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Starting & Building Your Business |
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The Entrepreneur's Starter Kit: 50 Things to Know Before Starting a Business
by Paul J. Christopher
Whether starting from scratch, buying an existing business, or becoming a franchisee, anyone dreaming of becoming their own boss needs to understand the fundamentals of business management addressed here. Choosing the right business, creating a business plan, analyzing finances, starting part-time, and hiring staff are just some of the topics that are covered in this thorough guide. Business readiness is evaluated in a “reality check” that assesses the motivation and intent of someone starting a new enterprise, and the pitfalls that cause 80 percent of new ventures to fail within five years are frankly addressed. Filled with strategies for managing risk and successfully executing a business plan, this book will help make the goal of independent ownership a reality.
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How to Prepare a Business Plan: Your Guide to Creating an Excellent Strategy, Forecasting Your Finances and Producing a Persuasive Plan
by Edward Blackwell
An excellent business plan impresses financial backers, provides a clear blueprint for the future of your company and functions as a benchmark against which to measure future growth. How to Prepare a Business Plan includes essential coverage of producing cash flow forecasts, planning a business expansion, planning your borrowing and monitoring business progress. Global case studies containing real business plans provide inspiration and real-life practical insight by analyzing the plans, monitoring the business' progress and discussing their problems. Sample business plans also show you the process in action and provide useful examples for creating your own.
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6-Week Startup: A Step-by-Step Program for Starting Your Business, Making Money and Achieving Your Goals
by Rhonda M Abrams
Written for anyone who has an idea for a business, but doesn't know how to go about starting it, Six-Week Start-Up takes readers from idea to "open-for-business." This unique book provides in-depth coverage on business concept clarification, goal definition, money matters, market research, sales, marketing, government requirements, hiring employees, and more. Designed to keep readers on track, it includes week-by-week checklists, worksheets to sort through important issues and decisions, "Questions to Ask," "Red-Tape Alerts," resources, and expert advice.
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Start a Successful Business: Expert Advice to Take Your Startup from Idea to Empire
by Colleen DeBaise
From brainstorming to crowdfunding to building partnerships, the book walks new and aspiring founders through seven crucial stages:
* Come up with a brilliant business idea
* Select the best structure and strategy for your startup
* Figure out funding
* Get the word out--and get customers
* Dig deep to discover their wants and needs
* Become an exceptional leader
* Prepare to go global
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Starting a Business from Home
by Colin Barrow
Starting a Business from Home identifies business opportunities, gives advice on preparation and set up, and how you run, control and manage its growth. This new edition includes researching the market, business ownership and title issues, raising the money and managing finances, building and operating a website, bringing a product to market and starting up overseas.
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Marketing Your Startup: The Inc. Guide to Getting Customers, Gaining Traction, and Growing Your Business
by Simona Covel
To put a business on the map, nothing beats great marketing. No matter how original your idea or ambitious your dreams, the company will stall without a plan to spread the word, build momentum, and drive sales. For years, Inc. has covered the innovative marketing used by thousands of tiny startups that turned into household names. Now, Marketing Your Startup shares these compelling stories and spotlights strategies for igniting growth. Through firsthand insights from founders and helpful how-to guidelines, you'll learn to define your brand, market position, and customers, then unleash the right mix of tactics through the right channels: social media, email and direct mail, content marketing, SEO, media ads, events, guerilla marketing, influencers, cause marketing, and more.
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The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, and Stand Out from the Crowd
by Allan Dib
To build a successful business, you need to stop doing random acts of marketing and start following a reliable plan for rapid business growth. Traditionally, creating a marketing plan has been a difficult and time-consuming process, which is why it often doesn't get done. In The 1-Page Marketing Plan, serial entrepreneur and rebellious marketer Allan Dib reveals a marketing implementation breakthrough that makes creating a marketing plan simple and fast. It's literally a single page, divided up into nine squares. With it, you'll be able to map out your own sophisticated marketing plan and go from zero to marketing hero.
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Small Business Marketing in a Week
by John Sealey
The ability to market your business is crucial to anyone who wants to grow their start up and build a brand. In this short, accessible book, John Sealey shares a lifetime of hard-earned wisdom and practical advice, giving you, in straightforward language, all the insight you need to nail your small business marketing. The 'in a week' structure explains the essentials of small business marketing over just 7 days.
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Consultant & Independent Contractor Agreements
by Stephen Fishman
Designed for both independent contractors and the businesses that hire them, this book explains how to establish a successful relationship and provides easy-to-use sample contacts to document the relationship and avoid disputes.
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Legal Forms for Starting & Running a Small Business
by Fred S. Steingold
Provides forms used in small businesses with instructions on completing them from operating agreements and noncompete agreements to preparing corporate bylaws and buying real estate.
