Being an entrepreneur comes with a lot of uncertainty and risk, and starting out can be dangerous. Undoubtable, you’ll run into roadblocks, challenges, and failures on your road to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Luckily, through the power of technology, you can keep yourself protected and help minimize risks. Some can help you make more money, others can protect your assets and many can guide your choices.
Predicting The Next Big Trend
If you can know what is the next big thing is, you can capitalize on it. Sadly, unless you have a functioning crystal ball, it’s impossible to know exactly what the future store. But there are tools to find patterns and trends to help discover what might be next.
One major and broad tool is Google Trends. It’s a big data provider available for free and gives a large overview of general interests in the world. The data it provides only relates to what people search online, but what they search for usually relates directly to their life and buying habits. Similar data tools exist for different industries, from retail to real estate, and having access to the information they provide should be a top priority.
One tactic with Google Trends is finding out what is bothering customers in your industry, and then producing a solution. A great example of this is the company Ticketleap creating a solution to the grievances caused by giant ticket selling corporations like Ticketmaster. If enough people are frustrated with something, they’ll search for potential solutions, leaving the clues on Google Trends for you to find and solve.
CB Insights AI tool predicts next big thing in tech
If you can properly predict the next big thing, you can capitalize on it early before the market is flooded. Watch for emerging trends early on and make business decisions based on the data quickly if it’s worth getting in on. A prime example of this are young entrepreneurs who predict the “must have toy” for Christmas, buy large amounts of them, and sell them for a higher price for a nice profit. By combining understanding of the market with data hinting at a trend, you can be ahead of your competition.
Keeping Your Business Protected
You might feel like a small fish in a big pond, and that’s because you probably are. The scary part is that there are predators looking to gulp people like you up and take advantage of you.
A major threat, especially if you run a large portion of your business digitally, is a cyber attack. Nearly half of all cyber attacks target small businesses, and it’s possible you won’t even know it’s happening until long after. They can steal anything from your money, to personal and client information, to simply destroying all of your data.
What Entrepreneurs Need to Know About Information Security
Having proper security and a good threat awareness can go a long way protecting yourself. Every device you own should have good security software, including any smartphone or tablets you use. Since our computers are so interconnected in today’s world, one getting infected can spread to everything, leading to major security breaches.
Another thing to take account for are accidents. You probably couldn’t survive without your phone, laptop, or tablet, and what is stored on it. Yet drops, spills, and acts of nature happen, and data might get lost. Backing up your data regularly can help minimize the damages, and data recovery services can fix the damages afterwards.
Working Everywhere, More Efficiently
How Google’s AI Auto-Magically Answers Your Emails
The days spent working in a home office are over. This is incredibly important once your business starts picking up and you get busy. Finding time for simple tasks like responding to emails become a chore, but it doesn’t have to be like that.
The first step is to make sure you can access your important information anywhere. Cloud services like Google Drive lets you see and update information anywhere with an internet connection. This can also be useful keeping all of your ducks in a row so you only have one version of important documents instead of multiples floating around causing confusion. This can be a lifesaver if you have partners or employees that rely on the same information.
During work hours, you want to prevent as much time wasting as possible. There are tons of apps for smartphones to help keep you focused and on track. There are also tools like FocusMe for PC that can block distracting sites and push you to work.
Building A Reliable Network
5 Steps to Mastering Tech Networking Events
A huge part of flourishing in the business world is who you know. It’s why businesses and groups host networking events and there is an entire social media platform based on it. Knowing who to connect with can open up new opportunities and get advice to avoid costly mistakes.
A strong network should have a variety of people in it, from business connections to mentors in your industry. LinkedIn is great for keeping in touch with connections you’ve made, but not great for making them. You want to have a face to face meeting with potential contacts, but if that isn’t possible, look into a video call with people you want to connect with. It also means you aren’t limited to meeting people who live nearby, opening up new opportunities.
Have you found a tool to help your entrepreneur business flourish? Got a question about one of the tools mentioned above? Let us know in the comments below!
