Companies have been spawned in garages, basements, dorm rooms and on kitchen tables. There’s no magic formula for success, and that even extends to incubators like YCombinator, which has a 93% failure rate and about a 1.5% acceptance rate. This disproportionately affects entertainment and consumer startups, unlike in the crowdfunding environment. Yikes.
Not all incubators are created equal—especially not DigitalAMN’s PAI, which benefits from a hybrid model.
Provide a practical business environment
Knowing small business law and/or accounting isn’t particularly helpful for first time founders and entrepreneurs who are bootstrapping their startup. Ditto for co-working spaces with dingy furniture and a stable internet connection. These are not substitutes for the meaningful meat and potatoes content of programs offered in incubators or hybrid incubators like with DigitalAMN’s PAI Ecosystem. This is where the importance of being practical and flexible comes in. After entrepreneurs complete the accelerator portion of our PAI Program, we then mentor founders through the nuts and bolts of getting their business to elevate, which includes increased business strategy, leadership guidance, counsel and attention.
We don’t onboard hundreds of startups because the PAI looks to align with the future shareholders of that startup. That means the value of our position in a startup is directly tied to their long-term success. We aggressively vet startups early on and aren’t tempted to cast a wide net to try to snag a unicorn because of how the PAI Ecosystem is structured. We’re focused on providing support for our stable of entrepreneurs looking to catapult themselves over the valley of death—not just fast winners.
Offer tangible assistance
Throwing a bag of money at a founder who doesn’t know how to run a business won’t help them get their startup off the ground. Money can’t fix this issue except to buy the services of those who can, which is why many founders opt for incubators over typical angels and accelerators. That’s why the PAI includes hands-on mentorship from role models who can suss out solid product market fit, validate business ideas and determine a marketable MVP. We understand that the metric of success for incubators isn’t just securing funding—it includes training founders on the intricacies of what is, and isn’t fundable. We’re not interested in subsidizing companies that would otherwise fail, unlike many traditional incubators. If it doesn’t build valuation or add tangible business value, we’re not interested in subjecting neither our DigitalAMN shareholders or those everyday people that may ultimately invest in the startups we present through the PAI Ecosystem.
Join the DigitalAMN PAI Ecosystem—Find out more or email info@digitalamn.com
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