Whats in a name?
Howdy folks! Some of you might be wondering about what exactly my business is going to entail, so let me give you a little more insight. I’ve alluded to starting a business that will basically encompass what I’m doing with this web app as well as future endeavors. In addition to building my own web apps as ideas come along, I will build apps and provide consulting for clients as needed, and possibly some web hosting and video development as well. Rather than storing all my eggs in one basket, I’d like to do some exploring and venture out into other web-related areas as opportunities present themselves. That being said, I don’t plan on spreading myself too thin and getting over diversified in the process. I will stay focused on aligning the business with my competitive advantages to deliver a quality product. In case you’re wondering, I don’t have a business plan written up yet. Basically, the web app is going to be my guinea pig in this business experiment. I am completely focused on my product and getting it to market. Then I can analyze the results and build my business plan based on what I learned along the way.
Right now, I am looking into registering a name for this new business and it’s proving to be much more difficult than I anticipated. The names are easy to come up with (floodgates are open), but much harder to settle on. Everywhere I look now is a potential business name: Stapler Systems, Coffee-Mug Technologies, Fingers Typing on Keyboard Solutions. I actually went as far as to look in my refrigerator and cupboards. Misty walked in and saw me standing in the kitchen with the fridge door wide open and a notepad in hand. It went a little something like this…
Misty: “Uh…whatcha doin there?”
Zack: “Isn’t it obvious? I’m looking for a business name.”
Misty: “Why do I even ask anymore?”
Zack: “How long has this been in here???”
Maybe it’s my inner-perfectionist taking over, but I would like my business name to be something meaningful and unique. This is my stories title after all, and the welcome mat to my business. My story is about building friendly, efficient, high tech systems that help people perform better in their day to day lives. My title needs to be symbolic, easy to remember, and creative. With so many possibilities, it’s hard to pick one and run with it. This process has got me analyzing my past, hobbies, software, favorite movies, books, foods, animals, vegetation, cars, cities, streets, colors, and everything in between. Hence, I am now officially late on one of my first milestones: “Name the Business”. Not Cool! Hmmm…Cool Systems, LLC? That’s not bad.
My next puzzle to solve is whether to build a Sole Proprietorship or a Limited Liability Company (LLC). Any advice? I’m leaning towards sole because it’s less costly and time consuming to set up. However I like the limited liability, unlimited owners, and increased growth potential aspects of LLC’s. I will have to do a little more research on this before I reach a decision. That will have to wait though, as I want to spend the weekend drawing up my initial prototype of the web app.
Off to work I go…
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BTW, nice site. I like the bike path with the “Something Ventured” on the sides…. fits well.
Hey, how about Something Ventured, LLC? 8-)
I was considering “Something Ventured”, but thought it might paint a picture of a risky business to my customers. Maybe not.
Incoporating is a good way to go when you’re established and making bank and looking for investors, I agree. At this point, I’m making the inverse of that, so I think it is definately between Sole and LLC. Or possibly a partnership of some sort.
To survive, I am trying to keep my costs at a minimum, so Sole is looking better and better to me.
I’m not to sure of the detials behind an LLC company, is that just multiple partners…if so, what’s the diff. between that and a partnership. I would stick with just sole, since you’ve got enough eggs in your basket as it is…..but I’m no genius.
It’s a bit confusing alright. An LLC is somewhere between a Sole and a Corporation. Like a Corporation, it allows me to set up my business as a seperate entity so my personal assets will be protected. Which means if I’m in debt, the mob can’t come after my stuff, they can only take from the business. Unlike a Corporation, you avoid double taxation (i.e. business is taxed, then shareholders are taxed).
I believe LLC’s are more flexible than a partnership. Don’t quote me on this but, “I’m pretty sure the split is 50-50 with a General Partnership”, but with LLC you can divvy it up however you want. The reason I’m not actively pursuing a partnership is because I don’t have a partner :).
So LLC’s are definately a good way to go if you can handle the complexity and cost of setting one up. Sole’s and Partnership’s are much less complex, from what I gather.
Ahhh yes, it is clear to me now.
Good deal! Now maybe you can explain it to me :).
So It would seem that you’re still planning on “going solo,” any plans as to if you might change that in the future given some “X” criteria?
Sure, the “X” criteria in my mind comes down to money or talent, either of which could push me down the partnership road. This is a learning experience and I don’t plan on closing any doors of opportunity.
That being said, people tend to slow me down. I’ve almost always done my best work on my own. So it would take the right person bringing the right things to the table (measured in dollars or sense), for me to consider a partnership. There would have to be good synergy.
I’m still trying to get my bearings and the decisions to be made are not about running the business but about what IS the business. What do I want to do with my life? These are decisions I need to make. Adding people would only confuse the issue at this point.
Interesting, I tried doing the RSS feed thing so that it would email if this page was updated, I confirmed through email and everything…but didn’t recieve any email the you had updated this….
The email is only for new posts, not comments. The RSS feed for comments is a seperate feed and you would have to use an RSS feed reader (e.g. bloglines) to keep track of new comments.
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August 20th, 2006 at 5:44 am
Incorporating is a good idea, but only after you start making good money on a product.
ZackDaddy is a good name. How about ZackDaddy LLC?