Entrepreneurship is both rewarding and tiring because the hard work that goes into it pays off after a long time.
So, when you become your own boss, you can set up your own hours and work at your own pace, but only after you’ve laid the foundation of your business.
That being said, the initial years of laying the foundation of a business are pretty tough. You might even work twice as hard as you do on a job. The only difference is that when you’re working for yourself, your goal is your dream.
3 Success Tips for Beginner Entrepreneurs
The path towards becoming your own boss is laden with pitfalls. Lucky for you, we’ve gathered some tips that will help you navigate the path to becoming your own boss:
Equip Yourself with Knowledge
Luck is not the only thing that is going to make you successful as an entrepreneur. With luck, a combination of knowledge and hard work is equally essential to reap the benefits. But the combination will work right when you acquire the knowledge before you test the waters.
Before you begin your business, the most essential skill you must develop through knowledge is marketing. Marketing skills are helpful for entrepreneurs because they help them:
- Understand the customer
- Critically think and solve problems
- Develop writing skills
- Conduct market research before developing a solution
- Place the product in the right place
- Price products appropriately
- Leverage data analytics for success
When entrepreneurs acquire marketing knowledge, they have the basic toolkit they need to start and run a business.
But apart from marketing skills, entrepreneurs also need some business basics. In this case, simply opting for marketing courses won’t cut it.
A professional business administration degree is the best starting point for entrepreneurs because marketing MBA programs don’t solely focus on developing marketing skills.
These programs also focus on imparting basic managerial and financial concepts, developing research abilities, and instilling time management skills – all of which are necessary for an entrepreneur.
An MBA in marketing online is even better since it won’t take up much of your time, but you will still be able to develop these skills.
Conduct a Thorough Research
You don’t need to wait for your MBA to finish before you can proceed to this step. If you’ve opted for an MBA in marketing online, you will save up on the time you would have spent on commuting.
If you already have an idea of what your business will be, you can start researching. Here are the steps that you can follow while conducting research for your business idea:
Question Yourself
When you’re starting your research, it is wise to seek answers from yourself first. Not only will this step let you know about the concepts and expectations you have from this business idea, but it will help you correct yourself when you reach out to other fellow entrepreneurs and customers.
Here are some questions to get you started:
- Who is my target audience?
- How will this product solve my customer’s problem?
- What makes my product or service unique?
- What are the potential challenges I might face in launching this business?
- What is the revenue model for my business?
- Do I have the necessary skills, resources, and support to execute this business idea successfully?
- What are the potential legal and regulatory requirements concerning this business?
Conduct a Competitor Survey
Once you have clarified the business concept in your head, you can then look at the competitors in the market and ask questions like these:
- How do my competitors approach the target audience?
- How big are my competitors?
- Is there a gap in my competitor’s offerings that I can fill? – SKU size, variants, location, price, etc.
- What resources do my competitors have access to?
Conduct a Customer Survey
Even if you couldn’t figure out the gap in your competitor’s services, by surveying your target customers, you can get an idea of:
- What problems your service will be solving
- Where the competitors currently lack
- Customer’s readiness for your product (if it is unique)
- The price customers are willing to pay.
Gather a List of Suppliers
When you’ve reached the point where you’ve surveyed the market, it’s time to explore the elements that will help you materialize your idea.
Suppliers for Physical Products
In the case of a physical product, you will need to gather a list of suppliers to work with. This could include marketplaces where you might find the raw materials for your products or specific companies that you will need to partner with.
Suppliers for Intangible Products
In the case of an intangible product, your supplier list would include software as a service (SaaS) companies that would help you with developing your products, management, or marketing.
Start Networking
Networking with like-minded people in the industry or fellow entrepreneurs will give you the answers you need to get the ball rolling. Fellow entrepreneurs can tell you:
- The issues they have faced when starting their own business.
- How they gathered the funding and resources.
- The way they built a customer base.
Your MBA in marketing online is a great way to meet up with like-minded individuals. You could even seek mentorship from your professors and connect with classmates who have started their own businesses or those who work for startups.
Develop a Business Plan
Once you’ve done the research, it is time to put it onto paper. The business plan you draft will be your blueprint for success.
According to Indeed, there are ten essential components of a business plan:
- Executive summary
- Business description
- Market analysis and strategy
- Marketing sales plan
- Description of management and organization
- Description of products or services
- Competitive analysis
- Operating plan
- Financial projections
- Exhibits and appendices.
You can use this business plan for yourself or use it to apply for grants, funding, and loans. You can even show your business plan to your professors in your MBA in marketing online program to get their input or connect you with potential investors or partners.
Final Words
If you have a business idea, it won’t materialize till you do something about it.
The first and most crucial step towards entrepreneurship is pursuing higher education.
An MBA in marketing online can impart the necessary knowledge and give you access to a network that would help you get a step up from other aspiring entrepreneurs.
Then it’s a mix of hard work and luck that will get you what you dream to achieve.
