As a business owner, the first year of your business is very crucial. Oftentimes, you're trying out new things, taking risks and trying to make sure that the business stays afloat. This can be stressful and uncertain. Surviving the first year of business can be very challenging.
Practices that can help you survive your first year of business.
Although doing all these won't guarantee the total success of your business, it could be very useful to help save and preserve your business in its first year. These steps include:
•Conduct proper research: Never enter a business without making research on any and everything about the business. Find out the market value of your product or service. Do people really need it? Will people be able to pay for it? What are the competitions and alternatives? What are the risks involved? Find out if ultimately, you'll be able to make profits to take the business to the next stage.
•Write a solid business plan: After conducting proper research for your business, use the information acquired to create a proper and foolproof business plan. A business needs to have a written business plan as this helps you to be accountable and stay on track. Your business plan should include
- Ideas for your business- Description of your business, name of the business.
- Mode of operation
- Your marketing objective and strategy
- Sales strategy
- Management structure
- Financial Projections
Also, make sure that your business plan is flexible such that you can rewrite parts of the document to fit changes in the market and the business generally.
•Focus on customer acquisition and great customer service: One mistake a lot of business owners make in the first year is trying to figure out everything at once. A first-year business owner's major focus should be finding people that are willing to buy their product or service. Perfecting your product or service is important but ensure it does not affect your search for customers. Don't cap at "trying to find out what works best". Ensure that you're finding potential customers while fine-tuning your business.
•Networking: Surrounding yourself with the right people at the start of your business is very crucial. Establishing business relationships with other people in related fields exposes you to more resources and more potential customers. You can reproduce results from other businesses by identifying the best business practices and implementing them. You can also be updated on new business trends, generate business leads and build great connections. This strengthens your business and pushes it forward.
•Prepare for losses: The honest fact is that a lot of businesses don't make a huge profit in their first year. Oftentimes, you have to set apart some money that you can use to fund your business for a period of time before the profits set in. Taking risks is a major part of building a business and so you must be prepared that everything might not go as you plan. Ensure that plans are put in place to keep the business afloat before it starts turning out great profits.
•Create useful content: One major promoter of your business success in the first year is online marketing. Creating and pushing out helpful and engaging content keeps people informed about your business - what you do, what your vision is and what you have to offer your customers. Good content makes you Top of mind in a business. It keeps you in the memory of both your customers and would-be customers alike.
•Measure your Growth: One major use of your business plan is to help you measure the growth of your business. Knowing where your business is at a particular stage and comparing it with your business plan is very important. Also figuring out the practices or engagements that yield the best result and the ones that don't is important. It helps you know what's best for your business and what you should focus on.
One other very important thing to survive your first business year is to have a very healthy routine and important life skills. Some major examples are:
•Time management.
•Discipline.
•Great communication skills.
•Geat People skills.
•Hardwork.
•Humility.
Being a good entrepreneur is good but having good life skills helps you ultimately sustain business relationships. Sometimes, people choose to work with decent human beings who have great values and are not just good business owners.