ENTREPRENEURS

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Starting a new business without experience can be a very daunting process. It is very common to focus on the idea or product and its anticipated success rather than the seemingly mundane but important issues you also need to get right. You will know there are many motivating and fun aspects associated with building a business, such as developing the product or service, defining your target market and USPs, deciding on pricing, your route-to-market as well as writing up a business plan, whose financial forecasts convincingly extrapolate future revenues to exponential profits and wealth. However...

“Ideas are commodity. Execution of them is not.”  - Michael Dell, Dell Chairman and CEO

To build a sustainable and profitable business, there are many 'dry' but critical aspects which are vital to get right. Conducting adequate market research and product or service testing to get reliable proof of concept, accurately and realistically forecasting revenues & costs, assessing, analysing and mitigating all the commercial risks and interrogating and critiquing the proposition to failure are just a few of the aspects which require detailed focus. And that is all before you even start to sell your product or service!

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail” - Benjamin Franklin

You need a plan. When you start to run your business, sleepless nights will start as your work load increases with the multitude of corporate issues to sort out. Deciding on its legal structure, understanding tax implications, setting up bookkeeping and accounting systems, sorting out legal contracts with clients/suppliers/partners, sourcing the right IT and business software, getting properly insured, understanding data protection, copyrights and other applicable regulations, understanding your directorial duties and responsibilities - it is a never ending list. Meanwhile, money is ebbing away.

If you are an established business, you're not out of the woods yet! There are many challenges that scale-up and growth businesses can face in a fast-moving environment which can lead to mistakes being made. You may have already developed your product/ service offering, taken on clients, new staff and be increasing revenues, however you may find yourself becoming inundated by a never-ending stream of detailed and pressing issues which persistently divert your attention from the bigger picture.  

“I can’t see the wood for the trees.” - anonymous

Sometimes it feels as though you can’t win. Either you focus on this detail, losing sight of your goal or you focus on the goal and get overcome by the detail. It can be difficult to retain this balance and move forward with confidence, especially if you have no time to consider them properly or no-one sufficiently experienced to discuss them with. The consequences of putting seemingly mundane issues aside can often lead to complacency and problems. Relying on a potentially unrealistic perception of the appeal of the business's services or products, not considering the impact of regulatory changes and policy requirements,  new competition, governance issues, cash flow problems and funding options until it is too late, can easily lead to difficult times ahead.  

“If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.” – Steve Jobs, Apple Founder

Success doesn’t happen overnight. Staying ahead of the curve, constantly reviewing your strategy and planning ahead, being realistic and having an accurate idea of the potential and true value of the business, regularly assessing its risks and opportunities, seeking investment at the right time, confronting problems as they occur and continuously innovating will prepare you better for each decision you make and help you build a resilient, responsive and successful business.

At AM Ventures, we understand, because we've been there too... We know what you face, the challenges around the next corner and what you can do about it.