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Starting your own business can be something of a dream for many people. Being able to grow your own company from nothing and make a living doing something you hopefully enjoy and are passionate about can be extremely rewarding, and it can also be exciting to think about where you may be able to take your company in the future. Being an entrepreneur can mean a lot of hard work, but the fruits of your efforts all come back to you rather than going to an employer, and for many people, this is really motivating.
If you are making the leap into being an entrepreneur and you are looking to start a venture where you will be handling everything yourself (at first at least), from management through to the delivery of the products or services you want to offer, then it may feel quite daunting. Most people who become solopreneurs are experts at the thing their new business will do, but may not have much, if any, experience when it comes to the behind the scenes stuff like business administration. If this sounds like you, then don’t worry – it is definitely possible to do things right and gain the business skills you need as you start your business. Here are five tips:
1 – Find Places You Can Get Advice
You are probably going to want advice about all kinds of things, from registering your business through to online marketing. Think about who you know who can offer sound advice in these fields, and also what is on offer in your area by way of assistance for new startups. Your bank may also have an advisory service for small businesses. There are plenty of places online too that can offer the information you need, so compile a good list of resources and references, and you should feel better equipped to tackle things.
2 – Make a Business Plan
Having a business plan can help you get up and running quickly by breaking down what you’ll do, what your expected outcomes from the things you’re putting time or investment into are, and how you will measure how things are going. It doesn’t need to be an overly complex plan to begin with, and you can start with fairly short term plans, but learning how to make a business plan will make you start asking yourself the right questions and will guide your actions.
3 – Learn the Laws Around Your Location and Sector
Making sure you are doing everything properly is difficult if you aren’t sure what the laws are around the type of business you plan to conduct. Make sure you’ve researched both industry and area specific taxes and laws, including things like laws around selling things internationally, if for instance, you are going to be running a retail business and want to be able to accept orders from all over the world. You should also learn about things relating to online law and your website, e.g. laws around data protection if you will be doing any kind of business online.
4 – Have a Marketing Strategy
For most brand-new ventures, the hardest thing is getting the word out and attracting the very first customers or clients. Have a plan for how you will reach people; for instance, do you plan to sell things on a large existing platform like Amazon or Etsy? Do you plan to do any paid online advertising? Is a good website with strong SEO important for your business? These are all areas you should be thinking about.
By doing your research and planning in these areas at this stage, you can be in a more confident and knowledgeable position as you start setting up to do business as a new solopreneur!
