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For Subscribers

Resources to Help Launch Your Business From processing payments to building a website, these resources will help you get your startup running in no time.

By Entrepreneur Staff

The Startup Toolbox
image credit: Shutterstock

Own your name
Come up with a name for your business. Then check out USPTO.gov, the government's trademark office, and Trademarkia.com to see if someone's already grabbed it. If not, you can register it through Trademarkia.com for as little as $159 plus the government's filing fee. You'll save hundreds of dollars over the cost of a business attorney's hourly fee.

Capture future Customers
Don't wait until you've already built out your product or retail space before you start collecting customers' names and information. With LaunchRock, you can put up and host a simple "coming soon" page for your business in less time than it takes to finish a cup of coffee -- and it's free. Use the page to promote your venture among friends, family, neighbors and former colleagues who, with any luck, will share it with their networks. At the very least, you want to capture a database of e-mail addresses from potential customers to whom you can send an "open for business" announcement when the time comes.