The document discusses key factors for startup success: 1) You don't need an extraordinary idea, just one that offers better services/products than existing options. Google's plan was a simple, customer-friendly search engine. 2) Choosing the right team is important - hire people with energy, enthusiasm and potential. 3) Focus on delivering what customers want - products must satisfy customer needs to succeed. 4) Raising capital is necessary for most startups to grow, and a good business plan attracts investors. 5) Having the right mentorship is crucial - mentors provide industry expertise and guidance.

4. The Idea
First off, you don’t need to have an extraordinary idea to startup a business
of your own. All you need is an idea which offers customers better services,
products or technology than they already have.
Google’s plan, for example, was to create a search engine that was easy to
use and customer friendly! No doubt, there is a lot of technicality involved in
what Google does, but the plan itself was straightforward!
A unique idea is the one key to drive the business towards success!

5. Choosing the right team
Well, every successful company needs to have like-minded people who
think on the same wavelength.
While selecting your team, you need to hire people who are high on energy,
enthusiasm and potential.
Having the right team is half the battle won!

6. Delivering what customers want
Most startups state the reason for their failure as “ran out of funds”. But had
they put more thought into why they ran out of funding, they might have
noticed a significant factor was that the customers did not want their
product.
Your product may be perfect in every aspect, but if it does not satisfy the
customer’s needs, it would just be another product decorating the
shelves of a store.

7. Raising money
To make your big dream turn into reality, you’re going to need capital.
Sometimes, a lot of it.
Some startups like Microsoft can be self-funding, but most aren’t. To most
entrepreneurs, looping in investors seems like a terrifying and arduous task.
In reality, it isn’t. A good business plan attracts angel investors and venture
capitalists almost effortlessly.
After all, capital is the bloodline of any business.

8. Release all inhibitions
But should you start a company? Are you the right sort of person to do it? If
you are, is it worth it?
Most people are the right sort of people to startup a business, but they just
don’t dare to take the plunge. And probably a large number of you reading
this, have it in you too.
If you want to do it, do it. ​Starting a new business is not as difficult as it
seems from outside. You don’t need to learn any great tricks of the trade. All
you have to do is build or create something users will love, and ensure that
cost is less than what you will make. How hard is that?

9. Mentoring
The last, and probably most important ingredient needed for a successful
startup, is the right kind of mentorship.
Choose a mentor who has industry experience in the same field as you are
venturing into. ​But finding the right mentor can sometimes be a challenging
task - you need a mentor with industry expertise and also one who you can
get along well with.
Appropriate guidance is the key to any successful business.

10. Mara Mentor is an online tool which provides a platform for
young talented entrepreneurs to connect with the expert
business leaders in their industry. It helps entrepreneurs
access business-related advice, understand their industry
better, and develop their leadership skills. ​Mara Mentor is
indeed a must-have tool for budding NextGen entrepreneurs

11. Mara Foundation’s Ambition
We enable, inspire and empower ambitious entrepreneurs in Africa. With the support of our Mara Mentors we will:
Inspire millions of young people in Africa to become
entrepreneurs.
Teach entrepreneurs new skills.
Enable entrepreneurs to turn business ideas into a
reality.
Guide business owners to grow businesses and hire
(more) employees.
Empower entrepreneurs by providing a platform to
showcase their business and build their network.

12. THANK YOU
Website: mentor.mara.com
App: iTunes, Blackberry, Android, and Nokia.
Customer Support: support@mentor.mara.com
Mara Foundation is supported by a
number of partners, including: