INTRODUCTION

Are you already relishing the idea of starting your very own small business to earn extra money? Whether as a student, a minor worker or a stay at home parent.

Everybody is trying to get busy nowadays by putting their minds in things that are worthwhile. On most occasions, the thought of becoming a business owner thrills us more than actually carrying out the whole process, which frankly isn’t as easy as the idea.

Starting a small business would require grit and determination to succeed. We have compiled a step by step process to guide you towards establishing your own enterprise.

STEP BY STEP PROCESS INVOLVED IN STARTING YOUR SMALL BUSINESS

1 . Choose your idea

2 . Do some research in the field

3 . Create a business name

4 . Write a business plan

5 . Choose a legal structure

6 . Register your business

7 . Register for funding

8 . Build a team

9. Develop your Product And Services

10. Create a website/ Advertise

CHOOSE YOUR IDEA

 

For you to make the decision of starting a small business, a lot of ideas must have come to your mind. You do not just settle for the first and you definitely do not need to settle for the last one. It should be something you can do and are passionate about. That way, you have no excuse to quit when the journey gets tough.

DO RELEVANT RESEARCH IN THE FIELD 

 

You aren’t the first person to start a small business from home in that particular field and you definitely won’t be the last. Surely other similar businesses must have been established before. This is the right time to study them. You need to take note of the industry you are trying to establish your business in.

Here are a few pointer to take note of while doing your industry related research:

• What type of audience do they target in the market?
• What is their business structure?
• How do they provide Valuable services to better their clients’ lives?
• Do they work solo or in a team?

These Questions would help you gain clarity on the type of work that needs to be done and how much effort is needed in order to succeed.

CREATE A BUSINESS NAME

 

On a scale of 1-10 this is 10 times harder than it sounds because a business name is the name your enterprise would bear for a very long time. Obviously you do not want to make a mistake about it. Choosing a business name means choosing a name that would resonate with your business goals.

Some means in which you can choose a business needs is by ;

• Using your real names.
• Using some phrases related to your industry or business.
• Simply using a business name generator.

Some mistakes you should avoid while choosing a business name includes:

• Do not use names that are too long or hard to remember.
• Do not use local names that may be hard for people to understand.

Take note; always do some necessary research to know if the name you picked has been taken up by another business.

WRITE A BUSINESS PLAN

 

A good business plan would help to gear you in the right direction; one that would lead to the success of your small business. While writing a business plan there are some points you need to take note of:

• Summary of your business goals, purpose, mission and vision statement.
• Demographic of your target audience; their likes, dislikes and pain points.
• What problems are you trying to solve?
• What are your competitors doing differently?
• What area of their industry has nobody touched and how do you plan to swing into action?
• What product or services are you planning to offer and what makes it different?
• What is the cost of setup?

CHOOSE A LEGAL STRUCTURE

 

Let’s assume you have chosen your idea, created a business name and written your business plan. Now it’s time to choose what structure you want your business to operate on.

Having done all these steps listed above, now you would have had an idea of how your business would be run. Here are some types of structure;

• Sole proprietorship: This is a case where the business is owned by just you. You alone run the accounting, obligations and debt of your business. This type of structure is easy to set up and it works well for a low risk home based business.
• Corporation: Here, the business becomes an entity of its own. That is, it is not dependent of its owner. This is not a budget friendly type of structure because you have to comply with Record keeping and tax. The owner or owners are not held responsible for the business debts.
• Partnerships: A form of legal structure that consist of 2 ownership. In a way, it is similar to sole proprietorship because the business is not a separate entity from the owners. Each debt, profits and taxes are to be shared between them.
• Limited Liability: It possesses the characteristics of both a corporation and a partnership structure. It provided Liability to business owners and reduces tax.

REGISTER YOUR BUSINESS

 

Now that you have named your business, written a business plan and chosen a legal structure. What is next? It is time to register your small business online. Before registering ensure that your business name hasn’t been registered, by doing a trademark research.

For sole proprietorship you have to register a “Doing Business As” name, you can get yours via your state or county clerk office. You may also need to obtain a license which allows you to operate legally.

REGISTER FOR FUNDING OR LOAN

 

A business has different financial needs. It is best to identify yours from the start of your small business.

To be able to secure financial funding you should have a Start-up fund. There are few ways you can get a startup fund for your business:

• Savings: You must have been saving for a long time ahead of when you would start your business. If your Savings is enough you can use it.
• Investors: Involving an investor would mean they get ownership share or an active part of your business.
• Loan: Here you would still be in control of your business business you have nothing to worry about. To apply for a loan you would need a business plan and documents of your business expenses.

BUILD A TEAM

 

On most occasions most people do not want to thread the oath of success alone that is why they need to build a team. Building a team may not depend on how large your business is, you may have a small home business you can do alone but you may also want an extra hand so that you don’t get worn out by the workload. Maybe you have a bigger goal for yourself and may want to build your small bigger to a bigger one later on.

Here are a few pointer to help you build the perfect team that would create success:

• Learn to define the roles and responsibilities for each member of your team
• Ensure your team members are able to accomplish feedbacks and criticism
• Ensure that each member of your team can collaborate well on different projects

Following these pointers you would have a less stressful time.

DEVELOP PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

 

At this junction, you or the members  of your team may sit together and brainstorm some products or services you can offer based in the market research you have done since the beginning. When developing your products or services you need to have the following in mind.

• What type of problem does your product or services solve? What issues do they address?
• Is there a space for your products and services within your industry?
• Do I have a solid plan which would cover this project from beginning to end?
• Is there enough capital to finance such a project?
• Once the product or services are done, test it to see if it appeals to the market.

CREATE A WEBSITE / ADVERTISE

 

Do you know that having an online presence would increase your credibility as a brand. Creating a website for your small business would increase your reach. This way, you can meet your target audience over a wider geographic zone.

To create a website you have to start by choosing a company logo which is a source of identification for your business. This could include symbols,  images and text.

You also need to choose a company font and theme then choose social media accounts that you can work with to promote your business.

To advertise your business you need to create a marketing plan that would help promote your business to your target audience.

Am ideal marketing plan includes:

• A brief summary of your overall plan
• The vision, mission and goals of your organization and how the product can help achieve such feat
• Strength, weakness and opportunities in your industry and what need to be done to move forward 
• The total budget needed

SUMMARY

Having a successful small business is not a day’s job. It would require a lot of planning which may drain you out before you even know it.  Following our step by step lessons you would be sure to enjoy every process of building your small business from scratch into a successful company.