From Idea to Reality - Steps to Launch Your First Startup

0:01So once you have your products and your customers, you're going to face decisions about funding and growth. So as I say, when you're bootstrapping, it means you're using your own resources and revenue and it keeps you in control, but it can limit your speed. Well, welcome back to Brave Bold Brilliant. I am your host, Jeannette Linfoot, and I'm absolutely delighted that you are here with me today. So, you know, starting a business is one of the most exciting, rewarding, but it's also can be intimidating. So, you know, if you've ever had a business idea, but you felt stuck on where to start or overwhelmed by all the unknowns, well, you are in the right place.

0:47So today we're going to be deep diving into the exact steps to take really from that very first spark of an idea all the way through to launching your very first startup. So I'm going to share practical guidance, common pitfalls and real life examples. Plus, I want to hear from you as well as we go. So before we jump in, you know, please do let us know in the comments if you're watching this live. Amazing. If you're listening to this on the podcast or you're watching it on YouTube, put a comment in. You know, what kind of startup are you thinking about? What's your idea? You let me know because I really want to hear from you.

1:32So we're going to break this down into different sections. so the first part is about you know the idea and the idea it's more than just a thought and it might be that you've been thinking about this for quite a while so as I would also say with these things we're going to cover a lot of information so grab a pen and paper you might want to take some notes and also just to remind you you know when you're starting out it's very difficult sometimes on your own you don't always have all of the tools all the resources you might be bootstrapping your startup so actually to get some free advice some materials some resources can be super helpful for you so you know if you head over to www.brave-bold-brilliant.com you're going to find a resource section there and in there there are videos or downloadable guides there's all sorts of information so don't miss out you know do do that because it's tough doing this stuff on your own and we are here to help we want to give you as much value and resources as possible and of course you know if you're not connected with me on social media let's get connected you know Jeanette Linfoot two n's and two t's in in Jeanette and you're going to find me on all the platforms LinkedIn Facebook TikTok Instagram and of course we have our brave bold brilliant social media pages as well and as you well know um our podcast brave bold brilliant so you know hit that subscribe button if you aren't already because then you're going to get notified every time that we release a new episode and youtube is such a great source if you like watching your content and you prefer video form then subscribe to us on brave bold brilliant there as well so let's get into this then part one so part one you know is where the you know the as I say the idea it's more than just a thought so let's start at the beginning you know your idea and an idea is really where everything starts but not every idea will become a successful startup you know and the difference lies in whether your idea solves a real problem or meets a real need so there's some questions for you to ask yourself you know what problem does my idea solve what exactly experiences this problem who experiences this problem and why does solving this matter to them so you know for example if you look at companies like uber or warby park you know they started by identifying problems in everyday life and offering solutions that customers actually wanted you know if you take uber they disrupted the sector completely and that has now become you know almost the norm if you like in terms of one of the big options for you know for getting your taxi etc so what started as an idea is very similar with Airbnb you know rent out your sofa is now an absolute global business so you know starting with the customer and the problem so I would say as a tip write your idea down describe the problem it solves, you know, just in one sentence, that's going to keep you focused, you know, and if you want, you know, share that one sentence problem statement in the chat, you know, let us know.

4:55Part two is all about validating and testing your idea. So this is the next step. Now you might love your idea, right? You absolutely might fall in love with it, but you need to make sure other people do to and you're not blinded because you have become so excited by your own idea so this is really crucial because it saves you time money and potentially heartbreak down the road but you know how do you validate it well there's lots of different ways you can do this but you know talk to potential customers you know ask open-ended questions like you know how do you currently solve this problem you know what would make this easier or better for you you know you can create a really simple survey or a landing page to gauge interest you know and that allows you to build a minimum viable product otherwise known as mvp and that really is a stripped down version of your product or service and that allows you to get real feedback now when i first started when i jumped out of corporate remember i had 25 years in corporate as a ceo running huge global travel businesses but when I started out on my entrepreneurial journey and setting up the businesses that I still have today you know I spoke to dozens of people you know and I got their feedback and it did actually change you know how I presented the product and what was included and for the better you know so validation it's about market research you know how big's your market who are your competitors is there room for your idea to grow you know how are you going to stand out why would someone book your product or service over and above a competitor's so you know validation sometimes it can feel a bit scary because you might get negative feedback but remember that's a good thing it means you're learning so you have to be able to take it on the chin and i always say in life, in business.

