Writing Application Rejection

Thank you for reaching out to me regarding my application article. After proof reading it and submitting it, I was certain it was well researched and thought out in its construction. 

Here is my full article:

              Tesla, Amazon, Twitter, Facebook, Airbnb… What do these names all have in common? They are certainly all extremely large companies taking in hundreds of millions of dollars, and even into the billions. They are all popular companies, ubiquitous even. Their owners are all fabulously wealthy, on the verge of some of them being obscenely wealthy. Really, though, that isn’t the point. Many businesses share those traits and have been around for hundreds of years. The commonality these businesses share, and other businesses like them, is that they are all relatively new companies. In the business world, this used to be called entrepreneurship.

Now, in the new lingo of business, such businesses are called ‘startups’. However, not every new company is the same, with some businesses being formed by major corporations through splitting up or diversifying what goods or services the owner company can profit from, and so on. So, some new companies follow more closely the definition of startup than others. One particularly good definition can be found here¹, where startups are described as a young company founded by one or more entrepreneurs to offer a new good or service to the market. They typically use business loans, seek out venture capitalist investors, grants, etc., to fund getting the concept off the ground.

So, what does it take to get into starting a business for oneself? Who is most successful with startups? …And more importantly, do you have what it takes to start up a startup of your own?

 

What It Takes

1. Plan

The most absolutely necessary element in forming a startup business is first to have an idea or concept of a product or service, unless you plan on making money selling nothing, but even that’s an idea. Once there is a concept you believe people will want, it gets a little more complicated. Now you need to plan for how much it will cost to generate that concept, whether it is a good or service. If it is a product, or a good, then you need prototypes or models to prove the concept and estimate costs for your business plan. The business plan itself, from the warm and mushy stuff like vision and mission, to the cold, hard mathematics. A plan should detail who, what, when, where, how, and one that goes unanswered sometimes, considering some of the failed products that have left the market – why. What are you selling? Who are you marketing it to? When can it be marketed? Where will it be marketed? How much will the production and marketing cost? And why do you think people will desire this product or service?

2. Money

Quite possibly the largest part of the equation of the startup, is getting the funds to…well, start. There are multiple means of acquiring the funds, from saving up your own money or begging wealthy friends and family for startup money, to grants², venture capitalists, and angel investors. There are some great grants for new small businesses offered by both the government and private organizations. The trick is they can be difficult to find, and you are convincing them to give you money for free, so prepare yourself to write up convincing reasoning when applying (follow the link in the above sentence). Much like grants, venture capitalists and angel investors take a fair bit of convincing as well. Venture capitalists are companies, and representatives of companies or investment groups seeking a certain percentage of ownership in your potential company in exchange for startup funds. Angel investors are much like venture capitalists who do not necessarily represent any company or group but are individuals with a high net-worth seeking investment opportunities, or depending on the individual, simply to be generous. Investors can be sought out by posting ads or searching for them on the internet³.

3. Enter the Marketplace

To enter the marketplace, certain criteria need to be met, some possibly even before seeking startup money. First, in order to have your business in the good graces of the authorities, you need to have your business registered. There are plenty of good guides⁴ that can be used to figure out what kind of business to register as (‘register’ can mean a few things, depending on your business approach). When you are able to conduct business legally, a marketing strategy complete with a website and social media outreach, as well as a physical location for producing or selling the good or service, including any retail location if applicable.

 

Who Is Most Successful?

There seems to be a prevailing idea that to have a startup, one needs to be in the relatively young age bracket of mid- 20s to mid- 30s. Really, anyone with the cognition to come up with a product, a plan, and funds, can be the founder of a successful startup business. According to the numbers⁵, the most successful startup owners are in their mid- 40s. In fact, the wildly successful startups that are multimillion dollar enterprises with notably young owners are extremely rare. Even the likes of successful companies like Apple and Amazon didn’t have peak success until their owners were in their middle age. This trend has been attributed to business experience, or even just work experience. Still, even with those numbers, investors in startups tend to seek younger owners because they are willing to accept less money for a greater percent share in the company. Also, the less money an investor puts in, the lower the financial risk for the investor. Of course, the average age of successful startup owners varies depending on the industry. The best path for particularly young or inexperienced entrepreneurs is to research the industry or market sector the potential startup will be in, and to seek the advice of other business owners.

 

Do You Have What It Takes?

Can you take the time to methodically plan and strategize? Can you find the money or investor(s) to get the idea off the ground? Can you be honest enough with yourself to know when you need help or if the idea isn’t all you previously thought it was? Like anything in life, flexibility is a good trait to have, and to not be afraid of seeking help is even better. Just as it has already been mentioned before, almost anyone can create a startup company and succeed, its just a matter of how much work it takes. Some people need to work harder than others, and that’s okay. It takes all kinds to make a world. Don’t be afraid of failing and going back to the drawing board.

