Starting Your Online Business

Starting Your Online Business

Starting Your Online Business:

Internet is not a "get-rich quick" medium. Your success will greatly depend on your patience, perseverance and ability to take advantage of opportunities in this hyper-fast environment. Nonetheless, the Internet presents vast opportunities and advantages for a home-based entrepreneur.

Here are some insights to help you understand the online business:
Your start-up capital can be very minimal.

Since you will be in the Internet, you can operate in the “comfort of you own home", which means you don’t worry about an office space to rent. Your location is where you are but you can reach the whole world from there.
You only need to purchase a good computer

(if you don’t have one yet), an Internet connection, a telephone line or two, and some notebooks and bond paper.

Starting-up your Internet business can be done without leaving your home.
Except for a trip to the circuit court to register your business name and one to your local bank to open your bank account, almost your operations can be done on top of your desk.

The Internet is a content market.
You only have to know how to write. If you are good in written communication, you have the edge.

Ideas for a Successful Web Site
The success of any business venture, whether online or traditional, hinges on the quality of its management. Here are five tools that every small business owner must have to take your entrepreneurial endeavors to the kind of success that you envision.

Steps to Successful Website Development

Steps to Successful Website Development

STEP 1: Set Your Goals
1. Why do you want a web site?
2. How does a web site fit your overall business plan?
3. What is the size of the online market?
4. What are the goals for your website?

STEP 2: Develop Your Web Site Strategy
1. Who is your website target audience?
2. What typically appeals to your target audience?
3. How are the other websites (your competition) reaching out to this target audience?
4. How will you measure your performance?
5. Have you developed your benchmarks?
6. What will your website do?
7. How will your website stand above the competition?

STEP 3: Set-Up Implementation Plans
1. What name will you give to your site?
2. How do you envision the design of your web site?
3. How will you create your website?
4. How will you create your content?
5. How will you maintain your website?

STEP 4: Start the Ball Rolling
1. Do you have a logo?
2. For e-retailers, do you have the critical components needed to run an e-commerce site?
3. How are you going to host your site?

STEP 5: Create and Launch Your Web Site
1. Have you loaded your site with your chosen web host provider?
2. Are the scripts and application you need for your website functioning well?
3. Have you tested your website?

STEP 6: Promote Your Web Site and Measure Its Results
1. Do you have a plan in place to market your website?
2. How are you going to get sites to link to you?
3. Do you know the search engine keywords that you rank well? 5. If your site is not visible in the search engine results pages for its keywords, what strategies do you intend to do?

STEP 7: Maintain Your Website and Grow Your Web Business
1. Continue to find ways to grow your web business.
2. How do you intend to continue your education on web development?

Steps for Building a Click-Ready Website

Steps for Building a Click-Ready Website

1) Thinking of starting an Internet business? Here are ten basic steps to help you create an effective Web site.
Assemble a web site development plan that is integrated with your overall marketing processes; the content should be consistent with offline materials, the graphics/images don't have to be identical with traditional media, but should be consistent with your overall branding, style guide, usage of colors etc.

2) Hire a web site design firm that understands your market position and one that won't get "geek crazy" - meaning they are so in love with their own design capabilities, your site gets bogged down with graphics, plug ins, GIF garbage, etc. But, conversely, check your ego at the door when you work with your design firm - I've see so many good web site designs get ruined by clients who can't or won't listen to what we tell them!

3) Pay attention to "load times," how long it takes a web site to load on a 56 KBPS modem (this is an industry average), if its more than 12-18 seconds you may experience the "click of death" - the site doesn't load quickly and the surfer is gone. Of course if your targeting broadband customers who are reaching your site via ISDN or DSL then you can build a site that incorporates multimedia-ready content that may include streaming audio or vide, or Shockwave or Flash capabilities - go ahead and let those digital geeks get carried away with cutting edge content!

4) Dare I say it, "keep it simple" - make your site easy to move around in, build a menu structure that is consistent with industry standards, local menus (for a page or section) on the left and global menus (overall site navigation) at the top and/or bottom of each page, keep as much information "above the fold" (above the cutoff point at the bottom of a monitor), don't make people use horizontal scroll bars unless absolutely necessary.

