What changes should you expect about startup funding in the post-COVID-19 era?

by Josh Biggs in Startup on 9th March 2021

Almost every business took a pretty big hit during this pandemic of COVID-19 and struggled to survive. Some could not endure the new situation and could not continue.

To start over is somehow more challenging than starting from scratch. The pandemic has made it a bumpy ride for every business. So, what changes should you expect about startup funding in the post-COVID-19 era?

The businesses that keep blooming

Only a handful of startups could keep thriving during the pandemic and manage their reputations. The ones that offered promising opportunities to investors within the unknown situation. Of course, this uncertainty was a new opening for some people to take risks.

As mentioned before, not every business went under due to the pandemic. You could hear and read almost everywhere that CBD-based businesses are booming. By coming up with the idea of curbside pickups, the related businesses could achieve a significant increase in their income.

The second up-rising market was the food and delivery service. The US Chamber of Commerce has voted it as the second improved industry during the pandemic. You could somehow see that coming since people spend more time at home than in restaurants.

All around the world, restaurants, or food-related shops who already had home-food delivery infrastructure could adapt to the new situation faster and seize the opportunity better than those who had to deal with the original condition.

The new hardships caused by COVID-19 has made some ups and downs for all ranges of businesses. It made the investors realize that they have to invest in different areas. It made the startups understand that they always have to be agile to take new measures to keep going up.

If you are on social media, your startup gains more support.

When George Floyd got killed by the police, some just started the Black Lives Matter movement (BLM) in social media, and it went worldwide. However, no one expected this to turn into these extreme events afterward. This shows the power of social media marketing and how the support feeling flows within it.

Previously, startups considered social media an extra feature to their business, which could positively affect their business. Lately, social media has been seen as a core part of every startup, making a considerable difference.

That’s why many small businesses and startups try to acquire social media platforms that have a whopping number of following. This way, they save money and time that should be spent on gaining followers and building a social identity. Of course, a strong social media presence can help them make more money.

Formerly, you could see businesses to post only business-related content. Nowadays, they also try to be more socially active and involve themselves more in social events and show empathy.

For instance, almost every startup took part in supporting the BLM movement as a non-profit cause.

This shows the investors and supporters a clear green light, indicating and hinting which startup to support. Of course, the business should also delve more into the cause to show real sentiment.

Increase in crowd-funding platforms

To understand the concept, you have to know what crowd-funding is in the first place. It is the act of funding a project by gathering small amounts of money from many people, mostly online.

With the new circumstance emerging, the time and energy that these platforms are putting are increasing.

Startups are moving towards such platforms as the new situations require so. These platforms present thousands of investors who can interact and see and share your fundraising campaign. This has become a back-bone and a shift in today’s market. A change that even lesser-known crowd-funding platforms are getting many actions due to the pandemic and have become more recognized. This way, scalable startups can grow and earn much more money that they used to.

Conclusion

Even if the pandemic had not occurred, startups had to be flexible as the market’s needs frequently changed. The pandemic occurrence, however, brought a super drastic change unexpectedly.

Unconventional innovations in marketing and services, more interaction in social media, and a considerable increase in crowd-funding platforms are the changes in startup funding in the post-COVID-19 era.

There is no telling how long this situation is going to continue, and whether a better condition will emerge or not. Regardless, startups should always be alert and on guard to cope with the new changes.

Categories: Startup