Searching for the Right Business, Find it Here

Starting a business is an exciting but hard decision. It can be extremely rewarding but would take long sleepless nights . To start a business cannot be an impulsive move even if one is passionate about a particular activity. “What business to start?’ is a very big question & one must answer it only after a deep market research, studying consumer & competitors’ behavior & identifying one’s skills.

When you have decided on the idea of being an entrepreneur many suggestions would start pouring in from friends, family & acquaintances. They will talk of their respective experiences & categorize ideas as ‘scrap’ or ‘best’ as per their knowledge. It is advisable not to listen to any such suggestions & take decisions basis your knowledge and interest.

Ultimately, it is customers that make a business successful. And, customers will only purchase your goods & services if they find it worth spending their hard earned money. In order to convince the customer, you need to know your product and service in and out. Below mentioned points shall prove helpful in deciding the type of business to opt for:

Experience matters

Many years you have spent doing a particular type of service. Would that be of no use to yourself when you are starting your own business? By serving in various organizations for years, each of us goes through training and develops and learns various skills. You may use these skills, knowledge and network for your new business.

For instance, you have spent years in the field of marketing; you would have knowledge of choosing the right creative to capture the right target audience, how to reach your customers online, etc. Even if it all does not directly contribute to your new business you can easily pick clues from your past experiences to make you start up a success.

In case you are indecisive about your interest that you would want to convert into a business consider the skills, you are good at or may be your educational background. Also, deep research of the market & competition is needed to understand what is running well in your area of expertise.

In case, the business you wish to start is miles away from your area of experience, it is advisable to be prepared enough by studying about the subject.

Try finding answers to a few questions

Product or service?

Every business has either a product or service to be offered to customers. A service based business requires less investment as there is no inventory or stock to purchase. Whereas in a product based business, you might earn huge margins. Also, consider your skill set, storage availability & goals to answer this question.

Start from a scratch or buy a franchise?

This is a very critical question to ask. Ask yourself whether you wish to take the risk of starting a new business, are ready to buy an established business.

You may choose among the various options available but do not forget to do a complete SWOT analysis of each one of them before taking a decision.

Test before you invest

An idea that sounds good in theory might not work well practically. Sometimes a great idea might flow due to lack of skills or infrastructure. It is better to stop further progress at the planning stage itself rather than realizing it late when the contracts are signed & operations are about to start. Here are a few tips to reduce the risk & help you take a decision before It’s too late:

1. On the job training: Best way is to learn from an expert. Once you have decided on your line of business, get some experience of it in the industry. Even if it requires working for free. Try to learn all the backward & forward processes involved in your line of business.
2. Talk: Consider speaking to existing entrepreneurs in the market. Only when you assure them that you won’t be competing with them they will guide you & educate you with the intricacies involved in that business. You might also speak to the direct customers to get honest feedback.
3. Evaluate yourself: Your business will not succeed until unless you enjoy spending time in it. As yourself if you like it, if yes, only then you can take it to heights.

Also, evaluate yourself with respect to the ability to handle each and every aspect of your business. Whether it is customer service related, production related or is related to maintaining accounting record, you should be willingly involved in every activity.

1. Profit making capability: basis research & existing market trends determine the amount of expenses & revenue you are likely to generate. It is important to know when the business will break even. At the same time, set a target for yourself, how much do you want to earn?
2. Risk analysis: As an entrepreneur you cannot avoid the risk. You need to identify all potential risks their probability of occurrence & recurrence and also the cost to be incurred in case such risk occur.

With every risk is associated a cost. Entrepreneurs and especially small entrepreneurs are usually short of cash. Thus, it becomes all the more important to identify the cost associated with risk & be ready with the required cash in hand.

Thus, starting a new business is not only exciting but nerve cracking too. It not only gives inner satisfaction but long sleepless nights too. The entrepreneur is solely responsible for all products, processes, gains & losses that the business makes. An entrepreneur must think through all aspects before he narrows down to the type of business he wants to invest in.

To summarize: to start a new business trust your instincts, do complete research, develop required skills & connect with right people. The successful entrepreneur is the one who eats, drinks sleeps, loves & lives each & every aspect of his business.