A recent article in About Manchester covered 4 challenges a start up business  will see and quickly covered a means of tacking them.

Harrisons Business Rescue have helped countless businesses overcome the issues they face by using our own expertise as well as bringing in third parties who can help with specific areas such as website design, debt collection, marketing etc.

Another key area is often help with raising finance for a business that in most cases won’t have a track record and if it has, it may be loss making as its in its early stages and still growing rapidly.

The first meeting to review your business and identify any problems is free and can be held away from your business if preferred.

The 4 areas highlighted in the article are

  • Being unknown – its no good just having a website.  You need to see who your customers are and find ways to get their attention be it websites and directing traffic, social media or just plain knocking on doors.  Once they know you, you need to deliver and differentiate yourself from the competition.
  • Having the right connections – create a network that can help you achieve your goals be it finding customers, suppliers, sources of finance etc.  Some of these can also be business mentors to act as sounding boards for ideas. The key to a network is finding out what your connections want and making sure that they also know what you want.  That way you are all working for each other when opportunities arise.
  • Access to cash – all businesses fail if they don’t have access to cash. The majority of business owners will start using their own savings and an overdraft or loan.  As the business grows, the structure and sources of funding need to match the business going forward.  Inward investment is difficult for small businesses as losing complete control can be difficult for the small business person to get over, but may be needed to grow the business and maximise opportunities that are available.  Investors may also bring their own experitse to the business.
  • Not understanding the customer​ – start ups concentrate on giving the customer a product rather than looking at the customers needs and how to meet those to ultimately achieve growth.

​The full article can be found here