You’ve finally decided to follow your dreams, and that’s great. Life is short, and you don’t want to end up regretting the things you could have done differently but choose not to out of fear.
And here’s the first problem:
You have to turn your business idea into reality without risking your future or becoming bankrupt.
Luckily, you’re on the right page. Other than guides to starting a company, we’ll discuss how to implement your business idea smartly, with plenty of examples and tips along the way.
Let’s start with the main pillars of any business:
– Mindset
– Product/Service
– Team
– System
– Marketing
– Funds
Let’s discuss each of them below:
Your Mindset
Your mindset is the cornerstone of your business and, in fact, anything you want to be good at. When you’re transitioning from being an employee to starting your business, you want to change your mindset too.
You need an entrepreneur’s way of thinking.
So how do you do that?
Firstly, you’ll have to go from thinking: “I want a bigger salary” to: “What value can I create on the market to get more money for my services?”
Just being aware of the nuances of this second question helps you think like a business starter.
Secondly, you have to change how you relate to money. As you’re reading this, you’re probably associating money with hard work, and instead, you should associate money with creating value.
Here’s the difference:
You’ll have to stop being the lone wolf working for cash and start working for results. That means:
– Hiring a team that will help you achieve that
– Creating a system that adds value to people’s lives
– Thinking on the long term
Your Product/Service
Every business idea should be based on a successful product or service. It is easier if you are dealing with something that you are familiar with.
For example, musicians often turn to running music schools after some time. Ask yourself this:
– What do you like to do?
– What do I know how to do?
– What is the market lacking?
– What is profitable?
Here’s an example:
– You like interacting with people.
– You know how to do digital marketing.
– Marketing is a profitable field.
– Many new business owners don’t know how to market their businesses.
So, at the intersection of all these factors is a possible consultancy business for start-ups. That’s your business idea. And, with the right business funding, your business idea will take off!
Pro tip: Many new entrepreneurs believe that a business idea comes out of the blue. However, established businesspeople know that that idea is the result of extensive thinking.
Once you come up with that idea for a new product or service, start doing your research:
– Who else is offering similar products/services?
– What is your audience like?
– What do your potential customers crave that your competitors aren’t doing?
That’s how you find your unique selling proposition (USP). This proposition:
– Brings real value to the market
– Solves a need
– Creates a desire
Price Strategies
There are different price strategies you can use and, of course, you should do your research to see what suits you best. The price that you decide on also depends on your industry, such as the education industry, the F&B industry, and medical industry and more.
However, you can also try this:
1. Enter the market quickly with a FREE product. For our previous example, the consultancy business, you can offer all clients free articles on your blog or free ebooks. You can offer a free initial consultation to assess dental health if you’re opening a dentist’s cabinet.
2. Follow this step with an affordable product so that your customers will see what it’s like working with you. That could be a 45-minute complimentary session.
3. Next, sell the main product to the people who are interested in working with you. Your main product could be a series of workshops.
4. Bring up the premium product that will bring more value. The premium product could be hiring your company to do the stuff your customers learnt during their workshops.
5. Next, bring up subscription-based products that allow you to gain more loyal customers over the long term.
The Business Team
You can’t turn your business idea into reality without an efficient team. So:
1. Pick people who share the same values as you do.
2. Don’t hire a cheap workforce. You want to work with employees who know how to do things right from the get-go.
3. Consider if hiring people brings you more advantages than outsourcing your projects. For example, freelancers could be less loyal because they always look for new projects, but you pay fewer taxes.
4. Always have a detailed contract that establishes specific responsibilities and clauses.
That said, remember the ABC of any business team:
– Accountant: find someone who doesn’t just fill in paperwork. You need someone to rely on to help optimize your business and manage your money.
– Business coach: this is someone who can help you grow your business ten very quickly. The business coach will discuss strategy and personalized steps with you.
– Counsellor: it’s essential to have an expert draft your contracts, establish your clauses and clarify procedures when you’re just implementing your business idea.
System
Your business idea is just the start. Implementing that idea entails constantly optimizing your business. Here’s the framework:
– Logistics
– Operation team
– Well-thought procedures
Of course, you should personalize that framework for your business. For example, for an online business where content is king, you need:
– Tools that automate generating and posting content
– An automated funnel that converts people from leads to paying customers without your intervention
– An automated invoice/ payment system
Luckily, you can find plenty of software that will help you, such as:
– Smartbill for your invoices
– Hootsuite for social media marketing
– Sales Manago for sales
– Monday for task management and client resources
Marketing
Result-based marketing is the only marketing that counts. From that perspective, it’s useless to throw heaps of money at a poor product.
Thus, you need two main things:
– A quality product that proves its use organically
– A well-thought strategy. That strategy starts with research and clear objectives that render precise KPIs (key performance indicators) to measure its success
That strategy starts from an essential premise: you need people to know and appreciate you. You don’t want to push your products in a spammy way. You have to gain people’s trust first.
Here are the four steps you’ll go through:
1. Gathering an audience: at this point, you’re addressing customers who don’t know you or your brand. You can round up an audience by networking (e.g., dedicated Facebook groups, industry events, etc.).
2. Warming up the audience: start engaging with potential customers. If you’re conducting an online business, you should post as much as possible, but make sure your posts are helpful to people. Think infographics, speciality articles, how-to or DIY guides, podcasts, free Q&As, etc. The point of this is that people should understand you’re an expert in your field.
3. Selling: your community already knows you, and they’re willing to try your products/services. The primary selling formula consists of these steps that you should include in your strategy:
– The customers’ problem
– Your solution to that problem
– How does your answer compare to your competitors’
– What do the customers have to do to get that solution
– Why the customers must act now (bonuses, offers, discounts, scarcity, FOMO, etc.)
4. Loyalty: find ways to nurture your relationship with your customers. After you settle on a good business idea, include this final step in your strategy. Your existing customers will form a loyal brand community that’s very valuable because:
– Your brand/products are their number one choice.
– Your brand community will stay loyal to your brand in a crisis.
– Those people create user-generated content, such as online reviews and personal recommendations. According to research, UGC is the best way to attract new customers in a world that doesn’t trust traditional advertising anymore.
Funds
The most important thing to have is a stable source of business funding.
The best way to turn your business idea into reality is by building a well-planned, structured framework. Remember that your products/services aim to satisfy an essential need for your potential customers.
Once you figure out what that need is, focus your whole business on seamlessly getting your unique solution to your potential customers. Everything will fall into place if you start from this mindset: your team, software, and marketing strategy.
Here’s the problem: You need to round up funding to implement that plan.
One solution is using your savings, but the money you’ve put aside won’t be enough at some point. Government grants are another practical solution; however, you need to tick a precise list of criteria to qualify, so getting those grants is a lengthy process.
Instead, if you need urgent cash, you can always reach out to MPM Capital. Our quick loans will help you start your business, pay your bills, or purchase professional software.
Here’s something nobody tells new business owners:
Your business idea may be fantastic, and your strategy well mapped out. However, the market is fickle, and even if you do everything right, your business can still fail.
In times of crisis, you need to think on your feet and get a dependable cash injection to keep your company going.
Here’s MPM’s solution:
We guarantee a transparent process, low-interest rates, and no hidden fees. We offer loans up to $2 million, easier eligibility, and a quick approval process compared to our competitors.
Apply here.
