We can state with certainty that no individual is able to start a business without help from others. However, where can one find this assistance? Read on for everything you need to know about finding help starting a business.
Many hopeful entrepreneurs have spent years dreaming about becoming small business owners. However, those who succeed are acutely aware that they need some assistance at the start of the process.
Business careers do not simply appear out of thin air—starting even a small company requires long hours, vision and sharp foresight, and confronting numerous vital decisions on a daily basis.
While you won’t always make the ideal decision, you will be learning as you go. However, that learning will not take place if you are by yourself. Therefore, it is essential to find outside professional help and to solicit and welcome their opinions.
Sometimes you can also learn from veterans, who have been down this road before, and will gladly provide the younger generation with some of their trade secrets and valuable experiences. In any case, finding help with starting a business is integral to success.
Douglas Wade, Attorney
While friends and family can be helpful—and we will touch on that here—it is recommended that motivated, driven entrepreneurs also focus on professional assistance. Business mentors can provide the know-how you need to learn how to survive in the corporate world and succeed. If you are still unsure, just take a look at a list of Fortune-500 companies. We can bank on the fact that every successful company employs countless advisors whose sole purpose is to provide advice and counsel and oversee essential decisions.
Indeed, starting a company from scratch requires many talents and skills, and some of these may come as news to even the most qualified candidates. Luckily, free assistance abounds these days in the form of affordable or accessible training, business courses, and mentoring services. In addition, there are many resources online and also some in-person, though the pandemic may have moved a few of those to the web. In any case, there is a wealth of options out there for entrepreneurs to take advantage of.
Here, we provide a list of what we see as the top categories for business help, both professional and otherwise. Company owners must deal with numerous responsibilities on a daily basis, and for many, these begin the moment your business is registered, if not before. The tasks are seemingly endless, from everyday office work, taxes and accounting, marketing and advertising, customer service, employee relations, and much more. Some of us lose track of where to start and where to focus. For many, finding reliable answers, guidance, and education means the difference between business success and company failure.
Business mentors come in many shapes and sizes, but we recommend forming a team of advisors. You may not be able to assemble this team all at once—or afford it—but ideally, try to locate a few advisors from different backgrounds, such as law and accounting. These dedicated professionals will provide trusted opinions about your business from different perspectives, offering you a sounding board as you record early successes and learn from your failures. Before you begin, it is also recommended that you speak with your family about your goals and reach out to colleagues. For example, if you are starting a small, organic, and gourmet fast-food business in San Francisco, reach out to restaurant owners and chefs whom you admire to get the lay of the land.
While family, friends, and colleagues can offer excellent advice, it is also essential to get professional help in starting your business, so read on for the best ways to do just that.
1) Use Available Resources, Such As SBA.gov
SBA.gov is an excellent resource to gain professional help starting a business. The comprehensive website offers online classes for free that deal with the fundamentals of not only creating but managing and funding businesses. One course is specifically for women over 50, and there are other courses for specific demographics, with new classes being added all the time. SBA.gov, known as “The SBA” for short, also holds technical courses and local classes at a wealth of locations all over the US. Start with the website, and you will soon find resources that match your needs and your stage of beginning a business.
2) Utilize Business Recruiters
When new business owners reach the exciting stage of hiring new employees, many of them decide to contact licensed recruiters for help. Recruiters can genuinely provide a helping hand as you get this point because while you have many aspects of the company to worry about, they have one singular focus: matching qualified employees with excellent employers. When a startup is in its beginning stages, many entrepreneurs are not sure what skills they should emphasize or what job experience is helpful as they hire new employees. Business owners may know everything about their industry and company, but they might be unsure how much experience and education their new employees should have. For answers to all of these questions, consider turning to a recruiter.
How can a qualified recruiter guide your hiring process in concrete ways? They will gladly help you write a detailed, comprehensive job description and also help out with creating the application, and placing it in the suitable online mediums, so the best candidates will see it. Plus, recruiters can aid you throughout the hiring process and help screen applicants so that you do not waste valuable time interviewing candidates whom you know are not the correct fit. Also, some recruiters will attend your interviews or final interviews, so you can debrief with them after. Employees are genuinely one of the most critical aspects of your new business, so reputable professional help with hiring is a must.
