Ohio Business Startup Guides
Start a Business in Louisville, Ohio
Are you starting a business in Louisville, Ohio? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Louisville.
Are You Ready for Entrepreneurship?
Most new companies do not succeed, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before you start your business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Louisville. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
- We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Have a candid conversation with friends and family. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.
What Business Are You Starting?
There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? To help you decide on a business type, we encourage you to read How to Evaluate a Business Idea.
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 How to Start a Desktop Publishing Equipment & Supplies Business guide or our How to Start a Music Composers & Arrangers Business guide.
Always keep in mind that starting a business in Louisville has some implications. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Louisville. Study Louisville demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.
Louisville, Ohio Demographic Information
Louisville has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Louisville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Louisville.
Businesses
As a new Louisville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Louisville 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
Should You Franchise?
Examine a list of Louisville businesses and you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. But is franchising the right option for you?
Most business experts recommend that you investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchising and Veterans. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.
You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.
Representative franchise opportunities include Racing Limos and TownePlace Suites of Marriott. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Video and Photography Franchises and Florist Franchises.
Note on Louisville Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Louisville.
Getting Money to Start a Business
Getting your Louisville business the capital it needs to succeed is a difficult chore. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.
Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Business Cash Advances.
For Louisville entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, browse our List of Ohio Angel Investors and our List of Ohio Venture Capital Firms.
Promoting Your New Company
To rise above the crowd in Louisville and build your business, you need a excellent marketing plan.
There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. PR Versus Advertising discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Ramping Up Sales
Mastering the art of selling is a must if you want your new Louisville business to do well.
Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Sales Prospecting offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Never Give Up
Most new Louisville businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Louisville and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Louisville, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Louisville, Ohio
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Louisville.
- Resources for Louisville, Ohio Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Louisville entrepreneurs.
- Ohio Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Ohio.
- Ohio Small Business Development Center - Whether you're starting your business, expanding your business, or just looking to stay in business, the Small Business Development Centers of Ohio (SBDCs of Ohio) can help with professional guidance by connecting you with research, financing sources, and training opportunities.
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