Most small business people are people who want be their own boss and/or do something they’ve always wanted to do or people who want the challenge of turning their business idea into a reality.
But they want to have a life too. What Type of Business Should You Start? will guide you through the process of figuring out what type of small business is truly right for you.
You will also want to read all about business models to make sure that you’re choosing the right business model for your new enterprise.
If you are starting a business selling your personal services, be sure you read the pair of companion articles, Why Being a Contractor Is Better Than Being an Employee and 5 Reasons Being a Contractor Is Not for Everyone.
Interested in Starting a Home Business?
Home businesses are one of most popular types of business to start. And why not? A home-based business can be absolutely ideal for people who want to be at home with their kids or for people who want to run online businesses. (See the next section.) But Working From Home Isn’t for Everybody.
While from a legal and structural point of view, starting a home-based business is just like starting any other small business from an operational point of view, starting a home-based business is different. Before you choose the home-based option, read What You Need to Know Before You Start a Home Based Business.
Then if you still want to start one, read 6 Steps to Starting a Home-Based Business That Will Succeed.
You may also want to take a look at some or all of these topics specific to working out of or in your home:
- Setting Up a Home Office? These Are The 3 Things You Must Get Right
- 12 Organization Tips for a Productive Office
- Want to Work At Home Productively? Follow These 7 Rules
- 9 Tips for Meeting With Clients In Your Home
- Home Office? Here’s How to Make Your Work Space a Safe Kid Place
- How Should You Insure Your Home-Based Business?
- How to Save Money on Home-Based Business Insurance
Those of you starting businesses in Canada will also want to study these tax-related articles:
Work from Home? Don’t Forget These 6 Canadian Tax Deductions
Is Your Home Business Eligible for These Tax Deductions?
How to Calculate the Home Business Tax Deduction
Starting an Online Business
In this starting a business guide, I’m referring primarily to starting an ecommerce business, although as you’ll see in 7 Online Business Models, that’s certainly not the only type of online business that you can start.
For instance:
- Getting Started Selling on eBay
- 7 Ways to Make Money from a Blog
If you want your online business to operate through your own website, the very first step is to Register a Domain Name. If you want to sell things through your website, you’ll also need a merchant account and to know about the various Online Payment Options for Your Online Business.
Then it’s just a matter of creating your own website (or hiring a designer to build one for you). See How to Build a Website That Works.
Or you can do things the easy way and choose one of these 8 Easy Ways to Get Your Small Business Into Ecommerce where all the things above will be done for you.
Whether you create your own website or pick a turnkey solution through an ecommerce provider, you’ll want to make sure that these 8 Rules for a Successful Ecommerce Website are followed.
And if you are operating a website in Canada you’ll need to know How to Charge Provincial Sales Tax on Online Sales.
Starting an Import/Export Business in Canada
Importing and/or exporting businesses can be extremely successful if you know what you’re doing.
Learn how to set up an import or export business in Canada, the rules for importing or exporting goods, about the import/export documents you need and even how to prepare an international marketing plan with these import/export resources.
- Starting an Import Business in Canada
- 10 Steps to Successful Exporting
- Export Labeling Tips
- Create a Great International Marketing Plan
Buying a Business
One option to start a business you may not have considered is buying a business. It can be easier than creating a business from scratch especially as in many cases you are purchasing an existing clientele and suppliers as well as the business’s inventory and other physical property. Many franchises offer turnkey operations – it doesn’t get any easier than that for the new small business owner. See if buying a business is the right choice for you and learn about the purchase procedure with these articles.
- How to Buy a Business
- 3 Ways to Find What Your Small Business Is Really Worth
- Should You Buy a Franchise?
- Buying a Franchise? You Must Do This First
- Why B.C. is the Best Place in Canada to Sell or Buy a Franchise
- What Does the Term Turnkey Business Mean & Should You Buy One?
Business Plans
All right – you’ve got your idea, you’ve decided what kind of business you want to start – now what? It’s time to write a business plan.
Writing a business plan should be one of the first things you do once you decide to start a business. Do you have to? Yes. Here are 5 Reasons a Business Plan Is Key to Success.
But you may or may not have to write the full-scale in-depth formal business plan such as a bank or other lender will require; there are different business plans for different purposes. Make Sure You’re Using the Right Type of Business Plan.
