Ten trailblazing female founders are taking the fear factor out of starting a business in a new, game-changing series of toolkits.
The downloadable toolkits have been launched today by the Enterprising ME program to support and equip women with the appropriate skills to succeed in business.
They cover key topics for budding entrepreneurs to come to grips with, including building a marketing plan, understanding the law, managing finances, raising funds and protecting your IP.
From TV to Tik Tok and solicitor’s offices, the toolkits are authored by experts in their field including children’s performer and business mentor Tina Harris (Lah-Lah on ABC Kids), marketing dynamo Anaita Sarkar, The Mumpreneur Lawyer Davina Borrow-Jones, Legalite’s Marianne Marchesi and storytelling coach Odette Barry.
The toolkit authors will also deliver six virtual workshops over the next year to bring the materials to life.
Harris said she was excited to support fellow female entrepreneurs in realising their business dreams.
“We want to give you the skills and the mindset and the confidence to dive into entrepreneurship and create something amazing,” she said.
“Ideation and validation is my favourite thing.
“We’re going to cover everything you need to get started, from finding your perfect audience or customers to crafting a really engaging business story, to creating that first product or service.
Enterprising ME spokeswoman Fleur Anderson said the toolkits were full of practical tips and resources to help set women on the path to entrepreneurship and confidently navigate the most daunting areas.
“It can be an overwhelming time when embarking on the world of entrepreneurship, which is why we have released ten downloadable toolkits with tips from some of the best in the business,” she said.
“The toolkits are an important resource to help female founders themselves up for success, and remove the fear factor that can be a barrier to taking the leap.
“They are designed to give women a starting point, and introduce them to the building blocks of entrepreneurship.”
She said starting a business amid a cost-of-living crisis was challenging. The toolkits were timed to give women the extra support and information they needed.
Enterprising ME is a national program funded under the Australian Government’s Women’s Leadership and Development Program, and has been developed in partnership between the Council of Small Business Australia (COSBOA) and 89 Degrees East.
The national initiative is aimed at unlocking the untapped entrepreneurial potential of women – providing the skills, resources and confidence women need to become Australia’s next entrepreneurs.
It’s designed to support and empower women aged 18+ to create self-made career paths in entrepreneurship.
Takeaways:
Tina Harris – Research and planning:
1. Know your people. By understanding their needs, likes, and dislikes, you can create a product that they’ll love and keep coming back for.
2. Highlight your unique benefits and stand out from the crowd with a value proposition that makes your product irresistible.
3. Craft an awesome business story that connects with your audience.
4. Create a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to test your brilliant idea without breaking the bank.
5. Always be ready to adapt and improve.
Marianne Marchesi – Protecting your IP:
1. A trade mark includes your business name, logo or a phrase, and must not be too generic. 2. A patent protects your inventions and must be “new, inventive and useful”. 3. Designs protect your products’ visual appearance and must be new and distinctive. 4. Remember the difference between registration and certification!
Copyright protects your original content or images.
5. All IP rights except for copyright need to be registered (and in the case of designs, certified) in order to have exclusive protection, and it’s up to you as the IP owner to enforce your legal protection.
Emma Fisher – Managing money:
1. Understand what type of funding suits your business’s needs and stage of maturity. 2. Be prepared with your elevator pitch, key metrics and your financial information 3. Plan ahead. Serious fundraising should be started six months before you need the funds. That means having a forecast showing where you have cash gaps and how much money will be required.
4. Bootstrapping the business is often necessary and is a good way to test the health of the business model in the early stages.
5. Apply for funding from a place of strength, not when you need it most.
Downloadable toolkits here.
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