Start-up Business Tips: the One-Pager

Starting up a business is the ultimate expression of freedom and self-sufficiency. However, both qualities come with great responsibility. From sorting out taxes to dealing with suppliers, there is an overabundance of challenges involved in running a start-up business. To make the initial start-up process easier, there is no better blueprint than the one-pager!

The One-Pager

If you’re ready to start a business but you’re dreading that all important business plan, the one-pager is the perfect solution. A single sheet to get you going, your one-pager should answer four key questions.

What?

The first question should be ‘What’s your what’? What type of business are you starting? What exactly will you sell? Can you develop a series of products and services around that one thing? Why are you exceptionally qualified to deliver this? What will make it outstanding?

Answer all of this in detail but also be ready to share the product or service and its purpose, clearly and concisely in one sentence. For if others do not get what you do, they will not buy from you.

Who?

Who exactly will your product or service serve? Be very specific. For example, if you’re creating a skin care line, your target market isn’t everyone with skin.  Where it is sold, packaging, branding, fragrance and ingredients will determine who your target market is.

The more you can pinpoint your ideal customer, the easier it will be to reach and market to that person.

How Much?

What will it cost you to deliver your product or service? Do not just take into account the hard costs, but also your time, overhead and every single thing it will cost to make your product or service available.

Remember to not only take into account tax costs, but also money you can receive back through capital allowances. Tax firms such as RIFT Capital Allowances can help roughly discern what money you may be owed back in particular potential circumstances.

‘How much’ also concerns, how much you can charge.

There are a slew of pricing calculators online, including those that are specific to a particular product or service. If you are making bars of soap for example, Google ‘pricing calculator for soap’. Your numbers should also enable you to determine how much you’ll need to sell to not only cover your costs but also make a profit.

What’s Your Hustle?

It all boils down to this. From the best ideas to pricing, none of these matter if you don’t have a plan to market and sell what you offer. How exactly will you promote and sell? What’s the messaging that you will use? And where will you reach your target market?

This is how you should spend most of your time and effort and it’s going to be an ongoing process. There’ll be some trial and error involved so that you can test the waters before you finally nail it.