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The Entrepreneurial Process
Once we have decided to pursue opportunities down the road of entrepreneurship, we must advance to a set of actions
that can be referred to as the entrepreneurial process. The circumstances under which people start or acquire businesses
vary greatly. You need to collect your thoughts and ask yourself some tough questions:
Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? What are my real reasons for considering going into business?
Your motivation must be strong enough to sustain you when the excitement of the startup has passed, and the everyday grind begins.
Do I have a good business idea? Is there a product or service that fits my talents or desires? About 65% of new businesses are startups, 30% purchases of existing businesses, with the remainder inherited, promoted or otherwise brought into ownership. About 11% of the businesses operate under a franchise name. What is the proper route for me? Remember that a business idea is not a business opportunity until it is evaluated objectively and judged to be feasible.
Do I have adequate support? If you have a spouse, or are relying on some other form of family support, make sure that they understand the sacrifices involved and the pressures these will put on relationships.
What priority can I place on developing this business over other interests and goals for the foreseeable future? Am I willing to take on the personal demands of entrepreneurship? There is more to life than work, and maintaining a balanced and healthy lifestyle can be a challenge for the self-employed.
Do I have the financial resources to make the venture a success? Once I make the venture a full-time pursuit, can I live without a regular paycheck, a predictable work schedule, and for a while without vacations and other benefits? Even after startup, business concerns seldom end when you lock the door at closing time. Am I prepared for the possibility that I might lose my money and property, and damage my health and self-respect?
Accessing the capital needed to start your business. Most businesses are funded with personal savings, credit cards and loans from family or friends. The prospective new business owner approaching a lending institution should keep in mind the "five c's of credit:" character, cash flow, capital, collateral, and (economic) conditions.
Marketing questions I should be asking are: The process of finding the need, and the method chosen to fill it are where the difficulties arise does the market need a product or service that is not currently being provided? Is there a needed product or service currently being provided in a less than satisfactory way? Is some particular market being underserved due to capacity shortages or location gaps? Can I serve any of these needs with some competitive advantage?
You may wish to choose two to five of the ideas that seem most promising for more detailed study. Trying to consider too many would spread your time, energy and focus too thin. At the same time, if you focus too early on only one business idea, you are more likely to become "attached" to it, and could lose your objectivity.
Assess the quality of the market data available to you. Actively determine the available data that is most useful in determining your chances for success. Data collected from industry sources and journal articles is often referred to as secondary data, in that it was collected for purposes not directly related to our specific venture. Sometimes this can be sufficient, though we may find the need to fill the gaps with primary data. Collection of primary data can be very expensive. It generally consists of conducting market surveys, in person or by telephone, of a statistically significant random sample of our prospective clientele.
Sharpen the concept of the business idea. Once a business idea is selected, the concept must be sharpened by a detailed planning process. The result of this step is a comprehensive plan, with its major components being the marketing "mix", the strategic plan, operational and logistical structures, and the financial proposal.
Who can I turn to for help? What resources exist that can help me during the startup phase of my business? There are a broad range of services in the marketplace, ranging from highly specialized consultants, through to coaches, mentors, and counselors. There are also turnkey programs that provide a fully integrated approach to business development.
No opportunity is a sure thing, even though the path to riches has been described as, simply "...you make some stuff, sell it for more than it cost you... that's all there is except for a few million details." The devil is in those details, and if one is not prepared to accept the possibility of failure, one should not attempt a business start-up. Seeking appropriate assistance will help to reduce the possibility of failure.
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| ABOUT
THIS SITE |
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This site has been established for the aspiring entrepreneur.
As laudable as entrepreneurship might be, starting a small business is risky,
so risky in fact, that most people will eventually fail at this attempt. As
comforting as it might appear, the Internet, with it’s ample availability of
information, will not in and of itself translate into success. What the
aspiring entrepreneur/business owner requires is knowledge. Knowledge and
information unfortunately are not synonymous, and to assume so, would likely
lead to a failed outcome. The key to acquiring knowledge resources is do
sufficient research, to investigate, and to identify those
interactive programs that will provide the necessary personal guidance,
to help you achieve your individual goals and aspirations. Knowledge is
acquired only when context is added to information, a task very difficult to
provide over the Internet.
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