Registering your business with your state may not be a high-priority item on your list, especially when your state may not require you to be registered to provide services. However, whether your business is a sole proprietorship or an incorporated entity, formally registering your business should move to the top of your list since there are many benefits.
Benefits of Registering Your Business
Potential Legal Protection: When you register your business as a corporation (S-Corp, C-Corp or LLC) the corporate identity created can protect you by limiting your personal liability. This is not the case if you register a sole proprietorship, but there are many benefits to registering your business if you maintain sole-proprietor status.
Tax Compliance: When registering your business, you get to decide whether you will structure it as a sole proprietorship, an incorporated entity, or a partnership corporation. Corporations are issued EINs, which enforces the legitimacy of your business, allows your to hire employees, and makes you eligible for tax benefits. Sole proprietors do not need to establish an EIN unless they will have employees but it is recommended if you will be doing online marketing.
Brand Identity and Protection: Registering your business name opens doors to grants, loans, or other resources reserved for registered businesses. It also trademarks your business, preventing others from using the same names or logos.
Establishes Trust: Registering your business tells your customers that you are a legitimate business and you are here for the long haul, significantly improving your business’s reputation.
Compliance With Regulations: Registering your business ensures you meet local, state, and federal regulations, including employment and labor laws.
How others perceive your business in today’s world is crucial, and registering your business demonstrates stability, and credibility, and instills confidence in customers. However, these are just general benefits of registering your business.
Registering your business is just as important from a marketing perspective.
How does a registered business help with search engine optimization (SEO) and multi-channel marketing (MCM)?
SEO and MCM are cornerstones of a business’s growth strategy. Marketers use SEO techniques used to improve a website’s visibility and increase organic traffic. They use MCM to leverage various marketing channels to engage customers, promote your business’s visibility, and increase revenue and growth. Though not required, a business registered with the state has several benefits in using these channels.
Google Business Profile: This is a free platform by Google to promote your business and improve visibility. Google now requires official documentation to complete a verification process for your Google Business Profile to go live. One acceptable form of documentation is your business’s registration. Additionally, in the unfortunate case where your Google Business Profile is suspended, Google requires official documentation to prove the legitimacy of your business, and a state registration is acceptable proof.
Access to DUNS: A DUNS number is a unique nine-digit number that is used to identify a registered business. Businesses that intend to bid on Government jobs will need a DUNS number. Any business owner, whether a sole proprietor or a corporation owner, is eligible to register for a free DUNS number.
Google Ads/PPC: Though Google does not require your business to be registered to run an Ads/PPC campaign, it does help. When a business is registered, it becomes easier to look up their D-U-N-S number, which is required to complete the advertiser verification on the account, which is being required more and more frequently.
Brand Recognition: Registering your business means you maintain a consistent business identity across various channels, making you more credible and trustworthy, leading to brand recognition.
Conclusion
Whether you’re a sole proprietorship or an incorporated entity, the decision to register your business is an essential first step in getting your business of the ground. It protects you from future complications, builds trust and confidence among customers, and helps with multi-channel marketing. Registering your business lays the groundwork for using various digital marketing strategies, allowing the business to reach its target audience, build brand awareness, and attract visitors to the website leading to conversions, and ultimately increasing revenue and growth.