Santa Clarita is enjoying an economic boom with the city becoming a regional hub for new businesses. A study conducted by Verizon indicated that the city is one of the top 15 most ambitious in the entire country in terms of the ease of doing business, and that has been reflected in ever increasing numbers of new small and medium sized enterprises. As a result, it’s an exciting time for would-be business owners to start making their roots in the city and turning a big idea into a big success. However, it’s also important to note that running a business is no mean feat, and with such competition in the air, it’s crucial to have a thorough and resilient business plan in place – starting in planning.
Business credentials
Ask yourself whether you are prepared to go into business. There are countless regulations that you need to comply with in order to stay afloat. You will need to know how to start an LLC in California, learn rigorous business accounting practices, build a compliance framework to ensure that any regulatory demands are met and that you keep well ahead of any changes in the legal framework.
This is especially important in California as a whole. While Santa Clarita has seen consistent improvements in the number and quality of businesses it hosts, the state as a whole has not been so lucky. As Forbes highlights, many of California’s largest cities are seeing businesses move out of state due to the high level of regulatory measures imposed on them. While this doesn’t mean you’re going to fail, it does mean that you need a sharp business mind to ensure you stay on the right side of the some 396,000 restrictions mandated by the state authority.
Finding your niche
Your big idea might be a passion project or something you enjoy – but you need to consider whether you can find scale. This process, called finding your niche, is crucial in the modern business world. It was formerly the case that businesses could get ahead through their methods of marketing – a digital business, or one that harnesses social media, was more likely to attract younger demographics. However, with the majority of businesses now having a solid online presence, that opportunity simply doesn’t exist.
Entrepreneur magazine provides clear guidance on how to identify your niche – and indeed whether it exists. This includes identifying your skills and what your audience is lacking, but the most key point likely concerns market research. You need to have a really good look at the competition in the local area, what their products are, and how they operate. Knowing exactly what you are up against will stop you from receiving any nasty surprises when you do dip your toes into the local business climate, and will give you a boost against your competitors before you’ve even established your business.
Embracing local marketing
Santa Clarita is always growing, but it has retained its small town vibe. This is because the population has quadrupled since 1970 – which really wasn’t so long ago. As a result, local businesses and local communities are highly valued, and this is a factor that needs to play a significant role in your marketing. As it happens, focusing on local search results and providing a local service is also one of the key priorities of many of the big tech kingmakers.
According to Search Engine Journal, local search provides higher engagement, greater traffic, and higher conversion rate for businesses. That means you have a greater chance with every single search of turning an interested party into a customer – and a loyal one of that. Gearing your digital efforts to harness local searches is, therefore, crucial. SEJ asserts that there are three key tracts to this – updating address, phone number and email information; a focus on mobile interaction and accessibility; and a well built Google My Business profile. These are all simple steps that a business can take that will be hugely influential on the outcome of the website and its marketing potential. With that, you’ll build your engagement in the local area and bring in more customers.
This is the crucial factor – engagement with the local area. You can also build that with social media, in-person marketing, and word of mouth. Santa Clarita values its small businesses and business owners, and you’ll find a great deal of benefit for your business from focusing in that area. This alone will give you the boost you need, especially in the highly competitive local market. Your competitors who don’t focus on the benefit of local custom and marketing will fall behind, leaving you a greater share of the spoils.
