10 Easy Steps to Turn Your Passion Into A Revenue Stream

No doubt passion is a viable commodity, but it won’t convert into a revenue stream without a solid business structure. In this article, we will help you boost income by teaching you how to start a small business in ten easy steps to turning your passion into revenue stream but, how to start your own business?

In line with the thoughts of a giant American media executive, Oprah Winfrey — Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.

Passion is undoubtedly a recipe for success. A remarkable percentage of great men, such as Elon Musk, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Albert Einstein have attributed their immense achievements to passion. Though most successful people were passionate about their fields, not all passionate men became successful. This leads us to the popular question, “is passion enough to achieve success?”

Is Passion Enough to Achieve Success?

If this question was repeated a million times, the answer would remain a big fat ‘NO’. Whether you want to change the world or build a multi-billion dollar company, you won’t get there by just being passionate. Regardless of how you define your success, passion doesn’t guarantee success.

The only way passion gives you an edge over others is the consistency and joy that comes with it. People who do what they love have a habit of showing up early and leaving late, which means they love their work.

Monetizing your passion comes with a number of procedures. Below are the 10 steps to turning your dreams into a revenue stream;
10 steps to turning your passion into a revenue stream

Conduct Necessary Research

You already have a business idea: that’s okay. Now is the time to test for its viability theoretically. You need to be sure what the market looks like and how your ideas fit it.
Throughout the research phase, you need to sleep as a researcher and wake as a statistician. You’re gonna be dealing with charts and real-time questions. The research phase is the validation phase.

Every successful business idea is a direct or third-party solution to a global or regional problem. People just don’t care how brilliant your idea sounds if it doesn’t aid their everyday life or secure their future.

There are various ways you can decipher these needs, such as focus groups, research, and trial and error. Though each field has its own distinct need, there are mutual questions you could ask regardless of the field you want to explore. Begin commercializing your passion by asking these five questions;

Is your idea essential to the market?
Who are your potential prospects?
What’s the age range of your potential prospects?
Who are your competitors?
How does your future company blends with the market?

Create An Actionable Plan

As the popular saying goes, “We plan to fail when we fail to plan”.
What kind of executive plans to fail? The kind that neglects the planning phase of an idea. Hear me out — every business needs a plan to become successful. The effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the planning phase is what differentiates a failure from success.

Writing a business plan is a draft containing your firm goals and methods. It is meant to guide your company from the juvenile stage through maturity and eventually development. Business planning is inevitable if you want to earn a living from your passion.

There are different types of business plans depending on your business, its proposed size, and capital. The two major business plans are the traditional business plan and the one-page business plan and don’t forget to include a social media account expenses if applicable and it’s always recommended to utilize an accounting software so you can focus on the strategy and execution.

The traditional business plan is for businesses who are seeking monetary support from investors or banks while the one-page business plan is for successful small business administration with no intention of raising funds.

The traditional business plan is a juicy and detailed plan that attracts investors. It must be detailed, easy-to-understand and deeply researched. The investors who are planning to invest in your idea would hire professionals to go through your claims, so you need to ensure your t’s are crossed and your I’s are dotted.
On the other hand, the one-page business plan gives clear goals and how you intend to monetize your passion.

Get your figures right

You don’t need billions of dollars to set-up small business owners that would convert your passion into a revenue stream. However, you’d have to put some flesh on the bone of your idea. Every business, small or large, requires some initial capital to kick-start the online business and cater for ongoing expenses till the passion starts yielding profits.

To get a rough sketch of your starting capital, compile a spreadsheet that provides the one-time startup expenses for your personal and business, such as — market research, inventory, equipment, legal fees, insurance, branding, licenses and permits, trademarking, grand opening events, property leases, and more.

In addition to the one-time startup funds, you’d need to estimate the amount required to keep your business licenses up and running for a year or two, such as — rent, marketing, and advertising, production, supplies, travel expenses, utilities, employee salaries, your income, and more.

Build a Business Structure

There are different structures you could adapt for your business, like partnership, sole proprietorship, corporation or limited liability company (LLC). It is pertinent to know that the business structure you choose would have large impacts on your business name, liability, and means of filing for taxes.

Though the business structure affects your business, you have the opportunity of changing it as your company grows. However, to convert your passion into an immense revenue stream, you can’t afford to make early mistakes.

You could study the pros and cons of different structures or consult an attorney or CPA to do the bulky paperwork for you.

Choose a Business Name and Register

Your business name is your foremost appeal to your potential customers, so you want it to be a nice one. Write a lot of suggestions, and think deeply before choosing. Your business name doesn’t have to belong or complex, for instance, Nike.

After you’ve decided what name you want to use, check if the selected business name has been used or trademarked. The funny thing is almost every normal word has a business using it, so you have to be careful.

Register the business name with the appropriate agencies, depending on your business structure. Sole proprietors are expected to register their business entity name with the county clerk or state while corporations are required to register once the business paperwork is filed.

Note: When commercializing your passion, ensure you register your domain name alongside your startup business name, so another person or group won’t use the name. Also, when purchasing the domain, make sure you buy all the .com, .net, .blog, and any other possible version of the domain name for safety purposes.

Get Your Licenses and Permits

The paperwork part can’t be cut off from the whole process. It is necessary to convert your passion into revenue streams. Depending on your location and the structure of your business, there are different licenses you’d have to get. Conduct your research or speak to established people in that field to know the licenses or permits you need.

Select An Accounting System To Match Your Business Needs

Without the right systems in place, your business won’t last a year. There must be systems to check and balance the profits, losses, and the affairs of your workers.

These systems help you make and manage your budget, adjust your rates and charges, supervise your business, and pay your taxes in due time. Take away the guesswork by hiring an accountant or set-up a proper accounting system for your business. Only a workable accounting system can protect the commercialization of your passion.

Choose Your Best Business Location

Like your business name, your business location is essential. Most successful businesses are lucky to be at the right place, at the right time, so choose your location carefully. Your location can make or mar your chances of converting your passion into a revenue stream.

Hire an A-Team

Make no mistakes, your business is not the building, it is the team. If you make the error of hiring anyone into your team, you’d get any result (really bad ones). Outline the respective positions available and highlight the responsibility of each worker.

In case you want to outsource the tasks to independent contractors, get an attorney to create a safe contract agreement.
Though solo entrepreneurs don’t need to hire a team, they need a great support team to make the commercialization of passion an easy journey.

Promote Your Goods or Services

After your business is set, you have to start attracting consumers and clients. You could do this by crafting a unique selling proposition and investing in a marketing plan. Then, hire marketers or marketing agencies to help you attract customers.

Don’t make a mistake of trying to market your products yourself. You can’t run a business and market it at the same time. Focus on improving your product or service and let the marketers do their work. Most businesses that failed almost had the right idea but lacked a good marketing plan. Don’t be like them, be smart and hire a marketer now.

SUMMARY

Creating a viable business is hard, but once you get it right and the doughs start popping, the initial stress becomes a thing of the past. We hope this post has helped you spice up your passion for greatness. Thanks for reading.