starting a business essay

starting a business essay

Key Considerations for Starting a Successful Business

1. Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Business Startups

The first question concerns the nature of the small business startups that are being made. New businesses continue to be established with food service, like fast food franchise businesses, still being popular. But small business start-ups appear in many other businesses and service organizations such as consulting, telemarketing, computer programming, personal services, and computer software industries, as well as with products. In fact, the addressable market created by changing technical horizons with new product technology continues to stimulate large numbers of business startups. Finally, interest in newly established companies also occurs in low, moderate to high technology areas. This increasing interest in a variety of small business cases will continually keep this area alive well in the foreseeable future.

A major trend that has taken place in the American business environment has to do with the dramatic increase in the number of business startups in our economy. What used to be an unattractive and esoteric career field is now an entry that is evolving into one of the major opportunities for personal expression and financial rewards in our nation. Very few of these new business startups will become major corporations, but they will still become an important economic component of our economy. Additionally, this venture into entrepreneurship has the positive effect of giving more individuals a sense of pride and identity with their business because more often than ever they will be spending their working days doing things they want to do and in which they believe. As a result of this interest in small businesses and entrepreneurial firms, some interesting questions have emerged.

2. Market Research and Identifying a Niche

Tailor the potential market target group to characteristics in terms of age, gender, education, income, occupation, family size, benefits sought (greater security, convenience, lower cost), loyalty, frequency or volume of purchases or usage, whether customer numbers are growing or declining, and why. Create a profile of the customer. Through personal contact with initial customers, gather information about buyer attitudes, reactions, how they feel about the existing product or potential alternatives, and what they would like to see. Use this information to potentially develop a customer incentive program. It may also be beneficial to study the nature of the industry, the area or region that the business is operating in, and the state and stage of this industry. Ensure that the service-product benefits provide a hedge over competitors.

Market research is an integral and often overlooked aspect of a successful business. Knowing exactly what you are starting off with in terms of market size, growth potential, potential competitors, potential target groups, chances of success, proper pricing, appropriate marketing strategies, necessary skill sets required, possible problems and solutions can save significant misdirection and resources. Research does not have to be complicated nor expensive. Total Business Solutions can assist by coaching you and pointing you in the right direction. It should be remembered that no amount of research is iron-clad and that business owners need to ensure that they have the necessary experience, enthusiasm and stake in the game. Research should be presented clearly, quickly and at low costs, especially if one knows the niche and service offering that potential competitors have. This is where primary research can come in, helping businesses to custom-make niche services and products.

3. Creating a Business Plan and Financial Projections

Business ideas need to translate into viable business plans. Too often, exciting ideas fail to convert into realistic business plans that can be implemented. Although it is the ambition of entrepreneurs that inspires their business creations, mere vision on its own achieves little, and there lies a gap between vision and implementation. Documents, research, contacts, preliminary orders, discoveries, etc. may all address this in differing ways, but whatever else you now know that you need, you will also need a concrete financial structure within which the whole enterprise can exist and flourish. But few amongst us are natural, intuitive financial planners.

Financial projections: In addition to your business plan, you should prepare financial projections that consist of a profit and loss account, a balance sheet, and a cash-flow statement. The preparation of these is covered in detail in the set of financial projections.

Business plan elements: A typical business plan is expected to contain the following elements: – Introduction – Is my business idea viable? Define and quantify your quantities, your customers and your competition, your markets and sales and marketing plans – Management and team – Action plan – Risk and barriers to entry – Financials

In addition to being a useful tool for you and others within your business, a business plan is a very simple way to explain to others what you do. In particular, it will be read by all stakeholders, particularly potential future investors and lenders.

Your business plan is a central document for you and your company. Even if you are not actively fundraising, a good business plan is a useful tool to have in place as it steers and guides company operational policies and procedures. Indeed, we strongly encourage all companies to produce a business plan for their business and to revisit and revise it as their businesses grow and evolve.

4. Legal and Regulatory Considerations for New Businesses

Developing an appropriate business structure is an important step in starting a new company. Once you have decided to start the business, you will need to choose a business structure. As well, consider whether it is appropriate for your requirement to start a corporation, a partnership, a sole proprietorship, or a cooperative. Each type of business structure has different tax implications and limited liability protections. In order to make an informed decision, it’s important that you have a basic understanding of each type of business organization.

Before starting the business, you should consult a reputable business lawyer, accountant, insurance agent, and tax consultant to determine what your legal and financial obligations are. In general, your legal business obligations will include licensing and registering your investment and financing opportunities, protecting your rights and those of investors, fulfilling any tax obligations, and complying with any regulatory requirements imposed by the nature of your business. If you fail to meet these legal and financial regulatory obligations, you could face foreclosure, fines, or loss of property or assets.

Including Legal and Regulatory Factors

5. Building a Strong Team and Effective Marketing Strategies

The marketing of the business product or service usually accounts for the majority of the implementation of the business plan. That is, most of the milestones that occur in the business are the result of marketing action. As a result, a major part of the time of the business person is usually spent on market-related activities. In fact, in some businesses, the business person might spend all his time doing market activities. Because of this, then, if a business person is going to be successful, then at least a minimal level of market success is needed. The marketing of the business can be divided into four basic strategies: market education, marketing to individuals, advertising, and finally marketing logistics. Each of these strategies deals with getting individuals to act to support the business.

In order to improve the chances of starting a successful business, it is important to establish a strong team. This doesn’t always mean a large team; it might just mean paying particular attention to regular report-writing in order to understand what the business is doing. Other ways include establishing a network of business-related experts. The person does not need to employ overpaid high-level consultants when cheaply hired business-related experts are often willing to provide free advice. Altogether, the various insights will make the business person feel more confident in what he is doing. A strong team can combine business-related people both inside and outside the organization.

Building a strong team