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General Information

Below are a list of ideas and concepts which an aspiring or current entrepreneur can use in establishing a new business or expanding an existing one from a variety of perspectives.

After undertaking a period of preparation, an aspiring or current entrepreneur can establish a new business or expand an existing one from a variety of perspectives by utilizing the list of

ideas presented below which can provide an effective starting point.

For aspiring and current U.S.A. entrepreneurs, the Small Business Administration (SBA) provides the most extensive lists of ideas and resources concerning loans, accounting procedures, legal requirements, marketing suggestions, and networking ideas. Also, it directs much of its information towards the seven clusters of aspiring or existing businesspeople listed above and below. 

Also, for those persons striving to become entrepreneurs or to expand current business efforts, securing a mentor through the SCORE program can help with those efforts. The workers in that federal organization are retired business executives with extensive resumes who possess a wide array of skills, insights, and experience which they are willing to share and discuss with those whom they are trying to assist regarding setting up or expanding existing businesses.

Two other crucial considerations include the creation and implementation of a comprehensive,

flexible, and achievable business plan, and ongoing access to a sustainable amount of cash and credit.

Two final items to keep in mind in conducting out the above. First, the SBA gives loans, which the borrower must repay, not grants, to those who wish to set up or expand a business. Secondly, creative solutions exist which one can use to secure start up and enterprise-enhancing grants from other sources.

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Deciding What Business To Establish

Another important task at the beginning is determine what type of business to establish.  All individuals can avail themselves of numerous resources.  Reading books, websites, reviews, face book pages, and critiques of entrepreneurial efforts can only help. Talking to those who have businesses which one aspires to create, watching films and television shows about those enterprises can help establish one’s goals and dreams in determining what businesses to establish and how to establish.  Other tasks should include:

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  • Taking aptitude tests to determine skills and interests which are available on the internet at many types of libraries and at the Job service or One Stop or Child and family or American Job Center offices located in every county.

  • Matching the results with how a person feel about working in a particular field of endeavor.

  • Finding out if there is a market for engaging in a particular field of endeavor.

  • Analyzing if the prospective business owner has the skills to carry out that type of work.

  • If the aspiring originator has vocational shortcomings or deficits, he or she must resolve them prior to trying to create a novel enterprise.

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Having matched a prospective business initiator’s interests with his or her aptitudes, he or she might find it helpful to examine the idea of at least establishing a side business.  There are side businesses which an enterprising entrepreneur can establish on his or her own.  50 of them are in such an article which appeared on 21 April 2021: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careersandeducation/50-side-businesses-you-can-start-on-your-own/ar-BB1fWY20.

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Determining Whether To Expand An Existing Business

An existing entrepreneur deciding whether to expand a business must consider numerous factors.  These include the ongoing success, or lack thereof, of one’s current enterprise, the business’s credit and cash situation, recent possible changes in zoning laws, a critique of the entity’s past entrepreneurial efforts, the legalization or lack thereof of certain business practices, and the availability of possible grants or loans.  Other ways of accomplishing this involve talking to those who have businesses which one aspires to do and conducting a marketing study.

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Developing A Winning Business Plan

After using the above to decide what business to undertake or expand, the creator of this new enterprise must develop a comprehensive, success-oriented, and complete business plan.  The strategies should include:

 

  • Finding out if there is a market for engaging in a particular field of endeavor in a particular geographical area.

  • Analyzing if the prospective business owner has the skills to carry out that type of work

  • If a deficit exists in regard to currently being ab lot work in a  specific profession, determining if that prospective business owner can secure the abilities or talents or credentials needed to be able to do the work.

  • Calculating the amount of money, as well as the number of additional people needed to get the business up and running in terms of rent, utilities, IT support, legal fees, trademark or patent expenses, accounting procedures, licenses, transportation, equipment, and to provide the original owner and his her staff with enough of an economic cushion to survive any financial shortfall which might occur at the outset of the endeavor.

