Want to change your career path or be your own boss? Starting a business is an attractive idea for many, but it isn’t a decision to be taken lightly. This new venture requires you to leverage all your best research, planning and marketing efforts, as well as funding and investments.

Achieving your goals certainly isn’t impossible with the right plan. Whether you have products to sell or a service to offer, getting all your ducks in a row can turn your light-bulb moment into a success story.

From ideation to marketing and beyond, Adobe Express can help you work out how to start a small business with this comprehensive step-by-step guide.

1. Finalise your business idea.

All businesses start with an idea, but this requires some active brainstorming. Some ideas may stem from a problem you want to solve, while others can be based on your own hobbies.

First, consider what products, services or solutions you can offer. Maybe you want to start a t-shirt design business or become a self-employed virtual assistant. Pinpointing what you have to offer can help to determine your business purpose and what could potentially set you apart from competitors.

If an idea still doesn’t strike you, ask yourself the following questions:

• What expertise or skills do you have?
• What are your interests and passions?
• What do people normally come to you for advice about?
• What have you always wanted to do, but lacked resources for?

Answering these questions can plant the seed for a business idea, or expand on a concept you already have. The important thing to remember is that it should be profitable and something you can fulfil. In which case, creating a concept map can bring your vision to life.

UK businesses cover a broad range of industries and areas, and it’s rare to have a product or service that hasn’t been done before. But your business doesn’t need to be new in order to be successful. Instead, identifying a niche can help you tap into overlooked or underserved markets. For example, selling a specialised shampoo product for specific hair types.

Already have a specific business idea in mind?

You may have already developed your idea and need some extra inspiration on how to start your business. The good news is there are many sectors you can tap into—some of which you may be passionate about and want to explore:

2. Decide on your target audience.

A business can’t thrive without consumers. Once you’ve established your business idea, you’ll need to determine your target audience as part of your market research. This is a specific group of people that are most likely to want your service or product, and who will eventually become your customers.

Knowing who your target audience is will inform the rest of your marketing strategy. A common way to do this is to create buyer personas using demographic information such as location, gender, age, income and even marital status. This will help you understand your consumer’s needs, preferences and behaviours.

Identifying these categories through online analytics tools will allow you to design your customer journey map and figure out how to engage with consumers.

No two customers are the same, however. Even different generations will have their own buying habits. For instance, marketing to Gen Z might require a more social media-driven strategy, while marketing to Millennials might be more experience-led, through live events and pop-up shops.

Understanding these crucial differences will help you to determine how to market your business to your chosen audience effectively.

3. Research the wider market.

For your business to take off, you must understand the industry and market you want to enter. That’s where market research comes in. This is a detailed assessment of your business’s target market and potential competitors in a specific industry.

Market research can be conducted via surveys, interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, customer research and more. During this critical analysis, consider the following:

• Market size. How many businesses are in your potential industry?
• Market value. How much money does this industry generate every year?
• Market demand. How much demand is there for what you’re offering?
• Market need. Are there any gaps in the market that you can fill?

Through this critical research, you can identify your target audience (see step above) and demand. But a broader market analysis will include industry-wide insights from reports and resources, such as census data and public statistics.

Understanding the market also lets you discover long-term trends, search volume for your product/service, potential market-impacting elements, and even emerging buyer trends. However, analysing your competition is what can really influence your unique selling proposition.

Other helpful tools for effective market research include:

• Competitor analysis. A subset of market research that refers to comparing your brand against competitors to understand their strengths, weaknesses and market position. This includes an in-depth breakdown of their sales and marketing tactics, growth strategy and other business aspects.
• SWOT analysis. A planning technique that analyses your business by the following criterion: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This broadens the scope on what your business does well, where it can improve and how to maximise opportunities. SWOT analysis presentations are typically used as part of a strategic or planning process.

Once you’ve identified crucial market trends and stacked yourself against the competition, you can then move forward with your business plan.

