Angela Proffitt

Event & Productivity Consultant

STARTING YOUR BUSINESS

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The Quick Checklist & Marketing Guide to Getting Started

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Getting Started: Business checklist What is the goal?

What target audience can help satisfy that goal?

What valuable experience can we deliver at a key stage of their journey?

What makes OUR approach to delivering this value different?

Are you interested in the following?:

Branding Logo Tagline Website Domain Blog Mobile Friendly website platform Capture emails for marketing

OnLine eCommerce

Professional Photos

Promotional Video Periscope YouTube Vimeo

Menu of Services Pricing Package of product

Phone Voicemail Services Ruby Grasshopper

Contract Agreement

Consistent Marketing Plan Social Media Networking Groups Affiliations/Vendors

Open House

Email Marketing Campaign Feedback Options for website, engaging new clients

Marketing Opportunities

Hiring the Right People: Communication Training

Identify Policy and Procedure Manual ANGELAPROFFITT.COM

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Getting Started

Research___ Use a Break-Even Analysis to see when and how your business idea can generate profit

___ Create a Marketing Plan

___ Budget (equity investors or bank)

Pick a Name___ Brainstorm until you have several names that fit your business idea

___ Check to see if your ideas are available as domain names and all social media platforms

___ Conduct a trademark search at the federal and state levels

___ Ask your county clerk's office if anyone has already registered any of the names on your list as a fictitious business name

___ If you are structuring your business as a corporation or LLC, check with your Secretary of State to see if any of your proposed names are not available.

___ Choose a name!

Consider Your Legal Structure___ Investigate the different types of business structures:

• Sole proprietorship• Partnership• Limited Liability Corporation (LLC)• Corporations• Non-profit

___ Count how many owners the business will have.

___ Assess your business risk.

___ Determine the best tax structure for the business.

___ Decide if you'd like to sell stock in the business.

___ Consult an attorney or other business expert for advice on business structures.

Make Your Business Name Official___ Register for your domain name.

___ If required, register your name as a fictitious business name with your county clerk.

___ File for federal and/or state trademark protection, if necessary.

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Getting Started

Create Your Business Paperwork___ Partnership:

• Partnership Agreement• Buyout/Buy-sell Agreement

___ LLC:

• Articles of Organization• Operating Agreement• Buyout/Buy-sell Agreement

___ Corporations:

• Articles of Incorporation• Bylaws• Buyout/Buy-sell Agreement•

___ Non-Profit

• Articles of Incorporation• Bylaws

Pick a Place___ Make a list of the features that your business space will require.

___ Figure out the maximum rent you can pay.

___ Research neighborhoods and determine which one is the best fit.

___ Check the zoning laws for the areas you're considering.

___ Negotiate the terms of your lease.

Buy Insurance___ Call an agent to get more information.

___ If your business uses vehicles, be sure to get liability insurance.

___ Consider getting health insurance, disability and/or life insurance for you and your employees.

___ Get liability insurance for your business space if customers or clients will visit.

___ If your business manufactures dangerous products, buy product liability insurance.

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Getting Started

Obtain the Necessary Permits and Licenses___ For partnerships, corporations and LLCs with employees, file for a federal employment identification number.

___ If you plan on selling retail goods, get a seller's permit from your state.

___ Research and obtain any necessary state licenses.

___ Get a business license.

___ Research any local permits or licenses.

Establish an Accounting System___ Buy small business accounting software.

___ Choose whether to run your books based on the cash or accrual method.

___ If your business cycle doesn't follow a normal calendar year, pick a fiscal year if permitted.

___ Create a system to monitor accounts payable and receivable.

___ Think about hiring an individual or a firm to help with the books.

Taxes___ Examine the basic tax scheme for your type of business.

___ Learn the difference between capital and current expenses, and figure out which ones apply to you.

Tip: Get Legal Help When Starting a BusinessIf you need recommendations for your area, we can help with that!

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How to Start Your Break-Even AnalysisThe first part of calculating your break-even point is making estimates about certain expenses and revenue streams. In order to arrive at an accurate estimate, research the current market of your business. There are plenty of how-to resources to teach you how to make these estimates. The estimates that are needed for a realistic break-even analysis include the following:

• Overhead includes your month to month expenses that are pretty constant, such as rent, insurance, utilities, etc.

• Sales Revenue refers to the total money from all sales activities that your business will make monthly and annually. Be sure to found your estimate on the volume of business that you realistically expect, rather than on how much revenue is needed for a profit.

• Average Gross Profits are the amounts that are left over from each sale, after deducting the direct cost for each particular sale. If a toy costs you $4.00 to sell, and you are selling it for $8.00, your average gross profit is $4.00.

• Average Gross Profit Percentages tell what portion of each dollar of your sales income is gross profit. Gross profit percentages are calculated by dividing the average gross profit amount by the average sales price. If your toy gives you an average profit of $4.00 on each toy that you sell for $8.00, you average gross profit percentage is 50%.