5) Inculcate "digital speed" into your overall site design, your client/customers should be able to get to their desired area of your site within one or two mouse clicks; they will quickly get frustrated if they have to clickthrough multiple menus to find information they are seeking.

6) Develop content that is web-enabled, people don't read web site content like they do offline media, keep your paragraphs short no more than two to three sentences, build in white space with your content, include links in your pages - don't try to tell your whole marketing story on your site - get people to call you (hello the telephone still works!), e-mail or fill out a profile form (see below).

7) Make your site permission-based marketing ready - I love Seth Godin's "Permission Marketing" book http://www.permission.com/ and we recommend it to all of our clients - he champions building a long term relationship with a customer by asking their permission to continue to market to them and incorporating value/information in all marcom processes.

8) Ensure your site is optimized for Search Engines by identifying 8-12 keywords that people will use to find your site, then incorporate these keywords in your site content (to drive relevancy with s/engine spiders/bots) and then manually submit your site to the top ten search engines. We don't' recommend most of the free or $19.99 specials available (sidebar: my company WBI, Inc. is in this business http://www.wolfblast.com) yes, all will get your registered with the s/engines, but getting listed on page 75 of 350 pages (for example) won't really drive qualified traffic to your site, you need page 1-3 listings on the top ten engines to really drive qualified traffic. And, this typically requires incorporating some very specialized processes and technologies.

9) Delve into your log server files to uncover "digital tracks" made through your web site - your log files are raw files that show how and from where (in most cases) people accessed your web site, where they went on your web site, how long they stayed, etc. Web Trends is the defacto industry standard, <> but we use and recommend a market-experienced firm in Europe, Fantomaster, Ltd. to our clients <> - they have a suite of Search Engine products that can be downloaded for free or purchased.

10) Think global in your overall site design - the greatest Internet growth is occurring outside North America, so it is essential to build a site that can be accessed easily by people around the world. What issues do you need to look at? Load times are very important (again), develop content that avoids colloquialisms that may not be understood by others who may not speak the same language, you may want to make your site content available in diverse languages, there are a number of emerging applications that will facilitate this process, ensure your e-commerce capabilities can be utilized by all.

10 Things to know before starting

10 Things to know before starting Online Business

You wake up one day and decide you want to become a business owner. Great! Welcome to the American dream of entrepreneurship. A growing number of people want to eschew the corporate life and become their own boss.
But the question is – how do you become an entrepreneur? What exactly do you need to start your own business? And succeed.Deciding on becoming an entrepreneur is only the first step of a long journey. There are lots of planning involved, preparations, and in some cases, even red tape. Here are ten things you need to know when starting your own business:

1. Know what you will do. When making the decision to start a home business, the first question you need to ask is “What will I be doing?” Will you start a pet sitting business, or do what everybody else is doing and start selling on eBay? Will you open a physical store or will you be selling on the Web? Will you buy into a business opportunity or join an MLM? Will you go with something you love, or something you think could earn you money (they don’t always come hand in hand)? There are so many options out there, so many types of businesses that you can start that it is not easy to find the right business to start.
Dan Ramsey in his book "101 Best Home Businesses" suggests these 10 steps in deciding what business to start:
• List 5 things you do best
• List how others would benefit from what you do best
• Find out how to give people what they want
• Learn the value of your services to others
• Find out who else offers similar services
• Learn from the successes of others
• Learn from the failures of others
• Plan your own success
• Make low cost mistakes
• Enjoy what you do and how you do it

2. What will you need to start? After you’ve decided what to do, the next step is to find out how to do it. Do you have the necessary skills required by the business? If you want to start a catering business, for example, can you actually cook or can you find someone to do the cooking for you? If you want to start an event planning business, do you have certifications from any of the event planning associations? If you want to start an online business, do you know basic HTML?
Make a list of what you think the business needs and what you need to have to achieve success. It may be knowledge about the business, skills required, certifications needed, equipment and machineries you need to purchase. Then check if you possess the knowledge, skills, etc. now; and if not, plan on how you can get it.

3. What are the government regulations you need to follow? One of the first things you need to make sure when starting a business is that you have all the government requirements you need to operate the business.
In the United States, you learn about the government requirements by going to your County Courthouse/City Hall, and making inquiries on the things you need to get your business going.
Online, you can check your Secretary of State’s website and look for information on how to start a business in your state. You can also check if your county/city has a website (some like Fairfax County in VA or the City of Martinez in CA have their own websites), and find the information and contact details for starting a business. Some states have better information on their websites than others. California, for example, has a CALGold Database http://www.calgold.ca.gov that provides information on permits, licenses and regulations for starting a business in every county or city in California.
You can find information on how to start a business in your state, including general guidelines, business permits and licenses, as well as tax requirements in our State-By-State Guide to Starting a Business

4. How much money do you need to start? This is a basic question that could impact what business you can start. It is one thing to want a particular business; and another to know whether you can actually afford the business.
If you have been dreaming of starting a restaurant business but you only have $5,000 in your bank account and you don’t think you can get a loan from a bank, family member or investors, then you may want to downscale your entrepreneurship ambitions until your financial situation improves.
So how do you find out exactly how much a particular business requires? One way would be to find if any books have been written on how to start the business you have in mind. Often, these books contain estimates and cost descriptions required to start the business. Check your local library or favorite bookstore for any books about your business.
You can also research the Internet if there are business plans available about the business, or costing information. You can also check with a current business owner – while they may not tell you how much they spent in starting their business, they may be more open about possible cost items and what to expect when starting a similar business.

5. How much money will you make? The amount of revenue your business will earn will depend on so many factors that it is really hard to predict how much you can earn. The mileage often varies, and you can never tell until you try it.
But having some idea of what the range of earnings can be can help push you. The high estimate can motivate you to strive harder; while the low estimate can give you some sense of acceptable income parameters.
General business idea books or books dealing with starting the particular business often give income potential estimates. You can also check industry associations for studies or papers showing income ranges of their members.

6. Where can you get help? Sometimes, try as you might, there will be moments when you feel you need to get some advice or help with regards to strategies you want to pursue. Especially if you are a one-person business, it can be easy to get overwhelmed by all the decisions you need to make as a small business owner.
Having someone to guide you, give you counsel, even open doors for you and introduce you to customers and financing resources is literally, heaven-sent. A mentor can sometimes show you a proven roadmap to your business success. Many studies have shown that business owners with mentors to help them showed more growth in their businesses than those who do not have. One caveat though – mentors are different from coaches in as much as mentors generally provide their services and advice for free while coaches charges you by the hour.
The question of course is: How and where can you find mentors to help you? There are several places where you may be able to find a mentor:
• Government Mentoring Programs such as SBDCs, which works with community colleges and local business development councils to offer mentoring programs http://www.sba.gov/sbdc/sbdcnear.html ; or the Women's Network for Entrepreneurial Training http://www.sba.gov/womeninbusiness/wnet_roundtables.html
• Volunteer programs such as SCORE http://www.score.org which is composed of mostly retired executives and entrepreneurs
• Formal mentoring programs such as Athena Foundation http://www.athenafoundation.org/programs/globallinks.html , Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program http://www.helzbergmentoring.org/HEMP/ , or The Aspen Institute MicroMentor Program http://www.micromentor.org
• Professional organizations such as the National Women’s Business Council http://www.nwbc.gov/Mentoring/programs.html
• Industry and trade associations
• Local business groups, such as the chamber of commerce
• Local chapters of business groups

7. How do you intend to reach your target market? One of the worst mistakes you can make when starting a business is to assume that customers will flock to your business immediately. They won’t, and chances are, you will have to work hard to find your customers and tell them about your product. It’s a common story among small online entrepreneurs who launches a website and expect to earn money the next day, only to be disappointed when their first sale comes 6 months later.
When you start a business, it is crucial that you know your target market and how you can reach them. A marketing plan can help you think through your marketing strategies as it helps you create your positioning statement, identify your target customers, and formulate strategies with corresponding timelines on how to reach them. You can go to Mplans.com http://www.mplans.com for samples of marketing plans (many are paid, but there are several that are free that you can look at).

