How Startups.co.uk can help:
Once you finally decided that joining the ranks of entrepreneurialism is for you and that you definitely want to start your own business, then you need to begin putting it into practise. Here, one of those early questions raises its problematic head once again: where should you start?
This is where we come in. Startups.co.uk is not just a business magazine but a tremendous online resource designed to guide you through every step of starting up your own business, from formulating your idea to writing a business plan and raising finance.
It’ll help prepare you for how start your own business and make it one that will change your life, affect your relationship with your family and friends and offer advice on the best ways to deal and cope with the changes. Work/life balance is an over-used term you’ll hear from every business coach and all the business startup services you’re ever likely to encounter. But if you’ve worked 20 hours a day for two months in a row you’ll be physically and mentally drained and appreciate the need for striking that balance.
It’ll take you through the research stage - helping you test drive your idea to see if it’s commercially viable and if there’s the market demand for it. It’ll help you make cost and revenue forecasts and to present your idea in the form of a business plan that you can then take to prospective business investors and partners. If your idea needs patenting, it’ll show you how.
Once you’re convinced and ready to take the plunge it’ll guide you through registering your company name – once its helped you choose one, that is - and help you decide if you’re a limited company or a sole trader.
Startups.co.uk will help you develop the skills that you’ll need when starting your own business. It’ll guide you safely through the minefield that is tax and introduce you to practices, products and systems that will help you organise your accounts efficiently. It’ll advise when professional help from an accountant or solicitor is needed, and when it isn’t – saving you time and money.
If you’re raising finance, there’s plenty of choice where to get it from. Startups.co.uk gives a rundown of the advantages and disadvantages of using different financiers, from high street banks to venture capitalists and business angels – and how best to impress them while still getting a good deal.
It’ll help you make the decision whether to work from home or seek premises, assist you in finding office or factory space and offer guidance on how to make the most from your chosen location.
Startups.co.uk also looks at how to get the most from your working day and ways that you can ensure your time is put to good use. For instance, how can you be in a meeting with clients and taking business calls at the same time? Do you need to use a virtual secretary? Would it be cost effective? Startups.co.uk will help you decide.