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Thinking About Starting your own Biz?

People are attracted to the idea of owning their own small business for different reasons. You may crave the freedom and independence of being your own boss, have a business idea that keeps you up at night, want to make a lot of money or simply escape the nine-to-five job routine.

Whatever your motivation, take comfort knowing you’re not alone. Over one million Canadians will start a small business in the next year, and 20% of the workforce will be self-employed by the end of 2010. Clearly, entrepreneurship is Canada’s hottest career choice.

This section of our website will help you to decide whether or not entrepreneurship is for you. We've assembled some valuable tools, useful links and insightful questions to help you to understand what’s involved in running a small business, identify character traits of successful entrepreneurs and explore the ingredients of a great business idea.

What makes an entrepreneur successful?

What makes an entrepreneur successful?

An entrepreneur lives by the credo, "If it’s to be, it’s up to me!" More than anything, successful entrepreneurs are self-starters with a burning desire to bring their business vision to life.

Self-Assessment

Check out any of these excellent online aptitude tests designed to assess your "Entrepreneurial Quotient" or, in other words, help you to decide if you’ve got what it takes to be self-employed.

• Business Development Bank of Canada
• Western Economic Diversification Canada
• Youth Employment Services

Key Characteristics of Entrepreneurs

An entrepreneur must be a lot of things. You must be a "multi-tasker", able to juggle different responsibilities and tasks all at once. You must be a good communicator, able to express your business idea and attract investors, employees, partners and customers. You must also be persistent, adopting a never-say-die attitude that will see you through the many challenges inherent to self-employment.

Here’s a short list of key entrepreneurial attributes:

10 Important Personal Characteristics of Entrepreneurs
By Andrew Patricio, BizLaunch

• They are goal-orientated
• They are committed to their business
• They are very involved in the day-to-day running of their business
• They thrive on uncertainty
• They continuously look for opportunities to improve
• They are willing to take risks
• They are willing to listen and learn
• They have good people skills
• They have a creative and innovative ability
• They have a positive attitude and approach

Which businesses are the best ones to start?

Which businesses are the best ones to start?

There are three ways to get into your own business: Buy an existing business, buy a franchise, or start one from scratch. Each option carries its own advantages and disadvantages, but this section supports all three.

As we’ve said earlier, the best business for you is one that holds your personal passion and possesses marketplace opportunities. If you’re curious about hot business trends right now, here’s a partial list:

• Low-carb food
• Adventure travel
• Organic foods
• VIP pet treatment
• Personal shoppers
• Training & education
• Online shopping
• Cleaning services
• Home entertainment
• Hobby & recreation products/services
• Exciting mini-vacations
• Online matchmaking
• Senior Care
• Plus size clothing for women
• Home renovations & decorating
• Private medical services (dental, cosmetic, weight loss)

Do I need a lot of money?

Do I need a lot of money?

Some of the world’s biggest businesses were started with a few hundred dollars. Grander plans may require more money. It all depends on the type of business you want to launch. Service businesses are usually the least expensive, followed by retail and manufacturing.

While the actual amount of money you’ll require will be determined when you prepare your Business Plan, there are certain types of financing you’ll definitely need to assemble:

• Capital. These funds are used to buy equipment, furniture, fixtures, vehicles, machinery, signs or any other hard assets to be used in your new business.
• Working Capital. Insufficient cash flow is the number one killer of new small businesses, so you’ve got to get enough money in the bank to survive while you build revenue. Working capital is used to pay ongoing soft expenses to operate your business, such as salaries (including yours), heat, hydro, rent, professional fees, advertising and office supplies.
• Personal Savings. The less you rely on your new business for a salary during its first few years, the easier it will be for your business to get on its own financial feet. Ideally, put aside enough personal funds to pay your own living expenses for one year.
• Contingency Funds. No matter how well you forecast expenses, your new business will encounter some unforeseen costs. Set aside 10% of Capital Expenses for the unexpected.

How do I come up with a great idea?

How do I come up with a great idea?

A great business idea should combine your personal passion with marketplace opportunity. In other words, a business that pays you to do what you love. Believe it or not, entrepreneurs who start businesses purely for their profit potential eventually get bored. Entrepreneurs should have it all Ð health, wealth & happiness - so pick a business that gives you everything you want.

One more point about the value of a business idea: It’s not worth as much as you may think. The value does not lie within the brilliance of your idea, but rather that you do with it. Planning, launching and running a small business is the real work - not coming up with the business idea. Execution is everything.

That said, here’s the process to coming up with a great business idea:

• Assess your interests, skills and hobbies. Look within to determine what you love to do, what you’re good at doing, and, hopefully, something people will pay you to do.
• Soak up business examples. Start reading business publications, attend franchise shows, walk around business districts and talk to people about products and services they like and don’t like. Now that you’ve identified what you love to do, you must find an appropriate business for your particular passion.
• Pay attention to trends. Trends are a pattern of buying behaviour that will last for years. For example, one trend is people buying mobile communications devices. Your goal is to attach your business idea to a growing trend full of sales potential.
• The "A-HA!" moment. You’ll know when it happens. It’s when a business idea suddenly fits with who you are AND rides a growing trend.
• Market research. Now that you have an idea, you must confirm your assumptions through market research. It simply involves doing your homework to ask your potential customers if they will buy your proposed product or service, when they’ll buy it, where they’ll buy it, why and how much they’ll pay. It also includes checking out the competition to learn what you can do better. No matter how brilliant your idea may seem, do not skip the market research step. Without research, you could spend all of your money and time launching your business only to find out no one wants what you’re selling.

What are the general steps to starting a biz?

What are the general steps to starting a biz?

Turning your small business idea into reality takes some time and sober thought. While the process to start your business may differ slightly, most businesses launch by following these broad steps:

• Get training.
• Conduct Market Research.
• Source suppliers.
• Develop a Business Model.
• Write a Business Plan.
• Get feedback on your Business Plan (A business coach or mentor will help.)
• Obtain financing.
• Set it up (legal structure, government registration, business permits, bank accounts, etc.)
• Create your marketing materials.
• Stock inventory or prepare services.
• Develop internal systems & test them.
• Launch!
• Monitor, adjust & improve internal systems.

How do I know if my idea will work?

Here are the secret ingredients of a Great Business Idea:

• Low start-up costs.
• Minimal direct competition.
• Should be easy to operate by yourself, at first.
• Clear benefits to customers; saves people time, effort or money.
• Rides a trend, has a strong future.
• Holds your passion.
• Uses your core skills.
• Can be duplicated or taught to others.
• People understand it, no need to educate the marketplace before you sell them.
• Can be started part-time or after hours.
• Minimal risk. Service-based businesses are usually less expensive and risky to start than manufacturing or retail businesses.