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This story is sponsored by Disruptive Advertising. Learn more about Disruptive Advertising.
There’s bad news on the job market lately, and it has nothing to do with unemployment rates. According to Gallup’s 2013 State of the American Workplace Report, only 30 percent of American employees felt “engaged and inspired at work.” That leaves a hearty chunk of briefcase-toting, slack-wearing, memo-writing workers who are counting the minutes down to lunch and the hours down to the weekend.
So what’s the alternative? Follow your passion and go into business for yourself, of course! Easy as pie, right? Well, not exactly. Creating your own startup isn’t exactly a simple — or dependable — venture. But it may just be your employment salvation.
When you go into business doing what you love, you’re bound to be inspired and motivated every day. But making that startup a success is a whole other story. Here are a few things every startup needs to be more successful:
Choose great leaders
Depending on the size of your business and your resources, your “company leadership” could be, well, you. Or you might have a team of managers or advisors with whom to work. Either way, you need to make sure that anyone in a management position in your business has strong leadership characteristics and shares your passion for your product or service. Leaders need to be inspiring, lest your employees become part of Gallup’s uninspired 70 percent.
Let your product speak for itself
When it comes to introducing a new business to the marketplace, your product or service is everything; customers won’t care that you mortgaged your home to start your bakery if your croissants are bland, dry and overpriced. Pour your time and resources into creating a phenomenal product that’s priced appropriately and marketed well, and you’re bound to see success.
Don’t skimp on advertising
If you’re starting a business, you’ll soon find out that you’re nothing without your customers. But that also means you’ll actually have to find those customers. Advertising is crucial for startups, but since your budget is likely limited, you may need to be creative. Boutique, full-service advertising services, like Disruptive Advertising, for example, can help you create and implement a marketing strategy that encompasses both digital and display advertising. Letting someone else handle your marketing leaves you free to focus on your product or service — the heart of your startup.
Fix the broken stuff
Every startup experiences some growing pains. The logistics of running a business can be overwhelming as you manage vendor relationships, personnel needs, financing issues and countless other problems. The trick is to make sure that your customers aren’t affected by these little hiccups. If you’re an online business and your computer system is dysfunctional, fix it before your customers write you off. Having IT support, like iTOK, on call is a great way to nip tech problems in the bud.
Get some experience
You may not be ready to start your own business right now, but getting some creative experience in the workforce can really help you learn to handle a startup later. What better way than to work for a creative startup itself? Disruptive Advertising, a successful startup that offers complete marketing solutions for other businesses, is currently hiring a number of creatively minded people. If you can learn the business ropes in a fun and creative environment, you may be better prepared to make your own venture successful down the line.
This article was paid for and produced by Disruptive Advertising.