There’s a lot of fun to be had when starting your own business.
After all, for the first time, you’re in full control of your work life. Not only does this mean that you can set your own working hours, but you can also fuel your time, energy and skills toward something that you are genuinely passionate about.
However, it’s not without its challenges, with 49% of businesses closing within just five years. Fortunately, there are many steps that you can take to prevent your business from falling victim to the same fate.
49% of businesses closing within just five years. Share on X
With that in mind, here are some top tips (among other) that you can use to ensure your new business succeeds!
Ensure a healthy cash flow. A healthy cash flow is key to keeping your business afloat, as it ensures that you’re able to stay on top of your bills and reinvest your business profits. However, this is something that many business owners struggle to achieve!
Luckily, there are many ways in which you can improve cash flow within your business, such as by ensuring that you choose the right POS (Point of Sale system). Doing so makes it much easier for customers/clients to pay you for your services, especially if it means you can then accept a diverse range of payment types.
Invest in new technology. Investing in technology is a relatively straightforward way to set your brand up for success. For example, by using technology to automate otherwise time-consuming tasks like email management or invoice processing, you can improve productivity rates quite considerably without feeling overwhelmed or overburdened.
Set yourself clear goals. While success will always be on your mind, ‘being successful’ is not a very useful goal or objective. This is due to the fact that it is relatively vague and subjective, meaning it’s hard to determine whether or not you’ve reached this milestone. As such, you should be sure to set clear, measurable goals for yourself as often as possible. This way, you can check on your progress and figure out whether or not you’re on the right track.
You should be sure to set clear, measurable goals for yourself as often as possible. Share on X
For example, if your goal was to sell a specific number of products before the end of Q1, but you aren’t getting the sales you need during January/February, this gives you time to do something about it.
Have a contingency plan in place. A good business is backed up by a solid business plan that outlines the steps you’ll take to achieve great things. However, you should also ensure that it features a contingency plan (i.e., a POA for when things go wrong).
Whether this refers to a data leak or a customer filing a complaint, when you’ve already got a contingency plan stowed away, you can quickly turn to it in a time of need, as opposed to having to come up with a solution on the spot. This allows you to take a much calmer, more measured approach to any challenges, often impacting your recovery rate. As such, this should be considered an essential factor of your plan!
