How to start a business

Intro

A business is a great way to be in control of your work life. Not only can you do what you want to do but you can get paid doing the thing you enjoy and the pay is huge if successful. It can be risky but risk is important as every desirable reward comes with a risk. The more desirable the reward is, the more risky it gets and more time and energy is needed to achieve it. 

The basics

First set up the basics. That is the name, idea, people working with you, etc. For an idea, make sure it is a niche. Find a gap in the market and provide a product for it. Also it's a good idea to have a 2 or more people working with you. Just look at Bill Gates and Paul Allen; Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak; and Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Remember to choose a partner that complements your personality. For example if you an extrovert, then find a introvert; If you look at the whole picture, then find someone who looks at the small details, etc. 

Writing the business plan

Now you need a business plan. This is important as banks, investors, etc will look at it to see if they should care about your business. Also failing to plain is planning to fail. You will write a description on the business future, what you plan to do and how you plan to get there. It will have a business description, operational plan, marketing plan, executive summary, etc. Here is a business plan guide from The Balence and another businesss plain guide from Investopedia.   

The finance side 

Now it is the finance. I recommend an accountant to help you through the process. Calculate the start-up cost and running cost before you start the business. Once you have calculated the cost, try your best to finance it with yourself/partner, friends and family. If you still need more money, then get a loan from a bank or investor. It may be easier to get it from a bank and then in the future, if you wish to expand, get funds from the investor. Also make sure you get profit. Don't try to sell at a lost. You may think you might get a competitive advantage but you can use that profit to reinvest. Have a minimum of a 5% profit margin. I recommend 15% to 30% profit margin. Some may say 50% to be able to expand better. It all depends on your business. Also don't forget about taxes. The tax code is more then 40,000 pages long so speak to an accountant. 

The legal side

Now you need to register the business and the legal stuff. It's too much of an hassle to do it on your own so get an attorney to help you through the legal process. Choose the business entity ( LLC, S-corp, C-corp, sole proprietorship, etc), register an intelictual property like trademark, register an licences required and then the business is official.  

The marketing side

Now it is time to market the business. You need a website in the digital age. Make sure it works on both desktop and mobile. Get a Programmer to make your website and other software you might make like a mobile app. Remember to register the domain as your business name. If the domain is taken then change the business name. You also need a social media account. Don't just market your product in the social media. Provide some value. Also you need to do stuff like SEO, advertisement, etc. I would recommend affiliate marketing and creating partnership with other business to advertise each other product. Remember to have a bigger network as it would lead to more brand recognition. Focus on the brand as the brand is what attracts the customer the most. 90% of consumer spending is done in the subconscious. Look at Apple if you need help with marketing. It would be a good idea to have a digital marketer to help you market the business. 

The day to day operations side 

Now don't forget about the day to day operations. You will need a warehouse if you sell goods, plus you may want to sell to distributors and retailers to further your growth. Make sure you have everything you need like office space, store, etc to do your operational business. Make sure the product is of high quality. Focus on keeping your customers then trying to get new ones. If you keep your customers loyal, then you will get more revenue. It takes more time, energy and money to get new customers then to get keep the old ones. Plus loyal customers act as a free way of marketing your product. Don't forget about payment system,customer support, etc so customer can buy your products and use them in a convenient way. Hire freelancers to do certain jobs for you like design a logo for your shirt. It is more cheaper then to hire a employee but some jobs will require a employee. 

Reward yourself and the team

Now it time to celebrate. Throw a party with your team. You guys deserve it after all your hard work. Have a financial statement and keep track of all transaction. It is a good idea to reward your team and yourself for meeting certain business objective like getting $100,000 in profit this year. 

Summary 

In conclusion this is one of the ways to start a business. A business can be rewarding and can put you in a much better financial position. You will be able to do the things you dreamed about and do what you enjoy. Your hard work will pay off if you put the time, money and energy into the business and you are smart about it. Also i recommend Fiverr if you need to get certain jobs done. Hope this is useful and your business does well.