Well the first thing you need to know: Is there a market for my product or service? Its no good guessing here, you have to do the legwork and contact your potential client base to prove to yourself that your offering is needed. It will include telephoning people, knocking on doors etc. It is definitely a waste of time asking your family and friends - Dont bother - They are biased in the extreme!!
If you can work from home, do so!
If you must have business premises, try and get an easy in - out rental Do not sign a lease. You will need a way out if your business doesn't work. There are thousands upon thousands of start-ups that were totally convinced 100% that their idea was foolproof - So was the designer of the Titanic!!! I hope this helps some of you - Gina
Good advice in the most part, but in my opinion, if there's a single factor that holds small businesses back, it's working from home. Find a cheap, short-term, in-out lease and work from it every day.
The process of getting up in the morning, travelling to work, and being around successful business people all day is a massive psychological boost. It also helps with credibility where potential customers are concerned, and helps you to separate work from home which is very important, particularly if you have a family.
Good advice in the most part, but in my opinion, if there's a single factor that holds small businesses back, it's working from home. Find a cheap, short-term, in-out lease and work from it every day.[QUOTE]
I've had most of my business lately purely because I'm in an office - just being around the place gives me access to a market I would have never reached otherwise...
The classic example we see almost daily is people looking to set up restaurants/cafes with little better rationale that they can cook and 'like people'. This, of course, is the very reverse of a business model.
Key questions 'What do people want' 'How can I deliver it'?
Controling costs is important, but must be appropriate to your business, so saving on staff in a hotel, for example, will be counter-productive.
Always look at outsourcing for anything that isn't critical to your business.
The premises thing also depends on your businees and personal circumstances (For example if you have children & live in a 2-bed flat, the distraction level will be exceptional). Can you 'borrow' the corner of someone's office? Hot-desking might work etc.
Get out and be noticed. Get to as many networking events that you can manage to let as many people as possible know that you exist. Do not make the typical mistake of expecting work to find you as it simply won't happen. Join a local breakfast networking group which will give you invaluable training and will help you to gain new business. A great way for any new business to gain bread and butter work especially in a recession. Word of mouth referral will be invaluable when you start a new venture so by attending networking events you get to meet new businesses people, any one of which could become a new customer for you.
And for those that say you need to get an office I disagree. Home working is a growing trend in the UK and it has many benefits including the freedom to have your own lifestyle choices. If you decide to work from home you do have to have a strong work ethic and have a clear divide where your office and home are. With so many businesses folding around us, many people are going it alone so working from home is ideal for them. It won't suit everyone but it does work for many many small businesses.
Don't get stuck with advertising costs, make sure you have a realistic budget drawn up before you start trading and a marketing plan. Have a fixed budget set aside and make it work for you. The cheapest method is by networking so think very carefully about any paid advertising. You can very quickly end up spending lots of money with zero return.
Most important of all is to remain professional at all times and offer the best service and products that you can. Being one of the best at what you do will always attract new business and will help to build a healthy reputation.
Start thinking about how you can create a buzz before you launch! That way you'll have potential clients lining up awaiting for the day you open those doors.
Good advice in the most part, but in my opinion, if there's a single factor that holds small businesses back, it's working from home. Find a cheap, short-term, in-out lease and work from it every day.
The process of getting up in the morning, travelling to work, and being around successful business people all day is a massive psychological boost. It also helps with credibility where potential customers are concerned, and helps you to separate work from home which is very important, particularly if you have a family.
I've worked from home as a full time freelancer for close to 7 years and have had a very successful freelance career, working at home need not hold a person back at all.
Credibility is no issue ... I have great clients, regular work, and even some accolades such as this spring being featured in an internationally distributed Harper Collins design book about 'great designs for niche marketing' - visit my website if you want to read more about that
For many people it suits them to work from home and they don't want to separate family and work, in fact they literally 'need' to be able to have the two co-existing to ensure work-life balance.
It's quite common for people with children to work from home for this reason and as I said it doesn't equate to not making a success of things to do it this way. It all depends on individual preference and character as to whether they are happy and capable of combining work life with family life.
I drop my kids to school in the morning, work for six hours, go and fetch them again, spend a few hours with them, and then go back to work for a portion of the evening - I work from home so that I can merge my work and my life like that and I love it
Even before they went to school, I used to have them playing in the office with me ALL DAY long ... I did that for six years, worked evenings when they were sleeping to keep up with my workload (which has always plenty despite my 'working from home status') so even that didn't stop me building a successful design career.
What will contribute to a person being able to build a successful business is their own hard work and dedication to making it successful; not whether you are in external office or not.
I'm very pro-home working because the more cars we can get off the road the better to be honest and the amount of people opting to run their business from home is growing immensely.
Many successful businesses started working from home (The Body Shop, Vodafone, Friends Reunited ...) - in the early days it makes sense to save money and not move into a premises until you need to.
Too many people stretch their budget thinking that a premises gives them credibility and makes them seem more professional but in reality they end up overstretching on expensive premises which means they're having to earn enough to pay their lease costs before they even start making money for anything else. Depending on the nature of your business and how 'mobile/virtual' you can be, it's not necessary. Some people do prefer to have other people around them but there are ways of making that happen without needing to invest in a premises.
There are several co-working offices starting up in my area - where you can drop in and spend the day working with other creative types or business owners.
Networking is a great way to be around other successful business people without getting distracted by the permanence of an office environment.
Get together every now and then to work with another business colleague for inspiration and moral support. There are plenty of places with wifi where you can work away from home or even wifi-less, so you have one less distraction to deal with.
Working from home can and does work - you just need to be clear about what you want to achieve, your reasons for working from home and get clear boundaries both for yourself and others.
Keeping costs down is crucial when starting a business, that is why working from home is a good idea if it is feasible for you. You can also claim against tax for the proportion of your home that you put down for business use. Someone mentioned that it would be awkward if you have children; this is true, but what are you going to do with the children if you are out at an office all day? Being at home while you are working allows you to do other things that are necessary for day do day living too; like cooking, washing up etc. Having a dedicated place of work away from home also mean some time travelling to an fro - more expense and time wasted in travelling - time management is also important! Of course there are pros and cons to working at home, but if you can do it; it will be a huge saving in time and money for your fledlging business.
WFH or not is an individual preference I think, partly depending on circumstances...
I can (if I have to) but would rather not - I find the act of "going to work" so beneficial it's worth the money (for me) to have an office. I use the journey to plan my day (and de-stress on the way home). A little while ago when I was forced to work from home for 3 weeks I felt my work suffered, along with my home life...
I've also found that I've picked up some good clients because of where my office is, which I would never have known about any other way, so for me an office is fundamental to my business.
That said, if you CAN work from home then great - go for it!
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Priorities when thinking of start-up business
