The startup phase is a critical time in the life cycle of any business. A recent chat on Twitter took a closer look at this important stage in recognition of National Small Business Week here in the United States.
Small business owners, startup entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners asked questions and, more importantly, shared their advice. We all know that more heads are better than one, right? This great jam session proved it. Here are some excerpts from the chat, below, to give a smattering of what discussed and debated by the small business community.
Check out the entire chat, presented by FedEx Office @FedExOffice at hashtag #SmBizEdge.
See selected excerpts from the chat “Startup Tips That Make the Difference in Success” below.
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We started our discussion where small businesses often do start…with the business plan.
Q1: What’s your most important advice about a business plan for your startup? #SmBizEdge
— FedEx Office (@FedExOffice) June 19, 2013
@smallbiztrends Great point about starting small. “In the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king” comes to mind. #SmBizEdge
— Robert Brady (@robert_brady) June 19, 2013
@FedExOffice A key part of a biz plan is understanding what market you are really in and who else is in it. #SmBizEdge
— John Clark (@JohnC1n) June 19, 2013
As important as what to do is what not to do. With the next question, we examined this issue.
@FedExOffice q2: they think they will see returns instantly… It all comes with time and hard work! #SmBizEdge
— Taylor (@Banina9) June 19, 2013
A2: Biggest startup mistake is not selling the right thing to the right customer #smbizedge
— Ivana Taylor (@DIYMarketers) June 19, 2013
Funding is another issue so critical to startups. Here is more from our Twitter chat on the subject.
@fedexoffice There are great loans such as CYBF and BDC. STEM grants are great for tech science focused companies #SmBizEdge.
— Amanda Parker (@uncannymandy) June 19, 2013
Q3 work a full time job while getting your business up and running. #SmBizEdge
— Catherine Price (@CatherinePrice9) June 19, 2013
A3: From your own pocket.. loans are becoming less accessible to small biz #SmBizEdge
— Shaleen Shah (@seventhman) June 19, 2013
So how do you control those costs?
@FedExOffice @smallbiztrends Q4 Work from a home office if possible! #SmBizEdge
— Linda F (@CTSweeper) June 19, 2013
A4: Utilize co-working spaces like @CreativeDensity & @scrib_boulder and pack a nice lil lunch!!! #SmBizEdge
— Britney Muller (@BritneyMuller) June 19, 2013
A4: Bootstrap as much as you can and leverage free resources, develop a rapport with other businesses to swap skills #smbizedge
— Dasanj Aberdeen (@DasanjAberdeen) June 19, 2013
Yes this –> “@Shawn_Hessinger: A4 Find creative inexpensive ways to market and bring in customers. #SmBizEdge”
— Roxanne Martinez (@RoxstarRoxanne) June 19, 2013
Many thanks to @FedExOffice for sponsoring this chat – we appreciate it, FedEx Office!
Disclosure: FedEx Office compensated me to participate as a small business expert during the FedEx Office Tweet Chat program and write this post. The ideas in this blog post are mine and not ideas or advice from FedEx Office.
Twitter Chat Photo via Shutterstock
This was a great chat and a fantastic source of information and inspiration to those pursuing a startup right now. And thanks for including my comment!