How to prepare for starting a business

Starting a business seems easy — and it in fact is. Launching a product doesn’t seem difficult at all: you got AI to help you do some marketing research, you got Linkedin to network with people, and you got no-code tools for any need, be it a product landing or marketing campaigns. Things look good for anyone with their mind set on an idea. 

Where does the challenge lie? In keeping the business earning money for you. 

It’s not always about the idea, more so about how you make ends meet and where money is made in your business. That’s why preparing for starting a business means thinking long and hard about where money comes in and how much comes out and if revenue is scalable. 

EasyStaff Payroll is a startup in its heart. We’ve come a long way to be where we are today, and this is how we made it — the article summarizes our experience into a comfy read on how to prepare for starting a business. Let’s go! 

What problem does my business solve?

At its core, any successful product is a solution to a problem that consumers on the market realize (or not) and express (or not). What we mean is, remember what Henry Ford said about horses and cars? If he asked people back in his time what they wanted, they would have talked about faster horses. A pain point or a gap in the market doesn’t have to be explicit. It may not even be consciously named yet in one’s mind. 

What pain point or gap am I addressing in the market?

A consumer pain point is a source of discomfort and dissatisfaction that one repeatedly experiences when using an available product or service. What your product will do then is address this pain point by offering a better solution. Consider Shef, the homemade food delivery from the US. The paint point they saw was (1) people wanted fast meals, (2) yet fast food is not healthy, (3) and people were anxious about finding an option that combines health and convenience. Shef capitalizes on the comfort behind eating a homemade meal. The gap Shef fills in is only logical: you can order a McDonalds or something more classy from a restaurant but you couldn’t order homemade foods. 

Is it a real validated need?

When a pain point is repeatedly brought up by people you interview in your initial research, you have a validated need, i.e. a proven problem that people talk about and experience en masse. What makes a need validated? It goes down to tools and techniques you use when researching the market. 

The key instrument is customer development interviews, detailed conversations with people you identify as your potential clients. For every customer development sprint, you have a hypothesis (e.g., North American SMBs are curious about AI and are willing to integrate it into their operations, provided someone does all manual work for them) which you test out. The supposed pain point is ‘AI is difficult to implement’ and the validated need is ‘to find someone who can do the heavy lifting for me and set up AI-enabled processes’. 

What is my Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?

So, there is a need, it stares you right in the face. How do you communicate that? You define your unique selling proposition, or USP. 

Your USP is that edge that sets you apart from the rest of the market. Verbally, it is a short and catchy phrase that highlights what your product has — and others don’t. 

How is my offer different or better?

How to find your USP and make the difference? Consider these questions to steer your through towards an effective USP statement. 

• ‘What are you good at?’ The answer to this sets the foundation for your USP. It is the brand promise that you are making for your clients. It stems from what you do better than your competitors. 

• ‘What is your solution set?’ In essence, it is how fast/slow, how efficiently and how costly your product resolves a need. One important aspect to take into consideration here is your brand story. Behind everything you do, there is a story, a deep personal motive that made you choose the path. Do marketing with it — large corporations can’t be personal, private anymore, but your startup can be. 

• ‘Who’s buying your product?’ A USP is at its core a brand promise, i.e. a commitment you make to your client. To be super clear, Apple’s ‘Think different’ is a powerful brand promise they seem to fulfill! Their target audience? Tech geeks who consider themselves to be ahead of the curve. This same thing applies to you and your product: who are you making this for? What’s their sentiment behind the need, in their heart of hearts? 

In reality, a USP boils down to (a) emotion and (b) data. As a small business enthusiast, you may be looking at crafting a USP around a feeling (emotion) and then tracking results, like website visitors and depth, i.e. acquire figures (data). Therefore, further adaptation and fine-tuning will be performed based on real numbers — in other words, you will have a data collection to inform your future decisions.  

Can I communicate it clearly in one sentence?

Alright, you have figured it all out, and the need is clear, and you know who will be buying your product or service from you. How do you put in words, compelling and catchy? We have something for you. 

Simon Sinek proposed the Golden Circle concept  (Why – What – How) to emphasize clarity in marketing communication. A good USP is clear, Its message is on the surface and easily readable, hence memorable. Although it is used in developing positioning statements, we’re convinced it could be a good lead-up to a proper USP. 

First, you need to get your ‘Why’. The shortcut is, ‘We believe in XYZ’. That XYZ right there is the core reason you get out of bed and go to work. It’s the inspiration that actually catches with the customer. 

Second, you move on to your ‘How’. Here, you want to explain how (no pun intended) you achieve that ideal vision of your business. Start by listing everything you do to craft that long-needed product or service you promote. Then narrow down to key aspects of your operations. In this section, you can also mention the people you work for. 

