Last week I began work with a new client that I will call Ed, (not his real name). Ed owns a used appliance business that is 18 months old. During our initial working meeting I asked him, “What do you wish you knew before you opened your business.”

I expected Ed to say that he that wished he had known how to do a business plan or where to find funding or maybe how to do marketing. But instead he said that he wished that he had realized how much fellow used appliance owners would resent a new competitor. Used appliance owners saw his business as a threat. They would not share information about their industry. Competitors gave Ed incomplete or sometimes even false information. Ed was both surprised and disappointed.

Another piece of information that he said would have been helpful for him to know before he started the business was how much the economy of scale or lack of it affected his pricing ability and product availability. When his supplier suddenly went out of business, he lost the ability buy to in volume. Ed found himself having to buy fewer appliances. The loss of his supplier lowered his businesses’ income potential because his cost per appliance escalated. He had to pass the increased costs along to his buyers which made his prices less competitive resulting in fewer sales.

Lastly the wear and tear on his body from working 6 days a week surprised him. He is in his 50’s and is working 6 days a week instead of the 5 that he is used to working. At the end of the week he is totally exhausted. He spends most of his day off on Sunday in bed or lounging around the house doing household chores. Ed finds himself still tired and not fully rested when he returns to work on Monday.

You can learn from Ed’s experience. Create systems and processes that help you deliver good customer experiences in a profitable business that you enjoy. Successful business owners research, plan and put effective operating structures in place. Here are 6 tips you should read before you open your business.

1. Construct a business plan that details strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (called a SWOT Assessment ). Focus on the strengths and opportunities as you develop your business plan. Incorporate your skills and experience in your plan as you create systems and processes that will launch a profitable business. The best business plans include mitigation strategies which address the weaknesses and threats to your business. An example of a mitigating strategy is to have several suppliers and consignors. A single supplier represents both a threat and a weakness to any business. Do not make the mistake of allowing your business success to rely on a good relationship with a single supplier. Business relationships end every day because suppliers change their business model or go out of business. Let the driving force in your success be the maximizing of your business’ strengths and opportunities.

2. Take actions based on information only after getting corroboration from authoritative sources. Operate from a position of strength. Get business information from research, business organizations, industry associations or regulatory agencies. Competitors can be helpful friendly rivals. Alternatively competitors might consider your business a threat acting accordingly.

3. Choose a business with the potential to generate the level of income that matches your goals. Knowledge of the economic forces or industry income potential for a similar business in your town, could prevent you from expending tremendous time and energy before finding that conditions or circumstances prevent the business from producing as much profit as you projected. If you find the business can not support your needs change the business model or choose a different business.

4. Focus on acquiring enough quality products to stock your store. Consistent replenishment of good merchandise attracts customers and maintains customer satisfaction. Low stock on the sales floor results in customer churn which lowers sales which in turn lowers profit. Retaining happy current customers who refer their friends and family costs less than relying mainly on acquiring new customers. Every business needs new customers because existing customers might move, find alternate stores, have less disposal income or for whatever reason they stop shopping at a store. New customers’ purchases replace the sales lost from former customers. Make attracting new customers a part of your marketing efforts. As much as possible establish practices designed to keep current customers happy with your store’s merchandise and customer service. Happy customers enhance your store’s reputation producing repeat customers who buy again. Track customer satisfaction. Make corrections or adjustment as needed.

5. Free time on your schedule to work on your business. Make a work schedule that does not abuse your body or overwork your staff. Analyze the sales each hour to determine how many hours the store should be open. For example, if you find that store traffic and sales during the hours of 10:00 am to 12:00 noon are sparse to nonexistent try opening from 12 pm to 6 or 7 pm to test how the hours affect sales. Arrive at 10:00 am to handle the accounting and tidy the store. Post any hours of operation changes to inform customers. Track results to see which schedule works best for your store.

6. Manage costs eliminating expenses that do contribute to higher profits or smoother operations. In the beginning you will have to review income and expenses daily. Meet with your accountant regularly to determine where adjustments might need to be made.