Establishing a successful business requires a high level of knowledge and expertise, and those new to the business landscape will need to develop a comprehensive plan of action to sustain long-term growth. Chad E. Harris, a serial entrepreneur from New Orleans, has over 30 years of experience in the green industry and has worked in construction, retail, and e-commerce sectors. Using his marketing experience in customer retention, acquisition, and negotiations to help businesses achieve success, Chad E. Harris has some advice on how to get started as an entrepreneur.
Create a Cohesive Business Plan
Starting a business is a significant commitment, so you want to be sure that you are aware of the time, resources, and energy required to start, grow, and sustain a business. Chad E. Harris explains that if you have come to terms with the responsibility involved with entrepreneurship then you will want to start your endeavor by performing extensive market research. Having a passion for the business you want to start begins with intuition and focusing on three key areas: what you know, what others do successfully, and what common problem you are hoping to solve. Additionally, your product should differentiate itself in some meaningful way from your competitors.
Chad E. Harris explains that he has seen many entrepreneurs dragging their feet in the planning stages prior to testing and receiving customer feedback, and he explains that this can be a significant mistake. Before you begin production, you want to make sure your customer wants your product. A great way to start addressing any holes in your business is by building a cohesive business plan.
Whether it is as simple as a business model canvas, or as complicated as breaking down annual projected income and expenses, a business plan will help you consider every angle of your business so that there are no surprises. Chad explains that a few questions you might want to ask yourself are:
- What problem am I solving?
- Who is my target audience? How will I market my product to this demographic?
- What is our 5-year projected plan?
- Who are our competitors?
- What are our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats?
Writing down the answers to all of these questions will help you find clarity, which will help you pitch your business confidently to investors, partners, and clients. You do not want any surprises when you are starting a new business—do not get blindsided by a competitor or a downward trend in the market. Chad E. Harris explains that this step, planning strategically for the future, is often the difference between success and failure in a start-up.
Receive Customer Feedback
Once you have built your business plan, addressed any strategic issues, and clarified your approach, you then need to validate your business. Whether you are offering a service or product, you want to know that the end user, your customer, has an explicit need for it, and that it works the way they want it to.
A great way to get started is by offering the product or service to people you already know, asking them to fill out an anonymous form to provide honest feedback. Of course, you will want to step outside of your social circle to ensure the criticism you are receiving is genuine, honest, and unbiased.
Chad E. Harris explains that these early stages of development will allow you to incorporate any feedback into the product or service prior to investing too much time, money, and resources into the business. You want to open up a channel of discourse between your business and your customers to ensure it is able to satisfy their needs.
Bring Your Business Online
After receiving honest feedback, it is time to start making your business real online. Chad E. Harris explains that you should dedicate time and effort into building a website that summarizes who you are, what you do, and how you add value. Some tips for building a great website are to check out your competitors’ sites, start sketching out a template before getting started, and make sure it is user friendly (mobile optimized, loads quickly, is clean and simple). This is your digital business card, and plays a major role in customer acquisition and retention.
Organize Your Finances
Keeping your finances separate, and keeping track of incomes, expenses, capital expenditures, EBITDA, profit and loss, is essential to understanding your business’s cash flow and for tax-filing purposes. Whether you incorporate as an LLC (Limited Liability Corporation), an S Corporation, or a C Corporation, Chad E. Harris explains that in order to limit personal liability, you should: always use your corporate name, always use the proper signature, follow all corporate formalities, and make sure to keep funds and taxes separate.
Implement Comprehensive Marketing Strategies
Lastly, Chad E. Harris explains that when it is time to get the word out about your business, make sure you use an integrated marketing strategy. Depending on whether you are selling to the end user or to another business, the channels and platforms you use to sell your product or service matters. If you are a B2B, you will likely want to focus on LinkedIn and e-mail marketing. If you are selling a new cosmetic product, you will likely want to focus on Instagram, paid promotional ads and some guerilla marketing tactics. Make sure that your company uses the same visual branding across every channel to start to build trust with your customers.
