What are the first steps to turning a hobby into a business?
I want to turn my storybook album hobby into a business. I think I have enough interest from the referrals I am getting, but not sure where else to start. Do I need a formal business plan, should I get set up on social media, do I need a website? Thanks for your help.
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Jun 30, 2015
If your hobby isn't going to be profitable in the beginning, I believe in learning a SEO program that will allow you to generate income while you build your brand. Learning a great system will allow you to be more profitable with what ever you choose to sell.
Think "Globally"
Nov 18, 2014
Yes, yes and yes. However, there are some things to consider first. I generally start with the vision...what do see when you think about having your own business? Do you want it to be your only source of income someday? Are there employee's? Should you incorporate? Do you need trademarks and copyrights? Do you have a Accountant? Are you considering hiring a bookkeeper? What about an attorney? Whats the culture going to be like? There are many questions to ponder when starting a business. Don't forget your city business license and fictitious name statement.
When someone is considering making their hobby a business, it can be a catch 22. They start out with an idea/skill/hobby and start making money with it and if they aren't clear with their vision the hobby now becomes un-enjoyable and you become a slave to the business.
Once you create your vision, you then work on a business model, then you can work on your business plan, figure out what your break even is and what are your 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 year goals.
I hoped this helped. Best of luck! Its very exciting to start your own business.
Nov 13, 2014
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Nov 11, 2014
Deana, I think if you believe you have a market for your products you should begin to reach out to at market with a warm letter sharing your new venture. Before you do that
you might want to think about how you will be selling your product. Will you have a brick and mortar business or sell throught the internet or both? This should help you recognize how you want to pursue Social Media.
I think a website is helpful so your customers can view what you have. You may not need a formal business plan if you are not planning to borrow money but it is a good idea to map business strategies about how you will market, where you will market and how you will determine success in a written document.
When I work with clients, I always tell them to write the ideas of what the business looks like and ideally how the want it to grow.
First, you need a product(which you have), then you need a plan to promote that product and a market to promote it to, so it sounds like you need to know how you will reach your market AND how you will sell to them, so you need to have a plan in place for how you will accept payment as well.
Business owners all go through similar steps however which ones you tackle first depend a bit on where you are at right now.
Sounds like you need a platform to promote and since the internet has a wide reach, I would recommend getting at least some type of website up where you can take orders and accept payment and getting a marketing plan in place to sustain growth.
Nov 11, 2014
Hello Deana, in my opinion, you will need a formal business plan. This is because, the business plan provides you with a map for your business. Also the process of developing the business plan is a fact finding and information gathering process. I believe by using a business plan, you save time and energy as well as gain direction required for a new business.
Social media will also be a good place to start. You could create awareness of your project on websites, forums and blogs similar to your interest. Websites are a great way of collecting data and having people take positive action as regards your business.
Nov 11, 2014
You need to think about a mission, vision statement along with a business plan...And most importantly be realistic about your sales potential and know your costs
Nov 11, 2014
Richard Stern-I suggest you consider doing an investigation of the industry to ensure your product is relevant to the cuswtomer base you want to serve.
If the results of your investigation is positive then write a Business Plan that meets thee important criteria the Business Plann must be: Reasonable, Realistic, and Doable by the ownership group.
The Business provides both structure and starts your journey with specific guidelines.
Nov 10, 2014
I believe most of the important things have beeen answered by all the other members. So yes, yo definetly need a Business Plan, yes, you need a web page, or at least start with a Facebook page while you are creating your brand and your image, but I wouls also recomend to do an intensive check on competitors. Who are they, what is their strategy, what are they communicating with their potencial customers, how is their relationship with the social medias,...When you are atarting, it's very useful to inventigate what others are doing, adapt it to your business idea and improve it.
Nov 10, 2014
Find a coach or teacher [ahem, like me] who can help you learn the steps (your niche, your offers, your pricing, your brand, and more...) of business development for a solopreneur. You have the vision, get support in planning your actions and then take them!
Enjoy this: taking your creativity and passion and making it serve others who love what you do — that's living an awesome and fully expressed life!
Blessings,
Sue
Nov 10, 2014
Please fill following Sagheer business plan:
STEPS:
(0) Market re-search………………………….why?
(1) Market re-search……………………………what?
(2) Market re-search…………………………..How?
(3) Title or name …with respect to name, with respect to business, with respect to location, with respect to era.
(4) Motto…with respect to business.
(5) Dimensions.
(6) Competitor.
(7) Mission Statement.
(8) Vision Statement.
(9) Location……with respect to positive and negative aspects.
(10)Team…………..with portfolio.
(11)Finance……..Fix and Running.
(12)Finance Management……with feasibility report in the form of chart.
(13)Business Formula.
(14)Business Flow…with the help of flow chart.
(15)Mathematical Model of Production…with cost estimation method.
(16)Promotion Strategy ……..with Probability or regression model.
(17)Risk factor…with your weak points (S (strengths) W (weaknesses) O (opportunities) T (threats) Analysis).
(18)Role of Technology.
(19)Growth Graph.
(20)Break Even.