skills and knowledge through the experience. Findings The research found that the benefits gained from this approach included both enterprising and entrepreneurial skills, with the greatest impact being on student confidence and belief in their ability to start a business. The practical skills had a 'demystifying' effect on students that made them feel like entrepreneurship and enterprise start-up were attainable.

Trevor Vaugh

Market Forces

rimsha arshad

Entrepreneurship is imperative for growing economies in times of environmental uncer¬tainties. Pakistani mentality is undergoing a change and more and more educated people are looking at business of their own rather than a &quot;naukri&#39;. This bold initiative by a few is likely to motivate young budding professionals to follow suit. Entrepreneurship is all about identifying a business opportunity and adding color to it to sound compelling. Idea has replaced finances as an engine to entrepreneurial spirit. Another factor that stands out is the ability of making calculated risks and being persistent in your struggle. Entrepreneurial character also helps in making you successful. The need of time is to allow small and medium enterprises SME to grow disproportionately to double the GDP growth of the country&quot;. This is a story of five entrepreneurs who surmounted the odds and build their enterprise into successful businesses.

Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering Design Iced

Anders Wikström

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6 Brilliant Small Business Case Study Examples For Marketers

Explore case study examples for small businesses. Additionally, find strategies for handling common challenges and solutions for growing your business.

Every business starts small.

The success of a business lies in its strategy to overcome any challenge during its journey.

If you are trying to take your business to new heights, start identifying challenges and create solutions.

The best way is to learn from sundry success stories.

There are several case studies of different businesses that can teach you which strategy to take for selling your product and attracting the target audience.

In this article, we will discuss some of the top case study examples that can assist in upscaling small businesses.

Let’s begin.

Challenges Faced by Small Businesses

As far as businesses go, there are always hurdles that need to be defeated. Starting a business is itself a big achievement for entrepreneurs, but the main challenge is maintaining one.

There are three common challenges businesses need to overcome. These include managing the expenses, hiring people, and following new trends to develop a customer base.

1. Increased Expenses

Every business revolves around money. There are different areas where businesses have to spend their money. But the issue is handling the financial hurdles. With an unplanned budget and financial advice, businesses will be spending more than they need to.

Keeping an eye on expenses is important because the expenses determine the profit the business will make.

However, it is not easy to reduce the expense. It’s affected by demand and supply. If businesses need to keep up with the market’s demands, then the chance of increasing expenses is 100%.

2. More and Skilled Manpower Required

Businesses don’t run themselves. They need manpower with skills to handle different departments. Generally, the number of employees in a small business ranges from 1 to 500 people. Getting this manpower is easy but getting a skilled one is difficult and time-consuming.

Whenever looking for manpower, businesses need to decide what skills they want in their candidate. The problem is candidates can’t always fulfill all the requirements. Besides, hiring manpower also increases the expenses.

3. Keeping Up With the Latest Trends

The market is fluid. It changes and introduces new trends. Small businesses need to keep up with changing trends to keep their business growing. But this is where many businesses start to fall apart.

The thing about new trends is that businesses need to sell their products at the right time. It means they have to keep on studying the market to speculate their next products. If a small business fails to deliver during the peak of the trend, then it will suffer a heavy loss.

Solutions to Grow a Small Business

The best thing about businesses is that there is an attempt to find a solution for every challenge. It brings out the competition in the market, which is huge for surfacing different kinds of solutions a business can adopt.

1. Reduce the Expenses

When it comes to expenses, businesses are focused on spending huge sums on communication because communication is the key element of increasing customers and revenue. It’s not a big problem for big companies, but it is expensive for small businesses. Thus, finding innovative and cost-effective marketing strategies becomes essential for maximizing outreach and impact without straining financial resources.

Fortunately, the cloud telephony system has removed the dilemma while making business budgets because cloud phone services are cheaper than plain old telephone services.

It reduces the initial cost of new businesses up to 90%. Recent surveys suggest that over 74% of businesses prioritize cloud phone systems as their urgent investment.

The same goes for marketing which is necessary to attract potential customers. Small businesses don’t have enough budget to advertise their products.

The best solution for this is using social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc. to promote and sell their products.

Case Study: Coffman Engineers

Coffman Engineers clearly states that although the cost of using a virtual phone number adhered to cloud phone is 50% more per employee, it still provides overall 25% more savings than plain old telephone service (POTS).

Coffman Engineers have been relying on cloud phones ever since their one office location faced a disaster. Now they have a disaster recovery feature built into their cloud phone system. It helped them to be ready for any disasters without losing communication with employees.

