Regarding trade/legal names and founding a company

[efinque]

So,

I recently founded a (registered) trade/legal name for my company (in the field of entertainment, sort of an agency [edit:for the time being] so I can get paid for gigs) which basically (under the laws of the country I live in) allows me to practice a trade and do business, get tax refunds etc..

I'm not sure what the policy is abroad (the US mainly, I suppose) but as a novice I'd like to hear some advice and thoughts from the members who have already experience with running a business (and especially the ones that have employed people to do gigs for them)

Basically, I've already taken into account all the key stuff (well, most of it anyway), equipment and some of the paperwork (and a website, a logo etc) but I assume there are a lot of things (business cards/gifts for example, marketing stuff, an accountant/lawyer etc) which may come in handy at a later stage.

I'd like to hear your opinions!

Thanks in advance,

-ef

EDIT : Oh, and I used to work for an agency for a while and things went really smooth, and a friend of mine even was offered a chance to play elsewhere (=big venues from what I gathered) but unfortunately the company no longer exists nor the venue where I used to perform; they indeed were good times. And I did pick up some business regime from chatting with the manager(s) and hanging around..

EDIT 2 : edits..

[prof_fate]

so much varies by location - where I am (pennsylvania) there is no local biz registration, no sales tax on DJ business, if the name is YOUR name (with a suffix like 'bob smith entertainment') you don't need to do anything at all.

If it's "entertainment by bob" then you're supposed to register it with the state and they'll issue a form that you can use to open a bank account, pay taxes in that name, etc.

If you go for LLC/Corporation there is more legal paperwork and requirements, tax ramifications, etc. Unless you are a multi op or make $100k a year in sales it's not worth it - no benefits, all costs and hassles.