Michigan Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Birmingham, Michigan
Contemplating starting a business in Birmingham, Michigan? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Birmingham.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
An entrepreneurial life is demanding, much harder than working as an employee. Are you sure you want to start a business?
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Speak with other entrepreneurs in Birmingham. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- You should read Starting a Company. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
- Talk it over with a close friend or partner. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
What Type of Business Should You Start?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Business Ideas That Don't Make Sense.
For in-depth how-to guides on how to start specific businesses, browse our Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Opening a Highways & Bridges Engineers Business guide or our Opening a Truck Trailer Parking & Storage Business guide.
Always keep in mind that you are starting a business in Birmingham. Some businesses will do better in Birmingham than others. Don't forget to review Birmingham demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.
Birmingham, Michigan Demographic Information
Birmingham has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Birmingham demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Birmingham.
Businesses
As a new Birmingham entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Birmingham for each business category. By looking at this chart, you can get a general sense for how much competition there is in the business niche that you are pursuing.
Businesses
Have You Considered Franchising?
As you drive around Birmingham, it's apparent that franchising has become a very popular way to start a business. Should you be giving franchising serious consideration?
We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchising Scams. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include Van Houtte Café and All American Deli & Ice Cream Shops. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Golf Franchises and Real Estate Franchises.
Note on Birmingham Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Birmingham.
Selling Tips
Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Birmingham business, you need to focus on sales.
The key to selling is to set sales goals goals and monitor your progress towards those goals. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.
Sales Prospecting offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset
Good entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.
As an entrepreneur who lives in Birmingham, Michigan, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Michigan universities, colleges and community colleges. We also recommend you look into networking organizations for Birmingham entrepreneurs.
Next Steps
As an entrepreneur in Birmingham, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Birmingham and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Birmingham entrepreneur who is just getting started or you are already up and running with your new venture.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Birmingham, Michigan
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Birmingham.
- Resources for Birmingham, Michigan Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Birmingham entrepreneurs.
- Michigan Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Michigan.
- Michigan Small Business Development Center - This organization supports 12 regional offices and over 30 satellite offices, each providing counseling and training to Michigan small business owners and entrepreneurs throughout the 83 counties in Michigan. Services to entrepreneurs are offered through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
More Business Startup Guides for Michigan
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Starting a Business in Blissfield
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Starting a Business Guides for Other States
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