How to Run a Business, Step 1: Have a Niche
What is a niche? It’s essentially what you do. It’s what the business does. Whether it’s an online shop or a brick and mortar store, you need to have something that makes your business stand out from the others. A niche gives your business direction, purpose, and uniqueness. When I say “Niche”, I’m talking about something specific regarding the product/service you will provide for people. For example, if I wanted to open up an online Etsy shop selling handmade soap bars (like this one), my niche would be handmade soap bars because that is where my focus would be – making handmade soap bars! You may think this sounds very obvious but it isn’t as common as you might think in the world of small businesses & startups…I have seen many businesses fail because they didn’t stick with their initial idea or had no idea what they were doing which in turn made them lose interest in their own project leading them to eventually give up on it completely. The evolution of business usually starts with an idea; an idea to do something different, something that hasn’t been done before. Or maybe you have a product or service in mind but aren’t sure if it will be successful so you want to try it out first by selling it online, through your own website/shop just like I mentioned above. It’s important that when starting a business, whatever you do is for the sake of your customers and not for the sake of profit because profit won’t come unless your customers are happy. It is a “win-win” situation.
How to Run a Business, Step 2: Have a Passion or Focus
Having one niche (focus) doesn’t mean it has to be all encompassing though. Just because you only sell one type of product doesn’t mean you can’t branch out and sell other things, but it should be in the same category. For example, if my handmade soap business started selling homemade bath salts that is fine, but I would still want to focus on making handmade soap bars for the most part even though I am selling bath salts too. Having a niche and being passionate about what you do will make or break your business. If you aren’t passionate about what it is that you are doing then don’t expect people to be either!
How to Run a Business: Step 3 – Start Small
As with any start-up company, starting small is a must when trying to grow your business into something larger than life itself…like Google! Starting small gives you time and space to work out any kinks in your “business plan” without risking losing too much money or too many customers. Starting small gives you time to learn from your mistakes, adjust your business plan and make improvements that are needed. Starting small is a sure-fire way to keep the doors of your business open for longer.
How to Run a Business Step 4 – Be Prepared For Failure
This may seem counter-intuitive or even contradictory but it isn’t if you put in the effort and take the steps necessary. If something doesn’t work out, step back and take some time to think about it before giving up altogether. What went wrong? What needs to change? Why did it fail? What changes do you need to make in order for it to work this time around? It’s important that you take the time and effort needed to analyze why something didn’t work. Only then will you be able to make changes that will lead your business into a successful one.
How To Run A Business Step 5 – Start With a Plan
“Having a plan is like having an insurance policy.” – Anonymous Entrepreneur If your business involves selling products or services, then there is no way around it: You must have a plan! Your customers expect you to have one, they depend on it. I’m not talking about just any old plan either; I’m talking about THE PLAN! The Plan aka The Business Plan should outline what your product or service consists of and how much your potential customers would be willing/able/interested in paying for it. It should also include what makes you different from everyone else who does the same thing as well as give details on how much money you need in order to get the ball rolling and where that money would go (to whom). Having a detailed business plan for any type of start-up company is essential because without one crucial information can be overlooked which may result in failure…or at least delay success.
If you want to start a business, do your research and be prepared for the bumps along the way. Research your niche, identify who your target audience is and learn how to reach them. Provide value for this group of people that you are trying to get in touch with because if not, why would they buy from you? Understand that mistakes are an important part of any business; what matters is how quickly (or slowly) you learn from them. Finally figure out whether or not it was just a bad idea altogether and if so, move on! Don’t waste time on something that isn’t going anywhere…it’s better than spending money on something with no foreseeable return.
I hope this post has helped! If it did please share it with others using social media via Facebook/Twitter/Google+ or using one of the other buttons below 🙂
