Tag: bada business

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Startup

12 Costs That Every Small Business Startup Has to Incur

स्टार्टअप
स्टार्टअप

Know all the Costs involved in Starting Up?

In India, many entrepreneurs underestimate the costs associated with starting-up a business. So apart from having a great idea or a product, one integral part of setting up a startup is planning regarding all the costs involved. These costs should are an integral part of financial planning. Cost of equipment’s, company registration, software, staff, website building, business cards, etc. play a key role while starting up the business. 

Here are 12 different types of start-up costs you need to address before you start a business:-

1. Registration cost/Legal entity

  • First and foremost, you need to register your business as a legal entity with the state you are operating in.
  • Registration of your company can vary upon the states, so before taking any legal step, you need to know the costing of all the procedures.
  • To register your business, you can visit the state’s official business registration site to get an estimate or you can also hire a legal service company to work out the business start-up cost. If you want to fast track the procedure, such agencies can help you out with that too with an extra cost involved.  

2. Equipment

  • In any business, equipment plays an important role. Almost every business needs some sort of equipment in the starting phase. For example; if you have opened a restaurant then you need a stove, dishwasher, cooking utensils, furniture etc.
  • You can always get financing options for these types of equipment. You can also opt for a business loan by your bank or a local lender.
  • If your equipment or machinery needs regular maintenance then add that cost too on a half-yearly or yearly basis. 

3. Office space

  • Having a store or office space can get pretty expensive, whether you buy it or take it on rent, it is a hefty part of your small business start-up cost.
  • If possible, you should try to work from home or work out of a co-working space in the beginning. This is much cheaper than renting or buying an office space. It is also a good way to connect with other people and exchange ideas.
  • If you are a retailer or you have more employees than renting a space can be a better option.

4. Inventory

  • If you are in manufacturing, distribution, wholesale or the retail industry than you need inventory to sell.
  • Stocking your business with sufficient products before launching is very important to meet the potential customer’s demand.
  • Inventory start-up costs can vary on the size and type of your business.
  • Before opening your business, try to have price quotes from multiple vendors which will help you bargain the price and lower your inventory start-up cost.

5. Marketing

  • According to a research, a new business spends at least 5% of its budget on marketing.
  • Marketing might include banners, business cards, brochures, postcards, signage, hoarding, newspaper ads, etc. This helps you in bringing more publicity but also increases your expenses at the same time.
  • It is good that we live in the age of social media; so many advertisements can be done there for free.
  • You can use Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and other social media platforms to advertise your start-up at a very low cost. 

6. Website building

  • It is always important to have a website for your business that looks professional.
  • Most of the buyers start searching for a product on the internet which can lead them to your website which means more business for you.
  • Nowadays, it is very easy to build a website, thanks to services like WordPress and GoDaddy.
  • You just need to register your website or domain name that demands a small fee yearly.
  • After getting yourself registered, now you need to have a CMS (Content management system), to build your site which also includes a monthly or yearly subscription.

7. Furniture and Office supplies

  • For office structure, you usually need computers, chairs, desks, and landline connections for your employees.
  • But apart from the basic furniture mentioned above, add in printer, ink, cabinets, water cooler, air conditioner, and other supplies in your start-up cost.
  • Try to avoid special perks like coffee and snacks which is an additional cost although the cost varies on the number of employees you have and the business structure you are operating in.

8. Utilities

  • When you start a business, your customers might come in late but your bill payments start even before you can imagine. You are also responsible for paying the internet, landline, water, gas, and electricity bills apart from the rent and furniture cost.
  • Include the installation cost of these services as well in your start-up cost.

9. Hiring and Payroll

  • 25%-45% of your budget goes in salaries even if they are not bringing in much revenue in the beginning.
  • Payroll also includes other benefits like; stipends, commissions, overtime payment, travel allowance, and bonuses.
  • Always remember that your employees will also grow over the time as your business starts growing or picking up.

10. Insurance

  • Just like the way you protect your health, your house and car with an insurance policy, you need to protect your business too.
  • There are many business insurances in the market, analyze your business type to take the right insurance plan. 

