Turning passion for an idea into a full-blown flame – 18 months in the life of a start-up
80% of start-ups in Germany don’t make it to their third birthday. This figure is both encouraging and discouraging for all those who have taken the plunge and ventured into self-employment, taking responsibility for their staff, earning the trust of their clients and carrying out their assignments diligently. What needs to happen for MedtecBerater to survive the first critical years, to receive plenty of assignments, to ensure that sufficient staff are available and that everyone involved in the company can make a decent living?
Our passion for medical technology has sparked a fire in our network over the past 1.5 years; we are now facing the major challenge of how to add fuel to the company’s flames without burning ourselves out in the process. For this huge task consumes a great deal of energy. Nonetheless, as we look back over the last 18 months, three things give us great faith and boost our confidence, reassuring us that MedtecBerater is exactly where it is supposed to be: not just on the right track but on a successful, sustainable path.
The company concept
Our company has a clearly defined goal. We support the manufacturers of medical technology by providing consulting services that are both crucial and prescribed by law when introducing complex medical products. However, many manufacturers only have limited personnel at their disposal – in some cases, none at all. Responding flexibly to meet this need is where we come in. In doing so, the secret of our success is perfectly logical and simple. The better users understand the application of a particular product, the more likely it is to be integrated in their daily clinical routine, thereby improving patients’ practical knowledge and satisfaction. In turn, this positive product experience enhances the technology’s presence on the market. The feedback we have received from our first clients confirms this.
At MedtecBerater, we understand how the medical product market operates and how its mechanisms work. Our team’s wealth of experience in medical technology, day-to-day clinical work and the pharmaceutical industry is what sets us apart. Not only are we able to respond to requirements at short notice, we also develop new concepts on an ongoing basis, thereby expanding our portfolio. Renewals and extensions of contracts with established clients testify to the viability of our business model.
The team
One lesson that we learned during MedtecBerater’s first 18 months is that you might start a company on your own but you can only thrive on the market as a team. An enormous variety of topics and skills are required to give a company the competitive edge and provide top-quality services, not to mention communicating these benefits in a way that is tailored to the target audience. Our broad-based network of resources meant we were optimally equipped to meet the different challenges. Sometimes two phone calls was all it took to find the ideal partner to handle all our tax affairs, for example. Another time, the next member of our team was just around the corner. Moreover, we had worked with all kinds of anaesthetists and intensive care specialists during our many years in hospitals. Naturally, they form the core of our team. With their vast expertise, they take their product knowledge from one clinic to the next, introducing nursing staff und patients to completely new worlds. At the same time, the growing demand of our clients means that recruiting staff is an ongoing task. As is so often the case, it’s all in the mix. With a combination of initiatives and acquisition concepts, we have therefore succeeded in attracting new team members based across Germany and filling them with enthusiasm for our company.
One milestone in the past 18 months was the launch of our website in January. It serves as the anchor point for our company presentation, client acquisition and recruitment campaigns. We have since set up corporate profiles on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, which are updated regularly. A social media agency provides valuable input and helps us put it into practice. To reach our target segment of the market, our content has been published in German and English on numerous channels since August. Our blog takes you behind the scenes of our daily work and highlights topics of relevance to us and the medical sector.
Despite working remotely in different areas of expertise, our team interact and harmonise perfectly. Ensuring everything runs like clockwork takes a lot of time and effort, but it pays dividends. Our first one and a half years revolved around transferring responsibility, delegating tasks, making decisions and putting ideas into practice.
Our clients
All the same, what good is the best team and the best organisation if there is no demand for our services? Questions like this, which probably keep every start-up entrepreneur awake at night, are one thing we certainly don’t have to worry about at the moment. We can hardly keep up with demand, which continues to grow. The spark is now undoubtedly a flame! New assignments come in, sometimes in the form of small tasks that clients pass on to us, relieving the overall pressure on them. Then again, there are the major new projects where we can truly shine, thanks to our extensive qualifications. So we liaise with our clients to define the specific goals, negotiate contracts and terms, plan the details, make resources available and complete the engagement. With preparations in full swing for the start of a new cooperation, we are now looking forward to the fourth quarter. Eager to see who will be next to approach us and which module in our portfolio is particularly sought after. To hear what acquisition meetings are successful or which clients have recommended us. All these things drive us and make our work so exciting.
We’re ready – are you?