I’m not a business consultant or coach so why am I writing about this?
Because it’s important to start at the start, this is where the magic happens and it’s often the beginning of your unique story and your journey, the one you will come back to time and time again.
One day you had an idea and your idea began to bubble away, perhaps it still is cooking away but at some point your passion and action brought it to life.
If you’ve created a good solid core right from the word go then all of your communication will be very direct and it probably flows quite nicely, reaches your ideal client and you’re getting good engagement.
But most of us don’t know how to go from idea to setting up a business, it seems complicated, unnecessary and you just want to get going. You get a bit over excited and skip the boring bits – I’m guilty of doing this.
The problem with doing that is you get a few months or even a year in and have to put the brakes eventually and stop winging it. You really do need a plan.
So perhaps these seven points below will help you whether you’re at the very beginning or a little way in to your business journey.
If you get these right then the rest will be much easier and all your efforts will be clear and intentional…
Create a little business summary or executive summary – clearly state your mission, vision and purpose
Work out who your target market and ideal customer are – know exactly who your product or service is for and what problem it solves
Competitor research – determine your unique selling point (USP) based on those offering a similar product or service in your area
Marketing strategy – plan how will you sell your product or service and communicate your message to your target audience, where are they online?
Business plan – set a goal or goals and then small steps that you need to take to get you there, this will help you stay on track and grow your business
Define your version of success – work out what is important to you, start small and simple and then aim high
Branding your business – work with a graphic designer that knows brand strategy, don’t bootstrap it unless you’re pretty confident you can do a good job, do your research. Create a unique brand that represents your voice, values and will attract your ideal client or customer
When you are clear on these points you’ll be able to start communicating and reaching out to your ideal client with your content (aka marketing), here’s what you need to know about creating compelling copy.
Marie Forleo is absolutely right because your passion will keep your business going through difficult times, it will mean so much more when you achieve something, it will keep you motivated on bad days and it will light up your soul and feed your energy even when you feel like you have nothing left to give.
Entrepreneurs, coaches and business guru’s talk about finding your purpose – a lot.
It’s talked about so much that when it comes to starting a business it can actually stop you from starting. It can fill you with doubt about the path you’ve chosen.
Is this really my dream? I’m not sure this is my calling? What is my life’s purpose?
It all gets very deep, heavy and a bit scary because what if it doesn’t work out?
So keep things simple..
What excites you about your idea or business?
What are you good at or want to get good at?
Who can you help? What does the world need?
Finding your purpose means you need to stop living life on auto-pilot and start living with intention.
Combine that with a plan and you’ll be unstoppable!
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