5 tips to build a SUCCESSFUL small business in 2023

As a business coach the NUMBER ONE thing I get asked the most is, “What’s your advice? I’ve been sitting on this idea. I wanna start a business.”

So in this blog, I wanna share exactly what I would do if I were starting a business in 2023 and the five things that are holding you back that I think could set you up for success. Let’s gets into it!

1) You need an EXCEPTIONAL product

Most industries are saturated in 2023! And this may trigger you, but if you’re thinking of starting a cupcake business- that’s not an exceptional product anymore. I had a bakery for 13 years when cupcakes and fondant cakes were a HUGE DEAL! (Think back to when Cupcake Wars and Cake Boss were on T.V.) Today, there are so many more exceptional products that you could build a business around. So many people are saying, we’re in a recession, and consumers are being a little cheaper with birthday parties but this has been happening for a while. Today, people want grab-and-go, something that looks cool, that’s easy to cut, that’s shareable. So, in order to have an exceptional product you need to do extensive research on the market you wanna get into.

2) Conduct extensive MARKET RESEARCH

This is everything from understanding who your target audience is, to identifying where you’re gonna find future and potential clients, what their needs are, what their preferences are, how they’ll do business with you, and what their buying behaviors are.

Part of conducting market research is figuring out HOW you’re going to stand out in a crowd because the barrier to entry is LOW. Your job as a business owner is to not only research the industry but research its competitors and how they’re doing business. Not because you want to steal their customers but because you wanna find a way to bring them something BETTER, BIGGER, GREATER, and more valuable to the marketplace.

3) Have a STRONG online presence!

You have to be on social media. Period. You’ll want to start building a following as soon as possible. Social media is a great equalizer. You can have a presence online that could be relatively small, but have amazing content that’s sharable, and that people want to share. You’ve got to position yourself as the expert, and then you’ve gotta have a website. I know some people say, you don’t need a website in 2023, but you DO! Everything has a website, even freaking Baskin Robbins. It helps with credibility and professionalism, and it offers your customers a place to view your offers professionally and also transact with you. Some places you can make a website include, Wix, Weebly, or even Squarespace. So, don’t overthink it but you DO need a website.

4) You NEED money!

I get asked all the time for my advice about starting a business but when I come back and tell them you need: a website, you need to register, you need insurance, you need a license and they say, “Well, that’s cost money,” I’m like NO SH*T! You need money to start a business. (I talk more about this on my recent podcast episode you can listen to now!)

Starting a business also costs time! It costs learning things the hard way, and giving up some of your hobbies- especially if you want to make it into a business.

5) You need to study leadership

I hate when people complain about there not being “any good” employees out there because that’s simply not true. Look at companies like In-N-out and Chick-Fil-a. They have great employees. You would know this based on one interaction with them. The reality is there are no good LEADERS anymore. I highly encourage you if you’re thinking of starting a business to study leadership.

Most business owners hire for likability, not for the skills the applicant presents. And that’s a HUGE problem if you own a business. What happens when you do this is you don’t set the necessary expectations so then they don’t take you seriously. So, you need to become someone who other people are gonna want to look up to and go to for advice. But also be comfortable with talking to you about difficult things. And you have to know as a leader, how to put people in their place when don’t do something good for your customers.

What I wanna leave you with is this: business is full of challenges, some predictable, some not so much. A business is figuring out ways to be creative and welcome challenges, and to be honest, most people don’t wanna do that. They want things to be easy, which is why you shouldn’t be a business owner because, from my experience, your job is to be innovative, to problem-solve, and be excited about stepping into new challenges and finding ways to solve things that other people don’t wanna deal with.

Running a business is HARD but it can also be really thrilling and exciting, so you get to choose your adjective. Do you want it to be HARD and unfurling? Or do you want it to be really challenging but REWARDING?

You get to decide friend!

Xo, Janelle