As with anything in life it helps to have a few Tips and some inside information when you get started in your new small business so that you can avoid the common pitfalls and problems that people before you have experienced doing the same thing. To that end below are a few great tips that you can and should use when you’re starting any new business.

Do we have to talk about a Business Plan?  If you don’t have one you really have no business going into business.  Your business plan, even if it’s quite simple, is the map that you will use to plot out your future moves?  Would a sailor leave port without his map?  No. Should you start a business without a sound business plan? No.

Use your Bank to your advantage, and if you can’t do that find another bank to work with that will help you run your business more efficiently and fits your particular business plan, find another bank. The fact is that most banks will help you out if you’re a smaller, start up business by giving you better rates, free direct deposit and smaller loans that fit your budget.

Get out in the public, make friends, talk to people and network, network, network. Join in community events, talk to owners of businesses similar to yours and completely different too. Join some small business associations.  Get out there and make yourself known!

Make sure you’re organized and stay organized.  Information about your time, your people, your finances and your inventory need to be at your fingertips constantly.  Make a spreadsheet that keeps track of all the important numbers and details and review it thoroughly once a week. Organization can make or break a new business.

Stay on top of new info, new techniques and new developments in your industry. Take online classes, subscribe to newsletter and magazines about your industry and stay informed. You never know when something new wil come along that wil make you life, or your customers’ life, better.

Get the licenses and permits that you need before opening your doors and make sure that you’re running a legal business in every way.

Certify all of the people that work for you that should be certified. Having these certifications will not only give your clients more confidence but it will also allow you to charge more for your services.

Running a business can come with large expenses. To help reduce costs, considering using a freight broker to improve your business’s efficiency as a whole.

Finally offer references or testimonials and also put them in your marketing.  Nothing helps a business more than testimonials.

You often hear about how many businesses fail within the first year of start up.  The issues often focus on a lack of affordable human capital, increasing debt obligations, and a lack of financial capital as well.  Though at times these risk factors could be mitigated with more attention to detail.  I might be a blogger by night, but I’m a corporate finance executive by day, and as such I know the importance of finance analysis when it involves running a business.  You can’t be successful if you don’t know what money is coming in versus what money is going out, and the general purpose for your overall cash flow.

First and foremost, if you don’t create a monthly income statement (P&L statement) make sure that is the first thing you do.  This is a snapshot in time of the income your business is bringing in.  It should also highlight any expenses you are incurring, and even compartimentalize them as well (i.e. selling versus manufacturing epenses).    Once you start doing this on a regular basis you can begin to visualize trends and analyze why certain expenses are high one month over others.  Not to mention this will be you consistent visibility into how much money you are making, or not making, as the months go on.

A balance sheet is another vital piece of financial reporting that should be completed on a monthly basis.  This is a rolling view of your available cash, assets, and liabilities associated with your company at any given time.  This is especially important because it illustrates working capital, which is necessary to any successful business.  It also allows you to monitor any debt obligations you have, both short and long term.  Any good financial manager keeps a watchful eye over his balance sheet each month.

Cash flow statements are quite important as well, though they often fall to the wayside of financial analysis.  The term “cash is king” has been a popular saying for many years, and for good reason.  Since the economic fallout in 2009 many companies put most of their emphasis on cash flow, since actual money is what is necessary to meet payroll and to satisfy debt obligations.  Companies with sufficient liquidity can survive economic storms of the past and last long enough to find a successful path forward.

Please keep in mind that if you want to start and maintain a successful business then strong financial analysis is key to that success.

One of the best quotes I have ever read about franchising is this; “Owning a franchise allows you to go into business for yourself, but not by yourself.”  That quotes sums up very concisely the number 1 advantage of buying and operating a franchise, which is the fact that although you’ll be in business for yourself you’ll have the support of a proven company (and their system) behind you tohelp and guide you along your business path.

A franchise, by definition, is the right to market a specific company’s goods (or services) to the public, usually within a specific territory or location.  Typically the company (franchisor) receives a fee for ongoing support and thus has a vested interest in making sure that the franchisee is successful. In other words, it’s in the best interest of the mother company that the baby companies live long and prosper because if they do everybody wins.