8. How can you get started? This is step where you actually plan out the specific steps to start and operate your business. This stage includes checking if you have everything the government requires for your business, from licenses to permits to zoning approvals. If you are starting a daycare business, check with the childcare licensing office in your county/city if you have everything that you need.
You must have completed your business plan at this point. Even if you are not applying for a loan, your business plan is crucial as it helps you think through your business and what you actually need to do. It is your roadmap to success, and without it, it is hard to navigate through all the ups and downs of entrepreneurship.
This is also the stage where you finalize your pricing, making sure that you are not overpricing yourself out of the market while covering all your expenses.

9. What tools can you use to operate and improve your work? Technology should be your best friend. How can computers help you increase your profits? What gadgets do you think can help you improve your productivity? Are there any software or scripts that you can use to make business life easier for you?
If you can automate routine practices, so much the better. Simple things like a script to automatically update your website’s date and time can allow you to work on more important things your business needs. Or if you can automatically handle subscription requests for your email newsletter, the time you save in manually doing the tasks can allow you to focus on marketing or improving your products.
Be open to technological innovations, and find out how they can be used for your own purposes.

10. Your exit strategy. I am a firm believer of the saying “You don’t start out by giving up.” Having an exit strategy does not mean you are giving up; you just need to know when to say goodbye, and under what circumstances will you say goodbye. Thinking of an exit strategy while just starting a business is not about pessimism, rather it is about smart planning.
Your exit strategy ties well with your objectives for starting the business. Are you thinking of developing the business to sell it off for a sizeable sum, allowing you to retire early or start afresh with a new business project? Are you envisioning that you will turn over the reins of the business to your children? Or are you thinking of taking the business public?

The problem is that many small business owners do not have an exit strategy. As a result, they are unable to plan exactly how to reach the goals they have set out for themselves when they started. They are not able to maximize the sale value of the business and ensure that it is attractive to buyers. Or they have not been able to create a business that investors would want.
They have no succession planning in place. I have seen many entrepreneurs who wanted their children to run the business eventually, but since this was not planned out at the very beginning, they were not able to build interest for the business among their children, or their children were not properly trained to run the business.
A realistic and tangible exit strategy should be a critical component of your business plan.

Beginners Guide

Beginners Guide - Online Business

New to E-commerce? What Beginners Should
Know About Earning Money on the Internet

Confused with all the information on starting and promoting an online
business? To be successful online, you only need to know four basic
key components.

The biggest challenge you face as you race to put your existing business online or start a business online is where to start first. Most of the business people and entrepreneurs I speak with are simply overwhelmed with the amount of information available on the techniques and strategies required to start, promote and continually profit from a business online
Although there are many complete Internet marketing courses being sold online (many are very good by the way), these courses are often more beneficial to the business person or entrepreneur who has already started their online business. These people already have a big picture of what they want to sell online and how they want to go about doing it. They just need to fine tune their marketing skills and implement a few advanced marketing techniques to be profitable.
But what if you're a business person who hasn't started yet? What if you have no idea as to where to begin or what direction you should be going?
This is the problem you may be experiencing right now. You don't have a website, you don't have a product, and you haven't yet identified a target marketing with a specific problem that you would like to solve. In short, you don't know where to start first. This report will very quickly and easily show you where to begin. And if you already have an existing business in the traditional world with an existing customer base, this report will help you put your offline business online.
How long will it take? You can be up an running in as little as one month. How long will it take for you to be profitable? Well, that's a tougher question to answer.
You could be profitable in less than 90 days if you follow ALL of the instructions I give you in this report. Or you may never be profitable if you do things the wrong way. And profitable simply means that you are making more money than you are spending. That could be as little as $100 or as much as $10,000 a month. Your success will depend on how quickly you implement and correctly apply the techniques you will learn today.
Before you get too excited about making money on the Internet with your existing offline business or starting a brand new business, don't think for a second this one free report is the answer to being successful on the Internet. This report is only a beginners guide to help you start your online career. It frustrates me to hear people tell me they've spent money on one or two books, read a few free reports they found on the Internet and aren't profitable online yet.
One or two books, and a few free reports will not make you a cyber-success!
Yes, you will have to spend money on other books, software and tools to be successful online. I hate to scare you but this report is just the beginning of the education you must spend money on in order to be successful. It simply amazes me how people contact me about how they can build their online business for ZERO dollars or under $200 or something foolish like that. These people want others to spend money on their goods but they'll be damned if they spend money on the goods of others. Let's get real. Making money doesn't go just one way.
You must spend to get. Nuf said...
There is so much for you to learn before you can make money on the Internet. And, It cost money to learn. And just because you have a successful offline business does not mean you can jump online with the same expectations. What you should expect to get from this report is just what I said in the beginning...a logical place to start.
There are 4 basic key components you need to be successful online. Just using these 4 key components can help you build a profitable online business in 90 days or less. You don't need all those fancy advanced marketing techniques at this point (that often confuse people) to be profitable online. Here's what you do need:
• A HOT PRODUCT - You need to find or create one of the hottest products you can sell online today. And the best product to sell online is a "how-to" informational product. Whether you have an expertise or not, it's easy to find or create a 50+ page "how-to" manual that will sell like wildfire on the Internet. You can begin your quest for an informational product to sell by joining an affiliate program. The best affiliate directories to check out are http://www.AssociatePrograms.com/ and http://www.refer-it.com/