11. Taxes

  • While you are planning for all the costs that are involved in running a business, it is important to keep the taxes in account too.
  • Apart from the taxes, you need a charted accountant to handle your finances. The CA can either be hired or outsourced depending on your budget, but his fees also will be a part of the expenses.

12. Travel and shipping

  • If you are in a consulting business or you need to travel a lot then this expense should also be a part of your small business startup cost.
  • If you are in the shipping business which includes packaging, postage and other shipping costs than you have to be very careful with your budget.
  • In this case, you can always take the help of a third party or a governing party to ship your product. Try to get a quotation from multiple vendors to eliminate the extra start-up cost. 

Budgeting is the most stressful part of starting a business, but having a realistic idea of costs and how much money you need to build a cash reserve will help you in the long run. So, Good luck and start with a bang! 

Categories
Startup

5 Tips for an Early Stage Fundraising from a Venture Capitalist

कारोबार
कारोबार

Early Stage Funding to Sale your Business

Early-stage fundraising is looking at for high potential and growth companies. You should have a clear sense of your vision and a passion and be able to convey that to investors. To help eliminate some of the myths and shed light on what goes on when pitching the VC investors, here are a few tips to practice that can help you in this process:-

1. Offer a solution to a problem.

  • Firstly, you need to find a solution to the problem that can impact a large number of people to entice a venture capitalist for an early stage fundraising.
  • After the problem has been identified, the investors always look for the solution so make sure that solution is clear, to the point and here to stay.
  • Now you have to show your investor how your company and product will address the problem.
  • Most of the entrepreneurs concentrate on the product when instead they need to focus on their customers and the burning problem the customer is facing.
  • Try to use stories and pictures when you explain the execution process.
  • Explain your product and services very clearly to avoid any kind of confusion.

2. Revenue Model

  • Now that you have already explained your product/service, you then have to explain about how fast you company is growing and what are the revenue projections you expect during your pitch for an early stage fundraising.
  • You have to discuss how your pricing will fit into the market you are addressing.
  • The investor is always interested to know how you will undercut the existing solution with your pricing and will your customer be ready to pay that price?

3. Milestones

  • Investors like to spend more time at this point.
  • It talk about the growth seen by your company over the last year and what will be the projected growth in the next  3-5 years looking at the finances and business model.
  • Your operations plan can also be shared in this slide which can include distribution channels being used, operational structure and the big plan to make money in the future.
  • No one can predict where you will be in the next 3 years but the investors would like to see your future plans and the financial knowledge to reach there.
  • Do share your profit and loss statement for the last and the next 3 years. Giving your investors a clear picture will lead to early stage fundraising.

4. Target Market

  • Make a list of data of your ideal customers and how you will position your product in the market.
  • This is where you tell the story about the scale of the problem you are trying to solve and the scope of getting success.
  • Always remember that the more specific you are with your targets, the more realistic your pitch will be to get the early stage fundraising.
  • Your market will decide whether you are able to get the funds or not because if you are operating in a small market then the investors might find the ROI small and therefor consider it risky to fund.

5. Actively ask for feedback

  • Touch base with the investors after the meeting and actively ask for feedback.
  • The information you receive can help you refine your pitch.
  • Do not make changes based on every single piece of input. Only adopt what you think is the most important feedback for your company.

Entrepreneurship is one of the greatest experiences in the world. If you are choosing an investor make sure your dream & vision of the company remains intact despite taking money from someone. So choose the right investor and work towards getting early stage fundraising.

Categories
Legal

Everything You Need to Know About Company Laws

Legal Basics that Every New Business Should Know

The Companies Act of India was created in 1956 to ensure one thing, that a company is treated as a separate legal entity from the people who are running it. This was primarily done if due to any gap or removal of a member/partner, the company does not end.

When you are starting a company, there are many legalities that you should know about when you are planning to run a business.

