Online Incorporation MaxBlog

You have a concept, fresh ideas and a fantastic product or service to share with the world, and you’re getting ready to incorporate your business, but one obstacle remains: you need a great name.

Deciding what to name your business is an important decision. Words carry weight, and your business’s name is likely to be a customer’s first impression.  So how do you make it a great one?

Make your business name memorable

A short name always packs a punch, as does a great acronym if your chosen business name is longer. Ever heard of International Business Machines Corporation? No? Sure you have. Most people know them as IBM.

To get started creating a unique and memorable name for your business, let yourself brainstorm. With a pen and paper handy, think about the products or services you’ll be offering and the community you’ll be serving. Write down any name that comes to mind, even if it seems completely wrong. Once you have at least five possible names, walk away from your list for a while and clear your head.

Later, come back to your list. Read over each name and see if any more ideas for naming your business come to mind. Create variations of the names you’ve already written down. Expand and cut names from the list as many times as you need until you have chosen a favorite and at least one backup.

Verify that your chosen business name is viable

The name you choose for your business may be a perfect fit, but there are still a few details to work out. First, you’ll want to conduct a name check to verify that someone else hasn’t already registered your name in your state.

While you are waiting for your name check service, you can do a bit more legwork on your own. Search online to see if an acceptable website address is available and, if you plan to incorporate social networking in your marketing strategy (something that’s just about mandatory these days), you’ll want to go ahead and reserve appropriate names on the applicable networks.

Once your name passes the check, make sure to have it reserved so that you can be sure it will still be available when you are ready to formalize your business.

Finally, as you formally incorporate your business, consider having your name trademarked. This provides you protection and a means for legal recourse should someone else neglect to take the naming precautions listed here and run a business under the name you have chosen.

Image is everything

Prospective clients and customers will make their very earliest assumptions about your business based on the name you choose, so make sure it’s memorable and fits the personality of your company. When you have a great name, you are already one step closer to starting a business with a successful future.

What you have is less important than how you use it, and this is even truer when starting a business. Your resources are limited, your needs are many, and the unavoidable truth is that you will have to cheap out on something – possibly quite a few somethings.

There are some areas, though, that simply aren’t eligible for the inevitable budget cuts. The problem is knowing which areas those are.

Prioritize

This isn’t just your first task when starting a business. It’s pretty much your first task in any endeavor. What are your top priorities? What can’t your new business live without?

What are your computer needs?

If the only thing you expect to be doing with your computer is basic bookkeeping, then you may be able to cut corners and get by with a used or low-end computer. If you plan on maintaining your own business website and managing your own social networking, and especially if you’ll be using your business computer as your point of sale system, you’ll need something powerful enough to do the job and fast enough to keep customers from becoming frustrated.

How about other necessary equipment?

First, determine what actually qualifies as necessary equipment. It’s tempting to want to start your new business with fresh, shiny new toys, but unless you make your own copies on a daily basis, investing in a high-end copier could be a big waste of resources.

Don’t Nickel and Dime Your Business to Death

You can and should focus on the details, but the big picture is always there looming. It may be tempting to squeak by on what’s cheap and readily available, but in the long run, you’ll regret that choice. Making the best use of resources when starting a business requires a willingness to invest in what’s important.

Any outside B2B consulting or other services you hire, for example, need to be worth the investment, or you might as well not bother with the service at all. The same holds true for any staff you hire. There’s a popular concept in the business world that you should always remember when dealing with people. While you may want it fast, cheap and good, you have to choose two.

How does this translate? Simple. Hire the cheapest available and the work will be either not very fast, or not very good. Cheap IT consultants will set you up with complicated systems and then decline to return your tech support calls. Cheap marketing firms will employ underhanded tactics that get your site de-indexed instead of ranked.

That’s not to say that you should spend wildly and blindly, nor that you need to always choose the most expensive option. It simply means that if you run across a potential service that charges noticeably less than the competition . . . well, just realize that those low rates are probably not the result of kindness and charity.

In short, do your research, don’t skimp on the important details, and don’t spend on the frivolities. Keep your priorities in mind at all times and you’ll have much greater success in starting and maintaining your business.

While you don’t have to be a computer expert to start a small business, IT planning is a necessary step.  Unless you are already a computer guru, though, you may not know where to start.

This three step process isn’t exactly simple, but at the end you have a working list of your IT needs as well as an inventory that can be used for future planning and budgeting.

Step 1: Equipment Inventory

If you’re already in possession of any resources at all — be it a functional computer in need of upgrades or an old printer you can pull out of the garage — maintaining a detailed inventory is key to keeping track of the resources needed for your small business.

IT inventories should generally be as detailed as possible, but don’t worry about that too much right now. Getting on the right track with documenting your purchases just makes planning easier in the future.

Divide your resources into two main sections for hardware and software.

Include the following hardware details, if available:

• Item type/purpose
• Manufacturer
• Model number
• Date of purchase
• Vendor
• Technical specifications
• Warranty information
• Cost of item
• Expected life of item (with a little internet research you can often find this information via product reviews or other sources)

And for software:

• Software name/edition
• System requirements
• Registration key
• Number of licenses owned and license numbers
• Date of purchase

Gathering some of the above information will require a bit of research, but that just means your future IT purchases will be more informed.

Step 2: Needs Assessment

Now you know what you have. Time to look for the gaps that need filling.

Create a document that includes the following columns:

• Item name
• Item type
• Item cost
• Additional notes

Treat your needs assessment as a wish list and include everything you can think of that might make life easier for your small business.

IT wants versus needs will get sorted out in your budget.

