Implementing the Business Model Canvas as a theoretical management tool for New Technology-Based Start-Ups

The focus of the present work is firstly to identify the specific conditions and problems faced by high-technology start-ups operating in online advertising on their way to entering the main market, and secondly finding matching solutions based on the theoretical management concept of business models. Applying these theoretical guidelines, recommendations are derived for high-tech start-ups on how to enter the mainstream market. The underlying management concept for dealing with the highly competitive environment and the changes New Technology Based Firms (NTBFs) are subject to is the business model. So far, there is no clear evidence about how the components of a business model can help NTBF, especially those operating in the growing e-commerce industry, building a profound strategy to find their customers in the mainstream market and to set the requirements for growing out of a start-up status. The intended contributions of this thesis therefore are to enrich the literature both on business models and high-technology marketing from a NTBF"s perspective; to provide managerial guidelines for entering successfully the mainstream market, after having survived the initial threat; to suggest an agenda for research on missing theoretical findings.A sample firm from the Rhine-Neckar Region, ADTELLIGENCE GmbH, aims to move beyond the start-up status. The findings of this work will shows whether the high-end technology company is on the right track or if changes to the existing approach would achieve greater success.