The year 2020 was a disaster for many people all across the world. Covid-19 grabbed the world by storm, causing 225 million jobs to be lost worldwide as a result of this dreadful virus. This was a wake-up call for employees who relied exclusively on their companies for a living.
So many people became entrepreneurs, and while some went bankrupt, others got extremely wealthy. See how social media made some people wealthy during the lockdown in 6 Business Ventures that Require Zero Capital. Knowing exactly what consumers are seeking for, or defining the value that your service will bring to the market, is the first step in beginning your own business.
Definition of Business.
“A person’s regular occupation, profession, or trade” (Oxford Dictionary).
Having a 9am to 5pm job is what a lot of decent people around the world tend to do in order to have an income that affords their bills, and other living expenses.
However, nowadays, the popularity of “get rich quick” network marketing schemes has caused the word “JOB” to be known as “JUST OVER BROKE”.
Would you agree to this statement based on your current circumstances?
Having your own business, makes you, your own boss, gives you control of your time, and affords you the possibility of uncapped growth. Rather than working towards a promotion, you can put all that energy and determination into taking your business to another level.
I know it sounds sweet, but it is worth noting that becoming an entrepreneur is a brave and uncommon decision. Entrepreneurship can be rewarding and taxing too.
Perhaps, if I were to have a conversation with you right now, you probably would have a ton of business ideas which you have not dared as a result of FEAR.
What Business is Best for You?
Each one of us would agree that at some point in our lives, we have wondered what type business would be best for us. Actually, there’s no one best answer to this question, but however, statistics have proven that jumping into business, and doing everything that everyone else does is a recipe for disaster and failure. It is recommended to follow the steps below in order to set your business up for success;
Step 1
Think deeply about what your talent is. Talent is defined by dictionary.com as “an exceptional natural ability, especially in a particular activity, such as music. Talent is often thought of as the kind of ability that comes without training—something that you’re born with. It is often contrasted with skill, which is an ability acquired and developed through practice.” Some examples of talents include singing, cooking, writing, researching, dancing, drawing, talking, selling etc.
Now STOP!, Take a pen and write down all the talents you believe to have. That’s where your new business idea may be born from.
Step 2
Speak to an expert in the sector of business you are looking to explore. This could be someone who is already doing the business successfully, and has experience about the Do’s and Don’ts of that business sector.
For example, if you would like to have a Beauty Salon, go and find someone who has owned one or worked for one for at least 5 years or more. Such a person often has the expertise in the business as a result of accumulated experience.
Step 3
You must perform a preliminary study from the people in the geographical area where you would like to establish your business. Finding out from your prospective clients the kind of products or services they’re interested in, would be an instrumental lead a successful business. Remember that in order to become the richest man in the world, Jeff Bezos did his home work. He discovered that people at the time were gaging for a different type of shopping experience. Shop a variety of things from around the world, from the comfort of their homes, which led to the creation of Amazon, currently the number 1 go to site for e-commerce. According to market watch.com at 56, Jeff’s is the richest man in the world with an estimated net worth of $192billion, employing over 1,298,000.
Step 4
Finding the GAP in the market. You should establish a list of biggest business names in your business sector, and find out a little more about their offering (goods and services they are selling to their clients). This information will enable you to find out what it is they do not offer to their clients which can be added to your own offering, or what their customers don’t like. For example, if your sector of interest is commercial transport, perhaps what your competition isn’t doing is stuff like offering free internet connection to travellers; you can add this service to your package.
Step 5
Find out what the Critical Success Factor (CFC), for your business is.
Critical success factors are the things that your business must take into account in order to boost your business’s chances of success. For example, the CFC of a restaurant would be;
- A high foot traffic location
- Reliable raw food supplier
- Polite and kind customer service staff
- Connectedness
- Environmental Hygiene
- Suitable cookery equipment
- Experienced Chefs
- Good process or operations manual
- Knowledgeable of local regulations
Last and most importantly, preparing a comprehensive business plan with a detailed list of all the items needed to kick start the business, the fixed start up cost, and ensure your capital is enough to sustain the business to break-even point, until such a time when it becomes profitable.
Step 6
Raising the right amount of start up capital to sustain the business to a point of breakeven and profitability.
You can raise capital for your business in the following ways:
- Saving part of the income from your 9 to 5pm job, until you have enough money to start your own business.
- Sell some of your personal assets, such as a car, a piece of landed property, some jewellery or any valuable item you are willing and able to part with, for the purpose of raising capital for your business.
- Offer your services for the natural talents that you possess, charge a fee, and accumulate money for your business capital.
- Prepare a clear business plan for your business, share with your trusted relatives, friends and colleagues, and ask them to buy into the project with a certain amount as agreed upon by all the parties involved.
- Perform thorough research, and apply for grants or entrepreneurship programs that provide support for start-ups in your sector.
- Prepare a detailed physical and digital copy of your business plan, and share with development banks, financial and government institutions that advocate for small business ventures in your local council or Country.
In a nutshell, creating a business could be a blessing or a curse, and the outcome depends largely on the WORK you put into the process of deciding the type of business venture, performing a preliminary survey, finding the market GAP, incorporating the Critical Success Factors , and getting sufficient start up capital to sustain the business through to profitability.
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