Freight Brokerage Business - The Staff of Entrepreneur Media, Inc. Startup Guide

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up with a name that means something negative in another language, or that infringes on someone else’s copyright or trademark.

       • Check the name for effectiveness and functionality. Does it quickly and easily convey what you do? Is it easy to say and spell? Is it memorable in a positive way? Ask several of your friends and associates to serve as a focus group to help you evaluate the company name’s impact.

       • Search for potential conflicts in your local market. Find out if any other local or regional business serving your market area has a similar name that might confuse the public.

       • Check for legal availability. Exactly how you do this depends on the legal structure you choose. Typically, sole proprietorships and partnerships operating under a name other than that of the owner(s) are required by the county, city, or state to register their fictitious name. Even if it’s not required, it’s a good idea because that means no one else can use that name. Sometimes it’s as simple as filing for a “doing business as” (dba). Corporations usually operate under their corporate names. In either case, you need to check with the appropriate regulatory agency to be sure the name you choose is available.

       • Check for use on the internet. If someone else is already using your name as an address on the internet, consider coming up with something else. Even if you come up with a different name for your website or use a different extension (such as .net, .co, or any of the other extensions available), the use of your name by another company could become confusing to your customers or result in lost business.

       • Make sure you can establish social media accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other popular services, using your chosen company name. When it comes to having an online presence, between your website, company email addresses, and social media presence, continuity is essential.

       • Check to see if the name conflicts with any name listed on your state’s trademark register. Your state Department of Commerce can help you or direct you to the correct agency. You should also check with the trademark register maintained by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO). Once the name you’ve chosen passes these tests, you need to protect it by registering it with the appropriate state agency; again, your state Department of Commerce can help you. If you expect to be doing business on a national level, you should also register the name with the PTO.

      • How to Establish Yourself on Social Media

      To create a free Facebook page for your business, start by visiting www.facebook.com/pages/create. To create a Twitter for Business account, visit: https://business.twitter.com, and to establish a presence on LinkedIn, visit www.linkedin.com.

      In the process of creating your online presence on each social networking service, be sure to brand it with your logo and related content, and ensure that all of your contact information is prominently displayed. Use your company name as your username or Facebook page name, for example.

      Once you have selected a company name, hire a graphic artist to develop a unique and eye-catching logo for your business. This will cost anywhere from $50.00 to several hundred dollars. Showcasing a professional-looking logo on your letterhead, website, business cards, invoices, within your social media presence, and within your emails, for example, will enhance your company’s image and help you build credibility faster.

      To have a logo created, seek out a local, freelance graphic artist or use an online service like UpWork (www.upwork.com), Freelancer (www.freelancer.com), or Fiverr (www.fiverr.com) to seek out a graphic artist who specializes in company logo design.

      Be sure to describe to the graphic artist what your company does, who your target audience is, and what image you’re trying to convey, in order to provide some initial creative direction. Then, make sure the graphic artist you hire signs a release giving you full legal ownership over the logo design. Follow this up by filing for a copyright and/or trademark of the logo.

      To learn more about filing a copyright, visit www.copyright.gov/registration/. Filing a graphic-based trademark is a little more complicated, but it’s a process you can do yourself or by hiring an attorney. To learn more, start by visiting the United States Patent and Trademark Office website (www.uspto.gov). LegalZoom (www.legalzoom.com) offers a fee-based online service to help with the copyright and trademark filing processes.

      One of the first decisions you’ll need to make about your freight brokerage is the legal structure of your company. This is an important decision. It affects your financial liability, the amount of taxes you pay, and the degree of ultimate control you have over the company. It also affects your ability to attract investors and ultimately sell the business. However, legal structure shouldn’t be confused with operating structure. Attorney Robert S. Bernstein, managing partner with Pittsburgh-based Bernstein-Burkley PC, explains the difference: “The legal structure is the ownership structure—who actually owns the company. The operating structure defines who makes management decisions and runs the company.”

      Consult with both an attorney and accountant to help you choose the most ideal type of legal business structure for your freight brokerage business prior to you formally establishing the business. It’s important that from a legal and tax standpoint, you set up everything correctly right from the start. The decisions you make should be based on a variety of factors, including where you’ll be doing business from.

      • Quittin’ Time?

      Successful freight brokers recommend that you get practical industry experience by working for another broker, carrier, or shipper before starting your own enterprise. If you follow this advice, when do you tell your boss about your plans?

      There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. You need to determine where you stand ethically, legally, and practically. Take any employment-related contracts you have signed—including non-compete and confidentiality agreements—along with your employee handbook—to an attorney. This is especially important if your brokerage will either compete with or use information (such as customer lists) you obtained from your current employer.

      A lawyer can review those documents, let you know whether or not you are violating the agreements, and help you understand what potential litigation you may face. Keep in mind that you can be fired for starting your own business. Most states are at-will employment states, which means you can be terminated for any reason or no reason, as long as there is no discrimination involved.

      What about trying to start something on the side and building it as long as you can while still working full time? The risk you’re taking there, says Cherry Hill, New Jersey-based freight broker Bill Tucker, is the image you’re projecting to your customers. If you’re sneaking around behind your employer’s back and violating your employment contract, you’re sending a message of questionable judgment and ethics to your customers and associates. This can quickly tarnish your professional reputation moving forward.

      Especially if you’re working for another broker as an independent agent, it’s entirely possible that your employer will support your venture. Also, if, for example, you are a sales rep for a carrier, you can present your brokerage business as an opportunity for your employer. You’ll still be out there drumming up business for the carrier, and other carriers as well, but you’ll be doing it on a commission basis, which means the carrier will no longer have to pay the expenses associated with having you

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