When starting a new business, it’s understandable that you may not want to scrap ideas; however, it’s important to understand the delicate balance between seeing an idea out and booting it.
Meredith Young, COO of Mountaineer Brand, talked with Jim Matuga, host of the Positively West Virginia Podcast, about the balance that they went through with their business.
Mountaineer Brand is a West Virginia-based, all-natural health and beauty product company. Founded in 2001 by Eric Young in his kitchen, Mountaineer Brand has grown from a local individual selling to family and friends to a small business selling across the US and in Europe.
Check out the Young’s three pieces of advice for any entrepreneur who is starting a new business.
Starting a New Business?
Check your products and labels.
When ordering products and labels, make sure to check if the spelling is correct.
In the podcast, Young details a story about ordering hundreds of labels that we sent out on products and finding out afterward that the labels were incorrect, and some had spelling errors on them.
Make sure to double check spelling and grammar before sending to the printers, and then double check once they are printed.
Taking this extra step can save you in the long run, whether that’s by not needing to issue new products, sending out apology letters or issuing a statement for the mishap.
Take a breath.
Starting a business can feel like you’re running in a whole lot of different directions. You are needed for almost everything, as you should be because you are the business owner.
With that being said, don’t forget to take a breath. Enjoy this moment, and really take in what you are doing because it’s awesome. You are starting your own business.
“Slow down,” Young advises. “You don’t want to let the pressure of a deadline rush your work. It’s better to be late and have something done correctly.”
Make sure to have a balance between knowing when to keep going with an idea and when to scrap it.
As your business is taking off and you start thinking of more products or service lines that you could add to serve your customers better, don’t forget to realize when an idea could be bad.
“There’s a balance between not giving up and due-diligence,” Young said.
If you think your customers want another product, send out a survey, ask around or even better, start a Facebook Live and ask your audience.
If Facebook Live is not your thing, test the people around you, as well as your current customers. You can get a good idea of what you should be doing.
If you think an idea is good, don’t give up on it; however, if it’s failing, know when to stop. It’s okay to do that.
Young was a guest on the Positively West Virginia Podcast. Listen to her full podcast here.
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- PIECE OF ADVICE: “There’s a balance between not giving up and due-diligence,” Young said. She advises to check out your market to see if there’s a need for a product, and if so, don’t give up on your dream.