How to run a business without going bankrupt

Running a business is no easy way of making money, and yet that is why a lot of people start out. They assume that just because they have a good idea, that everything else will somehow just manage to fall into place and they’ll be making millions by the end of the year. But unfortunately, that’s not how it works at all.

In fact, in most cases, your business will lose money before you even see a slight profit, and that can take months, if not years to achieve whilst avoiding going bankrupt. That’s why one of the best traits to have when getting into the entrepreneurial state, is patience. As well as hard work, drive, determination, and a positive mental attitude.

It’s important to realise that there are so many uphill battles that you will be faced with, and that’s before you even get a sign of reassurance to carry on because it’s worth it. Essentially you’re going into all of this blind, and you don’t know what the outcome will be until you explore all necessary measures. For some people, no matter how good their idea is, or how hard they’ve worked – it just doesn’t work out, and that can be down to an accumulation of many different things, but the main thing is mere bad luck.

Having said that, it’s not all bad, and this isn’t said to make you feel defeated, it’s just a realistic insight into what goes on. It’s better to know the downs before the ups so that you can prepare yourself as much as you can. Everyone wants success, and you can have that too as long as you keep your head in the game and make the right decisions for you and your business. It’s also important that you stay true to yourself.

Another main reason for people wanting to start their own business, is because they don’t want a mundane nine to five job working for someone else. They want to be their own boss, making money doing something that they absolutely love. So the moment you feel as though things are drifting out of your hands and you’re abiding by someone else’s rules again, then that’s where a lot of the fun gets taken away, and the whole point of this is for you to be happy, right? So do what needs to be done in order to get that happiness.

One of the biggest fears for business owners, is the possibility of them going bankrupt, and believe it or not, it happens far more than what people let on. So you will want to do all that you can to avoid this at all costs.

Here’s how.

Stick to your budget

When first starting out, you will need to make a budget so that you have an idea of how much you will need in total to get things off the ground. The amount you put in all depends on the money that you have, but because it costs quite a lot, you will find that most people will need to take out a loan. From there, they will gradually pay it back every month, as well as the interest rates. That’s why it’s important to shop around first so you find the best deal that you can afford. There are many different ways of calculating how much you need, but you will have to do as much research as possible so you have a realistic number in mind. There are so many hidden costs and fees that will arise, and so you want to make sure that you are as prepared as can be. This is why they tell you to come up with a ballpark sum, and then double it. It’s better to have extra money left over, than not enough to begin with.

Hire an accountant

There are so many things that you have to deal with when owning a business, from all different departments like marketing, sales, customer service, and deliveries, but all of these things resort back to money. One great skill to have when going into business, is understanding numbers. This doesn’t mean just being able to add up – it goes way beyond that. Your best option is to contact RJP – Chartered, Certified Accountants, as you will be able to find a trained professional to solve all of your financial problems for you, no matter how big or small. You may feel as though you want to be the one to deal with all the finances, especially because it’s a personal matter, but unless you’re a trained accountant, then there will be certain things that you can miss because you didn’t know what to look out for, and that one tiny detail could cost you an awful lot of problems in the future. So don’t take the risk.

Crowdfunding

There are a lot of ways you can save up or make money to come up with the amount you’ll need for your start-up business. Keep in mind that you need creativity, patience, hard work, and financial confidence to do so. Make your business thrive by starting crowdfunding as another funding option in running your business without going bankrupt.

Open a business account

Track your finances by embracing the benefits of having a business account. Challenger bank Monzo has recently launched its new business bank account, helping small and medium-sized enterprise business owners manage their finances properly. By doing so, you can seamlessly track everything that comes in and out through your online banking dashboard.

Hire the best marketing employees

If you want to have a consistently thriving and successful business, you need to hire the best marketing employees to help you. Unique skill sets, interests, and personality traits, and impressive credentials are the things you should look for when hiring marketing employees. 

Check out these types of marketing specialists you might want to hire:

• Brand or product manager: They oversee all product marketing aspects. A product or brand manager usually starts as an assistant, market research analyst, sales representative, or trainee in MBA development programs. 

This marketing specialist is ideal to hire if you have a major product campaign to launch.

• Event or meeting planner: Event planners manage all aspects of special events and occasions, such as weddings, press conferences, alumni gatherings, training sessions, promotional events, and professional conferences. It’s crucial to hire one if you’re into events business. 

Marketing major graduates have the analytical skills, assessing what consumers might be looking for in an event or program.

• Admissions representative: Because marketing majors have increased knowledge and research skills of marketing strategies, marketing students and graduates can help admissions offices, like schools and universities, promote their institutions. It’s a must-hire if you run an organization or educational institution.
  

Go free when possible

There are many things that will cost you and your business money, a lot of them will feel necessary in order to progress and move further on but this can make you go bankrupt. While this is sometimes true, it just means that you should take advantage of anything free that comes your way. For example, marketing is absolutely essential in order to get your business out there and create attention for it. Without that, nobody will know you exist. You can advertise your business in the media by contacting radio stations and putting up billboards for the world to see, and while these are effective methods, they will also cost you a fair bit of money.

Social media, on the other hand, is entirely free, and it’s one of the biggest platforms to reach out to today’s generation. So point your energy in that direction when you can. By no means will you get hundreds of thousands of followers overnight – it takes time and effort. But as long as you put in the work and post regular enough to create a buzz, you’ll be on the right track.

Now you have a few ideas, make sure to keep them in mind when building up your business and not go bankrupt. The more knowledge you have, and the more plans you come up with now – the more chance you will have at truly being successful.