Starting any new company, large or small, means starting out on a journey. The passage you take can be a whole lot of fun or a world of pain, depending on how well you’ve planned your course.

Due to their rapid growth, startups (or new businesses) tend to experience some unique struggles, and can find it difficult to find business consultants experienced in navigating this unique landscape.

Now I don’t necessarily want to play devil’s advocate here, but what the heck—I think somebody needs to. It’s not always going to be rainbows and unicorns. It won’t be all lazy lunches and working from home in your comfy pants. If it were that easy to create a seven figure business then we’d all be in the common company of millionaires.

There is a huge amount of misinformation in the startup market, and a lot of false promises. I saw a webinar last week that promised to show people how to “start a million dollar business with a $1000 investment”. Unless you are running a brothel (and a damn good one at that), I really can’t see how it’s possible…

So, if you have a new idea, a new product or a new venue you want to open, there are some crucial things you need to consider before you make the first call for help:

Define where your passion lies.

It’s important to choose a venture that will make you excited to get up every morning and go to work, where Mondays aren’t so terrible anymore. And when I talk about passion I don’t just mean passion for the money you envision rolling through the doors—I mean passion for the craft, passion for the industry—because this devotion will show in your business performance.

Be truthful: how much time can you invest in your new venture?

Do you currently work full time? Or are you fully committed to long days spent building your new business? There are workable solutions for both, but you need to be realistic and clear on this from the start.

Know your target audience.

Imagine your ideal client. Find out what they typically like to spend, where they like to shop, what their life stressors tend to be, how many kids they typically have, what big life events they have commonly experienced, what they love, what they hate and how much they would pay for your service. Know them inside out because if you don’t know them, you can’t build a product for them (or sell to them).

Know your neighbours.

Who else is offering your same product or service and for how much? Its ok if you have a large amount of market of competitors so long as you have a point of difference (we can help you find it if you’re lost).

Understand the value of a brains trust.

Do you have someone you can bounce ideas off? Someone who you truly trust, someone with good judgement—who knows you well and has your best interests at heart? Your network of supporters can make or break your new venture. Get a second, third and fourth set of eyes to go over your plans and make sure your sounding board is trustworthy and reliable.

Do you have financial backing?

I’d love to tell you that if you have equity in your house the bank will throw money at you, but unfortunately this isn’t the case anymore. Make sure you have enough funds to stay afloat for about a year (different times apply to different businesses, but cover yourself for a year as your worst case scenario).

Do you have a marketing background?

If not, please invest in good people and get a good team. You may think that you have a ‘good eye’ and know what works and what doesn’t, but trust me, this should be left to the experts. In today’s competitive digital world you need to employ the help of professional marketers at the top of their game—or expect to be left in the shadows. Cheap marketing and do-it-yourself gimmicks don’t perform in the short or long term.

Get a GOOD accountant.

Someone that will teach you how to get set up correctly, and help to build your business plan for the bank (don’t confuse your business plan with your business strategy, this is a different kettle of fish).

Have an exit plan.

I know it’s depressing to think about an exit when you are just planning your entrance, but your exit plan is vital to your business. It’s important to know what you will do at the end—will you leave the business to your kids eventually? Close down? Sell to your share partners? Your exit plan will affect how you build your business from day one!

At the end of the day, I hate to say it but the most important thing you can do is ensure you have enough money to roll the business for over a year. This means that your family won’t suffer from a lack of income while you wait for the fruits of your labour to be picked…

To discuss your startup book our free strategy session