Business Intelligence: Tips & Resources for Launching a New Business

By SBE Council at 17 February, 2023, 10:09 pm

By Karen Kerrigan –

It’s National Entrepreneurship Week (February 11-18) and this week’s Business Intelligence roundup focuses on resources, ideas and advice for starting and building a successful business. Of course, even long-time business owners can learn from the wisdom provided by these tips and resources aimed at helping new entrepreneurs.

New business applications continue to be filed at historic levels, yet only a fraction of those filing will actually launch a business. In addition, a good chunk of these businesses that start will ultimately fail. Therefore, it is important to launch your business knowing your market, the risks, and the continuous work it will take. Your chance for success will greatly improve by doing your homework and by focusing on what matters. The advice columns and resources provided below will certainly help, but do keep checking back with us to stay up-to-date on the latest information, market trends and changes that we regularly identify to help entrepreneurs better navigate entrepreneurial waters, and to achieve more success in the ever-changing economy.

How to Start a Business in 11 Steps (2023 Guide), Forbes

“To help take the guesswork out of the process and improve your chances of success, follow our comprehensive guide on how to start a business. We’ll walk you through each step of the process, from defining your business idea to registering, launching and growing your business.” Access the guide here.

Business Ideas

26 Great Business Ideas to Start in 2023, Business News Daily

The 40 Most Profitable Businesses to Start in 2023, UpFlip

26 Best Small Business Ideas to Start in 2023, Shopify Blog

135 Small Business Ideas You Can Start in 2023: Proven side ideas (for new entrepreneurs) to make money outside a full-time job, Ryan Robinson

The Top 5 Fastest Growing Industries in 2023, Entrepreneur

“In recent years, some industries have seen explosive growth while others have slowed or disappeared entirely. In this article, we’ll take a look at the top five fastest-growing industries and discuss what makes them so successful. From technology to health care, these sectors are driving the economy forward and paving the way for a brighter future.” Starting a business where there is growth or disruption may improve your chances of success – here are the fastest growing industries.

8 Keys to Starting a Venture with Minimal Equity Loss, Startup Professionals

Martin Zwilling writes: “It’s more possible to bootstrap today than a few years ago, as the cost of entry continues to go down. According to Investopedia, over 90 percent of successful businesses currently start this way…The key to successful bootstrapping is to master the do-it-yourself approach, defer compensation or barter services whenever possible and become a frugal minimalist in all things requiring a cash outlay.” Here are the key principles Zwilling recommends.

SCORE Webinar: How to Choose the Right Business Structure for Your Business

March 7 – 1:00 p.m. ET

Of the steps you need to take to start a business, one of the big ones is figuring out what business structure is right for you. But what are the different types of business entities and how do you know which is the right structure for your business?

In this session, CorpNet.com CEO Nellie Akalp will teach you the different types of business structures, the benefits of each structure and how to register your business.

You’ll learn:

● The different type of business structures

● The advantages and disadvantages of each business structure

● The steps needed to register a business formally

● What a business structure conversion is and when it is necessary

Live attendees will receive free business resources, a copy of the slide deck and a link to the webinar recording. To learn more or to register for free, click here.

Startup Stats to Know: 74 Branding Statistics Every Entrepreneur and Marketer Needs to Know in 2023, CrowdSpring

“A company’s brand identity is much more than the company’s logo or the product or service being offered…A brand is your company in the present, future, and public perceptions. Essentially, branding is about communication…It’s becoming increasingly important to have a strong brand, a recognizable name, and a logo that rises above the rest.” These are important words of advice that startup founders need to incorporate into their business plan and launch strategy, and therefore understand the significance of the 74 branding statistics featured in this article.

SCORE Webinar (Recorded): How to Start an Online Business

New business applications are off-the-charts, but launching a business requires other important steps. In this SCORE webinar, Steve Strauss, USA TODAY senior columnist, online business pioneer, and bestselling author, covered the important basics on how to start an online business on a small budget. The following topics were covered:

● The various types of online businesses you can start

● How to build a shoestring budget

● How to build and publish your website

For more information or to watch the recorded webinar, click here.

10 Common (Startup) Mistakes that are Rarely Admitted, Startup Professionals

“It’s important to learn from your own mistakes, but it’s even smarter to learn from someone else’s mistakes, without paying their high price in time lost, cost, and pain.” In that spirit, Martin Zwilling offers his “perspective on ten common startup failure sources that rarely get admitted by entrepreneurs.”

When to Franchise Your Business: Is Now the Right Time? All Business

So you want to start a business and have a dream of franchising it, or you launched a successful local business that you believe has franchise potential. There are important questions to ask before taking the leap. As noted in All Business: “Aside from ensuring that your main business has enough financing to support your overall brand, there are legal processes that need to be completed, hiring that needs to be done, and branding procedures that must be solidified.”

Helpful Technology Platform Tools and Support

Amazon

Amazon Small Business Academy: Take the self-assessment. Resources to help you go from concept to launch, and beyond.

The Beginner’s Guide to Selling on Amazon: A few things to consider before you start selling.

Start an E-Commerce Business in 2023: A checklist and “how to” guides for launching an e-commerce business.

Online Business Ideas – 38 Businesses that Used Amazon to Grow: Hear from successful entrepreneurs who turned their inspiration into thriving businesses.

Meta for Business

Meta Small Business: Build customer relationships and reach new audiences on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp – Free tools, ads, and how to guides.

Meta Business Suite: All the Meta technologies, “how to” tools, goals, inspiration, and guidance based on your industry.

Meta Blueprint: Free online courses to help build your marketing skills across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and What’s App.

Facebook for Business – Everything You Need to Know: Article in Business News Daily that provides a solid run-down on effectively managing a Facebook business page.

Shopify

The Shopify Blog: Regular pieces on the best time to post social media, how to create social media ads, market intelligence and creating a digital marketing plan, how to scale a micro-business and more.

Free tools to run your business: Logo maker, business name generator, QR code generator and much more.

Finally, it’s always good to know who your fellow travelers are in the entrepreneurial world. Therefore, I am linking to a helpful Legal Zoom piece that covers “86 Key Entrepreneur Statistics for 2023.”  How many entrepreneurs and small businesses are there in the United States? What percentage of people start businesses (and in what age group)? Why do they start businesses? You can find those answers and much more here.

Happy trails, and much success in pursuing your startup dreams!

Karen Kerrigan is president & CEO of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.