Solidly laid plans make for a long-lasting business. You can raise your operation from a side hustle or a hobby to a real company if you take the time to structure your business in the best way. Here are five pointers for a competent corporate structure.

Creating a Trust

Your business very well may face legal issues at some point. How do the top business owners keep attacks from bleeding them dry? One way is by keeping a separation between your personal and business assets with a trust. A trust allows you to control your business and its assets with much less risk. It costs some money to properly form a trust, but the benefits outweigh the costs.

Naming Your Business Correctly

Marketing is a chief concern when naming your business in a way that attracts customers. It’s great to be trendy and edgy, but you should also consider what can attract lenders and investors. A name that can easily work in many fields will eliminate any distaste an investor or lending institution may have for certain industries when the market isn’t in your favor.

Forming an Operating Entity

Almost all businesses start as sole proprietors because it’s the easiest way to get going. Your company will not look like a real business until you establish it as an LLC or a corporation. In addition, staying under your own name exposes all of your assets to legal liability. Your tax rates will be the harshest as well. If you ever want to exit the business, selling is much more difficult if it is not a separate entity. 

Separating Your Intellectual Property

If you become very successful in your business, you will be more prone to legal threats. Such threats could go after and seize intellectual property, like your web address and phone number. When your trust owns the intellectual property, the trust keeps the assets guarded against such attacks. Such a separation can also reduce your taxes.

Starting a Solo 401(k)

Look out for your future by starting a self-directed or solo 401(k). Putting your retirement funds in such an account protects them from legal threats, even from the IRS in many cases. You get a sizable tax deduction from the thousands you can put away each year as an immediate benefit.

Setting up a solid corporate structure takes work, but it’s one of the best ways to prosper in your business.