Most business launch checklists cover the obvious items — register the company, build a website, open a bank account. This checklist goes further. It is built on the THINK IP framework and covers not just the operational requirements of launching, but the IP and asset-building decisions that most founders skip — and spend years regretting. A business launched with this checklist complete is a business that started building correctly from day one.
The decisions you make in the first 90 days of a business determine more of its eventual value than any other period. This checklist is not about being ready to trade. It is about being ready to build something worth owning.
Section 1 — Legal and Registration
- Business entity registered (company, sole trader, or trust)ABN applied for and confirmed. Business name registered with ASIC where required. Entity structure reviewed with accountant before registration — the right structure at launch is far cheaper than restructuring later.
- Business bank account open and separate from personal accountsThis is not optional. Mixing personal and business finances is the most common small business accounting mistake and creates significant problems at exit or audit.
- GST registration assessed and actionedIf projected annual turnover exceeds $75,000, GST registration is mandatory. If below, consider the commercial signal of voluntary registration.
- Industry licences and permits confirmedEvery industry-specific licence, council permit, and regulatory requirement identified, applied for, and received or in progress. Do not trade without them.
- Business insurance reviewed and in placeMinimum: public liability. Assess professional indemnity, product liability, and business interruption based on your specific exposure.
Section 2 — IP Protection (Do This Before You Trade)
This section is placed second — not fifth — because IP protection decisions made after launch are always more expensive and sometimes impossible. Protect before you publicise.
- Business name availability checked across all relevant channelsASIC business names register, IP Australia trademark database, .com.au and .com domain availability, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube handles. Check all before committing to a name.
- Trademark application filed for business name and logoFile with IP Australia before public launch. Standard trademark application: approximately $250 per class. This is not a nice-to-have — it is the foundational protection that makes your brand a defensible asset. An unregistered brand can be challenged.
- Domain names registered (.com.au, .com, relevant variations)Register the primary domain and defensive variations. Domain registration is cheap. Domain recovery after someone else registers it is expensive and sometimes impossible.
- Social media handles secured on all relevant platformsEven if you will not use a platform immediately, secure the handle that matches your brand name. Consistent handles across platforms are a brand asset.
- IP Assignment clauses in all employment and contractor agreementsAny IP created by anyone working for the business must be formally assigned to the business entity via a written agreement. Verbal arrangements are worthless. This applies from the first hire.
- IP Asset Register startedOpen a simple document or spreadsheet and begin recording every IP asset as it is created. Starting this on day one costs nothing. Reconstructing it three years later costs significantly more.
Section 3 — Brand and Identity
- Brand identity complete — logo, colours, typography, tone of voiceMinimum viable brand: a logo that works at small size and large, a defined colour palette (2–3 colours), a font pairing, and a one-sentence description of your tone of voice. Document this in a brand guide, however simple.
- Website live with essential contentWhat you do, who you do it for, why you are different, how to contact you, and a clear call to action. A simple, fast, mobile-responsive site beats an elaborate site that takes six months to launch.
- Google Business Profile created and verifiedFree. Immediately improves local search visibility. A Google Business Profile is a brand asset — it accumulates reviews and authority over time. Start it now.
- Email address on your own domain@gmail.com signals a hobby. @yourbusiness.com.au signals a business. The switch costs almost nothing and is permanent.
Section 4 — Operations and Systems
- Core delivery process documentedHow you deliver your product or service, step by step, written down. Not in your head. Not on a sticky note. In a document that a new person could follow. This is your first operational IP asset.
- Client onboarding process documentedHow a new client becomes an active client: first contact, proposal or quote, acceptance, kickoff, first delivery. Every step written down and, ideally, partly automated.
- Accounting software live and chart of accounts set upXero or MYOB configured before the first invoice goes out. Clean bookkeeping from day one is a business asset. Reconstucting two years of financials before a sale is a significant cost.
- Standard agreements and terms reviewed by a lawyerClient contract or terms of service reviewed and signed by clients before work begins. A contract is not a sign of distrust — it is the document that protects both parties when expectations differ.
- Customer data policy in placeIf you collect any personal information, a privacy policy is legally required. If you collect it in a CRM, ensure the CRM data is yours and backed up independently of the platform.
Section 5 — Financial and Growth Foundation
- Pricing validated against real customersAt least two customers have confirmed they will pay your stated price. A price that exists only in your spreadsheet has not been validated. Refer back to Exercise 3 of the $10K Startup Workbook.
- Break-even calculated and understoodHow many units or engagements at your stated price does the business need to deliver each month to cover its fixed costs? If you do not know this number, you cannot make meaningful business decisions.
- 90-day revenue target set with a clear path to achieving itNot a projection. A target with named customers, named actions, and named dates. Vague growth targets produce vague results.
- THINK IP framework applied to the business modelThe seven elements — Identify, Create, Build, Protect, Value, Commercialise, Manage — considered and applied to the business at launch. This is the step that separates a business being built for value from one being built for income.
90
Days. That is the window in which the foundational decisions that determine your business's long-term value are made. A business launched with this checklist complete has used that window correctly.
Complete this checklist before your first paying customer. That sequence matters. A business that trades before it is structured will spend years trying to retrofit the structure it should have started with. The cost of that retrofit — in time, money, legal fees, and valuation discount — is almost always far higher than the cost of getting it right at the start.