Business24.11.2015

The single biggest reason why tech businesses succeed

By Staff Writer

Idealab founder Bill Gross researched why some tech startups succeed and others fail, and found that timing is the factor which influences success the most.

Gross, who has founded and incubated many startups, gathered data from hundreds of companies to assess which factors had an impact on their success.

Speaking at a 2015 TED conference, Gross said timing was a more important aspect in determining the success of a company than ideas, the team, execution, the business model, or funding.

“Timing accounted for 42% of the difference between success and failure. Team and execution came in second, and the idea came in third,” he said.

Factors determining startup success

What surprised Gross was that the idea was not the most important thing in determining the success of a startup.

Gross highlighted the example of Airbnb, which launched during tough economic times when people were looking to generate additional income.

He said Uber’s timing was also perfect, as drivers were looking to earn extra income.

His 2015 TED presentation is available below.

South African example

South Africa has a handful of strong online platforms which dominate the local Internet market. These websites include News24, Bidorbuy, SafariNow, Kalahari, and Private Property.

What is remarkable is that many of these top online brands were launched close to one another – between August 1998 and August 1999, at the height of the dot-com boom.

The timing for the launch of these websites was great. Internet access in South Africa had started to take off, and globally online businesses were growing rapidly.

Here are some of the big online businesses which were started in South Africa during this period.

Kalahari (now Takealot) – founded in 1998

Kalahari was founded in 1998, and dominated the South African e-commerce landscape for many years. The company joined forces with Takelot to form an online shopping giant.

Private Property – founded in August 1998

Private Property was founded in August 1998 by Paul Fourie, and the website was launched in 1999. Private Property is regarded as the biggest player in the South African online property market, boasting a market valuation of over R1 billion.

News24 – established in October 1998

News24 is South Africa’s largest online news publication, attracting 5.8 million unique local browsers in October.

Safarinow – launched in January 1999

SafariNow is Africa’s biggest travel booking network, with over 51,000 listed establishments and more than a million monthly visitors. The website was launched in January 1999, and currently employs over 100 people.

Bidorbuy – launched in August 1999

Bidorbuy was launched by Andy Higgins in August 1999, and is now the dominant online auction platform in South Africa. The company has also made various acquisitions during this period, including PayFast, Snaply, UbuntuDeal, and Jump Shopping.