A step-by-step guide for entrepreneurs covering business planning, market research, funding strategies, and solutions to common startup challenges.
The following is a guest post from my bloggy friend Taylor McKnight on behalf of Executive Speakers Bureau. Interested in having a guest post on my website? Click here for my guest post submission form.
The Startup Blueprint: Critical Foundations for Business Success
One of the biggest challenges that entrepreneurs face is turning an idea into a successful business venture. While market research can set you on the right path, some challenges are hard to anticipate given the dynamic nature of consumer trends and industry trends. This piece provides a step-by-step guide on starting a new venture, identifies common challenges entrepreneurs face in their journey, and concludes by suggesting solutions to these obstacles.
Getting Started On Your Business
1. Develop a Business Plan
A business roadmap is the starting point for all aspiring entrepreneurs. A business plan will include details of how you will set up, run, and expand your new venture. Potential investors will look at your business plan to gauge whether it is a wise choice to invest in your idea. This is where it should be a priority to make your entrepreneurial idea marketable on all fronts for this is when potential funds can be put up for your business idea.
2. Conduct Market Research
Market research reveals the opportunities available for entrepreneurs to convert their ideas into feasible business ventures. Conducting research is an excellent way to gather information about potential clients and competitors in the industry. Such information allows you to unearth unexploited opportunities which can offer you a competitive edge over other players in the industry.
For example, when looking at competitors you can see the routes they have taken in order to become successful stable businesses. The client portion comes into play when thinking of what type of business you would like to create and exactly how far you believe it can grow. It also depends on what kind of business you would like to open, like if you established a marketing company and needed clients to function properly. This can also be in terms of consumers not only purchasing services but also products.
3. Funding Your Venture
Market research can give you an estimate of how much it will cost you to actualize your ideas. In most cases, you may need to borrow from financial institutions or liaise with friends and family to meet your capital requirements. This is where you may also need to weigh out the competitor routes to create company sustainability. When comparing routes of potential competitors make sure to evaluate what kind of publicity or business moves they have made. For example, did they use a third party company to promote them and if so how much was the plan they purchased from the corporation?
What Next After Starting Your Business
Building Networks
Once your business is up and running, the next step is to build your professional network. An excellent professional network will propel your startup to the next level by helping you attract and retain customers. Build and maintain a professional account on social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook to boost your venture’s visibility. Additionally, attend seminars and workshops to learn tips on how to run a business successfully. You can even connect to individuals specifically to what business route your idea correlates to and therefore create relationships to people in a similar field. This could lead to long term investors putting up money for your business or even speakers coming to talk to you for assistance.
Challenges Facing Business Startups
1. Capital Financing
Access to capital ranks as the biggest obstacle facing startups. You will need funding for product development, marketing, furniture and fittings, and software procurement. Furthermore, cash flow issues tend to impact startup businesses more than established ventures. As a result, such companies may struggle to pay staff salaries and engage in aggressive marketing during the early stages of establishment. The aggressive marketing especially comes into play when penetrating the market and therefore making an effective and impactful footprint on the business field of whatever industry your company will be in.
2. Poor Marketing and Sales Strategies
A critical mistake that venture entrepreneurs make is undermining the power of marketing in the early stages of their business. Relying on word of mouth and not hiring a dedicated sales team is a recipe for failure. However, this again is when capital comes into play as you will need money to hire individuals to assist in this matter. Just make sure not to stretch your funds to thin when expanding.
3. Poor Day to Day Management
Capital aside, poor management ranks as the top reason startups fail within the first two years of business. Inexperience and poor decision-making on inventory management and customer relations can be the downfall of a promising business venture. There are priorities in each company and learning the actual plan of how to make a business a success is ways to conquer poor management.
4. High Levels of Competition
No matter how unique your idea might be, your competitors are always quick to adjust their strategies to ensure they don’t run out of business. Failure to differentiate your business from your competitors can lead to slow growth and the company’s eventual collapse.
Solutions to Challenges
Lending institutions consider startups as risky investments and will, in most cases, shy away from providing funding. Entrepreneurs can work around this problem by developing a solid and convincing business plan. Secondly, the best way to handle competition is to differentiate your products and services to ensure you have a competitive edge over other industry players. Thirdly, hiring competent staff will vastly improve decision making leading to good business management. Lastly, have a dedicated sales and marketing team that understands your business environment.
