1. Not Doing a Business Plan

Every business, regardless of size or complexity, requires a road map to follow as the business takes shape. Yes, it's time consuming and demands a lot of research, but investing time in the beginning will save you much time, money and angst later on.

2. Doing What You Love

It's rare that someone does something they love to the best of their ability. The best advice is don't do what you love, do what you are best at, and what people will pay you well for. It may not be as catchy, but ultimately it will be a lot more profitable.

3. Not Conducting Any Market Research

It is critically important to test your product or service before you launch your business. If you don't, you have no idea if people are going to buy from you. You may be convinced you make the tastiest pierogi in the Midwest, but will anyone else?

4. Ignoring the competition

 Not researching your competitors won't make them go away. It is important to know the selection, location, pricing, inventory and history of all businesses similar to yours in the locale in which you hope to draw customers. This is a continuous process, and its scope expands along with your business.

5. Not Taking Into Account Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Be honest with yourself when considering your own role within the company you are starting. If you don't enjoy interacting with the buying public, don't don an apron and work behind the counter of your ice cream shop, hire people more naturally suited for that type of task. If you are detail oriented, a sound financial manager, then you should be the driving force behind the scenes.

6. Not Understanding What You are Actually Selling

It is important to craft a Unique Selling Proposition for your product and service, and stick to that proposition. Helena Rubenstein didn't reach fabulous success by selling facial cream; she became rich by selling beauty.

7. Not Making Sure You Have Enough Money

Ninety-five percent of business will not make money in their first year of existence. An important aspect of your initial business funding is to have enough money to keep the doors of your business open for 18 months, while also maintaining funds to live off for that same period of time.

8. Not Investing in Marketing

"Build it and they will come" is a popular saying that doesn't frequently work in business. No one will know of your businesses' existence without some effective marketing. Market your business in advance of opening it, and take advantage of free or low cost marketing outlets, including the various forms of social media. Bear in mind, these forms are time consuming but the eventual payoff can be well worth the investment.

9. Not Bothering With any Online Marketing

One way or another, your business must have an online presence. Your business needs to be able to be found by and promoted to the ever increasing number of people who rely on the internet to locate the products and services they want. Actively marketing your small business to your prospective customer base and diligently maintaining these marketing efforts will give it a far better chance of reaching those customers than through more traditional methods of marketing.

10. Trying to do Everything Yourself

You can't, it's that simple. Even if each of us was perfect and had all the skills to do an outstanding job at whatever we set out to do, each of us is constrained by time. Learn to delegate, and concentrate on the tasks that will result in the most positive impact on your business.

If starting a business is in your future, understand that starting that business is a process, not an event. If you take the time to do the thinking and the research and line up all of your ducks in a row, you will hugely increase the likelihood of your new enterprise succeeding.

Susan Ward, Business Editor

About Money

August 21, 2014 

In recent months, a single member of our organization has been portrayed in the profile piece, and we all learned about that individuals roots, education, business career, SCORE specialties and other tidbits that were interesting to learn and enjoyable to report to our readers. This month we will deviate slightly from that format, and provide details about the Fox Valley chapter of SCORE, its membership, leadership, initiatives and plans for extending its reach into the future.

SCORE Fox Valley currently has 110 active members, give or take a few. The chapter's geographical reach includes 6 counties of the Chicago metropolitan area - DeKalb, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, McHenry and Will with a combined population of roughly 2,700,000 people, and growing at a rate significantly ahead of the national average.

The chapter has 15 primary mentoring locations in Aurora, DeKalb, Bloomingdale, Elgin, Elmhurst, Joliet, Lisle and Naperville, to name several. Our principal administrative office is in Aurora, with other multi-use office space in Naperville and Lisle. The SCORE Fox Valley membership is an experienced group of professionals with industry backgrounds including (but not limited to) Banking, Education, Construction, Healthcare, Engineering, E-Commerce, Law, Manufacturing, Regulatory Compliance and Sales. Skills which our mentors bring to our clients include (again not limited to) Accounting, Budgeting, Business Planning, Franchising, Human Resources, Intellectual Property, Marketing, Sales, Quality Control and Web Design. Many of our active membership come from a corporate background, but an equal amount acquired their skills in a small business or entrepreneurial setting.

Chapter leadership consists of a Chairman, Chair Emeritus, two Vice Chairmen, Secretary, Treasurer and the leaders of the individual branches. The Executive Committee also works closely with SCORE district and national leadership on business planning and quality initiatives. Several committees, in addition to the Executive Committee, set the course for the chapter through their collaborative efforts among themselves and the communities which we serve.

The Technical Committee oversees performance standards and execution, the SCORE Fox Valley website and other administrative details.

The Strategic Planning Committee is responsible for reviewing important membership, resource, budget and educational initiatives, and assuring the chapter is adequately equipped to serve our clients in a rapidly changing social and business environment.

The Marketing Communications Committee is responsible for the chapter's social media presence, particularly the chapter's Facebook page. Another key function of this committee is to maintain relationships with businesses, schools, professional and community organizations that share common ground with SCORE in assisting the success of small businesses in our community.

The Community Outreach Committee forges and maintains relationships with business and community organizations throughout the Fox Valley such as Chambers of Commerce, community libraries, colleges, social clubs (Rotary, Lions, etc.) that are interested in working with SCORE in supporting small business and fledgling entrepreneurs.

The Client Workshop Committee selects the subject matter and participants for the popular SCORE Workshops, which are held at various libraries, schools and community facilities throughout the Fox Valley. Designed to assist those in small business or anticipating forming a small business, subject matter ranges from Social Media, Legal, Business Finance and Insurance issues to our popular 6 session series on Business Planning. A current schedule of workshops can be found elsewhere in this newsletter, or on the chapter website or Facebook page. Most workshops are free of charge.

Initial mentoring sessions may be requested through our website (foxvalley.score.org), which enables the user to review SCORE members credentials and location so the counseling can be tailored to their own needs or interests. The website also has a section entitled Templates and Tools containing a plethora of documents, templates and resource guides chosen to help you in starting or growing an existing business.

With 50 years of experience, SCORE has a rich and proven record of assisting small businesses grow and new businesses get started and operate efficiently and profitably. Small business is the engine of our national economy, and their support is critical to maintaining a vibrant society.

  

Sign up for Free Mentoring in any of our 15 locations:

Click any link below to sign up for free mentoring at that location. Seek help as many times as you like.

Aurora North 

Aurora Downtown 

Bloomingdale 

DeKalb Office 

Elgin Community College 

Elgin Library 

Elmhurst Office  

Joliet Branch 

Lisle Branch 

McHenry Office 

Naperville Chamber 

Naperville Library 

Plainfield Office 

St. Charles Office

For evening hours, see Naperville Library, Plainfield & Wheaton.

Check These Business Articles

Link Letter to a Young Entrepreneur: 3 Things to Remember

Link Should You Constantly Evolve Your Software or Product

Link How to Get a Small Business Loan  

Link Why Social Networking is More Important than New Content 

Link Improve Your Small Business Cash Flow   

Quote of the Month: