Creating your own business is a big part of the American dream. If you want that business to be successful, though, you’ll need solid planning. Below are three considerations you’ll need to have when you’re planning on launching your own company.

Think about Your Niche

If you’re going to start a business, it’s a wise idea to learn a little more about the niche that you want to fill. It’s not usually a good idea to try to tackle multiple fields at once, so think about how you really want to focus your efforts. Know what it takes to connect to the customers who frequent your niche and the pitfalls that others in your business run into before you open your doors. This will allow you a better chance to focus your energies and thrive. Once you’re successful and established in your chosen field, you can consider expansion if you wish.

Consider the Competition

Whether your business is online or in a physical space, you need to know who is else out there trying to do the same thing. Having competition certainly doesn’t mean that you should abandon your plans, but it does mean that you need to focus on what makes your business different. Take a look at what the competition is doing to figure out what you need to copy and what you can do better. With a little luck, you’ll be able to hit the ground running with a solid alternative to those who are already in the field.

Know Your Strengths

Finally, take some time to think about your own strengths and weaknesses. There’s not a single business owner out there who’s good at everything, but that doesn’t mean that these owners aren’t successful. Instead, they’ve learned what you will need to learn—business takes a team. You will need to bring in other professionals to cover the areas you can’t handle yourself. This might mean working with an accountant, an attorney, or even a solid human resources manager in order to make sure that your own managerial weaknesses don’t cause problems for your business. You might find that you want to learn these skills yourself. That would require finding a good way to learn. For example, an accounting or business teacher may be able to help you with QuickBooks software so you better understand the money side of the business. Bringing in these professionals will allow you to play to your strengths, as well as expand your portfolio of strengths, helping you to be a real asset to your new business.

If you’re creating a company, it’s vital that you have a good game plan. Think about the niche that you want to occupy, the competition that’s already in place, and the skills that you’ll need to make a difference in the market. If you can account of those variables, you’ll be a step ahead of most new business owners.