Questions about initial stages getting your business off the ground.
0
votes
2answers
88 views
An 'any software you want' approach to marketing?
I want to start a software business. It's probably been said a million times before on this forum, and software start-up's being in such abundance is one of the reasons for this question.
I don't ...
1
vote
2answers
1k views
How do I estimate the cost of utilities for a 2500 sqft office?
I'm putting together a business plan for a startup, and I need to provide an estimate for utility costs. For my plan, this is an office of 12 employees with an average of 2 CPU's per workstation. ...
1
vote
1answer
187 views
What are the typical milestones and timeline for an internet startup?
Young, three-person, bootstrapped enterprise-focused startup, finishing up work on our backend about to begin development of our API, frontend, and possibly Chatter/Yammer integration. Hopefully ...
1
vote
2answers
85 views
Do universities and startups mix together?
Sites such as Facebook were created while attending a University.
According to this source "About two-thirds say they work part time" so it is common to see university students working.
But what ...
0
votes
1answer
163 views
What legal considerations must be taken before launching a stealth landing page?
Not sure if this is a silly question but wanted to make sure I dot my i's.
Are there any particular legal aspects that need to be considered or finalized before launching the stealth (sign-up) ...
2
votes
3answers
159 views
My one-man startup has been invited in a startup showcase event of a prestigious university. How to go about it?
It seems, my one-man startup has been doing well, and has been noticed by a prestigious university. They recently sent me a letter inviting me to their annual Technology-
Management Fest, where they ...
-3
votes
2answers
115 views
Does it matter if a online business is registered or not?
I was wondering about having my online business registered in Canada. My biggest concern about having my business registered is does the governments rules really matter when it comes to online ...
1
vote
2answers
199 views
Starting a Business
I wish to start a business within the UK, which will be an online venture. However, I am unsure of a few things.
Firstly, I know I will have to pay income tax, assuming it reaches the threshold of ...
0
votes
2answers
163 views
New business. How *exactly* does one raise VC capital, or any other startup capital?
First off I'm very glad to have found this exchange because a lot of questions will be forthcoming from me.
The skinny: I started a new business a couple months ago, an LLC. My skill set is in the ...
2
votes
3answers
164 views
Should the company be named after a product?
I think a lot of people with ideas wonder about this - should they come up with a company name first or figure out the name for a product, get a domain name matching the name and then register a ...
1
vote
2answers
347 views
Starting a company in the US as a foreigner
I am a student from Germany, and I want to start a company in the US.
I've given starting it here first and then eventually expanding to the US some serious consideration, however, the chances of ...
2
votes
2answers
138 views
Is lack of marketing from competitors a good reason to build a startup?
Background:
I have a web app idea in mind that I have started developing for fun. As I started seeing potential for revenue, I realized that a lot of other competitors have already started this ...
1
vote
1answer
167 views
Non-compete clause for a early employee
Is it common to ask early employee of a startup to sign a contract containing non-compete clauses?
I am against our employee, but I have a little concern on our competitor as they have money to lure ...
0
votes
3answers
56 views
Is there a “magic number” of stores to have prior to launch?
I have started a service that allows liquor stores to show their products and pricing on my website, giving them full control of their profile, etc. The idea is that users will go on the site and ...
0
votes
2answers
215 views
iOS Developer Program Company Enrollment Bank Account
I would like to enroll for Apple iOS development. I am also planning to start a company for this.
My question is that, how Apple will going to pay my earnings from Appstore?
Must I open a bank ...
0
votes
0answers
6 views
Equity preference and effort to be expended on a new startup [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Forming a new software startup, how do I allocate ownership fairly?
I've recently been approached by someone who needs a partner for a new start-up which sounds really ...
1
vote
4answers
107 views
Starting business in England from abroad
Well, I want to register a business in England from abroad. Because I don't have a registered address in UK, I am planning to use one of these formation agents from the official list and plan to use ...
1
vote
1answer
116 views
I want to start an ecommerce apparel line, how should I structure my company, and what are the legal requirements to sell online?
I already have an LLC, however, It's not the brand name I want to use for my business. Should I do a DBA under that LLC? I would like to apply for a trademark on the brand, so would this structure ...
-2
votes
2answers
55 views
What choice of business entity should I choose for my business?
I am starting a non profit organization of which I will be the sole owner. The business is about selling books to particular groups of people at a cheaper price. I live in US, Massachusetts. What type ...
0
votes
3answers
398 views
How much equity to offer to investor
I am fully aware that this is asked frequently, but it will differ a lot depending on the type of business:
I am just about to start looking for an investor for a startup in the UK, i dont want to ...
9
votes
5answers
277 views
Can someone under 18 start a business in the US?
I'm 15, and I want to repair computers, which I've recently found out is considered a business even if I just do it from home? Can someone start a business when they're under 18?
2
votes
3answers
111 views
Unorthodox Startup Formation
Two other founders and I are planning to start an S-class tech firm. All of us have a government background and are new to the process: one founder is the notional CFO and has thus far handled the ...
0
votes
3answers
255 views
What sort of business type is a video game company? Manufacturing?
I am a college student and I am supposed to be creating a business plan for a school project. I decided to create a faux video game company in order to satisfy the criteria of the project, but I've ...
1
vote
1answer
161 views
Sole Proprietor Bank Account - use SSN or EIN?
I am just starting a small business, and I need to open a business bank account. I went into the bank today, and they asked me if I wanted to use my SSN or the EIN for the business. What's the ...
1
vote
1answer
354 views
Choice of LLC Address when applying for EIN online
I was going through the online wizard in the IRS site to create an EIN and I got to a step where it asked me about my LLC Address. I have not filed my articles of organization yet so obviously I ...
