It really isn't so hard to get your business ready to offer debt settlement services.
Most people only worry about choosing the right back end negotiation company.
But there are some preliminary crucial steps that you should also be taking to get your business ready.
Here's 7 crucial steps for you to think about in your quest to start your own debt settlement business - these are one time action items that you will need to consider taking care of right away:

1. Use a street address for your mailing address, not a post office box.
   If you do not want to use your home address on your letterhead, then consider getting a business address from your local mail box service - Mail Boxes USA (now known as The UPS Store since UPS bought up these businesses).
   
2. Set up professional letterhead in Microsoft Word that you will use to send letters to your clients and to creditors.
   Consider getting a logo if you want but it is not necessary for starting out your business.
   
3. Obtain some inexpensive business cards to hand out or mail to clients.
   
4. Set up a separate telephone line in your home for your business.
   Have this line hooked up to a voice mail system to help your business take on a larger business appearance (especially if you are just running this business from your kitchen table).
   You can also purchase a virtual assistant system such as Onebox Receptionist which offers a virtual phone system featuring an auto attendant with a customized professional greeting, multi-level menus, and voice mail boxes.
   These systems are nice since they can your business appear more established with multiple extensions available, etc.
   
5. Obtain a fax machine or a fax service such as Efax or Mongo fax so that you can send and receive fax messages.
   
6. Print out your sales scripts and organize your agreements either in print format or in online folders on your computer.
   
7. Organize your business and design a system to keep track of your clients.
   As your business grows it will be harder to organize the business later so set up the organization and filing system up front.
   Have plenty of manila file folders on hand and set up a new file for every client who signs up with you.
   Keep copies of all records created for your clients and do not throw your client files away when you are done with the client.
   You should keep these files around for a reasonable record keeping, three to five years.
   Also, you may want to contact these clients again down the road for potential new business.
   

These initial steps won't take too long to complete.
Put a lot of effort into making sure your correspondence with creditors takes on a professional appearance and will be treated seriously so that you increase your chances of gaining a fair settlement for your debt negotiation clients.