Top 5 Traps Entrepreneurs MUST Avoid

Steven Farnsworth — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 21:02:15 +0000

If you have been thinking about becoming an entrepreneur you have to understand what it takes to be one. There are a lot of overnight success stories (as we’ve mentioned previously) but these are few and far between. It really does take a lot of hard work to be successful. Starting a business can be really daunting in any economic environment. You need to have vision, goals, good leadership skills, excellent delegation skills, lots of courage, be resourceful, confident and most importantly, you need capital. There are many, many traps that young entrepreneur’s can get caught up in. These are just a few of many.

Build It and They Will Come

Well, a long time ago this was the case. All you had to do was build a nice site, throw up some good content or products (for eCommerce) and you could easily get traffic to your site. Now there are thousands of websites and blogs created DAILY. It’s hard to just build a site and expect people to just show up. So be prepared to do some serious marketing if you want your project to be successful.

Business Plans? I don’t need one of those!

Oh, yes you do! Having a business plan is important for YOU. Most often people think business plans are for investors like banks, VC’s, friends, family, etc. This is not the case. A business plan is your blueprint for your business idea. It is your road map to success. You do not need to show it to anyone but yourself. If you have employees, an accountant, lawyer’s, etc. This is the best way to communicate to them what it is you are doing.

I Don’t Have Any Competition

I have yet to come across a business that has absolutely NO competition. Even the most unique of products or services has some type of competition. Don’t they? It may be on an extremely small scale but everyone has a competitor. They may not be a direct competitor (two or more firms that offer a similar good or service) but you will find that there is another company that offers a different variation of what you offer. If you have not been able to identify your competition then look harder; they are out there!

I Have The Coolest Product on The Market!

This may be true but does your product have any value. Better yet does it have enough value to cover the costs of manufacturing, promotion, distribution, etc? This is basic economics. If you create a product that cannot be resold then you created absolutely no value! You may have the coolest looking widget in the world but if you cannot sell it for a profit then it’s a waste of time and resources.

Understand Your Limitations

Just because you are the one that invented the product or founded the company does not mean that you are the right person for leading, growing and expanding the company. There are many entrepreneurs that are GREAT at starting companies and coming up with great inventions but they understand if they want the company to grow they need to step down as CEO. It can be hard to let go of your “baby” but if you don’t it is very possible you will fail and end up with nothing.