The Tech Rush – 3 Success Stories

Technology is a difficult beast to get right.

14:11 15 November 2018

Get it wrong and you’ll be staring at a muddle of faulty microchips and lumpen plastic. But get it right and you could be the next Steve Jobs.

Just think of the technological entrepreneurs who’ve struck gold in the past. They wound up as billionaires.

But that was the problem with the great gold rush of California – for every person making millions, there were thousands who barely had a clump of mud to rub together.

And you don’t want to be a mud-rubbing pauper when attempting to dip your toes in the water of technological success, instead of a wealthy trailblazer quenching your thirst at the eternal fountain of finance.

As with all new businesses, the odds are against you. All you’re really doing is putting the ball in the roulette wheel and seeing where it lands. But there are ways to quietly stack the odds in your favor and they’re worth studying closely to work out that winning formula.

One of the most effective strategies is to study the successful work of others. Take a look at the products that took off and see if you can replicate them — imitation is a fabulous form of flattery and a fast-track to financial security.

So let’s do just that. We’ve scoured the web for stories of rags to riches in the tech-sphere. Heed them well and you might make millions.

Spotify

Spotify is less than a decade old but it’s already shaped the music industry in its image.

The streaming music platform wasn’t unique (hands up who remembers We7?) but its sleek and eminently useable GUI, coupled with a freemium payment model, won over consumers in a ways its competitors didn’t manage.

In many ways, the success of a company can be measured by the amount of legal wrangling it’s suffered – and Spotify has excelled on those terms, upsetting musicians as disparate as Taylor Swift and Thom Yorke.

In terms of profits, this music hub shows no sign of slowing. It’s a fixture of desktops the world over, and for good reason.

Looking4.com

Private airport parking business Looking4.com is an example of exemplary web design, and theirs is a site that continually draws consumers into its booking system.

The site is straightforward and easy to use, with a booking form at the top of the page, meaning users won’t have to scroll to find what they’re looking for.

Using evocative colors and snappy copy, this is a site that’s well worth a visit. It’s helped Looking4.com become one of the world’s leading airport parking companies.

Slack

Messaging services have always been well-catered for on the internet. From MSN Messenger to Facebook, the need to send funny videos of dogs has always been strong enough to sustain robust messenger sites.

But Slack is a little different. It’s a work chat app that fosters creativity and handles workplace segmentation more effectively. And the effort’s paid off – Slack is worth $9 billion.

We hope this brief rundown of tech companies has been helpful. Can you think of any that have inspired you? Then let us know in the comments below!