5 Things You Never Considered When Starting Your Business

Has starting your own small business always been a dream?  For people who've started small businesses over the years, dreams do turn to reality. With that in mind what has surprised you as you’ve gotten your new business off the ground?

From expenses tom technology's role, I'm sure there are some surprises along the way. The main thing is to make sure you have a solid game plan going into your business ventures. Doing so will give you a better chance at being successful. It also improves your chances of keeping your brand around for many years to come. 

Even though a fair number of small businesses fail within five years, you do not have to be one of them.

Learning as You Go

As you move forward, you will come across some major decisions. These decisions at times seem overwhelming, but they are necessary. From domain name registration to whether to hire workers, you are kept on your toes. Among the things you may not have considered when starting your business:

1.    Expenses

With the old adage of having to spend money to make money, you have to open up your wallet or purse.

Expenses will oftentimes lead some small businesses out of business. If concerned about what it will cost to get your business rolling, relax. Often, you are better off looking at other small businesses similar in size and scope to what you do.

Look to see how they spend money, what items are most prioritized in a budget, and where there are shortfalls. Learning from the actions and even mistakes of others can help you.

2.    Domain Name

While some small businesses get away without being online, they are taking a big gamble. Not having an Internet presence in today’s day and age is quite risky. Without online activity, one can miss out on both marketing and communication opportunities.  Be sure that you take care in choosing your domain name strategically before you pay money to register your domain.

Choose something that is easy to type and remember. Try to avoid hyphens and numbers as these can often make it difficult for word-of-mouth marketing. Make sure your website has an easy-to-find contact area, one where consumers can send questions and/or comments. 

Also make sure that you respond to those inquiries in a timely and professional manner.

3.  Employees

The call on whether or not to hire help can be a challenging one. Yes, you may very well be on a tight budget, but can you handle all the work on your own? If you want to lessen the odds of suffering burnout, hiring reliable help is not a bad idea.

By having workers do customer service, you can focus more on the finances and other operations.

4.    Social media

Even if you’re not a lover of social media, you need to use it for business purposes. When active on many social channels, you open up your business to countless selling opportunities. Be sure to engage consumers like you would when they come to your website. Social media gives you that opportunity 24/7/365, so take advantage of it.

Also use social media to see what other comparable small businesses are up to. Knowing how your competitors use social networking can be of great benefit to your brand.

5.    Hours

Did you not consider all the hours that would go into running your own small business? As many business owners note, they work 10 times harder for themselves than any corporate employer. That doesn’t mean they were lazy in their past jobs.

It signals all the time and effort required for one to run an operation. To avoid burnout, make sure you give yourself some “me” time. Doing so will allow you to keep everything in perspective. If you are a family man or woman, ask your family members to pitch in wherever and whenever they can. By doing so, some of the load's removed from your back.

In running a small business in today’s hectic world, much is on the line.Know that you have the determination to make this thing work. Although the hours will be long at times, the rewards can prove quite fruitful.

With that in mind are you ready to get to work on having an awesome small business?