7:01If you don't want the answer to the question, don't ask the question. But by asking the right questions, it clearly allows you to really, you know, move forward with the idea and make sure that it's a good one. So part three, let's get into this then. This is about planning your roadmap to launch. So once you know your idea has got legs, it's time to plan you know and planning isn't about having every single answer right away it's about setting that direction you know and starting with the essentials what's your business model how are you going to make money is it sales is it subscriptions is it through advertising revenue you know what are the goals that you want to achieve and I always like to look you know in terms of the next three six twelve months but also you can consider longer term goals so depending on how progressed your idea is and how much detail you have behind it you know you might even be wanting to set yourself you know three-year goals five-year goals some businesses i know set 10-year goals um but as a startup it can be quite difficult to see past that first kind of three to six months so you've got to make sure that those goals are smart obviously i think we're all very familiar is what what smart means specific measurable achievable relevant and time bound and what resources you're going to need you know what skills could be that you need funding or you need partners to bring in with you on the journey you know what can you do yourself and where do you need help it might be an outsourced solution you know and then we get into that minimal minimum viable product what's the simplest version of your product you can build to start learning and getting feedback so my advice to you is don't get stuck on perfection you know start with a rough roadmap and then adapt as you go because the reality is perfection does not exist in anything and if you're waiting for perfection waiting for perfection then you know you may never get started at all so better to start now and get perfect later if perfect exists but certainly start part four this is about building you know bringing your idea to life and this really comes you know the hands-on part building your startup you know this is where you know the rubber meets the road you know focus on building your minimum viable product creating your brand beginning outreach and remember you know it's much better build fast and learn fast don't wait for perfection as we said launch early and then you can improve it with customer feedback and keep your customer at the center of everything you do test the products often be ready to pivot if feedback shows that you need to adjust you know don't be afraid to ask for help or build a team when you need it And I see it a lot.

10:04You know, I advise a lot of businesses of all size and different sectors in the UK, globally, you know, and a lot of entrepreneurs, they try to do everything themselves. And there are times when you have to just get stuck in. Absolutely. But if you can collaborate, you can accelerate your growth. now let's talk about money so and any startup business is going to need some capital so how you fund your startup and how you actually use that to power your growth is really important and it's often an area that people struggle with and certainly with the clients that I advise I work with them on raising finance and you know every business you might be bootstrapping it but you're going to need something even if it's just you know a few thousand pounds to build an initial website you're going to need some capital so once you have your products and your customers you're going to face decisions about funding and growth so as I say when you're bootstrapping it means you're only you're using your own resources and revenue and it keeps you in control but it can limit your speed depending on how much capital you've actually got available and when you seek investors it brings capital but it often means sharing ownership and decision making you know someone that's investing in your business they may want equity or it might be that they're all prepared to lend you on a loan basis but you know it's something to consider very carefully And there are also other alternatives, you know, crowdfunding or grants and, you know, and growth.

11:51It really does mean, you know, marketing smartly to your target audience, building partnerships that multiply your reach, always listening to customers and improving. You remember growth. It should be sustainable. You know, don't chase quick wins that sacrifice long term stability. so you know absolutely i hope that's given you some ideas as to how to break it down into those different sections those different phases of growth to her so you don't get overwhelmed you know and absolutely i would say i want to hear from you you know where are you in your startup journey you know what's the biggest challenge you're facing you know what questions do you have about launching your idea you know so please drop your thoughts in the chat and I'm more than happy to respond to those either you know live as they come in or you know you can message us as well send us an email or you know a request for a quick call I'm always happy to help so you know wherever you are in your journey you know thanks for spending the time with us today to listen to this to join us live on the feed if that's what you've done you know and of course if you found this helpful you it's so important to us that we help as many people as possible so if you can like the video subscribe to brave bulb brilliant whether it's on the podcast on itunes spotify etc and of course our youtube channel as well it's we really appreciate it and it allows us to help you more because you get notified when we go live with something new and of course it also means that we can reach more people and help more people because it is lonely in business it's not easy at all you know and I've always found that when I surround myself with the right people those that are you know at least a few steps ahead of me um it really makes me be a better version of myself it always helps me grow the business it always helps me develop the team and that's why we're here so please share this with someone who's maybe thinking about starting their own business you know remember every startup journey is unique but it all starts with courage clarity and action so be brave be bold and always be brilliant and i will see you next time i really hope you've enjoyed this episode of brave bold brilliant remember check out our new website www.brave-bold-brilliant.com you're going to find loads of resources on there that's going to help you with your leadership journey and with the businesses that you're trying to scale up and grow so take care everyone and remember there are no limits to your growth but it is by being brave and bold that you're going to unlock your brilliant