• A WEBSITE DESIGNED TO SELL - You must design a website that is designed to sell. Every word, every graphic must lead your visitor to ultimately buy your product. It's almost impossible to tell you in this small little space how to design a website that sells. What you can do is get Ken Envoy's "Make Your Site Sell". Details can be found at http://www.ProfitInternational.com/sitesell/

• BUILD HUGE AMOUNTS OF TRAFFIC - Traffic divides the women from the girls and the men from the boys. Without traffic you're dead in the water. Traffic brings you customers. Traffic is like oxygen. Without it you die. The best ways to build traffic is by submitting articles to ezines, getting your website listed in the major Internet directories, like: Yahoo (http://www.yahoo.com), Looksmart (http://www.looksmart.com), and Open Directory Project (http://www.dmoz.org). You can check out what the people at Search Engine Watch (http://www.searchenginewatch) have to say about driving traffic to your website using search engines.

• AN EMAIL NEWSLETTER (EZINE) FOR LONG-TERM PROFITS - Once you have the above components working for you, you'll need to create and promote what's called an ezine. This dandy little tool helps to bring in additional profits, month after month, year in and year out. And it's very simple to create and promote. A good resource for learning email marketing and developing your ezine is Dr. Jeffrey Lants "Email Eldorado". Details at http://www.ProfitInternational.com/catalog/eldorado.htm
That's all you need to do to be profitable online. The next step is for you to begin. Find or develop a "how-to" informational product. Design a website that sells. Drive traffic to that site, and then create an ezine for long-term profits.

Myths & Traps for Earning Money

Myths & Traps - Online Business

Myths and Traps of Earning Money on the Internet

or a new online entrepreneur, the Internet is a wild frontier full of promising unknowns. A number of new entrepreneurs are particularly seduced by stories of "I-got-rich-quick-on-the-Internet." For these newbies, the Internet is the new nirvana of financial windfall, where making money is as easy as For a new online entrepreneur, the Internet is a wild frontier full of promising unknowns. The newbies often think of the Internet as the new business medium that produces overnight millionaires. The Internet is THE wave of the future, and everyone who wants financial success simply must be on board.
A number of new entrepreneurs are particularly seduced by stories of "I-got-rich-quick-on-the-Internet." For these newbies, the Internet is the new nirvana of financial windfall, where making money is as easy as 1-2-3.
But, nothing could be farther from the truth. Here are some of the common traps and myths that new online entrepreneurs fall into on the Internet.

