Singapore has earned itself a name as one of the best places to do business in the world, thanks to its stable political and economic climate, technological advancement, skilled and experienced workforce, transparent system, and supportive government. Some renowned world brands have found a great market and operating place in this island state, as they leverage Singapore’s strategic geographic position and the fact that it is a regional and global, economic and commercial hub. You would not go wrong setting up an online business in Singapore, which, unlike the traditional brick and mortar business, will save you rent and overhead costs. The best business type to operate is a private limited company due to liability and credibility issues. You need to engage a reliable and experienced agent to help you meet the various requirements, put everything in order, and ultimately register company in Singapore online.
Below are some crucial steps to follow to successfully set up your online business:
Research the market
You need to understand your market, and even more so if you are a foreigner in Singapore. It is crucial to identify your target market and to narrow down to a specific niche in which you can serve and attract members in bigger numbers. There will also be a lot of brainstorming and analysis. At this step you should test the viability of your business idea before committing any resources into it. Your research and its analysis will assist you in identifying a viable idea, polishing it, and executing or abandoning it.
Craft a business plan
After you have brainstormed, analyzed, and fine-tuned your practical business idea, you need to come up with a viable business plan to make its execution possible. The business plan may include the following:
- Â Â Main features and benefits of your offering
- Â Â Sales and marketing strategies on how to reach your potential customers
- Â Â Products or services to offer that have the best value proposition and that you can avail with limited resources
-   Cash flows—determine the costs needed for you to start and to run your business, as well as the projected revenues and profits, and come up with a budget you can realistically adhere to
-   Pricing strategies for your brand against the competitors’ brands to compete on a level ground
Entering the playfield
At this step, you will look at the various ways of raising funds for your business. You will need funds for setting up a website, paying hosting services, registering your business, and for stocks, or rendering the services and facilitating other things. The Singaporean government is keen on the success of every business as a way to ensure the economy maintains stability and is prosperous. As such, it gives funding assistance to startups, so check out how to go about procuring the funds. Also, you can obtain loans from lending institutions, or get investors to put funds into your business in return for ownership.
Incorporate your business
Having tackled the funding issues, you should then incorporate your business, which is vital, since it is at the registration stage that you choose your business structure. The business structure determines the extent of your liability, the taxes you pay, and how you operate your business. The most popular business structure adopted by many is the private limited company due to its many advantages and great opportunities to expand the business.
Having all structures in place and starting off
You need to ensure some infrastructural things are in place to have a smooth delivery of goods or services to the clients. This step also depends heavily on the product or service that you intend to sell online. Proper choice of infrastructures will make it possible to significantly reduce the amount of work and manage your time, efforts, and other resources properly.
