If you have recently started your own business or you are planning to start one then you may be worried about how you will survive. Owning and running a business these days is hard as there is so much competition out there. You will constantly be looking for new ways to refresh your business and get new customers interested in your products or services. Years one to five of running a business are the hardest you will ever face. A lot of businesses won’t even make it to their first birthday because of various things going wrong. Take a look below to find out how you can ensure your business stays on top form and is always doing its very best.
Funding
One of the very first things any new business will need is a steady source of funding, this could come from a few places. You may have a family member or friend that has lent you the money to open your new business. You may have also saved the money over time so you can open this business.
Alternatively, if you don’t have any money saved up and nobody can lend it to you then you will have to seek other solutions. One such solution is asking the bank for a business loan. In order to be approved for this you will need to have a pretty strong credit history and score. Failing to have your personal finances in order will prevent you from getting the credit you need to open your new business venture.
Technology
When it comes to running a successful business you will need the very best equipment and technology that you can get your hands on. Have you ever rung a company or tried to speak to them online and heard the saying ‘sorry our tech is on the go-slow today’? This is the company using old and outdated technology to try and run its business. This is not something that is going to be a longstanding viable option if you want to be successful and the best at what you do.
Technology can be expensive, especially if you are trying to kit out an entire office space. However, you need to shop around to ensure you are getting the very best, high-quality equipment that fits into your budget. The newer it is, the better it will be and the happier you can keep your customers and clients.
Location
Something else to consider, especially if you are working with the general public, is your location. You don’t want to be situated miles away from the main hustle and bustle. This is a risky game as the chance you take is people not being able to find you. If this happens then you won’t get the right amount of foot traffic through your door spending their money. It is a well-known fact that businesses that are at the heart of the action usually have to pay more in rent. It more than makes up for it when you are visible to people that are having a mooch around the high street.
Website
When you run a business, you will want to try and get as many sales as possible. There could be around sixteen hours when your business is closed to the public. This means losing out on valuable income from selling your products. Having a business website means you can run your business 24/7 and get the customers you need at a time that suits them. People are often shopping around on their tech from the hours of 7 pm to 12 am. This is the prime time you need to have your website up and running. If you are going to go down for maintenance, it should ideally be around 4 am.
When it comes to your website, you need to be found online. This is where an SEO agency would come in handy to help get you in the rankings. If you can’t do this yourself then they are always on hand to help you. Your website itself needs to be easy to navigate and find the products your customers are looking for. There is an unofficial website rule that you may have heard of. The three-click rule is usually in place by businesses so their customers are not forever trawling through pages. It is said that if customers have to click more than three times to find the page or product they want then they may take their custom elsewhere.
We hope you found this article helpful and that it gave you a few solutions to how to run your business effectively. Getting everything right from the start will ensure you have placed down great foundations so it stands the test of time.