1. Build it, and they will come. This is the biggest fallacy on the Internet. A common misconception that companies and entrepreneurs who are new to the Web have is that people will visit if they put up a Web page. They falsely believe that merely having their own site is enough to keep their traffic soaring and cash register ringing. In order to have a popular site, you've got to offer something to the user -- unique and quality content, interactivity, fun, and freebies -- something more than an 800 number. Users may come to your site once, but to keep them coming back you've got to have fresh original content and product offerings that they can use.

2. Give it for free and they will come. Extending the first fallacy above, entrepreneurs oftentimes think that having some freebies on their site is enough to entice people to visit and, more importantly, buy their products or services. While the word "Free" is a powerful come-on for visitors on the Internet, it is not always a guarantee that people will indeed come to get the freebie on your site. Take the case for example of one of the leading search engines, Altavista. Altavista created a free ISP service, thinking that it can lure more people into the search engine and earn additional revenue by serving ads through rotating banners common with free ISP services. Unfortunately, their expectations were not met and Altavista shut down its free ISP offering.

3. Get rich quick on the Internet. Unless you have been hiding in a cave, you should know that a number of dot-coms have been falling from the sky these past few months. Many dot-coms failed because they held the false belief that having a flashy web site is enough to solicit venture capital financing, even though they have no solid business models. Some dot.coms who were able to get venture capitalization got carried away by the first round of funding but could not get the next round because of unprofitability. The Internet is a business medium. Like any other business, the basic business principles still applies.

4. Send emails to an "opt-in" list dying to receive your product offerings. The word "opt-in" list is a much-abused term on the Internet. Unscrupulous marketers prey on unsuspecting newbies, selling them mailing lists of people supposedly interested in buying their types of products. These new online entrepreneurs then send out thousands, if not millions of emails, hoping that financial reward will come as soon as their emails are opened. However, instead of sales, all they get are hate mails, aside from being cut off by their ISPs and web hosts. Not only will their reputation go up in flames, they become officially called as "spammers," the menace of the Internet.

5. Join affiliate programs and start earning money. Many newbies fall into the trap of believing the hype that participation in affiliate programs is the way to go on the Internet. Some even set-up their own web sites with the sole purpose of putting up affiliate banners. While it is true that affiliate programs are gaining in importance in overall e-commerce efforts, you will never earn the thousands of dollars promised by the web marketing gurus prone to hype. Affiliate programs are merely additions to your revenue streams, and NOT your sole revenue source. It will only work if the programs you participate in have a good fit with the contents of your site.

6. Purchase business opportunities. Business opportunities on the Internet abound. When you surf the Internet, bizopps are just about everywhere from getting paid to surf, buying reports with reseller rights to MLM opportunities. Some will be downright scams, while other programs are not worth spending a minute of your time. Don't be surprised to find out that thousands of others are selling the same exact product; others even with the same exact Web page as yours. Only a small percentage of these programs will earn for you a few hundred dollars. Be extremely wary of business opportunities on the Internet, and make sure you do a careful cost-benefit analysis before paying for anything.

Common FAQ - for Starting Online Business

Common Questions for starting Home Business!

Most Common Questions Asked When Starting a Business
Some home business owners fall into the trap of ignoring business regulations thinking that their business, being a micro enterprise, may pass under the government’s radar screen. While avoiding regulatory details will not necessarily send you to jail, it could be a hindrance in the growth of your business but a greater number of entrepreneurs simply do not know how to start the process of legitimizing their business. They don’t know what requirements to comply with, where to go, and how difficult or easy the process is. In fact, the question of how to go about making sure that the business is legal is one of the most common queries we receive from our readers.
We compiled below some of the common questions asked by readers on organizing a business start-up:
How do I register my business?
How do I get a license for my business?
What is a fictitious business name?
Do I need to get an Employer Identification Number?
Do I need to get a Sales Tax Number?

