Prepare yourself for the challenges that come with starting a business.
Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans have had time to think about how they wish to move forward with their careers; many have considered business ownership.
Although being your own boss comes with many benefits, leaving a stable job to strike it out on your own can be daunting. Luckily, there are certain steps you can take and things you can consider to increase your chances of success. To learn more, read on below.
Need
Think about what need your business fills. The need may refer to a problem that your product can solve – or prevent.
Uniqueness
Consider what sets your business apart. If you’re selling products in a competitive industry, what makes your products special? Why should customers choose you over your competitors?
Identity
Think about what makes you the ideal person to start this business. Are you the best person to start this business because of your passion? Or perhaps you’re the ideal person to launch this business because you live in a neighborhood that has a high demand for the product you’re planning to launch. Knowing what makes you the best person for this business allows you to leverage your strengths during difficult times.
Business Structure
Before starting your business, you’ll need to decide what structure your business will take. You may opt to work by yourself, with one other person, or with a group of people.
If you’re running a small business, you may be able to pull things off solo. If you want to share risks with another person, you may consider a partnership. If you have big plans and need lots of investors, setting up your business as a corporation may be your best pick.
Startup Costs
Starting a business needs you to invest a considerable amount of money. So, before you start operations, you’ll need to ensure you have enough money to pay for all the things that will allow you to start operations.
It would be best if you would create a written financial plan instead of working out the numbers in your head. Be sure to include all materials and equipment you may need for your business. Don’t forget rent, maintenance costs, and other miscellaneous expenses.
Location
The next thing you should consider is where you’ll open your business. If you plan on running an online business, you could run operations from your house. If you need a storefront, be sure to balance the appeal of the location with a rent expense that’s within your budget.
Customers
Even if you’re offering the best product, you won’t make any money if there’s no one willing to buy what you’re selling. Be sure to create a customer persona to help you decide what specific demographic you’re catering to. You may consider the following information:
- Age
- Income level
- Location
- Interests
- Values
Marketing
Now that you know whom you’re trying to sell to, you may begin to consider your marketing operations. When first starting your new business, it would be more cost-effective for you to focus on online marketing rather than analog media.
Why Advertise on Social Media?
1. 55% of consumers learn about brands through social media.
Nowadays, social media is a place for discovery. It’s more common for consumers to learn about brands or companies on social media than through TV ads. This is due to the rise of streaming services. With streaming services, you barely see any ads. So, social media is now the best place to promote products.
2. 68% of consumers agree that social media allows them to interact with companies and brands.
Traditional advertising methods rely on one-way communication. With social media, advertising becomes a two-way dialogue between consumers and brands.
The two-way communication that social media provides allows you to customize and humanize your content and responses in a way that forges stronger connections with potential buyers.
3. 78% of customers are willing to buy from a brand after having a positive experience with them on social media.
Closely relating to the previous point, a business that’s active and that engages and interacts with its customers on social media via responsive support or relevant content is more likely to land sales than a business that relies on monologue-based old-school advertising.
Why Use Instagram?
At this point, we’ve established what makes social media a powerful marketing tool. Although there are many social media platforms you may – and should – use, Instagram is one of the most effective ones out there for marketing.
1. More people are using Instagram.
Instagram has over a billion active users worldwide. Half of them are on the platform daily. With so many people using Instagram each day, you’re more than likely to be able to reach customers who are more than willing to buy what you’re selling.
2. Any size of business can succeed.
On Instagram, the playing field is equal. The same tools available to large corporations are also available to businesses that are just starting out. While success won’t come overnight, Instagram allows even the smallest of businesses to reach their target audience and promote their products.
3. Businesses can sell directly on Instagram.
Depending on what kind of business you’re running, you may not even have to create a standalone website. Instagram has evolved over the years to allow on-platform e-commerce sales.
Instagram allows you to create shoppable posts. These posts allow you to add price tags and descriptions to the products in your photos. Users can then find your posts via the dedicated Shop tab on the Instagram app.
What’s Next?
To summarize what we’ve covered so far, there are several things you’ll need to decide on and consider before even starting your business. These include need, uniqueness, startup costs, and marketing – among others.
When it comes to marketing, you’d get the best bang for your buck by turning to social media platforms. One of the easiest and most accessible platforms to use for marketing your products is Instagram.
Now, you may be wondering how you can grow your Instagram presence to better establish your reputation and attract new customers. One of the best ways to do this is by investing in a service that will help you grow your audience like Managergram.
Managergram offers an all-in-one Instagram growth plan that covers monthly followers, automatic likes, automatic views, and other forms of engagement. All plans are based on a combination of social media advertising and proprietary network distribution. All forms of engagement Managergram sends you are initiated by real users – not spam bots.
Working with Managergram is easy. Simply follow the steps below:
- Choose your Instagram growth plan.
- Finish your purchase.
- Start receiving new engagements.
If you’ve found this article useful, please consider sharing it on social media or sending it to that friend who’s been hesitating to start the business of their dreams.
Once you’ve successfully started your business, check out our other articles on our website.
