Christmas and New Year is a time for fun, food and festivity. But it is often also a time for reflection and introspection: to look back on the year that’s passed and look ahead to fresh starts and new beginnings for the 12 months ahead.
If, like many people, you reflect that you’ve had enough of your job, wasted far too much time and stress on it in 2015 and that something has to change, you might decide to make a New Year’s Resolution to start your own online business in 2016.
If you’ve promised yourself that you are going to start selling online in 2016, here are some ideas to ensure you don’t break that promise.
Decide what you’re selling
The first stage is to decide what your business will sell. Most of us have an idea tucked away somewhere of a product we think we might like to sell. The options are limitless, but if you want to make sure that resolution doesn’t fall by the wayside, we’d recommend you…
Choose a product or sector you know or, ideally, love
This isn’t essential, but it makes things a lot easier. Is there a niche you can exploit in a product or sector that you’re passionate about? If so, those evenings working on your startup e-commerce business will seem a bit less laborious.
Think about how you will fund your new venture
There is no point setting yourself up as a Fabergé egg retailer if you’ve only got £500 to invest in stock. If you want to start selling with a modest budget, you will either need a modestly priced product or one that lends itself to buying and selling in small quantities, reinvesting in stock and building your business gradually.
Get a workspace
Perhaps it is too early for a swish city centre office, but try to ensure you’ve got a place where you can do your work in peace and without distractions, spread out and, if necessary, leave your paperwork sitting for a day or two. Even a desk in the spare room will help you stay more focused than having no workspace at all.
Invest in your website
Think about your own shopping habits and the retailers you’re happy to buy from. In order to convince people to buy from you, you will need a website, product photography and copy that makes the right impression and gives people the confidence to buy from you.
Get your website up and running
Research and due diligence is essential but, once that’s out of the way, get your website online as soon as possible (hint: use Shopify). There is no reason why you can’t refine, improve and test as you go, but nothing will motivate you quite as effectively as knowing your shop is live.
Set a timeline (and deadline)
You need to refine your resolution: when will you new online shop be open for business? Set out a timeline of the various tasks you need to accomplish, a deadline for each of them and an overall project deadline.
Underwaterpistol can provide you with help in planning your tasks. If you’d like to talk to us, please get in touch.
