Almost all startups pivot at some point. This we know. Since many people consider a new year a new/clean slate as well and a good time to reflect on where you’ve been/where you’re going, we decided it’s a good time to talk about the pivot.

We recently hosted an investor at one of our Online Insights who mentioned a unicorn exit from one of their portfolio companies. We  knew the founder. Very sharp guy who had majorly pivoted not long after said investor’s fund had invested in them. One of the partners had spoken at our Insights not long after the pivot and was livid: this was not what he had invested in.

Well, how often do investors mention that the ‘team’ is one of their top considerations when it comes to deciding to whom to write the check? Just a few short years following the pivot, the company had a serious unicorn exit. The founder also happened to be something of a subject matter expert, rethought the approach, did a major change of direction – and did we mention the company had a serious unicorn exit? Apologies, but we have learned from experience that one of the major always unnamed problems when it comes to why startups fail is that founders don’t listen.

Especially to their instincts, we’d wager.

We’re currently working with another company that just had a major pivot. Big. UGE! And brilliant, in our humble opinion. The founder is a tireless networker who spotted a major shortcoming when it comes to exchanging contact information at networking events. So, he wrote an app to help him with this problem that he was experiencing and began using it at events he attended. EVERYONE he encountered wanted the app, which he shared, went home, and proceeded to take the necessary steps to make it available in the app stores.

It went viral.

Globally.

A good yardstick for determining when and how to pivot?

As always, follow the pain point. Have you resolved it? Is what you’re building resonating with users? Are they willing to pay for it?

Or did you experience an A-HA! moment that changed everything and that could potentially fill such a gaping hole in the market, that, damn the torpedoes, it just has to be done.

Proof of concept always helps. As does a defensible moat, especially if there are already major players in the space.

Pivoting is part of the DNA of the startup world and could happen at any time. Always best to assess when you’re not too far down the road on the project.

Investors/potential investors and advisors might also have their suggestions for you, but keep in mind that they’re not always right, and they’re not always wrong. Always good to consider the advice, but at the end of the day, it’s the founder who is responsible for the direction of the company, right or wrong.

And there’s a world of difference between a pivot – and a wrong turn. Onward and forward.