The Business Startup Resource

One of the many factors you need to consider when deciding what business to start is the competition you will face from other established businesses. There are essentially two kinds of competition, direct and indirect, you are going to have to face. Both can put you out of business, so you will need to know everything about them, and then devise a plan to deal with the challenges they represent.

Businesses that sell the same products or services are your direct competition and those that get the same dollars you would otherwise get for different products or services are your indirect competition. If you own a clothing store for teens, then all the other stores that sell teen clothing are your direct competition. What you may not think about is the indirect competition you face. Teens, like everyone, have a limited amount of money to spend on themselves and your indirect competition is every business where they spend their money.

Once you have listed who your competition is and defined whether they are direct or indirect, you will need to formulate your marketing strategy. Try to think of the total spending power of your customers instead of how much they spend on only the products or services you offer. This will allow you to adjust your inventory to what your customers desire, rather than spend your time and money trying to convince them to buy what you have to sell.

Go to any bookstore and look through the many magazines that list “Businesses You Can Start.” They are filled with the most ridiculous sounding ideas one will ever find. It is my guess that maybe 1 in 20 of these so-called businesses will ever make the owner a dime. After all, how many people do you know who have ever made money cleaning window blinds (There are thousands of clients waiting for your call!) or selling gold chain by the inch?

So what is the point? The point is that starting a business is risky enough. I have seen statistics that say 50% will not survive 5 years. You need to do everything you possibly can to make sure your business is one that survives. And, the first, and most important thing you can do to increase the likelihood of this is to choose the right business to begin with.

Stay away from all the get rich quick schemes out there. There is no such thing. And stay away from anything that sounds too good to be true. It almost certainly is. You do not have to find the next best thing to make money. Remember, millions of people make a great living by providing the common products and services we use everyday.

Here is the new Upholstery Business profile to help you decide if owning and operating your own Upholstery Business might be for you. This is a great business for the person who likes to work with their hands bringing old pieces of fine furniture back to life. There are additional resources added to the end of this profile to help you explore this business further.

The best time to think about how you will market your new business is before you even start it. You should have a clear plan in mind on how you will bring in customers before you invest any money. If you are unable to produce a viable plan for bringing in enough sales or clients to get your business up and running, then you might want to rethink the business you intend to start. You may decide to change how or what you will be selling. Or, you might decide to go into a completely different business altogether.

Do not just go on your hunches. Try to quantify your beliefs with actual data. Look at other similar businesses in your area. How well do they seem to be doing? How long have they been in business? What are they doing to attract customers? A well thought out strategy before you start will save you time, money, and heartache. Only you can decide if the risks of running with your business idea are worth it, and thinking it through beforehand will increase the likelihood that you will make the right choice.

Selecting the right name will be one of the most important decisions you make when starting a new business. You will be living with the name you choose for a long time and it can play a large role in determining the success, or lack thereof, you will experience. Here are a couple things to keep in mind when selecting a name. Many theories abound on how to select the right name.

Some advise to never use your own name since it may not sound very professional, or, that you will have difficulty if you should ever decide to sell. That may be true but there are a lot of businesses that could prove it wrong.

It is often suggested that you use the name or description of the product or service you will provide as part of the title. This is good advice since it allows people to know at a glance if yours is the business they are looking for. You will also be instantly recognizable to those looking for what you have got. An example would be “Midwest Maid Service.” Very simple, easy to remember, and it describes exactly what the company does.

Of course, the first thing you will need to do when deciding on a name is to check to make sure no other business is using it already. You really do not need the legal trouble this will eventually bring. Do not put yourself in the position of having to change your name, or even worse, pay damages for using a name that is already taken.

The point here is that you should give a lot of thought to what you call your new business. Think up as many names as you can and ask your family and friends to do the same. Keep narrowing down the list until you have one that seems just right, or throw out the list and start again, if you have to. Take the time now to find the right name before you invest thousands of dollars and thousands of hours into the wrong one.

The new business profile to start you own Pressure Washing business can be found here. This might be just the business you are looking for. We have included a list of additional resources at the end of this profile that will provide more information for you to evaluate this business.

The new business profile for your own Residential Cleaning Service can be found here. Check back often  - we are adding new businesses all the time!