The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting Your Own Business, 5th Edition

by Paulson, Edward

• ISBN13: 9781592575848
• ISBN10: 1592575846
• Additional ISBN(s): 9781592571383, 9781615641512
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Package
• Copyright: 2007-01-02
• Publisher: DK Publishing, Inc.
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

Newly revised for the ever-changing world of business, this book offers stress-free guidance for anyone who wants to turn a good idea into a good living. This edition also includes a CD-ROM featuring 100 commonly requested forms and documents essential to business start-ups. --Completely revised and updated 10th anniversary edition of this top-selling title--CD-ROM included, featuring 100 commonly requested forms and documents and three bonus chapters on related topics.

Author Biography

Edward Paulson is a successful entrepreneur, business consultant, college professor, and author with more than 25 years-' experience in setting up and running businesses. The author of more than 15 books and numerous articles, he frequently lectures throughout the United States.

Table of Contents

Part 1: Starting the Right Business for You	1	(112)
You Are Your New Business	3	(18)
Lifelong Employment Is a Myth	5	(1)
Cut Yourself Some Slack	5	(1)
Your Business Starts with You	6	(1)
Do You Have What It Takes?	7	(5)
What Makes a Great Entrepreneur?	8	(1)
What Are Your Strengths and Abilities?	9	(3)
What Are Your Needs?	12	(4)
Financial Needs and Goals	12	(2)
Family Motivations and Goals	14	(1)
What Are Your Spiritual Goals?	15	(1)
Escaping the Big House---Leaving Corporate America	16	(2)
What Is Your Personal Bottom Line?	18	(3)
Navigating the Critical Planning Process	21	(12)
Why Prepare a Business Plan?	22	(2)
Think of It as a Simulation	24	(1)
The Overall Plan-Writing Process	24	(3)
Being Honest	25	(1)
Getting Help	26	(1)
You'll Never Have All the Information You Need	27	(1)
The Minimum That Your Plan Must Cover	28	(1)
Dealing with a Bad Business Idea	29	(1)
Short-and Long-Term Planning	30	(3)
Your Recipe for a Professional Business Plan	33	(14)
Briefly Describing Your Business Idea	35	(1)
Your Mission: Why Does Your Company Exist?	35	(3)
The Pieces of Your Plan	38	(8)
Cover Sheet	39	(1)
Table of Contents	40	(1)
Executive Summary	40	(1)
Business Description	40	(1)
Market and Industry Analysis	41	(1)
The Competition	42	(1)
Marketing Strategy	43	(1)
Operations Plan	43	(1)
The Management Team	43	(1)
Financial Overview and Funding Needs	44	(1)
Summary and Conclusions	45	(1)
Appendixes or Supplementary Materials	46	(1)
Ethics and Your Plan	46	(1)
Finding the Money You Will Need	47	(22)
Risk and Reward Are Intimately Linked	49	(3)
Investors Give Money to Get Something Back	49	(1)
The Greater the Perceived Risk, the Greater the Required Return	50	(1)
Don't Treat Investments Personally	51	(1)
Comparing Debt and Equity Funding	52	(1)
Company Stages and Funding	53	(3)
Seed Stage	53	(1)
Startup Stage	54	(1)
First Stage	54	(1)
Second Stage	55	(1)
Third Stage (Mezzanine)	55	(1)
Harvest Stage---Exit Strategy	56	(1)
Know How Much Money You Will Need	56	(4)
Will You Make Money?	57	(1)
How Much Can You Afford?	57	(1)
The Plan Estimates Your Money Needs	58	(1)
What's Your Potential?	58	(2)
Basic Types of Funding	60	(7)
Typical Funding Action Sequence	60	(1)
Funding Out of Your Own Pocket	61	(1)
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? Family Funding	62	(1)
Venture Capital---May Not Be for Everybody	63	(1)
Agency Guaranteed Bank Funding	64	(1)
SBA and Governmental Program Realities	64	(1)
Stock Sales (Not an IPO ... Sorry)	65	(1)