1. Company Formation
 

The Companies Act, 2013 which is more refined and covers many more aspects of business than

the previous Act. It explains what type of a company you need to choose and run. According to the

Companies Act of India, you can choose between the following:

  • Sole Proprietorship
  • Partnership
  • LLC
  • Private Limited
  • Family Business

The companies Act, 2013 lays down the rules and regulations on how each of these firms can be set up and what are the legalities you need to follow

2. Understanding Tax & Accounting

  • One of the reasons you need to choose your legal entity smartly is also because it will decide the amount of tax you are going to pay and the Companies Act of India gives a detailed account of it.
  • You need to know the income tax you are liable to pay to the government and if there is a cess over and above that. Each legal entity has a tax structure they need to follow. Some legal entities are also entitled to a few exemptions which can be found out by going through the Act in detail
  • Maintaining of accounts and bookkeeping is essential for SMEs to manage their money smartly
  • Financial Statements will help in keeping a check of your debts incurred, expenses and profits made. This will help in managing your funds optimally

3.  Raising Money: Checking financing options

There are 3 types of financing options that you can explore:

  • Finance through Investors– When you are getting capital from a VC, then these are the must have documents- letter of intent, share subscription agreement and shareholders agreement 

There are many forums where you can get a list of Angel Investors & Venture Capitalists who would invest in your business and claim a stake in your profits

  • Finance via debt or loan- The main documents needed are- application for loan sanction papers, sanction letter, loan agreement letter and collateral documentation. Now days it has become very easy for SMEs to avail a loan from the bank.

The Government has also introduced many schemes and initiatives under which SMEs can apply for a loan

  • Self-funded- Obviously self-funding is the easiest and the most hassle-free finance option out of the lot. You can use your own money or borrow from your close relatives or friends to give your business that boost

4. Labour Laws

Like the Companies Act of India is needed to set up a company, similarly you need to abide by the Labour Laws when you are hiring for the company and formulating employee agreements

5. Dispute Resolution & Contracts

When you are starting a company and formalizing a structure it also important to know how contracts are formulated and if a dispute arises, how can you solve it.

The main aim is to:

  • What works under Indian law and what does not?
  • Traps to avoid; and
  • Practical drafting solutions

It is advised to agree to an offshore arbitration where possible, if not then go for an Institutional arbitration with a neutral party. Try and keep it as simple as possible

If you are setting up a company and going to run a business, it is important to understand the know-how of the Companies Act 2013 because this sets the foundation of all the legalities involved in running and managing an organization. 

Categories
Powerful Personalities

Top 10 Success Mantras by Dr. Vivek Bindra

Climb the Ladder of Success: Tips by Dr.Vivek Bindra

In this fast-paced world of today, success is what everyone is striving to achieve. Following & understanding a few success mantras for business, can help entrepreneurs take their company to newer heights. Though success depends on various factors, but the will to conquer challenges & the patience to taste victory is vital for all. 

Dr.Vivek Bindra, an International Motivational Speaker and Founder of Bada Business.com has always empowered entrepreneurs to grow their business. What is the success mantra behind this?

What qualities make for a good entrepreneur? Here are 10 success mantras for your business by Dr. Vivek Bindra.

1. Set a Goal and do Everything to Reach that Goal

  • It is very important to know what you want. Have clarity of thought as that will show you the right direction and is perhaps the first success mantra in business
  • Be clear on who has to deliver what. This will help in delegating responsibility and accountability  

2. Identify your Unique Signature Strength

  • You need to know what is your strength and work towards using that as the core of your business
  • If this strength energizes you to do better, then that is one way to identify your sole character strength
  • If finance or product building is your signature strength then look after business functions related to that and enhance your learning curve around it

3. Openness to take Risk

  • An important success mantra for any entrepreneur is that you need to take risk in business. If you don’t take risk then you are playing too safe to achieve your dreams
  • Be limitless, you have unlimited potential, the only thing you need to work towards is exploring this potential and putting it to productive use
  • When you stretch your limits and take risks, you will grow
  • As Dr. Vivek Bindra says, ’Bigger the hassle, bigger the premium’

4. Take Advice from Someone who Brings Out the Best in You 

  • Entrepreneurs do take advice or help from friends, family, business partners or their mentors. Make sure that person brings out the best in you
  • If you feel alive, positive and a get a true feeling around that person then there is no harm in following the advice
  • This also includes your customers, listen to them and their feedback. Listening to your consumer is the best success mantra for a business. It not only brings out the best in you but in your business as well

