Business

At The Startup Line…

Written by Chloe Harwood

The hallmarks of a really successful business are down to a few fundamental things. The problems, many would argue, can be solved as and when the business encounters problems during the course of its lifetime, but this isn’t the case. The fact is that lots of issues can be solved way before that, in fact, at the outset of the company’s life. The trials every small business faces could be ironed out by doing a few small things at the very beginning, way before any product is sold…

Fix Your Money Handling Methods

Simple, isn’t it? As soon as you’ve got an effective way and means to contain your money, you can utilize it in the most appropriate ways. Poor bookkeeping is disorganization in its purest form, and it can be a bigger problem once you’ve got your business up and running and you’ve got no structure in which to hang your business on. Making the most of bookkeeping programs or accounting software will do the organizing for you, so you don’t need to worry about it!

Address Your Customer Base

While you may be aiming for the stars, the base you need regarding word of mouth, positive feedback, and trial and error can be far better managed when it’s done locally and on a smaller scale first. There are marketing agencies like Boise Local Marketing that can help to establish a more organic marketing process, but it is one piece of the puzzle. Generating grassroots support, in any fashion, requires a lot of work upfront. It’s a big part of maintaining loyalty, and this is certainly what you need when you are taking another step up the ladder of business expansion.

Fix Your Recruitment Strategy

We make the mistake of hiring someone purely to fill a seat, and while this can be serendipitous, the fact of the matter is that if we are really struggling to find the right people for the roles, the hiring process needs to be ironed out. Your recruitment strategy needs to be fixed, or you need one in place, and this can consist of looking to hire in your regional pool, or by keeping your ear to the ground for up and coming talent. But by preparing how you source out talent, this can be an effective blueprint to stick to.

Learn About Your Competitors

This is one of the biggest concerns. If you have no idea what you are going up against at the very beginning, it could mean a slippery slope downwards to stopping your startup. Learn the market, but more specifically, learn about your competitors. They are the ones providing the same service, so you need to find ways to make them as different to you as possible. The best methods to find out about these competitors? Research, network, and repeat!

At the very start, your business can benefit from ironing out potential problems down the line by one simple thing, focus. It’s not beneficial to go in all guns blazing. Prepare and lay out the groundwork first.

About the author

Chloe Harwood