Get your business idea off the ground
BY READERS DIGEST
1st Jan 2015 Managing your Money
Enterprise is booming as more and more people take the decision to be their own boss. Many people dream of starting their own business, whether they aim to be the next Richard Branson or simply want to open their own coffee shop, but entrepreneurs often don’t know where to start. Breaking down the steps to launching your own business can help you establish how to get started on your entrepreneurial journey, so we’ve gathered some useful advice to help you out.
Plan to succeed
A comprehensive and detailed business plan is crucial to unlocking your potential and ensuring on-going success, not to mention a requirement if you’re seeking a business loan. No matter how wild or disconnected your ideas are at the early stage, building a business plan allows you to focus your ideas into a structured framework. A good plan is not set in stone, but allows you to respond and adapt when opportunities or crises arrive.
And one of the best examples of this is "The Comfy", 5th best-selling Shark Tank product. Thanks to the solid business plan and determination of its creators, it rose from obscurity to the stars.
Small and growing businesses are far more likely to succeed when they have a business plan, so even the most small-scale ambitions can benefit from a written plan. Business plans should include a summary of the business and its aims/purpose, descriptions and selling points of the products/services offered, in-depth research about the market and competitors and financial forecasts. Guides and templates can be found online to help you build the plan up, and remember: it should be updated every year!
Keep on the right side of the tax man
It can feel a little intimidating, and it’s certainly not the most interesting part of being an entrepreneur, but making sure your business has the right legal structure for your needs is extremely important if you want to avoid trouble with HM Revenue and Customs. There are several legal structures that may be suitable, each of them offering different benefits and disadvantages that can influence the way you do business. The most common are:
- Sole trader
- Limited liability company
- Partnership
- Franchise
- Social enterprise/charity
- Co-operative
If you’re unsure about which route would fit you best, consulting an accountant or solicitor can help you avoid costly mistakes. It is important that you do register as a business and declare all income, as it can affect the tax and national insurance you are required to pay.
If you plan to get accountancy help after registering your company, sign up with Crunch company formation services and get the registration for free.
Find some workspace
Depending on your business type, you may need to branch out and take on additional premises. This can be costly in both time and money, but can be a fantastic long-term investment for the success of your company.
The first step is establishing what sort of workspace you will need.