10 Tips for Entrepreneurial Success (Part 1) by Dr. Anika Goodwin Hilderbrand
1. Provide a Great Product or Service
We all know that a good marketing strategy is essential for creating interest and driving traffic to your business, but that is not where the story begins. The product or service you provide needs to be good enough to meet or surpass the customer’s expectations once you capture them in your funnel. This is how you create a life-long repeat customer who can then help the business grow further by word of mouth.
Turning customers into brand enthusiasts is one of the best and most cost-effective ways to get a small business on the map. This is one of the ways I took my business from launch to 7 figures in nine months. However, this can only happen if the offering is solid, and above all else, it provides a solution to a real problem, which fulfills a white space in the market. Many entrepreneurs have developed a slick and innovative product or service that goes nowhere, while others with a straightforward idea take over market share. Why? Because the first group got so focused on the end product, they forgot to fix the problem; while the second group found a solution to a common problem to which many potential customers can relate. I know this because I have been there, too, with my first company EYEmergencyMD. It turned out to be a statistic in the graveyard of potentially good businesses.
2. Do Your Research
The best businesses are the ones that are deeply personal to you, the founder. But this does not mean that entrepreneurs should throw caution to the wind and start businesses based solely on their own personal opinion. Gut feelings are good, but, when it comes to business, they are not the same as information. Information is derived from data, and data comes from research. Ask yourself these questions (among others):
A) How big is the potential consumer base and what are the characteristics of these people? It is critical to understand the psyche of your ideal customer in order to target them efficiently. Research is the way to accomplish this.
B) What is the competitive landscape? You must understand the other players to build a brand that addresses the market and your customer’s needs. You need to know if there are businesses that could be regarded as your competition? What can you learn from those competitors? Who is the industry leader and how did they command that number one position? What were their keys to success? Have they made mistakes that you could avoid?
If there are no competitors for your business idea, consider what that means. Is there a reason why they don’t exist? If they did exist but have gone out of business, what can you learn from what caused them to go out of business? The research will keep a small business’s focus honest. Don’t manipulate the information you uncover to fit your gut’s feelings. Be objective and discerning if you want to be a small business success story.
3. Keep Things Organized
This point cannot be stressed enough. Whether a physical filing cabinet to an organized digital folder structure in your computer, access to information quickly and effectively will make a massive difference in the daily operations of a small business. It is highly recommended to keep specific folders for each aspect of the business appropriately labeled and organized in a manner that makes sense to you and is intuitive enough for anyone in the company to access as needed. Also, backups of digital information are essential, especially when it comes to financial data. It is crucial to store them in a safe place. If this isn’t your strong suit, consider hiring a VA to assist with the business aspect and an accountant to keep your finances in order.
4. Detailed Financials
Proper bookkeeping helps you know the business’s financial status and what could potentially become a problem moving forward. It can make all the difference between becoming a small business success story or another failure. Your current financials paint a picture to visualize future projections and assist in business planning. Knowing my numbers kept me from getting eaten alive during my pitch to the Sharks on Shark Tank. You must be able to understand how much the business makes and how much it sells. You may be saying to yourself, “ I will just hire an accountant to do the business taxes. Knowing your numbers means so much more than that.
Things you should know at all times:
A) What are your company’s bank balances?
B) How much is your company invoicing versus how much you are spending?
C) What are your production numbers last year?
D). What are your gross and net profits for the previous quarter?
It is of the utmost importance that you look at your profit & loss statements (P&L) every single month and that you understand all the numbers that you’re seeing. You need to be able to make adjustments to your business every quarter to make sure you stay on track towards reaching your annual goals.
In regards to taxes, it behooves you to keep your books neat and in order.
5. Keep Focus & Have Patience
I am a list person. I highly recommend drafting a “to-do list” every night before going to bed and tackle it first thing in the morning to help you stick to a plan and avoid distractions. It is vital to make a realistic to-do list—so as not to set yourself up for failure. Outline milestones along the way that you can conquer and celebrate. Most important, be patient and have resilience. Most successful businesses are not built overnight and are not without bumps in the road. It can take years to get a business to achieve its full potential and to become a small business success story.
I hope that you will return next month to get my next 5 tips for creating a successful business.
Learn more about Dr. Anika at www.opulencemdbeauty.com Twitter: @opulentlashlife
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