Join the new world

While the American Free Press does not often offer two articles on the same day we thought that some other information aside from that on the most excellent War in Mexico was in order. For the benefit of our many new eCitizens this article is dedicated.

The ways of becoming a business man or woman in eRepublik is only limited by the imagination. Some have started banks though banks, per se, are not built into the mechanism of the New World. Some have started eLotteries, others have begun black market operations bypassing VAT and Import Taxes and even Embargoes brought on by Congress or warfare.

Some of these paths offer great profit but have a comparable risk involved. If you loan Gold you run the risk of a default. If you sell through donations rather than the legal market you run the risk of being ripped off. Just like RL there are no protections available through legal recourse if your chosen path is "outside the box" so to speak.

What this article hopes to do is not to define and explain every possible way one can create a business in eRepublik. Such an endeavor is beyond the ability of even the best mind. The possibilities, as we said above, are only limited by the imagination. What we hope to achieve is to assist those that want to create a business in the conventional manner of starting a company.

I. The First Step - Get The Money

The first step in starting a company whether it is in raw materials, construction, or manufacturing is to ensure you have the funds to invest in your new company. Even before you decide which route you want to go you should be certain you have at the very least the starting capital that would be required in any of these domains. Starting a business without the essential capital will put so much stress on you as to make the endeavor most unpleasant. You will then constantly be trying to cut corners, be concerned about sales, be worried about employees, and ultimately bleed your company dry of the very money it needs to succeed.

Of course you should pay attention to the details listed above. You should try to cut corners where it is feasible. You should have some concern about sales and you should make certain that you have loyal, productive employees. But those things should come in the natural order of running a business and not become such a burden that you lose all joy in your efforts.

So what money does it require to start a business?

First there is the start-up fee of 20 Gold. Plus you should create an Organization to Manage your business so at the very least you can be one of its employees. If you start the business as its General manager then you will have no income other than what you can glean from your business and in its formative days it will need every USD you can leave in its coffers. To start an Organization costs 5 Gold and you must be experience level 11 (or have paid the fee to "unlock all features".)

At this point you need 25 Gold just to get started. That price can be mitigated which we will explain shortly.

Just having the money to create the Organization and Company is not enough to get started. You have to be able to hire employees and, if your business is anything other than raw materials, then you will have to buy those materials necessary to create your product: diamonds if it is gifting, grain if it is food, wood if it is housing, oil if it is travel tickets, and so forth. We would suggest that, at a minimum, you should be able to purchase no less than 250 units of raw materials. If your business is food then that means you need 250 units of grain. At the current market price of about 0.50 USD that comes to 125 USD or about 2.5 Gold. Wood will be higher at about 4 Gold. Oil will be about 4.5 Gold, etc.

Then there is employee wages. Most companies have maximum production with 10 employees (except construction which maxes out at 20 employees.) Have enough starting capital to pay your employees for three days or so before having to start selling. Since you will most likely be starting a Q1 company you will be hiring Level 1 and Level 2 people. Let's estimate toward the high said to be safe and say you will be paying 4.5 USD/day. Multiply that times 10 employees times 3 days and it comes to another 2.5 Gold (roughly 125 USD.)

So, at this point, just to get started you should have at your disposal no less than 30 or 35 Gold.

II. Step Two - Decide on a Product

While having the essential cash to start your company is of vital importance deciding which field you are going to go into is of equal or even greater importance. Regardless of how much money you have if your choice of operating venues is poorly made you will soon find yourself broke and trying to sell your company for whatever you can bleed out of it.

Deciding on a product takes some thought. We at the AFP are not going to even attempt to tell you what product you should choose. We will tell you a couple you should avoid like the plague. Do not even consider diamonds or iron unless you are planning on creating your company outside the eUSA. There are no high resource regions in the eUSA containing these raw materials and it will be nearly impossible for you to compete with foreign businesses.

Also do not ask the opinion of someone already producing in a certain field. They do not want more competition and while most of those with whom we have dealt are both ethical and honest there always exists a certain amount of self-preservation. You would naturally be advised to seek out another field other than theirs.

