Choosing a Business to Start in Georgia

Many people that want to start a Georgia business don’t really know where to start. If you don’t have a particular business in mind and already have the ball rolling forward you should have a look at this short podcast for ideas.

Ron Johnson from the Small Business Administration interviews Lou Davenport from the SCORE in Pennsylvania.

Highlights from the podcast:

Ron Johnson: Is it true the secret to starting a successful business is to find a need and fill it?

Lou Davenport: Yes, it is, Ron.  There are many needs and many potential businesses available.  However, before you invest a lot of time and energy and money in starting a new business, you need to ask yourself several key questions.

One, is the business idea practical and will it fill a need?  And that’s a simple statement, but there’s a lot of importance to it.  I surprise my clients from time to time when I say to them in a very real way I don’t care what you think about the fantastic business that you are aspiring to create.  All I really care about is what the prospective clients or customers might think.

The old adage is that it doesn’t matter what the dog food looks like, what it smells like, how it’s packaged, how it’s priced.  If the dogs won’t eat the dog food, you don’t have a good business.  So you need to figure out whether the target market really has a need that you can fill better than the competition.  That’s another key question.  Can you outperform your competition?

In today’s world, you really need to have one or more competitive advantages in order to establish a very successful business.  If you’re entering into a business that’s simply like everybody else and you don’t have competitive advantages in terms of products and prices and services, then arguably you’re going to have a tough time and could end up on the trash heap of also-rans.  So a critical competitive advantage is another key question that you have to ask yourself.

And finally, can you make a profit?  That’s to say, can you sell your products or services to enough people at a price that not only covers your overhead expense, that provides a fair wage for your management services to the business, and still leaves a profit in terms of return on investment for the risk capital that you’ve invested as an owner.

There is a LOT more in the interview – have a listen to the podcast at the link below…

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Selecting a Business That Fits

Of course a new Georgia business should target a specific need or needs that aren’t being met or met well enough. That said, it’s also very important to start a business that you’ll continue to be excited about. How?

Choose a business that meshes well with your personality and is something you enjoy doing. In this way you’ll better ensure you’re in it for the long-haul. Often times there’s a hump to get over where you are not profitable for a couple months or longer. Choosing a business you enjoy doing is one way to choose a winner.

( Transcript)

Did you choose a Georgia business based on your interests or for some other reason? How’s it going?