Business Opportunity Success Tip #5

Guest Post:

Get It Off the Ground the RIGHT Way

Now that you’ve narrowed down your business to a specific category, it’s time to actually start preparing for opening your business. It might be a good idea to make an agenda, as there are a lot of things to consider when you are in the final stages of starting a company. The first thing that you should do is to finalize your business plan.

Careful attention must be given to this activity as it can reveal potential problems when you are actually conducting operations. Ideally, your business plan should be as detailed as possible. List the order in which your tasks will be executed. Write a detailed case scenario of day to day operations, too.

Next, choose an appropriate business structure. Small companies are advised to be sole proprietorships because the requirements for securing licenses are much easier. It also has a much simpler structure. The downside is that the entity is not separate from you and you remain liable for your business. This means that if your company is in debt and cannot pay, you become personally liable to pay. A partnership business structure usually provides some limits to the liability of some partners but imposes the same liability to general partners

Corporations and limited liability companies provide some degree of protection for incorporators. This is because the resulting entity assumes its own liability, and separates itself from the incorporators in many instances. Setting up these types of companies typically requires more work and is more expensive.

Business registration can also require a lot of activity. Some firms can provide business setup services at competitive rates, so you should look into these if you want to save some time. On the other hand, if you want to save on money, you can just go ahead and do it yourself. Make sure you know all the requirements beforehand. When choosing a business name, select one that is easy to understand, yet different enough to be unique from the rest.

Office space is another important consideration. Will you be renting space in a building or will you set up your office at home? Money is an important consideration and new entrepreneurs usually save more by setting up an office at home. Another strategy to save on your much-needed dollars is to buy second-hand furniture and office equipment, instead. Always shop around to save on all items, even office supplies.

While a lot of businessmen and women have their business offerings figured out, many fail to take into account the important aspect of accounting! Balancing your accounts and making a record of everything is crucial to a successful business.

You may elect to hire an accountant or accounting firm for your operations. However, small businesses are finding out that they can do the accounting themselves with the help of popular small business accounting applications.