HOW TO SURVIVE THE 1ST 4 YEARS IN BUSINESS
If you don't already know who I am, I am Sam Murray, owner of Crafty Mummy Murray. I have been asked recently about how I set up my business from a number of people who are about to take the leap into the world of self employment and becoming small business owners. So I thought it may be handy to write a short (ish) blog about my journey and growth and what I have learned.
I am not going to focus on the usual advice given, like know your competition, know your market and pricing as that advice is openly available and is the first thing people say to you when setting up a business. I am just going to write about a few key things which has helped me along the way.
Crafty Mummy Murray is now over 4 years old and the business has achieved so much in those 4 years.
When you have a small business, it is easy to focus on where you want to be in 10 years time. "Go big or go home" is a phrase that pops into my head a lot when I am asked, (and I am asked a lot) where I see my business in the future. My plans are big and I almost made the mistake many make by over stretching myself to rush the progress. This was until my husband pointed out the vacant shops on the high street. My dream like many is to have my own shop on a busy high street, and for my brand to be a household name. In my first year I looked at many retail outlets and despite having a baby I was all guns blazing. Then my husband stopped and said "please do some research and see what tips there are for small businesses to survive, as there seems to be a lot of shops closing down". I read that 91% of small businesses survive the first year...fantastic. Then I carried on reading...only 4 in 10 businesses are still trading after 4 years. Wow, that's a statistic I cannot ignore. From that moment on, I decided to change my perspective and my priorities. My focus was no longer racing to the finish line and becoming the next Bethenny Frankel, but to take it slow, never over stretch myself and always put the customer first.
When a business starts out, the cost of setting up can be really overwhelming and can put a lot of pressure on you to make that money back quickly. One huge factor of why businesses don't survive is money management. If you are a business like mine, then growth is dependent on sales, as that is what will finance the next step. I sell online as well as in the back of a local Florist.
I began selling on small scale, always aware of how many orders I can physically manage to do and keep the highest standard when it comes to the products themselves. There is no point of churning out hundreds of items, to then have disappointed customers. I originally sold only on one platform, and then as circumstances changed and I had more available time, so did where I advertised and sold products. Remember you have to buy materials, and if you are buying in large quantities, then the financial strain you put on your business may be too much to sustain right away. Crafty Mummy Murray today sells on 5 online platforms including eBay and Etsy and has 100% positive feedback. I have also gone from a website I built myself to now this new website which more streamlined. Again, I took baby steps with this as a website can be a really large investment and if your budget is tight to begin with, then is it really necessary to rush into the best website money can buy?
We also started off renting shelves in coffee shops on a weekly rolling contract, to then opening a Sunday outlet and now have a wonderful amount of space to showcase and sell our products in Emma's Florist.
As I haven't overstretched myself , my turnaround time is quick, and I am flexible with my time so I can often squeeze in that last minute panicked order from a customer. These last minute orders, can really make your customer's day and by being able to fulfil that order your customer had little hope of receiving in time, the future business you will receive will be priceless. Positive feedback and word of mouth is far better for your business than a 2 page spread in a newspaper, in my opinion.
To keep my perspective and to stop myself from being disillusioned or deflated I set myself targets of what I want the business to achieve and then work toward achieving this. For example, facebook likes. At first I aimed for 100 likes, then 250 likes and then 500 likes. Today we have 542 likes and my target is to get to 750. These mini targets really help me feel focused. I am a Top Rated seller on eBay, I am now aiming to become a Silver Power seller, so I have the criteria printed off and am working my way through that. My main target of course, after my findings in the 1st year was to survive 4 years. Crafty Mummy Murray has not just survived 4 years but we are thriving and look forward to making it to 8 years!
As well as money management and keeping focused on growth, it is really important to appreciate the growth you are making. I often sit there at times where I feel like the momentum is dwindling and think to myself where am I now and where was I last year? Don't expect other people around you to fully understand your growth, that is down to you. Friends who haven't been through this process will not necessarily understand how hard it is to achieve 500 feedbacks, let alone all of them being positive.
Being a small business owner can consume your life if you allow it to. So time management is also important. I have a family, a husband and 2 young children. I cannot allow the business to take up my time 24 hours a day 7 days a week. This is where I struggle and am finally starting to understand that R and R is important and your family needs to be your priority. I still check my phone regularly for emails and try and answer enquiries almost instantly. But I am beginning to learn that a customer will understand if you say, I am a little busy at the moment but will get back to you in an hour, or tomorrow for example. It is not life or death if an email isn’t replied to within 10 minutes. If I am on holiday, holiday mode is switched on and I limit how many times I check my messages, to the evening when the kids are in bed or 1st thing in the morning before the children are awake. When time is structured and you allow yourself a break, you keep your mind and body healthy. If you become unwell then your business cannot survive so looking after your mental and physical wellbeing is the most important part of having a thriving business. This is also important when you are working too. I was advised to work for max 50 minutes at a time and then at the very least walk around and have a drink and then carry on. I have noticed my productivity has increased drastically since I began doing this. I now set a timer to force myself to do this. A structured day, with regular breaks and a functional working environment is extremely important for productivity and improves your mental and physical wellbeing. These tips were given to me, along with many other helpful information by Ahead Together
In conclusion slow and steady wins the race. Don’t over stretch yourself, aim big, but set mini targets along the way to keep focused. Keep an eye on those finances and remember customer satisfaction is more important than volume. But most importantly look after yourself. Have a break now and again and remember you are the business so if you don’t work, it won’t work.
I hope you have found this to be useful and if you have any feedback at all or questions please leave it in the comments and I’ll try my best to answer them for you.
Good luck
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