May Africans have left the shores of their beautiful continent in search of greener pastures abroad. There’s hardly any European country without Africans living in them either for educational purposes or just to find opportunities that are not available in their Continent. This narrative has given Africa a bad impression on those who have never been there. However, the growing economy has seen both Africans in the diaspora and other adventurous entrepreneurs with no African heritage, troop into the continent en mass to start building imaginative solutions that will further the development of the continent. If you love Africa, and you are considering building a start-up in the continent, below are a few things you should put in place.
- Go Back:
Whether you’re an African in the diaspora or an entrepreneur that has only been to Africa a few times the first thing you have to do is go back to Africa. This way you’d be able to do your feasibility study, understand the changes both economic and climate and also have a better knowledge of what the continent is like. You must have come up with a really smart idea, or you’ve heard people talk about their successful enterprises. You still have to go to the continent to know whether the same will work for you. This would also help you know if you can cope with the environment.
- Believe In Your Idea:
So you’ve gone back, and you’re comfortable with the African society. The next thing to do is believe in your idea. You want to pay more attention to the success stories of other entrepreneurs rather than the negatives. The truth is, it might get very discouraging leaving your comfort zone to a continent where you don’t know so much but you have to believe that your idea will stand out. If you’re doing something different or new it will be hard to get people on board because they too can not relate to the idea. So it takes you believing in it first.
- Find Your Way to the Market:
Do you think what you are producing or your innovation would be needed by the African community? You have to understand your product and the African market. Yes, your product could be new but will Africans see a reason to buy it? You have to spend a significant amount of your time conducting market analysis. You don’t have to do it alone, you can easily pay people to do it for you. Market research will cost time and money but if done well, you will have a bigger advantage over your competitors.
- Be On The Same Page With Regulators:
In Africa, taxation and over-regulation can be a burden to foreign companies. However, have a strategy of engaging with the regulators and make them your advocates. Ensure that all their regulations are followed to have a smooth-running business operation. Be sure to understand the laws guiding your industry, get your license and never default on taxation.
- Employ Qualified Individuals:
Make sure you know the right people for your industry. Hiring the right talent has a long way to go in the success of any business. Carefully select people who are fit for specific roles in your firm. Examine their portfolio and select the perfect fit. However, if you don’t know how to go about this considering that you’re new to the African continent you can outsource your HR issues to a global PEO. Global PEO stands for “global professional employer organization”, it is a firm responsible for helping employers to outsource specific tasks and processes related to employee management. With a global PEO, you don’t have to worry about employing the right person, you have it all taken care of.
- Focus On Advertising:
Now that you have everything in place, you know what the market wants, you have no regulatory issues, you have the right employees and you’ve started producing. The next thing to do is focus on advertising your brand or company to make it known all over the continent. Advertising will help you further publicize your product or services and it would even let the people know why they should have it.
Final Words
Starting up a business is not an easy task. It takes a lot of hard work and courage to get things going in a continent you were once an alien to. However, you have taken the step, and if you follow the above-listed steps, be sure to have a successful enterprise in the end.