For many, spending day after day in a job they don’t love is the norm, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Your life should be spent engaged in doing the things you are passionate about, and for many, that passion is their love of animals. If you’ve been thinking about starting your own pet care-based business but don’t know where to start, check out this guide should help get you and your business on the way to success and fulfillment.
1. Decide What Business Is Best for You
A variety of options are available for those looking to start a business that benefits pets. If you want a more traditional store, you could sell pet products in person or online.
If you like to spend time directly with animals, you might enjoy pet grooming or sitting. Do you love being active outdoors? A dog walking business might be right for you. If you thrive on having no two days look alike, you could also offer a full-service pet care shop where potential clients can choose from a number of possibilities, allowing you to take.
Figuring out what is best for you and what will be most lucrative may take time, so give yourself space to grow and consider using a “doing business as” or DBA name for your company. With a California DBA, it allows you to branch out to new services, allowing you the freedom to experiment as needed.
2. Make It Legitimate
The Small Business administration recommends 10 steps you should follow to get your business up and running. Among the most important are writing your business plan, obtaining funding, registering your business, getting tax IDs, and applying for any required licenses and permits.
A business plan is your vision for how your company will run, including day-to-day operations and financial strategies and goals. You can design your own or follow a template to help guide you through the process. While there are more nontraditional means of funding businesses popping up all the time, most businesses receive their funding from business loans or grants, investors, and personal funding from savings or family and friends.
Many small businesses choose to register as a limited liability company or LLC, but if you’re working on your own, you may choose to operate a sole proprietorship. To get your business tax certificate, you’ll have to apply. Business laws vary between areas, including required licenses and permits, so check yours to make sure you follow the necessary procedures.
3. Master Marketing
Even if you have the best idea, product, or service in the world, if you can’t reach the right people, you’ll never be able to experience the growth you need to succeed. Marketing is key to getting your message to the people who most need to hear it.
Digital marketing is popular today because customers are most easily found and consumer behaviors are most easily monitored online. Not only can you reach an infinitely higher number of potential customers on the internet than you could in person or through traditional means such as TV or radio commercials, digital marketing gives you the ability to appeal specifically to those who might be a good fit for your business, meaning you get more bang for your buck.
Don’t spend your life neglecting your passions. Embrace your love of animals and determine a way to turn that love into a career. Both you and all the animals whose lives you touch will be better for it.
Guest article by Cindy Aldridge
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