The Entrepreneur's Journey: From Idea to Business

By Sophia Lee

Are you interested in starting your own business? The economy is shifting and many individuals are finding success in owning their own businesses. Let’s take a look at how you can become the owner of your own business.

​1. Develop your product To have your own business, you need to sell something. You can sell physical products, digital products, services, or information. First, the best question to ask yourself is “What is a problem?.” If you are able to identify a problem, then how to solve it, you are well on your way to having a product that people would be interested in. Another approach is to think about how you can feed someone’s passions. Developing such a product can be appealing to an audience and build loyal customers. Once you start to get some ideas, start to consider how that product will stand out compared to its competitors in the market. Aim to make your product unique. You want to gain sales over your competitors. As you think of your product, consider your product in the market. What is the desired demographic? Is this product a fad, trend, or necessary good? What will your business and product look like in a year, 5 years, or ten? It is important to develop a product that serves a good size of people, but not too many as it may be too competitive of a market. To make sure your business has longevity make sure your product or service will be desirable for a long time to come. It is also important to consider yourself personally. What kind of business do you want to own? What are your strongest skills? Your business will have increased longevity if you are passionate about your business and you produce something in your skillset.

2. Funding You can’t start a business without having the necessary funds. If you have significant funds, it is possible to fund your business out of your own pocket. However, the more popular choice is to seek loans or investors. There is also something called venture funds or venture capital which is a type of equity specifically meant to support entrepreneurs or new business owners to support their endeavors even before business operations have begun. Research what option is best for you and your business.

3. Validate product Now that you have developed your product, it is time to test it to see how well it performs in the market and if it is a desirable product. Test a soft launch on secondary sites. For example, if you are selling handmade goods, you can test selling products on Instagram or Etsy to gauge the reception of your product. Feel free to seek critiques from friends, mentors, and customers of your soft launch to help guide your business to be more successful.

4. Develop a business plan Now that you know you’ve got a lucrative product on your hands, time to develop a business model to help your business succeed. Allocate your funds properly, possibly opening a bank account just for your business. Plan out your spending for the coming months, possibly year to make sure you are set up for success. Consider if you need to hire any employees to support producing your product or managing other parts of your business. Clarify the production of your product. Do you have the right supplies, all necessary information, consistent funds and production team? And of course, you will need marketing and a public presence to make sure your product gets exposure and you get those sales! From a website, social media, collaboration outreach, and SEO, there’s a lot that goes into marketing. MDMC Entertainment specializes in exactly that. The company is also releasing a Marketing book filled with information and tools to help you succeed. Research the different elements of marketing and business management or hire others to help you.

​5. Launch your business! You have your product, funds, validity, and business plan so you are now ready to launch your business! There’s a lot that goes into running a business. Don’t be afraid to take risks or seek help from friends or mentors. Networking is another strong tool that can help your business succeed. But most importantly, trust yourself. Running a business is exhausting and being in charge of so many elements can be overwhelming. Keep working hard and trust that you are capable and that you will be successful.