4. Put your ideas into a plan.

With the foundations set, it’s time to build your research and analysis into a clear and concise business plan. This strategic document outlines your business goals, strategies and structure. It’s the perfect tool for potential investors to see where your business is headed. And with 19% of businesses failing due to a flawed business model, your plan must be air-tight.

The format of your business plan will depend on how you wish to showcase it. You may create a business plan presentation or even a detailed infographic – as long as the essential details are there.

The key elements of a business plan include:

• The executive summary. Introduces the business and highlights your company goals and methods to achieve them. It’s normally the first item in the business plan.
• A business description. Describes what problems your service or product solves, why your business has competitive advantage and what makes it unique.
• Market analysis. Explains how your business fares against its competitors and information on target market, market size, segmentation analysis, growth rate and trends.
• Organisation and management. Details your business structure and the people running it, as well as risk management strategies. Organisational charts work well here.
• Products or services. Describes how your business will operate and the products/services on offer. This section will also explain how much your products/services cost, how you plan to source materials and more.
• Marketing plan. Identifies the characteristics of your product or service, including SWOT and competitor analyses. Your marketing plan will also explore how you’ll promote your business and the money spent on marketing.
• Financial plan. Includes a proposed budget and projected financial statements, such as income statement, cash flows and a balance sheet. It forms an integral part of your sales strategy presentation.

Don’t forget to update and revise your business plan as you see fit. This can range from monthly (i.e. inventory levels and KPIs) and quarterly (i.e. customer feedback and marketing campaigns) to annually (i.e. long-term goals and market analyses).

Editable business plan templates for your startup.

5. Decide on a business name.

Your business name is arguably one of the most important decisions as it reflects your brand identity. A business with a well-chosen name will be instantly recognisable and resonate with their target audience.

Consider what your business offers and what name or title mirrors that product or service. For example, a food shop named ’Snacktime’ or a fashion brand called ‘Thrift Style Edit’ are succinct and effective.

When choosing a name, you’ll want to make it memorable but not too off-beat that it restricts your business. Some 72% of the best brand names are made up words or acronyms, so try to be as original as possible.

Your business name will also inform your business logo and other brand marketing materials, so it should be short and cohesive. For example, a lengthy business name might take up a lot of space on a business card or be too wordy for a website domain name.

6. Register your small business.

With your business name in mind, you’ll need to decide on its set-up and register it with HMRC. The structure of your business will depend on your business model, industry, funding sources, number of employees and more. This will then inform how your business is taxed, and how much tax you’ll pay.

There are three types of small business set-ups to choose from:

• Sole trader. Also known as sole proprietor, this is the simplest and most common business structure. As a sole trader, you are legally required to pay tax through the self-assessment tax system every year to notify HMRC of your earnings. This also means you’re personally liable for any business debts.
• Partnership. As the name implies, a partnership structure is ideal for a business run by two or more people. Each party must pay tax on their portion of the business’s profits through a personal self-assessment tax return every year. Both partners share responsibility for debts, profits and losses.
• Limited company. A limited company (or LLC) structure means the taxation and finances of your business is legally separate from your personal finances. This provides extra protection from business damages, debts and losses. LLCs must register with Companies House and HMRC, and involve more accounting and management responsibilities.

Whether you’re a sole trader, partnership or limited company, you must register to pay VAT (value added tax) once your business has a turnover of at least £85,000.

You may need an additional permit or licence if you plan to sell food or alcohol, want to be a street trader, or if you want to play music at your establishment.

7. Secure the necessary funding.

Securing the right funding is critical when starting a business. Granted, you’ll first need to open up a business account and speak to an independent broker about business insurance. Then you can consider how much money is needed to fund your business.

There are two categories of funding – internal and external:

• Internal funding. Self-funding through personal savings, credit cards or funds from friends and family.
• External funding. Crowdfunding, venture capital, angel investors, small business loans and grants, and start-up investors.

It’s important to weigh the pros and cons of both categories. For example, funding internally through friends and family may be easier, but you have to ensure you can pay them back. In which case, external funding can help to minimise that risk.

