Steps to start a business in the U.S. .

Many people aspire to start a profitable and enduring business.

For most, it’s a dream to launch the business they’ve carefully planned and put it into action.

However, many individuals embark on entrepreneurship without the necessary knowledge for their business to truly stand the test of time and succeed.

So, in this article, you will learn the steps to start a successful business in the United States.

Let’s get started.

What does a successful business mean?

A successful business is one that is profitable and enduring over time.

Many people think that a company’s success is measured by the number of sales it has, but that’s not the case. For example, without good financial control, the profits from those sales can be lost, and, in the end, the business can go bankrupt.

That’s just one example, but if we get to the point, we can say that a successful business is a scalable one, which grows and keeps growing over the years.

It doesn’t matter if that growth is slow, as long as it’s consistent and robust, it’s sufficient to stay as a leader in its sector for years or at least in the top positions.

Now, how can you start a successful business? Let’s see.

5 Steps to Start a Business in the United States

1. Conduct Market Research

The first step to start any business will always be research.

If you start processes without prior research, you could encounter many unpleasant surprises along the way.

For example, the market you want to enter may already be oversaturated, or your target audience may not be present in the state where you plan to open your business, and so on.

So, the first thing you should do is research the following:

Is there a demand for your product or service? Are people interested in what you offer? If the answer is yes, how many people are interested in your offering? Make sure there are enough to have a scalable business.

Is your target audience close to the area where you plan to open your company?

How much is your target audience willing to pay for your product or service? Once you know this, you need to determine if it’s profitable for you.

It may not be something that excites you, but I assure you that if you do it, you can save a lot of time and money.

Try to gather as much information as possible to have a much more comprehensive view.

2. Create Your Business Plan

Once you have done your research, it’s time to create a business plan.

A business plan can be summarized as planning the path you will take to achieve success in your business.

At this point, you should ask yourself the following questions:

What does your business do? In other words, what problem does it solve?
Who is your product or service for?
How are you going to convey your message to your customer?

In addition to these questions, there are also more specific ones, such as the name of your company, the amount of money you have to invest in the United States, employees, partners, investors, etc.

When you have done this correctly, you can move on to the next step.

3. Define the Location of Your Company

The United States has 50 states, so you will have to decide on one.

Regardless of whether your business will be physical or not, you need an address within a state.

Each state is different when it comes to opening your business. For example, the laws in Florida are different from those in Texas, and the budget can increase or decrease depending on the state.

4. Choose the Type of Business You Will Open

It is different when you are alone in your business compared to having hundreds of employees, various partners, and investors. So, depending on some factors, you should choose the type of structure for your company.

There are different types of businesses that can be opened in the United States:

LLC or Limited Liability Company: a limited liability company is the most common choice when starting a business.

These are its benefits:

You can have an unlimited number of members.
You don’t need to be a resident or citizen.
Enjoy very low taxes (in the case of foreigners, they may be exempt from paying taxes, depending on the type of business).
Can be directly managed by their members or managers.
Only one member is needed to register an LLC.
There is a separation between the partners’ and the company’s assets.

C Corp or C Corporation: a C Corporation is a structure for larger companies with investors or shareholders.

Its benefits include:

Protect the partners’ assets.
If one of the partners dies or leaves the company, the C Corp will not dissolve and can continue to operate.
They can be publicly traded, allowing new investors such as venture capital firms, business angels, etc.
It is legally separate from its partners.

S Corp or S Corporation: an S Corporation (Small Corporation) is a corporation, similar to the C Corp, with some differences in its benefits.

Its benefits include:

When there are losses, these pass directly to the shareholders and can be used to reduce the taxes generated by other income.
The tax credits obtained are passed on proportionally to the partners.
Capital gains or exempt income are passed on to the shareholders.

With this information, you will be able to more easily determine the structure that truly suits your needs. Let’s move on to the next point.

5. Register your business in the United States

Once you have everything ready, you need to legally register your company in the United States.

In every state of the country, there are registration offices where you can complete the process.

To register, you need to have the following requirements:

Physical address of the company: you need a physical location where people can reach you for communication.

Registered agent: a registered agent is a person or business entity that will represent your company when receiving government correspondence.

Employer Identification Number: commonly known as EIN or Tax ID, it is the unique identification number assigned to your business entity so that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) can easily identify it.

You are now ready to start a business in the United States

We are Rex Legal, and we want to remind you that we are here to assist you with any legal processes or guidance you need when opening your company in the USA.