5. Make the Most of What You Have 

  • Don’t be upset over what is not there with you, as you don’t have control over those things
  • Make the most of your employees, look after their welfare and they will be productive & efficient

6. Focus on the Cycle of Possibility

  • Focus on possibilities and not the problems during tough times. Possibilities will only lead to opportunities
  • Divorce yourself with a circle of difficulty
  • Break your rigid beliefs and learn to shift gears. Being flexible and adaptable are the best qualities an entrepreneur can develop as a success mantra for his business

7. Start Measuring your Efforts to Improve

  • Use analytics and data analysis to take your decisions
  • Track your growth and make a note of the changes
  • Measure the kind of effort you are making, only then you will know how much you need to improve in the business domain
  • Don’t take emotional decisions, backing it with facts should be your success mantra in business 

8. If you Fail, you got to Bounce Back

  • Failure is the recipe to triumph; you need to fail before tasting success
  • Do not lose heart, even the most successful of entrepreneurs have failed in their journey
  • Have all the self-belief and confidence to take up the challenges, and try newer things or ideas to grab more knowledge or learnings
  • As Internationally Acclaimed Motivational Speaker Dr. Vivek Bindra says, ’Every negative incident has a positive intent’, when you look back in hindsight you will notice how true these words are
  • ’You can, You will, Bounce Back’, swear my this motto and put it up where you can read it every day

9. Have the Right Attitude

  • Have a positive attitude; once there is negativity in your thought, it is very difficult to come out of this vicious circle.
  • Have clarity of thought as you have to fight your own battle. A negative attitude is disastrous not only for your business, but your personal life as well
  • Positivity & Passion is the perfect success mantra in business

10. Be a Leader

  • An entrepreneur must possess leadership qualities to run his company
  • The employees look up to their leader or boss in situations of confusion or tough times. You need to be a decision-maker in such situations
  • Be bold enough to take the onus of your decision and not put it on your team
  • Make the employees a part of your success journey. Their hard work is equally responsible for any milestone the company achieves

These are all ingredients to the recipe of success. Your winning attitude & a humble outlook will be the cherry on the cake. If you follow these success mantras by Dr.Vivek Bindra, surely you and your business will be unstoppable!

Categories
Legal

Must-Have Terms in a Partnership Agreement

एमएसएमई
एमएसएमई

Critical Points in a Partnership Agreement
 

A Partnership is a legal agreement between two or more individuals who decide to do business together. All the partners involved have a share in the assets as well as the profit and loss of business. It documents the responsibilities of all the partners.

However, the partnership agreement differs from business to business depending upon its scale and objectives. Also, a partnership agreement is subjected to laws governed by the state. 

Let us see the key aspects of a partnership agreement that business owners need to keep in mind.

1. Percentage of Contribution-

The first and foremost thing that needs to be documented in a deed is that how much each partner will contribute in the business.

The agreement should clearly define the contribution by each partner in terms of money, time and efforts 

2. Distribution of Profits-
 

This is one of the most fundamental aspects of a business partnership agreement. How much would be the share of each partner in profits?  The agreement must outline how the profits will be distributed amongst the partners.

It must also state how what each partner will be paid. 

Decision making-

This is the most crucial aspect of the agreement and important for smooth business operations.

You must differentiate between the decisions that require a unanimous voice or the ones that can be taken by a single partner.

A provision must be there in the agreement to address the disagreement or dispute between the partners.

3. Partner Authority-
 

Can any of the business partners bind the others to a contract without consent? The answer is Yes! That’s why it becomes important that the binding power or the partner authority is clearly defined in the business partnership agreement.

It will save the company from unmanageable risks.

4. Resolving Conflicts-

A clause regarding the dissolution of the disputes must also be included in the terms and conditions of the agreement. 

If an issue has not been resolved with the business partners then a provision in the agreement will help ease the process of dissolution.