Finding Your Break-Even PointAfter you have recorded the estimates listed above, you are ready to find your break-even point. Divide your estimated annual overhead by your gross profit percentage. This quotient is the amount of sales revenue you need to break even.

For example, if your annual overhead is $5,000, and your gross profit percentage is 50%, your break-even point is $10,000 per month ($5,000 divided by 50%). So, you would need to make $10,000 a month to pay your overhead and direct sales costs. Remember that this amount does not include a salary for you or any profit at all. It is merely how to break even between your overhead and revenue.

If Your Break-Even Point is too HighIf your break-even point is higher than you expected, don't fret. It may not be a total loss. There may be parts of your business that can be manipulated to yield a desirable break-even point. Consider:

• shopping around for less expensive supplies,• reducing the number of, or eliminating employees altogether,• working from home, and• raising your sales prices.

If after changing some of these factors, your break-even point is still too high, your business idea may not be attainable. This realization is what makes break-even analyses so important. If you end up scratching the business plan, you have saved yourself a lot of time and money. If you reach a desirable break-even point, you know you can continue on with your business plan, and you have an idea of your budget.

The Next Steps in Financial AnalysisIf your break-even analysis tells you that your revenue far exceeds your break-even point, you can continue to the next steps in your financial analysis. Now, calculate the following to conclude your business's financial analysis:

• the profit you will generate;• whether you have enough liquid funds to pay your expenses and bills on time;• your business's monthly net profit, or "profit-and-loss forecast;" and• your start-up cost estimate of all the expenses, before your business even opens.

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Created a Marketing Plan

1: Define Your Business• Your product or service• Your geographic marketing area - neighborhood, regional or national• Your competition• How you differ from the competition - what makes you special• Your price• The competition's promotion methods• Your promotion methods• Your distribution methods or business location2: Define Your Customers

• Your current customer base: age, sex, income, neighborhood• How your customers learn about your product or service - advertising, direct mail, word of mouth, social media• Patterns or habits your customers and potential customers share - where they shop, what they read, watch, listen to• Qualities your customers value most about your product or service - selection, convenience, service, reliability• Qualities your customers like least about your product or service - can they be adjusted to serve your customers better?• Prospective customers whom you aren't currently reaching3: Define Your Plan and Budget

• Previous marketing methods you have used to communicate to your customers• Methods that have been most effective• Cost compared to sales• Cost per customer• Possible future marketing methods to attract new customers• Percentage of profits you can allocate to your marketing campaign• Marketing tools you can implement within your budget - advertising:

radio or television advertising direct mail tele-marketing public relations activities such as community involvement sponsorship or press releases

• Methods of testing your marketing ideas• Methods for measuring results of your marketing campaign• The marketing tool you can implement immediately

The final component in your marketing plan should be your overall promotional objectives: To communicate your message, create an awareness of your product or service, motivate customers to buy and increase sales, or other specific targets. Objectives make it easier to design an effective campaign and help you keep that campaign on the right track. Once you have defined your objectives, it is easier to choose the method that will be most effective.

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Guide to Choosing a Distinctive Name

Choosing a distinctive name that conveys what your business does without using generic terms can be very difficult, so here are a few ideas to get you started.

• Keep it simple

Ideally, you want your name to be as simple as possible, especially if you plan on making a website with the name. You want to create a name that is simple to remember and potentially simple to type as well. Try to avoid making long, complex names and avoid using any easily misspelled words.

• Make it uniqueThis is the real challenge for most people when naming their business. You want your name to be unique, because the more unique it is, the more likely you are to receive trademark protection and avoid any potential infringement claims. On the other hand, you want it to relate in some way to your business and to tie in to whatever it is you are offering, which typically involves keywords that are not unique at all. Striking this balance is the essence of finding a good name for your business.

• Avoid generic words and geographic names try to avoid extremely generic words standing alone in your name, such as "shoes" if you are a shoe company (eg, Bob's Shoes). Also avoid using generic geographic names, such as California, because you are less likely to be able to register names with a geographic reference for trademark protection. Note that one way around this is to add some-thing else to the name in an attempt to make it more unique, as in the case of California Pizza Kitchen. Any one of these words is generic on its own, but the combined name is unique and still conveys the meaning of the business.

• Don't limit new business avoid choosing a name that is so restrictive that you will be unable to expand your business. For instance, if you cre-ated Bob's High Heels, and you want to start making sandals, your name is so specific that you may find it difficult to attract customers to your new sandals.

• Ask around always talk to family, friends and your professional contacts about any proposed name to see what they think. You may be surprised at the reaction to some names! It's better to find out now rather than after you've spent a lot of money cre-ating signs and stationery for your new enterprise.

ANGELAPROFFITT.COM

9Information throughout this resource, provided by Angela Proffitt, LLC can be referenced at FindLaw's Starting a Business section

Angela Proffitt

Event & Productivity Consultant

Angela Proffitt, LLC, 2021 21st Ave South, Suite 410

Nashville, TN 37212Office: 888.936.4212

www.AngelaProffitt.com