Starting Your Start-Up
Times are tough. The United States is undergoing significant economic contractions when it comes to jobs and times aren’t going to get any easier for the foreseeable future. If you are unemployed, this is the time to take your destiny into your own hands. Whether you are a plumber, an attorney, or a retail worker with a great idea for starting your own business, there is no time like the present to start your business venture.
Starting a business can be an extremely time consuming process, but it is not as difficult as one might think. The greatest amount of time consumed will be in drafting your business plan, registering your business, and obtaining necessary permits, licenses, and promoting your business. Still, the difficulty of navigating through these tasks can be minimized by keeping a few key principles in mind.
First, have a good business partner to share the burden. Two like-minded people who are ethical, hard working, and match each other in terms of personality and complement each other in terms of skill can do far more than one person working alone. A good business partner can take a share of the start-up responsibilities and run with them, reducing the start-up time line from what could be several months to just several weeks. Second, create a business plan. A business plan is necessary to guide the development of your business since it will outline what your business will do and when, your organizational structure and employee roles, your marketing activities, financial resources, business location, and your growth plans. Some financial institutions and investors will want to see your business plan before providing you investment money or loans to get your business going. It is critical that you have the assistance of a professional in helping you to develop your plan.
Third, create a timeline for your operations and do not waver from it unless for emergency reasons. You should expect to establish a reasonable timeline because the establishment of a new business can take a while. Be reasonable, but meet your timeline goals so your partners, investors, and other team members do not become discouraged. Fourth, you need to network. Approaching neighbors, friends, family, and other businesses in your area is essential to developing your business. Some of these networking sources may not deliver any business to your doorstep for months. Still, as people hear about you over time, opportunities will start to present themselves to you. You should also consider joining forces with sales and marketing professionals who can help drive business to your doorstep. Fifth, learn how to manage your business finances and legal obligations so that you can maximize the services you provide to your customers at a competitive rate. Sixth, take advantage of your local community’s government resources. Several cities have small business contracting plans that will help drive business to your doorstep.
Keeping these six principles in mind will help you develop a successful business enterprise, in good times or in bad. Though times are tough now, there are opportunities for your business to grow and thrive. The demand for locally produced products and services has risen dramatically in America as more people realize that they need to support small businesses and investment in their own communities. Whether you are unemployed or underemployed, working part time and seeking additional funds for yourself and your family, now is the perfect time to launch your small business idea. Even if you don’t have a lot of money at your disposal, there are investors and potential partners who would love to get involved and help you to succeed. If you need assistance with your business plan, contact us to see how we can help.
