Business, Entrepreneur

Broadly speaking, you can define an entrepreneur as someone who sets up and runs businesses in potentially lucrative unexploited or under exploited niches. The money needed to launch the business will be drawn from their own finances or finance they have raised from other sources. Entrepreneurs are notable because they have ambition in abundance, they want to get things done as quickly as possible, and they take big risks.

In this article, we will look at:

  • the main differences between being an entrepreneur and a small business owner
  • what key skills and character traits you need to succeed as an entrepreneur
  • how technology has enabled entrepreneurs to triumph
  • how entrepreneurs finance their fledging business ideas
  • what steps you need to take to become an entrepreneur in today’s marketplace

 

What Is The Difference Between Being An Entrepreneur And A Small Business Owner?

Owning your own business does not necessarily mean you are an entrepreneur. Typically, an entrepreneur will introduce a new product or service to market or amend an existing product or service. The idea they have, if it gains traction, could become very big very quickly if scaled up correctly and skillfully.

Very often, entrepreneurs will have delegated the management of their product or service to experts in that particular field as early as possible. This means the company can easily be managed by others and the entrepreneur can focus on further business development and fund raising.

Here at Accounting Gem, we have also noticed a recent trend in that entrepreneurs are now more likely to be involved in creating sustainable businesses – sustainability could be defined as either a donation of profits to charity or a commitment to zero carbon emissions.

Alternative to this, small business owners are more likely to be involved in running a more standard type of company like a local garage or bakery. They are generally lower risk as the market is already there for the products and services they offer. They are focused on building the business for themselves to create a reliable personal income stream more so than planning to scale it and sell it on.

It’s not uncommon for small business owners to be much more heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the service than an entrepreneur. This means the company relies massively on their input and attendance.

 

What Key Skills Or Characteristics Do Entrepreneurs Need To Have To Succeed?

You need business acumen and a wider vision to succeed as an entrepreneur. Being highly organised, having self-belief, being creative, and making use of sector-specific and in-depth knowledge are the building blocks to consolidation and growth.

What makes an entrepreneur stand out are the qualities that push you above and beyond the rest:

  • be a visionary– you need to have a dream but also the vision to see how it will work in reality
  • take the risk– be prepared to take calculated risks such as sacrificing short-term income for long-term gain
  • maximise your resources– use what you’ve got, who’ve you’ve got around you, and know how to create opportunities out of nothing
  • harness your passion– a genuine love of what you are doing will get you a long way
  • be flexible– you need to be able to do everything like sales, recruitment, marketing, and product development
  • innovative is the key word– you need to think outside the box to create better, each and every time
  • believe in your confidence– you need to have the resilience and decisiveness to push your idea forward and against numerous stumbling blocks
  • have persistence– as above, you will come across problems, but you need to get back up each time. foster the tenacity needed and it will stand you in great stead.

 

How Has Technology Evolved And Enabled Entrepreneurs?

By connecting people and by providing deeper financial and operational information allowing further fundraising, technology has helped significantly in the creation and success of today’s entrepreneurs.

Platforms such as Quickbooks has allowed for easy accounting while Kickstarter has helped with seed funding giving entrepreneurs the money they need to start their companies. Canva has helped businesses develop their image and branding and keep both consistent while iZettle allows you to take payments seamlessly.

Dropbox has allowed individuals to share large files easily (remember the old ISDN days prior to the internet?) whilst Shopify has made it quick and easy to sell products and services online without learning how to code.

There is an abundance of platforms available to you to make the journey as an entrepreneur smooth and consistent.

 

How Entrepreneurs Fund Their Businesses And Run Them In The First Few Months

No matter which business, its launch and early days need to be funded. Investors (and financiers) always want to see an entrepreneur make their own investment into their business whether cash, sweat equity, or a mixture of the two.

Initially, entrepreneurs can expect to work extremely long hours with very little (or no) recompense. For their first few ventures, entrepreneurs need to learn quickly about the more mundane aspects of running a business in the early days so that they are better able to understand the skills needed in people they appoint to take those responsibilities away from them later on.

 

Services For Entrepreneurs At Accounting Gem

Accounting Gem works with small business owners and entrepreneurs – for entrepreneurs, we’ve developed a more specialised group of business start-up services designed to help you get to your end goal quicker.

Key to finding early funding is a credible business plan backed up by 3-5 years of believable financial forecasts. Share with us your idea in full and we’ll translate your idea into a fully costed business plan showing growth milestones and the key performance indicators investors or financiers can use to track your progress.

After the launch of your business, we’re also able to provide you with bookkeeping and management accounting services so that you and your investors/financiers are working from the latest financial information.

Your Accounting Gem partner is here to help you at all stages of the business cycle from start-up to expansion to exit. Get in touch with us on 01473 744 700 or email us on contactus@aag-accountants.co.uk.