Third, the ‘What’ is where you name your service or product. See how you build up that trust and connection with ‘Why’ and ‘How’? Now is the time to culminate by bringing your name up. 

Now, what does a good example look like? Circling back to Apple, their positioning statement is inspiring: 

• Why: “To challenge the status quo. We believe technology should be simple and inspiring.”
• How: Through innovative design and intuitive interfaces.
• What: Computers, smartphones, tablets.
  Their USP ‘Think different’ is only logical — the phrase encapsulates the meaning behind the positioning statement. 

How about the furniture giant IKEA?

• Why: “Create a better everyday life for many people.”
• How: Through affordable design and functional furniture.
• What: Furniture, decor, home solutions.

IKEA’s USP is their ‘Why’: “To create a better everyday life for the many people.” It is, above all, relatable. 

Last but not least, EasyStaff Payroll. The hard work behind our recent rebranding was 99% defining that core purpose behind what we as a business do for our clients. 

• Why: Our mission is to remove legislative obstacles and improve the way employees and companies connect, allowing businesses to function with optimal efficiency. 
• How: We eliminate the inefficiencies of traditional intermediaries between companies and remote workers, such as outdated labor laws, cumbersome banking systems, and restrictive government sanctions
• What: SMB-friendly centralized dashboard for automated global payroll. 

The general USP of the EasyStaff ecosystem is, in other words, the reason we, as a team, get out of bed every day: Zero borders. Endless possibilities — we connect the world to make it everyone’s playground. 

Who is my target audience

We’ve talked briefly about the target audience. The target audience is the people who are going to buy your product. A well-selected target audience is a customer persona en masse. Various sociodemographic characteristics help define the target audience: age, gender, income level, marital status, lifestyle, etc.  Defining a target audience helps segment the market and perform targeted campaigns with higher ROI. 

What are their demographics, values and pain points

Suppose you run a quick thought experiment or follow your gut — you seem to be positive that the demographic of 20-25 y.o. females, no children yet, may or may not be in a relationship, is the target audience. How do you go from there? How do you discover their sentiment and pains? Forget the guesswork — you want to get concrete now! 

Deep research with AI. Yes, an AI agent is a powerful analytics/search assistant that can significantly cut time you spend on this information searching task.

For starters, head over to ChatGPT. Even its free version is potent enough to return some valuable information in response to your prompt. This will give an overview of the available knowledge of the target audience in the market. 

For more advanced search results, you could go to Perplexity Pro and its Perplexity Labs mode. Perplexity Labs can compile actual reports to back up its answer. Your best interest is to have concrete figures. 

Old-school research. Now, Perplexity shares sources it parsed to write its answer. If you feel like there is more to what Perplexity found, you can browse the links it scanned and see for yourself. 

Once you have a proven and verified database of knowledge regarding your target audience and its potential needs and feelings, it’s time to do customer development interviews. 

CustDev. A customer development interview is conducted in order to understand the potential client’s attitude towards the product. Before you start the interview, you need to have a set of hypotheses that you will be testing throughout the interview.

For example, here’s a hypothesis that a solopreneur cosmetics maker may have before they have their CustDev interviews: Busy professionals aged 25-40 will prioritize a multi-tasking moisturizer that combines SPF 30, anti-aging peptides, and a lightweight texture for quick morning routines. 

• One of the questions asked may sound like this: “How do you feel about using multiple skincare products? What frustrates you?”

• An answer that supports the hypothesis is:  “It’s time-consuming. I’d pay more for one product that does it all.”
• Alternatively, the answer that doesn’t is: “I prefer targeted solutions. Mixing too many functions might irritate my skin.”

A CustDev interview is not a sales pitch or product presentation. It is a deep interview that helps you, as a product designer or service provider, understand (a) if your view of the customer’s needs is accurate and (b) what motives move the customer. Feedback from those interviews will inform the launch marketing campaign and give you a solid foundation for product launch. 

To put this in practice, we at EasyStaff Payroll run CustDev sessions with our existing clients. We don’t mean to upsell. The goal is to read through the sentiment and grasp the core feeling, the customer we unknowingly may be solving. The magic of CustDev interviews is that they teach you to speak client language—no analytic work equals a lively conversation with a prospect. 

Where can I reach them (online/offline)

Identifying and reaching your target audience is a crucial step whether you’re conducting customer development interviews or aiming for your first sales. Here are some practical online and offline channels that can connect you directly with the right people—helping you test assumptions, refine your product, and grow your business.

Online Channels

Social Media Groups & Communities. Platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Reddit host public and private groups built around nearly every interest and industry imaginable. Joining these groups allows you to observe conversations, ask questions, and build rapport before reaching out directly. For example, if you’re launching a fitness app, look for health and wellness communities where your potential users hang out.

