If you want to start your small business right and reduce your chances of failing, you’re in luck. All across the country, there are experts who have seen firsthand what business owners often do wrong—and right—and can help you avoid similar mistakes.
To get you started, we’ve asked one of these experts Ako Stark, who has created one of the largest cryptocurrency forum CryptoInTalk to share his best tips for new businesses.
1. Get On Social Media Consistently
From 2008 to 2018, 77% of U.S. Americans had a social media profile, Facebook alone has over 1 billion profiles worldwide. With that said if you do not have a consistent presence on at least one social media channel, you are missing out. Identify a social media channel the best aligns with your business and make it a point to develop a strategy.
2. Invest in your admin staff
From growing multiple businesses as well as consulting multiple businesses, one of the biggest opportunities I see is people think they can do it all on their own. Hiring a talented Office/Admin person will pay for itself tenfold!
3. Don’t waste money
A lot of times when I see a small business get started they spend a ton of money on expensive promotional pens, business cards, promotional items that are not needed. Only purchase what is 100% needed, when you make some more money then you can buy the other stuff.
4. Learn how to sell
The art of selling a lot of times has a negative connotation but the fact is if you do not know how to sell you will not be in business long! If you don’t feel that you’re going to be able to sell or learn how to sell, then you need to partner with somebody or hire somebody that has those skills.
5. Track everything.
Another big opportunity I see with small businesses, is they just get going and don’t pay attention to the numbers. You must know where your money is going, what you’re spending it on, your profit and loss, your close percentage, just about everything needs to be measured so you know if you’re being successful besides you just knowing if you can make payroll and bills at the end of every month. Know your business!
6. Find mentors
Who can “help you to navigate the myriad challenges that come with being a business owner,” advises Lambert. Research from the Small Firms Economic Development Initiative found that 70% of small businesses that receive mentoring survive more than five years—double the rate of non-mentored businesses.”
“Be open to learning, learning, and learning,” when you first start, you will make mistakes—lots of them. Your objective always should be learning from those mistakes, moving forward, and improving on your mistakes.”