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Thinking of Starting a Business

Lynne Rawlinson

22-03-16

If you are thinking of  starting a business here a few things to think about before getting started.

  1. Start with Why – Why are you thinking of starting a business? What do you want from it? Wealth, lifestyle, more time with your family and friends, more holidays. Many people think that businesses are started to solely earn money and build more wealth than they could achieve working for someone else. For some this is true, but many more people do it to get a balance in their life. Starting a business is bold, courageous and takes a lot of effort. But you’re working lots of hours already, for someone else who you believe has outdated inefficient processes!! So it’s not always about making huge sums of money. 
  2. The 4 P’s of Marketing – Product, Place, Price, Promotion- Once you know why you want to start your business review the 4 P’s. What is the product or service you are offering to potential customers? Do you have a market place to sell to I.e. Is there a gap in the market for it? Or are you looking to replicate something but with you own unique twist to it? Once you have a product/service and you know you can sell it, What price does it need to be? Is it high end? Or is your offering in a cost conscious market? You then need to think how you will promote the product/service. Over the past 5 years so many more channels have opened up for you to promote your business – Facebook, Twitter, instagram, Linkedin etc – so ensure you include all of them in your plans. 
  3. Write a plan – Start with a Business Plan, this is generally figures based and at the very worst ensures that you know what you’re letting yourself in for! But as important is a strategic plan for your business, which goes into more depth the steps above and includes who will help you to make your business a success. This plan should be living, breathing and visible on a day to day business so everyone understands what you are trying to achieve and how you are going to achieve those goals.