These guides cover the three stages where new Ontario founders most often lose time or money: choosing a name, putting up a first website and spending the first marketing budget. Each one is long enough to act on, with checklists, worked numbers and the mistakes we see most often. Read them in order if you're starting from scratch, or jump to the stage you're at.
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A 90-day launch marketing plan, with the arithmetic shown
Work out what you can afford to pay for an enquiry before choosing any channel. Then spend month one on being findable and asking your network, month two on one tightly capped paid test, and month three on doubling down or switching.
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The first website for a new Ontario company: a 30-day plan
A new company needs a small site that answers four questions fast: what you do, where, why you, and how to get in touch. Plan it in week one, write it in week two, build it in week three and check it in week four.
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How to name an Ontario company without painting yourself into a corner
Build a shortlist against written criteria, screen it in a fixed order (phone test, search, registry, trademarks, domains), test it on real customers, and only then pay for registration or design. Legal clearance is a separate step for a lawyer.
How to name an Ontario company: a screening routine
Naming an Ontario company walks through a practical routine for building and screening a shortlist. It covers what makes a name easy to say and find, how to use the free Ontario Business Registry search, where the federal trademarks database fits, why a named Ontario corporation needs an Ontario-biased NUANS report, and the number-company option some owners use.
You'll come away with a scoring sheet you can apply to your own ideas and a clear sense of which questions belong with a lawyer rather than a marketer. If you'd prefer help, the naming service follows the same steps.
Your first website in 30 days
The first website in 30 days is a week-by-week plan for getting a small, credible site live quickly. It explains which five to eight pages a new company actually needs, what each page must answer, how to write a headline that works on a phone, how to set up a Google Business Profile if you qualify, and how to make sure you, not a builder, own the domain.
It also includes a pre-launch checklist you can run on any site, whether you build it yourself or hire someone. The launch website service is the done-with-you version.
A 90-day launch marketing plan with real arithmetic
The 90-day launch plan shows how to decide where your first marketing dollars go. It starts with the arithmetic: the value of a first customer, your close rate and the most you can pay for an enquiry. Then it lays out a month-by-month plan with checkpoints, stop rules and the Canadian rules that apply to launch promotions and launch emails.
It's the guide to read before you open an ad account. The launch marketing service turns it into a plan written for your business.
Which guide to read first
If you're still at the idea stage, read them in order. A name you're happy with makes the website easier to write, and a website that explains your offer makes the launch budget go further.
If you've already registered a name, skim the naming guide's mistakes section to make sure nothing will cause trouble later, then go straight to the website guide. If your website is live but quiet, start with the 90-day plan and come back to the others if the numbers point to a problem earlier in the chain, such as a confusing headline or a name customers struggle to find.
What the guides have in common
All three follow the same principles:
- Order matters. Each stage makes the next one cheaper.
- Numbers beat opinions. Wherever a decision can be measured, the guides show you how, with worked examples you can redo with your own figures.
- Small and finished beats large and pending. A shortlist of three, a five-page site and a single tested channel are worth more than plans that never ship.
- Honest claims only. Every guide points out where Canadian rules on advertising and consent apply to new companies.
How to use these guides alongside official sources
The guides are about marketing decisions. For the official steps, Ontario's start-a-business guide is the primary source, and the Ontario Business Registry is where registration happens. Where our guides mention fees or filing rules, they say "as of October 2026" and link to the page to check.
If you want to discuss any of this for your own launch, see our pricing or get in touch. For regional notes, the areas page covers Toronto, Peel and Halton, York and Durham, Waterloo Region and Guelph, and Ottawa.
Frequently asked questions
Are the guides free to use?
Yes. Read them, print them, follow them. They're written so a founder can act on them without hiring anyone.
Do the guides give legal advice?
No. Where a step involves registration, trademarks or tax, the guides link to the official source and suggest the right professional rather than telling you what to do.
How often are the guides updated?
We review them when official fees or rules change. Each guide shows its last updated date, and you should always check fees and requirements on the official page before filing anything.