It is not necessary to wait until you have a lot of money to start up your business. The time is now. The market may change and make things difficult and you could be left with the bitter taste in you...
It is not necessary to wait until you have a lot of money to start up your business. The time is now. The market may change and make things difficult and you could be left with the bitter taste in your mouth of not having taken the decision at the right moment. Business is not only about buying and selling. It is about taking the right decisions at the right moment.
Do Not Let Others Beat You To It
If you have detected a niche in the market that you can fill in, go for it. Do not waste time watching to see what happens, whether it is the right moment or not. Waiting gives your precious time to others. Rushing to do things without a proper planning is not good either. You have all the ideas in your head, so just write them down, on paper or on your computer and make a checklist of everything you need to open your business.
Niche Marketing
Your first attempt should consider every nail and every sheet of paper needed to get your business going. There will always be time to cut down on unnecessary things later on. I talked about a “niche” above, because niche marketing is very interesting. Once you detect the niche and the needs it has, you tailor a product or service for that niche and you already have a market, without having to spend precious cash on random advertising. What little advertising you will have to carry out, will be specifically directed to your niche.
You will have time later on to expand and add products to your line, innovate and improve, to widen your scope, a little at a time, so as to grow steadily and firmly and surpass the critical moment. It is said that 80% of new businesses do not make it through the first year.
Start Closing The Circle
Once you have your business plan ready, you can start to think of a business loan. Considering what is mentioned in the previous paragraph, every lender knows the risks that a new business implies. So, this risk will have to be shared, in the form of the provision of some asset of yours, whether private or dedicated to the business, to show confidence in your own project.
Very few loans will be granted on the business plan alone, however brilliant it may appear, so bear this in mind and place your car, truck, a piece of land, whatever it may be, as collateral from the very beginning. Do not wait for the lender to ask for it.
Some Additional Considerations
When you start to fill in the numbers in your business plan, consider the loan payment in advance. If you take the trouble to calculate how much you need and how you will repay it, making it participate in the general cash flow, it will give the loan officer a good impression. For this, you will need to shop around and get free quotes, not to be confused with applications.
The interest rate will vary slightly from lender to lender and depending on the amount and collateral you offer, but in general there is no great difference. The main difference in these matters is your decision and how you prepare your way for your new activity.
