Robert Codray, Negosentro | As entrepreneurs work day and night towards raising seed funding for their startup launch and market their relatively nascent brand to the public, they often overlook some aspects of launching and running a business that aren’t as obviously important as the rest. This article will help you remember those commonly forgotten or overlooked responsibilities of entrepreneurship.
Setting a Strict Launch Date
If you don’t have a clearly outlined launch date, you can spend months, if not more, working towards your startup without any idea of when you’ll actually finish and deliver your product/service to the market. If you can’t zero in on a specific day, at least set a month when you’ll launch.
This will allow you to keep track of your progress and adjust the pace in which you operate on a daily basis. If you have only a few weeks before your launch date, you can log in extra work hours over the week. On the same note, you can take a much needed break if you are far ahead you’re expected launch date.
Designing the Right Website and Mobile App
Having these two things is crucial for any business, regardless if you’re in the tech scene or is a traditional brick-and-mortar family-owned pizza place. A website and mobile app will give your brand maximum visibility since anyone around the world can download your app or browse your site. Albeit, the right design layout is critical to attracting the right audience, receiving positive feedback, and generating leads.
A website with minimalistic design and user-friendly features can grow your company faster by effectively converting leads into paying customers. Your website should also be responsive, meaning your visitors should be able to view the same webpages and use the same functionality on a different device, such as a smartphone or tablet.
Fostering a Secure Workplace
Startups who operate in an office building or retail location often forget the importance of fostering a safe and secure work environment for them and their employees. If you are operating on a shoestring budget and can’t afford commercial-grade security systems, install home security cameras that are equally effective in deterring theft and other mischievous activities. Fostering a secure workplace can increase your business’ value as well as attract the right talent.
Networking With the Right Folks
Handing your card out to every person you meet on the street can indeed help, but you’re going to want to prioritize your networking efforts with the right people, such as angel investors, other business owners and potential partners, tech bloggers, and journalists. If you aren’t talking with people who have their own blog and have a following of their own on social media, then you’re doing your networking wrong. With the right connections, you can quickly spread the word about your brand with minimal to no upfront marketing costs.
Cutting Back Costs
Cutting back on costs leads to better profit margins for the startup. More profits means more investable capital that you can use to scale your business faster. Look closely at your current business expenditures and where your available capital is being allocated. Does your startup really need an office space this early or can you set up camp at home? Do you really need to pay permanent employee salaries and benefits or can you survive with just the help of an outside consultant for now? A lot of startup founders spend too much of their time trying to grow their company and, as a result, blindly burning through their capital that they forget to check if the incurred expenses are justified.
Final Thoughts
It’s easy to forget these five things as you focus on developing and refining your product/service and marketing your brand to its target audience. Following these five commonly overlooked aspects of launching and starting a business can give you the competitive edge that you need to scale your business faster than other industry players can.
