You started out as a someone with a passion for yoga but you found a way to run your own classes and turn that passion into profit. So much so, you’ve built a business out of yoga. A big business. Big enough for you to have one eye on taking your company public, and you’re not alone. More and more companies are looking to go this route and that’s because the average newly public company tends to see their stocks jump 30% plus when they go public.

It’s incredibly tempting, right? But just because the cake looks delicious doesn’t mean you should gobble it all up right away. To help you understand why, we’ve pulled together a list of super-duper important questions to ask yourself before you bite the bullet and take your once little business and pop it onto Wall Street.

1. Your Value Is At The Heart Of It

First things first, you need to know whether those investor types will be open to hearing about you, your company and your story from nothing to everything. The best way to do that is to really understand your value, which is best done learning from other businesses that have gone before you. Once you’ve done this, apply it to you, starting with your growth possibilities and the numbers you could produce, and finishing with your USPs and long-term strategy.

2. Surround Yourself With Experts

This is one of those areas that is a must if you want your launch to become successful. That means hiring a legal type to help with compliance, someone like CMC Markets that knows all about investing and SEC reporting and, yes, even HR specialists that will help you offer stock options to your current employees to boost loyalty. There is so much to think about, so many hoops to jump through, and benefits packages to prepare, and they all require in-the-know people.

3. Communicate Your Brand’s Message

It’s impossible to have a successful business without a great marketing team. But you already knew this. It’s how you’ve managed to attract so many customers you’re in the position you are. But marketing to customers and marketing to investors and media are two totally different entities and they need to be treated so. Our advice: outsource this need to someone that specializes in investor relations, but make sure your current marketing team is heavily involved because, trust us, no one knows the message better them and you.

4. Make Sure You Are Big Enough

Before you attempt an IPO, you need to know that you are big enough to succeed, which means having a reliable and growing revenue stream; one that keeps up with the big dogs in your industry. That means speaking to a professional about what is an adequate target but not rushing in the moment you reach this figure. To be a great public company, you need to have riches and size, but you also need predictability and an understanding of how to manage a company of this size.

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