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Become a 411 customer to get all the benefits of the Entrepreneurs Club. See how we can help your business with a business website, Google AdWords plan, or advertising on 411.ca.

Plenty of people start businesses in Canada each year, but many of them fail. According to the Key Small Business Statistics from 2016, the total number of SME births in 2013 was 78,430, and the total number of deaths was 83,240, which resulted in a net decrease of 4,810 businesses in 2013.

This probably isn’t what you want to hear as a budding entrepreneur, so instead of telling you all of the reasons why businesses fail, we want to tell you how to successfully start and grow a business and give you solutions to the common problems.

Start your business for the right reason

When deciding to start a business, figure out what is important to you, and what you hope to gain out of it. If you need help, check out this blog we wrote about setting up your business goals. Starting a business simply because you want to be your own boss or don’t want to work for anyone anymore is not a great reason.

For example, a chef who works in a bistro decided they wanted to open up their own restaurant, but realized they loved cooking and not managing the floor or employees. Overtime enthusiasm dropped and he went back to working in someone else’s restaurant as a head chef. If you start your business for the right reason with a positive mindset and have the willingness to learn the skills needed to run a business you are already on the track to success.

Take advantage of online marketing

We live in a digital world so you need to market your business online if you want your business to reach its full potential. That’s not to say traditional print marketing isn’t important – a marketing mix is definitely best. 81% of Internet users are researching products online before making a purchase. This means it’s crucial for your business to be visible to consumers while they are doing their research. There are many things you can do to aid this such as improve your SEO, get on social media, and improve your paid marketing with Google AdWords.

Track and measure your marketing efforts

Using tools such as Google Analytics gives you insights and statistics on your marketing initiatives. You will be able to track which activities are generating more traffic than others and find out your customer cycles. Where do you customers enter your website from or engage with your content? What type of copy attracts more customers? Where are your customers leaving your website without making a purchase or grabbing the contact information? Being able to track this data will help you to improve the user experience and learn more about your customers, ultimately improving your marketing tactics.

Listen to your customers

It is important to provide your customers an avenue in which they can provide feedback through. Consumers generally tend to listen to the input of other consumers online, more than any other source. Make sure your customers have somewhere to interact with your business online. That can include a Google My Business page or a Facebook Business page where consumers can write comments and give feedback on your products and service. Make sure you are listening to what they are saying and use that feedback.

Determine and communicate your UVP

Differentiation is key to keeping your business alive. You need to be different and stand apart from your competitors. A unique value proposition (UVP) is a statement that describes your business and the benefit you offer. It also includes how you solve your customer’s needs and what distinguishes you from the competition and how you are bringing something different to the marketplace. This should be clear and appear across your website, social media pages and your marketing initiatives. If you don’t already know your UVP, use a resource like The Value Proposition Canvas. Once it’s clear to you, communicate it to your employees and customers.

Every business faces struggles from time to time. Some happen in the early stages of a business, when trying to sort out finances and funding. Others come during the growth phase, perhaps when determining a marketing strategy to attract new customers. They may even arise when the business is thriving, but the owner is on the verge of a burnout. These struggles are often amplified for entrepreneurs because they simply don’t have as many resources as larger companies to work through them.

We’re here to help you succeed in all areas of your business. Whether you need help with accounting, financing, marketing or operations, we’ll make sure we find you the best solution for your business. That’s why we’ve partnered with Law Scout, FreshBooks, Arnold Street Media, Thinking Capital, Vistaprint, and more to bring you the Entrepreneurs Club, your hookup to exclusive business benefits.

Become a 411 customer to get all the benefits of the Entrepreneurs Club. See how we can help your business with a business website, Google AdWords plan, or advertising on 411.ca.

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