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A 20-Point Checklist for New Home
Businesses
©
2002 By Angela Wu
You're eager to start your home business and bring in some
extra income. Although you're probably bursting with
ideas and enthusiasm and want to jump right in, take some
time to plan and prepare for your new venture.
Here's a simple checklist you can use in the startup phase
of your home based business. Feel free to add additional
checkpoints of your own!
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1) Assess your personality.
Are you the entrepreneurial type that will do well with your
own business? Are you self-motivated, disciplined, and
willing and able to put forth the effort, time, and money?
Are you the type that can get up after a failure and try
again? There are many quizzes available to help you
decide whether or not you're ready for a home business.
Try http://quiz.ivillage.com/work/tests/areyouready.htm
2) Appraise your skills, knowledge, and experience.
Make a list of businesses you think you would be capable of
building.
3) Know your interests.
If you're doing something you love, you are more likely to
work harder and enjoy yourself. A good place to find unique
business ideas is here: http://homebasedwork.com/cgi-bin/a/t.cgi?bizideas
4) Figure out what type of business you want to run.
Out of the huge number of possibilities, select one that
works well with your skills and your interests. An excellent
manual with 16 different Internet 'business models' that you
can copy is available at http://buildyourhomebiz.com/rd/senze.html
5) Do some market research.
Is there a demand for the product you plan to sell, and at
the price at which you want to sell it? After your
(projected) expenses, will you be profitable?
6) Check out your competitors.
How will you distinguish yourself from them? Why should
customers come to you instead of to them? What are they
doing right or wrong, and how can you improve upon them?
7) Select a business name.
Make sure you don't infringe upon someone's trademark! You
can research trademarks at http://www.marksonline.com/
. Consult with a qualified legal professional for more
information.
8) Know the zoning regulations in your area.
Make sure that you are permitted to operate a business from
your home.
Some areas may also place restrictions on the type of
business that can be operated from your home.
9) Find out what licenses, registration, or permits
you need to operate your home based business.
10) Research any additional regulations applicable to
your product.
Find out if there are restrictions on producing it from your
home. For example, if you're a caterer, the
authorities may not allow you to prepare food in your home
if you have pets running around!
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11) Select a business structure,
such as sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation.
Again, you may want to consult with a qualified professional
to determine what's best for your specific situation.
12) Assess your financial situation.
Do you have enough to finance a business startup? How will
you handle emergencies? Don't forget about marketing
expenses -- the success of your business will depend in
large part on how well you market it.
13) Secure additional funds, if necessary.
Loans, lines of credit, grants, savings, and employment
income are some ways that entrepreneurs can finance their
businesses.
The US Small Business Administration has a useful list: http://www.sba.gov/starting/indexspecial.html
14) Prepare a business plan
to help you define your goals and stay focused. Again, the
US SBA offers help at http://www.sba.gov/starting/indexbusplans.html
15) Investigate the costs
associated with purchasing the necessary equipment,
materials, and supplies. Contact several suppliers to
compare quality, prices, and service.
16) Talk to your local tax office.
Ask for any relevant information on how your home business
will affect your tax situation.
17) Consider purchasing additional insurance
to cover your business assets.
18) Set up your home office.
Establish rules and 'office hours', when customers can
generally expect to reach you. Consider setting aside a room
specifically for your office space.
19) Talk to your bank
about a business account, to keep your business and personal
income and expenses separate.
20) Consult with professionals.
Depending on your situation, you may need to use the
services of lawyers, accountants or bookkeepers, insurance
agents or brokers, and others.
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Angela is the editor of Online Business Basics, a practical
guide to building a business on a beginner's budget.
It's a proven hit with beginners, for the down-to-earth
style and loads of instantly useable tips! For
details, visit
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/article.html
OR request a series of 10 free reports to get you started:
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/freereports.html
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