Although you are probably really excited and enthusiastic about starting your own business, and no doubt you have a mountain of plans and ideas to put in motion, it is a good idea to take time and calm down before you go at it like a bull at a gate. You have a steep learning curve ahead of you that can either go up or dive down. Ensuring that you head in the right direction and that your new business adventure flourishes can be down to performing a few very simple steps early in your venture.
#1 Draw Up a Business Plan
One of the first things you should do is to draw up a business plan. This will help you work out what your business needs and its progression, as well as define some important benchmarks that can help chart performance. Your business plan should include vital information such as what your business will do, how much you will be thinking or expecting to pay for startup costs, running costs, supplies, and rent.
Of course, in order to get this information, you are going to have to perform in-depth research. The more accurate your figure work is, the better your business will run as you will know what to expect, and there will be fewer unpleasant surprise expenses. Your business plan, however, should not just be about your outgoings but should also include how much profit you are expecting to make and the number of sales, whether they will be products or your services.
#2 Get Funding
With your business plan in hand, you will be ready to seek the funds that you require to get your business off of the ground, and you have various different ways of going about this open to you.
- Business loan – You can apply for a business loan. Any loan provider will want to see your business plan before they make a formal offer to you regarding the amount of money you are seeking. You will also have to satisfy other criteria, although it doesn’t necessarily follow that your application will be successful even if you tick every box. But don’t worry too much, as there are other options open to you.
- Crowdfunding – You can set up a crowdfunding website in order to gain sponsorship from members of the public in order to provide you with the funds that you require. However, as encouragement and a general thank you to those who invest, you may want to provide them with a special gift from your business when you are up and running.
These funds will not be released to you until the whole amount is reached, so you will not be drip-fed money. Should the final amount never be reached, those that have invested will get their money returned to them – so it is risk-free for them, and you will have to seek an alternative to raise the required funds.
- Encouraging investors – As you have a business plan in place, you may decide to seek investors to help with your business funding or sell shares in order to raise the capital. You should, however, be aware that you are relinquishing a little bit of control of your business with each share sold, and if an investor owns 51% of your business shares or more, they will have more say and control of your business than you will.
In addition, you need to make sure that you comply with any laws or regulations relevant to the country you are trading in. For instance, SOX is one area you will need to understand. If you have never heard of this, then it is crucial to the running of your business that you discover what is SOX compliance before you start trading.
#3 Rent Premises or Opt for Remote Working
You will also have to decide whether you are choosing to run your new venture from designated premises (so all of your workers will be working with you under the same roof), or whether you are choosing to go a cheaper option and have them work remotely. This can be so much cheaper as you will not have to pay business rent to a landlord or pay for your employees’ utility bills.
However, you will have to invest in your cybersecurity to ensure that your business and the data it holds stay safe and supply adequate communication links between yourself and your workers as well as between the workers themselves. This is because when working remotely, your employees could feel very alone, unsupported, and cut off from their work colleagues, which can strain your business and its future success.
You may also like to read
CPA Networks: Finding the Right Offers for Your Niche
Fueling Your Business: The Advantages of Switching to Gas Energy
The Difference Between A Fair Market Value and A Blue Book Value