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Adhering To Significant Organizational Steps And Resources

Many important activities must be accomplished after deciding upon an idea to be utilized in creating or expanding a business.  They include: picking a name and a legal structure; writing a business plan; obtaining a Federal Identification Employment Identification Number; creating a company bank account (including getting a company credit card); establishing office, retail, warehouse, or operations working space; getting necessary licenses or permits; recruiting, hiring and training employees; setting up record keeping and accounting procedures; obtaining business liability insurance; creating procedures for operating the business to include paying ongoing and unexpected taxes--but not including record keeping and accounting operations; formulate a business identity; getting a domain name for a face book page; establishing a corporate culture; and creating and maintaining a marketing strategy to include establishing a web site and a face book page.  For more information see the following;

https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/10steps-start-your-business

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Utilizing Immediate Overall Assistance And Information For All Entrepreneurs

Governmental, private sector, and nonprofit organizations and entities which can give informal, immediate, overall assistance, and other information on setting up or expanding a business can include state, university, local agencies, and institutes; the following federal agencies (the Departments of Commerce, Defense, Health and Human Services, Education, Veterans Administration, Justice, Labor, Transportation, and Interior); non-Caucasian and/or ethnic Chambers of Commerce; ethnic groups; embassies; consulate offices; foundations; U.S. Congressional and state representative/senatorial offices; Governor’s offices; fraternities; sororities; trade associations; labor unions; alumni gatherings; university clubs; trade schools; commercial enterprises; medical and recovery groups; churches; temples; mosques; other religious institutions; religious societies; athletic associations; business associations, business and network international (www.bni.com); local merchant associations; Optimist International; convention and bureau political parties; Mastermind groups; country clubs; rotary clubs; Lions clubs; Kiwanis clubs; car clubs; fan clubs; men’s clubs; women’s clubs; computer clubs, investment clubs; and other such social entities. Agencies specializing in promoting these start up and expansion endeavors are as follows. The first is the Small Business Administration, a federal governmental entity which can provide needed counseling and training services through district offices across the country.  A second one is SCORE.  This a federal government association of more than 13,000 volunteer business counselors throughout the United States.  The members of this group act as counselors, advisors, and mentors to those aspiring to become entrepreneurs and business owners.  Furthermore, they do not charge any fees for their services. They specifically help those individuals just starting up their enterprises during the first two years.  A good resource that can assist operating enterprises to expand their scope of activities are Small Business Development Centers.  And these are primarily sponsored by large universities and state economic development centers.  These can particularly help companies desiring to expand the scope of their commercial activities.  Also, Local and Regional Chambers of Commerce provides its members with educational and advocacy outlets offered through numerous services and programs.  In the past, enterprise start up and expansion strategies included working with Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs).  These entities were dedicated to helping enterprises succeed in public sector marketplaces.  They provided no cost advising on all aspects of selling to the federal, state, and local governments.  In 2021 alone PTAC clients were awarded $24 billion in contracts with over 56,000 businesses receiving assistance. In a recent development, the Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP) is now under the management of the Department of Defense (DOD) Office of Small Programs (OSBP) and has changed its name to APEX Accelerators (https://www.apexaccelerators.us/#/).  Over the next few months, the new branding will roll out across the more than 95 centers in supporting those entities and raising awareness of the no-cost counseling services and technical support offered to businesses looking to compete for Federal, State, and Local government contracts.  United States Export Assistance Centers have professional workers who come from the SBA, the Department of Commerce, the Export-Import Bank, and other private and public organizations.  Working together, their goal is to assist small and midsize enterprises compete in the world-wide marketplace by giving export assistance.  These centers can greatly help enterprises wishing to serve global markets.  Then there are also 270 Certified Development Companies.  These SBA certified and regulated nonprofit corporations work with participating lenders to provide financing throughout the United States to small businesses.  These organizations can help business owners seeking debt financing to purchase capital equipment, another enterprise, or participate in new markets.  For more information on the above, see the following article.  For more information on all of this, see https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/trends-and-insights/articles/9-organizations-that-can-help-your-business-right-now/

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Financially Thriving While Starting A New Organization Or Expanding An Existing Entity

