5 Must-Haves for a Business Startup

Success is never a given when it comes to launching a business, indeed, a lot of things need to be in place in order to enjoy any level of success and in this short article, we highlight a few must-haves that every successful startup needs.

1. A comprehensive business plan – Your business is going nowhere without a comprehensive plan; every aspect of the operation should be covered; an overview of the business, a section on sales & marketing that clearly shows how you intend to find customers, startup and running costs, a flowchart that shows who does what and a list of business assets. Don’t rush this, rather play devil’s advocate and look for potential issues and work out solutions; the plan should cover the first 5 years.
2. Money – A business idea will remain in the realms of imagination if you don’t have the necessary funding. Talk to one of the business loans companies in Sydney and they can tailor a loan that allows you to repay at a fixed rate, with options. When you crunch the numbers and come up with a final figure, add 25% to cover unexpected costs, which there will be. A few unpaid invoices or a lawsuit is all it takes to put you in the red and no one knows what will happen in the future; many small businesses fall by the wayside due to lack of funds, so do take precautions.
3. Joint goals – From the CEO to the office cleaner, all stakeholders should know the company goals and strive to do what they can to achieve them. Share your vision with all employees and they will work together to achieve set goals, both long and short term. Team-building is important and make sure that you recognise excellence and effort; monthly employee meetings motivate all parties and support individuals that wish to develop personally.
4. Essential resources – Of course, this would depend on the nature of the business; a restaurant has different needs to a software developer; an organisation should have the necessary resources and outsource other services. A headquarters with ample amenities is one must have, while most businesses need commercial transport, essential equipment and machinery might be needed. Click here for a few budget-friendly tips when you move house.
5. Digital marketing budget – Don’t make the mistake of thinking word of mouth will get your business known within the local community; you need to set aside a sum of money for SEO and social media marketing, which is the only way to generate a strong online profile. Without orders, the company will have no revenue and hiring a branding agency would be a wise move for a new venture.

We cannot stress the importance of your business plan when launching a startup; invite a business coach to look it over when it is complete and if you get the green light, you are good to go.