The Jim Moran Institute
for Global Entrepreneurship

Main

Services
• Consulting
• Entrepreneurial Showcase
• Mentoring Program
• Youth Initiative - Junior Achievement (JA)
• Entrepreneur Roundtables
• Tip of the Month
• Contact Us

Jim Moran Institute
• Meet Jim Moran
• The JMI Staff
• Board of Advisors
• Testimonials
• Major in Entrepreneurship

Resources


• Business Resources
• FAQs
• Related Links

Stuff you need to start a business

January 13, 2006

Q - A close friend recently moved here from Iowa. He works as a coach and has begun organizing weekly camps for schoolchildren who are not old enough to participate in the specific sanctioned sport he coaches. The question: My friend would like to turn this enterprise (if you will) into a "business,” complete with patent, name, license, etc. Essentially, he would like to have something "official" to market to other schools and, of course, he wants to make sure he acts in accordance with laws and other procedures with respect to this type of venture. Can you offer some advice or, in the alternative, some direction as to how he may commence this process?

You are such a good friend to be willing to help this man. So many businesses get started like this and they just seem to spring up without a lot of the requisite materials to develop sustainable businesses. One must develop a professional image for any business, because first impressions are so very important. Two basic things your friend needs are business cards and a brochure that describes what he does, including testimonies of parents or children who can attest to the benefits of his coaching. The brochure should be professionally designed (there are many graphic artists to help you with this) and printed, normally as a color tri-fold.

He also needs to get a business license or what the bureaucrats call a business tax certificate. You can get information on this from the City at http://talgov.com/citytlh/treasurer/revenue/faq.html and from the County at http://www.leontaxcollector.net/business.htm.

Good accounting software is a must to make sure he is actually making money as a coach and for tax purposes. For a simple business (with no employees), Quicken is okay, but QuickBooks is much better. He needs to estimate quarterly taxes and pay these taxes to the IRS.

Another thing he really needs is some advertising and promotion to ensure the growth of his business. A magnetic sign on his car or truck is a super way to tell a little bit about what he does. A few years ago, I was consulting with a suntan lotion company in Miami and the company’s name was all over its cars. Wherever we went, people were always coming up and asking for samples, so these car signs do work. He also needs to figure out if he is aiming for the parents or the schools to pay for his coaching. Different marketing strategies will be appropriate for different scenarios. With parents paying, word of mouth advertising works really good and encouraging existing clients to recommend him is a very effective means to bring in new clients.

One other important element to ascertain is the name, or fictitious name, of his business. The Secretary of State’s web site at http://www.sunbiz.org/ will help you through this process.

These are the basic items to get your friend going in business. If he needs any additional help, please tell him to contact Tallahassee’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at (850) 599-3407.