If you’re considering starting a small business of any kind, you certainly have been told that it can be a risky decision financially, and one that comes with a lot of hidden or unexpected costs. You need a business plan, and there are many things for which that plan needs to account.

Materials

First of all, there are materials. If you’re offering a service, then that means the tools you use to perform that service. If you’re selling something, that will mean buying the supplies to make it. It may even include bottle and labeling services. Even if all you’re doing is supplying consulting services from home over the internet, you’re using internet and your computer, and those count as materials.

Marketing

Getting the word out can make a world of difference to a small business. Word of mouth is free, but it may not be enough to get you through those crucial first few months. Word-of-mouth is also unpredictable. It’s impossible to say who will talk to whom and who will actually listen, so it’s important to take time to make a marketing plan and figure out how you’ll fund it.

Taxes

Planning for these expenses will also make it easier for you to keep track of those expenses come tax time. Planning ahead and getting organized will make it easier to stay organized as the profits start to come in, setting up good habits that will serve you well later. Remember that those expenses can be deducted later when tax season rolls around, and that can make a huge difference, too!

Employees

If you can’t afford to pay your employees, then your business isn’t successful. Now, you may be tempted to write this item off. If you’re going into business on your own, then you won’t have any employees to worry about paying, right? Wrong. There’s one important employee you forgot — yourself. You may not be able to pay yourself much at the start, but you need to be able to pay yourself something. Your time and thought and energy are all materials, just like the supplies you bought at the beginning of all this. You deserve to be paid for the effort that you expend.

None of this is meant to discourage you from starting a small business. It’s only meant to encourage you to plan enough to make sure your small business is successful, no matter what that business is.