Texas Business Startup Guides
Start a Business in Odessa, Texas
Are you starting a business in Odessa, Texas? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Odessa.
Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?
Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.
- Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Odessa. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
- Peruse Why Small Businesses Fail. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
- Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.
Odessa, Texas Demographic Information
Odessa has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Odessa demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Odessa.
Businesses
As a new Odessa entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Odessa 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?
Visit the business district of Odessa and you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. Is franchising maybe a better way for you to start your business?
Our advice is to consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Growth Trends in Franchising. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include Winfree Systems, Inc. and Pizza Schmizza. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Training and Education Franchises and Cell Phone Franchises.
Note on Odessa Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Odessa.
Forming a Company in Odessa, Texas
It's essential that you are forming a legal entity that operates independently from you. Without a legal structure for the business, you can be held personally liable for the actions, debts and obligations of your company.
The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.
Incorporating is a very common way to legally create a business entity. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. If you are starting a business in Texas, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Texas. In fact, you can incorporate wherever you want. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.
There are many nuances to forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as LLC Advantages. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Odessa, Texas, our information on Incorporating in Texas may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Texas.
Getting the Word Out About Your New Venture
Whether your goal is to attract Odessa customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your beating the competition.
We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Comparing Advertising to PR is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Building Up Your Sales
Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Odessa or are selling to customers throughout Texas, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.
How to Build and Motivate a Sales Team offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
What's Next?
You have a dream -- starting a business in Odessa. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Odessa and throughout the United States . We have a wealth of experience in business start-ups, financing, marketing, sales and more...and we've made all of our knowledge available to you.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Odessa, Texas
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Odessa.
- Resources for Odessa, Texas Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Odessa entrepreneurs.
- Texas Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Texas.
- Houston, Texas Small Business Development Center - Serving 32 counties in Southeast Texas through 14 business consulting and training centers, the Small Business Development Center Network contributes to the growth and prosperity of the Texas Gulf Coast communities.
- North Texas Small Business Development Center - The NTSBDC Network promotes small business success by providing management education.
- Northwest Texas Small Business Development Center - The Northwest Texas Small Business Development Center was established with Texas Tech University in 1986. This regional program serves over ninety thousand square miles including ninety-five counties with a population base of approximately 1.8 million people. This region is serviced by six centers located in Lubbock, Amarillo, Midland/Odessa, Abilene, Stephenville, and Wichita Falls.
- South-West Texas Border�SBDC Network Texas Small Business Development Center - The South-West Texas Border Small Business Development Center (SBDC) provides consulting and technical assistance to the small business community.
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