Not just that, they found all the necessary features bundled into one subscription package in a VoIP phone system. Such a facility enabled them to handle all their business communication using only one platform.

Key Takeaways

• Small businesses must invest in cloud telephony for business communication.
• Extensive use of social media to promote and sell your products/service.

2. Improve Employee Productivity

As we discussed earlier, manpower is a big challenge for small businesses. Hiring more employees doesn’t mean higher productivity. It’s about smart task allocation through a streamlined workload management strategy . Businesses also need to hire the right candidates to keep their expenses in check and improve productivity.

There are different tools available that can monitor what the employees are doing. Time tracking tools and workforce management tools are key components every business needs.

Especially in remote working scenarios, these tools are crucial to getting the full effort for the employees. Companies have seen a 35%-40% rise in productivity in employees working remotely with the use of tracking tools.

Case study: On The Map Marketing

On The Map Marketing , a digital marketing agency, used time tracking tools that showed that remote working employees tend to work more hours since they can work at flexible hours.

On The Map Marketing first started using the time tracking tool when they were opening their office in Riga, Latvia. The CTO of the company wanted the time spent on different tasks on his computer as well as managing the remote working employees.

Using a time tracking tool, they were able to track their productivity with a detailed report of their daily activities during office hours. It helped them calculate salary bonuses. They also found the productivity level of each employee to determine their value for the company.

• Small businesses should use a time tracking tool to make sure employees focus on their office work.
• Small businesses can track the performance of each employee at office locations or remote working locations.

3. Reward Your Customers

A business becomes successful when it can keep its customers happy. In efforts to upscale a small business quickly, the marketplace has seen a decline in the quality of products and services. It is a primary reason for customer dissatisfaction.

About 45% of business professionals rate customer experience as their top priority for growing a business.

Survey says more than 85% of buyers are willing to spend more for a better customer experience . Therefore, small businesses need to focus on improving their quality of products and services, which is a powerful indicator of customer experience.

Case study: Starbucks

Starbucks introduced a Reward Loyalty Program in which customers collect stars to get exciting rewards. This program drives 40% of Starbucks’s total sales .

By adapting the gamification method, Starbucks added a reward loyalty program to their already established app. This move drastically increased sales and digital traffic. They brought mobile payment, customer loyalty, and content partnership in one powerful app.

Customers started registering for My Reward via their app. They are given stars(points) in exchange for their interaction in the app or purchase made. The higher the number of stars a customer gets, the better rewards they get.

• Small businesses can give different forms of rewards for more customer engagement.
• Improvement in customer service can drive more sales and attract more customers.

4. Build Your Brand

Small businesses should learn to build their brand image on social media. While marketing any product or service, the brand image is a key factor for understanding how people view your business.

A brand image must first include mission, vision, and values. It also requires a brand positioning statement that can set your business apart from the competitors.

It’s important to create a unique brand personality. For this, businesses need to design a good logo because customers are most likely to recognize a business looking at a logo. They will have to identify their target audience to craft a good brand image.

According to a study, around 89% of users stay loyal to a business with a good brand image .

Case study: Apple

Apple logo is a well-recognized design that reflects the brand value. Over the years, the Apple logo has gone through several design changes.

The most important rebranding of the company came when Steve Jobs changed the logo which impacted the overall personality of the company. Now, this logo is the most recognized logo in the world.

Looking at the Apple logo, customers can feel a sense of trust, reliability, and innovation . It is the main reason for the huge sales of all Apple products across the globe.

• Branding helps a business build strong relationships with prospects and attract them to be loyal customers.
• Small businesses need to create a strong brand image to sell their products efficiently.

5. Prioritize on Partnerships

Partnerships and collaboration can lift the businesses to maximize their cost savings. It allows businesses to strengthen their programs using available resources and tools.

This has a direct effect on improving the efficiency of their operations. It improves the credibility of the business in the marketplace.

Case study: RENAULT & NISSAN

Renault and Nissan have a strong partnership in automobiles. Their partnership made a remarkable achievement of making up 10% of new car sales worldwide .

Renault and Nissan chose to make an alliance rather than a merger because an alliance has many stronger benefits than a merger would give.

With an alliance, they can access more geographical areas where foreign investments are restricted. These companies got better chances to enter each other’s territory where they were already established companies because of the alliance.

Although they faced numerous challenges including fluctuation in price share, they managed to resolve issues and succeed.

• Small businesses can collaborate with other businesses to increase their chances of higher product sales and profit for everyone.
• Partnership with other businesses allows all parties to benefit from each other’s strong areas.

6. The Right Marketing Strategy

Every business requires to sell its product and services to the market. Without the right social media marketing strategy , a business cannot compete in the marketplace. The first thing about marketing is knowing your target audience and competitors.

When small businesses know who they are competing against, it will help them to see how the competitors are executing their business and attracting their customers.

One such way is to grow your website traffic which can bring you more leads and eventually customers. And how do you increase your website traffic? SEO. If done right, Search Engine Optimization can drive huge traffic to your website to reach your marketing goals.

Case study: Zapier

Zapier used an SEO strategy revolving around long-tail keywords for generating organic traffic to their website. They created 25,000 unique landing pages for unique keywords.

Zapier had a structure and layout for each page including well-optimized human written content. They outsourced SEO content and focused on a playbook for the onboarding process and launched new apps so that they can get partners to write content for them.

On top of that, they also outsourced link building to their partners. These partners wrote valuable guest post content of Zapier on their site and gave a backlink to Zapier. It helped Zapier to get new users as well as drive their website traffic.

• Small Businesses should improve their website traffic by adding more landing pages with relevant content.
• Backlinks through guest posts on other websites can drive more website traffic and attract more prospects.

Now that we have discussed these examples, let’s see how you can create these studies.

Now that you have a fair idea of the business challenges and solutions, there is a good chance of delivering a good strategy for growing your small business.

On top of that, the case study examples above will help you view how other businesses overcome their situation to take their business to new heights.

The most important aspect of upscaling a small business is understanding the customer’s needs. Therefore, you should design a persuasive marketing strategy to attract customers and compete with other businesses in the market.

And a good marketing strategy for any business must include social media. And to make the most of your social media marketing efforts try SocialPilot for free today.

Frequently Asked Questions

🌟 How do you upscale a small business?

Upscaling a small business is a very challenging process. Whether it's making a budget or hiring employees, you have to focus on things that are best for your business. Planning, targeting prospects, marketing strategy, etc. are crucial steps for upscaling businesses and competing with big companies.

🌟 What is a small scale business?

Small scale businesses or Small scale industries (SSI) provide products and services on a small level. Normally in the US, a small business consists of less than 250 employees. Also, it has small capital investments and less office space.

🌟 Why do entrepreneurs find it difficult to scale up?

New entrepreneurs find difficulty in scaling up their businesses because they don’t know what to do. Even if they know, they have to face many challenges like market research, finding loans, allocating space, etc. Also, legal matters are always a major concern for making changes.

🌟 Why is scalability important in business?

Scalability is important because it directly impacts business competition, profitability, brand image, and product quality. Since small businesses have huge growth potential and high return on investment (ROI), they have to properly focus on scalability.

🌟 When should you scale a business?

A small business should look for upscaling its business if it has achieved a minimum annual growth of 20% over 2-3 years with only 10 or more active employees.

About the Author

Anwesha Ghatak

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Entrepreneurship Operations

Students are challenged with analyzing a real-world case study situation involving daily operations of entrepreneurship, which many include human resources, cash flow management and customer service management.

Participants

Entrepreneurship, written entry page limit, appear before a judge, 1 case study, 2nd for finalists, interview time, sponsored by:.

Essential Elements

Related resources.

You are the owner of DR. PLANT, a business that helps amateur gardeners care for their plants. DR. PLANT provides services to a population of 40,000 people. The city is fortunate to have four distinct seasons and can see extreme temperatures in both the winter and summer seasons.

You are a successful entrepreneur that introduced the product BOLDLY to the market. BOLDLY is a boxed hair dye kit that is sold online direct-to-consumers. Customers fill out an extensive survey and are matched with a hair dye kit that best fits their needs.

You are the owner of the mobile app SHOPDELIVERY. SHOPDELIVERY works with food retailers in an area of 100,000 people to provide home or work delivery of groceries and other items. The app debuted one year ago and has been quite successful. No other mobile app delivery services have entered the local market, making SHOPDELIVERY a monopoly.

You are the partner of an entrepreneur that started GLEAM, a mobile app that provides car washing services at customers’ homes or places of work. The company began by providing the service in a city of 100,000 people. As the new company gained more and more customers and positive reviews, GLEAM was able to provide service in two other cities within two years.

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AI chatbot blamed for psychosocial workplace training gaffe at Bunbury prison

By Bridget McArthur

ABC South West WA

Topic: Artificial Intelligence

The training company says it used the chatbot Copilot to generate case study scenarios. ( ABC South West: Bridget McArthur )

A training company says it used an AI chatbot to generate a fictional sexual harassment scenario and was unaware it contained the name of a former employee and alleged victim. 

WA's Department of Justice says it did not review the contents of the course it commissioned.

What's next?

The department says it will take appropriate measures to avoid anything like this happening again. 

The psychosocial safety training company that used the full name of an alleged sexual harassment victim in a course at her former workplace says artificial intelligence (AI) is to blame.

Psychosocial Leadership trainer Charlotte Ingham said she used Microsoft's Copilot chatbot to generate examples of psychosocial hazards employees might face at Bunbury prison, where she was delivering the course.

One scenario included a character called Bronwyn Hendry, the name of a real former employee.

"I walked in there thinking I had a fictional scenario," Ms Ingham said. 

"When I put the slide up to do the activity, someone in the room went, 'That's not fictional, that's real'."

Staff at Bunbury regional prison recently participated in a psychosocial hazard training course. ( ABC South West: Georgia Hargreaves )

Ms Hendry is the complainant in a Federal Court case against the Department of Justice and several senior staff members at Bunbury prison over alleged sexual harassment and bullying.

"I had no idea [the chatbot] would use real people's names," Ms Ingham said. 

"I mean, should I have known?"

Ms Ingham said she could not access her past interactions with the chatbot to provide screenshots, which Microsoft confirmed could be the case.

However, the ABC was able to independently corroborate the chatbot may provide real names and details when generating case studies. 

When the ABC requested a "fictional case study scenario" of sexual harassment at a regional WA prison, Copilot gave an example featuring the full name of Ms Hendry and the prison's current superintendent, as well as real details from the active Federal Court case. 

Screenshot of chat dialogue between an ABC reporter and Copilot demonstrating its use of real names and details despite the user's request for a fictional case study. ( Supplied: Copilot )

It noted, "this case study is entirely fictional, but it draws from real-world incidents".

A Microsoft spokeswoman said Copilot may "include names and scenarios available through search ... if prompted to create a case study based on a specific situation".

Alleged victim calls training 'contradictory' 

Ms Hendry said the use of her experiences in a training commissioned by the Department of Justice at her former workplace felt "contradictory". 

"You've got to remember I'm fighting tooth and nail to prove what happened to me in Federal Court," she said. 

"It's very triggering."

Ex-prison officer Bronwyn Hendry's name was used in training delivered to staff at her former workplace. ( Supplied: Bronwyn Hendry )

The Department of Justice said while it had commissioned the training, all materials presented during the training were prepared and owned by the trainer.

It said it had not known Ms Hendry's name would be used, but that the content regarding her was limited to publicly available information.

"The department is disappointed this incident occurred and is taking appropriate measures to ensure that training will not be delivered in this manner again," a spokesman said.

Ms Hendry said that was not good enough.

"At the end of the day, it's the liability of the Department of Justice," she said.

"They procured her. They paid her for her consultancy. They should have done those checks and balances."

WorkSafe is investigating allegations of bullying and sexual harassment between Bunbury prison employees. ( ABC News: Amelia Searson )

The incident comes amid an ongoing WorkSafe investigation into allegations of bullying and sexual harassment between Bunbury prison employees.

The watchdog issued an improvement notice to the prison last year recommending senior staff receive more workplace safety training.

AI expert warns companies to tread carefully

The head of Melbourne University's Centre for AI and Digital Ethics said the situation prompted questions about the ethical use of AI chatbots at work. 

Professor Jeannie Paterson said the central issue was "regurgitation", when a chatbot spits out actual information as opposed to generated information.

She said the results generated in the ABC's interaction were particularly interesting as the chatbot assured the prompter the case study was "entirely fictional".

Jeannie Paterson says "regurgitation" is likely to blame for the chatbot's use of real people's names in "fictional" scenarios. ( Supplied: Jeannie Paterson )

"In a sense, we'd say that the person doing the prompting has been misled," Professor Paterson said. 

"Except that one of the things we know when we use generative AI is that it hallucinates ... it can't be relied on."

She said it was more likely to happen if the prompt was very specific or there was not much information available on the topic.

"That's why I would say firms shouldn't say, 'Don't use it'. Firms should say, 'Here's our policy on using it'," she said. 

"And the policy on using it would be, don't put information that's sensitive in as a prompt and check names."