New start up? Don’t ignore these crucial business costs!

Starting your own business is the stuff that dreams are made of; its exciting, liberating and of course fun. But if you’re a new start up, it’s easy to get lost in the moment and get caught up in the excitement of bringing your idea to life. Sure, it’s incredibly exciting to choose or design your own cool company logo, create a powerful and thought provoking mission statement and of course sourcing your own staff and amazing business premises.

However, if you’re starting a business you need to keep your “business head” firmly screwed on, especially in these crucial few months. There are a frighteningly high amount of looming and mandatory business costs that you need to organise and keep on top of in order to keep your head above water and start your business off on the right foot.

The following are business costs that no new start up should ignore.

Your health and safety plan

In business, health and safety is king. Especially if you become an employer overnight. You’ll need to write up a health and safety plan for your business as well as eliminate, isolate and then minimise any prospective hazards. Reducing the level of risks is imperative; solutions such as signs are an ideal way to warn employees to “mind the step” or ensuring your stairways are well-lit etc. You’ll also need to look at fire safety plans and installing the relevant equipment.

Your website

Whether you’re offering information about your services, providing a portfolio of your completed works or offering the opportunity to purchase from your business online, you’re going to need a website. Many start-ups make the mistake of believing they can simply purchase a domain name and then create a high end website that’s user friendly, looks good and can be found on the first page of a Google search. Wrong! Your website is the benchmark of your business and should reflect the high standard of professionalism you want to portray. So, get it done right.

Marketing

Having an eye catching logo is great and an all singing, all dancing website is fantastic, but they’re not enough. People need to know you exist! Marketing and promotion of your business is crucial, so you’re going to need to factor in finances for online ads and SEO costs. However don’t just stop there – think stationary, posters, flyers, business cards and other marketing materials. And not forgetting entrance fees to trade shows and even industry events where you can start to gather a bit of a following.

Admin costs

You know what they say, all the little things soon add up. So make sure you’re going through every expense carefully. From staples to paperclips, printer ink to computers and filing cabinets. Not forgetting things like parking permits, rental costs and utilities. It’s usually these that catch out new businesses. Plus, for that added touch of professionalism, counter in things like high quality packing materials for your products and those dreaded shipping costs.