Every entrepreneur’s dream is to see his or her start-up grow into a successful businesses or leading household brand. Does every one of them get to realize that? You know the answer! Close to 90% of starting businesses, fail within the first 5 years. That is a worrying trend. Well, setting up an enterprise can be a challenging venture. For many entrepreneurs, there are always tough lessons to learn and problems to grapple with. Do all start-ups have to go through all these rough and tumble lessons to stand chances of making a breakthrough in the corporate world? I don’t think so. One of the best ways of moving forward is learning from other people’s mistakes. With so many successful businesses to look up to, you can never be short of inspirations unless you want to. So which are some of the most insightful ideas from successful empire founders that can help you jump-start your business?

It’s all about Passion

‘However big or small your business is, it will always be your baby’. Nothing seems so inspirational than getting such advice from Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple. Just like your baby, the growth of your businesses is largely dependent on passion. We give the best to our little ones, not because we are expecting instant or future rewards from them but simply out of love. If you are getting into a business with the sole purpose of making money, you might as well be out of the game. Worth noting, passion in start-ups is not only about you. The start-up team should be as passionate about your business as you are. Are they in love with your entity as much as you are? Before launching your business, ensure you are doing what you are so passionate about so that if everything fails, you will have passion to hold onto.

Focus on Customer Service

The customer is always right. Have you ever heard of this old adage? I can my bet my left shoe that you have. Well, it is not about to change anytime soon; not even when the client are actually wrong! For any start up, handling your customers in the best of ways is the number one secret to developing a sustainable client base. As a start-up, you need to focus on making your clients feel comfortable and secure. You should work on building trust right from the first conversation.

If you had no clue, those in charge of customer services are the visible representatives of the company. Train your staff to allow the customers do most of the talking. Simply paraphrased, let the customers drive the conversation. This is applicable to both angry and satisfied customers. At the end of the day, each one of them wants their next experience to be better; if they will ever give you a second chance that is!

Closely related to this is delivery of quality services. Give it your best in ensuring your customers get real value for their money. The best salesperson is the customer. If you treat him right and give him value for his money, he will walk out of the door and sell for you. You wouldn’t need to request that. How pleasant is that? Well, not so many start-ups get to embrace this secret success ingredient until it is too late.

Innovation is Key

The successes of renowned empires are accredited to solving real life problems. Too bad for many start-ups, they get too much absorbed in their own ecosystem to realize the dynamics of their industry. You might have entered a field when your product offered the perfect solution to the underlying problem. However, things change and that might have happened without your realisation. You might have chosen the right market or have been the first mover in that field. However, the founder of Twitter Jack Dorsey will confide in you that it important having the idea BEST than having it FIRST. At no point should you forget that there is always disruption and anything can change. However, the innovative minds will always stay in business and ahead of the game.

Don’t Lose Money

You might have heard that from the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffet. Well, it is not only applicable in investments but also start-ups. Many companies get into the habit of burning excessive cash during the first few days of business. Once they pick up that trend, it is extremely difficult for them to roll back and put in place accountability. Don’t get me wrong. You need money to jump-start and even fuel the growth of your business. However, if spending is your lead strategy then you might as well be out of the game.

Instead of focusing on ads and other lavish strategies of popularising your brand, you should place bets on content. Having a plan will keep you out of making uninformed decisions that might cost your business a fortune. According to Ron Bodkin, the CEO of Think Big Analytics, keeping a budget in mind and practising frugality are core building blocks of every successful start-up entity. You need to find ways of keeping your budget in check and spending only when it is necessary, especially during the first few days of your business. Without enough reserves, you might not be able to stand the financial shock that hit many start-ups.

Defining Moments

If you are a few weeks or days from launching your business, you can walk straight in and make the game winnable if you consider these critical highlights. You don’t have to go through the same struggles many founders went through several years ago. Instead, you can build your empire the easier way by picking the lessons from some of the greatest minds in the corporate arena. This way, you might just struggle a little less, avoid unnecessary stress, and build your wealth faster than you might have imagined! 

BIO

Derek Iwasiuk runs national digital search engine optimization firm headquarted in Minneapolis. He also spends a lot of his free time educating the minds of thousands of young SEOs and top agencies. For any inquiries on SEO Los Angeles, services you can get in touch with him. You can also follow him on twitter @Diwasiuk