In this economy more and more unemployed people are looking to create an opportunity for themselves, rather than waiting around to see if one comes to them. The higher the unemployment rates rise, the more unemployed seek other alternatives, like starting their own business.
Now starting your own business is an excellent idea! You just need to make sure you take the rights steps to protect yourself and your new start-up company. Whether you plan on opening this business yourself you will need two things: (1) Start-up cash; and (2) A Business Plan.
Starting a business, any business, is going to cost everyone some amount of money. Not only will you need practical things to start your business, such as location, inventory and staffing, but you will also need business licenses and corporate agreements. Here is a brief step by step item list to think about before launching into your business:
(1) What kind of business are you going to run?
(2) What makes your business different from your competitors?
(3) Have both long term objectives and short term objectives to guide you.
(4) What is the ownership like? Will it be just you or will you have business partners?
(5) If you have business partners, what kind of corporation will you have? Make sure to make a Partnership Agreement that outlines everyone job duties, job titles, and ownership percentages.
(6) Do a market analysis on your location? What kind of business will your location bring? What kind of people and businesses are near you? Is it a growing area?
(7) Who are your main competitors? Why are they successful?
(8) How much will you charge and why?
(9) Who makes up your management team? What are their strengths and weaknesses?
(10) What is your personnel plan? What kind of job positions will be available and what will be their pay?
(11) Finally, based on all you information gathered, come up with estimate balance sheets for your expenses.
Once you have laid out a rough business plan guided by the questions above. You can use this plan to entice investors or present it to a bank for a bank loan. Always make sure that you have checked state laws and local laws to ensure you have the proper licensing involved. Remember, that a good business plan is nothing until you put it into action!