Businesspersons aspiring to create new enterprises or enlarge those already existing must guarantee financial support to cover all company and personal expenses for a period of at least one year from the date of inception or expansion.  This is because more than 80% of all new or substantive enhancement efforts on the part of small and medium sized businesses fail within one year because of inadequate financing. Two additional items to keep in mind in considering the above.  First of all, the SBA gives loans, which must be repaid, not grants, to those who wish to set up or expand a business.  Secondly, it is very difficult to secure grants from other sources that can help start a business or sustain the enhancement of an enterprise. Needed money sources can include blood bank donations; governmental loans; personal savings; credit cards; (personal or business); disability payments; social security benefits; income from other employment; loans from family members or friends; SNAP payments; food banks, social service, religious organizational, and private groups; other churches, synagogues, mosques, and temples; public and private subsidized housing programs and homeless shelters.  Other ideas include public and private foundations; university, hospital, or college loans or distributions; bartering for goods and items; residing with others; taking care of and living with others who have housing; house sitting; and minimizing entertainment, cable, computer, phone, tax, rent, transportation, housing, and other utility expenditures.  See also https://financebuzz.com/ for more ideas.  Specific agency resources include: Protestant Family Services; Lutheran Social Services; the American Red Cross; Catholic Charities; the Salvation Army; Volunteers of America; Goodwill Industries; the Dorothy Day Houses; Operation Connect events; Jewish Social Services Agencies; The Chaldean-Middle Eastern Social Services Agencies; Gleaners Food Banks; Second Harvest Food Banks; and the St. Vincent de Paul Society.  Call 211, surf the internet, visit pertinent  and relevant Facebook pages, google “Basic Need Resources To Meet Living Expenses” and "Budgeting Suggestions”, or contact University Schools of Social Work, food pantries, agricultural extension offices, food stamp offices, veterans’ services organizational offices, or public libraries to get more information.

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Emotional And Psychological Support Mechanisms And Resources For All Those Setting Up Or Enhancing A Business

Interpersonal support, ideas, or mentors which can provide help in setting up or running or expanding a business can be obtained when the individual establishing an enterprise can participate in peer support groups which can be sponsored and organized by chambers of commerce, private entities, business associations, religious organizations, and, when applicable, 12 step and face book groups.

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5 Specific Groups Which An Aspiring Or Existing Entrepreneur Should Consider Joining

They are as follows:

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Advantages And Disadvantages Of Buying And Operating A Franchise Enterprise

For some aspiring entrepreneurs, especially those who wish to establish and operate a private sector business, one possible approach is to purchase an entity.  The article and the book listed below discuss both the pros and the cons of entering this type of business.  The article is— https://www.franchise.org/faqs/basics/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages, and the book is https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/franchise-management-for-dummies-seid/1125798893

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For Entrepreneurs Applying For A Governmental Grant

Many non-profit organizations seeking resources research and apply for governmental grants. Please see under "Other Resources", General Facebook Pages, a listing of suggested Grant Writing assistance training items. In doing this they must initially decide whether they possess or can adhere to the following criteria. 

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  • The proper registration with the U.S. government

  • The organizational time and capacity to apply

  • The collection of standard attachments required of many federal grant applications

  • The compilation of data that can be measured and evaluated

  • The required demonstration of partners and supporters who can corroborate an organization’s preparedness and likelihood of success

  • The existence of internal controls and accountability to manage a federal grant.

See https://grantsplus.com/should-your-nonprofit-go-for-a-government-grant/

 

Also, the Board members and the staff of a nonprofit aspiring to apply for grants should know the following:

  • Grant money should always be seen as a tentative source

  • Successful grants evolve from interpersonal relationships

  • Securing grant money occurs as a result of the efforts of multiple staff members working together

  • For every grant sought, the business must remember that getting it costs the entity the chance to secure something else.

The applicable article relating to this section is:

https://grantsplus.com/should-your-nonprofit-go-for-a-government-grant/

 

Finally, grant scams which occur are described in

https://grantfundingexpert.org/five-ways-to-spot-a-grant-scam/

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Deciding What Business To Establish
Developing A Winning Business Plan
Determining Whether To Expand An Existing Business
Adhering To Significant Organizational Steps And Resources
Utilizing Immediate Overall Assistance And Information For All Entrepreneurs
Financially Thriving While Starting A New Organization Or Expanding An Existing Entity
Emotional And Psychological Support Mechanisms And Resources For All Those Setting Up A Business
5 Specific Groups Which An Aspiring Entrepreneur Should Consider Joining
Advantages And Disadvantages Of Buying And Operating A Franchise Enterprise
For Entrepreneurs Applying For A Government Grant
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