Category: Starting Up

1. There Has Never Been a Better Time 

With the advances in technology and changing of the modern workplace, it has never been easier to start your own small business.  Online businesses can be developed from just about anywhere for little-to-no cost, and often times can even be run along side of your full-time job.  Whether it is consulting, freelancing, or building your own app, it has never been easier to get a business up and running on your own.

2. Free Resources 

The internet has changed the game when it comes to finding information.  What used to cost you anywhere from $50 – $1,000+ dollars can now often be found on the internet for free.  Small business resources are everywhere, and are often given to you for no more than signing up for a newsletter.  You can find content-rich guides on how to do just about anything.  For example, HUMAN Healthy Vending recently released a guide on how to start a vending machine business and is giving it away for free.  No matter what your interested in, you will be able to find resources for cheap that can help you grow your business.

3. You’re Not Getting Any Younger 

We are all guilty of saying “one day”.  One day I’ll start my own company.  One day I’ll learn how to speak another language.  The fact of the matter is there is never going to be a perfect time, and we’re not getting any younger.  You need to force yourself to get started.  Take the first step today and get your momentum going.  A year from now you will look back and be glad you did.

4. Small Businesses Are Fun 

Whoever said they don’t like being their own boss clearly never has been.  Small business owners get to make all the decisions, and create the working environment they want.  From a fun company culture, to awesome work outings, you can create the workplace that you have always dreamed of.  While there no doubt will be a lot of work, the flexibility that comes with a small business makes it all worth it.

5. Make an Impact on Your Society 

There is no better way to make an impact on the world than through business.  A business is one of the best vehicles to change the world around you.  No matter what you would like to see change, your best chance is to make it happen with a business.  This will give you a sense of purpose, making you feel better about the work that you do, and getting up in the morning a lot easier.

So, what are you waiting for?

Some Advice You Can’t Afford To Ignore

Due to success stories like Mark Zuckerberg, or television programs like Silicon Valley, starting your own business is firmly in the minds of the millennial generation. And why shouldn’t it be? With the amount of resources and support available to us, we’re in the perfect position to be doing so. However, the more adventurous we get, the more absent minded we arguably become. There is a plethora of possibilities, plans and scenarios that you need to take into account before you start your own business, but some are more important than others.

The Idea

The first thing you need is a good idea. You can’t just wake up in the morning and decide, “I’m going to start my own business today” and that is you. You need to look at what you know and what you have learned, whether it be from your current profession, from when you were a student, or just something that you’ve taken up as a hobby. There will be an idea in there somewhere; you just need to recognise it. Once you have your idea, you should register it as an intellectual property to make sure that your idea stays yours.

The Support

So, you’ve got your idea, the next thing you need is money. It doesn’t matter what you are doing, if you’re building something from the ground up, you need capital. There will be more expenses going out than coming in at the start, so you’ll need a fair chunk. You might have savings tucked away, but not everyone will want to use their savings. You can apply for small business grants, or a small business loan.

The Strategy

Probably one of the most important parts of starting your own business is having a solid business plan. You need to know your market; who you will be targeting; why you are targeting them; how you will target them; who else is targeting them – this list could go on for a long time, and that is only a small part of your plan. There are a lot of areas to cover and check off in this area, so it’s prudent to look online for business tools and guides in order to make sure you are on the right track. Using a few will only solidify this.

The Security

You’ve got your backing in place, and your plan is in full flow. Your venture is about to begin. However, what you may not realise is that, even now, you’ve got to be thinking long term – particularly in terms of you business’ security. And I’m not meaning an alarm system, but having cover in place if you or one of your employees are not able to work for whatever reason. Employee illness apparently costs UK businesses £29 billion every year, so you want to be prepared. It may seem like just another overhead, but having an insurance plan in place to cover such absences and losses makes a lot of sense.

The Network

In life, it pays to know people – the world of business is no different. Networking can play such a vital part in the success of you newly founded company, and thanks to modern technology, it’s never been easier – social media is your friend. Sites like LinkedIn and Facebook can connect you with people and companies that you didn’t even know existed, so be sure to scour these sites, and the internet in general to find those who can be your allies. Also, check out seminars and conferences, while online networking can go a long way, some good old fashioned hand shaking will never do you any harm.

