diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index ed72765..cdcc71a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -94,7 +94,18 @@ To https://github.com/wesleyscholl/git-commit-push-script.git
    c76b73c..be6fe58  CRS-12345-Git-Script-Test -> CRS-12345-Git-Script-Test
 ```
 
-9. Enjoy the script!
+## Troubleshooting
+
+You may encounter an error from the following command because of the `-S` flag:
+```shell
+git commit -S -m "<commit message>" 
+```
+To resolve this error, remove the `-S` from the command in the `git-commit-push-script.sh` file:
+```shell
+git commit -m "<commit message>"
+```
+If you want to use the -S flag, configure your Git configuration to use the GPG key for signing commits.
+Use the guide here: https://docs.github.com/en/authentication/managing-commit-signature-verification/telling-git-about-your-signing-key
 
 ## License
 This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.
diff --git a/git-commit-push-script.sh b/git-commit-push-script.sh
index e63423b..097576d 100755
--- a/git-commit-push-script.sh
+++ b/git-commit-push-script.sh
@@ -12,11 +12,20 @@ ticket=$(echo $base_branch | grep -o -E '([A-Za-z]+-[0-9]{3,}|[A-Za-z]+-[0-9]{3,
 
 # Prompt for commit message
 read -p "Enter commit message: " message
-echo "Commit message: $ticket - $message"
+echo "Commit message: $ticket $message"
 
 # Prepare and execute commit command
-git commit -S -m "$ticket - $message"
+git commit -S -m "$ticket $message"
 
-# Push changes
-git push
+# Check if the branch exists on the remote
+remote_branch=$(git ls-remote --heads origin $base_branch)
 
+if [ -z "$remote_branch" ]; then
+    echo "Branch '$base_branch' does not exist on remote. Creating it."
+    # Push the local branch to the remote, setting the upstream branch
+    git push --set-upstream origin $base_branch
+else
+    echo "Branch '$base_branch' exists on remote. Pushing changes."
+    # Push changes to the remote
+    git push
+fi