Launching A Successful Start-up Before 30
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Launching a start-up before 30 is a rewarding and challenging experience that requires careful planning and the correct foundations from the start. Most start-ups fail; leaving investors and entrepreneurs who risked everything with little left. So before you take the leap, ask yourself:
There are many reasons why businesses succeed. Having enough start-up capital, starting at the right time, creating the right team, and most important of all, the tenacity of the founders are all keys to success.
So before you jump in with both feet and try to launch a start-up before 30, make sure you have laid the groundwork properly. Start by writing a business plan to ensure you will know which goals need to be met prior to start-up and which goals need to be achieved before the business is profitable.
Include a detailed timeline for all start-up goals.
Acquiring and keeping customers can be tricky for a new business, so be sure to think of multiple ways – aka channels – to grow the business. Think of different ideas to incentivize customers to stay. Remember, there will be a minimum 6-month learning process where you will need to try variations of your plan until you have enough information to finalize a real growth strategy.
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People start businesses for a variety of reasons. They may, perhaps, want more freedom, the right to lead versus being led, a higher social status, to pursue a passion for a product or a solution, or to make more money. Regardless, if this is your first business, make sure your “why” is big enough. By that, I mean the reason why you are committing yourself to something every day. It can consume you and your life, so it needs to be something you deeply desire. If you are not careful, you will wake up in a few years, dreading the fact that you have to get back to something that takes all of your time and that you no longer enjoy doing. That is not to say that launching a start-up before 30 is not rewarding…even when you fail you learn so much about yourself and the world around you.
Measuring success solely depends on your perspective.
Oddly enough, entrepreneurs don’t like to discuss their real struggles (or perhaps forget about them a bit once they become successful). Capitalism can be cruel at times. Business owners often struggle to cope with the psychological pressure of having to endure financial hardships in the early stages of their business. Statistically, 30% of small businesses fail in their second year, and 50% of small businesses fail after five years in business. Make sure that you have either raised enough capital, saved enough, or have another source of income to support yourself, so your personal financial needs do not put a strain on your company’s growth. Poor planning and wishful thinking may lead to massive credit card debt and short-term loans that can drain you financially and mentally.
Start-ups succeed not because they are run by brilliant decision-makers who take massive risks, but because they learn how to be risk aversive enough to grow while surviving long enough to matter. In the first 6 months of your business, try to keep as much cash as you can in the bank while you experiment with different marketing strategies while working to launch your start-up before 30.
Learn which strategies are the most scalable and have the lowest customer acquisition costs.
Another number that is valuable to you – and you will not know this until the business has been making sales for a number of months – is the lifetime customer value. You will need to continue to do A/B testing and refine your value proposition. Be flexible and do not be afraid to ask a coach or consultant to guide you through this stage. After you have it all dialed in, then it’s time to put your foot on the accelerator.
The value of your business is defined by how much and how often the customers you find are willing to pay for it. So it is essential to create a customer-focused business, for the sake of everyone including the owners. It is important not to universalize your passions when it comes to business, and learn to communicate to your customers in their language. The customer feedback loop that you create during the initial stage will generate a unique set of value propositions that can help you attract more customers and keep them from leaving you.
If you have never started a business before, I recommend finding a partner. A partner can be emotionally invested like you and is not necessarily there to clock in hours. You can brainstorm together and make better decisions – and the business can continue to innovate even when you are not there. From a legal standpoint, you want to set up a Corporation or an LLC though, not a partnership (for most business types), as such an entity will give you the most protection against any potential liabilities.
You can use a cloud-based business plan template with all the sections ready for you to create your initial blueprint. A good business plan should include competitive research, sales and marketing strategies, and financial projections.
Get the business registered with the State and get your Tax ID (also known as EIN or Employer Identification Number). You can start your LLC or Corporation filing online which might take a few weeks depending on your State. Once the company is registered with the state, you can then begin issuing shares, opening bank and merchant accounts, and start to conduct business.
Cash to a start-up is precious like oxygen. So create an MVP, a minimum viable product, in order to test the hypothesis that your idea is profitable. You must create a customer feedback loop and shorten it so that you can make quick and necessary pivots. Once you have a proof of concept and a predictable and quantifiable sales strategy, your business is ready to scale.
CEO, Novia Marketing
Farbod is a serial entrepreneur having started 8 different companies in marketing, sales, and technology since graduating college. In 2015, he founded Novia Marketing, an innovative lead generation and full-service marketing agency. His clients have ranged from one-time data buyers to presidential candidates. He also owns a SAAS platform called SYNC Profiles for local businesses to help them gain better visibility online, manage their data across the Internet, and generate positive online reviews.
Full Bio | Connect With Farbod | LinkedIn
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