#5 Things to Think of Before Launching a Fintech Startup Having a powerful PR plan will help you create a strong buzz for your product

Be it Yahoo launching an app named Tanda that is an alternative to credit cards, Alkami raising $70 million for mobile banking software or TalentSprint aiming to make India the hub of Fintech expertise - undoubtedly, the fintech industry has started on an optimistic note in 2018.

If you want to launch your fintech startup, the above news will make you more determined. But like any other industry, the fintech industry is also very competitive. To succeed here, you need to have a well-thought-out plan.

Today, I have compiled 5 key things that you must think of before launching your fintech startup. Following this brief-checklist will help you start your business with proper planning.

Let's dive in:

Know the Place

The financial institutions in every state are regulated by the respective government there. And the fintech industry falls under these regulations as well. However, depending on a state, country or region, these regulations vary. It is imperative that you know the regulations of the state where you are planning to venture.

Sridhar Obilisetty, CEO at mFino, said -"The new age fintech enterprises across the world need to adhere to local regulations to safeguard their customers from any breach. These require a solution that is flexible, easily customizable as per respective country regulatory guidelines and enable faster Go-to-Market."

Research thoroughly; explore the government regulations and policies of the place where you want to establish your startup.

Offer Something Unique

The fintech industry is vast and highly competitive. To avoid getting lost in the crowd, you need to stand out. How can you do that? There is only one way - offer something unique and of high value. Also, you need to know your target audience.

Vishal Sahu, the cofounder and CEO at Fintech Labs shared, "The most important thing is to know your target customers. And if you are going for B2B then it plays the most important role as you may need to sell to big banks and NBFCs, which want very stable and robust product."

To stand tall in this industry, make sure your product is unique. Also, you should have an aggressive marketing strategy to tackle competition and keep up with the fast-paced fintech industry.

Hire the Right Team

Of course, you will need skilled people to realize your business dream. Make sure you have an expert team to undertake any sort of challenge. While hiring, make sure the person has enough technical expertise, relevant qualification, and risk management capability. Without a strong team, you will not be able to deliver a product with unique features that will beat the competition.

Have a Powerful PR Plan Ready

Having a powerful PR plan will help you create a strong buzz for your product.

"Branding is crucial for companies to gain and maintain a positive image among customers. Along with PR, social media has become critical for companies.

It is also a very good marketing strategy to create content that establishes industry and technical thought leadership on various social platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter.

Developing and distributing company press releases, contributing to industry conventions, attending industry-specific events and an integrated marketing communications strategy across different channels will help the company gain top-of-the-mind awareness among its target audience." - Sridhar Obilisetty shared his experience.

So, my friend, get a kickass PR plan ready to make it big when your product hits the market.

Be Clear About Your Finance

Having a fantastic business idea is not enough. To make the idea work and achieve growth, you need to execute it with utmost dedication. And trust me, when it comes to making a fintech venture idea work, you need a lot of resources. Simply put, you will need a considerable amount of money to run the wheel of your fintech startup. You might choose to bootstrap your startup, but having a plan to find investors is always a good option.

Launching a startup is not a piece of cake, and fintech business is no different. The time-period before launching a fintech startup is often littered with mistakes. Following these points will help you launch your fintech startup successfully.