Becoming an Entrepreneur: Five Steps to Success

Who wouldn’t want to run their own business? Be their own boss? Entrepreneurship is on the rise in the UK. So, if you’re looking to become an entrepreneur, here are our five steps to success:

#1. Have a killer idea

If you’re not solving a problem or making life easier for your customers or clients - you’ll never be successful. You need to research the market, know who your ideal customer is and cost everything out. Think about how easy it is to copy your idea and what will set you apart to see if you’ve really got the winning formula. Turn that into a solid business plan with financial projections and the operations all mapped out. Determine how much money you’ll need to get started and how you’ll fund the idea. This is the core of your business and the most important first step.

2. Create a go-to-market strategy

Next, you want to really go hard on marketing. Where will you launch first and how will you keep it lean so you can learn? Will you dump it all into PPC or go guerilla with street teams? What about starting small and selling to friends and family first to build up a stable of reviews before going mainstream? Wrap it all into a marketing strategy you can show to investors and potential colleagues. Don’t forget to forecast the uptake and be conservative - you want to be profitable even without a best-case scenario outcome.

#3. Create your tribe

Then, surround yourself with a network of like-minded individuals, industry experts, mentors and potential partners. Get entrenched into the industry you’re going to participate in by going to events, joining trade orgs and getting involved with groups online. Ask whoever you can for advice and tips to break the market you’re trying to enter or find a formal mentor. Just remember to protect your IP. You don’t want to get pipped at the post.

#4. Skill up

Chances are that whatever you went to school for didn’t prepare you exactly for the business you’re going to run. So, even if it’s just one course on how to run a start-up - arm yourself with the skills and knowledge you need. Set up feeds to alert you to new advancements in the field and get as many relevant certifications as you can to best prepare you to run your business effectively. (Investors also love to see an entrepreneur that’s committed to continuous improvement.)

#5. Do it

Launching your own business is a huge risk. But if you follow your plan, you can manage risk wisely, step out of your comfort zone and embrace failure as a learning opportunity. Part of being a great entrepreneur is the ability to keep going in the face of challenges. Start small and build on your milestones to create a thriving business at a stable space over the long term. And if you’re not sure if something is a good idea, reach out to your alumni networks or mentors to bounce ideas off them.

Feeling more confident about your business idea? We’d love to help you incubate it within our #UniAsItShouldBe environment. Tell us what your idea is and we’ll tell you how we can help via email at enquiries@bolton.ac.uk or phone at +44 1204 903774.