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The Manager's Legal Handbook
by Lisa Guerin
Provides managers with information on handling employment issues within the bounds of the law, in an edition updated to include changes to discrimination laws, overtime rules, secret trade laws, and paid family leave laws.
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The Small Business Start-Up Kit
by Peri Pakroo
The Small Business Start-Up Kit shows you how to set up a small business in your state, quickly and efficiently clearing state and local bureaucratic hurdles along the way. It will show you how to choose between an LLC and other business structures, write an effective business plan, pick a winning business name and protect it, hire and manage staff, comply with legal and tax issues affecting home businesses, price, bid, and bill your projects, manage finances and taxes, get your website up and running, and market your business effectively, online and off.
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The Women's Small Business Start-Up Kit: A Step-by-Step Legal Guide
by Peri Pakroo
Provides women with practical and legal information to help start their own successful business, including guidance on drafting a business plan, raising startup money, hiring employees, marketing and branding on a budget and qualifying for special programs and contracts. Original. Illustrations.
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The Crowdfunding Handbook: Raise Money for Your Small Business or Start-Up with Equity Funding Portals
by Clifford R Ennico
The Jumpstart Our Business Startups--or JOBS--Act empowers privately-owned companies to raise capital from investors without going through the rigorous IPO and private placement processes. Cliff Ennico explains the JOBS Act and translates the regulations into a clear set of do's and don'ts for entrepreneurs and small-business owners looking to get in early--and do things right. Need help pricing your securities? Pitching a project to the public? Choosing between funding platforms? Figuring out disclosure documents and reporting requirements? This book delivers targeted answers--whether crowdfunding is your best bet, picking the right legal entity, selecting types of securities to offer, reaching the most promising investors, keeping crowds under control, and more.
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Finance for Non-Financial Managers in a Week
by Roger Mason
Finance For Non-Financial Managers In A Week is a simple and straightforward training course in finance, giving you everything you need to know in just seven short chapters. From the profit statement and the balance sheet through to costing and budgets, it will help you deal confidently with questions such as 'What is the return on investment?', 'Do we have the resources?' and 'What are the cash implications?' You'll also find exercises to help you put it all into action.
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The Pocket Small Business Owner's Guide to Starting Your Business on a Shoestring
by Carol Tice
Most businesses that close their doors have one thing in common: They ran out of money. Don't let this happen to you. This book will help you to save money on every aspect of your business, from advertising to overhead. With invaluable cost-cutting tips for all types of businesses, from e-commerce and home-based operations to services and retail, this guide will help you create a blueprint that will allow your business to survive and thrive.
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Start Your Business on a Ramen Noodle Budget: 12 Lessons on Becoming a Young Entrepreneur When You Are Broke
by Felecia Hatcher-Pearson
You don't need millions of dollars to get your business idea off the ground, but you do need to START, with what you have and where you probably are financially--on a ramen noodle budget! You can get creative with limited resources and overcome any roadblocks to starting your own business. Start Your Business on a Ramen Noodle Budget will show you how to leverage your limited resources and create your own opportunities, set unrealistic goals with 5 key strategies, dig deep, create a unique niche, and become a major disruptor.
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Bookkeeper's Boot Camp: Get a Grip on Accounting Basics
by Angie Mohr
Bookkeeper's Boot Camp shows small business owners the essentials of record keeping, and why it's crucial to a business's success to track financial data. The book gives business owners a greater understanding of the purpose and process of record keeping and a deeper understanding of their businesses.
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Home Business Tax Deductions: Keep What You Earn
by Stephen Fishman
Updated to cover the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, a new edition provides business owners with the essential information for taking advantage of all the business deductions they are entitled to.
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Tax Savvy for Small Business
by Frederick W. Daily
Provides small business owners with what they need to know about federal taxes, and explains how to make the best tax decisions, maximize deductions and profits, appeal audit decisions, and stay out of trouble with the IRS.
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Create Your Own Employee Handbook: A Legal and Practical Guide for Employers
by Lisa Guerin
This guide is for business owners, managers, and HR professionals who need to create (or update) a legal and plain-English employee handbook. It provides legal information, practical suggestions, and best practices on: wages, hours, and tip pools; at-will employment; time off; discrimination and harassment; complaints and investigations; health and safety; drugs and alcohol; workplace privacy; and email and social media.
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The Safe Hiring Manual: The Complete Guide to Employment Screening Background Checks for Employers, Recruiters, and Job Seekers
by Lester S. Rosen
The third edition of The Safe Hiring Manual goes far beyond the typical hiring handbook. It is a comprehensive blueprint for developing a safe hiring program for employers, human resources, and security professionals. The Manual details how to exercise due diligence throughout the hiring process in order to significantly increase an employer's chance of avoiding the financial and legal nightmares of even one bad hiring decision. With this book, companies of all sizes can identify potential problems and ensure compliant hiring practices.
