Are you considering starting a small business?Is it something you have been mulling over for a very long time or is it another revenue stream you have been wanting to experiment with?Whatever your reasons are, it takes a significant amount of effort, patience, and perseverance to launch a business venture and see it through.

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Today, small businesses are a very important segment of the larger business landscape and add variety and dynamism to it with the range of services and products they offer consumers. Regardless of the industry, you want to launch your business in, if you are wondering how to start a business, there are certain aspects you need to keep in view to make a success of it.Here is a startup company checklist to follow:

1. Conduct Extensive Research

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While this may seem easy, it’s the basic step you need to take if you want to venture into any business field.When you are passionate about something, you will take the effort required to find out everything you can about it.Some of the things you need to focus on are whether there are any similar products and services on the market and what makes your offering unique.Try using these:

• Google Search Competitors
• Online Tools
• Keyword Searches

These and many other questions which need to be answered before you take the next step. The answers to these questions and having a business startup checklist excel ready will give you a better idea of how you can position yourself for success.

2. Zero-In On Your Specific Niche

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Once you have conducted a significant amount of research and checked a business checklist online, you may want to alter your ideas and approach.It’s important that you are specific so you are still focused on your original idea while you consider new ones based on market demand.

3. Design a Business Plan

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At this point, you need to have a good business plan in place and can also use a business checklist template.This should include details such as your launch as well as your first sale and expansion plans. Consider aspects such as how you will mitigate risks and face challenges in case they surface along the way.Some Great Tools Include:

• Bplans
• Business News Daily
• Legal Templates
• My Favorite: LivePlan

Creating a business plan is crucial and the more detailed you are with it from the get-go, the smoother things will run in the long term.If you’re seeking financial support or looking for investors, you’d need to create a conventional business plan.While this process could be a little lengthy, it will help investors understand more about your business and how you plan to manage various aspects of it.You can always alter it along the way if the need arises.

4. Get Your Finances In Place

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No matter how much research you conduct and how detailed your plan, you need to have your financial planning in place. Regardless of the scale of your business, without a feasible financial plan, you won’t be able to stabilize and advance your business. The spreadsheets you create need to be scalable so they grow as your business grows.Factor in everything ranging from legal & insurance fees as well as licensing fees. Keep in view expenses such as salaries, supplies and rent etc. Figure out from where your funding will be coming in - banks, financial institutions, angel investors, grants, crowdfunding etc.You can use platforms like Freshbooks, Quickbooks or Wave Accounting to help with this.

5. Focus On The Legal Aspects

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Your idea needs to stay well-protected and should be original.You’d have to pick your business name and check the trademark database to ensure it is unique and register it quickly. Having an online presence is important and it’s a good idea to register a domain name that’s related to your business.Conduct research on which permits & licenses you’d require, based on the state you live in and which business you are launching.Keeping abreast of all this paperwork while you are starting out, can prevent a lot of hassles in the future.Sites like LegalZoom exist to help you complete a lot of this paperwork at an affordable cost.

6. Hire Talented and Dedicated Staff

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Even when you are in the initial stages of your startup, it’s important that you learn to delegate tasks to people with expertise in specific fields.It’s never a good idea to attempt to handle everything yourself as that can easily lead to an early burnout. Take the time to screen multiple candidates for various roles and hire talented people that show passion for their job.If you're looking to scale with a remote team, I've created an Online Course here on maximizing your efforts.

7. Invest in a good marketing plan

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As a business owner, you need to be bold and dynamic.While launching your business, you also need to launch a robust marketing plan that includes everything from digital marketing, social media marketing, email marketing as well as some traditional forms of marketing.

Hire the services of a marketing and advertising agency that would be able to work alongside you to help you reach the right audiences and realize your business goals.Making your satartup a success can be very hard work, but following these fundamentals should set you on the right track to success.