You’ve made the decision to start a woman-owned tech business. Congratulations! This is an exciting and empowering time, and you’re about to embark on quite an adventure. While there will be roadblocks along the way, nothing is unachievable if you put your mind to it, and planning and organization is the place to start.
The Importance of Budgeting and Financing
You’re going to need money. You might have already saved enough to start, but your first year will be challenging. Make sure you budget and have reliable sources of funding that you can lean on, whether it’s investors or small business loans. Only 48% of small businesses have their financing needs met, so it’s crucial to be realistic about your financial goals.
Legal Protection for Your Tech Business
Along with a business plan, you need legal protection. You should proactively safeguard your business from legal issues and disputes. This process might be more involved than you realize.
Establishing a business entity is crucial. It can be either an LLC, a corporation, or a partnership. Doing this provides legal protection by separating your personal assets from your business ones, meaning that if your business is sued, your assets are protected from judgment or liability.
According to an SBA study, between 36% and 53% of small businesses deal with lawsuits annually. It’s a scary percentage, so it’s essential to ensure you have the proper contracts and agreements with clients, vendors, and employees. Contracts and agreements will outline the terms and conditions of the relationship, including payment terms, delivery dates, and intellectual property rights. Documents like these provide clarity and protection in case disputes arise.
Legal counsel can guide you through this process, and they can have you navigate issues like intellectual property, contract disputes, or employment law. Be to find a lawyer you trust. Once you establish that working relationship, you’ll have someone that understands your business and ensure you’re making informed decisions.
Proper insurance coverage is a must. It should include liability insurance, which covers things like property damage or bodily injury, and professional liability insurance, which covers professional negligence claims. Insurance gives you additional protection which will help mitigate the financial impact of any legal issues.
Building Your Marketing Strategy
There are many more facets to starting your tech business than just the financial and legal aspects. You need a solid advertising and marketing strategy. Remember, all your work to create financial and legal plans will be in vain if nobody knows you exist.
Social media is one of your biggest tools. Platforms like Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook give you the opportunity to reach and grow your audience quickly while barely touching your budget. It allows you to engage with your target audience personally and carves a path for you to communicate with your target demographics based on things like age, gender, interests, and location.
No marketing strategy is complete without search engine optimization. With SEO, you can raise your website and overall content’s rank in search engine results, increasing your website and social media traffic, and, thus generating more interest and customers for your brand. Your brand needs all the visibility it can get, so generating traffic is key.
How often do you Google something in a day? It’s one of the most trafficked websites in existence, and Google offers advertising solutions. Google AdWords uses specific keywords and demographics to reach your target audience. The numbers don’t lie. In fact, over 1.3 million businesses, website publishers, and nonprofits nationwide have benefitted from using Google’s advertising solutions!
Any woman looking to start her own business from the ground up knows there will be obstacles along the way. Managing your budget, protecting yourself legally, and creating an effective marketing strategy will help you begin the exciting and rewarding process of starting your own tech business while managing your budget.
