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February 2012

Steps in Starting Up || Finding Help || Funding for Your Business
A Little Legalese || Setting Up the Office

This area contains places to go for assistance setting up your own business. As someone who is self-employed, I will tell you that it is not easy to start out, but the personal rewards are great. You may also want to look at our information on Telecommuting & Work-at-Home

Custom Search: Search this site (plus a few others)

Steps in Starting Up

This section includes many sites with tutorials and/or sample plans and procedures for taking your idea through the initial review process (will it really fly) and then getting a new business up and running. Additional resources might be found under Information for Entrepreneurs.

How to Write a Business Plan

A step-by-step tutorial designed to help you create a complete business plan, one which you can use to attract investors, qualify for loans, and guide your operations. It is very simple but very complete. This is a free service of Business Resource Software, Inc., leading provider of marketing and business planning software.

BPlans.com

...a collection of information and samples for the small to medium size business. Download any of these sample business and marketing plans for free (adobe acrobat) or view them online. Check the Planning Resource Center for more tips. Site is sponsored by Palo Alto Software, creators of the business and marketing plan software they are hoping you'll buy.

Center for Business Planning from Business Resource Software

...a very nice collection of free Business Plan Samples, Software, and Strategies to help you in establishing your own business. Brought to you by the same folks who offered the free How to Write a Business Plan tutorial, above.

Canada / British Columbia Business Services Society

...a non-profit society that provides information on starting a new business, expanding an existing business, or entering new markets. The website offers good information on researching and establishing a new business. Their article library offers a lot of very good advice.

Canada Business

...information on starting and operating your own business from this collaborative effort from the Canadian federal, provincial, and territorial governments. So some of the resources will be specific to this country, but the advice is applicable to pretty much all who want to consider opening their own businesses.

E-Business

...offered Canada Business (see listing just above), these Info-Guides are excellent brochures on various aspects of establishing and operating an online business.

Office Depot Business Resource Center

...free downloadable forms, free advice, and a terrific free handbook covering topics like starting your business, planning, financing, taxes, and much more. I'm sure they would greatly appreciate your purchase of office supplies, etc., from them at some point.

Starting A Business, SBA.gov

...provided by the US Small Business Administration, this site is a step-by-step personal evaluation, market research, and business start-up tutorial just for you. It includes instructions on writing a business plan, information on patents and trademarks, and a discussion of the first steps to take when considering your own business.

Start-Up Kits from Entrepreneur.com

...a list of over 40 types of businesses you can explore. Each kit offer industry, market, and operations information with suggestions for researching business opportunities and creating a business plan, and links to associations and franchises.

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Finding Help

Better Business Bureau

A Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a private, non-profit organization that provides a variety of services and programs to assist consumers and businesses. Two areas that generate the greatest interest are the BBBs reports on companies, and complaint handling.

National Business Incubation Association

The National Business Incubation Association is a private, not-for-profit membership organization with headquarters in Athens, Ohio. Incubators nurture young firms, helping them to survive and grow during the startup period when they are most vulnerable. Incubators provide hands-on management assistance, access to financing and orchestrated exposure to critical business or technical support services. They also offer entrepreneurial firms shared office services, access to equipment, flexible leases and expandable space — all under one roof.

NASE, The National Association for the Self-Employed

...founded in 1981 by a group of small-business owners who recognized they could obtain lower prices for goods and services, which large businesses enjoy, simply by banding together. The NASE represents more than 320,000 members nationwide, and has grown to be the largest association of its kind, representing the smallest of small business.

SCORE, the Service Corps of Retired Executives

...SCORE has more than 12,000 volunteer business counselors ready to share their expertise with you through free and confidential business advice—helping you succeed in business. SCORE business counselors are well-versed in how to develop effective business plans and create strategies for business growth.

U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) was created by Congress in 1953 to help America's entrepreneurs form successful small enterprises. Today, SBA's program offices in every state offer financing, training and advocacy for small firms.

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Funding for Your Business

Best Banks for Small Business

...good places to turn to for loans. Updated annually by Entrepreneur.com

The MoneyTree Survey

..."a quarterly study of equity investments made by the venture capital community in private companies in the United States." A joint project of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Venture Economics, and the National Venture Capital Association.

National Venture Capital Association

... comprised of more than 400 member firms, NVCA is "the premier trade association that represents the U.S. venture capital industry. NVCA's mission is to foster greater understanding of the importance of venture capital to the U.S. economy, and support entrepreneurial activity and innovation." Persons looking for investors will appreciate the many Resources provided by this group, including the lists of Venture Capital Organizations (regional groups!), sample corporate governance documents, and more!

Many of the Information & Discussion Areas for Entrepreneurs will have additional information on funding.

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A Little Legalese

Tax Info for Business

...from our favorite folks in Washington, the IRS!! Hey, if they can't give you good advice on tax laws, who can? No, really! They give you plans to follow on retirement benefits for your employees, information on "exempt" organizations, information on starting your own business from their point of view, and a nice list of links to the most requested tax publications for businesses.

U.S. Department of Labor

...use the resources of the DOL to review regulations governing employees and employers in the U.S.

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Setting Up the Office

Office Depot || Staples || OfficeMax

...order your office supplies online if you do not have stores near you.

E-cycling Central: Find a Recycler

Don't toss those old computers and other office equipment in the dumpster! Recycle them! Click on your state to find reuse, recycling, and donation programs across the country for your electronic products. A service of the Electronic Industries Alliance.

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