The Essential Checklist for Creating Your Small Business From Scratch

Posted by Mimeo on January 16, 2018 in Perspectives.

Choose partners carefully

At the end of the day, who you choose to help jump-start your business will have an enormous role in its future successes. Look for qualities that will make a great partner like determination, intelligence, drive, integrity, and value. If something seems off, or if they aren’t a fit for the vision of your company, then re-consider their involvement.

Create a business plan

Consider finances and project plans for the future. It is a good idea to have a blueprint laid out to refer to throughout your business’ growth and development. Read more into what to include in your business plan here.

Choose a business name

Think of a name that will stick with future customers. You will also need to make sure the name you choose isn’t already taken. Try google searches first and ultimately get it checked at the state and federal level. Once you lock down on the name, don’t forget to register it with the state so that it cannot be taken by anyone else.

Select business structure

Choosing a business structure is really important in determining how your company will operate. If you do nothing, you will continue to operate as a sole proprietor or partnership. This means that if something were to happen to your business, your personal assets will be at risk. Becoming a corporation or LLC could provide a legal umbrella over you along with other perks and is something to consider.

Apply for EIN

An EIN, or Employer Identification Number, is like your business’ social security number. Having one will allow you to file taxes, create a business bank account, as well as other administrative tasks. Obtaining an EIN is free and you can apply here.

Register domain name

With your business name chosen, you will want to obtain your corresponding domain name. Having your own domain proves you are professional enough to be around for a long time and do business with.

Set up website

With your domain name chosen, you can start creating your website. This will be a very influential piece of your company, so if you aren’t a seasoned web designer, get a professional to create it for you. Even if you aren’t ready to launch your products at the first stage, just having something there with some information will have a positive appearance.

Set up social media accounts

Creating your social media presence is especially important for business to consumer companies. It is a great way of producing awareness for your up-and-coming brand. Choose the best platforms that you know will perform best with your target demographic and reserve the usernames you want.

Assign responsibilities

Assign responsibilities to co-founders. Disagreements could lead to a huge mess and can ultimately destroy your business so choose wisely and lay it all out as soon as possible.

Get Your Name Out There!

Regardless of initial budget you have for advertising, blending your marketing approach into multiple channels can help you test what works well. Consider allocating low spend to a Google Adwords campaign and/or social media paid display ads that are geo targeted to your location.

Blend this digital approach by creating some printed collateral; in the opening weeks of your new business, booklets are a powerful tool that can be leveraged to tell your brand’s story and why it will become an important part of the community.

By printing on-demand, small businesses are able to scale up or down depending on promotions and seasonality, without incurring any fixed costs.  Additionally, not having to keep any inventory of booklets and other marketing materials, such as brochures, flyers and postcards, allow you to keep test the effectiveness of your messaging and revise the content accordingly; without your business incurring additional costs.

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