Launching a new business is a big challenge that requires a lot of effort and sacrifice, which at first might not be easy to handle. However, once you determine the main focus of your business and you find a suitable location to operate from, you are ready to make the first step and launch your business on the market. Regardless how stressful this first step might seem, allow yourself to enjoy the fact that your ideas will finally come to life. Don’t underestimate the amount of work you will have to put into your new business, as it will require a lot of attention to details, search for investments and coordination of multiple tasks that will develop simultaneously.

If you want to find something similar to compare the process of launching your own business you can imagine the process and feeling when launching a rocket. You have the countdown until the big moment where everything needs to be working properly and be under control before the launch. The staff needs to be on their positions prepared to answer the challenge ahead. Now imagine all this but this time you are the person behind the entire organization. You are the one that needs to make sure everything is in order as you will be responsible for the success or failure of your business.

So what are the most important things you need to have in place before you launch your business?!

A Business Plan!

The business plan is the basic element that sets the foundation of your business. Don’t be cocky and think that you can run a business without having a plan just because you have a good idea. Once everything is put in writing you can get a better overview of the entire concept and it will be easier for you to detect the flaws. It will help you understand the market and evaluate the chances of success for the products or services you offer.

As part of your business plan you should include an offer that will be custom made according to the needs of your target audience. This is your best weapon against the competition and it is the only way you can give your business a chance to blossom.

Determine the price

You will need to set a price for the services or products you offer. When creating the price you should need to take several aspects into consideration. In order to be competitive you need to make in-depth analysis of the current offer. See what your competitors have to offer and how much do they charge. If possible, find a way to add value to your offer as that will give you an opportunity to increase the price and gain more profit. Calculate the minimum price that you can afford to offer without losing any money and then add reasonable profit margin so you can earn some money.

Some businesses have busy and not-so busy periods, meaning that some periods will be more profitable than others. The business plan is a great way to anticipate these periods and find a way for your business to survive during the “dry” times. The business plan will help you avoid financial surprises which if not handled properly might have a devastating effect on your business. There are many examples of businesses that had a lot of potential but due to inadequate planning were never realized.

Have a marketing plan!

Once your business plan is all set you would need to work out a marketing strategy. A quality marketing plan should be based on several information; your target audience, the reason why they should choose your products/services, and what is the best approach to get their attention. Some people make the mistake of considering the marketing plan as irrelevant aspect of their business, but in fact it can be a crucial element that can have huge impact on the development of your business.

Give your business a catchy name!

Everyone and everything needs a name, and so does your business. Choosing a name for your business can be the best part of the process. It is fun as it allows you to let your imagination run wild. However, it can also be very stressful, as the name would be the first thing people would relate to you and your business.

That is why you always need to choose a name that hasn’t been used before. In fact using a name that has already in use by another company can get you into serious trouble. To be on the safe side, make a list of appealing names and search the net to make sure nobody has though of them before. Once you confirm that your ideas are unique you can make your final choice.

If you want to save some time checking the net, you can use CorpNet™ which allows you to check whether the name you have chosen for your business is not already taken. The last thing you want to do is invest time and money into promoting a great name that is used by another business. Another thing you should pay attention to is the legal name and the company name of your business. They can be same or different, thus different rules could apply. If the names are different then you will need to register a Doing Business as (DBA) a name within the state or the country where you plan on doing business. Have in mind that if you decide to go with different names then you would need more creative power as you will have to think of two rather than one original and appealing name.

For your convenience CorpNet™ can assist you in preparing the application for registering your name into DBA. When choosing a name for your business it might be a good idea to buy a URL which you can use for your official web site. The URL should contain the name you have chosen for your business allowing potential customers to easily find the services/products you offer. Don’t forget to protect your business name, as this will prevent others from using it, thus you will avoid creating confusion for the customers. CorpNet™ can help you learn how important the name for your business is through their consulting services and guide you through the initial phases of your business.

Give your business a legal entity!

When creating your own business only the sky is the limit. There are a number of structures you can choose from such as:

– a C-corporation or S-corporation where you can incorporate your new business;

–  a partnership with another company that offers similar products or services for easier access to the market; or

– business that will operate as a sole proprietorship.

The choice you make will determine the rules of the game. Every formation has its own advantages and disadvantages, good and bad points. Estimate which model would be most suitable for the type of business you have and try to make it work in your favor. If you need additional help use the online guides of CorpNet™ and the specialized tools tailored to help businesses find the model which best fits their field of work.

CorpNet™ can also help you with the legal entity for your business and give you some guidelines on how to find a cost –effective solution that will make your business official as simple as possible.

Those businesses that are more complex and new on the market need to have good support and quality team that will be familiar with every procedure. That means that it might be a good idea to find an idea to find a good attorney like Dunn DeSantis Walt & Kendrick and a tax accountant from the start of the business to avoid costly and unpleasant situations in future.

To get more tips on how to run your business and learn the secrets of the successful entrepreneurs make sure to read other articles we have on similar topics. We talk about licensing your business; about the rules, including the ones that can be broken and those that must be obeyed at all cost; methods to protect your business with suitable insurance policy and finally how to promote your business on the market and sell your products or services on the market.

Remember that launching a new business is never simple so you shouldn’t be discouraged if the business doesn’t progress with the pace you have envisioned. If you believe in your idea and you know that the audience will love the things you have to offer than give your business time to grow. No business has become big overnight, so yours would probably not be an exception to that rule either.