So you’ve decided to go into business. Congratulations! Getting a business up and running requires a lot of elbow grease and excitement, but also requires a lot of hard work, especially when it comes to organising the paperwork and working through all of the dull – but necessary – things that you need to do. From registering with the Australian Government through to sorting out your social media platforms and branding, we have got a good start for you here. These tips have been brought to you by personal loans from Latitude Finance and are aimed at new businesses who want some direction.
Get Legal
One of the first steps that you should take when you are registering your new business is to make your enterprise legal. That means that it needs to be legal in the eyes of the government, and in the eyes of the taxman. That means figuring out your business name, registering it as an entity, and – depending on the type of the business structure and the industry you’re in – getting a tax file number and any other relevant permits that you need. Part of this will require you to determine the type of entity you want your business to be – and in most cases a sole-trader or partnership option will be best for you. In some other cases you’ll want to enter into proprietary limited company, or a corporation. Best best here would be to speak to a legal professional who works in this area to advise you. The different types of company structures depend on the level of protection and taxation that you have/need for your business.
Choosing Your Business Name And Registering It
Finding the perfect name for your business requires a bit more nuance than just choosing your favourite name and deciding on it. Consider the fact that you are going to be using your legal business name on all of your government forms, application, taxation forms, social media accounts and anything else legal. As a result you need to make sure that the name is suitable, and available. Here is a simple tool from the Australian Government for you to check your business name online. And if you want a social media check, you can use this simple tool.
Get Marketing
Once you have your business name sorted out and your details organised and locked down, you can then start sorting out your social media profiles and setting up your marketing. You’ll need to do things like develop buyer personas and work out your marketing plan, but you also need to develop your brand and your branding, and get some visual representation for your business. This can actually be a lot of fun and involves things like meeting with designers and working with a creative agency to develop the visual guidelines for how your business is represented in the world. Want a logo? You’ll need one for your business cards and your LinkedIn profile.
Coordinate Your Structure
While it’s attractive as a prospect to think that you can save money by working in your business and doing everything yourself the stark reality of things is that you need to work alongside talented and driven people as soon as you can afford to because that way your business will grow. When you have a bigger team of more agile people you can expand and take on bigger jobs and bigger business, and the sooner you trust quality people the sooner you’ll feel confident to take on more work.
Good luck with getting your head around running a business – it’s an exciting time for you and something new that is sure to provide a lot of fulfilment and plenty of challenges.
