If you are smitten by the entrepreneurial bug, there are a few key items that you should carefully consider before proceeding to establish your business.

1. Understand your market – Having a great idea or a product is not the same as having a successful business. Thoroughly explore and analyze your market to understand how your product or service might sell. There are ample number of cases where an idea was well ahead of its time and the market was just not ready for it, resulting in the failure of the business.
2. What’s in a Name? – The company name is its brand and its identity. Your clients, customers and competitors recognize your company by its name. Hence it is very critical that you choose the name very carefully. Once you have chosen the name, you should consider trademarking it to protect its identity. In today’s age of the internet, it is also a good idea to check whether the domain name corresponding to your company name is available.
3. Follow the Law – No matter how small the business is, you must abide by all applicable laws. Understand the appropriate federal and state laws, taxes, regulations, licenses and such that might be relevant to your business. This not only ensures that your business is within the legal boundaries, but also help you discover laws that support and protect small businesses. Ethics in business is a secret ingredient for long-term success.
4. Don’t be afraid to fail – The good old proverb, failure is the stepping stone to success, couldn’t be any more appropriate for businesses. A lot of people are hesitant to start a business because they are afraid to fail. Have a backup plan and be prepared for failure. You never know what challenges turn out to be opportunities.
5. Follow your dream – Last but not the least, be passionate about your business and relentlessly work towards your goal. Your passion and hard-work will eventually pay-off and help grow your business successfully.