First of all, let’s start out with what a corporate accelerator is. A corporate accelerator is a specific type of seed accelerator that is typically sponsored by a profit-centred corporate organisation. In the same way that seed accelerators do, corporate accelerators support startup companies while they struggle through their early stages. They often offer mentorship, capital and office space, to assist the startup companies during their launch period.
However, in contrast to the more regularly acquired programs, corporate accelerators usually derive their objectives from the organisation that they are sponsoring. Objectives which can include the desire to establish a funnel for venture capital investing or the wish to remain close to some emerging trends.
So, in short, a corporate accelerator is a tool which is supplied by large corporations and is utilised by smaller, startup companies who wish to grow their company at a faster rate than would be otherwise possible. Through the discovery of new technologies which can help to bring newer initiatives to the market at a much quicker rate.
So How Effective Are Corporate Accelerators?
The answer is very if they are dealt the right cards and choose to play them wisely.
One of the major turn-offs for newly-founded companies when coming across corporate accelerators is the investment side of things. The last thing that a new company wants to do is spend money straight away. Their attention is more centred around building a clientele and creating a unique product with excellent selling points. They’re already spending enough money on these things, so the idea of spending more makes them uneasy.
Though providers of corporate accelerators are aware of this side and have their ways around it, they offer startups a deal that they can’t refuse. Putting across terms that provide a win-win situation for both the involved parties. They make sure that the new business is aware that a corporate accelerator will not only lead to more depth in the market but will also help them accomplish the things that they wish to accomplish faster – things like building a clientele and driving traffic to their site.
Some corporates even offer free versions of their accelerator program by ensuring that startups are aware that no equity is taken from them at any stage, which is sure to rid of the fear of spending money and investing too much.
As well as being largely customer friendly, corporate accelerators are an immensely effective way of getting a startup off the ground. Many corporate’s motives for starting up an accelerator program is more often than not to do with staying relevant. Thus meaning that if the colossal scale corporation that is providing your accelerator manages to stay relevant, then your startup will have an increased chance of becoming relevant too – simply because of the sheer scale of the provider of the accelerator program.
So, all in all, corporate accelerators are an exceptionally good means for startup companies to get their feet off the ground. They are in a lot of cases free through free programs (and if you consider the profits made from such a small investment) and are also a much less stressful way of expanding a business in those rough, early stages. Thus making corporate accelerators highly effective in today’s market.
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