Incubator Programs

An incubator program is “an organization designed to accelerate the growth and success of entrepreneurial companies through an array of business support resources and services that could include physical space, capital, coaching, common services, and networking connections.”  

Recently I have been researching various incubator programs as well as funding sources to help both develop and expose my companies products and services.  The more I research I find the more I am sure that finding the right incubator or investor will make the difference between a successful venture and one that reaches a plateau at half mass.  Although I am sure this is the best option for my company and I it may not be a good fit for you.  Let’s examine how the current market place works with new businesses and products. 

The most recent experience I have with the current market place is developing an app I will be launching early next year.  The app market is enormous and constantly growing.  There are more than 675,000 apps available via the Apple App Store and Google Android store not to mention more than 25 billion downloads in the Google Android store alone.  What does this mean for developer?  Well one thing that is abundantly clear is that there is a huge billion-dollar market for their products and significant outlets for distribution.  What are the down falls?  The major down falls are the amount of competition and the dynamic shifts in technology.  Technology is a long way from the standard black and white monitor that took immense amounts of coding to get a dot on the screen or the black and white tube television that weighed much more than today’s digital devices that can fit in your pocket. 

            After addressing the information above you can clearly see that both beating the competition and maximizing exposure are vital to emerging success.  One Incubator program I have came across while I was traveling this summer is Tech Stars, which is a company base in Boston and New York.  Although there are more than 900 incubator programs nationwide, Tech Stars’ success rate and overall benefits have sparked my interest.  It’s great to have a product that could change the way technology works for consumers, but if you have no outlet to ensure its exposure and success that product will never blossom to it’s full potential.  Currently I am still in search of a good fit as far as incubator programs and investors, but I am well one my way to getting the information I need to make an informed decision.  What do you think?  Are incubators good or bad?  Comment or connect with me on Facebook and let me know.