According to a recent study, almost 1/3 of adults are considering starting their own business in 2025. If you’re part of this statistic, then it’s important that you are as prepared as possible! 

Photo by Microsoft 365 on Unsplash

With that in mind, here are some steps that you should take to set yourself (and your business) up for success. 

Carry out plenty of market research. Before you commit to launching a business, be sure to carry out as much market research as possible. This will help you to determine whether (or not) you’ve actually come up with a good idea, business model, or product – or whether you need to go back to the drawing board. In short, it can save you a considerable amount of time, money, and energy while also ensuring you feel as confident as possible when opening your doors (or site) for the first time.

There are many different ways to carry out market research. For example, you may want to host a series of focus groups with members of your target audience to see what they think about your proposed products/services. You should also write some competitor analysis reports that detail what your key competitors are doing well and what areas of the market they are leaving open (as this is where you can step in).

Get your finances in order. Whether you’ve garnered the support of investors, taken out a loan, or are using your own savings to kickstart your business, getting your finances together ahead of time is crucial. After all, it can take two to three years for a business to become profitable, meaning you must ensure that you can sustain yourself during this time.

Keeping a close eye on your finances will also help you identify areas in which you can cut back on spending so that you can grow your bottom line. However, it is important to note that cutting costs as a business isn’t about being cheap but rather making smart decisions. For example, while cybersecurity software can be expensive, it’s a worthwhile investment when you consider the costs of a data leak. 

Develop your skill set. Running a business on your own means that you’ll take on the role of multiple different “employees” at once. This can prove challenging if you’re not prepared to take on the duties associated with these roles due to a lack of experience or insight, meaning that you must find a way to close this skill gap. For example, if you’re worried about your ability to promote your brand online (something that is essential in the current climate), then you should look into local Social media marketing courses that will help you get up to speed. 

Set up your website. Designing a website is one of the easiest ways in which you can set your business up for success, as it provides you with an opportunity to “get your name out there.” After all, the majority of customers will research brands online before buying something, which means that a lack of visibility in this area could mean that you’re losing valuable customers every single day. 

There are plenty of free platforms that you can use to set up a website for your business, such as Squarespace and Wix. 

Build an online presence through social media. Setting up social media accounts for your brand is also a must, and the sooner you get started on this, the better. This is because an account with multiple posts appears more trustworthy and reputable than a relatively empty account. Furthermore, your social media presence is a great way to promote your brand to a wider audience, garner more sales, and establish yourself as a key player within your industry. In short, it provides you with an opportunity to make your business stand out from the crowd. 

As referenced above, however, it is not enough to simply set up a social media profile and wait for your customers to stumble across it. You also need to execute a social media strategy that drives results. For example, you should be sure to post consistently (without overwhelming your followers’ feeds) and embed SEO keywords and phrases into your content so that your posts are boosted by the algorithm.  

Stay focused. While all of the advice listed above is useful when preparing to start your own business, this last section is perhaps the most important! Your attitude plays a key role in your overall success; if you’re falling into a negative mindset, productivity and efficiency rates will drop considerably. As such, try to keep a positive attitude throughout, no matter what challenges you may be facing.