It's become increasingly popular for women to own their own businesses. In fact, according to a report published in 2015, 29% of the businesses in the United States are owned by women. Another study states that over 9 million firms in the country are run by women. If you're a woman who has decided to take the plunge to own your own business, then you're in good company. Before you get started, however, there are three things you'll need if you're a woman with a small business.

A Good Business Plan

You may think the only reason you need a business plan is to get funding. However, that's simply not the case. A business plan will help you with the following:

• Monitor your progress
• Hold you accountable
• Control the fate of your business

A good plan will also force you to think about marketing strategies, target audiences, and staffing needs. If you don't have a business plan, you are setting your business up to fail.

Licenses and Certification

Most businesses require some sort of business license that you'll need to get in the city or state in which you are operating your business. There are also other industries that require other types of licenses. Some of these industries include:

• Retail
• Beauty
• Food
• Broadcasting

You might also want to apply for certain types of certification that is geared toward women business owners. Two examples are Women Owned Small Business (WOSB) Certification and Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) Certification. Both of these certifications allow women the opportunity to provide services for other entities and corporations that wish to work with women. There are certain requirements for each, and you'll need to be aware that women owned business certification renewal needs to be done every year.

A New Wardrobe

If you're a women business owner who wants to make a great first impression, you should invest in an up-to-date wardrobe. Of course you're going to want to tailor your wardrobe according to the type of business you have, but no matter what, you will need to be careful about not dressing too casual. At the same time, you don't want to appear overdressed, either. If you're in a quandary about what to wear when meeting clients, business casual is usually a safe bet.

Once you have a business plan, the proper licenses and certifications, and a new wardrobe, you're ready to start your new business venture. For more information, contact services such as NWBOC.