by Debbie Fletcher
Growing up you often think about your future career – are you going to become the next David Beckham, maybe the next Steve Jobs, or even the next Mark Zuckerberg? Okay, you may not have thought about starting your own business but you’ve probably at least wondered what you’re going to do for a job. Maybe you’ve even spent time looking at sites like Jobs Today, hoping to find your dream job.
Why wouldn’t you think about running your own business? Having spent plenty of time working to obtain your qualifications and developing an understanding of whatever industry takes your fancy, take that passion and consider running your own business. Everyone who has ever founded a company has done just that – taken a passion, concept, and plenty of time – to make it happen and they’ve become successful entrepreneurs running businesses of all sizes in all kinds of sectors.
So, for anyone thinking about starting a business from home, here’s a brief guide. Bear in mind, you’re going to need far more than just these tips – there will have to be sacrifices and commitments that will put a strain on you and those close to you – but if it’s worth it, you’ll get the support you need to make this business venture a success.
1. Research
Just because you’ve got an idea, doesn’t mean it’s an original one. Do your research into the business you want to start and anyone that might be a competitor for your new company so that you can establish just how saturated the market already is and whether you’ve got a chance of prizing customers away from the established brands. Then, research potential customers by going out into “the real world” and speaking to people, finding out if it’s the kind of business they would be interested in and before you know it, you’ve worked out your target market (this may be males aged between 18 and 25 or it could be both males and females aged 40+).
2. Development and Planning
Having decided that your business can get off the ground, you need to come up with your product or service range and test them. The idea might sound great in principal, but you never know until you get out there and give it a go with genuine customers trying out your products or the service you have to offer so that you can see if it works, if it needs extra work or if it’s one for the scrap heap.
3. Legal Restrictions
Some businesses have restrictions placed on them such as retail hours or healthy and safety regulations, so it’s worth finding out any restrictions that may be put on the business before you go through all the hard work only to be held up by red tape.
4. Funding
This is possibly the most important factor in the whole process. Setting up your own business takes a lot of personal financial sacrifice until you start to make money. A lot of families have been broken by such pursuits and investments because the money has essentially been ‘gambled’ and when the business fails, lost. Make sure that you’ve explored every possible avenue regarding funding to get the business started without getting yourself into any financial trouble as this could help in the long run with development and marketing.
It’s never going to be as simple as “I want to start a business, this is how to do it,” you need to be prepared to make a lot of sacrifices along the way, both professionally and emotionally. New business owners will have to give up the time usually spent with family to get the business off the ground and this can put a major strain on the family. All startups have the potential to be highly successful, it’s just down to your own commitment and management style to make sure that it’s everything you want it to be.
Debbie Fletcher is an enthusiastic experienced writer, who has written for a number of amazing newspaper and magazine publications in the past. Specializing in business & technology, she knows a thing or two about the industry.
Photo Credits
Ambro | pakorn | freedigitalphotos.net | Courtesy of author
