3 Most Common Mistakes IT Companies Make

Featured article by Nate Vickery, business technology expert and futurist

With technology on the rise and growing market demands, the customers expect a certain level of quality and service. In such a demanding environment where companies compete to meet the needs of users, a mistake can become a disaster. Companies often neglect some of the basic things that seem irrelevant at the time but may turn out to be a major issue that can cost a company a lot of money, as well as place their business at risk.

IT companies are no exception to this flaw, especially companies that are just starting out and making their way to the top of the IT world. It’s important to remember that having a goal in mind and an idea on how to achieve it, isn’t always enough to successfully get there. There is always a need to shift directions and make adjustments in order to produce the best results. Here are a few common mistakes IT companies tend to make.

Not protecting intellectual property

Every business starts out with an idea for a product or service that will give that business a push to success. An idea for a product belongs to a company or its founder as long it’s protected. Otherwise, someone else can find out about it and use it as their own. The fact is that as long as a company protects their intellectual property, they have the ownership of a product or service.

However, most companies tend to overlook this precaution because it’s expensive, especially in the beginning when their product hasn’t reached the market yet and started to generate profits. Furthermore, an idea is the most vulnerable at this time, as someone can steal it and make it their own. To make things worse, if someone else protects it as their own intellectual property than they have a legal claim to it, as well as ownership.

Lack of research and poor development

Research is the most important aspect of every business. No matter how brilliant an idea for a product or service may be, if a company doesn’t present it to the right audience under the right circumstances, that idea will be wasted. Research is vital in discovering the needs and expectations of end-users and the demand for a product or service a company will provide.

Furthermore, even with good research, a poor development will ultimately result in failure. It’s not enough to just know about customer preferences, a company must develop a product or service that will not only meet the needs of their consumers but also provide a good experience. More often than not, companies make the mistake of cutting costs on development or speeding it up to launch it on the market sooner. This is where issues that were overlooked or neglected will rebound and place a business at risk or cost them valuable customers.

Neglecting marketing

In order for a product to generate enough buzz among the audience before it hits the market, it has to be advertised properly. Without a good marketing campaign (or any for those companies really lacking funds), a company can’t expect for their product to be widely accepted, especially if it’s a new tech or IT service.

A good quality marketing campaign is essential for a success of a product or service on the market. The fact is that a good advertisement is expensive, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it. Moreover, the better the marketing campaign is, the greater the likelihood of a substantial return on investment. Each part of marketing campaign counts and companies should strive not to disregard any of them. For instance, neglecting the importance of SEO will make the product website less visible online, while neglecting to leverage social media means the news won’t spread fast enough.

Every aspect of marketing is important in its own way and each one contributes to the success of a marketing campaign. Furthermore, implementing a cheap and poorly designed marketing campaign won’t generate enough interest among the audience and there will be no room for potential profit – the best-case scenario is to break even with costs of campaign and sales.

These were just a few common mistakes many companies make, not just those specializing in IT. It’s important to remember that each mistake carries its own weight and each one can have a negative impact on a business. It’s impossible to avoid every mistake out there, but in order to achieve success, IT companies should strive to make as few mistakes as possible.