Like the tech industry in general, event apps and tech is fast-paced, innovative, and progressive. New ideas are constantly blossoming in both the small start-ups and established players. Blessed with people who are constantly looking for ways to push the capabilities of event apps, these organisations offer their customers a myriad of ways to gain competitive advantage and boost revenue.
The downside to this is that some tech companies may not be the most stable of organisations.
You may be aware of the tech start-up mantra: ‘fail fast, fail often’. It reflects the notion that the road to Airbnb type success is (necessarily) paved with failures and mistakes.
But what about the customers of the businesses that don’t make it?
What if you’ve invested time and money on a service that suddenly doesn’t exist? What if a scramble to restructure means your local support team disappears? What if you’re left with a service that has no back-up?
How do you find assurances that your event app provider won’t leave you high and dry?
Most event tech providers won’t have the longevity of say, a bank. However, there are ways you can get a feel for an organisation’s stability aside from their history:
Investment Track Record
External investment is always a good indicator that your provider has a solid foundation. Investors will not part with their cash unless they have confidence in an organisation’s ideas and services. Being answerable to investors can keep a business on track and accountable. However, it’s not a guarantee. Investors understand that risk is part of what they do and will have a failure rate factored into their strategy.
Local Presence
Where is your event app provider based? Is it a small off-shoot of a larger overseas organisation? Or does it have a substantial and well-established presence in you local area? If an organisation has to restructure or downsize, the smaller operations are likely to be hit. You can very quickly find yourself without any local support and/or dealing with an overseas operation in a state of flux.
Ownership
Organic growth and independent ownership can point to a reliable and stable business. Although it may not have the scale of a business with substantial investment, a business with steady revenue growth and owners who have total control over the operation, may mean a secure and loyal client base. Just be wary of businesses that depend on one or two key clients for stability. There’s an obvious risk here should they lose those contracts.
Service or Product Diversity
The same principle applies to product and service diversity. Organisations that have a good range (but not too many) services or products are better placed to withstand the pressures of new market entrants or competitor development. Reliance on a single offering may bring a focused delivery but it’s a high risk strategy, particularly in the tech market where the new becomes old very quickly.
Vanessa Bishop – CrowdComms, Head of Sales (Australia)
Even after 20 years selling IT solutions Vanessa is a self-confessed “non techie”. She loves is bridging the gap between people like her and technology. Vanessa helps CrowdComms clients build and deliver highly engaging events apps that deliver fantastic results. Outside of the event tech world, you can find Vanessa on a beach somewhere in Sydney.
