Think Inc. Should you incorporate your business?

Want to give your small start-up the look of a big business? Oneway is to add "Inc." to your business name by choosingincorporation as your legal form of doing business.

"Your business can appear more substantial, moreestablished, when you're incorporated," says CarolineQuigley, executive vice president of Inc. Plan (USA), a Wilmington,Delaware, company that helps businesses incorporate. "It'sone thing to do business as `Jane Smith,' but doing business as`Smith Public Relations Inc.' gives the business addedstature."

Incorporating does more than just boost your image, however.When you incorporate your business, you create a separate legalentity with a life of its own. Unlike a sole proprietorship or apartnership, a corporation can survive your death. A corporation isrecognized by local and state governments and has legal rightsand responsibilities. For example, it can buy and sell property; itcan sue and be sued; and it pays taxes.