0
votes
3answers
171 views
What are the typical duties of an accountant for a software startup?
Apart from bookkeeping, what are the typical duties of an accountant for a small software based startup?
1
vote
1answer
108 views
Becomming an app developer
I'm currently in the process of creating a game for the WP7 marketplace. I havin't been throught the process of publishing it to the market place yet but was wondering if there are any pre publishing ...
3
votes
1answer
53 views
RBI regulations on Paypal
I have read in a couple of places on how RBI has come down severely on PayPal accounts, blocking them etc... Is it a big issue and is there a risk in opening PayPal accounts for a B2B marketplace ...
8
votes
5answers
333 views
Do I really need an accountant?
As a new startup, do I really need a part-time accountant or can software like QuickBooks do everything for me?
Perhaps a bookkeeper to input data into the software is all I need?
1
vote
1answer
51 views
Offering some risk-free services
We are a new start up and we offer several services (Mobile,Software development,CMS,Web,etc). The classic problem that all the start-up got is to face at the begin is how to get into the market ...
2
votes
3answers
247 views
What is/was the elevator pitch of Facebook?
An elevator pitch is a short summary used to quickly and simply define
a product, service, or organization and its value proposition.
What was the elevator pitch of Facebook when it started?
...
0
votes
2answers
201 views
Help demystifying partnership pass-through taxation
Situation
I am in the process of deciding which type of taxation to choose for my LLC. Up until this point I was leaning towards Partnership taxation because that is what LLC For Dummies was ...
1
vote
3answers
137 views
A few technical, non-sales guys would like to know "Where to start from ?'
We have an idea and a proof of concept, the idea is pretty specific to stealthy debuggin and binary code analysis .
The problem is that we are pure technical guys,
we don't know the market and ...
0
votes
1answer
36 views
Acquiring a customizable/generic product
I am looking at modifying a wireless scale that can transmit its gathered information wirelessly. There are plenty of patented products out there that do this, I am looking for a 'blank template' that ...
1
vote
2answers
167 views
How to kick start a web service with no working capital on hand?
I have a project on the table with a business model that involves creating a web service to streamline all the best pieces of internet marketing into one platform. Full details need to be kept ...
0
votes
2answers
187 views
Where Shall I Establish My LLC/LLP?
I am an engineer that will soon be having a sole client, an Austin, TX based company. I will be providing my services while working from my home office (in NY state); occassionally (say, once in a ...
2
votes
1answer
99 views
from hobby to the real thing
I started a few years ago a few blogs with the format of a directory with some business listed on it. It started by using all free stuff (free blog services, hosting, templates, images etc etc) today ...
3
votes
3answers
190 views
Is it worth it to create an LLC through Nolo?
Situation
I am in the process of educating myself about the inner workings of an LLC, it's forms of taxation, maximizing deductions, etc. through a couple of books from Nolo, along with Limited ...
2
votes
2answers
183 views
how to grow a new social network
We build a social network.. We're not the expert on the market stuffs but actually it's as hard as developing a new stuff.. Anyway I'm just curious about how to grow a new social network..
I know ...
-1
votes
2answers
126 views
Starting development company, how to start?
We are a team of 3 people who are developers. We would like to offer services like
website / webapp development
mobile app development
desktop app development
We are only coders, we dont have ...
9
votes
5answers
391 views
When should I leave day job to pursue startup full-time?
I am trying to determine when I should quit my job to pursue a startup. Here is what I feel are the pros/cons of leaving
Pros
Can focus more / no time constraints
Iterations are much quicker (I do ...
0
votes
2answers
115 views
Starting a donations fund through a website and drop boxes
I am in the process of starting a website to raise funds for school supplies to be donated to local grammar school aged children and want to contact some local business about using them as a drop site ...
5
votes
4answers
202 views
How to expand our workforce from 1 technical 'guru' to a productive team of 6
Like many fellow startups that we know, we've started like with one technical wizard who know a lot of stuff and who knows now where everything is and how it works. The system has undergone a lot of ...
3
votes
3answers
142 views
How to get honest feedback from users you know personally?
I am about to build a proof-of-concept website, and I intend to build on it using "Lean Startup" principles. I have friends and acquaintances lined up to try it out, and I will solicit their ...
4
votes
4answers
351 views
Does the experience spent on a startup counts in job experience?
I am in the 3rd year of my university and I am thinking of a startup but I am afraid if it fails I'll be treated as a guy with no experience after two years or a guy with same experience than anyone ...
0
votes
3answers
81 views
hiring people only when we need
we are a start up and we have to make a decision on how to deal when we have to write any documents/presentation(technical/marketing/pps/etc).
Let's say by instance that I have been contacted by a ...
3
votes
1answer
158 views
Should we test with the local market first?
Let's say I have a start up whose product is finished (high quality product).
What do you think about first beta testing the product on the local market or going international right away?
I have an ...
1
vote
2answers
139 views
Getting started with an LLC
Two friends and I have run a website for a year or so and now we are about to add in our premium model so we can start bringing in some money. I have been advised that we should register an LLC prior ...
0
votes
4answers
196 views
Contract for start-up employees and how to secure myself as the leader of the company
I'm a computer science student and have had an idea for a website for a while. Up until now, I haven't told anyone about it(even my family and girlfriend). Anyways, I decided to tell a friend of ...
0
votes
1answer
23 views
Impact Investment/Tax Questions
I want to take some of the revenue that I generate with the for-profit business I'm starting, and use it to provide start-up social enterprises that I think are interesting with some funding to help ...