Considerations for a business with a retail storefront:

• A cash register or a desktop computer with point of sale software
• A printer to generate receipts and sales reports

Considerations for any type of small business:

• IT outsourcing if you aren’t a computer guru yourself
• The number of work stations you will need
• Internet services and website design
• A database or other method for tracking retail inventory
• Accounting software to ensure accurate record-keeping
• Software options for compiling mailing lists and customer contact information

Additional considerations:

• When purchasing a new, pre-built workstation, a mouse and keyboard will generally be provided. However if a laptop is purchased as a primary workstation, you may want to consider adding an external mouse and keyboard, if not a full docking station.

• Make sure you are not only accounting for the main piece of equipment or software, but also for any peripherals you may need. Printers don’t always ship with all of the necessary cables, and certain business software requires a yearly tech support charge.

•  When purchasing software to be used on more than one workstation, there are almost always multiple license fees to be considered.

Step 3: Budgeting

Now that you’ve compiled a full assessment of your small business’s IT needs, you’ll be heading back to the internet to do a bit more research.

Search for every item on your needs assessment, select the brand and version you prefer, and write down the price of each selection using the four-column list you made in step two. Use the “additional notes” column to store links to the websites where you found each item.

With pricing at hand, pare down the list until the total fits your finances. Eliminate items you can do without, and consider where you might save by buying a lower-end or refurbished piece of hardware.

As you make physical purchases, don’t forget to add them to your inventory.

Doing Your Research Now Saves Time and Money Later

As you work through this process you will become more comfortable with the technology in your office, or you may decide you’d rather look into outsourcing.  Don’t worry; sometimes hiring a professional is the best thing for your small business.

IT consultants are no different than accountants or registered agents. They handle the details so that you can focus on the big picture: making your small business a success.

Navigating the financial aspects of starting a small business can be perplexing at times. Taxes, in particular, require proper management. Otherwise, you could find yourself having not-so-pleasant conversations with the IRS. The best way to avoid these conversations and safeguard your small or online business is to make sure you have a proper understanding of the laws and processes involved in administering sales tax.

How Sales Tax Works

Unlike some taxes, sales tax is not federally mandated, but rather is handled on the state level. All but six U.S. states currently require vendors to charge sales tax, and even in states without such laws, there may be local requirements that vary between municipalities. For this reason, researching tax-related laws in your area is an important first step in starting your small business. If your plans include an online business, you will need to be prepared to account for all variations of sales tax.

A few types of small businesses are exempt from charging these taxes, although again, some areas may have their own specific ordinances. Unless you produce raw materials, sell on the wholesale level or do business specifically with nonprofits, it is likely you will have to deal with sales tax in some fashion.

Permits and How They apply to an Online Business

Most states require that you obtain a permit before collecting sales tax. If you are starting an online business, though, don’t worry. You are only required to obtain permits for taxes charged to customers in the state where you are physically located.

For example, if you sell nationwide but only have one office located in Oklahoma, you only need to collect sales tax on purchases made by Oklahoma residents. If, however, you were to open a second physical location in Texas, sales tax would then extend to Texas residents, even if the specific item they order ships from your Oklahoma location.

Note that the rate of sales tax is determined by the state from which the order originated, so Oklahoma customers of your online business will pay the going rate in their state, while customers from Texas will be taxed according to Texas laws.

Protect Your Small Business with Proper Filing Procedures

Once you’ve determined applicable tax rates and obtained the necessary permits for your small or online business, your remaining concern is how to file and pay those taxes. Whereas tax filings for individuals generally take place once a year, most small businesses are required to file and pay sales taxes each quarter, although some states will require your small business to pay its sales tax monthly.

Be prepared not only to report sales for which you collected taxes, but also any other sale you have made, including those made to nonprofits or other exempt entities.

Taxes for small businesses really aren’t as complicated as they seem at first glance, especially if you are operating a storefront from a single location. If yours is an online business, circumstances may be a bit more complex, but as long as you are aware of the laws in the states in which you operate, obtain the proper permits, and file at the correct intervals, your business will be on the road to success — and the right side of the IRS.

Many of the reasons you decided to start a home business are apparent: you can set your own schedule, work in your comfort zone and save yourself the cost of renting office space.

Another benefit that should not be discounted, however, is the ability to deduct many of your expenses. Be careful of going overboard with these deductions, lest you find yourself on the wrong side of the IRS.

At the same time, though, knowing the common home office tax deductions can help you preserve your small business budget.

1.            Utilities

This will include a percentage of your utilities, based on how much of your home is used exclusively for business. Exclusive is the key word here. Part of the dwelling must be set aside for business use only, so working on a laptop at your kitchen table does not qualify.

2.            Household Repairs

If your business involves customers or clients regularly visiting your home, you may deduct a portion of household repair and maintenance costs as a small business expense.

3.            Rent and Mortgage

Both homeowners and renters can take advantage of these deductions, provided at least one room in the dwelling is set aside for the home business.

4.            Insurance

According to the IRS, if your home is your “principal place of business,” a portion of your homeowner’s or renters insurance cost is deductible as a home business expense.

5.           Your Car

If you use your personal automobile to travel to business meetings or make deliveries, the cost of upkeep, insurance and gas can be deducted. Be aware, however, that if the automobile is also used for non-business purposes, you will need to track your business-specific mileage, and only that percentage is deductible.

The importance of providing true and valid usage of your home and automobile for small business purposes cannot be overstated. IRS audits can and do happen, and should you find yourself on the receiving end of one of these, the auditor will expect to enter your home and see proof that you have a least one room dedicated to your home business.

As long as you are honest, however, you can successfully save a portion of your small business budget by using the appropriate tax deductions.