How not to fail: Lessons from a Failed African Software Start-up (Flippy Campus)
Embarking on a business venture and encountering setbacks can be challenging, but I choose to view it as a valuable learning experience. Failure, in my perspective, is not a roadblock but rather a stepping stone toward personal and professional growth. I’m here to reflect on the myriad lessons I’ve gained throughout this journey.
In the year 2015, my team and I confronted a common challenge faced by many students in college — the struggle with missing crucial assignment dates and academic information. Back then, the prevalence of WhatsApp was not as widespread as it is today, and obtaining essential details like changes in quiz dates or class schedules required cumbersome efforts. The traditional method involved making phone calls in the hope that the person on the other end possessed the needed information. Additionally, most campuses in Ghana relied on notice boards for disseminating important information. This context laid the groundwork for the experiences that fueled our entrepreneurial journey.
Envision having to travel for 10–15 minutes merely to check if there’s an update on the notice board. This was the precise issue we aimed to address. Our solution was straightforward yet impactful — introduce an application enabling students to subscribe to specific boards and receive instant updates upon their arrival.
Enter “Flippy Campus” — a mobile application revolutionizing access to information from various campus authorities, including the Student Representative Council (SRC), departments, classes, and more.
The growth of Flippy Campus exceeded our expectations; we witnessed over 1,000 downloads in a single day at certain peaks. This remarkable achievement was propelled by Samsung’s endorsement, designating it as one of the trusted student apps and pre-installing it on all devices entering the country. For a deeper dive into our accomplishments, explore our Instagram page: [Flippy Campus Instagram], and discover over 990,000 downloads on Android sources.
Business Setback and Valuable Lessons
Facing the demise of our business was undoubtedly a challenging experience, and it prompted me to share the crucial lessons learned along this entrepreneurial journey.
In the initial stages, the active user base of our platform surged, but with this growth came a substantial increase in operational costs. Our technology expenses, including server costs, email services, SMS costs, and push notifications, soared to around USD 400 per month. Despite a seed fund of USD 50,000, sustaining these escalating costs became unsustainable.
A pivotal factor contributing to our business downfall was the delay in finding a sustainable revenue model. Initially relying on the assumption that advertisements would be our primary revenue stream, we failed to answer two critical questions: How many active users were needed to generate sufficient ad revenue, and how challenging would it be to attract advertisers to our platform?
To cover a monthly burn rate of USD 4,500, we needed a substantial revenue stream. Our reliance on ad models, without a concrete plan for monetization, became a significant pitfall. It’s essential for founders, even those planning to raise capital, to meticulously consider a viable revenue model early on. In our context, ad revenue alone proved insufficient for a startup in Africa requiring millions of users.
The E-Commerce Journey
Faced with challenges in generating revenue through ads, we explored alternative options, leading us to embark on an e-commerce venture. Despite having a large user base, challenges emerged, such as the difficulty in offering competitive discounts for movie tickets and realizing that most purchases were made by parents, not students. Integration issues with mobile payments and low confidence in online transactions further complicated matters, resulting in the failure of the e-commerce model.
The Event Ticketing Journey
In a subsequent attempt, we ventured into event ticketing, focusing on campus events. However, this strategy faced hurdles, such as limited major events on campus, user preference for physical tickets, and an inability to provide a compelling reason for users to adopt virtual tickets.
The Social Media Journey
In a bid to capitalize on a growing student user base, we decided to incorporate social media features into the app. This allowed students to share up to three pictures daily, providing glimpses into their daily lives. Despite an initial surge in interest, our endeavor to establish a social media aspect faced stiff competition from well-established platforms like Facebook and other social media apps. The lack of a distinctive value proposition gradually led to our diminishing presence in the space. In the end, unable to achieve our desired outcomes, we made the difficult decision to cease operations.
The Dating App Journey
Following our brief foray into the social media arena, we observed a significant trend where male users were predominantly reaching out and sending messages to female users on the platform. In response, we transformed the app into a dating platform, aiming to enhance user engagement. However, our efforts encountered unexpected challenges. We faced difficulties in moderating conversations, with some female users feeling uncomfortable and subjected to bullying. Additionally, users tended to take their conversations off the platform after making a match. Eventually, compelled by these issues, we decided to pivot once again and explore a new direction for the application.
Ultimately, acknowledging that our efforts were no longer sustainable was an agonizing decision. As we grappled with various strategies and challenges, team members gradually departed, leaving us with no team. The complete story of how we concluded this chapter will be shared another day. Though we failed at Flippy Campus, I have never regretted doing it. I learned a lot and that has shaped and better prepared me for what I am doing today as a start-up mentor. To delve into my experience as a startup mentor, click here to explore my journey.
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