KristinMcNealus, DPT, MBA

One way to promote the profession, as well as get more clients, is community outreach. Being a part of local races is always a great way to do this. Have a booth that helps provide gait assessment, or other screen. Participants and their families now know your local clinic is one to call when they need services. Another avenue to pursue is reaching out to local corporations. As a business, they are trying to contain their health care costs – offer to give an inservice to thei

Legal issues. Ugh. You don’t know half of the issues you could potentially face until you talk to a lawyer. Sorry to all the lawyers out there, but they are downers. Most offer a free consultation, so when you have some specific questions, you may wish to take advantage of this 30 minutes. Just be aware that you may feel overwhelmed afterward. It’s better to know what to be prepared for, and to know you are at least acting in line with the law. Look at your local Small Busine

Social Media. Whatever your opinion of social media is, put it aside. Social media is crucial for your business. Since I knew nothing about how internet searches actual worked, I will explain it to you how I have come to understand it in likely the most basic depiction. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) broken down: when someone search Google, you want your website on the first page, preferable near the top. You can pay for the ad space at the very top or along the side, but I

Now that you have the ground work, people need a way to reach you. I would recommend not giving out your personal information, and separating your business from you. You can get a free phone number through Google Voice or similar service with it’s own voicemail. This way you don’t have to give out your personal number, carry two cell phones, or set up a land line that you have limited access to. You can put the app on your phone and now your cell phone receives your personal

Did you move ahead with the first three steps? Good work! See - you can do this! Here we go: Determine any permits you may need for your particular license. Consider both state and federal level. I got a city business license, using my home address. If you have a partner or group of partners, you may want to organize a corporate structure. Since I was a sole proprietor, I kept my DBA for 3 years before becoming an S-Corp. As a physical therapist, I cannot operate as an LLC (L

As we move forward with some specific steps to take, I want to say that you may be surprised with how much people are willing to help you! Do not be afraid to share your idea and vocalize what your needs are. I am not good at asking for money, and funding was not what I needed initially anyway. But I had friends who helped with the logo and the website and giving advice I didn’t know I needed. This would not have gotten off the ground without each and every person I interacte

If you like to read, and have looked toward the hundreds of books written about starting a business, I will direct you to two good ones: The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki The Lean Start Up by Eric Ries You will see the common theme about how “doing” is the most important part of starting a business. If you sit down and try to think through all the aspects of your potential business, I promise you will get too overwhelmed to ever start. There is a little “ignorance is bliss