Industry Forums & Q&A Websites. Niche forums (like Stack Exchange for techies or WeddingWire for event planners) are goldmines for finding engaged, knowledgeable participants. These platforms make it easy to participate in ongoing discussions and identify thought leaders and active members—prime candidates for interviews or early customers.

Online Events & Webinars. Attend virtual conferences, webinars, and meetups in your industry. These events offer networking opportunities in live chat or breakout rooms. Don’t be shy to introduce yourself and your project, or follow up with interesting participants after the event.

Offline Channels

Local Meetups and Networking Events. Check sites like Meetup.com or Eventbrite for local gatherings that align with your business focus. These events allow face-to-face time with potential customers or partners, often leading to deeper insights and relationships.

Coworking Spaces and Business Hubs. These hubs aren’t just for freelancers—they attract entrepreneurs and professionals from various industries. Leave flyers, host a “lunch & learn,” or simply chat with people in shared spaces to learn about their needs and introduce your idea.

Trade Shows and Conferences. In-person industry events can put you directly in front of key segments of your market. Prepare a short pitch and be ready to ask for feedback or schedule interviews. Gather business cards and always follow up!

When reaching out—whether online or offline—be transparent about your intentions. Most people are happy to help, especially if you show genuine curiosity and respect for their time. An honest request for feedback or an invitation to participate in shaping a new solution can go a long way in building trust and rapport.

Connecting with your target audience isn’t just about gathering data; it’s about building relationships that can fuel your startup’s next steps. Choose a few channels that best fit your industry and style, then dive in!

Solopreneur business ideas

A solopreneur is someone who launches a venture on their own, maintaining 100% control over every aspect of business and its revenue. The money that goes into the business also belongs to the solopreneur, and responsibilities, as well as financial losses, are fully on the business owner. 

What are the most viable solo business models in 2025

Today, especially with AI, so much work can be safely delegated to AI assistants. And their performance and work quality is also very high! Routine stuff and more complex creative processes can be if not outsourced, then at least seriously supported by AI tools. So solopreneurship is quite a thing. Consider these popular business ideas to start your self-employed journey in the digital age. 

1. Freelancing. Solopreneurs are primarily intellectual labor workers. Selling your expertise and work hours to a business that might need a new landing is easier than ever. Thanks to vibe-coding and no-code solutions, you could go into more digital tracks with as little friction as possible. 
2. Digital product sales. Organized people need organizational stuff. Think note planners, weekly planners, diaries, recipe books… All these writing scaffolds sell really well on websites like Etsy. Try your hand at creating evergreen usable material that can be sold over and over again forever. 
3. E-com. The rise of online marketplaces is at an all-time high. There is a place for everyone now, and launching products, too, has become easier than ever. Again, AI agents come to the rescue with everything from ideations to market analysis to content development. Entering markets online is a scalable solopreneurial endeavor that is also easy to finish.  

Starting a home business

A home business, traditionally, is a small business that is run, essentially, on the business owner’s home base. It might also be taken figuratively to mean that this micro enterprise only has a very small number of workers. It only takes a single work desk to launch a business from home. In the digital world and remote-first approach to work, you can either work independently on your own and find remote freelancers online to do some work for you. 

Are there legal or zoning restrictions in my area?

Regardless of where you set up a business, it needs to follow the local legal rules of business operation. Essentially, the core difference between a regular natural person working in employment and a businessman is their tax status. So the first thing to do would be to understand what tax status you need now and what tax percentage now applies to you, once your business starts earning. 

The good news is, you don’t need a tax agent to consult. Head over to your local tax authority website or industry/business website to find out more about local regulations for the self-employed and business owners. 

If your home business requires hiring workers, part-time or full-time, you also want to check out laws on hiring people. You could take them on as contractors or as full-time employees, and each option entails its own regulations and payroll rules.

Starting a business with family and friends for free

Having your family at your side may be a promising start. After all, who else loves you as much as your family does? If you decide to launch with your family members, you can count on faster response, more attention to detail (as compared to hiring outsiders) and overall higher motivation — after all, it is the family business, not just someone else’s venture your relatives are joining. 

How can I define clear roles and responsibilities?

There are, however, some challenges associated with running a family business. The major hurdle you will come across times and again is control. Who controls the money? Who is responsible for what and to what extent? In business terms, you are seeing misplaced roles and unclaimed responsibilities. How to address this early on? 

• Tip #1. Any business has similar areas of responsibility: Strategy & Planning. HR, Marketing, Sales, Customer Care and Operations. Start by building job descriptions for managers in these sectors. Once you have an articulated pool of tasks for each individual, you can move on to assigning people to the roles. 
• Tip #2. The people that work for you each have a unique view on their tasks and their work. Having a conversation where family members share their view on their tasks, on the business and their career aspirations will show a direction towards an accurate and meaningful role assignment in the team. 
• Tip #3: The secret to effective role assignment is an accurate graphic representation. Try making a chart based on the conversation from Tip #2. The areas of overlap of responsibilities should be eliminated. How? By a more strict role and job description.  

