Wisconsin Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Wausau, Wisconsin
Contemplating starting a business in Wausau, Wisconsin? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Wausau.
What Business Are You Starting?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read Free Business Ideas.
To view an extensive list of business types, complete with startup instructions, spend some time in the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Opening a Wallpaper & Wallcovering Installation Business guide or our Starting a Registered Municipal Accountants Business guide.
Always keep in mind that your new business will be in Wausau. If Wausau already has plenty of the kind of business you want to start, you might want to change your plans. Don't forget to review Wausau demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.
Wausau, Wisconsin Demographic Information
Wausau has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Wausau demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Wausau.
Businesses
As a new Wausau entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Wausau 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?
As you drive around Wausau, you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. Would going with a franchise be a good idea for you?
Our advice is to consider franchising as an option. 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 United Marketing Solutions and Discount Sports Nutrition. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Carpet Care Franchises and Leisure and Entertainment Franchises.
Note on Wausau Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Wausau.
Choosing a Company Name
Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.
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.
To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Branding Advice.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Wausau, it's imperative that you check now that your company name has not already been claimed by another Wisconsin business.
Company Formation in Wausau, Wisconsin
It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.
When forming a company, you will decide among many company types, such as a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.
Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Wisconsin, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Wisconsin. In fact, 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'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 Pre-Incorporation Agreements. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Wausau, Wisconsin, our web page covering Incorporating in Wisconsin may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Wisconsin.
Marketing Your New Business
Whether your goal is to attract Wausau customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a excellent marketing plan.
There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Working with an Advertising Agency discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
Selling Tips
Mastering the art of selling is a must if you want your new Wausau business to do well.
Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Selling Stuff on the Web offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Now It's Up To You
Most new Wausau businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Wausau and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Wausau, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Wausau, Wisconsin
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Wausau.
- Resources for Wausau, Wisconsin Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Wausau entrepreneurs.
- Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Wisconsin.
- Wisconsin Small Business Development Center - Wisconsin Small Business Development Centers offer a variety of educational services to small-businesses. The low-cost courses, seminars, and workshops cover both basic and complex topics, from marketing to management techniques to business plan development.
More Startup Articles for Wisconsin Cities
Starting a Business in Waupun
Starting a Business in Wautoma
Browse All Business Startup Guides for Wisconsin
Starting a Business Guides for Other States
Share this article
Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs