Money for Life work in partnership with the Money Advice Service, an independent organisation set up by government. Money AdviceService provides free, unbiased money guidance across the UK to help people make the most of their money. If you have a question or need help, you can chat to them here.
As a young entrepreneur, people may be skeptical of your age, but businesses don’t fail just because the boss is 21.
Before you do ANYTHING, you need to work out if your business idea is a good one. Just because you think it’s great, doesn’ mean people will agree. Ask yourself:
Once you’ve got the answers to these questions, you’ll need to put together a business plan. This is really important as you’ll need it to show potential funder’s, as well as knowing yourself which direction you’re supposed to be headed.
Gov.uk has information about writing up a business plan as well as detailed information about how to get a business started.
Once you’ve got a concrete business plan, you’ll need some money to get everything started. Read The Mix’s article about funding your own business. It would also be a great idea to look into setting yourself up as a sole trader.
There are loads of positives to being your own boss, including:
Sad though it is, most businesses fail in their very first year. This is avoidable though. Here are some of the most common reasons people go under so you can try and avoid them.
If you didn’t make a watertight business plan, you’re in trouble. Often businesses fail because they don’t do the necessary research into the market, or planning of goals and financial targets.
It sounds silly, but businesses sometimes only plan enough money to last them one year, thinking profits from that will pay for the next. If you have unforeseen costs, or your turnover isn’t as hefty as you’d hoped, then you won’t be able to afford to continue. Plan out your finances for the next few years so you have a long term plan of where you want to go and a safety net in case things go wrong.
We live in a digital world and your business needs to be seen and well promoted. At the very least, you’ll need a well-designed website explaining what you do and social media profiles to reach your customer base.
Money for Life work in partnership with the Money Advice Service, an independent organisation set up by government. Money AdviceService provides free, unbiased money guidance across the UK to help people make the most of their money. If you have a question or need help, you can chat to them here.