The concept of franchising dates back to the mid-1800’s when the inventor Isaac Singer invented the 1^st sewing machine.  Mr. Singer realized that, in order to really sell a LOT of machines, he would need help from people who had a vested interest in selling them. Thus he began to sell licenses to people in other areas of the US and also provided training so that they would become experts, like he was, on how to run and maintain the machines.  This was the very first franchise and was extremely successful. Singer sewing machines would go on to become the biggest sewing machine brand in the world.

Today franchises lead the way in business, with 1 in every 12 new businesses a franchise.  There are franchises for practically everything, from taxes (Liberty Tax Service) to tires (Goodyear Tire shops) to food (McDonalds, Chipotle Grill, Menchie’s frozen yogurt et al) and even medical services (Doctors Care). The reason; they have a much higher rate of success than single, stand-alone businesses.  In fact, the US Chamber of Commerce found that 97% of new franchises were still in operation after 5 years.

If you’re looking for a business opportunity a franchise is thus a very dependable, highly successful route to take. If you’re interested in more info click onto one of our other articles and do your due diligence before making any decisions.  Enjoy!

Every year thousands of people get the entrepreneurial bug and decide that they want to start a new business, either online or in the ‘real world’. What usually happens next I that the ‘high’ that they were on slowly starts to fade as they realize that staring a new business of any kind takes a lot of effort and a lot of patience.

So with that in mind here are a few things to keep in mind if you’re dying to start a new business and want to keep that dream alive.

One of the most important factors in starting any new business is to know exactly what it is that you want to accomplish.  You need to really define what it is you want to get out of the business, what it is you’re really good at doing, and what your weak points are also. If you don’t have a clear vsion of this you should step back and wait until you do.

You will need to know what your resources are before you start any new business.  Do you have substantial savings, can you get access to loans and other money that you will need to keep the business afloat until it start to make a profit. This is very important. Most new businesses fail because they do not have the capital to survive the first few months or years it takes to get a reputation and client base that will support them.

Once you’ve decided what you want and made sure that you have the financing it’s time to do your due diligence.  This means researching every possible avenue to determine what the best route is to open your business and give it the best chance of survival.  If you sell widgets and you’re in an area of the world that hates widgets you may want to reconsider your plans.

Finally, test, test, test.  Your first few customers will give you more knowledge about your product and potential than anything else so get as much feedback as possible as you test your product or service as much as you can.

If you can do all of these tasks and they all have a positive result it’s time to really start
going and make that entrepreneurial dream of your into a reality.  Good luck!

One of the best ways to prepare for a future would be to start a new business. Starting a new business needs not be a difficult task but can be quite challenging. The most important aspect of successfully setting up this new business would be to plan. Planning is basically the best way to start up and establish a new business. A good plan will ensure that the business is set up properly so it may operate successfully.

There are many reasons why an entrepreneur may choose to start a business. It may be because they need to set up their professional career, a need to make money and generate profits, the need to have a job and even for purposes of investing and having a regular source of income. Whatever the reason for establishing a business, it is essential to have a solid plan and a back up plan.

When choosing a business to start, an entrepreneur should carefully consider their options so that they begin a business they know something about or one which they have skills which they can employ. Such considerations are very important. It is also absolutely necessary to keep costs down in the initial phases before the business starts making money. Finally, the business will have to be marketed so that customers may get to know of its existence. When setting up a business, some of the most important considerations should be capital, labor, premises, marketing and a plan. All these are very important factors and each should be taken into consideration. When coming up with a plan, an important aspect needs to include a budget and finance.

Budget and Finance

Every business needs to be financed in one way or another. The source of the funds needs to be established. It could be savings, loans or capital contributed by partners, members or even family. These funds will need to be properly budgeted. For example, some funds will be needed to set up and establish an office or business premises such as a shop or warehouse. These costs need to be set up. Another important consideration should be the equipment and stock, if any. All the budgeting should be made accordingly.