10 top tips for starting up a business
Inspiration
Alexandra Poole, managing director and senior business coach for the iNNiTi effect, shares her top tips for effectively starting up a business and advises on how to navigate the pitfalls most new businesses fail into when first starting out.
1. Set your vision
Clarify your purpose and long-term goals to help you to effectively identify and communicate with potential customers, employees and other businesses you’d like to work with. You should use this vision for direction when making key decisions.
2. Define values that underpin your purpose
What is it you stand for? Why do you do what you do? Done right, these will establish a sense of authenticity and are particularly important for differentiation in highly competitive industries.
3. Get to know your potential customers
What do they think? What do they feel? What keeps them up at night? Putting yourself in the customer’s shoes is critical for product/service design. After all, they define value!
4. Understand your competitors
Who else is out there and what do they offer? How do their capabilities compare to yours? Are you likely to face strong competition from alternative products/services?
5. Define target sectors and locations
Concentrating your efforts on potential customers in specific sectors and geographic areas can be a good way to more effectively use your resources and minimise costs in the early days of start-up.
6. Refine your offerings
Using all the information above, make any changes based on data and what you’ve learned. Be clear on what will set-up apart, why will Customers come to you? Make sure you’ve identified your unique selling point.
7. Turn your vision into action
Breakdown your vision by building a strategy focused on critical actions that will drive you towards your one, two and three-year goals – plan for success!
8. Measure your results
Set three to four quantifiable objectives and track them on a monthly basis. It’s a good idea to set key performance indicators that are both lagging (measuring what happened) and leading (identifying if you’re on the right course).
9. Focus on marketing
Build a networking strategy and push out key messages that support your business and core values. Use a variety of channels that your audience are likely to engage with – consider what they read, where they go and how they communicate.
10. Utilise available support
There are many grants and funding options available for start-ups. Visit your local business growth hub and speak to businesses that have walked in your shoes; take advantage of what is on offer!