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Hands down, the absolute hardest part about becoming an entrepreneur is getting started. I know there is a lot of information out on the web about starting a business and if you have been reading it all you are most likely overwhelmed. Let me start by saying that starting a business can be a lot easier if you have a coach.

On the contrary, if you are deciding to get things done on your own I have some awesome resources on my blog and in my shop that will help you get off the ground and running a profitable business soon. Sometimes the hardest part about getting started is deciding what to do and in what order.

Here are my 7 recommended steps to Set Your New Business Up For Success:

1) Pick an easy name

The name is important and although you already know this it is equally important to not spend days or weeks trying to pick a name out for your new venture. You will make the name; the name will not make you. All that is required is that the name is fairly easy to remember (for your customer’s sake) and that it also does not have some crazy spelling that people will often mistake. Things like replacing the letter “S” with the letter “Z” make look cool but it might present a problem later on when customers are trying to find you or share your info with others.

2) File llc.

Getting legal is a big deal! If you ever hope to apply for a business loan, open up a business bank account or count your business income towards buying a house or car you will need to be legal. The great thing is that filling for an llc, or inc. is easy to do and takes no more than 30-45 minutes at the most. Take some time out this week to get legal. Services such as Legal Zoom can also help with deciding what type of business you are and registering with the state that you live in.

3) Grab the social media name

Do this quick! New social media users pop up every day and you don’t want your name to be taken. You may have done this already because social media is so prominent in today’s world. Be sure that your social media name is as similar to your actual business name as possible. The more consistency you have the less confusion you will present to the customer trying to find you.

4) Buy YOUR domain

This needs to be done quickly as well. The same principles for the social media name goes for your website. Try to keep the business name consistent. You can purchase a website name fairly easy and for cheap on sites like Godaddy.com. Most domains do not cost more than $20 per year! This is great news if you are starting up with your own money.

5) Choose brand colors and fonts

Starting off with a strong brand image will propel your profile to grow faster and gain you more loyal followers from the beginning. Although branding is much deeper than only choosing cohesive colors and fonts, starting with these two elements alone will save you time and money in the first stages of getting things going.

6) Pick a niche

Everyone is NOT your customer. Pick a specialization in your product or service market and focus in on that. When you are specific about who you want to work with it will be easier to attract the perfect customers and make more money.

7) Cross brand

After you have set these things up be sure to cross brand. Cross branding is when you use the same branding elements on your website, social media, business cards, and any other digital or physical business products. You do not want to confuse your customer by having a website that looks like it belongs to one company and a social media profile that looks like it belongs to another.

Setting up a business can feel like a tornado of “to-do lists”.
Of course not everything works for every business, but this list is general enough to be applied across multiple markets and ventures.

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