Doing Business As (DBA) is the business use of a fictitious or trade name. With a DBA you can do business under a different name without creating a new business. If you’re doing business as you can advertise and collect payment using your fictitious name. Filing for DBA is very easy to do and inexpensive.
There are some rules to what names you can use and they vary from state to state. Check with your local business authority for your exact rules. If you are just using your first name in the title of the business or more than one person’s name you need to file for a DBA. If you’re using your last name you may not need to.
Anyone can file for a doing business as name and you don’t need to create a separate entity. Once you register your DBA you can open a business checking account in that fictitious name. This is the least expensive option for creating a name for your business.
Doing business as can save you a lot of money. If you want to run the same business under different names for different chains you can just file for multiple DBAs instead of starting different businesses. You will save a lot of money creating DBAs as opposed to creating whole new businesses.
Getting a DBA varies from state to state. Some states require you to file with the Secretary of State. Some states don’t even handle doing business as claims and are taken care of at the county level.
The first step in creating a name is to make sure the name you want to do business under isn’t already taken. The fee to setup a DBA ranges from $10 to $50 which is quite cheap. Some states require you to submit your name to a publication to announce you’re doing business as name. Creating a DBA can add a lot to your business for a relatively small amount of money.