Startup Data: An Overview of Usage, Sources, and More
Startups face many challenges that eventually kill the majority of them. Those that manage to stay alive and grow for many years not only bring success to employees and investors but also have a big impact on societies. Thus, there are many parties interested in the startup ecosystems, from startups themselves to investors and the general public. All these parties want to find startup data that is fresh, reliable, and immediately actionable in order to keep pace with the industry. Therefore, an overview of startup data is due, and we will try to provide it right here.
Valuable information about startups
Startup data includes all useful information about startup companies. Thus, let us begin at the beginning – what is a startup? Generally speaking, any new company with an aim to be around for a while and grow into a scalable business is a startup. Thus, only solitary entrepreneurs or small firms with no intention of growth are not recognized as startups. Companies are usually called startups for the first three or four years of their existence.
Startups are usually built around an idea for a new product that could interest particular consumers and fill a niche in the market. The minimal viable product (MVB) is developed in the startup stages of the company to be tested and raise customer and investor interest.
Thus, any data generated prior to and during this stage is considered startup data when it is relevant to the company at hand. Among the first pieces of information that could be acquired is the name and professional bio of the founder. The founder’s previous experience and current stance in business can be very indicative of the potential of the company.
The capabilities of other personnel, especially top management, are also among the top factors that will determine a startup’s success. Thus, data about them should also be considered.
Other pieces of startup data include all available information about its funding. Everything from who has provided the initial funds to whether and how the company is looking for additional injected of finances can be used for analysis as part of startup data sets.
There is virtually no limit to what sort of information can be considered valuable startup data. The value of data is in the eye of the beholder. Thus, it all depends on who is seeking out startup data and for what purpose.
Who uses startup data and how?
As mentioned, multiple parties can be interested in startups and thus find value in startup data. For the sake of convenience, we have separated the major users of this kind of data into three categories – investors, businesses, and researchers. This categorization is conditional as many smaller groups and subcategories could be recognized within each. However, looking at the big picture makes the utility of startup data quite clear.
- Investors. Accredited investors and investment fund managers are among those who can benefit from startups the most. Thus, naturally, they are also major consumers of startup data. Investors use information about early-stage companies to seek out opportunities. Data analysts of financial firms build various investment models and leverage startup data with other kinds of information to determine where the tolerable risk and a chance of considerable profit meet.
- Businesses. All firms, from other startups to companies that have been around for years, are on the watch out for what is happening in their industry. Thus, businesses use startup data as part of their competitive intelligence strategy to prevent unexpected market shake-ups. Startup managers are also, of course, looking at the market conditions, not only in terms of the leading companies. They need to know what similar products other startups are working on and how it is going for them.
- Researchers. This category of startup data users could be split into two major subcategories. On the one hand, we have academic researchers who are looking to understand the startup ecosystem for the benefit of social science and human knowledge in general. On the other hand, there are government researchers for whom startup data means something much more practical and actionable. Countries depend on businesses, and governments understand that; thus, they look at startup data for both immediate benefit and insights for future strategies.
All these groups benefit from analyzing not only startups themselves but market conditions through the lens of startup data. Particular regions can show early signs of becoming startup hubs that can be uncovered by looking at the data. Knowing these trends is useful whether you are a business looking for a location or a city official trying to establish a local startup hub.
Where can you find it?
Aside from the aforementioned groups, most anyone can use startup data for various purposes. Even private individuals with a simple interest in how startups work might want to look at this data for their own pleasure, if nothing else.
Whoever you are and for whatever reason you are interested in this type of data, you need to know how to get to it. A lot of startup data is available from public sources online. It is, however, quite challenging to gather all of it. One can check some databases and scrape the web for random pieces of information about startups. But piecing it all together into a high-quality and comprehensive data set is tricky.
Luckily, if this is not something that you do professionally, you do not have to since there are people who do. Plenty of firms now offer alternative data to be delivered in various forms. Naturally, this includes startup data.
Finding a startup data provider is easy, however, you should be careful when choosing one. As you would know, not everyone who wants to sell you something online is a trustworthy vendor. Thus, do not buy data from shady websites or random contacts. Even if they provide you with some data, both the quality and the legality of their methods are very doubtful.
Startup data providers to look for will have a professional online presence and high ratings. Look for those, and you cannot go wrong.