Seller Financing	66	(1)
Ethics and Funding	67	(1)
For Your Plan	67	(2)
Buying Experience with a Franchise	69	(12)
Franchises: Paying for Their Experience	70	(2)
Franchising in a Nutshell	72	(2)
Getting to Know the Franchiser	74	(3)
How Long Has the Franchiser Been in Business?	75	(2)
Key Personnel, Methodology, or Arrangements	77	(1)
What About the Competition?	78	(1)
For Your Plan	79	(2)
Buying an Existing Business	81	(12)
The Benefits and Drawbacks of Buying an Existing Business	82	(1)
Buying and Selling are Similar ... but Different	83	(1)
Preparing to Buy	84	(1)
Finding the Candidate	85	(2)
Finding a Company to Buy	86	(1)
Plan to Buy in Stages	87	(1)
The Sales Meetings	88	(1)
Getting the Right Professional Help	89	(2)
For Your Plan	91	(2)
Should You Start a Corporation?	93	(20)
An Overview of the Various Business Structures	94	(11)
Sole Proprietorship: Going It Alone	96	(2)
Partnership: A Business Marriage	98	(1)
Corporations: Share the Wealth	99	(2)
Public or Private?	101	(1)
Subchapter S--Corporations: Protection with a Smaller Tax Bite	102	(2)
Limited Liability Company (LLC)	104	(1)
Professional Corporations	105	(1)
State to State	106	(1)
Dealing With the Tax Man	107	(3)
For Your Plan	110	(3)
Part 2: Writing Your Successful Plan	113	(158)
Determining Your Market Opportunity	115	(14)
Understanding and Assessing the Market's Influence	116	(4)
Don't Create a Market Need	118	(1)
Determine Overall Market Characteristics	119	(1)
Is the Market Growing?	120	(5)
Who Are the Major Players in Your Market?	123	(1)
How Long Will This Opportunity Last?	123	(1)
Research Data Sources Are Everywhere	124	(1)
Researching Your Plan	125	(4)
For Your Plan	127	(2)
Learning on Your Competitors' Nickel	129	(14)
Is the Competition Real?	130	(1)
Accumulating Competitive Information	131	(3)
Comparing Yourself to Them	134	(3)
Price Wars Hurt Everyone	137	(1)
Are You a Specialty Store or a Superstore?	138	(1)
Using Market Segmentation to Your Advantage	139	(1)
Cooperation Versus Competition	140	(1)
For Your Plan	141	(2)
Focused Marketing That Makes Money	143	(18)
Marketing and Sales: Linked but Different	144	(1)
Know Who Is Most Likely to Buy Your Offering	145	(2)
Target Marketing: Finding Your Best Customers	147	(1)
Finding Your Right Price	148	(3)
The All-Important Life Cycle	151	(3)
Your Marketing Message and Positioning	154	(1)
Advertising: Balancing Push and Pull	155	(3)
Mail Order and Direct Mail	158	(1)
For Your Plan	159	(2)
Getting Sales: The Lifeblood of Your Business	161	(20)
Manipulating and Selling: Not the Same Thing	163	(2)
Getting Close to Closing the Sale	164	(1)
Everyone Has to Sell, but Not Everyone Closes	164	(1)
Is Your Offering a Special or Commodity Item?	165	(1)
Is Your Customer a Likely Buyer?	166	(2)
The Nine Stages of Selling	168	(5)
The Suspect Stage---Stage 1	168	(1)
The Prospect Stage---Stage 2	169	(1)
The Entree Stage---Stage 3	169	(1)
The Discovery Stage---Stage 4	170	(1)
The Proposal Stage---Stage 5	170	(1)
Trial Close Stage---Stage 6	171	(1)
The Budget Stage---Stage 7	171	(1)
The Close Stage---Stage 8	172	(1)
The Post-Sale Stage---Stage 9	172	(1)
A Commodity Sale Versus a Complex Sale	173	(1)
Your Sales Channels	173	(3)
Distributors as Sales Agents	174	(1)
Should You Use Your Own Sales Force?	175	(1)
Selling Services Instead of Products	176	(2)
For Your Plan	178	(3)
Production Plans That Produce Results	181	(14)
Production in Product and Service Environments	182	(2)
Are You a Mass Producer or a Job Shop?	184	(1)
Linking Purchasing, Production, and Marketing Forecasts	185	(2)
Create a Production Flow Chart	187	(1)
Successful Project Management	188	(2)
