Creating a new business is a complex process, which depends on an enormous number of various factors – from your business niche to your target audience. Even though there is no direct path to success that would apply to every business, there are several stages that any business will inevitably go through. The process that covers those stages is called business creation. It is an effective, thoughtful approach to launching a new venture and all the existing opportunities as well as risks associated with its growth. Below, you will find information about all the essential phases of business creation and how to put them into practice.
Idea Generation
The first phase in the process of creating a new business is idea generation. It includes brainstorming, researching and spotting business opportunities. The result of this stage is a well-defined business idea and an understanding of all its advantages and disadvantages.
Brainstorming sessions are quite useful when it comes to generating new ideas. You can organize such meetings with your potential partners or friends and family members, and discuss your ideas before they are developed further. If you don’t have anyone to talk to about your ideas, a good alternative is to try out different business ideas generators available on the Internet – for example, the Business Model Canvas, which will facilitate your brainstorming session and help you develop a new business idea from scratch.
Whatever you decide to do, make sure that you don’t get carried away by any single idea, but consider multiple business opportunities and analyze their advantages and disadvantages before making any decisions. To broaden your perspective, check these 2021 Mentoring Trends, maybe mentoring is the right puzzle to your business.
Business Development Planning
After you have developed a new business idea, you need to determine how that idea can be turned into a successful business. It’s time to start developing a plan for your business and it should include the following components:
- Business mission statement
- Short-term and long-term goals
- Target market segment(s)
- Competitor analysis
- SWOT analysis
- Marketing strategy
- Operations strategy
- Financial forecast
- Human resource plan
- Legal considerations
- Technology plan
- Goals and objectives of each team member
The development of a business plan will help you clarify the scope of your business and understand its goals and objectives. It is vital to keep this plan up-to-date since it is the framework for all future stages in the process of creating a new business.
Market Research
Once you have developed a business plan, you can start conducting market research. It’s a very important stage in the process of creating a new business because it allows you to get a better understanding of your target audience, competitors and market trends.
Market trends are determined based on the analysis of macroeconomic, political, demographic, cultural, technological and legal factors. This information should be used to determine the potential market for your products or services.
However, you don’t have to do your own market research from scratch – there are plenty of existing resources that can help you with that. For example, you can use data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to get valuable insights into current market trends.
Competitor analysis is also an important part of market research since it allows you to understand your direct and indirect competition. It is recommended to study the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors, as well as their pricing strategies, product features and target markets.
Venture Funding
When you develop a business plan and conduct market research, it becomes much clearer whether or not your idea is worth developing further, and how much money it would cost to launch a new business. That’s why it’s time to start looking for additional sources of funding. If you don’t have the capital necessary for launching your business, you can choose from several options:
- Borrowing funds
- Family and friends
- Business angels
- Venture capital firms
- Debt financing
- Incubators/accelerators
- Government assistance
- Crowdfunding
- Investments
Each of these funding options has its pros and cons associated with it. For example, borrowing funds might be risky if you don’t really know where your business is heading. Your family and friends might not be willing to invest in risky ventures and venture capital firms might not be interested in investing in early-stage businesses. Government assistance might require too many regulations and procedures and crowdfunding might not be available in your country.
In other words, there are plenty of factors that will influence your decision when choosing your source of venture funding. Start looking for additional funding as soon as possible – even before you develop a business plan! The sooner you do it, the more options you will have available.
Launch Phase
After you have completed all the necessary steps in the process of creating a new business, starting from idea generation all the way to funding, it is time to launch your business and bring it to the market! There are several important aspects related to this stage:
- Choosing the right timing for the launch of a new business
- Identifying target audiences
- Marketing strategies
- Customer service
- Financial management
- Human resource management
- Operations management
- Legal considerations
- Technological considerations
Summary
It takes a lot of blood, sweat and tears to open a new business. It takes time, money, and a lot of pre-planning in order to make it successful. So what are you waiting for? Grab a pen and paper and start brainstorming!
