Complete 20 Steps to Starting a Successful Business Anywhere

Complete 20 Steps to Starting a Successful Business Anywhere.

Steps to Starting a Successful Business… Indeed, starting a business can be so intimidating and discouraging. Most especially if you have not done one before. You will always sit and ask yourself, “Where do i begin“.

At this time confusion and fear becomes you friend. You begin to wonder if success will ever become your friend during this long run.

Well, this thought runs in the mind of few business starters. Some people just want to start anyhow; they don’t want to waste their time thinking about successful steps to starting a business most especially when the money is there.

The belief that “risk taking is a way to success even at the initial stage” has enveloped the minds of these people.

Every business starter who wants to be successful in his business should think of some wise steps to be taken before jumping into the business. But before looking at the list of these steps, let us look at some business information that may be vital to you as a starter.

What is Business? – Find Out Here.

A business is an organization or enterprising entity engaged in industrial,commercial, or professional activities. Businesses can be for profit entities or non-profit organizations that operate to fulfill a charitable mission or further a social cause.

A business is also the organized efforts and activities of individuals to produce and sell goods and services for profit.

Now that you know what a business is, you now know that the way to be profitable is setting up a business. But how do you start one?

Some successful steps to be taken before starting up a business but a successful one.

1. Conduct a personal financial check-up.

You need to know where you stand with your finances so you can start your business with a clear understanding of what it will take to support you and your family.

If you are going to start a full-time business, it is importance you have enough money in savings for at least 6 months’ worth of expenses.

2. Do your research:

Define your target market and your competition.   Find out if your market wants what you offer, and if your competition is giving it to them.

Whether your business will be on-line or off, you want to do your homework before you get too deep into things.

You want to know who the biggest players are, the size of your market (not anyone who might buy, but how many are likely to buy), etc. Competition is a good thing. It means there is a market there.

Make sure you can differentiate yourself and not just by being cheaper.  Competing solely on price is a recipe for disaster.

3. Prepare a written business plan complete with financial statements.

You need to write a business plan.  It does not have to be a formal business plan, but you do need to write it down.  Competitive analysis, market analysis, financial planning and forecasting are skills you need.

4. Air your idea out with a trusted person

When you are an entrepreneur, you don’t live on a lonely island because nobody will ever realize just how much your hustle put in on a daily basis.

Your friends who work a 9-5 job won’t understand how your business means the world to you.

Since entrepreneurship can be lonely, make sure you have someone you can air it out with. Whether it is your girlfriend or boyfriend, mom or dad, or just a mentor you can trust, in order to grow, you need to be able to have a sounding board along the journey.

5. Be Creative

Always be looking for ways to improve your business and to make it stand out from the competition. Recognize that you don’t know everything and be open to new ideas and new approaches to your business.

6. Do not procrastinate.

I’ve heard some people advise would-be business owners to not move ahead with their business until they have investigated every last detail of the business they want to start, and are absolutely sure it’s all going to work and be profitable.

The problem with that approach is that it leads to procrastination. No one ever really has all the pieces in place even after they’ve started their business.

Yes, you need to research the market, have a rudimentary plan in place and do things like get a tax id if needed, register with local officials, if required, etc.

But if you try to make everything perfect before you launch, you may never get around to establishing the business at all.

7. Select your office space or work area.

Whether you are working from home, an executive office suite or a stand-alone office, you need to plan where the best place to set up a work area or shop is.

Obviously this is more complicated for a retail business that needs a store-front in a prime location than a service business you can run from your home.

Do you have young kids at home?  You better plan for childcare and a place to go when you need to talk on the phone without background noise.

8. Develop your personal brand (create a website) 

It blows my mind how much time people spend on social media promoting themselves yet they don’t have a website that gives people more information or a place where people can get in contact with them.

Whether you do it yourself or hire a professional to create your website, it is easier and cheaper than ever to have a great-looking interactive presence on the internet.

The next time you go into a business meeting, you’ll be amazed how much more impressed people will be by your professional website when you create one.