So how do you decide?

1) Look at the Marketplace. As this is being written there are 13 Q1 food companies with products for sale; there are 10 Q1 gift companies; 11 Q1 grain companies, etc. Notice the prices they are charging. Have you done the math to see if you could compete? See how many foreign companies are involved in each field. Go to their profile and notice what they are paying their employees (through job offers.)

2) Look at Companies for sale. If you see an abundance of food or grain companies for sale ask yourself why they might be getting out of that field. Go to their profiles and see how much product and employees they have. (We will be getting back to "Companies for sale" in a few moments.)

3) Look at Human Resources. How much is being offered to new employees in each field. That will have an effect on how much you have to pay to get workers.

Deciding on a product is going to be your hardest decision. And it is one that no one else can make for you. One important piece of advice we can offer on this is to get involved on the eUSA Forums. Read the company and business posts. Ask questions. Weigh the answers carefully.

III. Step Three - Creating the Company and Org

Before you spend the 5 Gold to create an Organization ask around for someone that might have an old one that they are no longer using. They may let you have it for nothing. Or they might sell it for as little as 1 Gold. If they do so then once you login to the Org account be certain to change the email address and password immediately. While I am certain that the person that gave/sold it to you is highly ethical there is no need in taking chances.

Once you have your Org you can move it anywhere you desire by simply buying a moving ticket and changing its location. This is important in the case of raw materials. Never create a Raw material company in anything but a high resource region.

So you have chosen the product you want your company to produce. Now do you create a new company or do you buy one already in existence? If your choice is in manufacturing or construction, etc then the location is not important. Check the companies for sale listing and see what is available. In this case the cheaper the better. Do you want a food company and there is one for sale for 15 Gold? Buy it! You just saved 5 Gold. If you are really lucky you might even find a Q2 company for sale cheap. If so re-evaluate the steps listed above and take the risk if you are so inclined.

Be careful when purchasing a company for sale if you are going into raw material production. A grain company in Washington, DC is not a good buy regardless of the price. Neither is a Wood company in Hawaii or an Oil Company in Florida. To check on natural resources you can go here and select the state you want to investigate.

Once you purchase the company of your choice you can edit its profile, renaming it and giving it an avatar more suitable to your taste.

If you have decided you want to create your own company then login to your Organization account and create it there so that the Org is the General manager. To manage your company you will also have to login to your Org account. If you are going to create a production company such as food, travel tickets, gifts etc then the location is not so important. However if you are going to create a raw material company then you need to move to the region in which you want to create the company. Again, make certain - make absolutely certain - it is a high resource region.

IV. Purchasing Raw Materials

If your company is a raw material company you can skip this step.

When purchasing raw materials for your company you should do some shopping. Just because it is a Q1 company does not mean you must buy Q1 raw materials. If Q1 materials are .50 USD each and Q2 materials are .90 USD (divided by 2 = .45 USD) then the Q2 is the better buy. If you buy 100 Q2 and you have a Q1 company you will end up with 200 units.

Do not want until you have to buy materials to do so. That day they may be higher than normal. Check on prices every few days and buy materials when the price is the best. If you run out of raw materials your employees can not work. Many will then quit and go somewhere else. Take care that your employees can work. Your loyalty to them will most often be reflected in loyalty to you.

V. Hiring Employees

This part of owning a company is the most challenging. You want highly motivated employees with good skills and wellness. Unfortunately when you put out job offers you have no control over what you get. Once someone accepts a job you cannot lower their pay for three days so if you offer a job for 9 USD and someone accepts it that has low wellness you will lose money unless you fire them or help them increase their wellness.

Often helping a good employee increase their wellness is a good idea in keeping a loyal, hard working employee. I urge you to read the articles linked below on Wellness and on how to determine an employees worth. If you find them helpful please share them with others. Since they are older articles your vote will not send them into the Top Ten but it will stroke my most fragile ego. 😉

What Are You Worth
Tax Deferral - Revisited
Notes On Company Management
Skill Versus Wellness