Set your business up for success and nothing less with these 3 keys to a successful small business you probably haven’t considered.
Are you thinking of starting up a small business?
You’re not alone. Every year in the United States about 500,000 new businesses open up their doors for the first time. 2020, though, might be different. With the COVID-19 pandemic raging on, it’s not yet clear how many people have shelved their plans to start a business.
However, whether you want to start up soon or after the pandemic has died down, there are basics you must embrace and put to practice.
In this article, we’re sharing the keys to a successful small business.
Read on!
- Embrace the Fact That Odds Are Stacked Against You
Let’s face it: starting and running a small business in the U.S. isn’t easy.
The numbers paint a disheartening picture. About 20 percent of businesses won’t survive past the two-year mark. 45 percent will close shop within five years, and 65 percent won’t see a decade.
With stats like these, it’s clear the deck is stacked against you. Right off the bat, you know that the probability of your business succeeding is a toss of the coin.
Nonetheless, you need to embrace this reality. Let it sink deep into your mind. This way, you’ll know that you need to work twice or thrice more to give your business a fighting chance.
Along with embracing this fact, seek to understand why most businesses fail. Learn from their mistakes. Try to do things differently.
- You Need a Clear Business Plan
Here’s a secret hiding in plain sight: you need a detailed business plan.
Even when they know the importance of drawing a business plan before starting a business, some entrepreneurs go ahead and start out with this vital document. If you do the same thing, there’ll only be one outcome: failure.
A business plan is your guiding light. It identifies important information, such as the amount of money you need to start the business, your sales and marketing strategy, and more.
Take your time to write a detailed business plan. If you don’t have the time or expertise, you’re better off hiring a small business consultant to help you.
- Adequate Startup Capital
You need adequate capital before starting up. We can’t stress this enough.
Don’t be like those entrepreneurs who resolve to start a business even when they know that they don’t have the required startup capital. They assume, often wrongly, that their business will start generating a profit soon after opening up.
What happens when the business doesn’t generate revenues as expected? They keep burning cash and inevitably run out of working capital.
When you start out with enough capital at hand, you won’t have to worry about running out of cash should the business fail to generate revenues according to your projections.
Do all you can to raise capital: bootstrapping, getting loans, seeking investors, and crowdfunding are all methods you can use.
Don’t worry about losing your investment. In fact, you could earn much more, especially if you decide to sell the business in the future. Check out these business valuation methods to understand how your money can grow in value over time.
Use These Keys to a Successful Small Business
Starting a business is the easy part. The hard part is putting in the work and ensuring the business becomes successful. With these keys to a successful small business, we’ve made the job a little bit easier for you!
All the best and keep reading our blog for more small business tips and advice.
