How to Start Your Own Business
About the course
How to Start Your Own Business – People often dream about starting their own business but don’t fully realise the implications of what this involves. Given the back-drop that nearly a half of all businesses fail in their first year, it is critical that you have all the knowledge at your disposal to make an informed decision about whether running a business is right for you.
This is an introductory course for anyone who has recently set up a small or micro-business, or for anyone who is considering setting up a small or micro-business, or is considering self-employment as a career option. As such, this course considers the key elements and issues that you need to think about and explore.
This How to Start Your Own Business course will allow you to:
Learn key steps to increase your chances of success and minimise risk.
Understand how to market your business, identifying competition, pricing and branding strategies
How to handle and recruit staff and administrative issues.
In addition, at the end of your course you will be invited to create a business plan and pitch it to one of our expert academics. This will be an excellent opportunity to put the knowledge you’ll have gained into practice, whilst also allowing you to take advantage of the feedback and guidance provided by our experienced tutors.
Course Details
Course overview
Course duration
Students can enrol onto this course at anytime. There is approximately 100 hours worth of learning material included. Students will have access to the study material for five years.
Assessment
This course is assessed by a series of self assessment exercises.
Unit summary
This course is made up of 5 units, which cover a range of subject areas, please see below for more information:
Unit 1 Thinking of starting a business
- The problems and potential of small-business start-up
- Sources of information
- Why start a business
- Personal skills
- The realities of starting a business
- Success v failure
- Your business idea
- Am I suited to running a business
- People and roles
- Business start-up expenses
- Sources of money
- Finding premises
- Financial issues
- Legal issues
- Practical issues
Unit 2 Finance for business start up
- Looking after your money
- Budgeting for personal survival
- Financial responsibilities
- Common causes of financial failure
- Financial control
- Expenses
- Employing staff
- Pricing
- Cash flow
- Profit and loss account
- Balance sheet
- Performance ratios
- Credit terms
Unit 3 Marketing for business start up
- What marketing is
- Definitions of marketing
- Marketing in practice
- Understanding customer needs and wants
- Using marketing strategy
- The 7Ps of marketing
- Turning prospects into customers
- Types of marketing message
- Writing marketing material
- Websites
- Newsletter marketing
- The marketing plan
- Classic marketing mistakes
Unit 4 Business planning for business start up
- Purpose of a business plan
- Demands and limitations of business planning
- Basic aspects of business planning
- Business plan format
- The executive summary
- The business
- SWOT analysis
- Products and services
- Marketing
- Financials
- Business planning top tips
Unit 5 Communicating for success in business.
- Networking
- Defining communication
- The communication cycle
- Noise
- Barriers to communication
- Spoken word – general considerations
- Written word – general considerations
- First impressions
- Non-verbal behaviour
- Active listening
- Written communication
- Email etiquette
- Writing marketing copy for your business
Course fees
The fee for enrolling onto this course is £399.
Students can make payment using one of the following methods:
- Credit or debit card
- Bank transfer
- Interest free monthly instalments
- Paypal
- Western Union
What is included in the cost of my course?
All course material
Dedicated student support
Access to an online social learning forum
Am I eligible for this progamme?
This course is most suited to individuals who are at least 16 years old, and have an interest in setting up a new business.