Once you’ve uncovered a great business idea, the first step is to bring it to life. You need to turn that idea into a healthy business that can survive and thrive. Your business needs to be able to grow.

Here are our ten steps to starting a seriously healthy business.

Welcome.

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Once you’ve got a killer business idea, you need to know how to sell it. It’s no good mumbling when someone asks what your business is, you should tell them quickly and fill them with confidence that it will work.

Your elevator pitch needs two things: your idea and your unique selling point. People only want to know what you’re doing and why it’s different, so give it to them as quickly and simply as possible.

1. Have an elevator pitch that grabs attention

Your business idea is nothing without an audience willing to splash their cash on it. You can’t expect your business to make any sales if you don’t know who you’re selling to, so get to know them.

You should know dozens of things about your audience. Are they a certain age? Do they have specific hobbies? Are they likely to spend their time looking at particular websites? These things all matter for how you’ll reach them, how you’ll sell to them and how they’ll keep your business healthy.

No matter who your audience is, one surefire way of getting in front of them is to put your name at the top of Google searches. Spend some time on Google’s Keyword tool and figure out what your audience is searching for. Once you know, start creating engaging content around those phrases.

It’s important to keep that content exciting because the more people share it, the higher it will appear on a Google search. Infographics are a great way to get people sharing your content, so look into getting some made about the topics your audience cares about.

2. Know your audience by name

3. Reach for the top of Google

Start a healthy business.

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Getting your numbers right makes sure the brains of your business are healthy. You need to know when your business is flourishing and when it’s in dire need of a helping hand. Having realistic figures for how your business will grow and how well you need it to do to make a living is the only way to gauge the true health of your business.

These figures are all about being completely realistic. There’s no use kidding yourself and predicting a million sales two months after launching a product, you’ll only end up wondering where it all went wrong when the time comes. Be conservative and celebrate if you outperform your estimates.

4. Figure out your (realistic) numbers

Now you’ve got the realistic bit down, it’s time to dream a little. If your business is as healthy as you want it to be, where will it be in five years time? This isn’t something to measure your success against, more a plan for your branding and your business as a whole.

How many sales would you like to have made within five years? How many followers could you have? Will you expand? These questions will help you work out what’s coming next and remind you of the benefits of creating a healthy, growing business.

When starting a business, you need to know the people who are going to keep it as healthy as possible. Other businesses, mentors and employees will make or break the health, reputation and growth of your business. Invest your time wisely in the people who will represent you well and open the right doors for your business to grow.

Write out a list of people who could help your business. Feel free to dream big and be specific. Once you have a few dozen people who can open new doors, increase your audience or bring in new sales, write down how you can reach them. Start with the easiest connection and make those partnerships happen.

5. Have an optimistic five year plan

6. Build up partnerships that will pay off

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For your business to stay healthy, it needs to stay up to date. If you fall behind on what tech you could be using, the growth of your business will suffer. Make sure you’re reading the right blogs for your industry and keeping an eye on what your competitors are doing.

From saving you time to helping you reach a larger audience, new tech can keep the heart of your business pumping as quickly as possible. One quick win is to start using Evernote, the software that lets you and anyone in your business create, proof and edit documents from anywhere at any time.

7. Keep up with the tech trends

A mailing list is a hidden goldmine of any business. It may not provide much at first, but once your business has grown into a healthy size, it’ll start to provide huge returns and keep things growing. With a mailing list that grows as you do, you can turn browsers into buyers and keep customers coming back again and again.

Start capturing data with sign up forms on your website. Offer your audience an interesting ebook in exchange for their details, like we’ve just done! Once you have someone’s email address, make sure you don’t send out too many updates or email your audience with information that won’t interest them. Keeping your mailing list healthy is a big part of keeping your business healthy.

You may have an idea of who the competition is, but do you know how they are doing? Are they expanding into new markets or are they fading into the background? Is their brand similar to yours? If it’s too similar, it could harm the health of your own business.

You’re probably not psychic, so knowing exactly what you’re competition is up to will be difficult. But spending some time investigating their websites, their blogs and their Twitter feeds might tell you more than you expect about what’s going on. Make sure you check them out on DueDil too to get a picture of their financial performance.

8. Don’t forget the email list

9. Get to know the competition, all of it

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1. Professional Indemnity InsuranceIf you provide a service, advise clients or handle their data, professional indemnity insurance can help protect you. It will offer cover for compensation you may need to pay to correct a mistake or cover any legal costs due to negligence, such as an allegation of incorrect advice or making a mistake in your work. 2. Office InsuranceWhether you work from home or separate business premises, having the right insurance cover for your office is important. You can also extend your policy to include business interruption to insure against a reduction in your income levels as a result of an unforeseen events, such as a floods.

To find out more, head to http://www.hiscox.co.uk/smarta/

3. E-Risks InsuranceE-risks insurance protects your business against many of the cyber-related dangers such as damage caused by viruses, hackers or electronic identity theft. Most businesses rely on their IT systems to operate and communicate with their clients and therefore may want to consider this.

4. Public Liability InsurancePublic liability insurance covers you in the case of injury to a member of the public or damage to their property as a result of something your business has done. It can insure you for compensation costs incurred when a client, contractor or member of the public, is injured and your business is at fault. It will also provide some cover for legal fees spent in defending a claim.

5. Employers’ Liability InsuranceAs a small business you do your best to limit the possibility of injury or illness to your employees resulting from their work, but if they do have an accident or become ill, your business could be sued for compensation under your employers’ liability insurance. As a result, businesses in the UK that employ staff are legally obliged to have employers’ liability insurance to provide cover against a claim from an employee.

10. Get the right insurance. Many small businesses start out as just an idea, as your business grows so will your insurance needs, here are a few of the insurance policies you might need to consider.

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If you want more information about how to protect your business we have an exclusive offer with Hiscox for Smarta members.

Hiscox insures more than 130,000 small businesses and has won ‘Best Small Business Insurer’ in the Start Your Business Awards for the last four years in a row. They work hard to understand the risks your business may face, so you can choose insurance that’s right for you. To find out more head to.....

Business insurance offerfor Smarta Members.

www.hiscox.co.uk/smartaor call 0845 512 0746

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