Ready to start your own business? A business adventure is a great way to tap into your entrepreneurial spirit, work in a field that inspires you and assemble a team of passionate individuals who believe in what your company is doing in the marketplace.
However, business ownership is more than just being your own boss, setting your own schedule, doing what you love and working on your own terms. A lot goes into the establishment of a successful company, including many often forgotten elements that can make or break your upward trajectory.
A large number of businesses never seem to make it off the ground for a number of reasons, but there are many things you can do at the outset to better ensure your own success. Read on to discover tips to help you get your business started off on the right foot.
1. Connect With Your “Why”
Before you take on the tasks of email marketing strategies and supply chain processes, it is important to pause and take a moment to consider why you’ve started your business in the first place.
Consider the passions that drove you to put in the time and energy to start an enterprise, and make sure that what you are doing reflects your core values and beliefs. When you are really connected to the mission statement of your company, it gives you a firm foundation with which to make other choices about the way you do business.
2. Start Where You Are
You don’t have to make gigantic leaps at the start of your business. In fact, sometimes it is better to start small or take more sustainable baby steps that won’t put you or your livelihood at risk until you have a more fleshed-out strategy.
Unless you have enough funding to cover all of your startup costs as well as several months of your own personal expenses, it is wise to maintain your day job and work on your entrepreneurial endeavours during other times.
This doesn’t mean you can’t put in a great deal of effort in the beginning. Rather, it ensures that your business journey has a more stable base to build upon as you make big business decisions and determine what works and what doesn’t right away.
3. Write a Plan
A business plan is not only a good idea for any would-be business owner, but it is also one of the most effective ways to generate a clear picture of some of the logistics that will invite or inhibit your company’s success along the way.
Sit down to write down a summary of who your company is, what you offer, the status of your marketplace, key elements for viability, growth goals and the details of your financial situation.
It can be helpful to compose a few forecasts in the beginning that may help to guide decisions in a variety of circumstances, from potential shipping issues, customer inquiries, marketplace trends and possible roadblocks you may encounter in your first few months.
It is wise to revisit your business plan every few months and make adjustments as your enterprise evolves. Your objectives may remain the same, but your process may need to shift as consumer behaviour, the market and niche demands change over time.
4. Stay Flexible, Yet Consistent
A closer look at even some of the most notable and successful businesses around the world will show that change is the only constant.
What worked 20 years ago in your industry may not be a successful business strategy today. Keep a constant eye out for ways that you can improve your marketing efforts, manufacturing processes, customer service communications and new audiences that may be interested in your company.
While you should maintain a sense of evolution, it is important that your brand identity remains consistent and stable in order to establish consumer trust. Constant rebranding, differences in brand language, inconsistent graphics or colours and always changing products can deter customers and make you appear inconsistent or untrustworthy.
5. Research Your Niche
Market research is an essential part of every business launch, as it gives entrepreneurs a better idea of what their competitors are up to, what existing customers have come to expect in an industry and what could set your own company apart.
Look at the ways your competitors conduct themselves as a brand and with their audience and consider the ways their audience and yours overlap. Pay special attention to any spaces waiting to be filled, and brainstorm ways you can take up that space with your own company.
6. Assemble a Team
Whether you’d prefer to be a one-person establishment or you need to hire a team of employees, find support wherever you can get it.
Business ownership is not for the faint of heart, and it can be all-consuming at times. Get set up with the right tools and team members you need in order to maintain a level head and get your business off the ground at the same time.
Lean on mentors, organizations, family members, partners and fellow business owners as much as possible to keep your head, and your company, above water when the going gets tough.
7. Look to the Professionals
Successful business owners know a thing or two about the journey to profitability, and many of them have shared their secrets for budding entrepreneurs to digest and use in their own endeavours. Rather than try to figure everything out on your own without any guidance, save yourself some time and effort and learn what the professionals have to say about where you are in your journey.
There are a number of books, podcasts, courses, retreats and conferences full of information to help small business owners, like you, achieve success, and these pieces of information could end up saving you many personal resources in the long run.
8. Make a Budget
Businesses are rarely profitable from the outset, but without a clear financial plan, they aren’t likely to be profitable very soon either. Make sure you always have a clear picture of your finances, from how much money you have starting up, your approximate marketing costs, the cost of labour and materials and a solid fall-back plan should an emergency come up.
When you handle your finances in the beginning, make sure to set yourself up for success in the long run as well as in the short term. It is never a good idea to borrow money from creditors, personal savings accounts or retirement accounts in order to fund your business.
If needed, locate potential investors and come up with a solid pitch in order to acquire the funding that won’t put you into personal debt.
9. Take Managed Risks
While risk-taking is a non-negotiable part of small business ownership, these risks should be as calculated and controlled as possible.
It is sometimes necessary to make moves in your marketplace while semi-blindfolded, especially as you are starting out, but these moves shouldn’t be made at the expense of your finances, reputation or wellbeing–as an individual and as a company.
Healthy, managed risks may include putting yourself out there by talking to friends and family about your new business, promoting yourself to strangers and introducing yourself to potential colleagues, mentors or investors.
You may find that some small risks, such as offering free or bundled promotional services, pay off in the long run provided they don’t cut severely into your bottom line, but these should be reserved for portfolio-building, client-building and reputation-building tasks while you cast a wider net for your company in the beginning.
10. Establish a Presence
In order for your target customer to find you, you need to put down roots in a solid space. In the digital age, this most often means an online presence in the form of a website and social media accounts across various platforms.
As you set up your online presence, make sure that you have a solid brand identity in place. If necessary, or plausible, get feedback either from professionals or those you love about what they think works for your brand and what might need to change.
Take this feedback and determine an ideal logo, colour scheme, font selection and illustrative elements that will adequately convey your brand’s mission statement, objectives and energy to potential customers.
11. Continue Learning
Business ownership is an ever-evolving role. The more committed you are to learning both the craft of the industry you’ve chosen and the craft of good business leadership, the more successful you are likely to be in your chosen marketplace.
Commit to ongoing education about the changing trends, new and emergent technology and how to improve your business practices to make things better for both you and your customers.
One of the best sources of information is your audiences themselves. Make sure you are always attuned to the people that keep you in business and check in on their needs and feelings about your company as time goes on.
If you can better meet your customer’s needs, they are a lot more likely to become loyal to you and your brand, and your company has a better chance at remaining on the map of your industry for years to come.
Paisley Hansen is a mother of three and a small business owner. She spends her time caring for her children and taking her business to the next level. When she’s not busy working or taking care of her kids, you can find her at the gym or curl up with a good book.
