Consider starting from scratch if you are contemplating a change after you have been incorporated longer than twenty-seven months or if you have other complicating factors that make the change to a nonprofit simply too difficult or impossible. The huge advantage of starting another organization is that you will already have the contacts, the infrastructure, and possibly the staff. You and your organization will also have the most valuable commodity to bring to the table: real-world experience in running a business and working with people.

If the decision is to start all over, you may have to either change the name of the organization so it is not the same as the former business or adjust it so that it is recognizable but clearly different. This is no time to be overly clever. Think of yourselves as completely reorganizing, which may unfortunately mean a name change if you have well-established name recognition in the community.

Business and organizations change their names and, at times, endure entire makeovers. Sometimes the transformation is due to marketing plans or changes in leadership, or perhaps it is done to define more accurately the organization's place in the community.

In reality, apart from those directly involved in the governance of an organization and those who have been financial contributors, no one really pays attention to these details. The community the organization serves and the general population might notice a name change, but with good publicity you may be able to mark the name change without changing the public perception of your organization.

Far more complicated than a name change will be the need to fundamentally change the organizational/corporate structure of a for-profit business to comply with both the letter and spirit of the IRS code as it pertains to nonprofit organizations.

A board of directors will become the governing body, which can mean that the former owner or manager will no longer have the final word on operational decisions.

It will also become essential that rather than having a revenue stream based on the sale of goods and services, revenue will now show public support in any of the forms discussed elsewhere in this book.

Finally, the entire concept of expecting a return on investments made to a business needs to be eliminated. People may and will forever be encouraged to make contributions and donations to the organization, but can never do so expecting to see a financial return as they might with an investment in a for-profit company.