3) Network with Other Business Owners
If you are searching for professional guidance, sometimes you need to look no further than your colleagues. Successful, established business people who work in your industry are an outstanding resource for help, primarily if they work specifically in your niche. While your fellow business owners should have plenty of suggestions for you based on their own careers and varied experiences, they will also open you to a new network of recruiters, attorneys, accountants, and possibly even employees who will suit your company’s needs.
Many business owners shy away from reaching out to companies whom they may compete with. However, the business world thrives on friendly competition. The odds are that if a competing business has information or know-how that you want, you may also have some of the answers they are looking for. This mutually beneficial flow of information is what competitive business is all about, and startups often exchange ideas, philosophies, tricks, and tips as they arise in the industry together. Creating lasting relationships with your colleagues and competitors can lead to progress, education, and even an increase in revenue. Even more importantly, your understanding of the market, the seasons, and the local and national economy at large will flourish as you trade and brainstorm ideas. Finally, never be afraid to listen and learn from the business owners who have accomplished more than you because they usually have a helping hand.
In short, we can all improve with help from our friends, colleagues, and competitors, and soon you will be the established veteran, dispending wisdom to the younger generation. When this happens, remember where you started!
4) Try Small Business Development Centers for Guidance and Support
In addition to SBA.gov, Small Business Development Centers, or SBDCs, are a tool that every new business owner should have in their toolbox. These centers provided businesses with an assortment of relevant help and were initially established for the sole purpose of cultivating local and national economic development through the nurturing of small companies. We doubt that your new business is based on a promising idea and runs with excellent efficiency, but we also know that the business sector is challenging, and mistakes occur. Having these centers that are dedicated to helping small businesses make it over their initial hurdles, and learn to thrive, is indispensable.
In fact, what is commonly known as “the SBDC network” encompasses more than 900 centers all over the US. What are some of the professional services offered? They include help with drawing up a business plan, help with finding economic assistance, assistance with disaster recovery, and procurement assistance, among other categories. Since the SBDCs let their locations dictate some of their preferred services, check-in with your local SBDC to see if the help you need is available. For example, the SBDC of New York provides guidance regarding employee management, redesigning business plans, and international company development, while California and specifically San Diego’s SBDC offers services that include manufacturing, finance, accounting, human resources, and more.
5) Shoot, and SCORE
Did you know that there exists a volunteer non-profit organization that is here to help you and is even partners with the United States Small Business Association? SCORE is the name of this organization, and smart business owners know that SCORE provides top-notch support to many small companies as they get their footing. Across the country, there are a whopping 364 chapters of SCORE, with over 13,000 volunteers. But, what can SCORE do for you specifically?
- On their website, there are business tools that are free to download. Many business owners have said that the templates, tools, and information are pretty helpful and span a wide variety of topics.
- SCORE mentors are from a wide range of industries, and they are happy to share their experiences and insights with you. Plus, these counseling sessions are free, confidential, and can even be done online these days.
To summarize, SCORE is a resource that will not cost you much—if anything—and can provide guidance through counseling and a wealth of business information. They want to help you succeed at SCORE, and you cannot beat that.
6) Opt-In for Entrepreneurial Training
Now that you have done the hard part and started a business, doesn’t it make sense to turn to others who have already been through the process? The great thing about being a new entrepreneur with a new business idea is that you have so much room to learn and grow. It is impossible to predict where your company, or you, will end up, and that should be both exciting and freeing. As in any industry, the veterans who have been through all of the ups and downs and are still going strong are some of the best people to learn from.
If you are lucky enough to have some friends or colleagues who have already succeeded as small business owners, they will undoubtedly share their experiences with you. Hearing about their mistakes and victories is an excellent way to learn. If all of your colleagues are at the same beginning stage as you or firmly rooted in different industries, why not look into a business counseling service? Although these are not free—and often not cheap—shop around for the websites and companies that offer free lessons and courses and still receive great reviews. A quick web search will probably lead you to some valuable blog posts from entrepreneurs who enjoy sharing their stories, and you can proceed from there. Remember to keep an open mind.