5. Withdrawal or Demise of a partner-

An unfortunate contingency can occur anytime. A smart business owner should be able to foresee and must be prepared for it.

If a partner withdraws due to disagreements or god forbids has a sudden death then a clause of departure must be included in the agreement. 

A good agreement has a buyout provision that helps in determining the business value and how the departing partner will be paid. 

Discretionary Clauses that can be included in a Partnership Agreement:
 

The above-mentioned aspects constitute an essential part of the business partnership agreement. However, there are a few other factors that should be considered before drafting the agreement. These are: 

Non-Competitive Clause-
This clause not only limits the partner from leaving the partnership but also restricts him from competing with the business partners within a restricted time frame.

Non-disclosure Clause, Non-
Solicitation Clause: This clause limits business partners from revealing the proprietary business. In other words, you cannot revel to any other person, corporation or firm any confidential information about the enterprise. 

It also restricts partners from soliciting employees away from the business partnership which means prohibiting an employee from utilizing the company’s clients, customers and contact lists for personal gain once they leave the company

A business partnership agreement is significant for every business arrangement. It not only ensures the smooth functioning of the company but it also protects the rights of all the partners, their overall investment and the longevity of the business. 

Categories
Finance

Transform Your business Creditors Into Investors

Steps to build and grow a personal brand. | File Image
Steps to build and grow a personal brand. | File Image

How to make your Creditor an Investor in the business?

It is always an unnerving experience when you have to make your business creditors an investor in your company. However, getting an investor on board can help grow your business in many ways- from an increase in inventory to experience in the trade and even talented human resources. But why will someone invest in your company when he can give you that money on loan and earn interest out of that.  Here are some tips on how to transform business creditors into investors:

1. Adaptable Business Plan

  • The business environment is highly dynamic and keeps changing. In this scenario, new opportunities will also arise and with these changes your business will also grow along with a rise in your market share and revenue.
  • But there could be times when there is a slowdown; hence your business plan should be adaptable to the best and worst circumstances.
  • This gives your creditors in business the confidence that the company will be able to survive during harsh times as well and will lure him to invest in it.

2. Financial Performance

  • Financial viability plays a key role for anyone to invest in a business. You need to prove to the investor that the company is financially healthy especially when you are seeking funding from a bank or a venture capitalist.
  • It is the potential high returns that will make them cross the bridge from a business creditor to a business investor.
  • An investor should be guaranteed his money is safe and this can be done by showing proof of the assets and liabilities, revenue streams, acquisition cost etc. 

3. The Role of the Investor

One thing both you and the investor should be clear about is that what is expected from the investor. Is it only money or is there something else lacking in the company. The objective needs to be defined clearly as this can help business creditors turn into investors. 

The objective needs to be defined as to what is the purpose of capital requirement. For e.g.

  • Develop new product line/Business expansion
  • Bring in specialized human resource talent, hence hire additional employees
  • Spend on branding and marketing
  • Or bring in the experience and background of the investor to grow your business

4. Company/Product Uniqueness
 

  • If your business creditors can envision the problem you are trying to solve through your business model or product and how large the market size of that problem is, then surely they will be interested in switching sides.
  • If your business has a competitive advantage and you can also offer something exclusive to the business creditors such as marketing and distribution rights of a region, it will be a bonus incentive for them to join in. 

5. Exit Opportunity
 

  • If you want to transform business creditors into potential investors, they need to see a viable exit opportunity as well in your business.
  • While they are rooting and supporting your business, they are also looking for a return on their investment. Also, be sure of what you want out of the exit as well.

Business creditors can always be potential investors, but you as an entrepreneur need to make sure that there are enough substance and uniqueness in the business for creditors to take the plunge into investment. The idea is that it should be a win-win situation for both you and the creditor. 

Categories
Startup

A Survival Guide for Early-Stage Startups

बिजनेस
बिजनेस

Early Learning Advantage: A Survival Guide for all Startups

Starting a business and growing it through the early stage is a difficult task and the only thing that comes in handy at that time is a startup survival guide. 9/10 startups fail in the first 3 years of their operation depicting a poor startup survival rate. So how exactly can you survive in the early stages of starting up? Determination, planning, and a little bit of luck can go a long way in marking your success. Here is a startup survival guide for many of our new entrepreneurs.

