Speak of entrepreneurship. The big world dream ,financial freedom ,becoming your own boss , being in control of your financial destiny all of a sudden your troubles are wiped away.
Unfortunately things do not work that way right away .Furthermore it can take months or even years before you become profitable. Amazon and coca cola are prime examples.
In todays fast paced world where products become obsolete in a short period of time , a sharp rise with new companies like yours on the horizon.
Swarming huge profits being made in certain growth companies and market industry leaders.
The dot.com bomb is proof . Many of those start-up ventures blew up .
So You have to be innovative and forward thinking, you don’t have to be a genius to make a fortune . However you must be a sharp thinker ,an early adopter .
If you are a person that is rigid and feels as if you have to be right all the time you are only going to grow so tall.In the business world growth requires discipline and a willingness to listen.
If you take a look at any businesses that survived during the periods of depression you would see that they are disciplined.
Let us look at a few of their strengths.
- Reputation
- reliable products
- good product servicing
- above average sales organization
- Good union and personal relationships
In other words it takes lots of components to keep the wheels rolling pre depression post depression or even at a period of time when the economy is booming.
Oh we must not forget competence.Competent management produces satisfactory results ,an incompetent ceo ,management produces unsatisfactory results.
So therefore you have to know when you are getting in your own way.
There is no I in team plus you are going to need good team players at the helm in order to grow your brand.
In addition to that it is hard for a newcomer to bring forth worth while products , services and establish networks.
So yes there is a steep mountain to climb as neither of us are an exception to the rule.
Every establishment that I know of loves to bring in revenue,loves beefing up their bottom line. But before you see a profit there are some things you need to consider.
You can take an aggressive approach and invest heavy into
- research and development
- products services
- Low cost products
- new products that more than balance off older lines when they become obsolete
- develop newer products that are at least as profitable as the older lines
Amazon took the get big fast approach.They were unprofitable for a long time but look how big they have grown and how much market share they have taken up ?
So right now at this point of starting out you need to balance and establish yourself.
Honesty and reliability is going to play a major role . Do you get it ?
You are young and a lot of big fish are out in the ocean.
These big fish are the leaders in their respective industries ,they have the resources and enough man power to give you nightmares.
Let not your heart be troubled because I have some more tips down stairs.
I am a relatively new business owner too but luckily I started my car detailing business without a penny .
But before I share the rest of my tips I want to encourage you to make some comments in the comment section below.
Starting a company is one thing but running efficient is another.
These are some things that you need to take into consideration.
- Loans
- payroll tax
- Hospital levee
- inventories
- Rents
- mortgages
- legal expenses
- amortization
- equipment
- Financing
The list can go on and on but you see what I am talking about.
When you are starting out on a small-scale you might be able to get away with managing on an individual level.
If you want to grow, you have to start hiring qualified people .Take a look below to see a list of some of the people you are going to need.
- Management
- sales organization
- researchers
- scientist
- Presidents
- Accountant
- Suppliers
- lawyers
- chemist
- mathematician
Be aware that each team member needs to work as a cohesive unit and be willing to
- innovate
- submit to disciplines that require growth
- challenge itself,examine and re-examine what is going on to see if what is being done is the best way forward.
Also you cannot be rigid because the world that we live in is changing at a fast pace.
You have to be strategic and kill what you eat.Let us not kid ourselves, scaling can break your business if you eat more than you can chew.
An example of this would be acquiring equipment that the company has not earned the income to pay for. Rule of thumb is to expand products and services when the business is producing the sales to cover such cost.
You can be lean and effective. Too much overhead can drown you too.
Sales are revenues but the cost of doing business is what you want to keep an eye on too.
So maybe you can work out a good deal with suppliers so that you can create a broader profit margin between the cost of producing the product and the sale .
Here are some keys to more success
- low-cost producer
- cost control
- Good marketing
- research
- servicing
- product improvements
Back this up with further sales and advertising to bring existing customers back wich will in turn bring you a boat load of new customers.
Now ..you do not have the equity like a wall mart to achieve economies of scale through backward integration.
Backward integration is the process of merging or purchasing of suppliers.
So you need to be nimble and take up as much real estate as you can.
One way for you to maintain your position of leadership, your company needs to develop products or services that requires a host of skills to be developed.
For example
- metallurgist
- chemist
- scientist
You get my drift ?
There are so many components of a business that get overlooked even with in the confines of the organization.
Is the work place an environment where all levels are workers feel good not based off of propaganda but facts.
Those are just a few things that you can take into consideration .
If ever you are in doubt or you need to get business information check out investopedia ,read your wall street journal ,your local news papers.
Two books that I recommend you read.
1 Common stocks uncommon profits Philip Fisher
2 Intelligent investor Benjamin Graham
3 Security analysis Benjamin Graham.
Get your books from me or any book of your choice and in return you can get a 1 time coaching session with me for 15 minutes.
Let me know what sort of business advice that you have for start-ups .
Shout out loud and clear to me in the comment section below.