Hi Alison.
Congratulations on starting your new business!
First thing’s first; by starting a business you are entering
a new world and you need to map out the terrain. So, get online or down to your
local shops and start analysing your competition (other greetings card
companies). What kind of cards are they offering? How do they look and which occasions
do they celebrate? What are their prices? Where do they sell? Once you’ve
looked into this you can start talking to consumers. That might sound tricky,
but they are right there in your friends and family! If they buy cards what do
they buy? How often? What kind of designs do they like? If they don’t buy
cards, why not? You can ask face to face or use an online tool like Survey Monkey for this.
All of this information gathering has two purposes.
1)
You can think about what you will do the same as
other companies. For example if other companies are doing well by selling both
in shops and online it would be pretty smart for you to do the same and if all
the consumers you spoke to said they bought a particular type of card most you’ll
want to make sure that type is in your range.
2)
You can think about what you’ll do differently.
Your research should be as much about what isn’t there as what is. What don’t
you see in the shops? Do consumers long for a type of card that isn’t available?
It’s wise for a new company to think about a niche, something only they can
offer. Are your cards especially beautiful? Funny? Do they celebrate things
that other companies overlook? Are the designs all one-offs? Are they cheaper?
This information will allow you to develop a sense of where
your company could fit in to the market. Now it’s time to write down your goals
and come up with a slogan for the company to remind you and your customers what
you are all about. Your decisions will flow from this identity. For example, if
your niche is luxury cards made from unusual materials, you would choose
different suppliers than if you were going for beating your competitors with
very cheap prices.
On a practical note, it’s important that you use this time
at the start of your business to get as organised as possible. Depending on the
size of your venture, you might want to start a bank account for the business,
but whatever scale you are working at it’s important to keep a clear record of
your spending and your income so that you can look back and see what is working
and what isn’t. Make a spreadsheet and keep it up to date. Being organised is
also about your time, so try and set aside a certain amount of time each day or
week to devote to the company to make sure it gets off the ground.
Finally, I'd consider looking for a mentor, someone who has been there before and can offer some advice. In my experience no one minds getting an email that says I really admire your work. If there's someone out there with a really successful greetings card business there's no harm in politely getting in touch.
I wish you all the best with your new adventure Alison. I would send you a good luck card but I'll leave the cards to you!