7 Tips for Crushing Your First Design Startup by Ink n Bliss Founder - Pooja Bhagwat

The article is contributed by Pooja Bhagwat, Founder of Ink n Bliss.

Starting a new business is so overwhelming. You need to have a solid plan to build a reputation & to take your company to the next level. Here are 7 tips to help you become an effective start up right from the beginning.

Tips for Setting Effective Startup

1. Being Passionate
2. Setting Goals
3. Creating Content
4. Creating Great Customer Experience
5. Networking Skills
6. Community Over Competition
7. Taking Care of Yourself

Tips for Setting Effective Startup

Being Passionate

“Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excite you” – Oprah Winfrey

If you really are willing to start & sustain your start up, being passionate about what you do is the key. You are more likely to sustain if you love what you do. You will face sacrifices, failures & low moments along the way but your zeal & your passion will keep you going. You will have the motivation & you will work tirelessly to make it happen. Without passion success in impossible.

Setting Goals

Goals help you create a clear path & it will make or break your business success. Of course people with goals are more likely to succeed. So setting goals & achieving them is a must.

Spend more time visualizing your goals so that you will be more specific about what you want to accomplish. Try to define each step of your roadmap & remember it’s not just about a big picture but having some short term, small goals are also important. Commit to your goals, track them & don’t forget to reward yourself after completing the goals. Stay motivated throughout the process.

Creating Content

Creating new content frequently is necessary for any business industry. It reflects your areas of expertise & makes you look like an expert. It will help establish your brand & will also attract new viewers necessary for business growth.

Though its overwhelming to choose from many different social media channels available today from Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, LinkedIn etc. It’s best to start with just one that you like the most & then slowly going over other social platforms. Also, planning your monthly content helps more than planning a single post. You can quickly overview all the important dates, festivals & events happening in a particular month & can plan your content accordingly. Once your plan is ready, you will be able to create creative content that will delight your audience & hence will help you grow.

30 Startup Terms and Jargons Every Entrepreneur Should Know

It is wise to know the startup terminologies which is common in the startup field to showcase your business plan effectively. Here are some of the startup jargons.

StartupTalkyNiku Mandal

Creating Great Customer Experience

How customers feel about you & your brand is extremely important. Attracting new customers & retaining the old ones is essential for a brand’s success & that is possible only through effective customer experience.

How do you interact with your customers? How well you behave with them? What do you do if something goes wrong? How do you handle crisis? How do you manage to give your best work within deadline? How do you implement your skills effectively? Every step of the communication is a key to creating a good customer experience.

Always go extra mile while delivering your products or services to your clients. Stay in touch with them right from the beginning conversations till the final delivery. Your logo, packaging, professional email ID, your language, your appearance everything matters & it silently reflects on the minds of your customers & helps build brand loyalty.

Networking Skills

The importance of networking is obvious. A strong professional network is definitely needed for any business success. The more you network, the more you will grow & you will build long lasting connections. Networking gives you access to more people & hence more opportunities. The referrals & resources you get through networking works like magic.

Even if you are an introvert & you don’t like to go out & talk with others, you need to do this somehow. Begin with going to small networking events happening in your area. Try starting a few conversations or just listen to others. Put yourself out there & eventually you will feel more comfortable meeting new people & staying longer at the networking event.

Community Over Competition

It’s easy to get caught up in the fear of ‘losing’ customers over competition but life is not a competition. In fact it’s all about relationships. Our lives are enriched by strong bonds & friendships & so does our businesses. Businesses are built on how to best serve your customers & not on how to steal your competitor’s customers. If you are not skilled enough in a particular area, pass on that work to someone else. The more you give the more will come back to you in different forms.

I firmly believe in community over competition. Coming together & collaborating within your industry is tremendously helpful. Together we feel protected, we understand each other better & when we help each other & cheer each other on, we accomplish things on a different level. After all no one can take away your ‘YOU’ factor & that’s what sets your business apart.

Taking Care of Yourself

Though your business is like your baby & you want to work on new ideas 24x7, nothing is as precious as your health. It’s non-negotiable. Eating unhealthy, losing sleeps, working extra hours every day will drain you & you won’t feel energized enough to work on your goals.

So invest good amount of time in yourself & ultimately in your business. Sleep more, eat healthy & exercise regularly.