5 Steps for Starting a Business in Las Vegas

As the first edition of our Las Vegas Small Business Series, we’re looking at the basic steps of what it takes to start a business in Nevada when you’re starting from scratch. Now full disclosure, each of these points below could get its own blog post because there is so much to talk about, and they will be, but this is a quick look at the 5 steps for starting a business in Las Vegas, Nevada. If you haven’t read the Las Vegas Small Business Series: Introduction post on our K2 Analytics Las Vegas digital marketing blog you should jump over there and read that too!

So how do you start a small business in Las Vegas? The initial steps are quite easy actually!

Here is an updated Article we published – How to Start a Business in Las Vegas in 2022

1. Do Market Research

Before starting a business in Las Vegas, you should do your due diligence and dive into the industry that you want to serve. Market research should let you know what you’re getting yourself into in terms of who your audience is, who your competitors are, how viable your idea is, and what kind of investment and return you would be looking at. You may find that you have a great idea but a saturated market or you may even find that you are going to be one of the first to market! Either way, this is the research stage and you want to be as informed as possible. Don’t skip this step!

2. Write Out a Business Plan

When you are starting a business, one of the best things that you can do to prepare is to write out a complete business plan. While nobody outside of your organization may ever see your business plan, it’s a great exercise where you will work through answering different questions you may encounter along the way. A business plan will help you answer questions that investors, partners, and even your customers will ask of your business and when that time comes you will know how to answer. There are a million free business plan templates online, it’s just a matter of sitting down and filling it out.

3. Choose the Right Legal Structure for Your Business

In order to be a legal business in the state of Nevada, you need to file your business with the Nevada Secretary of State’s office. This is quite easy and only takes a few minutes to complete on the NSOS.gov website.

Some thing to think about before filing your business is what kind of legal entity you would like to operate as (Limited Liability Corporation, Incorporation, Sole Proprietorship, S Corporations, or a Partnership). Each type of business structure has its own list of pros and cons — something we can get into in a later blog post.

The biggest benefit of setting up a legal structure is to put a buffer between your business and your personal assets which you want to be protected in the unfortunate event that your businesses are ever sued.

4. Register With the Nevada Secretary of State

In order to be a legal business in the state of Nevada, you need to file your business with the Nevada Secretary of State’s office. This is quite easy and only takes a few minutes to complete on the NSOS.gov website. Filing only costs a few hundred dollars and it’s really easy to do. Most filings with the NSOS take about 10 to 15 minutes to do!

Note, some businesses and industries will require specific business licenses when filing with NSOS, but you knew this because you did your market research!

5. Apply for an EIN From the IRS

Once your business is legal and set up with the NSOS, you’re ready to file your tax forms with the IRS and receive an Employer Identification Number (EIN). This identification number is how your business will be able to pay taxes in the future. Filing for an EIN is completely free and takes minutes to do. Now there are a bunch of different ways that you can file your taxes with the IRS that really depend on the structure of your business (again this could get its own blog and it will) but it’s best to speak with a CPA so that you can stay on the IRS’s good side!

Now that you have gone through those steps, your business should be a legal entity that is ready to operate in Nevada!

K2 Analytics – Las Vegas Digital Marketing

We’re a Las Vegas-based digital marketing agency committed to helping local businesses in Las Vegas get off the ground. We offer full-service digital marketing solutions for businesses to generate leads, sales, and more revenue through content marketing, social media, Pay Per Click and paid advertising, and more. If you’re ready to get your business off the ground, shoot us a message and let us help you start building a clientele with the best one-stop shop for digital marketing in Las Vegas.

Schedule a meeting with our marketing team today by calling (702) 330-4931!