How To Start A Small Business In Just 10 Steps In 2024?
Learning how to start a small business in 2024 can be fun but daunting.
It involves a lot of work – coming up with a good brand name, deciding on what to sell, setting up a store, collecting all the funds – it’s a lot of work.
Remember the heroes of inspirational movies like Wall Street, The Wolf of Wall Street, and Moneyball? Do you think the heroes of these movies were able to start their business in just a day?
However, would you believe me if I told you that you only need to follow ten steps to start your small business in 2024?
If you don’t believe it, you are in for a treat. You only need to know the best small town business ideas and read this post.
I want you to read this post to learn how to start a small business in just ten steps! Therefore, I will explain a step-by-step process you can follow easily to start earning money!
How To Start a Small Business in Just Ten Steps?
“There’s no such thing as making too much money or taking too many risks.”
This is a famous quote from the movie The Boiler Room, a must-watch for all budding entrepreneurs. However, while it may sound cool in a movie, it’s true in real life – a fact that entrepreneurs will agree with.
Starting a small business can be a daring undertaking, considering the risks involved. If you wish to start a small business, you require a significant amount of starting capital, which can go up in a puff of smoke if you aren’t careful enough.
However, if you start your business correctly and play all the right cards, congratulations! You have successfully taken your first step to becoming the next Elon Musk!
Therefore, to guide you through the initial hassle of starting a small business in 2024, here are the ten steps you must follow to get started!
Step 1: What Do You Wish to Sell?
The first thing you must do – which you can do right now while reading this blog – is ask yourself this:
“If I must start a new business, what products should I sell, or services shall I offer?”
Therefore, the first step you must take is to decide on what to offer to your customers.
Since you are learning how to start a small business, I recommend offering services instead of products. I say this because providing tangible products requires more initial capital investment than providing intangible services. That makes sense, right?
Therefore, after doing a lot of research, here are some excellent services that will help you with setting up a small business in Thailand:
- Online teaching
- Digital Marketing
- Graphic Designing
- Copywriting
- Online bookkeeping
- Web and app development
- Video editing
- Blogging
As you can see, it doesn’t take an IQ of 200 to understand why these are the easiest services to offer when you start your small business. You only need a laptop, an internet connection, and the necessary expertise to provide these services professionally.
Step 2: Research Your Target Market
Next, after you decide what services you wish to provide, it’s time for you to conduct market research for startups.
Conducting market research is necessary to justify your choices in the previous step. Since you are learning how to start a small business, it’s best to begin offering services to people in your state or city.
But you might ask, “Why target a small but specific region?”
Doing so first is necessary since targeting a smaller region will quickly help your new company build industry credibility. Once your business grows, you can start offering it nationally, following it up by going international!
Moreover, unless you identify a previously unexplored market, your market must already have a fair share of players – your competitors. Thus, research them to find out what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong or missing out on – your opportunity!
Therefore, you must start researching how many people need your services in your region. If your services are in high demand, you’ve made a good choice! If not, consider offering other services in higher demand in your area, or select a different region!
Pro Tip: Conduct a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) of your business.
Step 3: Formulate A Business Plan
After you have conducted your market research, it’s time for you to take a paper and pen (or your laptop or smartphone) and formulate a business plan. This is what makes an entrepreneur successful.
A business plan is a documentation that describes your business operations in detail. Therefore, it must include:
- Branding: You must state all the elements you want your customers to identify you with – brand name, logo, etc.
- Market Analysis: Remember the market research you conducted in the previous step? Its findings and conclusion that prove the viability and profitability of your business are your market analysis.
- Mission and Goals: State what SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely) goals your business wishes to achieve in the next five years.
- Services Offered: State what services you are offering in all their forms and versions.
- Organizational Structure: Chart the hierarchical structure of your business.
- Business Model: Explain how you will provide these services and how they will generate your revenue.
- Financial Plan: Explain how you are going to finance your business.
- Marketing Plan: Explain how you will use STP (Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning) to market your business and get clients.
- Exit Plan: If your business fails (I hope not), state your final course of action (sell the company, liquidate your business, etc.)
Step 4: Choose A Business Structure
With a market plan, you can choose the legal business structure you wish to follow.
