(upbeat guitar music)
- [Narrator] A DBA, or Doing Business As, is essentially
a nickname for your company.
In Colorado, a DBA is also called a trade name.
DBAs are a great way to rebrand your company name,
to add new brands to your company, or to change
your company name completely.
For sole proprietors and partnerships, DBAs offer
the ability to operate under a name that isn't
the business owner's surname.
For more information on the specifics
of what a DBA is, and how it can be used,
check out our other video, linked below.
In this video, we will go over the steps you need to take
in order to form a DBA in Colorado.
There are two ways to form a DBA, you can do it yourself,
or you can hire a service to do it for you.
Let's take a look at both options and help you decide
how to go about forming your own DBA.
One, do it yourself.
If you want to save money, you can form a DBA on your own.
Let's take a look at the steps to forming a DBA
in Colorado on your own.
One, complete name searches.
When determining what you want your DBA name to be,
you'll want to make sure you follow
Colorado naming requirements.
For more details, check out our video,
How to Name Your Business in Colorado,
or our naming guides, linked below.
Next you'll want to make sure the name is available
in Colorado, the first and most important search
is Colorado's Secretary of State Name Availability Search.
If the name is not available, you'll have to adjust
your name, or use a different one.
We provide instructions to search your business name
in Colorado in howtostartanllc.com, linked below.
Searching is free.
To learn more, visit Colorado Naming Guides,
linked in the description below.
After confirming your name is available in Colorado,
we recommend doing a domain search to see if your name
is available as a URL.
Even if you don't plan on making a website today,
we recommend buying your domain in order
to prevent others from acquiring it.
Two, register your DBA.
After you've chosen an available name,
you'll want to register your DBA.
For all business structures in Colorado,
you must register your DBA
with the Secretary of State online.
The information you will need to provide varies slightly
depending on whether your current business is
a sole proprietorship, partnership, LLC, or corporation,
but it may include the following.
The trade name owner's true name, the type of entity
and jurisdiction of the owner, if an LLC, corporation
or partnership, a Secretary of State ID number,
if an LLC or corporation, and the type of business
conducted under the trade name.
Filing fees vary, so check out our pages linked below
for more detailed information.
And with that, you'll have a DBA in Colorado.
Keep in mind that your Colorado DBA needs to be renewed
after the one-year filing anniversary if you have
a sole proprietorship or general partnership.
Trade names for LLCs and corporations do not expire
unless the company falls out of good standing.
If they do, the trade name will expire after one year.
You can either renew online,
or complete the Business Name Renewal Form.
Option two, the second way to form a DBA is to hire
a professional service to create your DBA for you.
Hiring a professional service to file your forms
and do name searches will cost you
an additional $50 to $150.
However, there are several benefits to working with a pro.
A hired professional files your DBA for you, keeps you
up-to-date with renewals, and assists with publications.
DBAs, or Doing Business As, are also known as Trade Names,
Assumed Names, or Fictitious Names of a business.
Informal business structures like sole proprietorships
and partnerships can use DBAs as their business name
instead of their surnames.
Formal business structures like LLCs and corporations
can use DBAs as a means to re-brand their name,
add new brands, or change the name they are using
as their business name.
DBAs are not a business structure, and are not separate
legal entities, they also do not provide asset protection
or liability protection to informal business structures.
For state-specific guides on how to form a DBA,
check out the pages linked below, and for a more detailed
guide, visit StartupSavant.com.
Give the video a like if you found it useful,
and subscribe if you'd like to see more.
And if you have questions or encounter any roadblocks,
leave a comment below.
Good luck in starting your small business.