How Can You Avoid Being a Failed Business Statistic?

In America, 20% of new businesses fail within their first year and only 50% make it to the five year mark. There can be many reasons for a business not to be successful, including lack of commitment, funding, bad decision making, poor leadership or marketing. Often it is a combination of many reasons. When you are setting up your new enterprise, plan carefully and avoid the most common pitfalls. Then you will be less likely to become a failed business statistic.  

Make sure that you innovate 

For your business to succeed, you have to give the customer something that they need - something that has a unique selling point, that they can’t get elsewhere. A company that fails to consider the needs of the customer and future products is unlikely to thrive in such a competitive market. Change is completely inevitable, and you have to innovate and embrace this. Even big brands and corporations fail if they become stuck in the mud. Let us consider the fate of Kodak, who missed the opportunity to move into digital photography. Or Blockbuster, who could have been a market leader in movie downloads - but continued with their bricks and mortar stores, ultimately leading to bankruptcy.  

Invest in your USP 

The old adage goes that you should “spend money to make money,” and in the world of business this is entirely true. Whether it is purchasing stock, hiring valuable employees or renting out a premises, a business is ultimately an investment. Without making a financial commitment, you are unlikely to generate any profits. Taking out a business loan is often the best way of quickly raising capital to put into your company. You can compare loan rates online and find a good deal that will allow you to invest the money that you need to push your business forward. 

Be competitive

 Why did the book chain Borders ultimately fail? They didn’t offer a competitive service in comparison to many of the online bookstores, not just in price, but also in speed of service. Their Kobo e-reader was a last-ditch attempt to join the digital book race, but it didn’t offer the catalogue of the Kindle, the Nook and the iPad. Radioshack hit a similar issue, and no amount of hip marketing campaigns and calling themselves “The Shack,” was going to save them if they weren’t offering the same competitive deals as Walmart and Amazon. To make your business a success you have to offer something more to the customer than all the other companies. 

When you create your business plan, it is important to address how to navigate the common pitfalls. You can then concentrate on building a thriving enterprise and generating a profit.