Strategic Signaling in Dynamic Technology Markets: Lessons From Three IT Startups in Spain

How do technology entrepreneurs use signals to help transform their ideas into viable businesses, regardless of their resource limitations and the complexity of the markets in which they operate? One way is to attend to the use of signals as a market communication strategy. An analysis of the experiences of three new technology firms in Spain looks beyond the traditional resource-based view of the firm to explain how an entrepreneur's actions can be interpreted as valuable market signals to mitigate uncertainty and increase the likelihood for success for the new venture. Highlighting the value of resources and actions as signaling elements, the study reveals that in highly competitive and dynamic markets, understanding how to signal essential information to customers and other stakeholders can be as important as the technological properties of the actual product or service.