What is advice you would give to someone starting a business? | Marketing Q&A

So, so, so, so many pieces of advice because starting a business – and then sustaining a business – is complicated!

But you asked for one, so I’ll go with the most important one. Over the decades for helping – and running – businesses, I found this basic information, which I first learned while obtaining my degree in business, to be entirely accurate.

This is important to consider before you start; and at some point after you start, if you feel like things aren’t going quite right, it’s a good one to revisit.

Too many people jump into entrepreneurship simply to sell something that they like, want, are passionate about.

You actually hear people with less experience than I have say things like “follow your passion.” (Hearing things like this should actually be a red flag lol.)

If only it were that easy.

To create a business that generates a profit – which is the ONLY thing that can provide you with a living and keep the doors open – you need three things:

1. To sell a product or service that people want,
2. which is something they will actually buy/pay for,
3. and that they will pay enough, or there will be enough purchases, to sustain your business

Too many budding entrepreneurs miss one or more of those, and doing so is a recipe for failure.

• If you try to sell something that people don’t want or need, you won’t succeed.
• If they want or need it but would never pay to buy it, you won’t succeed.
• If they will buy it, but the interest level is so low, or the price point combined with the interest level is so low, that you could never actually make a profit, you won’t succeed.

Notice that I didn’t say anything about what you’re passionate about. Because IF you can meet all three of those, and IF it happens that your product or service is also something that you are passionate about, then consider yourself damn lucky!