Build the business. Protect what you earn. Create what lasts.
Nick Martin Builds gives everyday founders one guided path to structure, launch, operate, protect, and grow a real business—without having to figure out every form, platform, provider, financial decision, and next step alone.
You do not need to know everything before you begin. We help you identify what matters now, what can wait, what it costs, and what to do next.
Nobody showed us the full map
Most guidance assumes you already know which questions to ask. You are told to form an LLC, but not what happens next. You are sold software before you have a customer. You are handed a checklist that ignores what is actually in your bank account this month.
You were never supposed to figure all of this out alone.
Advice that ignores your budget is not advice — it is a shopping list.
Forming a company is a step, not a business.
The order you do things in matters more than the list itself.
What the Business Roadmap is
A structured assessment of where your business actually is today, followed by a written plan that says what to do next, in what order, and what each step realistically costs. It is prepared by a person, not generated and emailed.
What you receive
A written Roadmap prepared and reviewed by a person, not generated and emailed.
Current-position analysis
Where the business is now, based on what you tell us — with the gaps named rather than glossed over.
Business stage assessment
Which of the seven stages you are in, why, and what that means for what comes next.
Business Readiness Score
A 0–100 score across eleven weighted categories, with the inputs behind every number shown.
Three most important actions
The three things to do now. Not thirty. Three.
What to delay
Explicit “do not pay for this yet” guidance, with the trigger that would change the answer.
Estimated cost ranges
What each step typically costs, including where the free or official route is genuinely the right one.
30-day and 90-day plans
Sequenced actions with dependencies, so nothing is scheduled before the thing it depends on.
12-month direction
Where this is heading, and what has to be true first.
Professional-support map
What needs an attorney, a CPA, or another licensed professional — and what does not.
Risks and limitations
What we could not assess, and what would change the recommendations.
Who this is for
- You have a business idea and limited capital
- You registered a company and do not know what comes next
- You are earning informally and want to make it real
- You have an existing business with no structure behind it
- You have been told to buy things you are not sure you need
- You have run into credit or banking barriers
- You want someone to guarantee a specific revenue number
- You are looking for legal or tax advice — that requires a licensed professional
- You want funding or credit approval promised in advance
- You want a done-for-you business with no work on your part
The three-actions principle
Most plans fail because they are too long. Your Roadmap always ends with exactly three actions to take now — chosen against your stage, your budget, and what each step unlocks. Everything else is sequenced behind them, so you always know what you are not doing yet, and why.
“Based on where you are today, these are the three most important actions. Do not pay for these other things yet.”
Financial Constraint Mode
If money is tight, say so. Financial Constraint Mode changes what the Roadmap recommends: free and official government resources first, lower-cost tools, temporary manual processes, and revenue-producing actions ahead of purchases.
- Free official resources — the IRS issues an EIN at no cost, and your state publishes its own filing requirements
- Lower-cost tools, and the point at which upgrading is actually justified
- Temporary manual processes that work until volume makes them painful
- Actions that help you earn before actions that cost you money
- Clear upgrade triggers, so you know when the answer changes
One thing Constraint Mode never does: delay a compliance requirement without telling you. If something is mandatory, it stays on the list with the free or official route named.
How the process works
Complete the intake
A structured set of questions about your business, your goals, and your capacity. Financial questions use ranges — we never ask for exact balances, account numbers, or a Social Security number.
We review and may ask more
If the intake leaves gaps that would weaken the plan, we come back to you rather than guessing.
Assessment and scoring
Your stage and Business Readiness Score are worked out against a documented framework, not an opinion.
Roadmap prepared and reviewed
A person builds and reviews your plan. Nothing is auto-generated and sent.
Delivery and walkthrough
You receive your Roadmap and we talk it through, so you leave knowing exactly what happens next.
What the Roadmap does not do
Said plainly, before you buy — not buried in the footer.
- It does not give legal advice or tell you which entity to form — that determination belongs to a licensed attorney.
- It does not give tax advice, make elections, or calculate your tax position — that belongs to a CPA or enrolled agent.
- It does not give investment advice or recommend securities.
- It does not repair credit, guarantee funding, or promise credit approval.
- It does not guarantee revenue, liability protection, or any particular outcome.
- It does not file anything with a government agency on your behalf in this phase.
- It is not a substitute for professional judgement where professional judgement is required.
Where a licensed professional is required
Some decisions are not ours to make. When your Roadmap reaches one, it says so, explains what the decision involves, and routes it to the right kind of professional. Any conclusion in those areas belongs to that professional — never to Nick Martin Builds.
| Decision | Who decides |
|---|---|
| Final entity selection | Attorney |
| Tax classification and elections | CPA, enrolled agent, or tax attorney |
| Reasonable compensation | CPA |
| Worker classification before hiring | CPA or employment attorney |
| Restructuring, mergers, conversions | Attorney |
| Trusts, succession, estate planning | Estate-planning counsel |
| Nonprofit structure and insider compensation | Attorney and CPA |
Pricing
The Business Roadmap is in a limited pilot while we work with the first cohort of founders. Pricing is confirmed during intake, before any commitment — you will never be quoted a number after the fact.
No payment is taken through this website.
Frequently asked
- Do I need a registered business first?
- No. A large part of the Roadmap's value is telling you whether forming an entity is the right next step for you at all, or whether something else should come first.
- What if I have almost no money to spend?
- That is the situation this was built for. Turn on Financial Constraint Mode in the intake and the Roadmap prioritises free official resources, low-cost alternatives, and actions that help you earn before actions that cost you.
- Will you tell me which entity to form?
- We will explain the options, the trade-offs, and what each involves, so you can have an efficient conversation with a professional. The determination itself is a legal and tax question that belongs to a licensed attorney or tax professional.
- What financial information do you ask for?
- Ranges only. How much you have available to start, roughly what you can spend monthly, and whether you have revenue. We never ask for exact balances, account numbers, a Social Security number, tax returns, or credit report details.
- Is this AI-generated?
- No. The stage and score are calculated by a documented, deterministic framework — the same inputs always produce the same result. A person then builds, reviews, and approves your Roadmap before it is delivered.
- How long does it take?
- It depends on how complete your intake is and whether a discovery conversation is needed. We confirm a timeline with you rather than promising one in advance.
- What happens after I receive it?
- You have a plan you can act on yourself. If you want help implementing any part of it, that is a separate conversation — the Roadmap is not a sales document for our other services, and it will tell you when the right answer is to spend nothing.
Important disclosures
The Nick Martin Builds Business Roadmap is educational and operational guidance. It is not legal, tax, investment, accounting, or credit advice, and it does not create an attorney-client or other professional relationship. Cost figures are estimates, not quotes, and vary by state, provider, and circumstance. Nothing in the Roadmap guarantees revenue, funding, credit approval, liability protection, or any particular outcome. Items identified as requiring professional review must be decided by an appropriately licensed professional. Verify all filing requirements, fees, and deadlines with the relevant government agency. Nick Martin Builds is not a law firm, accounting firm, tax-preparation firm, registered agent, credit repair organization, or investment adviser.
Start with what you have. Build what you need.
Complete the intake and we will tell you where you actually stand, what the three most important actions are right now, and what you should not pay for yet.