Oklahoma Business Startup Guides
Starting a Business in Okemah, Oklahoma
Thinking about starting a business in Okemah, Oklahoma? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Okemah.
Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?
Most startup companies fail, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before you open a business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
With so much at stake when you start a business, we strongly recommend you do the following before you proceed:
- Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Okemah. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- Peruse Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
- Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.
Okemah, Oklahoma Demographic Information
Okemah has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Okemah demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Okemah.
Businesses
As a new Okemah entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Okemah 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
Choosing a Company Name
A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.
Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.
For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Company.
On a final note, given that you are starting a business in Okemah, it's imperative that you check now that no other Oklahoma company is using the business name you want to use.
Company Formation in Okemah, Oklahoma
A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.
The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.
Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. 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. Just because you are starting a business in Oklahoma, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Oklahoma. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.
There's a lot to know about forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as ESOP Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Okemah, Oklahoma, our information on Incorporating in Oklahoma may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Oklahoma.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
A business plan is vital to the health of your new business. In effect, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Oklahoma.
Where to Get Money to Start a Company
Getting your Okemah business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. To obtain business financing, you will need to hear a lot of rejections before you finally find a funding solution that works for you.
Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Only Idiots Send Venture Capitalists Business Plans.
For Okemah entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, browse our List of Oklahoma Angel Investors and our List of Oklahoma Venture Capital Firms.
Moving Forward
Most new Okemah businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Okemah and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Okemah 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 Okemah, Oklahoma
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Okemah.
- Resources for Okemah, Oklahoma Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Okemah entrepreneurs.
- Oklahoma Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Oklahoma.
- Oklahoma Small Business Development Center - Whether you are in business or thinking about it, the Oklahoma Small Business Development Center staff can assist you. Their goal is to help Oklahoma entrepreneurs like you be more successful.
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