It is generally agreed that we need more business start-ups. Small businesses are engines for economic growth, innovation and employment. We need more entrepreneurial activity and that means more individuals taking the dangerous, difficult and courageous decision to start their own business. How do you go about starting a new business? Well obviously you need a good idea. Once you have one I recommend that you ask yourself these questions:
- Am I good at this? Do I have the skills; talents and experience that will help me succeed in this venture? Make a list of your strengths and weaknesses. Does this venture play to your strengths? How can you compensate your weaknesses?
- Do people really need what I will offer? Who will buy it and why will they need it? If there is no customer need then the business will fail.
- Can I make money doing this? Once it is up and running will it make a good profit? If not, why bother?
- Do I have a business plan? Things will not go according to your plan but the act of making the plan helps you greatly. You will need a sound written plan if you want a loan or investment.
- Do I have the financial resources to get this off the ground? New businesses generally take more time and more money than you at first expect. Will you be able to build the business and cover your living costs for the period until cash flow is positive?
- Does my family support me in this initiative? It is important to discuss your plans with your immediate family and get their buy-in. It will be needed in the difficult months ahead.
- What is different about my business? Is it similar to other businesses or do I have something unique to offer? Why will customers choose us rather than the competition? It is more important to be different than to be better.
- What is my sales and marketing strategy? Who is the target market and how will I reach them? Can we test the sales proposition with some target clients before we go live?
- Do I have a support network of colleagues or friends who can help me and compensate for my weaknesses or lack of experience? Most successful start-ups are partnerships where there is a balance of strengths. If you do not have partners in the business do you have a network of contacts and helpers who can advise and assist?
- Is there a plan B? If things do not go according to plan is there a fall-back strategy for me personally and for the business? Am I flexible enough to adapt and cope with the vicissitudes of a start-up?
You need positive answers to most if not all the questions. Even then it will take enormous commitment and hard work to make the new venture a success. I am sorry to say that most new business start-ups fail. However, for those that succeed there are great personal and financial rewards. Above all the founder can relish the achievement of having created something of real value to the whole community. Good luck with your start-up!
Awesome .. i appreciate this
This is a great list! I would add that before launching and before hiring a web designer hire/consult a marketing person. Too often I get clients that call me after they have spent thousands developing a site that is not optimized for SEO or even communicating their message effectively putting them off to a less than stellar start.
That’s great advice. Sometimes I find with my clients they seem to not see the value in using marketing alongside their web or social networking efforts. What can we do to help convince them otherwise?
It is definitely something that more people need to understand. It is important to have the balance of marketing and technical expertise when launching a website. However, many of the web companies I have come in contact with do not push for the marketing involvement on the small businesses. It is a disservice to their clients.
I have taken on clients that have had to restructure their sites within months of completing them because the site was so unmarketable. Thousands of dollars wasted! I try to get in touch with clients before they start a website, but sometimes we just don’t know about them. I have contacts with several web companies (we refer business to each other) and sometimes that helps.
Thanks for your insight, Angela. I find the same to be true myself. A client I’m working with now is faced with similar issues with their small business and I plan to incorporate marketing into their web site design plan.
Learning from these hard lessons.
Find a good web designer to work the changes into the current site slowly to help ease the financial burden on the client.
Angela, thanks again for your advice.
你的博客都是老美在看啊，你不是在香港嘛？
Excellent post, this country needs more individuals looking to take a more active role in their financial future. Starting your own small business is an excellent vehicle to do so.
http://fs8.formsite.com/rndmarketing/form2/index.html
more thn enough .. it’s a valuable way to success :)
Very helpful seeing as I just started my own pop culture art business. Click my name to see it!!!
All great questions to ask yourself. The biggest question of all I think is how serious are you about starting your own business and if you really mean it (and can more or less answer positively to all of the above questions) then you need to fight for it. Don’t let psychological hurdles stop you from giving it your all.
Great questions! Numbers 4 and 5 were probably the most important ones to me. Having a business plan was important because it kept us on a track and we knew exactly what we needed to do. Number 5 was hard because it cost money to start any business, whether online or offline. An online business can be much cheaper to start but it definitely cost a lot of hard work, effort and sometimes a lot of money.
Thank you! These 10 questions are very helpful. I especially like your comment on “the founder can relish the achievement of having created something of real value to the whole commnity.” I believe getting the community involved makes all the difference. Like Covey says, “No involvement, no commitment.” All questions are very important to think on, work on and have yourself ready before get into any project or venture…. The 11st question: Are you healthy enough? Physically & most important mentally too.
I totally agree with you, Paul. I would only add that another great reason for having a good business plan is that it can help you in case you are trying to get outside funds for your business. Most lenders and investors want to see that you have a clear business plan before they invest into your business. Having a plan already drawn up shows them that you are serious about being successful and lucrative at your business. If you are going to show your business plan to potential lenders and investors, make sure that the figures you use are accurate, so your plan is trustworthy and realistic.