Anyone who has ever run a startup will know only too well the myriad of problems you can face in those early days. It can sometimes seem that anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and this is what ultimately leads to a lot of new businesses folding within the first couple of years. It doesn’t always need to be this way though, and if you are savvy, there is no reason why your small startup can’t prosper into something really special. In this case, it can be worth it to learn from the mistakes of others before jumping in headfirst to something you may regret. Take a look at these common mistakes many startup owners make in the first few months, and what you can do to make sure you keep your head above water.
Starting out with massive overheads
Sure, the idea of a swanky modern office to rival the ones at Google may SEEM like a good idea at first. If you need to hire staff from the offset, a nice workspace can be one of the things that attract the best of the best to your company and keeps them there too. But you need to find a balance between creating a positive working environment and not maxing out entirely on your overheads. Of course, a spacious office is always preferable to being cramped in on top of one another. But if you end up spending hundreds of pounds a month to heat the place in winter, it may not be a totally viable option for you. Think about what you can cut back on and try and make the most of the space you’ve got. Remember, once you turn a healthy profit you can then look into potentially upgrading your workspace in the future.
Not having an easy payment system
The way in which customers pay for a product or a service is changing all the time. Cash is used less and less often, with more people opting for card payments and even newer things like contactless payments. You need to make sure that your till and e-commerce system is up to date and willing to accept all different methods of payment, including as many card providers as possible. If you need a helping hand with this kind of thing, why not utilise a service such as merchants.services? It’s vital that your customers can pay in whatever way they want to, and you as a retailer should be able to accommodate them.
Silly mistakes…
… due to tiredness. Running a business all on your own can take its toll, and while you may think that any time spent not working on your business is time wasted, you could end up doing more harm than good. Being sleep deprived can easily lead to us not focusing as well as we would if we were fully rested, and this is when mistakes can happen. Remember to look after yourself and take time out even when on the job – you will find that you then return to work rejuvenated and more likely to achieve your goals.
