It’s a brave new world this year, in more ways than one. As well as obvious shifts in social and political paradigms, there’s been constant evolution within the technology sector that could mean an entirely new way of doing business for small start-ups and corporate giants alike. While a number of trends have emerged over the course of recent years, I’ve highlighted four technology trends that look set to make headlines in 2017 as the changing face of technology in business.
When you’re planning for the future, you have to think outside the box. After all, yours won’t be the only company to expand over the coming years; there are technology companies around the world coming up with new, exciting ways to bring the internet to life and for businesses to reach their customers.
Ecommerce may still represent a considerable area of the market, and it’s growing rapidly. According to a 2016 Census Bureau report, e-commerce’s share of retail sales has doubled in the past five years. Of course, there’s a classic chicken-egg debate to be had about whether that growth has prompted the innovation that’s arisen in the market, or whether innovation is the reason behind the growth. Either way, there have been a number of interesting new ideas in user experience, product and logistics that are well worth checking out. I’ve compiled a list of some of the developments I think all founders should be thinking about: The Future of Ecommerce!
When you reach your first business failure, it is easy to feel like a failure yourself. But, most entrepreneurs would be lying if they said they never failed at a business venture after starting up their businesses. Most business owners, at one time or another, will fail at a business-related task or venture. And guess what? They live to tell about it.
A business failure does not make you a personal failure. And bouncing back from a business failure is absolutely possible, should you choose to continue your business and move it in the direction of success.
Marketing is one of the most common challenges that start-ups face. Once you’ve set up your company and you’re ready to enter the market, you have to figure out how to spread the word. After all, the best idea in the world is no good if nobody else knows about it. Traditional methods of advertising through television, billboards and even listings in the newspaper are not only too expensive to be realistic options for most small businesses – they’re also becoming considered out-dated ways of attracting customers. To help you explore other options, I’ve put together some ideas for alternative ways to market your start-up company.
Growing a business can actually be a fairly simple process when you make use of the thousands of helpful growth hacking tools on the web. Best of all, some of them are completely free. Why pay to grow your business when you don’t have to?
Still, even the ones you pay for are well worth it if you want to see your numbers grow exponentially with little effort. They key to expanding your business in today’s world is to create a strong digital brand that helps promote your business. This means you have to venture into the world of websites, blogs, and social media.
The internet is an endless system of products waiting to be bought. More and more shoppers are searching online for the things they need and want, and it’s quickly becoming the popular way to browse and shop.
According to Internet Retailer, by the year 2020, online sales are expected to reach $532 billion and there will be about 270 million active online shoppers. Most of this shopping is expected to take place on mobile devices, like tablets and smartphones.
Marketing a business is not for the faint of heart. It requires time, patience and tons of money, right? Wrong! The internet has made it easy to get your business noticed online with little to no money. If you do it right, you can potentially use just the power of the internet to advertise your business – and all you have to pay for is a website.
Small and large businesses alike turn to the internet for marketing through their websites, social media accounts, e-mail newsletters and more. The best part is, they spend very little money to do it. Aside from the expense of running a website – which, if you find a reasonable host, is not expensive – you can get your business noticed online for free.
There’s a lot to think about when you’re on the road to build your own successful ecommerce business. It’s fast becoming one of the most popular routes for start-ups to take, so I’ve come up with a rough guide for new founders, featuring five key areas to focus on.
Your Product
First things first, you need to pick your product carefully. Many independent online retailers start off as Amazon sellers (or similar). If this is the route you’re taking, you need to ensure you find a manufacturer that’s a good match for your identity, your price point and your customers. Order a small amount to test quality and reliability before committing to larger orders or outsourcing to a third party warehouse.
How do You Know you’ve got a Good Business Startup Idea?
It seems like the business world is heavily saturated with start-ups right now. The Small Business Agency estimates that around 543,000 new businesses get started each month – and every founder thinks they’re on to the next big thing.
So the big question is this: how do you know if your business or startup idea is any good? I’ve put together a quick guide to assessing your startup or business idea.
Best Advice From Successful StartUp Founders:
If given the chance to sit down with some of the world’s best business minds, there are a lot of things we’d all like to ask, but there’s one key question on everyone’s lips: how do you do it? And more importantly, how can I replicate it? I’ve rounded up some of the best advice for entrepreneurs offered by some of today’s most successful moguls.
