This article is all about starting a company up.

Now I am going to assume that most people coming to this blog are actually here because they are looking for hints, tips and how to’s on starting a recruitment company. That is, after all, what the subtitle of this blog says.

Can’t say being smacked for false advertising sounds like much fun so maybe I should do one of those….

So here it is, my basic guide for what I have gone through to start a company. Perhaps not exhaustive and is indeed a subject I intend to recover in a bit more detail, but for now this should give a structure or idea for you to understand what I have done and take things on board for your own start up business ventures.

First tip first….

Budget for more than you think you will need

Business budgeting is always stressful. Forecasting income, understanding expenses and cutting the nonessential is something that gives headaches to the best mathematicians, never mind a novice number cruncher like me. But it is a necessary evil I’m afraid.

So what will you need?

I can’t answer that for you, every company is different. Later in this post I will be going into what I am spending money on but be aware that it will not be the same for you. What I can guarantee though is that it will be more expensive than you think. Little costs creep in that you didn’t expect.

To give you an example spending £35 on data protection registration is not something that occurred to me when I was drawing up my budget, but it was still something I had to do.

And don’t miss out the other bits that get over looked. Cost of setting up Ltd companies, accountants fees, getting terms of business drawn up etc, etc. Some can be done by friends (I have my legal and accounts stuff done by very close friends of mine), but others will cost you part of that start up budget.

Set up a Ltd company

I’m going to be honest, I don’t know the ins and outs of sole trader vs Ltd company status, but I knew right from the start I wanted to be a limited company. I have growth plans well beyond my current work from home company and with that in mind Ltd Company status was essential.

But for yourself it may not be, so make sure you check with your accountant what the best way forward is for yourself.

For those that wondered I used EAC Business Services and they did exactly what I wanted

Get a Business Bank Account

There are a number of top quality banks that you can go with, many come with good offers and services. I would network around your own business contacts and talk to your accountant as to what serves you the best.

I have already written on what to do about getting a business bank account if you have bad credit.

Register for a VAT number.

I have already covered this before so lets just say for now that it is vital you get around to registering for it as soon as possible.

Business Insurance

Another must have, but what level of cover you have is very dependant on what type of recruitment you are doing, if they are there on a contract, permanent or temporary basis etc. For this you need to speak to an insurance advisor.

I used Hiscox for myself, and found them to be very professional, thorough and helpful to a strat up company.

A recruitment database

There are a million and one recruitment software solutions all vying for your attention. Which you use is down entirely to budget and personal taste. My own view is that at the start I was better off saving money and so went with the Chameleoni free web based recruitment database. It is powerful and does everything I need it to do, for free.

I highly recommend it.

Website

Not something I have done much with yet, as, for me, it is an expensive luxury. Instead I have bought my companies domain name, hosted it through hostgator and put up a basic wordpress site. It says a little about the company, what we do, who we are and how to get in contact.

Posh flash sites that are fully integrated into the backend of my own recruitment software solution can wait until I have the money to spend on it.

A network

Not something you can really buy. I have an established network of clients I have worked with over the years and in doing so they have given me a vital crutch. They know me and my performance and so were happy to work with me again, saving me a lot of effort in making that vital first contact.

Linkedin has proven useful with regards networking for candidates but probably my most useful network is my phonebook. Old university friends, school mates, team mates and even ex-girlfriends have helped with candidate and client hunting.

This is where business cards come in useful. Give them to friends and e-colleagues and you can see their thoughts changing from what you doing being just a pipedream to them thinking its real. Why this is I can’t tell you, but it does work.

You can get business cards from Vista print for just the cost of Postage and package, I did.

A plan B

Something I haven’t done yet, but we all know cash flow is vital to starting a business and so it is a good idea to come up with a plan B for if this is an issue. Whether that is an overdraft facility, a invoice factor or other means is your choice, but it is important to get something in place.

I shall be working on doing so this week.

Job Boards

Don’t fit with everyones business plans, but they are essential to mine. Make sure that you consider their use in your sourcing strategy and, if they are integral, make sure you know that costs etc for your budget.

These are easily the most expensive part of my budget for starting a business and it is essential you know which ones it is you want to be targeting. I am still looking at deciding on one or two, they are mistakes I can’t afford to make.

Ok, that’ll do for now. There are more points to make on the less tangible things like business motivation, developing a thick skin, deciding whether to work from home or not, sourcing clients and candidates etc. But for now that should get you a good feel for the steps needed to go through when starting a company.

Let me know what you think, and what else I should have included on there!