1. Fontinelle, A. (2020). What Exactly Is a Startup?. Retrieved 3 April 2021, from https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/12/what-is-a-startup.asp

2. Smith, A. (2021). 2021 Ultimate List of U.S Small Business Grants | Bench Accounting. Retrieved 3 April 2021, from https://bench.co/blog/operations/small-business-grants/

3. Find Investors & Raise Capital | StartEngine. (2021). Retrieved 3 April 2021, from https://www.startengine.com/raise-capital/

4. Haskins, Esq., J. (2021). How to Register a Business. Retrieved 3 April 2021, from https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/how-to-register-a-business

5. Azoulay, P., Jones, B., Kim, J., & Miranda, J. (2021). Research: The Average Age of a Successful Startup Founder Is 45. Retrieved 3 April 2021, from https://hbr.org/2018/07/research-the-average-age-of-a-successful-startup-founder-is-45

Here is your response: 

Thank you very much for your application to join Bunny Studio Writing. After careful review, we regret to inform you that we cannot approve your application at this time for the following reason(s):

Hi Shawn,

Thank you for your submission; we greatly appreciate your effort. Unfortunately, we have found the following issues in your deliverable:.

Issue #1: Grammar and punctuation issues throughout, such as misuse of punctuation seen in “Who is most successful with startups? …” and the improper use of plural/singular as seen in “To enter the marketplace, certain criteria need to be met...”

We trust our feedback will help you improve the quality of your work and achieve professional results.

If you have any questions or comments, please visit our community page: https://help.bunnystudio.com/hc/en-us/community/topics. Our Quality Control Team is ready to provide you with personalized feedback and actionable recommendations so you can improve the quality of your files.

Please note that QC related queries will not be addressed through our Support email. Thank you again for your work,

The BunnyStudio QC team for Content.

If you're like most of the professionals that apply, you worked hard to complete the test project and we appreciate your effort. Bunny Studio Writing is a small group of professionals and less than 2% of all applicants are accepted.

We know that you will find other venues that will allow you to grow professionally, as well as many clients that will benefit from working with you. We very much appreciate the interest you have shown in Bunny Studio Writing. We hope that you will accept our best wishes.

Sincerely,

The Bunny Studio Writing team

P.S. If you'd like to try again, please let us know. We may be able to reconsider your application.

Unfortunately, there are a number of concerns I have with your response email and criticisms therein:

Issue #1- There seems to be improper wording and incorrect usage of punctuation at the end of the clause notifying me that there were issues in my own document. Namely, "...we have found a number of issues in your deliverable:. ." The syntax appears flawed by using the incorrect form of the word, "delivery." There are three possible issues with the usage. 1) It is meant to say, "delivery," and the adjective form of the word was used. 2) The noun usage was kept to create an odd sounding, archaic formulation. No one speaks or writes like Jeeves, saying, "The post will receive any and all deliverables, sir." 3) The usage is a jargon word used to reference works. Such jargon won't be familiar to people first applying to your service. Consider more general non company specific terminology.

The punctuation error is the placement of a stop, or period, after a colon. A colon is used to end a phrase or thought, and introduce the next related thought to expound on the thought ending in a colon. A period is rightly called a stop. It neutrally ends a clause at the end of the sentence. To place a period immediately following a colon interrupts the purpose of the colon. 

Issue #2- The direct quote you used is a simple question followed by an ellipsis both to avoid starting the next sentence with, "And," and to denote suspensory pause at the end of a list of questions. Was it the space? Tell me the space doesn't need to be there. Does the ellipsis need to be removed? Say it needs to be removed. If you are willing to take the time to quote directly, then take the time to be specific in the critique of the example. If the ellipsis is the punctuation that was misused, say, "Misuse of ellipsis," not a vague mention of, "Punctuation."

Issue #3- This example is a non-example based on the ignorance of the reviewer. It is stated by your reviewer that, "To enter the marketplace, certain criteria need to be met." This time, you say there is a singular/plural disagreement. I call these issues noun/verb agreement personally, and there is no issue with the noun/verb agreement. I would certainly hope the people you hire know that the word, "criteria,' is plural. "Criterion," is the singular of that noun. Using, "Needs," instead of, "Need," like I'm sure you're suggesting I should do. 

The Greek root, "Krites," meaning, "to judge," with the noun forming diminutive suffix, "-ion," forms the singular noun, "Criterion." The female suffix, "-ia," forms a more broad, abstract noun, suggesting a plural form of the singular, or a broad category related to the root word. 

You can get away with vague negative timbre descriptions to shoo away Bunny Studio Voice applicants. Such vagueness and even unfounded response to Bunny Studio Writing applicants, shows a glaring lack of care for the language, simple bias, or manufacturing reasons to not accept applicants to keep numbers at your coveted 2%. I recommend that if you are not taking applicants at this time, it ought to be said to potential applicants before getting people mired in the muck of dealing with your support pages. I'm trying to make money at this. Time is money. So far, you have wasted my time. 

Regards,

Shawn