Nine out of 10 ventures fail for the reason that the idea is not viable. Such is the anxiety of the entrepreneurs to open the business who do not do the task which must be do in advance i.e. carry out a market research and plan to go from nothing to idea to the project, and a project to the business.
Owning a successful business invokes a super feeling, but establishing a successful business is never a journey of plum tasks. It is a bumpy road, so one has to remain on all toes to attain the goals. The ones who quit never learn from their mistakes, but the ones who hold on tightly learn from the mistakes of others beforehand. In this post, I’ll talk about the factors that may fail you in business. Go through these factors and ensure that you will not fall victim to these harmful factors.
When you make a business and marketing plan, make a list of do-do things, and if any of the points coincides with the following factors, solve them on immediate basis.
Blindly Following Others
One of the success killers is to blindly follow a trend. Many people try to make something work for them, because it has worked out for someone else. They forget that following others’ footsteps basically makes you lazy, limits your vision and thinking. I don’t mean that getting inspired by someone/something is bad, but “following blindly” is a real culprit and major hurdle on your way to success.
· Always research and analyze your idea, and see if it has the essentials of a being a distinctive idea
· Conduct research in every possible aspect you need to know about your idea and the business you want to plan comprehensively
Never follow others because things are working for them. A famous idiom says that “One man’s meat is another man’s poison.” Here the main thing is to stick to your ideas and identity.
Avoiding Technology Considering it to Be Expensive
Today, we cannot move an inch in the business world without technology, and many people just avoid it, thinking that it is too expressive such as ERP, CRM, accounting and inventory management software. Employing the latest software does sound expensive, but it saves you a great deal of time, effort and expenses. Thus, do not hesitate engaging the latest technology in your business, and you would never regret your decision. Interestingly, most of the latest software come with a free trial, so you can have this liberty to find out the benefits.
Fearing Failure
You will have the fear of failure and believe me it is inevitable and natural. What matters most is how you deal with this fear of failure, either you choose to continue following your dream or give up because of your fear.
We cannot help and control different kinds of thoughts that come to our mind, but we can always choose the thoughts to mull over. It does not take anything else to become successful but immense courage to move on despite the negative thoughts you are bombarded by. The concept of courage is often misunderstand; basically, courage is not the absence of fear, it is about doing what is right despite of being fearful. You, if, cannot control what thoughts you dwell on, soon you will be taken over by the negative thoughts. Remember: giving up is easier than continuing the journey and only your courage can take you above and beyond your fear.
Do not be afraid because you may fail. It’s alright and it has happened with the most successful of people in the business world.
Misreading the Market
It is a common misconception. Most of the startup do not analyze the market in depth and uncover the stats that how many people have the potential to buy their product/service.They might not have enough the time and especially money to invest in market research. Many imagine that they will sell the units in thousands, and then only sell 10% of the projected sales. If you calculate the size of your market wrongly, it will affect the figures of sales projection. Thus, ensure that you have conducted research on potential market in detail to avoid any surprise later.
Misjudged Cost Structure
It is always more expensive than it appears to be, and you always have to sell cheaper than you had thought. A large number of startups define the principal amount based on sales projection and make the operating cost without enough to start the operation capital, which is another serious mistake.
Inclusion of Unnecessary Business Partners
When you need investment, you often look for new business partners. Unluckily, many of them do not contribute anything additional than the money to get 50% of your business share. They could be a burden if they do not add value in other terms. Therefore, before you take a partner on board, you must think twice.
Hire People for Convenience
Many business owners hire their relatives or friends without knowing or objectively analyzing their true capabilities. It is the easiest thing, but many times they turn out to be the wrong decisions. What’s worse, it is also very difficult to dismiss a relative or a good friend. In the initial stage of your business, you need people with multi-tasking abilities.
Marketing Plan in Rush
Every business needs a solid market research and this fundamental step will help you stay focused on planning and marketing your business for surefire success. Unfortunate, many marketers act like a cat on the hot bricks, which results in glaring failure. You must conduct a detailed market research, and it will become a very easy task to put together. Here I’ll with share you a flawless 6-step business marketing plan. With these 6 steps, you can ensure successful business marketing.
Step 1 – Se the Goals
The first step to make a great business marketing plan is to determine what your goals are. Be specific to make your plan better and more effective.
Ask the following questions to determine your goals:
· Is it to get new customers?
· Is it to retain customers?
· Is it about increasing your business visibility in market?
· Is it about increasing your profits?
· Is it about branding your business?
Step 2 – Target Market
This is one of the most critical steps. You must define who you are targeting with your marketing plan. The more focused your target market is, the more likely you are to succeed in it.
Step 3 –Your Competitive Advantage
Define whatyour advantages are for your target audience over your competitors.The more unique your advantage you offer, the more likely you will have a successful business marketing plan.
Step 4 –Marketing Tools& Platforms
What marketing tools do you have available to use, i.e., networking, social media, website, brochures and flyers, direct mail, seminars, etc.? Make a list of the possible marketing resources with a focus on your target audience.
Step 5 – Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
Always remember that your customers want to buy solutions to their problems from you, so ensure your USP addresses it loud and clear.
· What is your unique selling proposition for your customers?
· What problem is it solving for them?
· What exactly are you going to deliver?
· Step 6 –Budget
Your business and goals play a crucial role in overall budget allocation. Howmuchever budget you allocate, the rule of thumb is to allocate 60% on existing customers, 30% on generating new customers, and 10% on various marketing costs.
With this 6-step business marketing plan, you can market and grow your business in a short span of time. Remember:The one thing that will help you more than anything in your business marketing plan it to remain persistent with spirit to fight till the end.
I hope you find this post a useful read for yourself and benefit from it to the fullest. Please, do share your feedback in the comment section or add a useful idea make this post more useful for other readers.
Michael Bromanis professional research writer and has been providing affordable online essay help UK to high school, college and university students globally. He also loves to write informative articles on business courses, planning, strategies, issues in business and their solutions, marketing plans and entrepreneurship.
