Start Up a New Business
This self-guided course allows you to work through the course at your own pace. There are no deadlines or cut off periods. There are many optional activities that will not only extend your learning experience, but will be relevant to you, the industry that you are wanting to enter and will also see you doing practical activities that can help you establish a business.
The Small Business Start Up Short Course involves seven lessons as follows:
LESSON 1: INTRODUCTION – A REALITY CHECK
- Businesses don’t need to fail
- Getting a product that is saleable
- Establishing management systems
- Finding potential customers
- Selling to potential customers
- Delivering the product
- Know your strengths
- Types of Businesses
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 2: THE PRODUCT OR SERVICE
- Passion is not enough
- Consider your options
- Scale of Business
- What you might sell
- Supply and demand
- Understanding change
- Developing ideas for businesses
- Primary industries
- Manufacturing
- Professional services
- Future growth areas
- Time saver services and products
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 3: SYSTEMS FOR MANAGING A BUSINESS
- Cost of systems
- Compliance and procedures
- Business systems
- Total quality management (tqm)
- Innovation management
- Information technology
- Staff management
- Employee induction
- Performance management
- Financial management
- The simplest approach
- Planning in business
- Creating a strategic plan
- Risk
- Strategy formation and implementation
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 4: HOW TO FIND POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS
- How can you become visible?
- Technology
- Media
- Trends
- How to attract attention
- Target marketing – strategies, market segmentation, etc.
- Competition
- Market research
- The marketing mix
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 5: HOW TO MAKE A SALE
- What makes a good salesperson
- Who is the customer
- Making a decision
- Rational decisions
- Heuistic procedures
- Decision making processes
- Selling online
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 6: DELIVERING A PRODUCT OR SERVICE
- Presentation and packaging
- Ways of delivering products and services
- Virtual consulting
- Virtual education
- Mail order retailing
- Selling downloads
- Customer satisfaction
- Review what you have been learning
LESSON 7: PITFALLS TO AVOID / RULES TO FOLLOW
- Managing money
- Keeping cash flowing
- Persistance
- Doing market research
- Keeping up with change
- Sales focus
- Bewing different
- Niche products and services
- Business coaching
- Review what you have been learning
