How To Start A Successful Startup From Scratch: A Step By Step Guide
Photo by Canva Studio on Pexels
This post may contain affiliate links. Read full disclosure here.
So, you want to start a startup. You’re not alone. But creating a successful startup is no easy feat. In fact, according to a study by the Harvard Business Review, only about one-third of startups survive their first two years. So, what does it take to start a successful business? The most important thing you will need to do is get yourself a UTR, this is issued by HMRC to anyone in the UK who completes a tax self-assessment, and you can read more about what is a utr number here to avoid getting confused.
In this article, we’ll give you a step-by-step guide on how to build a successful startup from scratch.
Do Your Research
Before you even start thinking about what problem you want to solve or what product you want to build, you need to do your research. Before starting your business from scratch, you need to understand three things: who your customer is, what the market’s like, and what your competitors are doing. Let’s go through each of these points.
First, you need to understand who your customer is. This is a crucial step because it will dictate everything from the problems you try to solve to the type of person you hire to work at your company. To figure out who your customer is, there are a few questions you need to ask
yourself. What is their age? What is their occupation? Where do they live? What are their financial situations?
Next, you need to understand what the market looks like. This step is crucial because it will help you understand the demand for your product, your customer’s pain points, and the level of competition you will face. One of the best ways to do this is to conduct market research. You can either hire a market research firm or do it yourself.
Finally, you need to understand what your competitors are doing. Again, this is another step that can be done internally and externally. Try to understand what their product looks like, their marketing strategy, and how they are trying to attract customers.
Come Up With A Great Idea
Successful startups are built around solving problems in new and exciting ways. For example, when Airbnb founders Brian Chesky and Nathan Blecharczyk couldn’t afford the high cost of hotels while traveling, they came up with the idea to start a service that connected hosts with travelers looking for cheap places to stay. Whenever you develop a great idea, ensure there’s a need. You want to make sure that your idea solves a real problem.
Create A Business Model
Once you understand your customers, the market, and your competitors better, you can move on to creating a business model. A business model is essentially a way to make money. It is a plan that describes how your company will make money. Getting investors or growth will be almost impossible if you don’t have a solid business model.
Build A Strong Team
If you want to start a successful business, you need to build a team that is both talented and loyal. This team will help you develop a product, find customers, and find investors. And while you don’t necessarily need to hire employees when you are just starting out, you do need to find people you can trust. You need to find people who share your vision and who will help you along the way. Start building a solid team by creating relationships and networking with people in your industry or people with experience in your field.
Raise Money
One of the biggest misconceptions about startups is that they need to raise outside capital to be successful. While raising outside capital can help grow your business, it also comes with many strings attached. But there are plenty of ways to fund your startup without raising outside capital. You can choose to create a revenue-generating product. If you have a product, you can then decide to sell it wholesale or at a higher price to make more money. You can also choose to partner with a company and offer them exclusive rights to your product. Or you can opt for a sba loan as a financing solution.
Market Your Startup
Marketing is the most important part of starting a successful startup. It is the only way to get your product to your customers and turn them into customers. When it comes to marketing, there are 2 main ways to go: you can either hire an agency or do it yourself. You can also do both. If you have a limited budget, we highly recommend you do marketing yourself. It is an integral part of the business, and you should be involved.
Measure Your Progress
We’ve been discussing how to develop a great idea and market your product, but how do you measure your progress? To measure your progress, you first want to outline your goals. What do you want to accomplish with your company? Once you know that, you can outline your metrics for achieving these goals. These metrics will help you measure your progress. This data will help you take your business to the next level when ready.
Start A Successful Startup
Once you’ve come up with a great idea, raised money, and started marketing your product, you can create a successful startup. But don’t get too comfortable. The moment you stop growing your company is the moment it starts dying. Once you’ve built a successful company, you must stay ahead of the curve and keep innovating.
*This article is based on personal suggestions and/or experiences and is for informational purposes only. This should not be used as professional advice. Please consult a professional where applicable.