Mississippi Business Startup Guides
Starting a Business in Clarksdale, Mississippi
Thinking about starting a business in Clarksdale, Mississippi? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Clarksdale.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
Most startup companies don't make it, in part because the business owner did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before you start your business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Clarksdale. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
Clarksdale, Mississippi Demographic Information
Clarksdale has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Clarksdale demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Clarksdale.
Businesses
As a new Clarksdale entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Clarksdale 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
What About Franchising Opportunities?
As you drive around Clarksdale, 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 recommendation is that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Benefits of Owning A Franchise. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.
You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include Mr. Sub and ERA Franchise Systems, Inc.. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Employment and Staffing Franchises and Auto Repair Franchises.
Note on Clarksdale Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Clarksdale.
What About Buying an Existing Clarksdale Business?
If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Mississippi. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Clarksdale.
If you are headed down the path of buying a business, you may want to read this article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.
Forming a Company in Clarksdale, Mississippi
It's essential 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 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 Mississippi, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Mississippi. As it turns out, 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Incorporation Advice. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Clarksdale, Mississippi, our information on Incorporating in Mississippi may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Mississippi.
Building Up Your Sales
Mastering the art of selling is essential if you want your new Clarksdale business to do well.
So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.
Mastering the Complex Sale offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities
Successful business owners recognize that they don't know everything.
Given that you are starting a business in Clarksdale, Mississippi, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Mississippi universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also smart to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Clarksdale entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.
Next Steps
Most new Clarksdale 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 Clarksdale and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Clarksdale 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 Clarksdale, Mississippi
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Clarksdale.
- Resources for Clarksdale, Mississippi Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Clarksdale entrepreneurs.
- Mississippi Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Mississippi.
- Mississippi Small Business Development Center - The Mississippi Small Business Development Centers (MSBDC) is dedicated to helping build and grow businesses in Mississippi. For new entrepreneurs, this is an excellent resource.
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