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How to Start a Home-Based Etsy Business
by Gina Luker
Provides advice on setting up and running an Etsy business, from writing a business plan and branding to tracking hidden costs and understanding legal issues.
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How to Start a Home-Based Landscaping Business
by Owen E Dell
Have you ever dreamed of starting your own landscaping business? Have you been hesitant to put your plans into action? This comprehensive guide contains all the necessary tools and strategies you need to successfully launch and grow your business. Using a friendly, entertaining approach, Owen E. Dell shares his experiences and down-to-earth advice on every aspect of setting up and running a thriving home-based landscaping business. He shows you how to purchase the right tools, estimate start-up costs, price services, and stay profitable once in business. From painless recordkeeping to cost-efficient management techniques, Dell's step-by-step methods are practical, innovative, and easy to understand.
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Start Your Own Construction and Contracting Business: A Step-by-Step Guide to Success
by Richard Mintzer
Focusing on budgeting and estimating - the least understood but most important factors of a contracting business - this guide shows contractors how to price their services to recover expenses and still have money for capital expenses and profits. It goes into detail on accounting issues and provides checklists for required government accounts. Plus, it covers concerns such as dealing with problem employees and clients and establishing lines of communication within the company.
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Start Your Own Import/Export Business: A Step-by-Step Guide to Success
by Jason Rich
The staff of Entrepreneur Media, Inc. and Jason Rich provide a step-by-step guide to starting your own import/export business. As a successful import/export agent, you can net a healthy six-figure income by matching buyers and sellers from around the globe, right from your own home. This book is loaded with valuable insights and practical advice for tapping into highly lucrative global markets.
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Start Your Own Microbrewery, Distillery, and Cidery: Craft Beer, Craft Spirits, Artisan Hard Cider
by Corie Brown
Entrepreneur Press has partnered with Zester Media and its network of experienced journalists and authors to deliver an in-depth review of the craft brew industry, paired with telling facts and statistics for those considering starting, running, and growing a successful craft brewery or distillery. Readers are guided by real stories from craftspeople who share the details, secret ingredients, and special equipment that create a formula for success.
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Local Business Organizations
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EDCMC
The Economic Development Corporation of Michigan City is committed to growing and attracting new industry and business to the community as well as strengthening existing business.
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MC Chamber of Commerce
Membership organization that advocates for strengthening the business climate and promoting quality of life in Michigan City.
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Michigan City Mainstreet Association
An organization dedicated to creating a positive image for the historic downtown district and the North End of Michigan City, Indiana, as an exciting place to live, work, play, and invest.
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Northwest Indiana Forum
The regional voice for the business community, promoting a positive business climate through initiatives driving investment and job creation.
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Northwest Indiana SCORE
A nonprofit association dedicated to educating entrepreneurs and helping small businesses start, grow, and succeed nationwide.
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Online Business Resources
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Business & Investing Resources
Find information and library resources on investing, starting and operating a business, business skills & training, forms, economic data, and grants & financing. Also includes contact information for local/national organizations.
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Business Source Complete
Includes journals covering business, marketing, management, MIS, POM, accounting, banking, finance, and more. Also includes market research reports, industry reports, country reports, company profiles, and SWOT analyses. Log in with your library card number. Don’t have a library card? Sign up now to get an eCard.
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Corporate ResourceNet
Full-text articles from general and trade magazines and journals, such as Fortune, Money, American Demographics, Chemical Week, Electronic Business, Restaurant Hospitality, Academy of Management Executive, and Harvard Business Review. Also includes 10,000 extensive company profiles. Log in with your library card number.
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Entrepreneurial Studies Source
Get access to information on the latest topics relevant to entrepreneurship and small business. This resource includes business journals, magazines and reference books, as well as case studies and company profiles. Log in with your library card number.
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Gale Legal Forms
Find professionally-written legal forms, available to download in Microsoft Word and PDF formats. Find forms for bankruptcy, power of attorney, wills & estates, landlord/tenant, incorporation, real estate, and more. Also includes a legal terms dictionary, law digest and legal questions & answers. Log in with your library card number.
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Regional Business News
Full-text regional U.S. and Canadian business publications covering business, politics, and economics. Includes nearly 100 publications, including Indiana Business, Crain's Chicago Business, and more. Log in with your library card number.
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Small Business Reference Center
Read top consumer small business books, including titles from NOLO. Also includes business videos, an advice section, and information on creating business plans. Full text. Log in with your library card number. Don’t have a library card? Sign up now to get an eCard.
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Michigan City Public Library
100 E. 4th Street
Michigan City, Indiana 46360
219-873-3044mclib.org/ |
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