The Stability

Hopefully, everything is going well for your new business – all the right boxes are checked, you know your plan and strategy inside and out and you’ve connected with the correct people. But, even if things are going swimmingly, you need to make sure they continue in this fashion. Identifying what you are doing right and continuing and expanding on these is vital to success. It also works in the other way, identify what you might have done wrong, and look at how you can change this and implement a successful approach to these aspects of your business. While you might know all the right people, the person who can make the biggest change to your business, is you.

Every entrepreneur dreams of creating a profitable business. Global domination may come to few of us, but it remains the ultimate goal for the talented and ambitious.

Unfortunately, before you can run a successful business, you have to set one up. You must come up with the concept, the product, the vision, and the end goal, and this in itself is incredibly challenging, not to mention expensive.

One of the best ways of safeguarding your venture is by looking to the future, and it’s a very good idea to tally up all of the potential costs before you give it a go. To help you out, here are five of the outlays that you’ll need to consider…

#1: The Cost of Premises

One of the greatest investments for any business will be its premises, and for start-ups especially this represents a significant initial outlay. The perfect location will need to provide you with all of the space you require, along with the right set-up, and access to your suppliers and customer base.

For those who can’t afford it, working from home through an online enterprise may prove a viable alternative, reducing your costs and representing a lifeline for your endeavour.

#2: The Cost of Utilities

If you do find that a bricks and mortar office block or factory is necessary for your purposes, then don’t forget to add in the cost of your utilities. The best way to establish how high this will be is by approaching various companies for quotes. To keep your outgoings to a minimum, try shopping around to find a cost-effective option like United Gas and Power.

#3: The Cost of Furnishings

Some office blocks and factories will come already furnished, but a lot of them will not. This means that you may have to sink a significant sum of money into securing not only the equipment and machinery that you need, but also basics like desks, swivel chairs, and even a microwave and dishwasher.

#4: The Cost of Insurance

Another expenditure to add to your tally will be the cost of insurance. Your financial future will be dependent upon the success of your business, so leaving it open to legal or natural disaster makes no sense at all. To protect the project that you’ve given your all to you’ll need to find a reliable and reputable provider, and choose a policy that covers your needs.

#5: The Cost of a Website

Finally, try to factor in the cost of constructing a suitable website. So much business is now conducted over the internet that a strong online presence can make all the difference to the success of your endeavour. Although some entrepreneurs will possess the skill to craft this themselves, amateurs are best turning to the professionals in order to achieve a suitably polished finish.

Do you have the budget to launch your business?

Article Contributed by Lee Flynn

When technology became the foundation for economic growth in the 21st century, the strategies of the companies driving that growth became one of the most important stories in business. Everyone sought to study what those companies were doing and how it impacted their opportunities and how it improved their ability to meet and overcome the various challenges they faced as they blazed paths into new business models, new products and what industry observers call “the new economy.”

Employees First

What technology companies do virtually without exception, is hire talented and capable people for the expressed purpose of listening to them and following their lead. As a business leader, if you’re going to take on the expense of recruiting, qualifying and hiring a building full of PhD’s, it generally follows that it is one of your better business practices to listen to them when they offer their professional advice. This is something nearly every successful technology company succeeds at, and the results speak for themselves.

Marketing

Establishing a successful identity in the advertising-soaked world of the 21st century is as big a challenge as anything else in business. Marketing can be bankruptcy-invitingly expensive if certain objectives aren’t met and costs aren’t controlled. What technology companies do well is engineer a fusion between product identity and marketing that allows them to leverage development costs into a brand image for the entire organization. This was always the promise of the Internet and for the successful companies, it has become a reality.

Accessible Management

Gone are the days when the big boss was able to sit in his office and write memos with a silent phone and the distant sound of traffic scarcely audible outside his top-floor bay window. Concurrent with the business requirement that qualified employees be acknowledged is the expectation among those employees that management will be accessible. After all, all the great ideas in the world don’t do those employees much good if nobody is listening. Most, if not all successful technology companies have an open-door policy between employees and bosses. This communications channel serves as one of the foundations of innovation and growth.

