BUSINESS

Registering business in Ohio now is cheaper, faster

Tim Feran, The Columbus Dispatch
The Google program offers new businesses free websites, free domain names and free listing of their office locations with Google's map and search features, as well as advice from industry experts.

Starting a business in Ohio is now cheaper, faster and easier to initiate online, as the state has instituted new filing fees and launched a partnership with Google.

Previously, it cost a new business $125 to register with the state, and approval typically took as long as four days. An expedited one-day filing cost $225.

Effective Thursday, the filing fee dropped to $99, and registration is completed the same day.

"Ohio is now the cheapest state in the Midwest to start a new business," Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted said.

"The first one (to register) was at 12:09 (a.m. Thursday)," Husted said. "Forty businesses filed before we got to work this morning. That shows the importance of having an online presence."

In January, Husted asked state lawmakers to pass legislation to authorize the filing-fee cuts, which he said were made possible by shrinking his office staff.

In addition to cutting the business filing fee, the office has entered into a partnership with Google that links new businesses to the Internet service company's "Let's Put Our Cities on the Map" program.

The Google program offers new businesses free websites, free domain names and a free listing of their office locations with Google's map and search features, plus advice from industry experts.

The free service is an attempt to overcome the perception that it is difficult and costly for small, mom-and-pop businesses to have an online presence, said Rob Biederman, Google's head of government and public affairs for the Midwest.

"We have found that over 90 percent of people look online when they're trying to find a business," he said, "but only 50 percent of businesses have websites."

Michael Dalby, president and CEO of the Columbus Chamber, said that although the lower filing fee might seem negligible to some people, "anything that you can do that tells the world that we (in Ohio) are even more open for business is a good thing."

Dalby added: "The small- and midsize-business economy is huge for Ohio. So it's good that when the state found efficiencies, rather than hang on to the money, they said, 'Hey, let's decrease the filing fee.'??"

The partnership with Google could be a big help to small businesses, Dalby said.

"We joke about putting a business on the map. Well, today, the map is on the smartphone on Google maps. Getting on there in the early stage is a good start for small businesses."

The cheaper filing fee will lower another barrier for fledgling entrepreneurs in urban settings, said Frank Whitfield, president of the Lorain County Urban League.

"A lot of people we serve are on the fence" about whether to start a business, he said. "Today in our offices in Elyria, we are actually registering businesses."

tferan@dispatch.com