9. Get up early from bed

When it comes to business, the early bird catches the worm. You can actually be playing offense rather than defense, which will allow you to work on growing your business.

Make sure to put your alarm clock on the opposite side of the room, which will force you to get out of bed and not hit the snooze button. Make sure you do some exercise within 5 minutes of turning off your alarm clock to truly wake yourself up.

If you look around you will realize that successful business men and women all over the world wake up early to have a successful business day.

10. Stop boozing.

If you are truly passionate about entrepreneurship, you will quickly understand that the weekends are the most productive time to get work done. You literally can put in 20 hours of work on the weekend to grow your brand.

This isn’t going to happen if you are going to the bars on Friday and Saturday night. First off, you are going to drain your bank account from buying shots for all of your buddies. Secondly, you are not going to be productive when you’re hung over.

Start setting your alarm clock and for 6:30 a.m. on the weekends. Put in a full day of work. You won’t have any regrets about missing a night or two out when you’re in your 30s and have a million-dollar business.

11. Have patience.

The issue with many people in this digital age is impatient. They just don’t want to be patient. They expect results yesterday.

In order to grow a business, you need to be patient for the long run. Do not think about where you want your business to be in a year; think about your goals for 10 years down the road and how you are going to execute to make all of your ambitions come to fulfillment.

If you are a starter, what will differentiate you as an entrepreneur is patience. Make sure to move fast on getting matters done but be patient for the long-term gains.

12. Spend Less

Do everything possible to be frugal with your money. You never know when the economy will turn south or when your chief client or customer will drop off. If you are spending lavishly, you won’t be well prepared for tough times.

Start eating more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and eat out less. Stop buying clothes at most expensive malls.

Every single money is so important when you are starting a business. The real winners in business are smart with their money.

13. Become an SEO and paid advertising expert. 

Do you want to know a more efficient way to grow your business than attending outdated networking events? Rank towards the top of Google so people will contact you directly for business inquires.

Whether you just graduated from law school and plan on opening up your own practice or you are selling customized dog collars, SEO and paid ads can literally help any business.

There is no college degree or class you have to take to become an SEO or PPC expert. You just have to get your hands dirty, read articles and watch videos.

If you are establishing a business, you need to be well versed in this area so that you can generate leads and sales online each and every day.

14. Open a business checking account, and get a credit card dedicated to the business.

You want to keep your personal and business finances separate.  Even if you are a sole-proprietor (when you do not file an LLC or corporation) you want to open a separate bank account and use a dedicated credit card.

Even though these will be a personal account, keeping everything separate will save you a lot of accounting and legal headaches.

15. Get any licenses, permits

Get any licenses, permits, etc., from the state, county or city, that you may need, and check if you need a license to run a business from your home.

The laws and regulations are different in every state and vary greatly by industry.  Your Secretary of State’s office or local score chapterare a great resource to see if you need any special licenses to open your business.

16. Learn from others.

Find mentors, join groups with like-minded people, learn everything you can about your industry and what it takes to get from where you are to where you want to be.

Attend industry conferences. Take training courses when they are available. Buy courses offered by experts.

You’ll save a tremendous amount of trial and error by learning from people who have been there before.

17. Never stop learning and trying new things.

What’s profitable now won’t necessarily be profitable next year or 10 years from now. So, don’t let yourself fall into the “this is the way I’ve always done things” rut.

Keep your eyes and ears open for new things. Are there newer or better ways to market your products and services? Are customers asking for something you’re not offering? Is there a different type of customer you should be targeting?

Get answers by reading everything you can about your industry and listening to your customers.

18. Understand the Risks and Rewards

The key to being successful is taking calculated risks to help your business grow. A good question to ask is “What’s the downside?” If you can answer this question, then you know what the worst-case scenario is.

This knowledge will allow you to take the kinds of calculated risks that can generate tremendous rewards.

19. Be Consistent

Consistency is a key component to making money in business. You have to consistently keep doing what is necessary to be successful day in and day out. This will create long-term positive habits that will help you make money in the long run.

CSN Team.