Starting a business
Starting a business:
· Is starting a business right for you?
· What you need to find out before you start;
· Planning a start-up business;
· Finding and keeping customers;
· Financial planning and raising finance;
· Drawing up a business plan;
· Legal responsibilities;
· Where to find help and support.
Is starting a business right for you?
People decide to work for themselves for a variety of reasons:
} To be their own boss;
} To take control of their careers;
} To turn their hobby into a money-spinner;
} To take advantage of a gap in the market;
} To turn an idea they’ve had into a reality;
} As a way out of unemployment;
} To overcome new challenges;
} To achieve a better work-life balance;
} Because they’re encouraged to by their family, friends or colleagues;
} To meet a social need, for example, by setting up a social enterprise;
} To earn more money.
…but there are a number of challenges:
} Hard work and long hours;
} Financial insecurity;
} Pressure on close relationships;
} Isolation;
} Missing out on the benefits of a job with a large organisation.
Is starting a business right for you?
· Does your business idea have a good chance of succeeding?
· Have you got what it takes to be your own boss?
· Will running a business suit what you want from your life?
Have you got what it takes to be your own boss?
Many successful entrepreneurs have the following qualities:
} Self-confidence;
} Self-determination: believing that results come from your own actions, rather than from outside forces;
} Being a self-starter: the ability to take the initiative and work independently;
} Judgement;
} Commitment: willingness to make personal sacrifices through long hours and loss of leisure time;
} Perseverence: the ability to continue despite setbacks and financial insecurity;
} Initiative: the ability to be resourceful and proactive.
Will running a business suit what you want from your life?
“The Seven Domains of Life”:
} Finance;
} Health;
} Work;
} Personal Relationships;
} Family;
} Friends and Social Life;
} Spirituality.
What you need to find out before you start:
} Research the market;
} How can you make your business idea stand out from the crowd?
} How much should you charge for your product/service?
Research the market:
} The market:
} What’s the size of your market?
} Where are the customers?
} Are there any trends that might affect your business?
} Your customers:
} What kind of people are they?
} How and where do they buy?
} Why do they choose a particular product/service over another?
Research the market:
} Your competitors:
} Who are they and what are their strengths and weaknesses?
} How does their product/service compare to yours?
} The price:
} What’s the price range for your product/service?
} What would your customers be willing to pay?
What you need to find out before you start:
} Research the market;
} How can you make your business idea stand out from the crowd?
} How much should you charge for your product/service?
Starting a business:
} Is starting a business right for you?
} What you need to find out before you start;
} Planning a start-up business;
} Finding and keeping customers;
} Financial planning and raising finance;
} Drawing up a business plan;
} Legal responsibilities;
Where to find help and support
Planning a start-up business:
} Your business plan;
} The goals for your business;
} Type of business (legal status);
} Naming the business;
} Where will you work from?
} Employing people;
} What equipment will you need?
} How will you access your customers?
} Supply and capacity planning;
} Finding the right suppliers;
} Promotion and advertising;
} Legal responsibilities.
Your business plan has four main purposes:
} To enable you to develop your vision about your business;
} To make sure you’ve thought of everything;
} To help you raise start-up finance if you need it;
} To compare your actual progress with what you’d planned at the outset.
What are your goals for your business?
} Do you want to build up your business with a view to selling it in a few years’ time?
} Is the new business to provide your main income, or just to top it up?
} Do you want members of your family to work with you?
Choosing the type of business (its legal status):
} Sole trader (indywidualna działalność gospodarcza);
} Partnership (spółka osobowa; spółka cywilna);
} Limited company (spółka z ograniczoną odpowiedzialnością).
Naming the business:
} Foundation of your brand;
} Should be clear wherever you use it;
} The legal form of the business may place constraints on the name.
Where will you work from?
· Draw up a list of requirements;
· Working from home:
o Cheap and convenient;
o Consider legal and practical issues.
· Is location or space more important?
· Allow time to find somewhere suitable before starting business.
Employing people:
} What staff will you need?
} Will you take them on before you start trading?
} How many people will you need to cover the roles that you have identified?
} Temporary, casual, part-time or full-time?
} What will they do?
} How much will you pay them?
} Staff should be managed professionally.
-Legal obligations towards employees.
