Ohio Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Spencerville, Ohio

Are you starting a business in Spencerville, Ohio? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Spencerville.

Are You Ready for the Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur?

Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, consider your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

  • Speak with other entrepreneurs in Spencerville. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • You should read Business Failure. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
  • Involve a spouse, family member or trusted friend in the decision. 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.

Spencerville, Ohio Demographic Information

Spencerville has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.

To give you a better feel for Spencerville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Spencerville.

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
105
5-9 Employees
60
10-19 Employees
24
20-49 Employees
6
50-99 Employees
0
100-249 Employees
18
250-499 Employees
3
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Spencerville Businesses
216

As a new Spencerville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Spencerville 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.

Business Type
# of
Businesses
Beauty Salons
2
Bowling Centers
1
Child Day Care Services
2
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Convenience Stores
1
Electrical Contractors
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Full-Service Restaurants
2
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
Hardware Stores
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
1
Interior Design Services
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Masonry Contractors
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Offices of Dentists
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
1
Professional Organizations
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Siding Contractors
1
Site Preparation Contractors
1
Testing Laboratories
1
Veterinary Services
1

Naming the Company

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

Company names should be fun to say, and they should help people to understand what you do and how you differentiate yourself in the market.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Company.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are planning on starting a business in Spencerville, it's very important that you make sure no other Ohio company is using the business name you want to use.

Forming a Company in Spencerville, Ohio

A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. 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 Ohio, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Ohio. As it turns out, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. 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. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Avoiding Personal Liability in Business. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Spencerville, Ohio, our information on Incorporating in Ohio may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Ohio.

Startup Financing Basics

Getting your Spencerville business the capital it needs to succeed is a difficult chore. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For Spencerville entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Ohio Angel Investors and our List of Ohio Venture Capital Firms.

Promoting Your New Venture

Whether your goal is to attract Spencerville customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Seven Marketing Ideas for Your Small Business is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

Successful entrepreneurs recognize that they don't know everything.

Given that you are starting a business in Spencerville, Ohio, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Ohio universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Spencerville entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Never Give Up

You have a dream -- starting a business in Spencerville. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Spencerville businesses to be successful. 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 Spencerville, Ohio

Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Spencerville.

  • Resources for Spencerville, Ohio Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Spencerville 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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