A lot of people make a mistake of waiting for ‘stars to align’ in order to launch an enterprise. The most common of their excuses is that the economy is so bad at the moment that their business wouldn’t even stand a chance. Nonetheless, you are not trying to appeal to the economy, but to the consumer audience and you are not competing against the entire economy, but your niche rivals. With this in mind, here are a few tips on how to launch a startup in any economy.
1. Acquire initial capital
Contents
Regardless of the state of the economy, you need the initial capital in order to start your enterprise. There are several ways to acquire it and the choice is all yours. First, you can apply for a loan from a bank, credit union or an alternative lender, such as NSW Mortgage Corp. Second, you could sell an asset like a car or a property you own. Finally, you could start a crowdfunding project on Kickstarter or a similar platform and make it easier for the people who believe in your cause to contribute to it.
2. Motivate your sales team
Next thing you need to think of is your sales team. Namely, they are people directly responsible for your company’s income, which is why the question of their motivation must be paramount. Offer bonuses based on performance and in this way, encourage the most ambitious staff members to really shine. Apart from giving material incentive, you could also try to show some personal appreciation for the work they do, either verbally or with a handwritten note.
3. Learn from others
Learning by example is by far the most efficient didactic method out there. Unfortunately, learning from your own mistakes may be too expensive. First, you need to do some research on the giants of your own business niche and talk to them about issues they had when they first started out. Seeing how they are already well-established in the industry, they are not likely to see you as a serious competitor. Another great idea would be to find a business mentor.
4. Become a leader
Ancient Romans used to say that a leader who is a lion can make his recruits into lions as well. The same goes for the business world. In order to thrive in the worst of situations, you will have to become a true leader. In a situation where all your employees look up to you, where they see you as their safety-net, and where you lead with knowledge instead of fear, you are bound to create a work-friendly environment. Here, you will enable each and every single member of your staff to unleash their full potential.
5. Be ready to pivot
Finally, even with the best of efforts, you might still face certain difficulties on your path towards success. When this happens, you need to be ready to bounce back. If your business seems to be in too deep, shut it down and start thinking towards your next project. Every defeat is a lesson. On the other hand, the situation might still be, more or less, salvageable, which is why you should perhaps consider pivoting. All you need to do is find a way to repurpose one part of your organization and if it turns out lucrative enough, have the rest of your company follow.
Conclusion
From the above listed five examples, you could see that some of the main aspects leading to success of your business have nothing to do with ‘the economy’ (good or bad). These are just some of the basic business principles that are bound to give your startup a fighting chance, even against its larger and more experienced competition. What will you do with this fighting chance, on the other hand, is a discussion for another time.
Raj Kumar is a qualified business/finance writer expert in investment, debt, credit cards, Passive income, financial updates. He advises in his blog finance clap.