1. Get the right Founding team

  • Your team will make the pieces come together and pave way for success. The first step in the startup survival guide is to get the right founding members for the business
  • Look at people with diverse strengths that can be an asset to your business
  • The founding members should be trustworthy with a mission to make the business succeed rather than their own success

2. Implementation of the Idea
 

  • No matter how much research has gone behind the business idea, but if the implementation is not up to the mark, the startup will fail to take flight
  • One of the main reasons that the startup survival rate is so low because entrepreneurs fail in the implementation phase 
  • Slow down with your speed. You might think that the idea is revolutionary but it might take time to implement it correctly
  • An early-stage startup should be clear about 3 things- The solution it is providing, the cost involved and how will the idea be monetized

3. Find your Unique Selling Proposition

  • When you start a business, you have to make sure you are different from the competition
  • Realize what is your USP- is it your delivery mechanism, or your social media presence, exclusivity or the product itself
  • Your startup survival guide should spell out your USP that is going to keep you going for many years

4. Work towards getting your Customer Acquisition Cost down

As we all know, the customer acquisition cost is the total cost of acquiring a new customer. It should generally include things like Advertising, Marketing & Sales costs divided by the number of customers acquired

  • Focus on improving the conversion rate through the quality of content, e-mailers, layouts etc.
  • Enhance Customer service to eventually build loyal customers. These loyalists can then become influencers for your brand to get in new customers
  • Utilize social media campaigns fully so that customer retention rate remains high

5. Be Flexible

  • Business is all about being dynamic and embracing change. Hence, being flexible is of utmost importance in the startup survival guide
  • Learn to tweak your plans mid-way. There could be changes in market conditions, or your competition might be doing something different, keep an open eye and change your flow accordingly 

6. Be well prepared for Investor meetings

  • Treat investor meets as an IIT entrance exam; you need to be more than prepared. Be ready for a volley of questions and if you don’t know the answers you will be marked negatively.
  • Build your case well. This preparation and confidence will give out only one message- that you will justify your investors’ money   

7. Don’t hesitate to ask for Help
 

  • You probably might know everything about how to run a business, but you possibly cannot do everything yourself. Reach out to a partner whom you trust to manage different business operations if required
  • One reason for the startup survival rate to be low is that business owners don’t reach out for help at the right time
  • Be open to feedback, suggestions, opinions, it only makes your business stronger and better

8. Plan for Contingency

  • Keep a close eye on your cash flow management and invest within your means
  • If expected results fail to show, your contingency fund can be utilized to change the course of action

It’s not an easy task to build a business from nothing and therefore a startup survival guide is a must for all new entrepreneurs. With hard work and dedication towards your business, the path to success shall not be far-fetched. 

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

Learn How to Start Your Company From Scratch

स्टार्टअप
स्टार्टअप

Start a Company with Ease!

Every business has to start from the very beginning, and it’s the passion behind it that drives you to start something and be your own boss. Starting a company from scratch need not be complicated, but requires a lot of planning and backend work. Here are a few tips on how to start a company from ground zero.

1. Research & Refine your Idea

If you are thinking about how to start a company and set a business, you must be having an idea. Thorough background research of the idea is critical

Analyze what market leaders are doing in that space and learn from their mistakes 

Talk to a lot of customers, understand their pain point and try to solve that problem

Conduct surveys, hold focus group meetings and research SEOs

2. Prepare a Business Plan

After researching your business idea, the next phase is preparing a business plan that reflects steady & realistic growth

Don’t rush into things before understanding the key aspects of a business. For e.g. 

