Case Study: Building and Scaling with The Spark
Although some of the names in this case study are real, it is a completely fictional story to serve as a guide on how The Spark platform can be utilized
The Story
After working with clients from different parts of the world for about seven years as a freelance developer, It dawned on Julius that he could do something about the frustrating payment infrastructure issue.
"Whenever I tried to onboard a client, choosing a payment platform was always a major problem. I lost several clients because of it" - Julius
This wasn't because there were no options to use. It was mainly because they didn't have specific features to aid a seamless client-freelance relationship.
Some of these features that would have helped include; automated payroll systems for long-term clients, immediate release of payment, reasonable charges, multi-currency transactions, and receiving payment in crypto.
For months Julius had this idea in his head, and every time he encountered a payment challenge, his heart tugged.
"I knew I could do something about it. I wanted to. It was tiring hearing other freelancers complain about an issue I knew I could solve" - Julius.
He started to research and gather what he'll need to pull this off.
The Roadblocks
Julius had a business plan and a team of three, including him, a product manager, and a UI/UX designer.
Things had started taking shape, but it was still nerve-racking as exciting as it was.
He was using all the resources he had to bootstrap his startup.
Now the product was ready, and it was time to go into full execution mode - onboard users and hire more hands.
He couldn't bootstrap any longer. He needed seed funding.
He was also spending so much on tools and was looking for means to cut down cost and extend his runaway.
Another huge concern to him was how he would keep up with global compliance since the payment gateway was going to serve freelancers and employers worldwide.
Julius also wanted a mentor. He knew how to be a freelancer but being a founder was a different ball game entirely.
Leveraging the expertise and experience of an individual who has successfully scaled a startup will be a huge opportunity to avoid unnecessary errors.
There was so much to fix that it was impossible not to feel overwhelmed.
Journey With The Spark
"I was at a point when I was reconsidering all my decisions when I found The Spark. It was like the light I needed at that point" - Julius
Julius had gotten to that phase where founders become unsure about what they are building.
It's that point where the roadblocks seem so big that you can hardly see any light in the tunnel.
He and his team were hanging by a thread. It had become so difficult to take any step towards growth.
Several pitching attempts had failed. You wouldn't blame Julius for assuming that his product was a failure before it got to the market.
Julius reached out to us on LinkedIn after reading about what The Spark had to offer under-represented founders.
He opted to jump on a 30 mins call with our CEO, Ikenna, to see how our platform could help him move from the point where he was to where he really wanted to be.
The moment he signed up, he reached out to Alec Wright, the Chief Product Officer at One Valley, and Stephen Amaza, the Customer Success Lead at Paystack, to book mentorship sessions.
Of course, they gave him their time and attention because all mentors on The Spark are individuals who are passionate about giving back to help under-represented founders grow and scale their businesses.
He got in-depth knowledge from the library as he had access to the pitch decks of several top companies, including ones in the fintech niche.
Not just that, there were several workshops, tools, and templates that made operations easy for him and his team.
He could clearly see all he had done wrong with pitching, finance and accounting, and product development beforehand.
He was able to sort out global compliance through Norebase, a perk partner on The Spark that offered up to $100 off their services.
The Result
After several mentorship sessions and quality guidance on getting funding, recognizing and hiring talents, and scaling his payment gateway, he applied to showcase his startup to the network of 450+ VCs on the platform.
Within a few months, Julius and his team successfully raised $1million in the seed funding round.
The following month, they had onboarded their first 1000 users.
The team had full-fledged marketing activities going on.
"It's amazing what we achieved through The Spark in one year. The growth is evident, and I believe there is a place for every black founder at The Spark." - Julius
You too can do it!
There is so much that The Spark is offering under-represented founders that you shouldn't be missing out on.
The goal is to democratize resources for underrepresented founders.
This is why we have built an asynchronous accelerator that gives you access to resources worth over $1million.
With this platform, you will have access to:
- Connect directly with 200+ mentors
- Access discounts on essential business tools valued at $1m+
- Access learning resources and masterclasses from industry experts.
- A community of entrepreneurs across the globe.
- Pitch 450+ investors
These resources will be made available to you the moment you sign up!