10-steps for starting a small business

By Alisha Shibli

Growing a successful business isn’t an overnight phenomenon.

It requires years of hard work, discipline, and dedication for that dream to morph into reality. The starting point of every successful business is a thought—an idea that, when executed relentlessly for a long period of time, begins to take shape as a business that helps consumers solve a problem and gives you the joy of calling it your own.

Starting a business is daunting. To make it seem less intimidating, here are 10-steps that can help you transform your idea from a lightbulb above your head into a genuine business.

1. Polish your business idea
Define what unique value are you offering to your customers, how you will provide this value, and how will you communicate that value in a way that convinces the customers that your products or services are worth their hard-earned money.

2. Create your business plan
A business plan helps you figure out where your company is going, how it will overcome potential challenges and what you need to keep it afloat.

3. Evaluate your finances
Most startups fail because they go bankrupt too quickly before turning a profit. You need a plan on how you’re going to cover your costs when unexpected expenses come up.

4. Determine your business’ name
Your business’ name and its domain name will become your idea’s online and offline identity. So make it as keyword rich and marketable as you can.

5. Set up your business location
You will need to determine your location, logistics, and overall setup. You also need to ensure your location works for the type of business you will be doing.

6. Get insured
Buying the right insurance for your business is a crucial step for the long-term. It ensures that you are secured in case of any unwanted calamity.

7. Get your team ready
Unless you are planning to fly solo, you will need a team of great people to help you get your idea off the ground.

8. Select your vendors
Running a business is overwhelming as it is, and you will need to partner with other businesses or individuals to source the resources you need to operate.

9. Brand yourself from the beginning
Branding and marketing starts from day one. Doing this is just as important as providing a quality product or service.

10. Take initiatives to grow your business
From the moment you launch, it is all about taking the right steps to grow your business to ensure you keep making profits and stay afloat.

Now that you have the suggestions, the trick lies in implementing them. The infographic below gives a roadmap on the various factors you must keep in mind when building your business from the ground-up.

Conclusion

Any great business starts out as an idea. It’s the execution that makes it come alive. That’s where most people feel overwhelmed. It’s understandable to freeze up at the deluge of factors that are required to get a business up and running.

Like any big project, if you start breaking it down into small tasks you will be able to put one foot in front of another and in no time you will have a business up and running.

Alisha is a Content Marketing Specialist at Radix, the registry behind some of the most successful new domain extensions, including .STORE and .TECH. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.