Starting a business can be exciting and challenging.  There are several issues that may need to be decided before starting any business.  It is important to sort these out ahead of time.

1.  Options available when starting a business

There are several ways to start a business:

• Develop an idea, obtain funding and establish a new company

• Buy an existing business and run it yourself

• Purchase a franchise that has already been established with a recognizable product, existing supply network and pre-established business procedures.

• Become an independent consultant

2.  Business Structure and business name

The business name and structure can be based on the nature of the business and how many people will be involved in running it

• Sole Proprietorship

• Partnership

• Company

3.  Legal issues

Find out what local legal procedures need to be followed in order to start a business.

Some of the requirements include:

• Licensing

• Permit

• Registration

4.  Tax requirements

Know what the local and government tax system is and how it affects your business

Some requirements may include:

• Applying for a tax identification number

• Deciding on how your accounting system will affect your tax filing

• Knowing what taxes your business will be required to pay, such as property tax, income tax, sales tax

5.  Financing and budgeting

It is important to have a budget that can be used to keep the business on track and monitor expenses.  Financing can be obtained from a number of sources including:

• Personal savings - Use personal savings to finance the business

• Borrow money – from family, friends or colleague at an agreed rate and terms

• Get a loan from the bank – apply for a business loan from the bank, which will require a business plan to be submitted

5.  Financing and budgeting

It is important to have a budget that can be used to keep the business on track and monitor expenses.  Financing can be obtained from a number of sources including:

• Personal savings - Use personal savings to finance the business

• Borrow money – from family, friends or colleague at an agreed rate and terms

• Get a loan from the bank – apply for a business loan from the bank, which will require a business plan to be submitted

6.  Accounting

A decision will need to be made regarding accounting and bookkeeping issues.  Various choices can be made such as:

• In-house or outsource – this will involve whether to have someone outside your business do your accounting or to hire an in-house bookkeeper

• Accounting software – this will help minimize accounting errors and simplify the bookkeeping process while providing important financial reports that are crucial in making important decisions for the business.  Accounting software include QuickBooks, Peachtree

• Accounting system – accrual or cash method

7.  Staffing needs

Based on the type of business you are running determine how customers will be served.  Will you:

• Hire employees

• Find a business partner

• Work alone

8.  Business plan

• A business plan can be used to:

• Obtain financing from the bank

• Provide structure for the business

• Monitor and evaluate performance of the business

• Provide direction and help foresee the future

9.  Marketing

A marketing plan will include strategies, type of media to be used, cost and target market among other things.  Some of the ways to market your business include:

• Press release

• Online advertising such as pay-per-click (Google, Yahoo etc)

• Craigslist

• Buyerzone

• sba.org

• sba.gov

• Yellow pages

• Local newspapers

• Referral discounts

• Coupons and other freebies

• Fliers, posters and business cards

• Direct mailing

• Email marketing

10.  Resources

Determine where to obtain useful resources for running the business and for future advancement:

• Books – purchase or join a library and borrow books and other materials

• Internet – spend time searching the internet for information, subscribe to online newsletters

• Networking – use networking gatherings to exchange ideas with other businessmen and women

• Seminars, workshops and conferences – register and attend seminars etc hosted by experts in your field

• Magazine subscriptions – subscribe to print or online magazines and get updates on new things