Top Skills to Have as an Entrepreneur: 2019 Edition

Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, Five Stages of Business Growth (25-slide PowerPoint presentation). This presentation introduces a framework for entrepreneurs to use when building and navigating their business from a nascent, startup state to an enterprise with a global footprint. This framework, called the 5 Stages of Business Growth, is based on the fact that all businesses experience common [read more]

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The market is evolving constantly, which is why businesses – and business owners – have different sets of challenges to face at different times. This past year, the market has grown exponentially thanks to the big changes happening in it. It has also gotten more competitive, requiring businesses to be more agile.

As a business owner, the success of your venture depends highly on how you approach the market. This means that the future of your business is greatly influenced by the skills and resources you have as a business owner. So, which skills do you need to have (and sharpen) to succeed in 2019? Let’s find out, shall we?

Digital Marketing

Even the big players now invest more in digital marketing. Digital marketing is measurable and offers a higher return on investment (ROI) than conventional marketing instruments, so it is not surprising to see more business (of different scales) engage in digital marketing campaigns to reach more potential customers.

Digital marketing instruments are improving too. Social media is now leading the charge, and social media paid advertising is quickly becoming the most effective way to gain traction early in the game. Search engine optimization has been around since the beginning of online marketing, but it maintains its position as one of the best to use today.

Digital marketing is evolving too, so you have to evolve alongside it. Fortunately, there are plenty of resources to help you learn – and master – digital marketing instruments.

Accounting

With the market being as competitive as it is today, your flexibility on the market – and the survival of your business – depends on how well you manage your resources, including your business finances. Now is not the time to be reckless with loans and business expenses; at least not if you want to stay ahead.

A lot of business owners actually pursue an online MBA accounting concentration to master accounting inside out. The fact that the best decisions you can make today are data-driven decisions simply make accounting that much more important.

Aside from learning about the theory side of accounting, you also have to sharpen your practical accounting skills; this is where pursuing an MBA in accounting from top universities like Suffolk University is incredibly beneficial.

Risk Management

The competitive market also poses more challenges for businesses to face, hence the growing need for good risk management practices. Other changes, from reliance on data to new developments designed to excite customers, can be traced back to a move to mitigate risk.

There are more risks to mitigate indeed, which is why you need to have good risk management skills as a business owner. Knowing the risks that you face and understanding how to best mitigate those risks give you an edge in the form of willingness to take calculated risks for the growth of the business. In today’s market, that willingness is valuable.

Master these three skills and you can pursue incredibly business growth in 2019. It is never too late to start learning about these critical skills. After all, being a business owner means committing to continuous learning.

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