This document provides an overview of how to start a business. It outlines that one must have a commitment to the venture and passion for the idea. Key steps include testing the market potential, identifying funding sources, choosing a location, assembling a management team, creating a preliminary budget, obtaining necessary permits, and seeking advice from professionals. Proper planning is emphasized before launching in order to set the business up for success and avoid potential pitfalls.

1. How to Start a Business
BUSN 100 is a course designed to provide content on starting and running a business. The
purpose of this presentation is to give the student some basic information on creating a
business startup. Most businesses begin because a person or person have an idea that
another person likes or a service they are willing to pay compensation for. Starting a
business means that one has to have a commitment to the venture. Let’s outline important
concepts for stating a new business venture.

2. How to Start a Business
• Introductory tips:
• Don’t start a business on the recommendations of others telling you that’s what you need to do. YO have to have
the drive and passion from the outset or else you’ll find yourself hating the decision.
• Test your market potential with a market plan. The plan will provide an initial outlook on where your consumer
support will come from.
• Determine how you will fund the new venture. It’s preferable that you use your own money or assets to do so but
you may need to borrow from a bank, family members or friends.
• Identify a location. You may want to start from your home, get set up in a business incubator or even design and
use a website to introduce the venture and take orders from customers.
• Identify who will serve in the business and in what capacity. Your management or operations team should list the
person, their potential benefit/value to the organization as a way of displaying that you have people in place and
they will utilize their “strong suit” in relation to making the business a success.
• Identify a preliminary budget to try to identify the expenses you will have early on and match those against the
projected income you will need to start and maintain the business.
• Check with your local government in order to determine what permits or licenses you will need to start and
operate.
• Make sure to have a bank, an attorney and an accountant to be able to advise you on financial and legal issues
along the way. The Service Corps of Retired Executives (S.C.O.R.E.) is a free advisory service the Small Business
Administration (SBA) has in many large cities and their services are usually free.
•

3. How to Start a Business
• Conclusions:
• Make sure that you engage in a planning process before you make any effort to start a business.
• Seek funding that offers you the best advantage to yourself as you can (money loaned almost always comes with
conditions attached and while they may seem reasonable at this stage, they could return to “haunt “ you later on.
• Understand that starting a business is much like raising a child. It will take a substantial amount of your time,
attention and resources as it’s born until it’s able to survive on its own!
You may also wish to go to the following websites to gain additional information:
http://nationalbusiness.org/ An organization dedicated to assisting small business owners
https://www.sba.gov/ The federal government’s agency dedicated to the assisting of entrepreneurs and small business
owners
https://www.youtube.com/ A repository of many videos on starting a business, entrepreneurship and other relevant
topics