7) Find Additional Free Business Courses Online
If you have detected one theme here, it is that finding affordable and valuable business guidance—much of it in the form of classes—can help both an entrepreneur and their business significantly improve in all aspects. Many small business owners who possess MBAs and other impressive degrees think that they have learned “all there is to learn” or that their education has finished. Others presume that they are ready for real-world experience and are done with the classroom. However, individuals soon learn that the business world is full of rapid decisions, different personalities, and ever-changing conditions. Clearly, there is always more to learn, especially if entrepreneurs want to understand their role and every aspect of the business. Not all free courses are of use, but when you find classes that are well-reviewed and overseen by industry experts, it may be time to clear your calendar and get back in the classroom.
For example, let’s say you do not feel equipped to handle managing your company’s website and SEO content, but you also do not have the budget for a web designer and/or SEO content writer. Online resources will teach you how to drive up the traffic to your website, utilize the immense power of social media, and even navigate search engine optimization. Or, perhaps you are comfortable and capable in the tech world, but you are struggling with managing your personal finances and reconciling them with your company’s finances. Online classes (free and paid) will help you navigate what is an increasingly challenging field. In short, the web has become an outstanding destination for online business help and professional classes—you just might have to do a little digging. Be prepared to learn!
8) Contact and Network with Accountants
An accountant may not be the first person you think of when you debate how to find a mentor. However, accountants are usually full of knowledge and tips when it comes to prepping those important financial proposals and figuring out the ins and outs of funding your small company. One of the most important aspects of a business, especially if you want it to grow, is a consistent budget, and a licensed accountant can help you create one and devise ways to stick to it. Also, if you veer off of your budget—as many of us do when spending to support our new companies—an accountant can provide a qualified and experienced sounding board for getting back on track and possibly making some budget revisions.
Plus, once you begin recording profits, your accountant will be quick to monitor your company’s overall financial help and provide advice on where to go next. While entrepreneurs often think they are the best people to measure the performance of the business, it is actually helpful to have someone who has more financial knowledge and who is perhaps less invested in the industry do the job. Lastly, if your company is not performing up to snuff, a skilled accountant can use financial analysis to figure out how to right the ship.
9) Contact and Learn From Lawyers
Many successful entrepreneurs look to their attorneys not simply for legal advice and counsel but for more general advice regarding the business itself. Business lawyers can help new small business owners at nearly every stage, from figuring out the appropriate business structure, registering and filing with the state, naming the business, and acquiring financing, to penning a top-flight business plan. Skilled attorneys can also help with licensing, protecting intellectual property, and even buying or acquiring a new company.
Not to mention, lawsuits do occur in the business world, and when legal help is suddenly needed, no business owner wants to search around for the correct representation. However, if another business sues you, or you need to take legal action against another business, a lawyer is essential. While unfortunate, these situations are not abnormal. As you get started on your business journey in California, contact the skilled corporate attorneys and business lawyers at Nakase Wade. We have advised and helped hundreds of companies and look forward to speaking with you as you continue your road to success. Our small business lawyers at Nakase Wade offer free consultations, so please give us a call today.
10) Get in Touch with Friends and Family
While friends and family are indeed not the only resources you should use at this important juncture (as you can see by the preceding list), they are indeed a vital and trusted resource. Many successful entrepreneurs and business owners credit their parents for support and inspiration, and that is no coincidence. In truth, some of our first and best mentors are our parents.
Not all of our parents, siblings, and other family members have MBAs or are even interested in running a company. But your family is interested in your ideas, your experiences, and above all, your well-being. While families come in countless different shapes and sizes, no one knows an individual the way their family does, and that type of knowledge can come in handy and translate to excellent advice. So, reach out to family members when you are debating a significant business decision. While they should certainly not be your only path to knowledge, they too can provide professional help with starting a business.
Good Luck in Your Entrepreneurial Journey
For all other questions regarding professional help with your new business, contact the law offices of Nakase Wade. Our small business lawyers and small business corporate attorneys look forward to providing our services to you and wish you long-term success in your chosen industry.