How to Start a Business

Starting a business requires a great amount of work. There are several steps to starting a business. First you need to research and plan your business. What this means is you need to write a detailed business plan explaining, how you want your business to work and what you want to achieve from this business.
After you have your well-written business plan its a good idea to get business assistance and training. Basically these trainers and assistants will help and teach you everything about starting and running a business. They may also help you with getting loans, improving your business plan and marketing strategies. You may be able to even find some free training programs to help you start your business.
Next you will need to find the right business location. How do you know that it's the right location? Well, some of the factors you should look at that should help you with you decision are, do a lot of people come to this area? Is it a comfortable location for your customers? How much is the leasing on the building? Also tax credits offered by your local government. The right location can be crucial to helping your business succeed.
Your next step is to finance your business. To finance your business and help you get started you will most likely need to get a loan. In a loan you borrow money from a lender in which you are required to pay back the same amount of money plus interest at a later time.
You will then need to pick a legal structure for your business. This will determine what your job in the business is, how much you money you will make, and how much you have to pay for taxes and other finances. For example if you are working individually then you will work more and you don't have to share your profits. If you have a partnership you will make less money, but you will also reduce your costs. You may need to contact several federal agencies to help you with this. "The most common business structures are:

• Sole Proprietorship - A business owned and managed by one individual who is personally liable for all business debts and obligations.
• Partnership - A single business owned by two or more people.
• Corporation - A legal entity owned by shareholders.
• S Corporation - A special type of corporation created through a tax election. An eligible domestic corporation can avoid double taxation (once to the shareholders and again to the corporation) by electing to be treated as an S corporation.
• Limited Liability Company (LLC) - A hybrid legal structure that provides the limited liability features of a corporation and the tax efficiencies and operational flexibility of a partnership.
• Non Profit - An organization engaged in activities of public or private interest where making a profit is not a primary mission. Some Non Profits are exempt from paying federal taxes. 
• Cooperative - A business or organization owned by and operated for the benefit of those using its services. Cooperatives are not a legal structure." (copied from www.business.gov)                               

 After that you will need a business name. if you are the solo owner of the business then the name of it is your first and last name. If your in a partnership then the name is either your last names or the name that both partners agreed on. If you would like a different name for your business then you will need to file a fictitious name registration form with your government agency. A fictitious name is just a name other then the official registered name of your business.                                                                   
     What you will need next is a tax identification number. Basically it is just used for identifying your business. All businesses are required to pay federal, state, and sometimes local taxes. Along with business taxes required by the federal government you will also have to pay for some state taxes which vary in every state. The most common ones are tax permit, income taxes, and employment taxes.    
   The final step to starting a business is getting the required licenses and permits for your business, some are basic and some may be very specific. You may only need one license or you may need several. This depends on what your business is, your state, location and what is required by federal, state and local Governments. If you don't have the required incenses and permits, you can get expensive fines.