Top 16 tips for successful business creation

Business creation tips :

1: Carry out as concrete market research as possible

Don't just survey the Internet or look at statistics on the INSEE site. To carry out realistic and relevant market research, it is essential to go into the field to meet your future customers, suppliers, and competitors. This will allow you to understand customer expectations fully, understand the constraints of the business, but also check that the market is not saturated.

2: Consider a plan B

Currently, nearly 50% of business creation projects in France fail within three years of launch. This failure rate even reaches over 90% for startups. Therefore, it is essential to anticipate the risk of failure from the start to know when to give up and have a plan to bounce back if necessary.

3: Don't go under-capitalized

Suppose it is theoretically possible to create a business with only € 1 of starting capital in practice. In that case, you will have to incur considerable costs at the start: equipment, creation of a website, legal support, marketing costs… Not to mention a nest egg which will make it possible to hold out during the first months of activities which will probably be in deficit. Anticipate and make sure you have a cash flow “mattress” to react to the unexpected: when it comes to starting a business, things never quite go as planned, so it's best to overestimate your financial resources.

4: Anticipate the impact of entrepreneurship on your personal life

Starting a business requires a very substantial investment of time. This means that you will probably have less time for your family and friends when you start your business. It is therefore essential to discuss with your spouse beforehand and to make sure of his support. Also, remember to spare yourself some leisure and outing beaches so as not to isolate yourself completely. Building a business is an endurance race, not a sprint.

5: Make mistakes as quickly as possible

If you are creating a box for the first time, you are bound to make mistakes, and this is quite normal: it is by forging that you become a blacksmith! Try to commit to them as quickly as possible and learn from them and adjust the focus.

6: Learn to delegate

The bosses of VSEs and SMEs tend to run out of time constantly. Learning to delegate is essential to free yourself up time for the tasks you enjoy the most or bring the most significant added value. Train your employees and give them more jobs; call on external service providers for what you do not know how to do or which is not your core business.

7: Value your time

Do or have someone do is always at the center of the debate. It is often tempting to do it yourself to save a few dollars, but you tend to forget the opportunity cost. It is quite possible to spend a month learning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create a website yourself. But maybe it's best to hire a freelancer to take care of it and use the time freed up to recruit new clients. It is fundamental to calculate what will pay you the most in the long run. An effective trick to value your time at its fair value is to set an hourly rate and compare it to quotes from providers received for each task that you hesitate to delegate. 

8: Learn to arbitrate

Being a business leader involves constantly making decisions: choosing a supplier, recruiting an employee rather than another, choosing a specific marketing channel, etc. Learn to decide quickly to move quickly, even if it means reversing from time to time when necessary. Too many entrepreneurs tend to remain in the process of thinking, neglecting the passage to action, while it is in the concrete and effort that the company evolves.

9: Don't skip the business plan

Writing a business plan is crucial in verifying your project's financial viability, setting your short and medium-term objectives, and supporting your request for financing from the banks. Deal with it ASAP: All too often, budding entrepreneurs spend six months preparing a project before realizing it is not viable. On the contrary, it is essential to get started early and update your business plan to gather new information. This will allow you to validate that your project is worth pursuing constantly.

10: Anticipate the reaction of your competitors

Like you, your competitors have worked hard to build their business. Your sudden entry into the market will have a direct impact on them: it would be naïve to imagine that they will let you grab market share from them without reacting ... It is, therefore, essential to plan for competitive intelligence as soon as you launch: you must carefully follow the reactions of your competitors, and be able to respond to them by showing inventiveness.

11: Save time for contingency management in your action plan

In any business, there are always unforeseen events that eat up time: a client who does not pay and that must be revived, a new regulation which comes into force, an employee whose recruitment takes longer than expected, the service after-sales, which can be time-consuming, etc. As a result, it is essential not to opt for an action plan that is too tight: keep some leeway for managing these unforeseen events; otherwise, you risk gradually falling behind on your schedule.

12: Make a costed marketing plan

Unless you're opening a business with a great location, you'll need to market yourself at the start to get your first customers. Take the time to think about the most relevant marketing techniques to reach your customers and to assess the costs and potential benefits.

13: Focus on one goal at a time

Your resources will initially be limited. It is therefore essential to prioritize your actions. For example: instead of creating a profile in a hurry on all social networks, it is probably better to focus on one of them and devote a little time, every day, to develop your audience there.

14: Set clear and realistic goals

To motivate yourself and succeed in starting a business, it is important to set long-term goals. These objectives can be many and varied: sales volume, turnover, popularity, etc. The main thing is that they will allow you to consider your project in the future. Be careful, however, to make sure that your goals are realistic: aiming for an unattainable goal will only bring you discouragement and disappointment.

15: Beware of business creation assistance

Reductions in charges at start-up, unemployment, loan of honor are only reimbursed from the second year ... The many grants for business creation sometimes have the pernicious effect of encouraging the underestimation of costs and cash disbursement within the financial forecast. To end up with an unprofitable business when the aid ends, we recommend that you create a variant of your economic forecast without including this temporary aid to validate that the company is profitable.

16: Surround yourself with the right people

Finally, a good entrepreneur is also someone who knows how to surround himself with the right people, whether they are service providers (an accountant or a tax advisor who will learn how to guide you), a mentor, members of the board of directors with skills complementary to yours, or even simply an entrepreneur friend with whom you can discuss regularly. Loneliness and isolation are the worst enemies of a business owner: advice from experienced people who have been there before is worth gold and can help you avoid many mistakes.

Why not consider starting your business together? This will allow you to associate with one or more profile (s) complementary to yours… and to have a sidekick with whom to share victories and disappointments. Were you looking for the keys to a successful business creation? We hope you found this article helpful. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or comments… And to share this article with those around you who could find inspiration in it!