What is Current in Entrepreneurship?
Tech Entrepreneurs
Since 1996, manufacturing jobs in the United States have decreased by a whopping 28%. Britain’s industrial story isn’t too rosy, either. Over the last couple of decades or so, high-growth tech companies have heralded financial growth abroad from the giants of Silicon Valley: Facebook and Google. Now, as we stand on the brink of an artificial intelligence revolution that’s making many jobs obsolete, we are grappling for an alternate socio-economic model that is sustainable. Since technology will be at the forefront of this new era, let’s talk about good tech entrepreneurship.
What Makes A Good Tech Entrepreneur?
Tech companies make up almost one-quarter of the American stock-market index commonly known as the “S&P 500” in terms of market cap. Whether there is an impending tech bubble or not is still an ongoing debate. However, there is no doubting the fact that the tech sector is the driving force behind stock markets, not just in the United States but globally. Understandably, investors are pouring their dollars into the sector, which puts it at risk for becoming overvalued and eventually leading to a bust. On a related note, while it may be easy for you to attract investor money right now with a tech venture, it is important that you take sustainability into account. That’s the first task for a tech entrepreneur.
1. Impact is important for sustainability.
While competitive advantage may have been enough to sail a tech venture a few years back, the saturated market and the impending rise of AI mean you need a lot more to sustain. Today, that “lot more” is social impact. Now social impact does not necessarily equal a social venture. In fact, the term alludes to solving “real” problems that people will continue to value over a length of time.
2. Use “gamification” the right way.
Gamification first became a buzzword in 2010. Since then, many made failed attempts and successful attempts at it, the former making up a larger chunk. Tinder is arguably the best example of how to leverage gamification to make a valuable tech venture. Health Month is another example of gamification done right. Both give the promise of real, tangible results if people indulge in a fun “game” that doesn’t take much effort to play. Two things are paramount for gamification to be sustainable: The UX should be simple and engaging and there should be tangible rewards in place.
A lot of tech ventures, especially mobile apps, still rely on badges and trophies for gamification. If you are taking a similar approach, you are essentially creating scarcity where there is none, which is a problem. While you may see high engagement rates with such an approach, sustainability is always a question. That’s where the role of good tech entrepreneurship comes in. As a good tech entrepreneur, you must find out a better way to capitalize on gamification. For instance, if you have a music app, you could give away limited tickets to an upcoming concert in return for social shares. Similarly, if you have a food app, you could unlock a superstar chef’s recipe for a certain order value.
From Forbes Community Voice by Steven Widen
for more article see https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2017/08/18/the-changing-rules-of-tech-entrepreneurship/2/#4f5746853fac