Around 60% of new businesses are at risk for accessing new borrowing, which can be a result of poor credit scores. When planning the funding of your business, remember to account for all costs – no matter how small. This can range from product sourcing and development to unexpected costs like insurance and taxes.

Stuck on financing ideas? You might want to consider the following:

• Equipment financing. Finance expensive equipment and other business necessities with a lease or loan.
• Business credit cards. These allow you to access credit and manage cash flow. Credit limits and interest rates will be based on your credit score, financial history and business revenue.
• Small business loans. Some lenders offer loans for inventory, equipment or supplies and machinery. You can also apply for a government-backed start-up loan.
• Business grants. Small business grants are a viable option as you won’t need to pay it back. These can be hard to obtain, and many government grants offer money for specific things.
• Crowdfunding. This method allows you to solicit donations and raise money from a large group of people – usually on an online platform.

8. Build out your branding.

Starting a small business is one thing, but knowing how to market your business is another. For this, you’ll need to develop a strong brand. Your brand is essential to attract and retain customers, which will set you apart from competitors with similar offerings.

But your brand is more than just a name. It tell the story of your business and ties all your products, content and communications together in one neat package. Here you can lean on your business plan to define who you are, what you sell, and your business mission.

Essential branding elements that establish your brand identity include:

• Logo
• Brand purpose
• Brand name
• Graphics and images
• Colour scheme
• Typography
• Tone and voice
• Slogan, tagline or catchphrase.

Put yourself in the shoes of consumers and think about how customers might feel when they interact with your business. These insights will shape your brand strategy and help to inform the language and tone that make up your brand voice.

Consider Popcorn Shed, for example. This small UK business has a simple goal: to bring back the childhood magic of popcorn while incorporating gourmet adult flavours. Their packaging features whimsical designs and bright colours to reflect their fun and playful nature. This creates an emotional impact which helps boost brand loyalty.

You can emulate this cohesive branding by developing a comprehensive style guide to keep your brand voice and visuals consistent. Style guides should contain specifications for your logo, fonts and colour scheme. This will form part of your on-brand content, which includes custom templates of your branded assets, brand guidelines and more.

Aspects like colour can improve brand recognition by up to 80%. So your visual identity is crucial to how customers view your brand, and how they remember it. Brand visuals should be consistent across all touchpoints – from your website to product packaging.

Free business branding ideas from Adobe Express.

9. Launch your business online.

To help your business reach its full potential, it’s crucial to know how to market your business online. Over 80% of UK consumers make purchases over the web, and this is only set to grow over the next few years. With a strong online presence, you can capture your audience’s attention and watch your business grow.

Here are the most crucial steps to launching your business online:

Publish your website.

Whatever type of business you’re running, building a company website is vital to growing your online presence. A website is digital proof that your small business exists, and it serves as a hub of information for potential customers.

You can create a standard business website, an event website or even a subscription website. Consider including features like:

• An “About US” page
• Product or service pages with pricing
• An FAQs page
• A blog
• Contact information
• Reviews and testimonials.

Set up your socials.

With 70% of the UK population using social media every day, it makes sense to take your business there too.

Determine which social media platforms will work best for your brand and spread the word about your new business. This serves as a promotional tool where you can offer coupons and discounts to followers once you launch, and drive traffic back to your website.

Take your pick from TikTok to Instagram and Facebook, then engage with your audience accordingly.

Remember, how you set up your socials will depend on your target audience. Millennials and Gen Z are big on YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and other video-based platforms, while Baby Boomers will value communications through Facebook instead.

Join a marketplace.

If you’re looking to sell products online, consider joining an online marketplace. These digital platforms function like a virtual shopping centre, connecting your business to a broad consumer base.

Marketplaces like Amazon, eBay and Etsy are perfect for small businesses to enter e-commerce with less initial investment. These can also be linked to your Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Alternatively, you can use an e-commerce website. These allow you to build a complete online store with product pages and a checkout. Some sites also include features such as product management, customer support, bookings and returns.

