Sales channels to reach your customers
Selling through retailers, wholesalers and other distributors
Selling through an intermediary may be a more cost-effective way of reaching your end-customers than selling to them directly.
If you are targeting business customers who prefer to deal with large suppliers, selling directly to them may not be a realistic option. Instead, you might aim to supply wholesalers who have existing relationships with those businesses.
If individual consumers buy low value quantities of your products, the best option might be to target retailers that sell similar products. Or you might choose to focus your efforts on a relatively small number of wholesalers who can in turn supply your products to many retailers.
Other distribution channels may also reach your end-customers. For example, technology suppliers often sell to resellers who can configure and install the technology to suit end-users’ particular needs.
Managing your distributors
You need distributors who will value your product. If they sell competing products, what will make them push yours?
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Think about how you set your prices. Distributors will be more enthusiastic if they can make a large profit – but setting too low a price will eat into your own margins.
Effective advertising and promotions can be vital. As well as marketing to the distributor, you can promote your products directly to end-customers. Distributors will be keener to stock and sell products that their customers are asking for.
The key terms of the supply relationship should be covered in a written contract. Key issues might include:
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how much stock the distributor will hold
what the distributor will do to promote your products
how quickly you can resupply and minimum order levels
whether the distributor has exclusive rights to your product (for example, in a particular territory)
what happens if either you or the distributor want to end the relationship
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The Entrepreneur Source
Not everybody has the entrepreneur source it takes to start a business. Many people need the structure of being told what time to get to work and what time they may leave. They need the structure and the fear of being fired that a job gives them. They are happy to trade the responsibility of having their own business with doing their jobs and being able to go home. If that describes you, you may not be the right person to start a business.
If, on the other hand, you want to take your future in your own hands, if you are self-motivated to be able to go to work every day without anybody telling you what to do, if you are ready to accept full responsibility for the outcome, go through this page and determine the characteristics I call the Entrepreneur Source.
What is The Entrepreneur Source?
Evaluate yourself to determine whether you are suited, emotionally and financially, to start a business and whether you have or can acquire the specific knowledge to become successful.
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Entrepreneurs expect obstacles and roadblocks. They are persistent and donÂt give up easily. They set their intention and then find the mechanism. It may sound trivial, but itÂs important to remember the following equation:
Intention + Mechanism = Result
Make sure your intention is consistent and persistent. Then find the right mechanism and you will get the results. Success and failure are determined by what we actually do today, not by what we intend to do or would like to do tomorrow! You will find the mechanism if your intention is to do what it takes to become successful. Get a deeper understanding of the entrepreneurial spirit and the characteristics of successful people.
General business knowledge and specific knowledge
General business knowledge includes rudimentary accounting, knowledge of different marketing techniques, governmental requirements, and a basis for decision making as to the type of business entity. Specific knowledge has to do with the business you choose. Become an expert. You will learn how to become an expert near the bottom of the next section, Step 3: Setting and Achieving Goals in the section entitled Now that I have my Business Idea, How do I Get the Knowledge I Need?.
Capital
Before you start your business you should know:
How much capital the business requires
What your overhead is going to be
How much time it will take before your expected cash flow becomes positive
What your monthly living expenses are, and
The amount of your cash reserves and other income.
Information like capital requirements, overhead, and the expected timing of your cash flow will derive from your business plan. You should be able to determine now what your monthly living expenses are and what your cash reserves and income are.
Time leverage
One of the advantages of owning your own business is the use of time leverage. Before you decide on a good business to start, have a firm grasp of the concept of time leverage and determine whether you will be using it in your business. If not, you are buying yourself a job.
Part Time or Full Time?
One big decision you will need to make at this point, a decision which will determine your choice of businesses, is whether you are going to start your business on a full time or part time basis. Here are some things to think about before making your decision.
Time Management
Just as we fill up our available physical spaces in our lives, we tend to fill up our available time. We are all given 1,440 minutes each day, no more and no less. Effective people use their time efficiently and get more done. They practice good time management skills. Click here for some lessons on time management skills.
If You Have Lost Your Job
In this economy in particular, and in history in general, millions of people have lost their jobs. Often we go through a grieving process when we lose our jobs. There are, however, some specific strategies that can be used, that will make a great deal of difference to your future. Click here for specific strategies that can be used by those who have lost their jobs.
You Now Know
You have now determined whether you have what it takes to start a businesswhere to get the entrepreneur source. You know that starting a successful business is difficult and yet rewarding, both financially and emotionally. You now know:
The characteristics of successful people (the entrepreneurial spirit)
The importance of general business knowledge and specific business knowledge
That the use of time leverage is what frees you from trading hours for dollars and is the vehicle to becoming rich
Whether you will start your business on a part time or full time basis
The importance of time management and how to beat procrastination
Strategies for what to do if you have lost your job
