Easy-to-follow advice on launching, managing, and growing your business, and making it pay off

Small Business For Dummies is the essential guide you need to owning and operating a small business. Youre ready to add your name to the roster of business owners, and this book is here to give you the advice youll need at all stages of the game. Start off with insight on preparing to launch a small business, including picking the right business to pursue and getting all the paperwork in order. If you want to purchase an existing business, this book also has you covered. Plus, youll learn how to wear all the hats a small business owner must wear, including being your own HR manager, accountant, and marketerand to make it all work.Create a business plan and learn how to fund your business ideaTackle the basics of small business bookkeeping so you can budget for successExplore the idea of purchasing a business, and hire excellent employeesAvoid the most common mistakes that first-time business owners make

This jargon-free book meets small business owners wherever they are on the road to business success.Small Business For Dummiesis great for those just toying with the idea of opening a business, and for those who already call themselves boss but need a few extra pointers on making things run smoothly.

Eric Tyson, MBA, is a nationally recognized personal finance counselor, writer, and best-selling author ofPersonal Finance For DummiesandInvesting For Dummies.Jim Schell is an accomplished serial entrepreneur, nonprofit founder, and executive. He spent twenty-five years as an entrepreneur and thirty years as a nonprofit founder and executive.

Introduction 1

Part 1: Getting Started with Small Business 7

Chapter 1: Is Small Business for You? 9

Chapter 2: Laying Your Personal Financial Foundation 27

Chapter 3: Finding Your Niche 43

Chapter 4: First Things First: Crafting Your Business Plan 61

Chapter 5: Making Financing, Ownership, and Organizational Decisions 83

Part 2: Buying an Existing Business 115

Chapter 6: Exploring Buying a Business 117

Chapter 7: Finding the Right Business to Buy 129

Chapter 8: Evaluating a Business to Buy 143

Chapter 9: Negotiating Terms and Sealing the Deal 163

Part 3: Running a Successful Small Business 175

Chapter 10: The Owners Responsibilities in the Start-Up and Beyond 177

Chapter 11: Marketing: Products, Pricing, Distribution, Promotion, and Sales 205

Chapter 12: Tapping Technology 241

Chapter 13: Keeping Your Customers Loyal 251

Chapter 14: Managing Profitability and Cash 263

Chapter 15: Learning from the Experiences of Others 289

Part 4: Keeping Your Business in Business 303

Chapter 16: Finding and Keeping Superstar Employees 305

Chapter 17: Providing Employee Benefits 335

Chapter 18: Handling Regulatory and Legal Issues 355

Chapter 19: Mastering Small-Business Taxes 369

Chapter 20: Cultivating a Growing Business 383

Part 5: The Part of Tens 405

Chapter 21: Ten Mistakes You Dont Want to Make 407

Chapter 22: Ten Tips for Small-Business Success 417

Chapter 23: Ten Ways Recent Tax Reform Benefits Small Business 425

Index 429