Justin Kan, a successful entrepreneur and investor, had a piece of wisdom to give to beginning entrepreneurs: “Startups don’t die, they commit suicide.” Every fresh entrepreneur should know this: your business is not going to succeed in a miraculous way. Luck has nothing to do with business; it’s all about persistence and hard work. Without it, your startup will be doomed to failure.
We don’t want that to happen, do we? Each startup has tons of potential for growth. It doesn’t matter what your business is; the following 10 tips are useful for every beginning entrepreneur:
1. Clarify your mission. Then, make it as simple as possible
You had some goals before you founded the company, but now you need to clarify all those goals and join them in a comprehensive mission. In a business plan, the mission statement is the part that captures the essence of your goals, as well as the philosophies that stand behind them.
It should reflect the following aspects of your business: the type of products/services you offer, the quality, pricing, customer service, potential for growth, implementation of technology in the activities, and the connection with experts, suppliers, employees, and other businesses. As you can see, that’s a lot of information to compress into a brief mission statement of few sentences. That’s why you need to make it as simple as possible!
2. Focus!
When you have a clear mission that will drive your actions forward, it will be easier for you to stay focused. Do not get side-tracked, no matter how attractive certain opportunities seem. If you get an idea to start a new business, but you still haven’t developed this one, maybe you should delay the new adventure for some time. You need to focus on one business if you want to make it really successful.
3. Preserve your passion
Businesses are like relationships. You start them with full steam ahead and you can’t think about anything else than this thing you’re really passionate about. However, with time, you’ll realize that the initial spark is gone. In moments like those, you need to remind yourself how hard you worked for this and what your goals were when you started. It’s important to start a business you’re really passionate about; that’s the only way for your interest to last.
4. Be really smart with the way you use social media
People always want to find out about new products and services through social media, so you can use that inclination to present your startup to them. However, it’s important to have a social media marketing strategy. You can’t just set up few profiles and start spamming the feeds of your friends and followers with useless updates. Make a plan and make sure that every single update helps you achieve your company’s mission.
5. Assemble the perfect team
You have to be very careful with the recruiting part. Don’t call your friends to give them a job just because they need it. You have to recruit motivated people with great ideas and skills that will drive your company forward.
6. Work on your communication skills
You will write emails every day and you’ll give many presentations that are supposed to motivate your people. Verbal and written communication is important when you’re an entrepreneur.
7. Discover the price point
There is an entire scale of possible prices for your offer. The ideal point is where your audience needs and your profit goals meet. You cannot set a minimal price because you do need the profit, but you have to make sure the price you offer is competitive on the market. You can determine the price point by analyzing the competition and surveying your target audience.
8. Use Quora and Reddit
Many entrepreneurs neglect these platforms because they need Facebook is all they need. Quora and Reddit have the potential of presenting you as an industry expert. People ask tons of questions, so you get a chance to showcase your knowledge and help them solve their problems. Needless to say, you’ll recommend your products and services along the way.
9. Measure the results!
Many beginning entrepreneurs make the same mistake: they only measure the expenses and income. You should measure everything! You just started a new promotional campaign? Analyze the results to see whether or not it was a worthy investment. Measure your popularity on social media, the visits on your website, the success of your discount codes, the effectiveness of the new employees, and everything else that can be measured.
10. Increase your productivity
If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you have to learn how to do more with less. Every minute of your working day is important, so stay away from distractions and focus on the job. You will inevitably face budget issues, so you’ll need to rely on your creativity in order to use the resources you have in the most productive manner.
Are you an entrepreneur who just started the journey in the tough market? You’ll definitely benefit from the 10 tips above!
This article is written by Mary Kleim. She is a content writer for Assignment Masters with over 5 years of experience in the custom writing industry. She is also specialized in social media marketing, and she’s always ready to share tips that help business owners and marketers to succeed in their mission.
