If you love the robotic theatrics, then this article should be your safe space. You do not need the green light from a meteorologist or a fortune teller to reveal to you that the year 2020 is the year of Robots. With its excitement already leading towards the 2020 Olympic Sports Games, you will be a person with serious appetite issues if you let this slice of pie pass by without taking a piece.
Photo by Pat Krupa on Unsplash
Since the year 2020 is a sign that the robotic gods have already blessed the continuity of their creation, it is time you considered creating your robotic colony. The article yields several tips and pointers to get you started on your robotic venture. On a technical note, the customer base in the robotic business is continuously growing. It is due to a keen interest in automation labor as it is precise, analytical, and proficiently efficient. Industries under private companies and product manufacturing are both on the leeway shift towards automation.
The Vision
If this narrative is correct, you have found the perfect robotic business idea, and now you are scratching your head over the next phase of your brilliant project. The article guide projects several steps to ensure the robotic business idea plans out, has no altercations in its registration process, and follows the legal compliant rules.
STEP 1: Have a Business Plan
As a prospective entrepreneur, it is essential to have a well laid out plan. Mapping your ideal thought in the process will help you uncover the unknowns you might have overlooked. You should consider the following:
- What is the estimated cost of the startup?
- Who do you have in mind as the target market?
- What is your break-even duration?
- What name are you going to give your robotic business?
Some of these questions are a bit technical. However, thanks to some provisional research, the load is now lighter for you to carry.
The Cost of Opening a Robotic Company
Plexiglass. PVC, foamcore, brass, bronze, copper, aluminum, and steel are a list of essential raw materials you will require. You will also need high-speed internet, printers, computers, a production center, and a front office. Thus it is up to you to do the math and come up with a basic budget plan. You might or might not decide to hire a team of engineers to do most of the handy work for your company. If you are a skilled robotic expert, then you might need a small group of experts to work on your robotic specifications as you take the lead.
The Ongoing Expenses
Apart from the array of modeling software, utilities, insurance, and other essential materials, you will also need to make travel arrangements into the robotic world. You will need to see eye to eye with clients interested in the robotic universe. Here is the part where you start digging into your robotic funds for the first investment will be on the road. The travel expenses might reach a couple of thousands of dollars, but it will be a worthy learning and exposure experience.
For printers, software, and computers, your yearly cost should be at least $5,000. Your utility bill will most likely be several hundred dollars every month. Your access to circuit boards and raw materials must be a guarantee. However, the number of robots you wish to put under production should be a determinant of the material costs. Thus budgeting on several thousand dollars monthly is a prudent move. If you are to go with engineering personnel, then you should have a budget stretch that meets their salary expectations.
- The earnings of this profession yearly range at $70,000-$200,000 as per the experience of the engineers.
- The annual salary for the administrators and office receptionists ranges at $25,000-$35,000.
- The yearly compensation for the accounting and marketing professions varies at $30,000-$60,000.
Also, the general liability insurance and workers’ compensation should be several thousand dollars yearly. The size of your production center will be a determinant of the amount you wish to spend. The price ranges of $800 to $1,500 per month should get you a decent office space for your operation.
Moreover, a portion of the budget needs to cater to the research and development costs. The new robotic ideas that will be streaming in with time will need some monetary reserve to see them through. Thus the research and development docket for robotics might need a monthly dedication of $2,000 to $5,000.
The Target Market
The clients you should go after should be some manufacturing giants whose work prospects you can innovate through robotics. The general consumer market is also another plus target in the market. A mass appeal should be the brand vision of your robotic products. You should create the necessity of robotics in the market. For example, professional robot barista or robot bartender. Look for a scenario in an industry that you feel will be more proficient with the addition of robots. Propose and go with a winning heart to face the target client.
How will your robotic company generate income?
The high complexity of robotics design and performance is the sole factor as to how the robot companies make money. If you can find a way of implementing the application of robots under consumer use and industrial use, you might have earned a lifetime ticket on the money train.
How to Charge your Customers
Robotics do not have a concrete or fixed price tag. The complexity of such machines requires a lot of spending on research and development. First, establish a good business relationship with the manufacturers. Then start building up on your contract negotiations from several thousand to even million, it’s possible. If you settle for consumers’ use of robotics, then you should expect several hundred dollars at the beginning of your contracts with the prospect clients. In short, you should base your market price from other competing products in the market, the products’ purpose, and their complexity.
Profiting from a Robotic company
The sky as a limiting factor does not apply to robotics, for you will have to get through to get to the robotic universe. There are plenty of robotic companies to draw inspiration from and some on public trade and in turn, profiting with billions of dollars. The profits you make will depend on the unique applicability of your creations and how you mentor clients into the robotic universe. The costs you incur during research and development might be your most significant obstacle until you create your first market success. Thus on a six-figure profit expectation scale, it might take a year or two to reach this goal.
Increasing the Business Profit Margin
There is more to robotics than just creation. Your prowess in robotics can also earn you a handsome sum of money through creating a consulting service. The robotic company you create should give you enough credit to offer part-time lectures on robotics at nearby educational institutes. Moreover, if the robotic construction materials are in excess, you should consider selling the surplus to secondary robotic manufacturers and companies.
Naming your Company
The company name you propose must speak volumes of the spirited vision of your work. It is recommendable that the company name exists under a vacant web domain name. Thus naming your company should be in line with launching the company website. If the domain name exists, secure it earlier before someone else grabs it.
STEP 2: Consider Forming a Legal Entity
LLC is an example of such a legal business entity that shields you from personal liability, be it that another company or individual sues you. The choice of such business structures is not limited and includes DBAs, LLCs, and Corporations.
For service protection and keeping your compliant status, the use of a registered agent is a recommendation.
STEP 3: Register For Taxes
If you do not want to upset the guy upstairs, then you should learn to give the devil his due. The opening of your company should come after you attain a registered status with the state and federal taxes. Applying for an EIN will ease the tax registration process.
STEP 4: Business Accounting SetUp
This step facilitates a way of keeping a record of your income sources and various expenses. Such documents are critical as they will help you to understand your company’s financial performance. If the storage of such materials is accurate and detailed, then you will have an easy time filing your annual taxes.
STEP 5: Establishing a Web Presence
An active business website is an opportunity for clients to familiarize themselves with the company brand together with the product and services offered. Another big step up in establishing a web presence is through social media. You will be able to attract new and prospective clients or customers from sunrise to sunsets.
Is a Robotic Company the right fit for me?
If your educational background touches on physics, electronics, product development, electrical engineering, or general engineering, then you have a higher success rate in the robotics business. However, if you have a leaning passion and your mind is a practical leaning machine, then your interests and robotics will meet halfway.
Launching a robotic company is a big step up. It will require a lot of discipline and learning along the way. However, if you have the hunger for it, not even the end of the world will stop you because by then, you will have created a robot to launch you out of this universe.
Robots are the new excitement in the global industry, and we are the ON switch. You should thus thrive on being a part of a creation that is molding towards a harmonized human-machine relationship.