Category: BUSINESS

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BUSINESS

5 MAJOR TIPS FOR YOU BEFORE YOU START YOUR BUSINESS

Free-Money4Starting your own business is always time consuming and a bit difficult. The 5 major tips for you before you start your business is discussed below.

Be committed to the business because anything you are committed to is likely to succeed. You may have to forgo or reschedule some cherished holidays in order to make time for your business. At the inception of the business, you are likely to make some lapses but once you are committed, resolving these lapses become a bit easier. In some cases, you may have to also forgo your salary but ensure that the salaries of other employees are paid timely.

Secondly, you should have the drive, discipline and determination to make the business successful. Implementing some things may not work initially but that does not mean that you have to give up. You got to try other means to achieve the desired results. When you plan to do something that will help the business grow, be disciplined to ensure that it is done. If you have staff, motivate them to also develop drive, be disciplined and determined to support the business to grow.

Develop your mind in the business area you intend to go in. Having the start-up capital alone does not guarantee a successful business.  Acquire some knowledge in the business area of choice through reading of books, downloading and watching videos on the internet, attending some essential short courses. The length of time spent in acquiring knowledge may not be too important but the quality of information being accessed is what matters. You should be certain on your ability to manage some aspects of the business and engage outside hands to manage the areas you cannot handle.        

Get start-up capital for your business. New businesses take some time to start making some reasonable returns on investment, however, during this time, you will be paying salaries, rent, power, depreciation and other running costs. Therefore, the business must make arrangement for all these expenditures and anticipate that at the appropriate time, as specified in the business plan, profit will be accruing. The start-up capital may come from your own pocket or from the bank or from relatives. If the start-up capital is coming from bank or relatives, it must be properly documented in official agreements including the payback period.

Finally, you got to look for support from within – that is, from your home. It is said that most successful businesses are as a result of supportive spouses. Your spouse may provide some of the start-up capital without interest. During the establishment stage, he or she may also work for the business without receiving salary and this helps to reduce the expenditure of the business. In addition to these helps from spouses, they also exhibit emotional support and love which go a long way to help the business grow.  

credit to ‘fanpop’ for above picture.

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BUSINESS

WHICH BUSINESS SHOULD I CHOOSE?

 

Once you are sure that you want to set up your own business, the next critical question to consider is ‘which business should I choose?’ Several options exist and even makes it difficult to settle on one. Also, some businesses such as the pharmaceuticals, medical laboratory science etc. require large investment capital and or technical knowledge to commence. On the other hand, businesses dealing with food products, imports/exports may not require large investment capital and or technical knowledge.

The old-fashioned approach of choosing a business prescribes the following process:

 -You first select the business area of interest

-Carry out research in that business area including the models available. The research will usually reveal the areas of need which can become potential business areas. Your research should assess the level of competition.

-An initial business plan is then developed, reviewed and finalized.

-The question of “How much fund you will need to commence the business” has to be answered.

-Depending of the amount of funds required, you may seek for external support.

-Commence the business.

This approach is time consuming and you may even regret spending enormous time and money researching into something that had proved to be not worthwhile, however, you would have saved yourself from a big future mess in trying to establish such a business.

The second approach, which is not time consuming, is to start doing what solves the needs of people and love what you do. This approach is a departure from the popular theory of doing what you love and money will follow.  

These two approaches should not be seen as mutually exclusive from each other. These two can be combined in a way that will minimize cost and yield the best result in determining the business area to go into.

All said and done, it is always better to start with an idea and build on it. Business ideas can come from:

-what you are very passionate about and can be a source of solving the needs of society.

-through inspiration. A thought can drop on your mind and may be the source of your future salary.

-you can also get an idea through observation of your environment to identify needs.

-you can also get an idea through already existing business operations. You may replicate this business idea in other locations that have not been covered by the existing business. A business idea is what gives birth to a business.  

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BUSINESS

OWNING YOUR OWN BUSINESS- ADVANTAGES

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Owning a business comes with several advantages. A few of these advantages are discussed in this article. Some challenges also arise with managing your own business but it appears that the advantages outnumber the challenges.

You have the privilege of being in control. You have the power to make your own decisions rather than taking orders from a superior in the case of working for another person. Of course indirectly, you take orders from your cherished customers in order to win their favour. When it comes to running the business, you have the opportunity of planning it to suit your convenience. However, this flexibility should be managed well so as to avoid any challenges that might arise. For instance, a family woman who is also an entrepreneur certainly has some level of flexibility in managing the home and also giving out her best as an entrepreneur.

Owing a business is an opportunity to live and build something meaningful. Everybody has a unique ability to create and this is an opportunity to bring your unique creativity into fruition. As the director of your business, bring out that uniqueness in you rather than being a copycat.

You have the opportunity to serve people (customers). Serving other of God’s children is one of the areas to get fulfilment in life. As you serve and serve properly, money will certainly follow. The amount of income you will make in your own business is a function of the quality of service you provide.

You are likely to have a positive impact on the world. Exhibiting your uniqueness in your business and solving the needs of people results in impact. The discovery of Microsoft has solved several challenges of the world. Your own business is also likely to solve several challenges of the world.

You are likely to make more money relative to being an employee in another company. Managing your own business does not promise a truck load of money within a short period of time but at least, you are guaranteed some level of income. Making more money depends on the level of service that you offer society. Always ensure that your services are distinguished and unique and it will attract the desired amount of money.

With the list of advantages above, consider setting up your own business and reap the benefits that come with it. God is always happy when His children provide services to other children.

Picture credit to ‘fanpop’

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BUSINESS

IDEAS FOR WRITING A GOOD BUSINESS PLAN

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A good business plan should have the ingredients to warrant attention for financial support. Below are some ideas to help interested parties to develop a good business plan.

Know who your audience is. A business plan for the purpose of securing a loan from the bank will dwell more on how you intend to minimize risk and make returns to be able to pay back the loan when it’s approved. Writing a business plan for investors will dwell more on facts and figures about the market and how reasonable returns can be made to repay dividends to the investors.

Once you have determined your audience, the next activity to undertake is to outline your business plan. Several outlines exist for difference audience. Internet resources can assist you to get a suitable outline for the audience you select.

You need to research and collect information. Collect relevant data about your intended business via the internet, library, newspapers etc. Your research should include profile of customers, growth of the market, perspectives of the industry, level of competition, suppliers and customers. Mention can also be made of the industry experts.  

Analyse the data collected and write the business plan to follow the structure or format of a good business proposal. Build a competitive profile; show how you can mitigate risk through your risk analysis. You should have a profit and loss account, balance sheet and do some financial ratios analyses to show the economic health of the proposed business.  Valuable resources exist on the internet on financial ratios analyses.

Develop an executive summary as the last activity. As the phrase suggests, the executive summary, usually one pager, provides a precise and concise brief of the several pages of a business plan. The executive summary forms the introductory part of the business plan.

Ensure that the business plan is proof-read several times to minimize language errors and technical errors. You can consult some colleagues to proof-read your business plan for you and make contributions but be circumspect about which input to include in the final business plan.