When you are looking for business ideas and scouring the market for small business opportunities things can seem quite confusing. You have oodles of advice and basically very little direction about how to develop and build on those ideas. If you are looking for some tips on how to kickstart your startup then here’s where you’ll find them…
There are literally thousands of ideas you can turn into a profitable small business. Now, the question you need to answer is this: Can YOU really turn one of the ideas into reality?
Indeed, ideas are just ideas unto you – or someone else – turn them into real business ventures. And yes, dreamers are many, but only a handful manages to wake up, stop dreaming and start working on what they are dreaming about.
What it takes to turn ideas into reality
Please note, I am not a small business consultant. I don’t have the track record of helping people start a business and be successful. However, I do have hands-on experience I would like to share with you.
In choosing the right business idea, it’s best to choose the one that is compatible with your character and personality. Indeed, entrepreneurship can come in many forms. Some entrepreneurs are simply innovative; they like challenges and the unknowns; their business plan is an open book and act like a diary; they even do things not as planned.
There are some other entrepreneurs who want tight risk management; they want to start a business with minimal risks of failure; they are willing to follow guidelines – if any – to ensure that they will achieve what they are planning to achieve. Their business plan is well-written and often very detailed.
Do you have what it takes?
With that being said, here are some questions you should ask yourself:
Are you passionate of what you do?
If you love making cakes, then opening a cake shop would be very obvious. You might work long hours, but as you are passionate about what you are doing, I’m sure you don’t mind! If this is you, then start looking for the best business ideas best-suited for your passion and skills.
Please bear in mind, passion or skills alone can’t get you far – you also need business knowledge; you need to know how to manage risks; you need to know how to manage employees; you need to know on how to work on the back offices – accounting, HRM, and all; you need to know how to market your product.
Not only passionate about the products, you need to be passionate about EVERYTHING!
Are you willing to follow others’ lead?
If you are interested in an idea of starting a business but with “follow the dotted line” guides, then franchising is for you. Franchising is not generally known as friendly to those with strong entrepreneurial spirit; however, it is the right small business to start for those who want to tap into the expertise of the franchisor and follow the franchise’s footsteps.
Do you fancy freedom?
If you love staring up a business because you like the concept and the potential, and would love to have your business run by others – or by itself – then starting a location independent business or businesses that don’t require your presence would be an ideal path of entrepreneurship. Online store, web-based services, vending machine business, and many other small business ideas might be for you.
Do you have access to endorsers and evangelists?
An entrepreneur once told me that she has tried to turn numerous ideas into startups – and failed miserably. When she finally succeed, one of the key success factors of her success is having a venture capitalist’s backup. Venture capitalists or VCs are typically helping entrepreneurs with their money and advice. What’s more, VCs help startups in getting exposure from the media.
Better yet, you should partner with someone who is a public figure; someone who can endorse your business and get yours a well-deserved attention.
Take Action!
So – are YOU ready to take action? Remember, ideas are just ideas until you turn them into real business.
If you are not ready to spend a fortune starting up, I recommend you to test the water first – give freebies, if possible. If you are starting a web design business, then you should offer free design service to build up your portfolio. Be sure to ask your clients feedback and testimonial… don’t forget to ask for referral if they are happy with your work. This can be applicable to almost all kind of business.
After you are happy with what you see, then you can start thinking about properly launch your product – getting funding, contacting someone who can turn your product into a reality, and so on.
Want some expert insights? Check out this powerful seminar (55 minutes long):
Remember – dream big, start small and be sure to, again, take action… because you’ll never know the outcome unless you really do it; as Wayne Gretzky, the ice hockey legend, have said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
