(ThyBlackMan.com) There is no denying that running a small business is both rewarding and challenging at the same time. This is especially true when you are facing an economy like the one today. There are a number of challenges that small business owners will face on a day to day basis that larger companies don’t have to deal with. In fact, the latest research shows that only half of new small business survives for the first five years and only one-third make it ten years. This might be disheartening, but know why these businesses are failing is going to help you immensely.
Poor Leadership
Just because you are a small business with one or two employees it doesn’t mean that you don’t need leadership skills. Heck, if you are the sole employee, you still need leadership qualities. Poor management skills can result in the ability to not make sound decisions or properly supervise staff members. Either of these situations will heck havoc on your financial future.
Lacking In Value and Uniqueness
You might have a really great product or you might be offering one of a kind service. There might even be an extremely large demand for what you are offering, but if you are lacking value or your market approach is mediocre you are going to fail. If you are in a market where there is a strong demand it is likely that you are going to have many competitors and you need to find a way to stand out from them.
A Poor Business Model
A poor business plan or model probably falls under the purview of poor leadership skills, but it is important to mention this anyways. If you don’t have a clean and concise business plan laid out before you go into business there is a good chance that you aren’t going to succeed. You need to know where you are going to be spending your resources and where your business is headed. If you do not know these things you might as well go ahead and contact a business bankruptcy attorney cause you are going to fail.
Expanding Too Fast
Many small business owners that see an influx of profits will automatically make the decision to expand. This can be a huge mistake because you really don’t know if the success if going to continue. It is possible that you are only seeing this influx of profits because the right season is in or because your product is currently trending.
Ignoring Customer’s Needs
The customer is the lifeblood of any business. Without customers, you aren’t going to succeed and this is why you need to cater to every need of your customer. Some small businesses just lose touch with their customer after the first year or two and this can be fatal.
Not Learning From Mistakes
Failure is not always a bad thing. It can make you and build you as long as you know how to learn from it. If business owners can’t recognize failing trends they are going to keep following them right into bankruptcy.
Staff Writer; Fred Adams