The COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging for everyone, and for small-business owners especially. According to CNBC, more than 163,000 businesses have closed due to the pandemic as of the end of August 2020.
However, right now offers the best opportunities for potential entrepreneurs to realize their dreams and start their own businesses.
One reason is that folks have access to diverse talent and tools they wouldn’t have had before the pandemic — since the shift to remote learning and work necessitated a dramatic increase in the available technologies that make those things possible.
Not to mention that startups that meet a need in a time of dynamic markets are often stories of success.
You can build a successful business right now and, as more folks are vaccinated and operations return to the “new” normal in the wake of the pandemic, your business can grow and flourish.
Here are a few tips from Essential Home Office Supplies on how to make it happen:
Where do you want to start?
The first part of starting your own business and creating a successful company is deciding what goods or services you want to offer.
One of your best bets is to start a business working from home providing services and goods easily attainable to you. This includes anything from your burgeoning hobby of photography to skilled services like accounting and bookkeeping. What can you do well? What can you sell from a home-based office?
Creating and keeping a vision board could help you work through some of these questions and figure out what it is, exactly, that you offer the world (and yourself). Or, you can check some online lists of what kinds of businesses you can start from home.
You will also need a business plan to refer to on a regular basis (especially when you get to the harder parts of acquiring startup funding via grants, loans, and other methods of financial assistance).
An essential part of your business plan is to first establish what type of operation you’ll be running, such as a sole proprietorship or partnership.
Many small business owners opt to form their business as a limited liability company (LLC) due to tax advantages and reduced paperwork that’s required when registering and ongoing filing.
Start your business at home
The pandemic has shined a light on the effectiveness — and requirements — of running a business out of your home office. Part of working from home is having the right equipment.
It will pay off in the long run if you invest in the proper technologies and tools for your setup now. For instance, a headset for talking to clients and holding online meetings could be a game-changer, as well as a comfortable chair and desk setup.
And especially as your business prospers and grows, you need access to the proper software essentials. For example, the Microsoft Office suite of products and Adobe’s suite of products are very useful in creating customer communications and marketing pieces.
Microsoft provides email, documents, spreadsheets, databases, and the opportunity to create presentations all in one place. Adobe has its own great offerings.
Acrobat makes it easy to create and manipulate PDF files, while Adobe Spark’s logo maker and design features put you in the design driver’s seat for customizing the ideal logo and aesthetic for your business.
Create a name for yourself
No matter what your business offers — whether it’s crochet projects or tax preparation services — you will need to build a clientele. Building a name and a brand is not just something that marketing gurus like to talk about; it’s a critical part of succeeding in business.
One way for you to build an effective brand is to work with a freelance marketing specialist who can help you strategize your efforts. Best of all, freelancers cost less than an agency, and you can still access top talent.
Long story short: You’ve got this
Even if you don’t want to necessarily brand yourself as an entrepreneur, taking the leap into business ownership is a thing that you can do and succeed at.
