Optimizing the Participation of Founders and Startups in the Incubator Program

The incubator or accelerator program will still be relevant now, especially for early-stage startups that are validating their business. In fact a lot of startup growth starts from there. In Indonesia, several names such as Payfazz, Halofina, Privy, and Storial are graduates of the program with different organizers.

Many things could be “takeaways” for founders – Of course this is not just talking about initial capital which is generally channeled through this program. To give you an idea of ​​what can be obtained founder when joining the incubator program, DailySocial trying to collect some testimonials from various sources.

Maturing business ideas, early collaboration opportunities

This story comes from the Founder & CEO of PrivyID Marshall Pribadi. The incubator program he participated in was Indigo made by the Telkom group. He said his involvement in the incubator created the right environment for the development of his startup business ideas and concepts.

"The initial concept for PrivyID was: digital identity. With PrivyID platform, users no longer have to fill out the registration form again to Apply anything, for example insurance, credit cards, opening a bank account, etc. Usually, every time you register for something, the user has to repeatedly fill in personal data such as name, address, date of birth, and so on. The signature can be done digitally. "An idea like this, in 2015, is still foreign," he said.

Marshall continued, by entering the Indigo incubator program, PrivyID not only received initial investment, but also succeeded in obtaining its first clients and valuable ideas. Moment mentoring, he got advice regarding username PrivyID is composed of a combination of 2 letters of the initial of the name and 4 digits of the mobile phone number.

"Having Telkom Indonesia as the first client also makes PrivyID more trusted by other companies who want to use its services," he said.

Success is still determined by founder

Apart from learning from experienced mentors, another benefit that can be gained from participating in startups in incubator/accelerator programs is expanding their network into the ecosystem. Program organizers generally have a platform that connects startups, investors, or stakeholder others who have opportunities for collaboration, including with other startups. This is also felt by the Co-Founder & CEO Halofina Adjie Wicaksana.

Adjie and his startup are members of the GK-Plug and Play Indonesia program. According to him, the benefits of a business development program like this will really depend on the level of participation founder. For this reason, before starting the program (even registering), make sure founder have clear achievement targets – what they want to optimize through this program. Whether looking for investors, getting a mentor, finalizing the product, or something else.

"Set our own target expectations. Ultimately, an accelerator program is a facility. We ourselves need to make various efforts to maximize this opportunity. Do goal setting at the start will help us achieve optimal results from the program," said Adjie.

Optimize opt-in

Creative content publishing platform developer startup Story also took part in the Skala accelerator program. Co-Founder & CEO Steve Wirawan said that his participation in the program provided a lot of learning, including regarding product development, building an efficient team, determining priorities, and expanding business networks. The presence of an experienced mentor is very beneficial.

"Always be hungry to learn. Unlearn what you've already known, drop all the assumptions that were already built in your mind and re-learn. Always be curious and ask for access to lots network to be introduced," said Steve giving his tips.

Question Yago's defensive effortfounder Marshall also agreed with this incubator program. "If you want to be optimal in participating in the incubator program, don't think that by entering the incubator everything will be provided from mentors to investment. The incubator is there to provide environment which is suitable for the business idea you have."

Founder or the startup itself must be able to grow and develop through the environment provided. Apart from that, according to Marshall, don't underestimate the goodness of the people you meet.

Choose the right program

The startup ecosystem in Indonesia is increasingly developing - especially regarding young people's interest in becoming one founder startup – received a good response from the incubator program organizers. The organizers came from various circles, from corporations, media, venture capitalists, to other institutions. This background sometimes provides differentiation between programs.

The IDX Incubator program initiated by the Indonesia Stock Exchange, for example, designs its program for interested startups go public or IPO. This is different from the Mandiri Digital Incubator which is fronted by banking companies and assists startups in the financial sector. DSLaunchpad, which is presented DailySocial, specifically facilitating para founder (especially outside Java) to be able to take part in the program mentoring in a manner online. There is also Simona Ventures which is presented specifically for founder woman.

However, they usually have the same general activities, such as mentoring with industry experts, networking, to share resources. This specialization can be an additional consideration founder to select an incubator/accelerator program. Moreover, currently there is open access for Indonesian startups to join global programs, for example Y Combinator, Google Launchpad Accelerator, Surge, and others.

There are already a number of startup incubator/accelerator program organizers in Indonesia. Some of those that are still active include: