How To Start Your Business

Here are the steps to get started…

1.)   Do your research and think about what you want your business to be. Check out the competition, look at potential clients, assess where you fit in and what you can bring to the table that may be missing in the current market. 

2.)   Make sure you have the right combination of knowledge and relationships (or the ability to form the right relationships) in your field of choice.

a.)  Make a list of the products or services you can confidently offer. Ask yourself what you know the most about, what areas you excel in and what you do better than your peers?

b.) Write-down the people who you have relationships with who can be helpful to your company and what role that will be able to play in your network (such as: mentor, client, referral source, contractor etc.).

3.)   Pick a company name and tagline. Write a company bio or mission statement.

4.)   Decide what type of business entity you want to operate as. Then take the steps to form the business. If you are an individual, starting out as a Sole Proprietor will be fairly straightforward. However, if you plan on setting up a team or you have personal assets that you want to protect, an LLC might be right for you. There are other types of business entities as well, chose the one that is right for your business.

5.)   Obtain business licenses needed for your state and industry.

6.)   Open a business bank account and set up a way to accept payments

7.)   Set up an EIN for your federal taxes and determine if your state will require any additional registrations.

8.)  Hone your brand image, specifically a strong photo of yourself (and any other consultants on your team), pick 2-5 colors, 1-3 fonts, and a basic logo. The idea is to set up consistent imagery to represent your company. 

9.)   Set up your online presence using the above. Most importantly your website (you can use a simple platform such as Squarespace or Wix), then add your business to as many social platforms as are appropriate for your industry, such as Google, Yelp, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest as well as any other platforms that are applicable for your trade. Remember that the more places that you show up on the internet with the same brand image and clear message the better for SEO and customer attraction.

10.)  Start reaching out to your contacts and spreading the word about your new business.

If you still have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.