  • What is the objective of your business?
  • Your defined customer base
  • Price points
  • Sales projections
  • Operational costs
  • Market Strategy

All this has to be a part of a well-defined business plan

3. Choose your Business Structure

This is very important before you decide to start a company. There are a few structures that SMEs can choose from:

  • Sole Proprietorship where you are the ultimate boss and the cost of setting up is the least
  • Partnership- Where you can start the company with a friend, family member or a business partner and decide your profit and loss sharing ratio
  • Limited Liability Company (LLC)- This is a popular choice for small to medium sized businesses. The cost of set up is not very high and there is a separation between the owners and the company

Once you choose a structure, register the company and follow all mandates to make it official

4. Make a financial breakdown chart

If you are starting a new company, you need to address finances and see how the funding will take place 

One of the ways to do this is to prepare a break-even analysis. This is essential for financial planning to know when your business will be profitable 

The simplest way to do this is to calculate your fixed costs and your variable costs and get the difference between the two

Set a financial goal, this will help in keeping a check of whether you are stretching your budget or there is room for margin

Keep a list of the funding options available to you and at what stage you would like to use them

5. Build a Founding Team

Human resources are important to every business and an entrepreneur should be clear that he cannot manage all the functions

Get together a team by assessing their strengths and weaknesses, so that everyone is an asset to the company

Delegate work effectively

Incentivize the team so that when the company grows, they also benefit from it

6. Improve on the Go

Once you have clarity on all your initial steps, there is never a better time for starting up. Improvisations can be made as you go along. 

Most successful companies have launched with imperfections but that did not deter them from adapting to the changes

Learn from the journey and enjoy every bit of it!

7. Decide a launch Strategy

Once you start a company and your product is ready to hit the market, be clear about how you want it to launch

Think about media spends and the mediums you want to use, how do you want to market the product initially and grow it phase by phase

Start branding yourself using social media. Build a following on Facebook and Instagram to create the initial buzz  

Build a logo, create a website and let people identify with your brand

8. Feedback is Essential

Once the company has started and you have launched your product, let people use it and give feedback. A perspective from the consumer will help you see the product in a different light

Customer feedback will help in improving your business 

There is no perfect route to start a company and grow your business, but a killer instinct and the ability to adapt will help you achieve success. Have a quick problem-solving approach as you will

be constantly competing against time. Don’t rush into things and you will be on your way to building a company that you always dreamt of.

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

How to Create a Successful Subscription Business Model

How to Build a Successful Subscription Business model

We all have realized that the Subscription business model is here to stay. A large number of businesses are moving from a product economy to a subscription economy. 

Why does a subscription-based business model work?

There are 4 factors that we can attribute to this:

  1. It gives you the opportunity to move towards a recurring revenue model. The model is devised in a such a way that the customer will have to pay monthly, quarterly or yearly for your product and service and if you keep providing him quality, chances are higher that there will be a repeat subscription
  2. It allows you to constantly engage and connect with the consumer. Business-customer relationship should not be limited to just a single point purchase
  3. New revenue streams can be created from the current customers by adding more services to your product
  4. A subscription business model can make you take the plunge into digital which can help you save a lot of cost and can help you scale faster

Now if you have chosen to walk the subscription path, you still need to work hard on your product, on your pricing and your service to make sure it is a success. Here are a few tips to succeed using a subscription model

1. Align your Pricing with the Business Goal

  • Pricing is the most important strategy in a subscription business model to make sure your business is a success. It can help you in a lot of ways to acquire new customers, create more revenue streams from existing customers and also make sure the retention rate is high.
  • Structure your pricing tiers on the basis of monthly, quarterly or a yearly based subscription model
  • Also take into account other factors like usage levels, loyalty, new schemes
  • You can start with some basic pricing tiers & adjust it over time keeping in mind customer feedback

2. Bring in Uniqueness

  • Provide the customer with new products and services that add value to them
  • In a subscription-based business model, customer sometimes might not know about the differentiating services provided by you. Spell it out through constant alerts to prospective clients
  • Your product needs to constantly connect with the consumer for it to work

3. Give the Consumer Convenience

  • Today most companies that provide anytime, anywhere convenience to the customers are the ones making money
  • For e.g. All OTT platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hotstar give the consumer an option to watch shows/movies anytime and anywhere. Netflix has also devised a pricing strategy for content watching for mobile-only users. This is cheaper than its usual monthly package.
  • Provide the consumer with variety at the click of a button

