Starting up a new creative business can be exciting yet daunting. Today I’m going to talk about the best things you can do for yours to ensure success and to avoid being one of the 6 in 10 businesses that fail in the first 3 years.

According to the Small Business administration statistics around 20% of start-ups fail in the first year. So how can you avoid being one of them?

1. Lack of business plan

Creatives are often in business because they have arrived there by accident. They may have started selling their art as and when the opportunity arose, but there was never a clear intention to become a business. And that’s ok, not every creative outlet needs or wants to become a full time business.

But if you do intend on it becoming your main source of income then a vision for what you want your business to become, and how you plan on achieving that is really important.

We all know how fickle the world can be, with one thing being really big one year and disappearing to be overtaken by the ‘next big thing’ in the blink of an eye. So strategically planning for a sustainable business, business growth, doing your market research, and really understanding how many sales or leads you need each week or month to allow your income to be predictable and sustained is a vital part of the process.

Creatives especially are often drawn into the trap of reacting rather than planning ahead. And it doesn’t always have to be just financial either, it might be getting featured somewhere you admire and getting recognition for your talents, being invited to collaborate with your heroes, or being able to do something to promote and support your causes and beliefs.

2. Lack of investment

This can be lack of investment in yourself, eg your skills, the tools you need to grow your business in terms of knowledge or the real physical tools that allow you to scale or improve. eg for me as a photographer being able to upgrade my kit as I add to my skills base and experience, or courses that teach me how to improve my artificial lighting abilities, or perhaps a marketing course, or business coach to help you get there faster.

This could also be investment in real terms such as a grant or business loan that enables you to get set up from the start. For this you will usually need a strong business plan with the SMART goals embe...