Oklahoma Business Startup Guides
Starting a Business in Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Thinking about starting a business in Bartlesville, Oklahoma? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Bartlesville.
Is Becoming a Business Owner Right for You?
Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Speak with other entrepreneurs in Bartlesville. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- You should read The Entrepreneurial Personality. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
- Reach out to a trusted acquaintance. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.
What Type of Business Should You Start?
Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. We recommend that you read Free Business Ideas.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Holiness Church guide or our Opening a Steeple & Spire Construction Business guide.
Always keep in mind that starting a business in Bartlesville has some implications. Some businesses will do better in Bartlesville than others. A critical consideration is whether Bartlesville demographics mesh well with your startup concept.
Bartlesville, Oklahoma Demographic Information
Bartlesville has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Bartlesville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Bartlesville.
Businesses
As a new Bartlesville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Bartlesville 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
Forming a Company in Bartlesville, Oklahoma
It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will insulate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.
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.
Incorporating 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. If you are starting a business in Oklahoma, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Oklahoma. In fact, you can incorporate in the state of your choosing. 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 Where to Incorporate. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, our web page covering Incorporating in Oklahoma may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Oklahoma.
Do You Need a Business Plan?
A business plan is essential 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.
Before you start writing a business plan, we suggest you skim The Art of the Executive Summary. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Oklahoma.
Raising Money for Your Business
Raising money to fund your new Bartlesville business requires strong organization skills and perseverance. To obtain business financing, you will need to hear a lot of rejections before you finally find a funding solution that works for you.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Bank Credit Lines.
For Bartlesville entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, check out our List of Oklahoma Angel Investors and our List of Oklahoma Venture Capital Firms.
Marketing Your New Business
To grow your Bartlesville business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your succeeding.
You can learn all about marketing on our site. Advertising Campaigns is a good read to get your marketing creativity flowing. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Moving Forward
You have a dream -- starting a business in Bartlesville. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Bartlesville and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Bartlesville, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Bartlesville.
- Resources for Bartlesville, Oklahoma Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Bartlesville 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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