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A lot of entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking that once they launch their business, they’ve made it! They forget about the hard work it takes to earn revenue after your company is live.
This can be really frustrating as you strive to grow your business but nothing seems to change. It’s like standing in front of a wall and trying to push forward but feeling more pressure every second because there isn’t any progress.
It's important to remember that no matter how successful your business already is, you still have something to prove.
You have an image, brand, and reputation that people will compare yourself to, which are all crucial parts of success. People who have what you want will go out effort to get it for you by buying from or referring you, so keep up this perception and build trust.
There’s always someone new coming into your space or potential customers looking to connect with you, so stay active online and attend events. Keep sharing value and making sure that your followers and watchers know that you're here to help them.
Some things that could use some revamping may include your website, products, or services, so take time to do those properly. Don't worry about being perfect, just focus on improving what needs it.
Having a site is not enough to call yourself an entrepreneur. You need to know if you are putting in the effort to generate revenue or just spending time on your business.
Having a website is great, but it’s only half of the equation.
You must know whether your site is effective at generating income for your business or if it is wasting your time. It can be difficult to tell which sites are more successful so here are some tips to help you evaluate your own site.
First, make sure that you have appropriate levels of investment into your online presence. This could mean investing in domain names, hosting, SEO, marketing strategies, etc. If you don’t feel like you have the resources to invest yet, start small by testing out different things until you find what works for you.
Next, determine how much money you spend on your site per month.
Having a business means having an office where you can work, meeting rooms for meetings, desks to do paperwork, and technology (computers, phones, tablets) to run it all!
Not everyone who dreams of owning their own business is able to because they don’t have these things yet. Or maybe you do but you’re not sure what to do next.
You could be leaving money on the table by failing to register your business. Not only will this cost you nothing, it could also hurt your chances of success.
Business owners are required to report certain information about their companies including:
Name
Address
Phone number
Email address(es)
Any affiliates or representatives
Date of formation
Income sources
Expenses
This isn’t just something most people think about off-the-shelf either. It takes time to track down the right info so many never get around to doing it.
And even if you do, some states require you to update your records more frequently than others.
Why should you care? Because tax forms depend on that data So let’s take a look at some reasons why you SHOULD make yourself familiar with your company’s legal structure…and when.
Reason #1: Tax documents
A lot of employers offer benefits to employees, such as health insurance or paid vacations.
The next step in building your business is determining if you have generated revenue or not!
This seems like an easy question, but it can be tricky to know when you’ve hit that mark. It may feel vague because it depends on how you define “revenue.”
Does spending money make the definition of revenue? Or does making a profit make the bar higher for defining “revenue” as a business has to keep running to stay alive?
The first thing we must address is what makes up part of the cost of owning a business. This includes things such as business loans, depreciation, legal fees, etc. These costs are necessary to run the business and should not be disregarded when calculating whether or not it has made its goal of bringing in income.
Also important to note is marketing expenses. Many small businesses don’t consider advertising to be part of their budget, but it is very crucial to gain exposure for your product/service! Marketing will help tell people about who you are and what you have to offer.
Once again, these items needed to run a business should not be overlooked when figuring out if the business has achieved its goal of earning profits.
If you are struggling to make a difference between whether you are working and earning or not, then it is time to consider what steps you can take to generate more revenue.
This could be through increasing your sales, developing new skills or offering additional services that your business offers. There are many ways to do this!
Many small businesses start out with the assumption that they will always have enough money to run their company without any extra help. This is never a good thing as it may put pressure on those working for you to produce results while being underpaid.
It’s important to realize that unless you are able to generate some income yourself, staying in this job longer than two years is probably not a great idea. Two years is the average length of employment for most people.
Getting into debt just because you don’t know how to operate without spending money doesn’t really solve anything. It might give you a short-term feeling of happiness but will eventually hurt you in the long run.
Are your bills paid through savings, work, or both?
Bullet point: You have to have money in this life, so having a job is important but not enough! Having a source of income comes with obligations like paying taxes, loans, and monthly expenses.
Having a source of income means someone else will pay you for your time. This can be done by producing content, working for yourself, or selling products or services.
Some people start businesses because they want more control over their lives, while others are just passionate about what they offer and need an outlet to showcase it.
It’s totally normal to feel nervousness or anxiety when thinking about investing in starting a business, but don’t worry! There are things we can do as beginners to grow our business sense-smoothly.
As we mentioned earlier, having a steady stream of income is the key factor in starting a successful business. If you do not have this, then what are you really investing your time into? Obviously, running your business will not work without money!
Running a business requires lots of things – from marketing materials to website design, paying for shipping and packaging supplies, supporting staff (for example, via an online job board), etc. All these costs add up quickly, which is why most businesses have a constant flow of revenue.
Most people start saving towards their dream business at the end of the year when everything has slowed down due to winter.
A few weeks ago, we discussed why it is important to have a business credit card. Now that you have one, make sure you are keeping track of all of its uses!
You should be using the business credit card for daily expenses – this includes food, gas, online shopping, etc. It can also include monthly subscriptions or memberships (think: gym membership). This way, you do not need to carry around extra money to pay for these things!
We also talked about how staying within budget is an integral part of having a healthy business relationship. Make sure you are aware of what products and services your company uses so you do not overspend by finding them elsewhere!
Another key element of being able to use your business credit card effectively is knowing when you should spend and when you should save. Check out our article here to learn more about this.
A few weeks ago, I read an article about how one of the biggest digital publishers in the world made some shocking announcements.
The website’s CEO told his staff that he would be holding a meeting with them at the end of the month — but it wouldn’t be another “save our business speech.”
Instead, every employee was being asked to spend the next week trying to generate as much revenue as they could for the site.
He didn’t specify what kind of revenues he meant, but chances are good that most people assumed the word ‘revenue’ referred to income coming into the organization through advertising.
A lot of people talk about the importance of generating revenue, but very rarely do we actually follow through and do it.
Most CEOs don’t get involved in this type of process except once per year when they hold their annual summit or goal setting meeting.
And even then, it’s more of an effort to convince everyone else around the office to agree to give up than it is to motivate someone who doesn’t feel like giving up yet to do so.
