If you’re starting your own business and looking to avoid some rookie mistakes, you’ve come to the right place for advice. Your business is an extension of you and you don’t want to mess it up. It can be costly if something goes wrong and you don’t have the right precautions in place. This article will help you make sure that you’ve crossed all your T’s and dotted all your I’s to creating your own successful business.
Have a Plan of Action
This is a factor that depends on what field you work in. Establishing a business plan will determine how your business is going to function. If you’re in the restaurant business, for example, you’re going to need to have a plan for how you will obtain your ingredients, how they’re going to be prepared, and how the restaurant will function. Where will people order, dine, wait, and pay? These logistic questions need to be answered before you start making a profit.
If you’re in construction, there are even more factors to consider. You’re going to need to know what you’re building, the dimensions of your structure, how you’re gathering materials, and the timeline in which it needs to be done. You’ll also need to know how you prepare for such projects. A report by the Building Industry Association of Philadelphia estimates that going modular can reduce construction costs by 9% to 20%. This should be a consideration when figuring out your plan for business.
Select Legal Structure:
Every entrepreneur must decide how to structure their business for several reasons. What you choose affects liability and taxes, as well as which laws and regulations you’re subject to. You have four choices when selecting a legal structure: Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, LLC and Corporation. If you are not sure which structure is perfect for you, there are couple of service providers in the market who can help you to form or structure your business.
Choose Your Partners Wisely
Whether you’re in business with solely yourself or partnered with others, you’re still going to have to work with other people to get the job done right. Between talking with customers and outsourcing certain aspects of your business, it’s important you know who you’re working with and trust them to a degree. This can be through personal experience or simply based on their expertise.
You might also want to consider who works for you. As your business grows, you’ll likely have to hire more people to help. Who do you rely on? Do you contract work? The answers to these questions are important because those people have an impact on whether you have a successful business or not.
Working with partners can also pose a risk. Are they reliable? Are they trustworthy? If they’re not, this could impact you financially. As many as 23% of startups fail because they have the wrong team, so be sure that yours has the right people before going any further.
Have the Proper Documentation and Standard Procedures
Once you’ve established your team, the next thing to do is make sure you’re in compliance with all government standards. Get your inspections and permits taken care of, and make sure all your procedures are in line with the most recent standards. This is important because it only takes one mistake to lose your business. Considering 83% of Government contractors (network, IT, Wireless, and infrastructures) are out of compliance with Government standards, it’s easy to fall into this trap if you’re not careful.
You wouldn’t want to lose everything — or anything for that matter — because you forget to fill out the right form. This will, of course, vary from business to business, but doing your research is part of owning a successful company. If you’re not informed and educated about what you will need to function as a business, you won’t get very far. Don’t skip basic steps because you’re eager to get started.
While there is much more that goes into having a successful company, these suggestions are a solid checklist for starting out. Once you’re in business, there are more ways to ensure you stay in business.
