How to Start a Business in 2024 (Simple Steps)

Starting your own business is one of the best ways to generate wealth. However, it can be difficult to know where to begin.

Millions of people before you, including us, have started successful businesses. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel or spend hours researching what needs to be done. We can show you how we did it and what we learned along the way.

Here are the steps to starting a business:

• Put together a very high level and basic business plan
• Come up with a name
• Buy your domain name
• Secure social media accounts
• Develop a brand identity
• Set up a Google Workspace account
• Create a basic, foundational website
• Get some business cards
• Find an accountant and an attorney
• Set up an LLC
• Get an EIN
• Create an operating agreement
• File necessary paperwork with your state
• Open a business bank account
• Set up a payroll service for employees and contractors
• Put a basic accounting system in place
• Start using a project management solution from day one
• Build an internal system from day one
• Set up a Slack account
• Set up a conference call number
• Set up 1Password and Create a subscription tracker
• Create a strategic plan for the next 12 months

1. Put together a very high level and basic business plan

Don’t leave your business success to chance. Start by mapping out your journey, answering two basic questions: How am I going to get there? and How will I pay for it? Don’t overthink it; be realistic about what it takes to get where you want to go.

To get to profitability, you need a business plan. A business plan is like a road map that shows you where your business is going and how you’re going to get there. 

You can use this business plan template from Rocket Lawyer or check out our guide to writing a business plan to get started.

2. Come up with a name

When choosing a name for your company or website, keep these tips in mind: It must be memorable and brandable. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should reflect your brand image. You will be saying this name a lot, so it should be easy to say and spell. Most importantly, you need to think carefully about whether it will work as an address on the Internet (URL).

It is important to be confident in the name you choose. Your business’ name will be one of its most important assets. If you don’t love it, you won’t be able to sell it. You’ll have to sell it 24/7/365 for a long time. 

Pick a name that is unique and is not already taken by an established business or product. The general rule of thumb is to search Google for the name to ensure that it does not conflict with an existing company or brand.

Get the .com of your name. This is critical. It’s unbelievable how many people take this for granted and just completely disregard their domain name. If you want people to take your business seriously, make sure you have the .com.

Here is a great process for coming up with a business name:

• Brainstorm as many words, concepts, ideas, beliefs, descriptors, etc. as you can that fit the image, vibe, feel, or product/service you will offer.
• Brainstorm a list of business names based on your initial brainstorm from Step 1. Use a free online name generator to help you brainstorm.
• Check the names in Google. Delete any options that are already a known business — especially not one in your space.
• Make sure the domain name can be acquired. 

Here are more tips for coming up with a business name:

• Imagine your name with a logo on a big sign in your future office space.
• Imagine your name on a T-shirt.
• Say your name out loud. “Hi, I’m Name from Business Name.” How does it feel? Do you like how it sounds? Try saying it how you would when you answer a business call.
• Bounce your options around and talk to people about it.
• Spend some time thinking about it and let it sit for a while. Do you continue to come back to the same name?

Next, create your business and marketing collateral

3. Buy your domain name

Your domain name is a critical factor in the success of your website.

When choosing your domain, don’t be afraid to spend some money. We use Hostpyters.com to buy domains because they offer a great service and have reasonable prices.

4. Secure social media accounts

Finding a good name that fits your brand and is available for purchase online can be challenging. For example, the Internet is more than 30 years old and many popular domain names are taken. If you do find one that works, chances are slim that the social media handles will match as well.

However, you should put effort into getting them, but if that fails — get creative. Your social media handles / URLs are much less important than your website, but they’re worth putting effort into.

5. Develop a brand identity

It is important to have a brand identity. This includes colors, images and logos that customers associate with your brand.

It’s going to be a lot of work—but you can always update your brand identity down the road, so start with something that’s just good enough. 

Don’t worry if your brand identity isn’t perfect at first — it doesn’t need to be. Just get something together so you can start attracting customers, then come back and make improvements later on. Most businesses do this.

6. Set up a Google Workspace account

Google Workspace is the most important tool for our business.We do almost everything using Workspace. My team’s emails and calendars are all on Google, and we rely heavily on Google Drive and Docs.

You’ll need to get this set up as soon as you have your domain name. Then you can easily get your business accounts set up. A Basic account starts at $6 per user.

It puts you on a more professional footing to email from a domain you own (like [email protected]) rather than a free account. This is important for establishing relationships moving forward.

Going with Google Workspace gets you and your future team on a synced calendar and communication platform.

7. Create a basic, foundational website

Your website can be as big or as small as you want. If you’re just a small solo operation like a freelance writer, you might need just a single page with links to your writing and maybe your contact information.

If you’re an e-commerce business selling products and services, you’ll need a bigger website.

For now, the focus here is simply on a basic, foundational website. You can scale for a bigger website later if needed.

It’s good to have a one-page site live with information about your company. Then you can build further from there.

You can launch a fully functional website in minutes with Hostpyters. Once you’re ready to do a full-scale site, it’s easy to switch over to WordPress, using our guide on how to create a website with WordPress.

8. Get some business cards

To promote your brand with a business card, you can use the free online design program Canva and then have your cards printed online by VistaPrint.

