Congratulations!!! You are decided to take the first steps in getting started with your birth business (Insert streamers, glitter, and confetti.)
Deciding to startis a huge! Just the simple act of making that decision will change your life forever. You are betting on yourself and I have learned that betting on yourself is one of the safest bets you will ever make.
After making this MONUMENTAL decision things quickly become overwhelming. It is at times like this I have to remind myself how to eat an elephant. While the prospect of eating an elephant is 100% off the table, as the old adage goes, the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. The same holds true for setting up a business. All you can do is take one step at a time.
The very first step to setting up your business is to pick a name. This is also one of the trickiest parts. The name you select will reflect back on you for years to come. There are several ways to make this slightly easier. Some people choose to do a play on their first or last name. Another option will be to find a word that plays on one of your unique characteristics. Perhaps you play piano, how could you incorporate music into the name of your business? Or maybe you are an avid reader, can you create a business name with a quote from a book you have read? In full disclosure, this is where my business came from. I was reading Gone With the Wind and got to the point where Prissy says, “I don’t know nothing about birthin’ babies” and I thought it was the perfect line for childbirth education. As a side note, that line isn’t in the book. 😊
When you are choosing your name, think about where you see your business in 5 years. Are you a doula with no intention of expanding to breastfeeding or education? Perhaps add “doula services” to your name. If you are considering adding all of the extra services, maybe add “birth services” to your business name. It’s also a great idea to leave those off if your business name will explain what you do. For me, I felt that Birthing Babies did a fine job of explaining that I work with birth and babies, so I didn’t add those on.
Once you have landed on your business name, it’s time to test it on the internet. Go ahead online and purchase the domain that is yourbusinessname.com if it is available. If that isn’t an option, can you do any variations on your business name? Can you shorten it? Can you remove words like “and” or “the”? There are lots of good programs that will allow you to inexpensively create a fairly easy plug and play website with a list of your services. Consider self hosting with companies like BlueHost and creating a WordPress site. That does require a certain amount of tech savvy, but is fairly low cost. Options like LeadPages and Kajabi are more expensive, but super easy to use. Also, before you spend money you probably want to skip a few paragraphs ahead and make sure that the business name you selected is truly available.
Now jump on over to social media. Most expectant families (read: women of childbearing age) are on Facebook and Instagram. Facebook is the tool they love to hate, but they are still there. Instagram is where they will go to spend their free time scrolling. There are benefits to having a presence on both and it is super easy to cross post! Take your URL that you just purchased and set up your social media pages with @yourbusinessname.
Once your social media is set up, you have to also use it! Be sure to post at least 2-3 times per week and invite your friends and family to follow you. This way you can share everything that is going on with your business without making social gatherings awkward. You still need to talk about your business and what you are doing, but this is a great opportunity to share the nitty gritty details. Upcoming classes, new doula clients, testimonials, and just images and articles regarding birth that speak to you.
Usually if the website and social media tags are available you are safe, but it never hurts to do due diligence and make sure that your business name is not already being used. You can check out the business name at the US Patent and Trademark Office and at your state’s Corporation Commission. It’s also a wise move to do a web search and even a hashtag search. If another company keeps popping up, it may be worthwhile to start over and find another name. This is just another opportunity for you to find a name that is uniquely yours. Don’t think of it as a road block, just another stepping stone.
As mentioned above, you will want to file for business status with your state corporation commission. Many childbirth educators and doulas operate as a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) or Sole Proprietor, but this may not be appropriate for you. If you are planning to hire employees you may want to investigate Incorporation. Talk to a tax professional about this, because honestly, it is way out of my expertise. I chose an LLC for my business, but that may change in the future. You may want to hire an attorney to help you with this process, but most birthworkers should be able to set this up without outsourcing.
Now that you are officially a business the next step would be to make it official for tax purposes. Visit the IRS’s website and apply for your Employer Identification Number (EIN). This sounds far more arduous than it actually is. It should only take you about five minutes. You will be able to use this to set up your bank account and it is an added layer of credibility for your business.
Next stop, your bank! Setting up a business bank account is fairly easy and a great way to separate business expenses from household expenses. This will make filing taxes so much easier. You will need your ID, Certificate of Organization from your State Corporation Commission, and you EIN paperwork. Once you separate your business funds from your personal funds it is easier to track money in and money out.
Remember this is a business. One of the big differences between a business and a hobby is that in a business you must have more money coming in than going out. This is tricky in the beginning as you are investing in yourself and future growth, just be smart about how much personal money you are investing and how realistic it is to make it back. Having a separate business account makes this easier. You can reinvest as money comes into the account instead of using personal funds to purchase additional supplies.
Since one of the primary purposes of setting up a separate business bank account is to track income and expenses, you will want to download accounting software. There are so many amazing products on the market, find a user-friendly accounting program. I use QuickBooks Self-Employed, but please pick one you feel comfortable using. Others include Concur, BizXpense Tracker, or Shoebox. Most have apps so you can track expenses on the go, including mileage! Talk to other business owners to see which products they use and give it a try. It’s easiest to stick with the same software through an entire tax year, but you can always switch if it doesn’t have the functionality you need.
Once the business side of things has been taken care of your next step is to begin marketing your business. The most important part of marketing is having a website people can visit. Having a website gives them a way to reach out to you without picking up the phone. It’s much harder to find time for a 15-minute phone call than a three-minute email or contact form. Make it easy for your clients to reach you! A valuable piece of information I was given early in may career is that on web forms you should never ask for more information than you actually need. This will discourage people from actually submitting it. Just get the information that is helpful, you can always follow up if you need additional details.
You have a gift, go forth and share it!
XOXO,
Blake
P.S. This is an expanded version of our Birth Business Starter Guide. Signup to receive the simplified checklist version of this post.
P.P.S. Get more tips like this by joining one of our Childbirth Educator Trainings.
