How to Successfully Launch Your New Business Venture
Launching a business is a journey filled with excitement, challenges, and endless possibilities. Whether you're just starting out or you're ready to take your business idea to the next level, having a strategic approach can make all the difference. Here's a comprehensive guide to launching your business, from building a strong brand identity to planning for growth and innovation.
1. Build a Strong Brand Identity
A strong brand identity is crucial for standing out in today's competitive marketplace. It encompasses your business’s values, voice, and visual elements that communicate your story to the customers. To build a solid brand identity, consider your mission statement, target audience, and the unique value proposition that makes your business stand out from others.
Key Tools and Tips:
Keep it simple: Although some fonts and images might look pretty when blown up, your audience might not be able to read them or connect with the images when used on web, reduced in size for ads and social etc.
Canva: This tool is great for anything creative, whether creating a logo, social images etc. There is a free version of the tool to get you started before opting for the pro version.
2. Develop a Website and Online Presence
In this day and age, *most businesses must have a website. The website acts as your business’s online shop window, providing information on who you are, what you do, building credibility, and allows you to engage with potential customers. (*A survey by Verisign reported that 84% of today’s consumers believe a business with a website is more credible than one with only a social media page.)
Key Tools and Tips:
Use your skills wisely: If building a website seems like too much work to you, but you know you need one, look for someone to build it for you, either find a reputable firm through your network referrals or look for highly rated UX/UI designers and builders on sites like Upwork.
Squarespace: User-friendly, easy to build website tool with drag-and-drop features for beginners.
Google Analytics: To track your website performance and user engagement.
3. Set Up Your Sales/Distribution Channels
How you sell is key to getting your products or services to your customers efficiently. Whether it's online sales through your website, third-party platforms, or brick-and-mortar stores, each channel has its pros and cons. Consider your target market and product type when selecting channels.
Key Tools and Tips:
Look at your competition: This is a great place to see how people are buying from others, don’t be afraid to gather research to see if you can do things differently and leapfrog the competition!
If you’re B2B and selling directly, consider your Go-To-Market strategy- are you selling SaaS to SMBs? should you consider Product-Led Growth? Are you targeting Finance and Banking in the Enterprise space? consider an Account-based strategy
Shopify: For setting up an online store easily.
Square: Offers Point of Sale (POS) solutions for both online and physical stores.
4. Create a Marketing Plan
A well-thought-out marketing plan outlines how you’ll communicate your brand to your target audience. It should include market research, target customer profiles, pricing, positioning and storytelling, marketing channels (social media, email marketing, SEO), and metrics for measuring success.
Key Tools and Tips:
Plans can start with a simple grid showing your overall business goals, marketing strategies aligned with them and high level plan before getting into a more detailed written plan. it should be timely, with plans broken down by quarter or month. Be prepared for these plans to evolve over time as you learn from your experiments and results.
Ignore the noise: Marketing isn’t just about tactics and burning through cash on advertising, there are plenty of marketing initiatives that don’t cost the earth and can provide great returns, learn more.
HubSpot: For inbound marketing, sales, and customer service.
5. Launch a Promotional Campaign
Launching a promotional campaign is crucial for creating buzz around your products or services. Typically, a launch campaign can be delivered across numerous channels for maximum exposure, such as email marketing, social media marketing, direct mail and outdoor advertising. Take time to out together the best messaging, any specific special launch offers and delivering over multiple channels.
Key Tools and Tips:
Go big! Create a campaign that can be launched over different channels and mediums over time for maximum exposure.
BuzzSumo: To look into what’s going on in your industry and competition, refine your content and to find influencers in your niche.
HootSuite: For organising, scheduling and launching your campaign on social media channels
6. Map Your Customer Journey
Understanding the journey your customer takes from discovering your brand to making a purchase is vital for creating a positive and seamless experience. This involves mapping out every touchpoint such as email, call etc, and ensuring each one is optimised for engagement and conversion. For instance, ensuring your website is mobile-friendly is crucial as 51% of global website traffic comes from mobile devices.
Key Tools and Tips:
Go back to basics: Map out your customer journey on a whiteboard or paper for speed and ease, add in new ideas in a different colour and cross out potential time waster activities and road blocks.
Map out journeys that have already happened with your most successful and loyal customers as well as the ones that ended in failure to purchase or churn.
HubSpot: Check out this blog with free templates for customer journey mapping.
7. Gather Feedback and Learn
Getting feedback is essential to understanding your customer needs and improving your products or services. This can be through surveys, social media engagement, or customer reviews. Actively learning from feedback and adapting your strategy accordingly is essential for long-term success.
Key Tools and Tips:
Keep learning from customers: You should try to add feedback processes into your customer journey to understand, not just why customers buy from you and their opinions and experiences, but also why others choose not to buy.
SurveyMonkey: For creating and distributing surveys.
Google Forms: A free tool for quick feedback collection.
8. Track Costs, Spend, and Income
Keeping a close eye on your finances is crucial for the sustainability of your business. This means tracking all of your costs, expense and any income to ensure profitability. Regular financial tracking helps identify areas for reducing costs and opportunities for investment.
Key Tools and Tips:
Keep it simple: Start by using a simple Google sheet or Excel and once your business financial activity increases, start using an online tool.
QuickBooks: For all of your financial management needs.
9. Plan for Growth and Innovation
Finally, always be planning for the future. Set short-term and long-term goals, keep track of market trends, and be open to innovation. Diversifying your offerings and exploring new markets can also drive growth.
Key Tools and Tips:
Track your goals: Keep a document for your business short term and long term goals and check in on these every month
Bring in outsiders: You and your team are likely to be very focused on your business and it often takes an outsider to spot areas for innovation and growth, look for a consultant with experience in your industry and give them access to information to give you a new perspective. Need a Marketing or Sales perspective? Let’s chat!
Trello: Great for organising your thoughts, project management and planning.
Google Trends: To stay updated on market trends.
Launching a business requires careful planning, execution, and continuous improvement. By leveraging the right tools and strategies, you can build a strong foundation for your business, engage effectively with your customers, and set the stage for sustained growth and success.
Need help getting your business successfully launched? Speak to our experts.