If all you want to do, for instance, is test whether your new business idea is any good, take the quick and easy route and just ask these 5 Questions to Discover If Your Business Idea is Worthwhile.
If you’re looking for investors, you’ll want to use an Investor Ready Business Plan.
No matter what kind of business plan you prepare, you’re going to want sure you do these two things:
- Pay special attention to the Executive Summary. It’s the part that gets your business plan read (or not read!)
- Avoid Making These Common Business Plan Mistakes.
These articles will be helpful as you work through your business plan:
- 3 Methods of Sales Forecasting for Cash Projections
- Executive Summary Example
- Business Plan Example of the Industry Overview
How to Start a Successful Business
No matter what type of business you choose to start, give yourself a huge leg up by spending some time delving into these advice articles on how to make your new business a success. No one starts out wanting to start a business that fails, but many do. (Read Why Do Small Businesses Fail? to learn why.) Here is some of my best advice for starting a successful business and avoiding becoming another statistic.
- 8 Things Every Startup Needs to Know
- Top 10 Tips for Starting a Business That Will Succeed
- 5 Resources You Need to Succeed
- The Two Paths to Starting a Business
- Don’t Do What You Love When Starting Your Own Business
- The 10 Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make When Starting a Business
- Got a Job? Start a New Business!
- Where Can I Find Wholesalers?
- How to Find Suppliers – Dos and Don’ts
And the #1 rule about starting a successful business? Start the right business in the right place at the right time. In other words, don’t start one of these small businesses.
All About the Money
Anybody who wants to start a business that tells you “It’s not about the money” is lying – or already rich enough that other people’s money doesn’t matter to them anymore.
How to Get Your New Small Business to Make Money is the main problem you face when you’re in startup.
Then there’s the whole problem of How to Keep the Money Coming In When You’re Starting a Business. No matter what kind of business you start, it’s going to cost money to get it started and keep it operating until it starts making money.
Many people need to find some other source of financing when they start their own businesses. This section is all about finding the business start up money you need to get your new business up and running – from Canadian small business loans and grants through how to attract angel investors.
- 10 Things You Need to Know About Small Business Funding
- How to Find Start Up Small Business Financing
- 8 Sources of Business Start Up Money
- 5 Creative Ways to Raise Money for Your Business
- Budding Entrepreneur 18 to 39? Look Here First for Startup Funding in Canada
- Will Crowdfunding Work for Your Canadian Small Business?
- What You Need to Do to Get a Small Business Loan
- 10 Places to Get Small Business Loans for Your Canadian Small Business
- The Truth About Small Business Grants in Canada
- Don’t Want Debt? Here Are 7 Canadian Small Business Grants
- The Canada Small Business Financing Program
- The Self-Employment Program: One of the Best Small Business Grants in Canada
- Small Business Loans Just for Canadian Women
- Where to Get a Small Business Loan When the Banks Turn You Down
- Want an Angel Investor to Invest in Your Business? Make Sure it Has These 7 Things
How to Start a Business in Canada
Sole proprietorship, partnership or incorporation? What’s the business registration process? How can you pick the right name for your new business? And does your business need to register for GST/HST or PST? This section deals with the legalities of starting a business in Canada, from choosing a legal structure through the different business registrations your new business will need.
- Steps to Starting a Business in Canada
- Starting a Business FAQs
- 12 Facts About Starting a Business in Canada
- Choosing a Business Name
- Choosing a Form of Business Ownership
- 10 Questions Partnership Agreements Need to Answer
- Do You Need to Register Your Business?
- Business Registration by Province & Territory
- The Business Number
- Should You Incorporate Your Small Business?
- 7 Reasons to Incorporate Your Business
- How to Incorporate Your Business in Canada
- Types of Corporations in Canada & Corporate Tax
- Incorporation in Canada FAQs
- GST/HST Registration
- Common Questions About the GST/HST
- Provincial Sales Tax (PST) Registration
- The Hiring Process: How to Hire Employees in Canada
- Guide to Canadian Payroll Deductions
- What Nonresidents Need to Know About Starting a Business in Canada
- How Non-Canadians Can Open Businesses in Canada
All right. Let’s cut to the chase. What do you need to start a successful business?
A clear business model.
A viable business idea.
The desire/determination to make it happen.
Enough money/support to make it happen.
If you have these four things, truly the sky is the limit. To your success!