Auto repair shops are one of the fastest growing sectors of start up freelance businesses If you’re thinking about starting a new business, your very own business,in 2015 and joining the more than 28 million small business owners in the US make sure that you follow these 7 steps described in a blog post by La Tanya Williams that I found on Huff Post What Is Working: Small Business, January 6, 2015. La Tanya lists eight steps as essential I only list the seven that I believe are essential. La Tanya includes a Dun & Bradstreet (DUNS) number as essential I believe that it is good to have but not essential in the start up phase. ( Here the link to the entire blog post http://goo.gl/Y3Qoo2)
Step 1 - The Write Move (Put It on Paper or on your Computer)
Step 2 - Make it Official
County and/or city if sole proprietorship or partnership
Fictitious trade name documentation with your city or county
If you’re not sure of the business type best for your business you may want to consult with an attorney in order to make the best decision for you.
Step 3 - Take a Number
Step 4 - Get Ready for Business
Step 5 - Get Your Name Out There
Step 1 - The Write Move (Put It on Paper or on your Computer)
- Your idea
- Business name
- What your logo looks like
- Who are your customers
- What need will your business meet for your customers
Step 2 - Make it Official
- Decide on a business type (corporation, limited liability corporation, partnership, non-profit corporation, sole proprietorship)
- Register your busines
County and/or city if sole proprietorship or partnership
Fictitious trade name documentation with your city or county
If you’re not sure of the business type best for your business you may want to consult with an attorney in order to make the best decision for you.
Step 3 - Take a Number
- If you plan to hire employees or your business type is one other than a sole proprietorship or partnership you will need an Employer Identification Number (EIN). Go to IRS.gov and complete the simple application and get your EIN. You’ll need it because people will want it, or your social security number in the case of a sole proprietorship, for all sorts of things like a bank account, business credit and other stuff.
Step 4 - Get Ready for Business
- Open a business bank account. If you are really serious open an account for your business separate your business from your personal finances.
Step 5 - Get Your Name Out There
- Get some business cards and stationery (Check out Vistaprint.com)
- Get a domain name and register it with an website hosting company like Weebly.com which also will give you a free website. Other website hosting companies are Godaddy.com or Namecheap.com
- Set up a website - (Weebly.com gives you a free one as does Wix.com)
- Set up your social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn)
- You can start a free blog with Tumblr, Wordpress, Google’s Blogspot.
- If you can afford it get a graphic designer to design your website, logo, business cards and stationery. If not use the resources in this blog post.
Dry cleaners are a fast growing start up business sector Step 6 - Get Free Startup Advice
All of these offer offer free training, and information on qualifying for contracts and business planning resources.
Step 7 - Research the Extra Things You Need for Your Business
You can do a lot of this yourself at no cost but if you are serious and you need others to join you in creating a successful business it’s important to surround yourself with experts. You have the great idea or innovative product, you may even know how to market your product but you may not know how to produce it, to scale your business, to find and convince investors, how to write a contract, how to collect a debt, how to write a business or marketing plan. All these things are important in starting and growing a successful business. Where you are not an expert you need an expert and unfortunately the best experts don’t come free. This company, Strategic Adviser can help you with these things. No we aren't experts in all these areas either but we know where and how to find them. We can help you find attorneys, bankers, investors, business development experts, staffing experts, accountants, and more. Take a look at our Success Formulas process which is described in several blog posts on this website and if you want our help go to our Contact Us page. We want you to become one the 25% of small businesses that start up in 2015 that are still around in 2030.
As La Tanya Williams says in her blog post “with perseverance and determination, you CAN start your business in 2015.
- Local Small Business Development Centers
- Local Small Business Administration Offices
- Colleges and Universities
- Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) has more than 320 local chapters
All of these offer offer free training, and information on qualifying for contracts and business planning resources.
Step 7 - Research the Extra Things You Need for Your Business
- Do you need special permits or licenses?
- Trademark your logo
- Do you have a product that’s patentable?
- Do you need investors outside funding sources?
- You need business and marketing plans
You can do a lot of this yourself at no cost but if you are serious and you need others to join you in creating a successful business it’s important to surround yourself with experts. You have the great idea or innovative product, you may even know how to market your product but you may not know how to produce it, to scale your business, to find and convince investors, how to write a contract, how to collect a debt, how to write a business or marketing plan. All these things are important in starting and growing a successful business. Where you are not an expert you need an expert and unfortunately the best experts don’t come free. This company, Strategic Adviser can help you with these things. No we aren't experts in all these areas either but we know where and how to find them. We can help you find attorneys, bankers, investors, business development experts, staffing experts, accountants, and more. Take a look at our Success Formulas process which is described in several blog posts on this website and if you want our help go to our Contact Us page. We want you to become one the 25% of small businesses that start up in 2015 that are still around in 2030.
As La Tanya Williams says in her blog post “with perseverance and determination, you CAN start your business in 2015.
