NigeriaCOM is the largest annual meeting for the telcos & ICT industry in West Africa. It is always witnessed by the gathering of experts having discussions about the challenges and the opportunities in the industry. This event will hold between 14th -15th September 2015 in Lagos at the Oriental Hotel, for the seventh consecutive time and interestingly there is an introduction of Entrepreneur’s Hub which will expose young entrepreneurs to potential mentors, customers and investors.
In the light of this, we interviewed the MD of Jovago, Marek Zmyslowski to share some thoughts on what entrepreneurs should expect during the event. Excerpts below:
What is genuinely unique about your venture?
We take African hotels online, we are the only online travel agency in Africa to visit personally each hotel we are working with to provide the best quality assurance. We are also the biggest, with more than 20,000 African hotels to be found on our website.
What are the biggest challenges e-commerce is facing in Nigeria and how should they be addressed?
There are three key challenges. First, cost of data which is currently prohibitively high in Nigeria. Second, network quality needs to improve and third, ease of online payments. Lackluster access to banking services is still a big issue in Nigeria.
Why does it matter for startups and developers to attend NigeriaCOM?
We live in a knowledge driven world, startups are data driven. For a startup founder (or future founder) going to NigeriaCOM is like taking a knowledge pill, not mentioning the amazing networking opportunities with market shapers.
What advice can you give to startups and developers contemplating to showcase their businesses at NigeriaCOM?
Most importantly, you need to have a clear goal of what you want to achieve during the conference: Is it finding customers, investors or partnerships? “If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.“ as the Roman philosopher Seneca once said.
What are common mistakes startups make when approaching investors?
They think that a good idea will do the work to convince the investor. Ideas are ubiquitous, what truly matters is your ability to build a minimum viable product or service and to attract users. Even if nobody is paying you yet, the mere fact that people are using what you built, indicates that you are into something that might eventually turn into a business.
How about investors: What should they know when considering to invest
in startups?
They should expect they will be wrong many times, and they learn being an investor just like a founder is learning to be a founder.
