By Prasanna SR, Senior Director, Corporate & Services, Bengaluru & Team Step Up, India

With India becoming the third-largest start-up ecosystem and global hub for innovation, you can safely say the start-up ecosystem has had a remarkable year. In 2020, the start-up industry was just trying to hold on to the ropes after the big COVID blow. Fast forward to 2021, they climbed that rope with the fastest pace ever. According to a Business Insider article, last year saw the creation of four unicorns every month, with 43 Indian start-ups being valued at over $1 billion, surpassing the UK to become the third biggest unicorn hub. Additionally, 11 new-age tech firms went the IPO route as opposed to one and two in 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Indian tech start-ups also raised a record amount of capital from private equity and venture capital firms. Those investors pumped in $28.2 billion worth of tech investments this year across 779 deals, according to the information provided by the Asia private equity and venture capital intelligence, AVCJ. This marked a 200% jump in the capital compared with the $9.4 billion invested in 2020.

Indian tech start-ups also raised a record amount of capital from private equity and venture capital firms. Those investors pumped in $28.2 billion worth of tech investments this year across 779 deals, according to the information provided by the Asia private equity and venture capital intelligence, AVCJ. This marked a 200% jump in the capital compared with the $9.4 billion invested in 2020.

The success of some of the noteworthy start-ups gave hope to many soonicorns and to those who have just started their journey. If rumours are to be believed then, 2022 will prove to be an even busier and an even more incredible year for the start-up industry. Here are some of the trends as well as opportunity areas that will help businesses get to the next level:

Steady growth as opposed to spikes of highs and lows:

The enormous influx of funding garnered in 2021 was most likely the snowballing of the delays that happened due to the COVID lockdown. While the new, high-potential start-ups will continue to attract investors, the volume of investment will neither be as high as 2021 nor as low as 2020. We believe that 2022 will be the year when the fund utilization and subsequent impact will be seen. Investors will start reaping the benefits of the seeds sown by them. The right PR partner will help businesses use these developments as opportunities to drive conversations in the media—keeping them relevant in the eyes of their audience.

Attracting the interest of global investors /capital:

Not just the Indian but global investors and VCs have now realized the potential and power of an Indian entrepreneur. In the year 2022, we can expect many international collaborations to take place as everyone would want to be part of the Indian start-up super force and its journey from being the third largest to the largest start-up ecosystem. PR and communication can play an important role for those who wish to be noticed by the global investors. Driving growth stories and sharing forward looking ideas with the right media can get them the attention they require to reach the next level on their funding journey.

Expanding the job market:

Expansion is going to be the buzzword for the year 2022. The newly funded, the new unicorns and even the newly listed companies will be looking at exponential growth. It will help broaden the job market by giving opportunities to many candidates to be a part of their growth revolution. Start-ups can use this opportunity to market their business to potential talent. Incorporating the right communication strategy to position their organization as a great place to work will be the go-to approach for many businesses.

Innovation to become the answer for tackling adversity:

In the last one year it has become clear that humans can evolve and survive anything. Many innovative start-ups have emerged providing solutions to many problems faced by people/businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, the trend is going to continue as many new variants could still upend business as usual. However, the South Asian market will emerge as the new powerhouse of innovation with many interesting ideas taking flight this year. Media will play a pivotal role in amplifying this expertise and the potential of new breakthroughs, keeping the momentum high for the industry.

With so many new projected trends, communication will play a very integral role in positioning the start-up as a champion in their industry. Also, creative storytelling will hold the key to deciding which start-ups hold their relevance and recall with the customers. With shows like Shark Tank coming to India, there is a heightened interest and curiosity towards to the sector, which will continue to remain relevant through 2022. All in all, 2022 will be an interesting year for the startup industry.

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