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I've got loads of things to say that can be categorised as 'rules of business' but it's taken me ages to add this second rule.

Build Sales Before Anything Else

In my business career, and especially since I started running Shopfitter E-commerce, I've seen lots of businesses come and go, and watched many different management and operational styles, some more effective than others.

Observing and analysing these styles is interesting; there's a certain group of people, usually the newly self employed, who seem to do anything rather than work on selling their products or services.

What interests them the most is the process of creating what they do rather than the business of making money from what they do.

I can quite understand this, doing what you enjoy is more fun than doing something that you don't but the crux of the matter is that if you don't sell enough you'll go bust.

Sales are the fuel of business

By avoiding actively selling what you've got you're just waiting for the inevitable failure of your business.

I've seen people messing around with their stock lists, convinced that the reason they aren't making sales is because they only have 200 items on offer instead of 2000.

Others who keep 'improving' their product so put off releasing them until they've got them 'perfect'. One company has spent four years (and counting) doing this, holding back their sales and marketing people and constantly burning through their investors cash.

Whatever the reason the outcome is going to be the same; the cash reserves decline, staff and suppliers don't get paid, new stock can't be bought...

Actively selling your wares brings money in to fund all these things, it provides you with the opportunity to refine your offering (because you get real customer feedback) and evolve your business.

For many small business owners selling is difficult, scary and unpleasant, but using excuses not to sell leads you away from the success you can achieve.

In summary, don't put off starting to sell what you've got for any reason (other than legal ones) and you put yourself ahead of at least 50% of business startups.

Good luck in your sales.