16 Critical Factors/Steps for Starting a Business
Startups are full of promise & excitement, but the other side is, they’re also full 
of risk & insecurity. There are a lot of great ideas out there that somehow never get off the ground + there are plenty of questionable ones that become massive successes. Which do you want to be? A good to great idea, that becomes a success? Yes, yes, yes !!! Wiz4.biz
Startup Topics: Idea, Competitors, Founders, Team, Target, Funding, Biz Plan, Flexibility, Vision, Execution, Timing, Crisis, Marketing, Growth, Burn Rate
How to Succeed !!! Do sufficient research to find out how Startups fail or succeed. There are many factors that lead to success or failure. We’d like to present them to you – to significantly increase your probability of success. Here they are:
1. a Good to Great Idea
The strength of the founder’s idea might seem to be the biggest factor responsible for a biz’s success, but it’s really only a small element of how things might turn out. Consider Google, whose core idea of an interactive Web Search was, at its start, already being implemented by dozens of competitors. But because Google’s founders’ planning, execution & timing were superior, their lack of originality didn’t cripple their chances of success.
2. Know your Competitors
You cannot win with a “Me Too!” product. Research the competition & categorize your competitors using SWOT. How, where, when, why is your product – better than alternatives? You must be brutally honest with yourself.
3. Fantastic Founders
Leadership is important in startups. Leaders make the Decisions, set the Vision & Inspire people to work harder toward their group’s goals. A natural or experienced leader can turn even a mediocre idea into a successful one.
4. a Terrific Team
Entrepreneurs are important, but they rarely accomplish great things alone. Successful startups employ anywhere from a handful to hundreds of people, and those people will be the ones maintaining the business, driving innovation & executing your high-level goals. Hire the right people for the job, and you’ll never have a problem.
5. your Aim on your Target Market
The customer must be the center of your universe; not your product. Build a Value Proposition that identifies the Target Markets, their problem, & what you do for them better than anybody else.
6. Finding Funding
Family & Friends, Crowd-Funding, Accelerators & Incubators (the other AIs), Launch Platforms (for Rockets or your Startup), SBA, Social Networking, Private Equity, Personal Marketing, Angels. (see other Finding Funding posts)
7. Sufficient $$$ to survive until you Succeed.
Working capital is important; so are your early stages of funding. Don’t panic if you can’t find an investor — friends & family investments are possibilities. And don’t rule out the possibility of opening a Line of Credit. Once credit is secured, remember to keep an eye on your Cash Flow. Watch your Burn Rate.
8. a Boulder Business Plan
The Biz Plan has to involve more than just your basic idea. It includes your goals, targets, operations & more. Everything written down in your Plan counts as part of your “Plan,” and the degree to which you researched & fine-tuned your plan will greatly affect your chances of eventual success. The more thorough you are here, the better.
9. Flexibility:
The biggest problem with a Startup is often – to find a perfect Business Model to start with. It is important to create a good Business Plan for this, but flexibility is the key and we have to adapt to changing situations. Some of the successful startups significantly change their business model to became successful.
10. a Valiant Vision
Identify realistic goals &reasonable milestones + timelines that can be matched with current investment and spending plans. Be realistic in investing the right resources to meet your goals.
11. an Excellent Execution
That being said, a Biz Plan is only as valuable as its ability to be executed. If you have a great plan, but blow its execution, your entire enterprise could be compromised. On the other hand, if you have an adequate plan and execute it perfectly, you’ll have a solid leg to stand on and a key understanding of what did & didn’t work from your original concept.
12. Terrific Timing
Timing is important from a competitive perspective, and it’s led many businesses to prominence despite a chaotic & busy market at their time of entry. When YouTube came on the scene, there were already dozens of video-streaming platforms. But because YouTube launched at a critical moment — after high-speed Internet became the norm, but before any other “streaming service” had risen to prominence — it enjoyed radical early success.
13. Coping with Critical Crisis
No matter how well you plan or how hard you work, something is going to go wrong. How you respond to a crisis is far more important than how likely you are to avoid one. One crisis not responded to properly, all it takes to put a company under, so think carefully about your response plan.
14. Magnificent Marketing
How you package & market your business matters. An mediocre product that’s branded in a more appealing, exciting & unique way will always out sell its superior product that happens to have plain, non-memorable branding. This point may seem superfluous, but it critically affects customers’ buying decisions.
15. Galloping Growth
Finally, the path you choose toward growth plays a significant role in how you end up. Grow too fast and you’ll stretch yourself thin. Grow too slowly and you’ll never get anywhere. So, find a balance, and treat your growth carefully.
16. Minimize your Burn Rate
Successful companies are willing – and able -to make strategic investments when appropriate. While the days of lavish Press Conferences are over, important infra-structure investments are critical for any company’s ability to grow. Sales force automation tools, CRM tools, sales Training, a professional looking Website, & developing a Content-Marketing strategy are all key investments that allow startups to rapidly build a solid brand and grow their business smoothly.
Conclusion: If you look at each of these factors objectively and can say that your Startup meets or exceeds their demands, chances are you’re already primed for success. If you notice any one of these factors as being weaker than the other, you’ll have the cue you need to invest more time & resources into that weakness, to overcome it.
Comments: Are there any other Critical Factors in Starting a Business?
from Entrepreneur Zine & Kick Starter 1/20 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4.biz
For more Info, click on Starting a Business.