There are so many things you need to know about before opening your own business, and it can get pretty overwhelming at times. You need to take advantage of any resources you can find that will help you to get where you need to be, and operate a successful small business, from information on creating business plans to the actual daily operations. Some resources are very helpful, while some are just a waste of time. To help keep you from wasting your time on the not-so-great resources, here are our 9 favorites.
1) How to Start a Business: A Step-by-Step Guide – You need to check out the article, “How to Start a Business: A Step-by-Step Guide” that is on this website. There are so many things that new business owners need to know about, and this article provides plenty of information that you need to use. It is a step-by-step overview of everything you need to do in order to get your business off the ground.
2) Best Large Cities to Start a Business – This tool compares the best startup opportunities in 150 of the highest-populated cities in the United States. This is done using 16 key metrics that range from a five-year survival rate to the cost of office space to education of the labor force in the area.
3) Write Your Business Plan – This is the go-to site for any small business owner. You will find loads of great information about everything you need to know on starting and running a small business. Information includes how to start a business, writing a business plan, choosing a business structure, choosing and registering business names, choosing equipment and locations, and more.
4) Workforce Management – If you already have employees, you will need the right tool for scheduling. Zip Schedules makes scheduling fast and easy, and you can even make scheduling changes on the fly in just a few seconds. There are also great articles that have information on setting business hours, setting staffing levels, and more.
5) Estimating Realistic Startup Costs – Before you can start a business, especially if you need financing, you need to create a great business plan. This tool can help. It will help you to create the best plan for the type of business that you wish to open, and it offers the largest online collection of sample business plans for you to get ideas from.
6) Find a Location for Business – When you want information, the library is often the very best place to get it. For instance, if you want to know the best location for your new business, you need to use mapping databases, which are available at the library. Use locations based on a number of variables to find the spot where you will achieve success.
7) Business Structure: Choose the Best One for You – Accounting can be intimidating, especially for new small business owners. Fear not, because FreshBooks can help. It is easy to use, so you will spend a lot less time on paperwork and more time making money. You can automate most of your invoicing to remove a lot of unneeded clutter, and get your finances completely organized. Create professional looking invoices in just a few seconds using this
8) How to Hire Your First Employee – Here you will find loads of great information on how to hire your very first employee. You will learn about when is the right time to hire, who to hire, what to look for and what not to look for in potential employees, how to find new employees, along with when, where, and how to interview potential employees.
9) 5 Books to Read Before Starting Your Business – Find plenty of articles about running your own business, including “5 Books to Read before Starting Your Business”. This article gives you a good rundown of the top books that all beginning entrepreneurs should read before they open for business.
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