4. Streamline Cash flow & Billing
 

  • In a subscription based model most of the cash being received by you is upfront, the maximum credit cycle is also 30-45 days. Hence, make sure you are rotating your cash efficiently
  • Bring in automation and software to ease our the billing process and optimize cash collection

5. Build Customer Relationships

  • Customer Relations form the basis of every business and similar is the case in a subscription business model
  • If the customer is not happy with your product or service he will cancel the subscription for the next time. Hence, innovation and building strong relationships is key
  • Get to know your customer well and then design products for him. This will also help in deciding the pricing strategy

6. Give your Customer a Choice

  • In a subscription business model, the one size fits all strategy might not work well for everyone. Hence, give the customer a choice to choose a specific service or a specific pricing tier according to their likes and needs
  • This will help you attain more customers as paying according to choice will appeal to your target audience

Every entrepreneur wants a regular income in his business for positive cash flow and business growth. Subscription based business models provide the perfect platform to enable that ambition, but the cheery on the cake will always lie in your product quality and customer satisfaction.

Categories
Marketing

Importance of Lead Management Software in Business

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Power your Performance with a good Lead Management software
 

As the name suggests, Lead Management is a way of process set in the company to generate leads. It is a software-based system intended to build access to a new customer base.  

Good lead management software has the potential to impact revenue of a business directly by bringing sales and marketing together.

In today’s time and age, technology has given a whole new dimension to businesses. SMEs and MSMEs are always on a lookout to be more productive and grow their business efficiently.

Leads are potential customers who are interested in your business, services or products. Often it happens that despite showing interest, your potential customer doesn’t invest in buying your brand. Lead management software not only helps in tracking the leads but improves strategies of sales to get more and more customers into the system

Let us see the various benefits of a lead management software in business- 

1. Boosts Efficiency-
 

Every business wants to run its operations effectively and smoothly. Automation in marketing streamlines the sales experience. It automatically books an appointment, helps in online payments, sets reminders, and increases the engagement with the customers.

In this way, your interaction with the customer increases making them feel important and wanted

2. Improved customer relationship management-
 

Maintaining a lifelong relationship with the customer is very crucial for any business and customer service is undoubtedly one of the most important parameters for growth. 

The software helps in creating an online history of its customers, information of orders and communications or dealings with other companies.

The storage of bulk data at one place with the lead management software also becomes convenient.

3. Saves time-

Time management for any business is very significant. Especially for small businesses time is money. That is why it becomes important for business owners to monitor the daily work flow efficiently.

The software can help in the reduction of routine manual tasks since automation allows online tasks to take center stage. 

Investing in good lead management software helps business owners to unlock their time and allows them to focus on other important aspects of business to generate revenue.

4. Increases Scalability-

Another important benefit is that the software helps business scalability. 

Based on customer’s previous action and interests it helps in implementing the better sale strategies for the business.

It also supports in managing and enhancing the inflow and outflow of the leads.

5. Better SalesForce?-

It enhances the overall productivity and efficiency of an employee. For any given task which needs to be accomplished an employee just needs to make the following entries in the system- 

  • Basic information
  • Browsing history
  • Scheduled task
  • Contact history

It helps business owners to evaluate the workforce required to achieve a certain target.

This software also acts like a one-stop solution for cloud-based information which can be accessed from any part of the world.

6. Customization-

The lead management software offers the feature of customization as it is crucial to reach out to the right leads with the right product or service. 

This automated feature ensures that based on the need of a client a customized message is sent according to the profile of the customer.

It also engages with the customers by sending reminders, SMS or emails.

7. Increases Scope of Consumption-

The biggest advantage of the lead management software is that it increases the consumption scope of customers.

The automated software can help in increasing the purchase ticket size by suggesting a combo offer (if any) with every sale of goods. It can also recommend any perks attached to the minimum purchase order, any ongoing scheme etc.

All this, will eventually lead to the overall revenue generation in the business.

Lead management software is the backbone of the sales operation in any business. It assists in accountability, tracks potential leads and gives a personalized experience to your customer. The right kind of software used in the right direction can increase the overall ROI of the business.