From Idea to Reality: Your Ultimate Guide to Starting a Small Business in 5 Steps

Have you wanted to create a brand for years? Have you seen the hundreds of other people doing it and becoming successful and thought “I could do that”? Whatever your reasons, I get it. I’ve been in your shoes. Over the past year, I've started an Etsy shop, which has been so much fun and I've learned a lot through the process. I'll be sharing with you everything I've learned along the way.

With 5 easy steps, you'll be ready to start your small business today. These steps should be completed before you even start selling, so don't rush ahead or skip a step.

1. Describe your brand

The first step is to decide what your business will be. What product are you selling or what service are you providing? How are you helping or enhancing your customer's life? Will you be selling t-shirts, stickers, digital downloads, or an online course? You may already know this if you've been thinking about starting a small business, but either way, this should take some thought. There are plenty of small businesses out there, so what will make yours stand out? What can you do differently? Think about what you are good at, what you're an expert on, and what your interests are. How can you use all of that to your advantage? Do your research and figure out what the market is like. Narrow down your idea as much as you can (niche down, as they say) to find an idea that stands out as unique and/or necessary. Where is there a need? Is there a product that could be invented or a topic people should be more educated on?

2. Define your brand

What is your brand personality and voice? What is the message you stand for? How would you describe your brand if someone asked? Make a list of words associated with your brand. How does your product come across? What will your logo and design elements look like? Is it fun and colorful or modern and minimalistic? How will your social media captions sound? How should you talk to your customers? Should you be casual, funny, or professional? What does your business stand for? What do you support? These are all important questions to answer while defining your brand.

3. Describe your audience

Who are you selling to? What age range or genders are you selling to? What are their interests and hobbies? What careers might they have based on their age and interests? What can they afford? Your brand's voice and message should align with your customer's. The people you are selling to should be able to see what you are selling it and you are selling it to them and think "this is for me!"

4. Set up your website

Whether you're selling on Etsy, Teespring, Redbubble, or another site aside from your own, you should still have your own website. Think of it as a home base where people can read about your brand's purpose and message. This is where you can use your brand's voice. Tell the customer why you started this company and what you stand for, show them who is behind it all, and give them free materials and information related to your product or service like blog posts or a free course. This will all enhance the customer's trust and loyalty in your brand.

5. Start advertising

Before you even start selling your product or service, you should be advertising it. Pick a social media to focus on, based on your ideal client's age and interests. Show your product, show what you can do for your customer, and build excitement for your launch. Once you have built a solid base on one social media, feel free to expand to multiple platforms. No matter what social media you choose, you should all be utilizing Pinterest.

If you want to learn more on this topic or want to get more specific about defining your brand, join the waitlist for my full branding course!

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