It might seem strange to you, but I believe that giving out business cards is still a worthwhile activity. I’ve found that when I hand out my card to someone, it makes it easier for them to contact me and they tend to give me their direct number, rather than trying to find my contact info again.

9. Find an accountant and an attorney

It’s easy to put this off, but it’s better to take care of it sooner rather than later.

By getting ahead of the legal and tax issues associated with launching a new business, you can save yourself a lot of hassle and potentially save your business altogether. Line up the legal and tax pros ahead of time. There are lots of great options, including outsourcing these services to professionals who work remotely.

We haven’t personally used it, but we’ve heard a lot of good things about UpCounsel.

10. Set up an LLC

There are two ways to do this:

Use your attorney

Use an online legal service

No matter which you choose, setting up an LLC is simple. It’s a good spot to save some money by using a service like ZenBusiness.

11. Get an EIN

Getting your Employer Identification Number is something you can take care of along with the LLC. They usually occur during the same process.

You’ll need that to do just about everything, including business banking. You’ll also be using it to file your taxes — so definitely make note of it!

12. Create an operating agreement

Even though there may only be one owner, an operating agreement is still a good idea. LegalNature can help you create a legal document for your business.

Chances are, things will evolve and you will update your operating agreement down the road anyway. If you do have other people involved, have your attorney help out here.

13. File necessary paperwork with your state

If you’re using a lawyer, they can do all of this for you. Otherwise, you’ll need to do some research into the requirements in your state, which also vary depending on the type of business you’re starting.

Pro tip: If you need help, be sure to check out our article on the best online legal resources.

14. Open a business bank account

You’ll need that EIN. It’s typically most convenient to go with the same bank you’re already using for your personal accounts.

One thing to watch out for is the upselling that many of the bigger banks do. 

The point here is to use your bank account for a bank account and be wary of using them for other offers or services.

15. Set up a payroll service for employees and contractors

As I said, I really like Gusto. They offer such an intuitive and — dare I say — fun payroll experience.

We use them and find the service to be superior to Intuit Payroll.

You won’t need to worry about this until you start paying employees or contractors. It’s good to have it ready and on deck though. Not only will the service automate your payroll, but it will also take care of taxes and forms that need to be filed.

16. Put a basic accounting system in place

A Bookkeeping account is essential from day one. This is how you’ll manage your books and ensure you always have good records. Going back and importing historical data isn’t fun. The sooner you get it set up the better. Do it now.

The best way to prepare for tax season is to work closely with your accountant throughout the year. Ask your accountant what you need to do to make things easier when tax season arrives and make sure that you fulfill all quarterly obligations.

QuickBooks does all the heavy lifting when it comes to accounting, but there are still things you’ll need to stay on top of.

17. Start using a project management solution from day one

The most important thing is to track all of your work. Even if you are the only person in your company, you should operate like an organization because this will help you develop good habits, which will make it easier to see where you’ve been, so you can see where you’re going.

We use Trello to track our work. It’s a simple, flexible tool that makes it easy for new people on the team to join in and get up to speed quickly.

18. Build an internal wiki system from day one

Start documenting everything immediately. If you want to scale your startup, you must be able to scale your brain too. Your internal wiki will allow you to document things in a way that is accessible to everyone on the team.

We use Confluence to keep our business processes transparent. As a business owner, you’re going to have to make tough calls and handle touchy situations. When problems fall into a gray area, it’s really nice to be able to appeal to processes that have always been available for reference.

19. Set up a Slack account

Slack is a great communication platform that keeps your team connected. It is available for mobile devices and the web, with a Free plan that allows you to create different channels, giving each member of your team a place to discuss specific topics. The next level up will grant you guest access to different channels, as well as more storage and app connections.

20. Set up a conference call number

GoToMeeting makes conference calling easy. You can instantly join, host or manage a video, audio, or web meeting from a conference room, your desk or a remote location via your Mac, PC, or mobile device. Visit GoToMeeting to sign up and get started in mere minutes.

21. Set up 1Password and Create a subscription tracker

To reduce future headaches, set up your systems now. 1Password is an excellent tool for managing all of your passwords and sensitive data. It makes it easy to securely share logins with your team—which is key because Centrify estimates that lost passwords cost $416 in productivity per person.

To keep track of your subscriptions, use a simple spreadsheet. Include the name of the subscription, cost per month or year, terms (if any), payment method (what account or card is it tied to?), and renewal date.

22. Create a strategic plan for the next 12 months

Like your business plan, your strategic plan doesn’t need to be complicated.

Here’s how to write a simple startup business plan for year one:

Come up with one big goal for the next 12 months.

Determine what you need to do in order to reach your goal. What projects or activities will you need to perform?

Figure out what metrics or parameters you can use to monitor progress. Put in place a system for tracking them.

Review and challenge monthly. Make any necessary adjustments.

Even in a one-person shop, taking the time to do this will force strategic thinking and purposeful action. It will help you avoid being reactive and randomly doing whatever comes your way.

It becomes even more important when you have a team that needs to know what direction to march. They will need that context in order to do their jobs.