First Step Marketing

Large international corporations have departments crammed full of people whose only responsibility is to buy, buy, buy for the company: office supplies, employee vehicles, computers equipment, phone service, travel . . . you name it, they buy it. Their titles are usually Buyer or Procurement Manager. They also keep track of what arrives when, where it is stored, and how long it will last.

To a new business owner, this is the consummate luxury. Not only do you probably wish you had someone to do all this for you, but you could probably use the same big budget, too. Read the rest of this entry »

Running a business is risky business. Advice on how to make sure your company is properly insured against every possible hazard that may arise could alone fill a book. All business owners decide to take risks at one time or another as a matter of course, but when it comes to choosing insurance, some go all out and insure their business, facilities, employees, and even themselves against the most remote risks, while others buy the minimum amount of insurance, usually for catastrophic events only. Read the rest of this entry »

Even if you hated math in high school, keeping a good financial record of every one of your business transactions—whether it’s checks received or cash receipts for highway tolls paid while traveling on business—is a basic necessity. After all, every entrepreneur wants to know how much money her business is generating both before and after expenses, to see what all of her hard work is worth. Read the rest of this entry »

Every business needs a business plan. As a matter of fact, even companies that have been around for a while and have never bothered to write one could benefit from having one.

A business plan is a road map, a blueprint that spells out the specifics of how you plan to grow your fledgling company. It involves you stating on paper what you’re going to do, how you’re going to do it, and the time frame you plan to accomplish it in. Read the rest of this entry »

To get started on your quest, first call your town clerk to see what you need to do to make your business legal on a local basis. The clerk will also be able to lead you to state offices so you know what you’ll have to do with the state government.

Here’s a rundown on some of the things you’ll have to take care of in order to start your business off on the right foot. Read the rest of this entry »

This is the easiest type of business to start, and the one that most solo entrepreneurs select to get off the ground. A sole proprietorship also requires a minimum of time to start, since the most you have to do is to register with your state government as a new enterprise by purchasing a business license. Once you have it in hand, you’re off and running. Read the rest of this entry »

Two important questions to ask yourself after you’ve completed the interrogation: First, what do you like about the way they run their business? Second, what is one thing you noticed about their business that you would never use in your own? Remember, if you’re entering an area where your business will be facing competition, as long as you can focus your business in a way where you’re doing something that your competitors are not, you have an excellent chance to make your business stand out despite the competition. Read the rest of this entry »

If so, how long have they been around? And have they been largely successful?

If there isn’t already a business filling the niche that you plan to fill, don’t fret. It may mean that you have a special talent for keeping your finger on the pulse of American life, but it may also mean that your idea is just a little ahead of its time. Sometimes being second in a given field is better than being first; if you’re providing a brand-new product or service that people haven’t previously viewed as necessary to their lives, Read the rest of this entry »

There’s a big difference between a trend and a fad. Though it is possible to start and then grow a wildly successful business that revolves around a fad—think products tend to burn hot and fast and therefore usually extinguish themselves before a year or two has passed. The upside is that you can make a lot of money in a short period of time, which you can then use to start another business, preferably one with more staying power. Read the rest of this entry »

Basically, all businesses fall into one of two general categories: either they provide a service to a person or to another business, or they manufacture a product. There are infinite variations on each of these themes, but most businesses can be categorized in either of these ways. Read the rest of this entry »