Should I create a partnership agreement?

Following on role descriptions, you may start asking yourself: what about the red tape? Companies hire contractors and employees on work agreements or contracts — how does it apply to my family venture? 

The sound advice is, there should be a document for any agreement/solution/decision in the business. If you hire your sister, you hire her — with a full stack of documents associated with regular hiring of someone you don’t know. 

A family partnership agreement, however, defines and legally settles more than just workplace relationships. A family partnership agreement documents how much assets family members pooled in the venture and how much they expect to receive in revenue. 

Depending on how many people you invite to the business, the type of work they do and the structure of your business, you may not always have to have a family partnership agreement. However, a clearly defined job description and a work agreement to maintain a proper employer-employee relationship are crucial for an effective and mutually respectful team game. 

How can I start a business with no money

As long as you have an idea, you are set for a business launch. Investing real money is not always a prerequisite for successful ventures. If you focus on digital work and online businesses, you may build a client base and a steady revenue before you hire a team. 

What low-cost or no-cost business models exist? 

• Opt for digital services. To help a company analyze their marketing campaign output, building an AI-powered tool on Loveable costs almost $0. It only takes your AI literacy. 
• Courses or tutoring. Do you have a skill that can be taught? Teach it! Developing lesson plans and some engaging content to draw in some curious people only takes a day’s work thanks to powerful AI-based content building solutions. 
• Digital asset sales. You surely saw those ads on YouTube where someone is boasting how they earn good money by selling coloring books on Amazon. Well, the truth is, it kind of works. In essence, you are developing an evergreen material, depending on your target audience, that can be used over and over again and sell like a physical item. Digital production or development doesn’t take money at all. 

How can I use free tools, platforms or bartering?

Today’s market of free tools for single-person use is incredibly wide. You can find nearly everything, from UI/UX workspace to social meda management platforms, that cost $0. To build a visual prototype, use Figma. To run a fast ad campaign to test demand, use Mailchimp and Hootsuite. It’s that simple! 

Bartering can also be a good way forward to find CustDev interviewees or have some work done in return for something non-monetary. Think of reaching out to several local influencers to ask them to talk about your product on their page. 

Where can I get early support or microgrants?

If you are thinking big and some financial investment is a must, you could turn to microgrants. Microgrants are small, non-repayable grants—typically ranging from $500 to $5,000—designed to support individuals, startups, and small organizations at the grassroots level. Unlike traditional business grants, microgrants offer an accessible, low-barrier funding opportunity, making them especially attractive to first-time entrepreneurs and marginalized groups. They require less paperwork, have fewer eligibility restrictions, and provide quick, flexible funding to kick-start or scale innovative ideas and community projects. Even though the amounts are modest, the impact can be significant: microgrants can bridge the gap between a good idea and action, enabling founders to test concepts, build momentum, or launch creative ventures that would otherwise go unfunded. For those starting a business on their own, microgrants represent a democratized entry point into entrepreneurship and social innovation, giving essential support at the very earliest—and often most critical—stage.

Starting a Business on Your Own: FAQ 

What business can I start with 500 dollars?

Basically, any business that is digital-first/online-first has a low entry point. As long as you don’t produce anything physical and capitalize on your knowledge, $500 will be a decent entry capital. Focus on data analysis for SMBs with AI-powered tools to automate data management for the business and make money out of it. 

How to validate a business idea?

To validate a business idea, you need to do research (preferably, with AI to cover a larger database) and have personal conversations with prospect buyers, i.e. run CustDev interviews. Basically, you build a hypothesis off of your research and then test those ideas out on individuals that match your customer persona to receive some tangible feedback. 

Do I need a business plan to start?

Put simply, a business plan is a mental roadmap you have in mind when developing a business. Having at least some sort of business plan drawn out helps you foresee scalability opportunities (or limitations) and to check every business action you take against the original plan. Business plans don’t have to be iron-clad on day 1. They change and evolve as you build expertise and experience in the industry. 

What are the first legal steps to start a business?

When starting a business, you, as the owner, need to be legally ready to run a venture. The key aspect that now changes is that you are going to be selling your expertise/skill/product and earning revenue, not just income like it may have been under regular employment conditions. Changing your tax status to report on your revenue is the most essential step to take in the first place. To educate yourself on tax status variations, head over to your local tax authority website. Governments support entrepreneurs and educate them on available options. 

How to find my target market?

To find your target market, start by identifying the problem your business solves and who benefits most from your solution. Use techniques like surveys, interviews, online research, and competitor analysis to learn about potential customers’ demographics, interests, and buying habits. Focus on groups with the highest interest and need for your product, and test your findings with small marketing campaigns to refine your audience.