10. Start the marketing process.

Once you’ve built an online presence, it’s time to advertise your business using a strong marketing strategy. This is likely to be the area where you’ll spend much of your time and budget.

Marketing goes beyond your business launch, though – it’s a continuous process that gets your business in front of audiences and builds a clientele. So it’s crucial to get it right. Luckily, you’ll have a marketing plan to refer to (see step 4). If you need a more visual plan to kickstart your strategy, there are various marketing plan presentation examples available.

This process is just as important as providing a quality product or service, especially in the beginning. Here are the main channels you’ll want to tap into to market your small business and grow your brand.

Digital marketing.

Digital marketing has become a ubiquitous promotional tool for businesses big and small. In fact, the UK is home to the largest digital ad market in Europe, so you’ll want to digitalise your business and take advantage of this fruitful process.

This means leveraging email marketing, social media, search engines and other online channels. It’s also beneficial to use online advertisements to drive traffic to your website and monitor your performance with analytics tools.

Social media marketing.

UK businesses spend up to 3.6 billion British pounds on social media advertising every year. This is testament to the power of social media marketing and the range of potential customers you can engage with. Once you’ve identified the channels you want, create engaging, relevant content that reflects your brand, such as posts, videos and Stories.

A brand that is consistent will likely build a dedicated customer base. Post regularly and interact with followers to build relationships. Consider running targeted ads to expand your reach, and try influencer marketing to reach an even wider audience.

Email marketing.

Like social media marketing, email marketing allows you to regularly engage with customers and website visitors. You may want to announce your launch with a grand opening flyer and all the relevant details to garner interest.

Even when your business is up and running, you can keep audiences up to date with the latest products and promos. You may also share monthly newsletters, welcome emails or an anniversary message. This is an effective way to encourage repeat business and grow a loyal customer base.

Content marketing.

Content marketing is a tried and true method for small businesses. This requires you to create valuable content that will primarily feature on your website. Develop blog posts, videos or infographics that capture organic interest and share these across social media channels and email campaigns.

Compelling content gives businesses a way to reach consumers who are researching a potential solution to a specific problem or need. Optimise your content for search engine optimisation (SEO) to increase visibility, and use analytics to measure engagement and fine-tune your strategy for better results. This can help to establish credibility and build brand authority.

Offline marketing.

While digital marketing is essential in today’s world, offline and in-person marketing campaigns can be just as effective. Use channels like billboards, radio, TV marketing campaigns and word-of-mouth referrals to reach people when they’re not online. This is especially useful to promote your business locally.

Whatever channels you choose, ensure your marketing campaigns have compelling calls to action to guide customers to your website or make a direct purchase. Use tools like Adobe Analytics to monitor results and improve your strategy. Marketing your business means a lot of trial and error, so get to grips with ecommerce metrics to optimize your marketing spend and focus on what works.

Explore more marketing materials for your small business.

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Good to know.

What do you need to start a business?

There are many steps involved in starting a business. This involves a profitable business idea, a solid business plan, a legal structure, investments, branding, a detailed marketing strategy and more. Of course, starting a business takes time, effort and perseverance. Make sure to do your research and rely on business-friendly tools from Adobe Express for Business.

How can I start a business with no money?

Starting a business doesn’t always mean sourcing huge amounts of money. You may find that your business requires little or no start-up costs, which is common in sectors such as graphic design and freelance writing. If you do need to secure funds, consider investors, loans and grants to get your business off the ground.

How do you start a business from home?

Starting a business from home follows a lot of the same steps as any other business. Identify a business idea that can be done from home, including home-based services like therapy and personal training, or online retail. Always ensure that you have the necessary permissions and register your business accordingly.

Is Adobe Express free?

Yes, our free plan offers many core features including thousands of templates, photo editing and effects, animation, and 2GB of storage. See our pricing page for details and to compare plans.