We’ve all heard terms like “business foundation”. The words are often used to describe the basics of what a business should be built on. A few examples of this include knowing your audience, customer service and pricing your products and services correctly. However, can a business in the modern age really be built on these foundations alone, or does it require something special in order to really make it out there?
In this article, we’re going to be talking about a couple of important points that all budding entrepreneurs need to think about before they start a business. These are tips that will integrate within your business plan so that you have a much higher chance of creating a thriving business, but it’s also important to remember that failure is part of the learning process. With this in mind, let’s explore a couple of important considerations that will help to shape the success of your company.
Defining Success
Firstly, how do you define success? Some people believe that success is defined by your profits, but there are plenty of companies that don’t make much profit at all. A couple of good examples include Twitter, Uber and even Amazon. It might seem shocking, but most of the capital that these companies make are actually reinvested back into the company itself. Although it doesn’t necessarily mean these companies aren’t making money, it does technically imply that monetary rewards are not used as a way to determine success.
Rather, success for these companies is defined as growth. Growing your company, reaching new heights and exposing your brand to new consumers is what success means to them. However, that doesn’t mean it’s the only way to define what business success is. Some people consider themselves to be doing well if they’re able to make a profit or even just stay afloat. The point here is that everyone has their own definition of what success is, and this is going to play a huge part in the rest of this article.
Before you continue reading, think about what success means to you. Is it defined by the money you keep in your pocket? Is it defined by the lifestyle you can live as a result of your company’s profits? Or does it depend on your brand’s exposure?
Building on Solid Foundations
When we talk about solid business foundations, we’re often talking about a few key pillars that can really help your company reach stability and not just grow. Here are a couple of solid foundations that are commonly spoken about:
- A defined goal. The first foundation to keep in mind is a solid goal. Defining what your business’s goals are is an important step that will help you in the long term. A business plan will assist you in keeping your business on track and it will also help you make important decisions.
- Knowing your audience. Your audience is going to be difficult to understand. Building a large audience will greatly depend on how much you understand them, how well you treat them and also how you interact with them. If you fail to fill any of this criteria, then it’s going to be difficult to build a solid business.
- Understanding your products. Businesses think they understand their products better than the consumer, but it really depends on what the products are. If your customers are the ones using your products and services all the time then it’s important to actually listen to their feedback and understand their point of view instead of just looking at statistics and numbers.
- Solid customer support. Customer support is important regardless of what product or service you offer. If your customers are having trouble with something, then you need to be there for them with assistance.
- Research and development. While you don’t always need to be at the cutting edge to create a good product, it’s still important to understand that you need to occasionally innovate a create something new in order to fully realize your potential as a business.
- Well-equipped staff. Companies like Equify, LLC are all about equipping your business with the right tools for the job. Without basic equipment, it’s difficult for your staff to operate and it’s hard for your company to be productive. This is one of those basic pillars of business growth that many people neglect because they’re too focused on efficiency and saving money.
These are the types of solid foundations to keep in mind when starting a business–but are they really enough? While a business can survive and even thrive under these conditions, there’s something more that every company needs if they want to be ahead of the curve.
The Importance of Risk and Reward
Risk is something that many businesses refuse to think about. They believe that solid foundations and risk-free options are the best way to grow a business–but they’d be wrong. Your workplace needs to inspire creativity and your company needs to take risks if it’s to grow beyond what’s possible.
What holds people back is usually the fear of failure, but they fail to understand that everyone has failed at some point in their lives. Just take a look at famous entrepreneurs such as Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson. They have both failed in the past and they’ve both tried things in their current businesses that just never took off. They took risks that didn’t work out, but these are rarely ever spoken about. It’s important to take risks to understand what works and what doesn’t work. Even if something you try didn’t work out initially, that doesn’t mean it’s not possible in the future.
Whether it’s waiting for technology to catch up or waiting for consumer mentalities to change, being at the forefront of your industry and making industry-changing risks is an important part of every business. Yes, it’s possible to run a company on foundations and solid fundamentals, but it’s also important to take risks in order to reap the rewards that could put your business in a trendsetting position.
