In almost any industry or profession it is not considered unusual to make career changes along the way but what about running an e-commerce business of your own? You may have decided that no matter how much you have enjoyed your job there has come a point when it’s time for a new challenge. It may also be that you have particular skills and unique ideas that are not being fully utilized or perhaps there are certain colleagues that you can no longer work alongside in a happy atmosphere.
Or in today’s financial climate you may have been made redundant and need to take a new direction which could be entering the exciting world of online trading. Either way, for which ever reason, if you have decided that running an e-business means that you can go in search of pastures new and become your own boss be sure to follow these useful tips and you won’t go far wrong.
Don’t jump ship in the heat of the moment without a carefully considered strategy up your sleeve. Plan your new e-commerce business like a military operation, do tons of research first and leave nothing to chance.
It often helps to have an outsider’s opinion of your personal strengths and weaknesses so that you can cash in on the former and buoy up the latter before your set up a business. So ask a friend or trusted workmate for a straight assessment of your best and worst attributes. It also makes good sense to find out if the particular products or services you intend to market on the web are in demand.
Decide where you would like to be in a year’s time or even five years. Ask yourself whether it is best to engineer a new e-commerce venture immediately or to hang on for a while longer, no matter how frustrating, to gain a bit more valuable experience or get some finance behind you. Bear in mind that when you set up any completely new business you will face fresh and exciting challenges that you could find intimidating. If this is the case you may want to use the services of a professional web designer.
The most important thing is that, behind closed doors, you are completely honest with yourself and only set up an e-commerce business that you are going to enjoy and truly suits your character and abilities. Never forsake a guaranteed position on a whim to follow an impractical dream that could leave you demoralized and more to the point – jobless and broke! Before you even begin to make a move check out all the competition in your chosen sector and try to find out more about their long-term strategies and what makes them successful.
Assess what you really want from your business. It could be more financial security, less responsibility, a chance to expand your own ideas, a change of location or possibly just more quality time to spend with your family and friends. Whatever it is, be sure that you stand a reasonable chance of getting it before you commit yourself to a different and possibly initially insecure lifestyle.
Never be so besotted with the idea of running your own business that you forget to do the arithmetic. You will still need to live and pay day to day bills. Also be very wary of scammers offering “…a great get rich quickly opportunity”. These parasites are on the look out for starry-eyed suckers to expand their own bank accounts – not yours!
Remember that just as no job can be perfect every day so it will be the same with any online venture and you could find, at a later date, that what you chose to disregard in all the excitement of launching your own company eventually becomes a major problem. Do your homework before you jump!
While there are plenty of internet millionaires out there it didn’t just happen for them – most had to work extremely hard to begin with and take the bad times with the good. Think long and hard about your quality of life before you start any online business, especially one that appears to demand long hours and responsibility. It is always good to seek new horizons but not at the expense of your health and personal freedom. Finally bear in mind that long-term happiness depends on a good work and leisure balance with plenty of relaxation periods to counteract business stress.
