New Business Tips

APNews recently reported that more small businesses filed for incorporation last year compared to the previous 3 years. While many businesses suffered in Sacramento, especially bars and restaurants, a lot of new businesses opened due to a large shift in the market. Real estate professionals, IT professionals and a variety of service professionals established their businesses in the last year and benefitted from the COVID-19 fallout.

When opening any business, there are a few key things a business owner must have in their consideration set. Above all, a business needs to have a plan, a way to market itself and systems in place to be able to function on a day to day basis.

What Is Your Business Plan?

Every business needs a plan. Whether that is a 30 day plan or a 6 month plan is up to the business owner, but every business should have some type of structured go-forward agenda. This plan should be inclusive of business operations aspects like accounting, human resource decisions, sales goals and a way to achieve those goals. Of the new businesses that started in 2020 and have found success during the pandemic, it’s easy to conclude they had a strong business plan when they started.

How Will You Market Yourself?

Every business also needs a marketing strategy. This is typically comprised of a website, an advertising campaign on digital channels and a way to grow sales efficiently. Many small businesses start with a website on a do-it-yourself platform like Wix or Squarespace and then hire an advertising company to help with ads placed on Google, Facebook or LinkedIn. This is a great place to get started, but business owners need to really consider their long-term marketing plan. Additionally, business owners will need to determine how much money they will use for a marketing budget. Common marketing plans are 7%-10% of monthly sales – be sure your budget appropriately.

Surround Yourself with the Right Tools

There is nothing like trying to be efficient without the right toolset. Business owners need to consider accounting software to handle accounts receivable and accounts payable, and admin to handle day to day things, managed IT services from a local provider so your technology is always working and anything that is specific to your type of business. For instance, if you are a roofer in Sacramento, you’ll need the right equipment to perform the job successfully.

Anyone professional you speak with will tell you that starting a business is a difficult feat and it’s why a lot of businesses fail in their first 24 months. However, if you can approach establishing a business with the right tools and resources, you’ll set yourself up for success.

If you’re a business in Sacramento who got started in 2020, let us know how it is going. We would love to help promote your business as well!

By Christina Rudd

Christina Rudd is an editor for 916 Journal. She has been writing for local publications for the last 7 years and is happy to cover all things Sacramento.

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