If being your own boss appeals to you, starting your own small business, going freelance or working as a contractor might be the right road to follow. Working for yourself you can enjoy:
- Creating your own business ideas.
- Turning your ideas into real products and services.
- The thrill of competition.
Flexible hours that suit you.
While it sounds fantastic, there is no doubt that starting a small business or working for yourself and making it a success takes hard work, focus and commitment. Here are some tips to help you get started.
sections within this page
Start small
Will my idea work?
What’s the key to success?
Where to then?
Start small
If you’re starting your own business from scratch you might want to start small, to get the hang of things and test the waters for your business idea before going all out.
For example, rather than quitting your job, hiring staff, leasing an office and decking it out, start your business on your own in your spare time and work from home. From there you can build your way up.
Will my idea work?
Before going too far you need to put some time and effort into seeing if your business idea is going to work. In other words, will anybody buy your product or engage your services?
This means doing some market research to find answers to questions such as:
- Is there a market for my product and who is this market?
- Am I going to be able to get into this market or are there already too many players in the field?
- Who are my competitors? Learn what they do, what you can do better and what you can do differently.
- What does my target market think of my product idea?
- How much will they pay for it?
- What is the best way to promote my products and services to my target market?
Use different research methods to find these answers, such as:
- Conduct focus groups or surveys involving members of your target market.
- Research your competitors online to find out what they do, how well they do it, and what you can do better or in another way.
Review statistics on the industry you're thinking of going into, such as how many businesses like yours already exist in the market – the Australian Bureau of Statistics can help.
To stay ahead of your competitors, research your market on a regular basis throughout the life of your business. For example, find out what people think of a new product package or name and to see how you can improve your services.
If it looks like your idea is a good one you also need to ask yourself some tough questions, such as:
- Am I ready to put in the hard yards to get a business up and running?
- Do I have the skills and knowledge I need? If not, am I willing to get them, for example by undertaking a business management course?
- Do I have, or can I access, the financial resources I need to get my business going?
- Based on my research, am I going to make enough money?
- Speak to small business owners, and an accountant and find out all costs and then review if you are going to be able to turn a profit after all of your expenses.
You also need to account for GST, superannuation, insurance, wages and workers compensation.
What’s the key to success?
Having a business plan is vital.
Having a business plan can help you get government funding or financial support from banks. Your business plan highlights everything you need to do to get your business started and keep you focused and on track.
Your plan should cover:
- What you need to do to get your business going.
- How you intend to operate the business.
- How you intend to market and sell your products and services.
- What costs are involved?
How you plan to finance everything.
For advice and sample business and marketing plans visit www.business.gov.au.
Where to then?
There are lots of things you’ll need to do before you can start trading, such as:
- Registering a business name.
- Obtaining an Australian Business Number (ABN).
Trade marking any product names that you want to protect.
You’ll also need to understand your taxation and legal obligations, as well as do the simple things like opening a bank account and setting up a phone line, fax and email address so potential clients can contact you. Also, depending on the type of business, consider developing a website to promote your business. Visit the Australian Tax Office website for more information on business taxation requirements.
There are many resources available that can help you to start and successfully run a small business:
