Certificate in Starting and Running Your Own Business

Certificate in Starting and Running Your Own Business

Learn how to start your own business and run it successfully

When starting your own business it is essential that it's built on solid foundations. The training we offer will help you prepare the ground for your enterprise by teaching you the fundamental business skills and knowledge required to be successful.

You begin by looking at the personal qualities and skills you'll need to develop within yourself. Ideas for a whole range of businesses are explored in depth, and if you've not already got a business in mind we can help you to decide on the right business for you. We also show you how to get started and how to complete the detailed plans you'll need for your business to succeed.

Throughout you concentrate on what you are going to do in real life, how to avoid disastrous mistakes and how to do those things that will help you suceed.

But that's not all. Once your business is up and running you'll learn how to manage and develop it so that it goes from strength to strength.

This course is for anyone who has the ambition and drive to start their own business. You will gain the skills and know-how that will give you the very best chance of creating a business that will work for you.

Certificate in Starting and Running Your Own Business
Working for yourself is challenging, creative, personally satisfying and can be very lucrative. The most successful business people make fortunes for themselves. Yet even with moderate success, you will earn far more from your own business than by working in a similar job for someone else.

Being your own boss will give you a degree of independence and freedom of action that many will envy. Your work will be varied, interesting and with rarely a dull moment. The depressing boredom of a monotonous job, an unpleasant boss, or the misery of low pay, can all be left behind. Running your own business gives you the satisfaction of being in control of your own destiny and you'll quickly realise how much more enjoyable working for yourself can be.

If you are ambitious, and want to succeed, then there are some very powerful reasons why you should start your own business. It is a step that will change your whole life.

And, to help you make that change we provide you with a course that is compiled by successful business people with extensive experience and knowledge. Validated by independent experts, it is comprehensive, authoritative and practical in its application

Your Tuition

One of the key aspects to successfully completing your course and having a good business plan in place is the quality of your tuition. All STT tutors are experienced in teaching by distance-learning and have been specially trained by us to help you.

Your personal tutor will give you detailed advice and guidance on your business ideas and plans. As you make your plans and complete your assignments you develop real business skills and knowledge. This planning process makes you practise skills that you will use all your business life. And, remember, you are developing these skills under the expert guidance of a specialist tutor. This will give you a much better chance of success than by trying to teach yourself through trial and error.

We have brought together a professional tuition service and an effective course so that you can work towards setting up a successful business.

Start Your Own Business: Synopsis

Note: Each module contains examples and case studies to make your studies easier and more enjoyable.

• Module 1. Introduction: How the course is organised and how you can start thinking like a business person.
• Module 2. The Basics of Running a Business: This module discusses the practicalities of running your own business and looks at the reasons why you might want to start up your own business.
• Module 3. Personal Qualities and Skills: This module shows you, through a series of self-assessment exercises, if you have the skills and attitudes needed to run your own business. You are encouraged to assess your strengths and weaknesses objectively.
• Module 4. Sources of Business Ideas: Here the emphasis is on where to look for business ideas if you do not already have ideas in mind - plus keeping an eye open to potential pitfalls.
• Module 5. Some Typical Small Businesses: This module examines the more popular ideas for starting a small business.
• Module 6. Finding the Right Business for You: If you have not already decided on the type of business you want, this module will help you make up your mind. It also looks at the subject of risk - and helps you analyse your tolerance to this.
• Module 7. Types of Business: What is the best type of business organisation for you? Looking at the pros and cons of sole traders, partnerships and limited liability companies.
• Module 8. Your Outline Business Plan: Here we look at why you need a business plan and start putting together an outline.
• Module 9. Research and Your Marketing Plan: This module analyses the research you need to do and explains in detail how to write your marketing plan. It takes into account how you can research your potential customers and analyses the reasons why people buy.
• Module 10. Your Product, Premises and Equipment: Why product knowledge is essential if you are to have a Unique Selling Proposition. How to decide on the right premises and the best way to fund the equipment you need.
• Module 11. Pricing, Costing and Estimating: Here we discuss how to set your prices taking into account the mark-up you require, charging for materials and calculating your hourly rate.
• Module 12. Budgeting: Why budgeting is essential and what information you need to prepare your budgets in a logical and objective manner.
• Module 13. Cash Flow Forecasting: The reasons why cash flow is vital to the health of your business. We give you a 31-point checklist - with commentary and guidance - to help you prepare your cash flow forecast.
• Module 14. Financing Your Business: Here we show you how to work out how much you need to borrow and how to go about raising that money. We also discuss what lenders are looking at when you approach them for a loan.
• Module 15. Sources of Help: This module tells you about the various people you can turn to for help and assistance - accountants, lawyers, bank managers, etc - and at what price! How to get the best advice for your money.
• Module 16. Setting up Your Books: You are shown why accurate financial records are essential, what books you need to keep and what options are available to make book-keeping for the small business simple and economical.
• Module 17. Administration: Here we consider details including choosing your company name, making decisions on employing staff and making sure your company is covered by all the necessary insurance.
• Module 18. Your Finished Business Plan: Here is where you bring together all your work so far into your finished Business Plan. You are given a 9-point checklist of what should be included and shown in detail how it should be presented to give you the best chance of success.
• Module 19. Management Practices and Company Organisation: The need for continuous planning and monitoring is stressed if your business is to grow and thrive. You are shown how to make more effective use of both your own time and that of your staff. Finally, the improvements in efficiency that sensible use of computer technology can bring are explored.
• Module 20. Business and Financial Practices: An introduction to the law of contract is provided. Taking on agents and your responsibilities to both the agents and your customers are considered. Guarantees and warranties, trade marks, copyright and patents are considered. The payment of creditors and the chasing of late payment from debtors are discussed.
• Module 21. Monitoring and Controlling Your Finances: The necessity for keeping accurate and up-to-date accounts is stressed plus the benefits of regularly comparing your actual performance against your budgets. The main areas that can lead to financial problems are investigated - with suggested solutions.
• Module 22. More about Marketing: What is the marketing mix? Preparing good advertising and measuring its effectiveness. Retail selling and how good salesmanship can increase sales - the steps to follow in face-to-face selling. Generating customer goodwill and handling complaints. Looking to the future - expanding your business.

Your Certificate

Your training leads to a Certificate in Business Planning. In order to qualify for your Certificate you need to complete all six assignments to the full satisfaction of your tutor. The material you submit must show that you are making every effort to put together a "workable" business plan.

With the knowledge and ability your Certificate represents, you should have a very good chance of establishing and running your own successful business.

Guarantee

Because we have full confidence in the quality of the course, you can inspect it for 15 days before committing to your training. If you are not completely satisfied with it, or you feel the training is not right for you, then just return the course materials, in good condition, within 15 days.

Start Studying Right Away When You Enrol Online

Anyone can enrol on this course. You do not need any special qualifications or background and you can start whenever it suits you.

There is no fixed enrolment date so you can start as soon as you are ready. Plus, you can study where and when you like - in the UK or abroad, at home, in the library or at work.

And, by enrolling online you can be studying in just five minutes. The first sections are available as soon as your payment has been accepted.

Your course materials are sent to you by post and should arrive within seven working days in the UK or 28 working days if you are overseas.

STT Online Student Community

As soon as you've enrolled you will become a member of our online student community, which is an easy way to contact other students and keep in touch with the college.

Course Objectives

This course is specifically designed to help you become a successful business person. This includes:

• The complete set of skills needed for starting and running your own business.
• How to come up with possible business ideas.
• How to decide which business is best for you.
• How to get your business started.
• How to run your business.
• How to avoid the pitfalls and dangers new businesses and new business people face.
• Instruction on what to do to be successful in business and how to do it.

By the end of module 18 you will know:

• The type of business you are going to start
• How you will organise it
• Who your potential customers are
• How you are going to attract them
• The prices you can charge
• The extent of potential competition
• The premises you will operate from
• Who your suppliers will be
• The finance you will require
• Operating budgets
• The amount of profit you might make and more.

Once you know this you have then reached the stage where you can start your business.