Any time you start something new, or make a major decision about your business, it's worth making a quick phone call to a professional. This can sometimes save you a lot of time and/or money later, and at the very least you will receive a second opinion that you are not overlooking any major concerns.
There are many ways that someone well-versed in their field can assist you, e.g., an insurance agent can help with planning the best overall package of insurance for your type of business. An accountant can help you with setting up your bookkeeping structure, tax planning strategy, and payroll set-up. Attorneys can help you with contracts, incorporating, and lease reviews.
Business Counselors can help you with business planning, loan applications, and referrals to other professionals. SCORE volunteers and Small Business Development Centers offer some counseling to small businesses.
One reason to contact a professional would be to find out about issues before they become a problem, especially legal or tax issues. Even if you are relatively comfortable with how you have set up your business, having an second set of experienced eyes look over what you are doing can be helpful.
Points to think about when working with a professional:
- Find someone that you can talk to, and that you feel comfortable with. A competent professional should never be too busy to give their clients the time they need to address their business issues, or to return phone calls (or to at least have another staff person call or meet with you).
- Find out what communication method works best: phone, FAX, e-mail, or regular mail.
- Ask about billing rates and payment process up front, and what fines and/or penalties that professional is willing to take responsibility for, if they occur (this will be based on the services they render).
- Before you leave the meeting, review any points that have been agreed upon for services to be provided, or further research to be done and the projected completion timetable, including the tasks that you have agreed to complete.
- Use a calendar to note these timelines, as well as approaching deadlines for tax filings.
- Ask if they will consult with other professionals (in other fields) as needed, and who they work with already. This can be important for entity formation issues in particular, and who is filing what application forms.
- If you don't understand something, ask for clarification.
