Member Article

Growing your business: Start-up Top Tips

For aspiring entrepreneurs, start-up advice can be given a dime a dozen. For me, having worked for 14 years in financial services before starting my own company in 2011, my key advice is be determined, as it’s at the heart of success.

Recapping my entrepreneurial journey so far here are a few of my top tips for helping to establish a successful start-up.

Be Active Online: Social media offers invaluable opportunities for entrepreneurs to build a professional network within their industry with minimal or no costs. It plays an important role in making yourself a recognisable figure and is instrumental in growing your business and opening doors. LinkedIn is a perfect tool for doing this, but before anything else, ensure your profile is up-to-date and professional. Next, join groups that are relevant to your industry and be active within them, as this makes you visible to the wider industry. Also, writing a blog lets you share your views and ideas and, more importantly, demonstrates that you have knowledge of your sector. All told, being active online is crucial in building a good professional reputation, which can lead to opportunities you may not otherwise have been given.

Don’t Take No for an Answer: Regardless of what people say, success doesn’t necessarily happen overnight. Therefore, it’s essential in all areas of your business to be persistent, although none more so than the search for investment. When I first looked for investment, I wasn’t successful, however became even more determined. I took on-board feedback, honed my business plan, and then successfully secured investment from Howzat Partners. This year I received my second round of investment from them, which allowed me to launch Sportego into the UK. Persistence pays off and initial rejection doesn’t always mean a closed door.

Know What You Want from an Investor: Before applying to investors make sure you’ve identified what type of partnership is right for you and your business. Investors differ in the way they deal with their investments: some take a passive approach, whereas others are much more hands-on. For those who simply need a cash-injection to expand they may prefer a more passive investor. Whereas some may also benefit from the experience and expertise that an investor can bring and would be better suited to a more active backer. There is no one size fits all and so it’s important to research not only each investor’s recent areas of success but ultimately their investment approach as well.

Use the Support Available: Take advantage of the resources that are offered by local and national government to entrepreneurs. These can be anything from courses to educate you in the basics of running a business to employment grants that can be used to pay yourself a salary, which allows you to focus on your business full-time. One thing I couldn’t recommend more is finding a mentor, something I established through local networks. In many cases this support, both financial and otherwise, can help you take your business to the next level.

From my experience, with a little guidance and a lot of hard work there’s no reason why you can’t succeed. If you’re thinking of starting up or considering taking the next step, my final tip is do it now!

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Trevor Keane .