The jump from "tech with a login" to "field service business" isn't about the tools in your van — it's about a handful of unglamorous setup steps that determine what work you can take, what platforms will credential you, and how much of your money you keep. Here's the sequence we teach.
1. Choose a structure and make it real
Sole proprietor, LLC, or S-corp — each has different liability and tax consequences, and the right answer depends on your revenue and risk. What matters most on day one: register the entity, get your EIN, and stop operating as a hobby. Buyers and platforms increasingly require a company entity before they'll credential you at all. (We're not lawyers or accountants — confirm structure and tax elections with licensed professionals.)
2. Get the insurance buyers actually require
General liability is the ticket to entry; many programs also expect workers' comp exemptions or coverage, and some sites require specific limits before badging you in. Know what the platforms and your target customers require, and carry a current COI you can produce in minutes — slow COIs kill assignments.
3. Separate the money immediately
A dedicated business bank account isn't bookkeeping perfectionism — it's what makes your income provable (for licensing, loans, and taxes) and your business sellable. Clean money separation from day one saves you a brutal cleanup later.
4. Look like a business before you're big
A consistent name, a real email address on your own domain, and professional communication standards cost almost nothing and change how buyers treat you. You don't need a brand agency; you need to not look like a burner account.
5. Put systems in before you're drowning
The failure mode of every growing tech is the same: work comes in faster than the paperwork goes out. Quotes die unfollowed, invoices go out late, customer history lives in your head. A simple CRM, a job tracker, and a documentation standard — set up before the chaos — are what let you say yes to more work. That's the core of our CRM & Systems builds and Class 2.
Want it walked through live?
Class 1 — Build It Right covers this entire setup in one live hour — structure, EIN, licensing, insurance, banking, and brand — and you leave with a 30-day setup checklist. It's $25.