Video transcript:

There are several key steps involved in starting a small business from the ground up. Here, I will outline them step by step.

Market research : This is where you will search more into the need for your product and how to come out on top over competitors. This can be done through the internet and customer discovery. To succeed, you will need a unique selling point for your business as a way to get customers to choose you.

Business and marketing plans: Writing your business and marketing plans can inform your strategies for promoting and executing your business. Knowing as much as possible about the predicted lifeline of your business will aid in decision making and convincing potential customers and investors to bet on your product.

Funding: You can raise money through investors and online platforms or borrow money through loans. There’s also the option of grants aimed at small businesses which often come with no strings attached. This funding can be used for things like setting up a physical shop, buying initial supplies, or doing research and development of your product.

Business structure: You must choose a legal structure for your business. This is important for determining your registration requirements, taxes, and liability.

Registration: Register your business name legally to protect your brand and have an entity that can be taxed. You will also need a federal or state tax ID to open a bank account and pay taxes for your business.

Licenses: Look into which licenses and permits you will legally need to start a business.

Bank account: A checking account will help with taxes and variable issues by separating the business from personal affairs.

Other considerations: The location of your businesses is important in determining taxes, revenue and expenses, and legal requirements. Finding a manufacturer can be an important next step to expansion in addition to ecommerce. Ecommerce enables small businesses to reach a wider audience by selling online and shipping directly to consumers.

Next, I will outline details regarding shipping, ecommerce, and planning.

Upon creating a website and making the decision to sell online, it’s important to set up ecommerce for your business. This can be done most easily through a third party platform, particularly the platform that is hosting your website like Wix or Squarespace*. A third party ecommerce platform will allow customers to purchase products from the comfort of their homes and to pay online. From there, all you have to do is ship the product to the customer through your local shipping service or some other platform. It is up to you to decide how you want to group items from the same customer when shipping. Looking online for all of your shipping options can be extremely valuable when making decisions.

Customers tend to prioritize low cost over fast shipping, so make sure to factor shipping costs in when thinking of how highly to price online products. You will want to set up a way to communicate shipping status with customers and also think about the packaging you’re sending the product in. This also comes with a cost but it is the first thing customers see when they receive the package, so it can make a difference in how customers perceive your brand. Adding ecommerce to your business takes time for packaging so you will want to weigh the pros and cons before deciding to expand. A spreadsheet can be used to plan orders and streamline the ecommerce process. From there, a schedule would help you determine how to split your time to ensure all orders are fulfilled on time.

*Addendum: website design platforms such as Wix or Squarespace, although easy to use, can be expensive for new business owners. Cheaper alternatives include Wordpress with a paid domain or Google Sites if an independent domain is not important to you.