Written by bizwealthbuilder.com providing business budgeting and funding information.
Economic downturns put a serious strain on our lives, but they can also wake us up to our true priorities. For example, many people have realized over the last year that they’d prefer to be running their own business. As a result, experts believe we’ll see a rise in the COVID-preneur — budding business owners drawn to entrepreneurship in the wake of the pandemic.
If you want to be a part of this movement, you’ll need to take steps to make sure your business stands out from the crowd. Arche offers the advice you need to push your career in the right direction. In that spirit, here are some smart moves you can make to give your business the best start possible:
Find Your Advantage
One of the most important steps any business owner should make when it comes to standing out is playing to your own strengths. Anything you can do that takes advantage of your specific standing in the market can pay off, whether it’s in reducing costs, ensuring product quality, gaining customers, and more.
For example, if your idea will work as a home-based business, lean into that — at least, at the start. Working out of your home significantly reduces your budget compared to renting an office space. Although you may need to pick up some equipment, such as a reliable computer or a headset for calls, you’ll come out way ahead when it comes to reducing your startup costs. If an office makes sense down the road, you can always transition to that — but make the most of your advantages in the meantime.
Respond to the Market
One major mistake many business owners are likely to make when building a company in the post-COVID era is leaning on pre-COVID techniques. Although we still don’t fully understand how the pandemic has changed the market, and likely won’t for many years to come, it has — and it’s important that your business recognize and react to those changes as much as possible.
One such mental shift you should consider from the start is whether or not you want to use remote employees as part of your workforce. Before the pandemic, many businesses feared that remote workers would be less productive without a watchful eye. However, research has shown that remote workers are just as productive as office workers — sometimes even more so. Moreover, remote options open you up to talent all over the country (or the world, if you like). Avoid falling victim to old assumptions and embrace the future that makes the most sense for your business.
Lean on Your Network
Finally, make sure to take full advantage of your professional network as you start your new business. Reaching out to former coworkers, supervisors, mentors, and peers to let them know about your new endeavor can seriously pay off. You never know who’s looking for your services or who might be a good fit for a role you need to fill. Better yet, hire an Arche mentor to guide you through the arduous process of getting a business off the ground.
You can keep your network generally aware of your business’s progress through social media sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. You should also be sure to connect with people directly when looking for advice or if you have a job someone may be a good fit for. Even if you don’t get what you’re hoping for out of the conversation, touching base keeps you — and your business — on that person’s mind.
Remember, business ownership is likely to be on the rise for a while, meaning that the moves you make now can make a big difference when it comes to securing your place on the market. We hope this article helps you figure out techniques you can use to set your business up for success!
Looking for more advice and guidance to help grow your career? Book a session with one of Arche’s career coaches!
Arche helps people architect, navigate and advance their career path with expert advice and tools to support your job search, interview preparation, professional branding, salary negotiations, and career advancement.
Live Your Dream - Subscribe to our blog for lots of great news, elearning and events to help you fulfill your career aspirations!
Comments