Maintaining Quality	190	(2)
For Your Plan	192	(3)
The Good and Bad News About Employees	195	(22)
When You're Successful, You'll Need Help	196	(4)
Good Help Isn't Hard to Find	200	(3)
Independent Contractors	201	(2)
Putting Retired Folk to Work	203	(1)
Take Your Employee for a Test Drive	203	(1)
When a Contractor Is Really an Employee	204	(1)
More Employees, More Restrictions	205	(7)
Medical Insurance	207	(1)
Sexual Harassment	208	(1)
Solicitation and Competition	209	(3)
Interviewing Techniques	212	(5)
For Your Plan	215	(2)
Properly Handling Payroll Taxes	217	(12)
Payroll Taxes: You Can't Avoid Them, So Learn How to Deal with Them	218	(1)
Payroll Tax Overview	219	(3)
Filing and Paying Payroll Taxes	222	(1)
Tax Deposits and IRS Form 941, Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return	222	(5)
State and Federal Unemployment Taxes	225	(1)
Rules to Live (and Save Taxes) By	225	(2)
Using a Payroll Accounting Service	227	(2)
Accounting: How Business Keeps Score	229	(24)
Accounting 101	231	(3)
Accounting Periods	232	(1)
Sales and Costs	232	(2)
Cash or Accrual: Which Accounting Method Is Right for You?	234	(4)
The Cash Basis Accounting Method	236	(1)
The Accrual Accounting Method	236	(2)
Understanding Financial Statements	238	(15)
A Chart of Accounts	239	(1)
The Income Statement	240	(2)
The Balance Sheet	242	(5)
Cash Flow Analysis	247	(3)
For Your Plan	250	(3)
Reaping All Your Small Business Benefits	253	(18)
The Grim Truth	254	(3)
Are You Self-Employed or an Employee?	257	(2)
Differentiating Various Business Types and Taxes	259	(3)
You Still Need a Retirement Fund	262	(3)
The Standard IRA and Roth IRA	262	(1)
An SEP and Simple Plan	263	(2)
Various Other Deductions	265	(3)
Home Office Deductions	265	(1)
Medical Benefits	266	(2)
A Final Word About Providing Benefits	268	(3)
Part 3: Running a Successful Business	271	(123)
Cash Is Like Air for Your Business	273	(16)
When You're Out of Cash, You're Out of Business (Usually)	274	(1)
How Success Can Kill Your Business	275	(2)
Factoring, Credit Terms, and Loans	277	(4)
Factoring Receivables	277	(2)
Using Credit Terms to Enhance Your Cash Position	279	(1)
Buying on Credit	280	(1)
Taking Out a Loan	281	(1)
Applying Break-Even Analysis to Determine Startup Cash Requirements	281	(4)
Knowing When Enough Is Enough	285	(1)
Projecting Startup Cash Requirements	286	(1)
For Your Plan	287	(2)
Properly Handling Credit Card Sales	289	(12)
The Way Credit Cards Work	291	(1)
The Costs of Credit	292	(4)
Terminal Fees	293	(1)
Monthly Fees	294	(2)
Covering Your Legal Bases	296	(2)
What to Do if a Charge Is Contested	298	(3)
Banking On Your Banker	301	(14)
What Does a Bank Bring to the Table?	302	(1)
The Loan Officer Is Your Friend. Really	303	(1)
Banks Will Give You Money Only When You Don't Need It	304	(2)
Bank Loans You Can Get	306	(2)
Sell Your Banker on Your Company	308	(2)
Commercial Checking Accounts: A Different Animal	310	(1)
Enter the Small Business Administration (SBA)	311	(1)
Big Banks, Small Banks	312	(3)
International Business--Did I Mention China?	315	(79)
International Business and the Internet	317	(1)
Taking and Processing Orders	317	(3)
Giving Product Information	318	(1)
Shipping and Handling	318	(1)
Pricing and Exchange Rates	319	(1)
Making Sure You Get Paid	320	(4)
Going International---All the Way	324	(2)
Working with China	326	(5)
Some Facts About China	326	(1)
The Importance of Relationship in Business	327	(1)
The Importance of Size	328	(1)
The Challenges	328	(3)
Appendixes
Business Buzzword Glossary	331	(18)
The Kwik Chek Auto Evaluation Example Business Plan	349	(34)
Resources	383	(8)
Bibliography	391	(3)
Index	394