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Advice on Starting a Business

Advice on Starting a Business
Writing a Business Plan, Section by Section Are you starting a business? Advice for small businesses on what it takes to create a solid business plan, including forming an outline, forecasting credible financial information, and establishing a marketing strategy. Business Plans by the Numbers When writing a business plan, here's how to run the numbers that matter without getting hung-up on those that don't. How to Choose the Right Legal Structure S Corp, C Corp, or LLC? How to Set Up a Website Want to create a terrific website without spending a fortune? How to Pitch Angel Investors Obtaining capital can be one of the trickier aspects when it comes to starting a business. How to Hire Your First Employee Your business is growing so fast that soon you'll be not only your own boss, but someone else's as well. How to Set Prices Pricing is easily one of the trickiest aspects of starting a business. How to Write a Memorable Slogan How to Choose an Accountant How to Conduct Initial Market Research

Follow These 10 Steps to Starting a Business Starting a business involves planning, making key financial decisions and completing a series of legal activities. These 10 easy steps can help you plan, prepare and manage your business. Click on the links to learn more. Step 1: Write a Business Plan Use these tools and resources to create a business plan. Step 2: Get Business Assistance and Training Take advantage of free training and counseling services, from preparing a business plan and securing financing, to expanding or relocating a business. Step 3: Choose a Business Location Get advice on how to select a customer-friendly location and comply with zoning laws. Step 4: Finance Your Business Find government backed loans, venture capital and research grants to help you get started. Step 5: Determine the Legal Structure of Your Business Decide which form of ownership is best for you: sole proprietorship, partnership, Limited Liability Company (LLC), corporation, S corporation, nonprofit or cooperative. Step 7: Get a Tax Identification Number

45 Kick-Ass Resources for Online Entrepreneurs | Productive Entrepreneur Few people talk about this great productivity tip… You will reach your goals faster and easier if you’re willing to learn from others. Using brilliant, well-crafted resources created specifically for online entrepreneurs improves your online productivity. Below I have a long list of resources, most of which I’ve used myself. The rest come highly recommended from my mentors and online business friends. Enjoy the list. I’ve arranged the resources from those helpful to beginners to those suited to more advanced entrepreneurs. The links to these resources are not affiliate links. Helpful from the word go… If you’re new to online business, you’ll find value in the following resources. 1. Before you can blog, collect email addresses or sell anything, you need a little piece of real estate on a reliable web server. 2. I’m hoping that no one laughs at this resource recommendation. 3. Today web design is easy. Productive Entrepreneur is running the Genesis framework and the Prose child theme. 4. 5.

50 Life Secrets and Tips Memorize something everyday.Not only will this leave your brain sharp and your memory functioning, you will also have a huge library of quotes to bust out at any moment. Poetry, sayings and philosophies are your best options.Constantly try to reduce your attachment to possessions.Those who are heavy-set with material desires will have a lot of trouble when their things are taken away from them or lost. Possessions do end up owning you, not the other way around. Become a person of minimal needs and you will be much more content.Develop an endless curiosity about this world.Become an explorer and view the world as your jungle. Stop and observe all of the little things as completely unique events. Try new things. Read “Zen and the Art of Happiness” by Chris Prentiss.This book will give you the knowledge and instruction to be happy at all times regardless of the circumstances.

What Does It Take to Run a Business? Are you smart enough? Are you tough enough? Are you brave enough? If you do fail, what will it take to succeed at a second business attempt? You can’t really tell at the beginning whether someone will be successful with a start-up. When I started my first business, a couple former bosses made comments on my prospects. Was I lucky? Looking back, my prospects weren’t good. When I started my second business, everything had changed. I failed in six months. Start another business, of course. So what does it take to succeed in a business start-up? There are a couple things I’ve learned over the years.

s exclusive single-page projects keep everything organized Chazz Hacking—the project lead—chose Basecamp to help organize the store design, develop fixtures, and manage craftspeople. There were 40 people from 10 different companies involved in this 8 month project! The first thing Chazz did was make a new project in Basecamp called KEEN Retail: GARAGE PDX Glisan St. Then he invited a few core people to the project. He didn't invite all 40 people right away though. More people got involved as the project progressed over the 8 month span. Chazz wrote a Basecamp message to the team explaining the goals of the project and how he envisioned everyone using Basecamp. He also added PDF blueprint scans and CAD files for the team to reference as they started to plan the design. Fast forward a few months... Chazz has invited everyone who's involved in the KEEN flagship store opening. Finding the right door... One of the coolest things Chazz and his team did was use Basecamp's mobile app to help find the right dressing room doors. Digging in... Celebration...

Musicovery Startup How-To Guides Quitting your job to launch your own business can be a hard pill for your company to swallow, particularly if your company is in the same industry. Here's some advice. Laying the Startup Groundwork Starting your own business is not just about having a dream. There are real steps to ensure your business a successful start. Planning for a Successful Start The old adage goes: failure to plan is a plan for failure. Raising Capital You've got the idea and you've got a plan. Establishing Your Image You may have a great idea, product or superior service, but have you thought about what image your startup will take on? Finding Customers Without customers, it doesn't matter how great your product is, how well you branded you are, or how well funded your start-up is. More Startup How-To Guides How to Start a Foundation BY Gwen Moran Establishing a nonprofit requires an ongoing commitment, not just an initial injection of funding. An Introduction to Business Plans

Luckie's 30-Day Social Media Makeover The Social Path About Luckie Luckie & Company is a marketing agency packed with Southern charm and a freakish love of new ideas. About us David Griner is a social media strategist for Luckie & Company . Luckie's 30-Day Social Media Makeover. Throughout January, The Social Path is running daily tips on how to improve your social life — online, at least. Here's a quick recap of all the tips posted to date: Introduction. Comments Great Idea, guys. Posted by: Rebecca Caroe | January 02, 2010 at 02:51 PM This is a great idea! Posted by: Ginidietrich | January 04, 2010 at 04:51 PM Hey guys--this is great stuff... I came across it (a bit too late, as it's almost February) from StumbleUpon, and I've been going through the stuff that's new to me. Thanks for posting it, I've linked to it from my blog (www.nickthacker.com), and will be sharing it with my networks as well. Thanks for the great info and wonderful blog! Nick Posted by: NickThacker | January 30, 2010 at 01:13 PM Great Post.... Bo GREAT article! heh

How to Start a Startup March 2005 (This essay is derived from a talk at the Harvard Computer Society.) You need three things to create a successful startup: to start with good people, to make something customers actually want, and to spend as little money as possible. Most startups that fail do it because they fail at one of these. A startup that does all three will probably succeed. And that's kind of exciting, when you think about it, because all three are doable. If there is one message I'd like to get across about startups, that's it. The Idea In particular, you don't need a brilliant idea to start a startup around. Google's plan, for example, was simply to create a search site that didn't suck. There are plenty of other areas that are just as backward as search was before Google. For example, dating sites currently suck far worse than search did before Google. An idea for a startup, however, is only a beginning. What matters is not ideas, but the people who have them. People What do I mean by good people?

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