With a new decade on the horizon, now might be the perfect time to take your ideas and entrepreneurship to the next level. However, running your own business can be a difficult thing to do, as there are a ton of things that can go wrong if not addressed properly, and a ton of different spinning plates to consider. Having a business is a lot more complicated than it may initially seem – you have a lot to juggle, especially with marketing, dealing with client expectations, and accounts too. If you’re someone who is currently running your own brand or business by yourself then it can be difficult to do all of these things and research at the same time. People often forget what’s important when starting your own business and jump right into things before considering if they’re truly ready for such a big commitment.
Do you want to pursue your own independent business venture in 2024? Perhaps you’ve got an idea and want to take it that one step further? Below we have a list of a few different bits of advice that might give you some inspiration. We hope you can take on this advice and use it to your own advantage as you build up a business and brand online. Every step is critical to consider, especially if you’re wanting to beat your competitors and be the best in the business. At the end of the day, you want customers to choose your business over everyone else, and that’s why you need to do the steps below.
Your aims and goals
One of the first things that you should think about doing when building a business from the ground up – no matter how small or large-scale the operation might be – is to sit down and figure out what you want to achieve and get out of it. This can be anything from financial goals, to even personal fulfillment. It might sound like a pretty trivial idea to sit down and write down what you want to achieve from your business (and it’s certainly easier said than done), but it can be quite the heuristic process and can help to make sure that every decision you’re making is working towards the same goal. If you don’t plan ahead before jumping in, you run the risk of making rash decisions that might even be counterproductive.
Is this the right step for you currently?
Being honest with yourself and deciding on whether you can feasibly afford to commit your time, money and effort to a new project is sometimes a hard call to make, but it’s an important one. You need to ask yourself whether you’re ready for the often full-time commitment of taking on a business as the main project and get any outstanding financial hurdles or other projects finished before going so that you can approach things as a fresh start. It can be difficult putting plans on hold, but you’ll thank yourself in the long run.
Marketing your business
Spreading awareness of your business is extremely important, as it’s incredibly difficult to make sales and build generally when nobody knows about your company or product in the first place. Increasing awareness in your local area is a good place to start, as you can reach out to people in the surrounding towns and cities relevant to your business, but you should also try and establish yourself online as much as possible. Not only is creating social profiles free and simple enough to do, but you’ll then be able to reach people both locally and nationwide, giving yourself the potential of a much further reach than through the old-fashioned way.
Once you’ve created different online platforms and established a website, another great step in retaining visibility online is to keep in contact with your audience and provide them with valuable information, so that it doesn’t feel like you’re just filling up their feeds with advertising. Truckcraft Bodies, for example, a truck body building company established in the Greater Manchester area, use a blog section on their website to keep their audience up to date on all the latest on that particular industry, providing customers with a wealth of information that adds value to their brand.
Remember
You might think that having a niche product or service might put you at a disadvantage when marketing yourself, but in actual fact, it’s quite the opposite. Rather than struggling to compete with big websites and companies for general information and guides, you’ll find that mastering a niche and providing helpful content on your specialist subject will quickly make you an opinion leader in that field.
Getting your business’s accounts in order
Once you’ve come up with the short and long-term plans for your business and created yourself a brand that you can push online, one of the most important things that you need to get in order is your finances. Create a business-focused bank account, so that you can properly measure company ingoing and outgoings etc., and again, make the most of the technology/apps that are available to you in the modern day to make your life simpler. Don’t want to get caught up in handling invoicing and accounts all day? Investing in some simple accounting software is a great way of freeing up some time so that you can focus on what matters.
Finding the right clients
If you’re someone who relies on clients giving you an income and turnover every month then you may want to consider finding the right and best clients going into 2024. There are so many clients out there that can take advantage of your services but won’t pay you – ensure you make it clear to these clients what you want this upcoming term. Start the new year with the best clients and ensuring that they know what your expectations are going forward. This way, you can ensure your business succeeds into the future, especially in the year 2024! Success is the only option when you’re determined and motivated.
