Congrats! You’re starting a business to serve the people in your local community. How exciting! This can be an exhilarating experience, but running one on the day to day can feel like huge burden without the right systems and people in place.
Here are 4 steps to help you succeed as a local business and help more people with what you do!
Step 1: Define Your Ideal Customer and the Value You Provide to Them
The first step of any business is to identify your ideal customer and what problem you’re going to solve for them. Are you a video production company looking to help a business look more professional on camera? Are you a local arts and crafts shop that helps families and friends bond as they express their creative side? Use this framework to help you clarify why your product or service is important and who it’s important to.
“My business provides Services X, Y, and Z to help our target client solve this problem.”
If you are starting a local pressure washing business, your sentence may read like this:
“Our company provides pressure washing and outdoor cleaning services to help local homeowners care for their home’s exterior and be proud of their space without needing to purchase expensive equipment or take time away from the more important things in their life like their family or work!”
Your sentence might look different than this one, but this should help you clarify who you’re trying to serve, how your trying to serve them, and why it’s so valuable to the people you’re trying to reach. If you have trouble writing this sentence, you might need to define more clearly what you do, the people you’ll serve, and the specific problem you solve for them.
Step 2: File for your LLC with MyCorporation
Once you’ve got the vision for your business in place, it’s time to make your business a reality!
If it’s your first time starting a business, you can check out all of the info in our Learning Center. We have in-depth info on:
- LLC vs. Corporation
- Why Should I Incorporate?
- Where Should I Incorporate?
- Which Entity Should I Choose?
- How Do I Create A Corporation Online?
…and many other resources that can help you understand what your business needs after you file.
Our team of experts will help you determine what business entity type is best for you based on your business structure, number of owners, tax benefits, and other key factors. Visit our business formations page to get started with our team!
Unlike LegalZoom and other big businesses we personally handle your business filings and you have access to a dedicated representative. You’re not a number on a list, you’re someone worth giving personalized customer service!
Instead of handling questions in endless back and forth over email, you get phone support with our team. And instead of being put into an online ticketing system, our dedicated sales team makes sure you have the resources you need right when you need them.
Step 3: Build a Website / Google My Business Listing
Once you’ve incorporated or formed your LLC with MyCorporation, the next step is to build your website and make sure your business is verified with Google!
Without a website, it’s difficult to get business unless it’s from word of mouth. Resources like Squarespace or Wix can help you get a basic site started from a template, but if you want more options you may want to work with a developer.
Make sure to have pages that clearly show what you do, who your products and services are for, and what problems they solve. And it doesn’t hurt to have testimonials from people that love what you’re doing!
Once you have a website up, go to Google My Business and set up a profile. You will likely need to verify your address via a postcard for your physical business location. Or you may be able to create one that lists a Service Area rather than a specific address if you don’t have office space.
After that Google My Business listing is up, start asking your happy customers to review you with the link Google provides! The more 5-star reviews your business gets on the platform, the more people are likely to do business with you. And if someone leaves an unhappy review, it’s a chance for you to make it right, reply to their review, and show people that you care enough to do the right thing!
Make sure to add your website URL to your Google My Business listing so people can learn more about you if they find you in local search results.
Step 4: Start Selling!
You did it! You’ve defined your ideal customer, incorporated or formed your LLC with MyCorporation, created your website and Google My Business listing, and now it’s time to start selling your product or service! This is not an exhaustive list, but here are different tactics you’ll want to consider to sell as much as you can!
Referral Partners
Who do you already know that sees the value in what you’re doing? Are there other business owners that help your ideal customer with related services? Take them out for lunch or coffee, get to know their business, and see if it makes sense for you to send business to each other!
Social Media
Most people have personal social media accounts, but many businesses don’t have them set up at all or don’t have them set up properly. Make sure you at least have a Facebook page, Instagram business profile, LinkedIn company page set up with a profile photo and information for your business.
This helps add another layer of legitimacy to your new company and also gives you the opportunity to post testimonials and what your company is up to that might be of interest to your prospects and audience!
Friends & Family
Let your friends and family know about your new company! Even if they aren’t your ideal customers, they probably know people that could use your new products or services!
Email may be old by social media standards, but it can still be effective! Keep a list of your potential and past customers in a platform like Mailchimp or Hubspot, and make sure to have a spot on your website for people to sign up for ongoing promotions and news about your business! The more educational and helpful you make these emails, the better your response will be.
And as always, for more resources about starting and running your business, go to MyCorporation.com.