How do I register my business?
Businesses, even the smallest home-based operations, are required to register with either their city or county. Check with your city or county office the procedures in filing for business registration.
Some cities make it easy for entrepreneurs to register their businesses, while others have lengthier requirements. Business registration in Fairfax County in Virginia, for example, is fast, simple and takes only about 15 minutes.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, business registration costs $35 and is filed with the City Treasury. This city requires applicants to bring their state gross receipts tax number and the City Health Environmental Health department clearance, if applicable.
British Columbia in Canada has made it simple to register businesses with their One Stop Business Registration site at http://www.onestopbc.ca) where start-up businesses can complete up to nine government forms with one entry.
Note that sole proprietorships generally do not have to file any special forms or pay hefty fees. Declaring the business to be a sole proprietorship while filing the application is good enough.
Visit the PowerHomeBiz.com State-By-State Guide to Starting a Business to check the requirements for business registration in your state

How do I get a license for my business?
To operate legally, you need to get a license for your business. Particularly if you are selling tangible personal property or taxable service, you are required to file for a business license to ensure the collection and remittance of taxes. Even sole proprietorships or general partnerships, while requiring no legal entry formality, need to comply with state and local licensing and taxation requirements.
Some businesses, such as a food service business, liquor store, construction, wholesale or retail trader, etc., are almost always required to get a license before they can start their operations. Even a business that operates pin ball machines or billiard tables need to secure the requisite license in some states.
To know the type of license required for your business, check with the city office (if your business is located in a city) or the county office (if outside the city limits). In North Dakota, for example, some business licenses are issued by the Attorney General (e.g. amusement games, tobacco, etc.) while other licenses are issued by the Secretary of State.

Some countries, states, cities or counties have Web sites that contains all the information an entrepreneur needs in terms of starting a business in that particular area.
For example, HongKong's Inland Revenue Department runs a site at http://www.info.gov.hk/brief_br.htm where entrepreneurs can apply, renew or cancel their business registrations.
Maryland runs a site called the Maryland Business License Information System at http://www.blis.state.md.us that lists everything and anything an entrepreneur needs to know when starting or operating a business in the state.
The state of North Dakota runs a site at http://www.state.nd.us/businessreg/index.htm called North Dakota New Business Registration.
Visit the PowerHomeBiz.com State-By-State Guide to Starting a Business to check the requirements for business licenses and permits in your state

What is a fictitious business name?
A fictitious business name is the name of your business, if different from your own. If you are operating the business as XYZ Desktop Publishing, for example, you are required to register the fictitious or assumed business name at your city or county clerk’s office.
Registering your fictitious business name is important for a number of reasons. Banks look for proof that you have properly registered the name when opening a business account. An even more important consideration is that you won't be able to enforce any contract that you sign under an unregistered name. An unregistered business name also leaves that name open for use by other businesses, even your competitors, which may jeopardize your business.
Some states require that the fictitious business name be registered with the Secretary of State or other state agency. Procedures vary, but the process is fairly easy. In most states, you'll register it at the county level. Be sure to call your county clerk’s office to find out its procedures, requirements and fees. Filing fee ranges from $10 to $50.
Los Angeles county, for example, requires that the fictitious name be announced in a newspaper publication ad and that the applicant submit proof of publication, resulting in a longer processing time of about three weeks. On the other hand, Fairfax County in Virginia checks your fictitious name when you register your business and completes the process in less than 30 minutes. Maryland requires businesses to call the Department of Assessments and Taxation to reserve a business entity name prior to submitting the appropriate organization documents or forms.
Visit the PowerHomeBiz.com State-By-State Guide to Starting a Business to check the requirements for instructions on how to file for fictitious business name or DBA in your state.

Do I need to get an Employer Identification Number?
Generally, businesses need an Employer Identification Number (EIN) or federal tax identification number. The EIN is used to identify a business entity such as a corporation, LLC, or partnership. Sole proprietorships that need to pay federal excise of employment taxes are required to get an EIN.
On the other hand, sole proprietors with no employees are not required to get an EIN, and can instead use their Social Security numbers.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) web site at http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=98350,00.html contains all the information you need about EIN and how to apply for an EIN electronically.

Do I need to get a Sales Tax Number?
A business that sells any tangible item is required to get a sales and use tax license. Sales and use tax that applies to the retail purchase, retail site, rental, storage, use or consumption of tangible personal property and certain services vary between states. Check with your state Comptroller office for the requirements and procedures in getting a sales tax number.