In 2024, there are three main ways to start a small business. They are:
- Sole Proprietorship: You are your company’s sole owner and bear all its liabilities. Do so if you believe you can make it to the top, having the qualities of a successful entrepreneur.
- Limited Liability Company: You are the company’s owner but don’t bear complete liability. However, you can’t issue stocks for funding.
- Limited Liability Partnership: You have another person as your business partner, owning the business and being liable for it.
Note: There’s another form of business structure – a corporation – that I don’t recommend choosing, especially when you are learning how to create a small business in 2024. A corporation is primarily meant for big companies.
Step 5: Where Will Your Address Be?
Now that you have chosen your business structure, it’s time to decide on one of the most crucial aspects of your business – your office.
Therefore, it’s time to pull out a map and go real-estate hunting!
However, remember your business plan? Remember how many employees you need initially to get your business operational?
Remember these points when purchasing a commercial property; they will help you evaluate the office space you need.
However, don’t buy your office yet. Because there’s one more step you must take before doing so:
Step 6: Register Your Business and Get All Certificates
Now comes one of the most critical steps in learning how to start a small business – your business registration.
This process is a complex one because it depends on your:
- Business structure
- Type of products and services you offer
Therefore, you first need to head over to the head office of your State’s Ministry of Corporate Affairs and:
- Choose a Business Name: First, choose a unique business name that no other business in your national registrar has. Moreover, you must ensure that you don’t use branding elements similar in design to other companies!
- Register your business to obtain your TIN and EIN: After registering your business name, you must establish your company as a sole proprietorship, LLC, LLP, or a corporation. Doing so will fetch you your Tax Identification Number (TIN) and Employer Identification Number (EIN).
- Get Necessary Licenses and Permits: Finally, depending on your service or product, you might have to apply for necessary licenses and permits. This varies from state to state, so do some research beforehand.
Step 7: Gather Your Funds and Investors
Now that you have registered your business, it’s time to start operations and make money!
But wait – who will pay to open your business gates?
Suppose you can manage the finances all on your own – known as bootstrapping – incredible! You are already sorted and can go over to the next step!
However, you must arrange your funds if you cannot do so, like 95% of the world’s population.
The most common ways to fund your business are by finding:
- Angel investors: These “angels” are willing to invest in your business by demanding a certain percentage of equity.
- Small business loans: Banks will give business loans if your credit reports show a good credit score.
- Crowdfunding: Sometimes, asking for money from customers isn’t a bad idea if you have a solid and unique business plan. Try doing so on Kickstarter. Indiegogo, or Fundable!
Step 8: Open a Current Account with the Help of a Bookkeeper
Now that you have the money, it’s time to hire a bookkeeper to keep track of all your current accounts and transactions. They will tell you what documents you need to open a small business account.
In addition, you must have some knowledge of the accounting software you wish to use. This is why hiring a bookkeeper on the same page as you is necessary!
Alternatively, you can also hire bookkeeping services to whom you can outsource all your accounting responsibilities.
Additionally, ensure you know your break-even point as someone who is learning how to start a small business – the profit you must make to recover your startup costs.
Step 9: Get Your Office (And Employees) Ready
One of the most critical steps to start a small business is readying your office infrastructure.
There are three things you need, which are:
- HRM and Lawyer: First, you need an HRM (Human Resource Manager) to help set up all the work policies and a lawyer to ensure you follow state compliance.
- Tools of the Trade: You need the right equipment for your operations. Additionally, get cybersecurity for small businesses to safeguard your data and computers! The manufacturing and packaging machines must be your top priority for small manufacturers.
- Employees: Finally, you need a family – of dedicated employees. This is again where your HRM can prove its worth by recruiting the right employees for your operations!
Step 10: Start Marketing and Selling!
Finally, it’s time to let the posters and fliers fly – and let the world know when you cut the red ribbon! If you do this, you have successfully learned how to start a small business and become an entrepreneur!
Start effectively marketing your business from the get-go so that you can get an influx of clients from the beginning. Moreover, follow these video marketing small business tips for a great start!
Conclusion: Starting a New Business in Just 10 Steps!
Congratulations! You have successfully learned how to start a small business in just ten (broad, multi-layered) steps!
Therefore, follow all these steps in order, and you can set up a new business quickly! Good luck!
Thanks for reading this post! If you did start a small business after reading this post, please comment below and share it with others!
Also read
