10 Top Tips for Starting Your Own Business

1. University is the best time To start a business. Test out your new ideas on the large group of peers available and if you’re receiving funding or working part-time don’t worry if your ideas don’t pay the bills straight away.

University is the best time To start a business. Test out your new ideas on the large group of peers available and if you’re receiving funding or working part-time don’t worry if your ideas don’t pay the bills straight away.

2. Join the Bangor University Business and Enterprise Society (BUBES!). You can socialise with like-minded people, attend trips to large enterprises such as MUFC, meet local entrepreneurs and take part in Dragons’ Dens and other exciting activities (email bubes@undeb.bangor.ac.uk for more info).

3. Submit your ideas the Business Ideas Competition for a chance to win £200 to help you get your business idea off the ground. Email  b-enterprising@bangor.ac.uk and tell us about your idea in around 200 words by 10^th February 2012 (entries will remain confidential and will be judged anonymously).

4. Visit the Big Ideas Wales website (www.bigideaswales.co.uk). It’s been created by Welsh Government specifically to help students start a business and it’s full of inspiring stories about local entrepreneurs, tips for generating business ideas and guidance on how to start up on your own.

5. Complete the Enterprise Catalyst online (www.enterprisecatalyst.co.uk) to find out the content of your ‘enterprise fuel.’ This ten minute quiz will highlight your skills, motivations and attitude to enterprise, and give you top pointers on how to be a real success.

6. Add B-Enterprising on Facebook (www.facebook.com/benterprising) to receive details of local and national opportunities to improve your enterprise skills, take part in competitions and where to get support for your business idea.

7. Attend a B-Enterprising workshop to develop key enterprise skills such as leadership, negotiation and pitching. You can also improve your knowledge of business areas like finance, marketing and sales. Find out what’s on by visiting the website (www.bangor.ac.uk/b-enterprising).

8. To seriously kick-start your start-up efforts, attend a 3 or 4 day Business Start-Up School or Freelancing Bootcamp. They take place in November and March every year, and cover everything you need to know. Check the intranet after Christmas for the date of the next course (www.bangor.ac.uk/b-enterprising).

9. Use social media to put you and your ideas out there for little or no cost. Creating a Facebook business page will help you market yourself, and getting your LinkedIn profile up to scratch will showcase you to potential customers and help you to network. Email m.hamlet@bangor.ac.uk for help with social media.

10. Book a one to one, confidential mentoring session with a professional business advisor (b-enterprising@bangor.ac.uk) to talk about your ideas in more detail. Solidify your plans, get realistic advice and find out about funding opportunities.