Essential Do’s and Don’ts for Building A Successful Business

It takes a lot of work in today’s economy in order for a business to succeed. There are many do’s and don’ts that can help (or hinder) the growth and acceptance of a newly launched business. Here’s a few do's and don'ts to help you avoid early mistakes and lead you to a prosperous venture.

The DO’s

SAY HELLO TO A FRUGAL LIFESTYLE:  The first step for an entrepreneur to take is to immediately start living a frugal lifestyle. Starting up a business requires capital. An entrepreneur who wishes to avoid taking out loans will need to build up their own funding. Living an economic lifestyle means cutting down on luxuries and learning how to eliminate unnecessary expenses.

KNOW THE INDUSTRY: Before an entrepreneur jumps into their own business, they will want to learn exactly how it operates. This means that they should take up employment at a similar business where they can build up experience.

WORK TO YOUR STRENGTHS: Successful entrepreneurs have created prosperous businesses because they worked to their own strengths. It is difficult to learn a whole new trade from scratch, so magnates should make it easy on themselves and work with what they already know. This provides an advantage over competitors. If they build up their own talents, entrepreneurs can outperform others in their industry by utilizing their expertise.

SUB-CONTRACT: This is more applicable towards businesses that are manufacturing a product. Hiring out low-cost subcontractors will allow businesses to create a high quality product that is manufactured by professionals. It also divides up the labor so that other parts of the company can focus on different aspects. For example, entrepreneurs can have one team dedicated to manufacturing while the rest of the workers focus on sales and marketing.

TEST AND ADJUST: Testing a product is the next step to be completed before the business expands. One way is to sample the product or service to a small audience and seeing how it is received. Any feedback can be used to determine what the next step should be. If there are improvements needed, then the product can be re-worked. If the is met with approval, then it’s time to look into expansion.

HAVE A  PLAN TO GET THE WORD OUT: Plan marketing and communications to let people know that your services or products exist. You cannot assume that people will automatically flock to you. There are simple and cost effective ways you can build your marketing in the early days, check out MarketingSuccess Tips for Startup Budgets. Networking will also help businesses acquire powerful business relationships. These can be advantageous in the long run when further expansion or mergers are possible.

The DON’TS 

DON’T GIVE UP YOUR DAY JOB: It is important to never leave a stable job until the startup is completed. Many people have found themselves in financially awkward situations because they left a secure job to pursue a business venture before they even had a plan. While it is good to take risks, these need to be tactical risks. Quitting a job without a safety net is unwise and highly discouraged.
DON’T MAKE IT ALL ABOUT MONEY: Another mistake made by some entrepreneurs is that they do not carefully consider what business they are about to go into. Don’t make your business idea all about the money. Of course, it is not a bad idea to aim for a prosperous market, but entrepreneurs do not want to get stuck in a business that they do not enjoy. Running a business should be as much enjoyable as it is profitable.
DON’T RISK IT ALL: Any risks taken should be calculated risks. This means that entrepreneurs should never risk entire assets. Many unfortunate business owners have made a crucial error that left them with little money after their startups failed. Starting a business is risky and one should always have a safety net in case something was to happen.
DON’T GO HIGH RISK: Entrepreneurs should not try to champion the most difficult industry for their first business venture. It is okay to start small and work upwards. That way, you don’t have to invest too much capital. When you start small, you are leaving the rest of the field open for improvement. Once you have secured a stable startup, then you can begin to grow and scale your success.