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Start a Business

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First Things First An opening check list is a great place to start. Remember that airline pilots are required to use a checklist before they take off! Here are items you should have on your opening checklist. Add additional items that would be appropriate for your own business. Do I have a one-year cash flow projection prepared to insure there will be ongoing liquidity? Do I have the necessary e-commerce tools in place? Are all insurance policies in force? If I plan to sell on credit terms, is my credit rating policy in place to avoid taking on customers with poor credit ratings? (The last thing you need is to have customers who don't pay on time, and good customers will respect you for this policy). Is my business plan complete and in written format? Does it include pre-opening, first year and long-range planning? It will play a key role in securing investors and will help uncover any weaknesses in the planning process. Have I taken the time to gain practical job experience and learn the basics of my business by first working in the business for someone else? (This is probably the best way to discover if you have made a choice that will be not only successful, but also satisfying to you.) Have I budgeted adequately for prototypes, research, sampling and trials? Have I successfully test-marketed my product or service? Was the response positive? (If not, you need to re-design, re-work and re-test.) Have I focused on selling a great product at a fair price rather than a fair product at a great price? ("Great product" suggests a product or service with pricing power and "fair product" suggests a commodity-type business more susceptible to competition.) Do I have all the communication, computer and other business tools in place? Do I have the skills to use them? Has my accountant fully explained the

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