Eating Your Own Dog Food

When the Internet was new, many companies were just getting started in developing their flagship products. Companies like Oracle, IBM and Sun were at the forefront of enterprise hardware and software and one of the terms that emerged during those days was “eating your own dog food.” This meant companies should be utilizing their own products in their own businesses.

This is a powerful concept because it dramatically reduces costs in much the same way products becoming their own marketing does. If capital is going to be spent developing an expensive product with major implications for the company’s sales strategy, it follows that product needs to be capable of supporting its customers’ businesses. What better way to warranty that promise than by testing the product in a real-world business environment every day?

Creativity

Few people understand the creative process. The closest most people get is a picture of someone with a light bulb suspended in the air over their head. When Google first came up with the idea they could offer a translate website feature, for example, it was likely the result of many months of trial and error with internal tools and requires a massive consensus between employees and managers inside the company. The value of the feature goes without saying, but the process of coming up with the idea for it was likely more difficult than most would recognize.

Companies that understand the creative process are the most likely to reap its benefits. This is something successful technology companies do with regularity.

Many businesses and industry leaders can look to technology companies for examples of how to integrate best practices into a unified whole. The process of improvement depends on it, and most companies will find there is an ongoing need for progress for both their customers and employees.

When starting and equipment rental business there are many things to keep in mind. These include researching and catering to your target market, figuring out your ideal client, and making sure you can get them what they need in the budget they want and in the easiest way possible.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself before starting an equipment rental business:

Who is your target market?
Having a firm understanding of whom your customers are is the first step in creating any successful new business. Regardless of your specialty, and whether you are dealing in trucks, trailers, or cranes, and an equipment rental business is no different from any other business in this regard. Without a firm grasp on whom you are planning to target with your new products and services, it will be hard for you to effectively market to them where they are, or provide them the services they really need.

Understanding all aspects of your client demographic will help you shape not only your business plan, but your expansion plans as well. It will ensure that you are working in the most efficient way and bringing in the clients best matched to what you have to offer. Marketing to the wrong businesses and people is not going to help you grow and will translate into a ton of wasted time, effort, money and human resources. Try to be as specific as possible and narrow down your focus in order to provide the best service possible for your clients.

What are their needs?

Perhaps there is a need that you are currently not meeting and they are currently looking elsewhere to get that need fulfilled. Is there a way that you can provide that additional service to them and become a one-stop-shop? It’s important to continually check in with them as well and make sure that their needs are being met. If you are not already meeting their needs there is going to be room for improvements and that is where the strategic expansion plans of your business need to come into play.

What are their budgets?

Knowing what your client’s average budget is will help you decide what types of equipment to keep in stock and rent out. While it may still work to say, “This is the price, take it or leave it” having a variety of equipment available to fit a range of budgets will ultimately result in happier clients and more referrals. If you can keep your big, and small, clients happy, you gain in the long run. Remember, with proper support, little clients can grow into big ones and they WILL remember you as the company that helped them when they were first starting out.

Where are they located?

Know where your clients are based and makes sure you understand the logistics of getting them the equipment they need. Make connections with transportation services companies, and offer to deliver materials to your client’s doorstep – the less work they have to do on their end the better and the more services you can offer in-house the more money you’ll make.

How are you planning to store the equipment when it is not in use?

Make sure you factor in the downtime for the equipment when it is not on-site with your clients. Are there any seasonal adverse weather conditions that you need to keep in mind? What maintenance will need to be performed on a routine basis, even when the equipment is not in use? Will it need to be stored in the off-season or be otherwise “down” for long stretches? Where should the equipment be stored so that it as accessible, and as easily transportable as possible?

Though most of clients projects may be located in the middle of major cities, is may not be practical or possible to house all your equipment nearby. Think about locating yourself slightly outside of town, near main roadways and freeways to make transportation easier and more efficient.

Starting a new equipment rental business is much like starting any other business – you need to understand your client’s needs and then cater to them.  Plan to grow your business alongside your clients in order to serve them in the best way possible. With proper planning and consideration, you will be serving up the best equipment, in the most convenient way, and at the most affordable rates in no time.