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First of all, what does business mean?
A business is an economic unit that combines and utilizes its productive factors to produce products or services that will be available to the final consumer and seek the maximum possible profit.
It should be clear:
If you are still looking for your business idea you should combine:
It’s not a hobby, it’s not a non-profit organization, and it’s not volunteering. They are consecutive matches in an arena and not always with fair play! It makes sense since everybody wants the same price…profit!
So… welcome to the business scene! The area of infinite beauty and competition that can take you to places you never imagined!
“Today you are in Thessaloniki, and you want to go to Madrid to marry the love of your life and live there happily ever after.” This is a concept that differs little from the idea of starting a new business.
What do you need to start a new business?
Vision, most of all
The point selection on the GPS map, that the mind or an electronic device puts, is strictly specific. You certainly do not get in the car to go in an unspecified direction. Therefore, you know you want to go to Spain, Madrid specifically, but you do not yet know the exact address where you will settle because that is very difficult. It is important to see what your compass tells you (vision) and to be willing to base your life on it. To get there, there are 1000 different routes.
You cannot start a business just to break your routine. In your personal life, you may live today and think that God will provide for tomorrow, but here you will need at least a 10-year action plan. No, we start and see…first we see, and then we start!
Where do you want to be after 10 years?
How do you imagine your business then?
WHY – Your own motivation
Until you get where you want to go, you will not work, and therefore you will not have money. At first, you may not live as you would like. People will not know you and will not trust you. Here is where the heavy questions begin that you are called to answer in order to get your motivation.
Why do you want to start this business?
What inner need does it fulfill?
Does it complete you? Does it express who you are?
Do you think the idea is super fantastic and innovative?
What if you never end up building this business after all?
YOUR OWN WHY is the magic that gives you strength, pushes you, and motivates you not to give up, to move forward, and achieve the goals you set. You definitely need it to take off in what you do and break all the records!
Planning and preparation
For your trip, you should prepare your suitcases, get a passport, and prepare the car and yourself psychologically. You do not know what you will encounter, but you must anticipate as much as possible.
Tax planning: What kind of company will you choose:
You can start a sole proprietorship, or establish a general partnership GP, or set up a PC, or any other form of company.
What does the industry you wish to enter require?
A skill you do not have? Education that will add a degree or a certificate? Specialized knowledge? Experience? Maybe connections? Something more special to stand out?
A common mistake is for the entrepreneur to focus on their subject, ignoring their professional development.
From the moment you declare the start of work at the tax office, you acquire two qualities, and you must develop both:
So, if you are a computer technician, you obviously have to be a hacker in your job, but you also have to
Market analysis: You and the others
You are not the only one vying to marry this person…There are many suitors you definitely have to make a difference!
Make questionnaires and hand them out, search the books and the internet, google for information, and ask the right people in order for you to learn as much as you can about your competitors. What they do and what they do not do. What do they have that you do not, and what do they not have that you do.
What human need does your business idea serve?
What is the gap in the market that it is going to fill? What problem does it solve?
Who are the company’s direct and indirect competitors?
What are your points of differentiation and competitive advantage?
Marketing strategy
Here unfolds the action plan that will lead you to your destination. Which route will you take? What exactly will you do after you arrive?
The first thing you must do when starting a new business, whatever your subject, is your business website, which is your “online store”. The construction of your website will solve all your questions since you will be asked to create your corporate image. Brand, colors, who you are, where you are, what you provide, etc.
Afterwards, you have to deal with your overall presence on the internet (social media, videos, search guides, location).
It is 2019…not having an online presence is negative. And since we are talking about a competitive stage, it must be neat, well thought out, and rich! It does not matter if you are bored or not into them…others are!
Marketing needs stability, consistency, an organized plan, enough time, and a lot of money.
Advertising
In order to be the one who will marry the Spanish boy/girl, you will have to make the most impressive marriage proposal and offer the most while looking to the future! You will not be together for 1 month…Marriage can last forever.
The wise adage “If you do not throw money out the window, do not expect it to come through the door” applies here.
Goal plan
The first goal, hopefully, is to arrive. After? Make the proposal. After? To find a house and a job. After?…
You need a plan of goals for at least the first, third, fifth, and tenth years. Of course, after 10 years things may have changed, but you have to look far ahead.
You also need a management and operations plan as well as a financial management plan (budget-inventory).
In short, get a pen and a notebook to write and erase, ask people’s opinions, and record your thoughts. The goals need to be renewed at least once a year.
The people of the business: The strength in unity
You cannot make such a long journey all alone, nor can you get there without help, without advice and experiences of wisdom from people who have done the same!
What kind of support do you need to succeed?
The most valuable thing, after the entrepreneur themselves (meaning you), is the human resources of the business. The people who will take the business to the top step by step, which of course takes time and money to discover them.
“Everyone has their own skill”, is a truth that everyone accepts because that is the way it is!
You can be great at your job, but you cannot be perfect at everything, so try not to fall into the classic trap and common case of blackout and amateurism.
Of course, you may be multi-talented, but any professional who has a specialty will be better than you. Do not get carried away, you have only just begun! Find out where you are lacking and hire the right people. Do you need time? Hire someone at least part-time to save time. You will definitely miss the money you invest, especially at the beginning, but this way, you will give the venture a strong push to take off otherwise, it will remain small forever.
Partners are not only the staff. They are the suppliers, the consultants of all kinds, the graphic designer who will make your logo, the advertiser, the website developer, the lawyer who will suggest the most suitable legal form of a company, the accounting office which will undertake the accounting monitoring, external partners, emergency support staff and many others.
All of them, in addition to their valuable services, will give you the necessary support and the solidarity you need to succeed!
Are you ready?
Entrepreneurship is characterized by successive changes since overnight the world can turn upside down. The only thing that does not change is you. The most important thing you can do to succeed is to invest in yourself!
Before the crisis in Greece, everyone would set up a business and immediately start working!! Those who were out of business because of the crisis and were really capable got back on their feet. Today, after a big clean-up, the amateurs have gone home, and only the serious professionals are left, who have indeed raised the bar very high.
Are you ready to join this group?
Good luck!