The Invisible Woman asked:


I am planning a business. I will start out with baskets for new babies and if all goes well I will make the extra investment for wedding baskets, and then so on and forth. By baskets I mean gift baskets. I have researched local business license, but I am not sure if a local business is the right way to go, so I am thinking internet or Ebay. What kind of license do you need for these types of businesses.

Lee

Nick P asked:


I’ve been thinking about opening a business mowing lawns in the summer and plowing snow in the winter now for the last 2 years now, except I’ve never actually worked in the industry. I was just wondering if anyone could give me any information about the way that these business owners contract their business. Do they get a year or two contract with each business or is it by the job? Also, in either of the two scenarios how much money would be considered going rate to their customers? Thanks in advance for the information.

Bill

Jack asked:


I’m thinking about turning my online selling into a business, and I’m trying to get a feel for the tax-related pros and cons of making it official.

Here are 2 questions:
(1) I understand that I can write off business expenses on my tax returns. That includes computer equipment, trips overseas to purchase merchandise, etc. But I’ve never itemized my tax return before. Would I get more money back if I start a business, and then itemize my deductions rather than just taking the default deduction like I always do?

(2) If I make my online selling into an official business, will I have to pay extra business-related taxes?

Madeline

Jose Vanegas asked:


An introduction to small business CRM.

Small business may struggle more than larger businesses with keeping their profit and sales moving quickly and small business CRM may be able to improve the way a small business works. Small business CRM can help a small business with a variety of things such as keeping track of customer information. Small business CRM can also be used to help produce quality leads for the company and using the small business CRM to produce these leads can lead to a greater amount of sales being made. Small business CRM can help to keep customer information and lead information organized as well leading to a more productive company. If you own a small business and are looking for ways to optimize your sales and profit then you should check into small business CRM.

Prophet is the best small business CRM available.

Prophet is a small business CRM that is considered one of the best CRM software systems on the market today. Avidian makes Prophet small business CRM and offers superior quality in small business CRM. Avidian has won a variety of awards for their small business CRM and is a company that can be trusted. If your small business is looking for small business CRM then you should check out Avidian.com to see what their small business CRM can do for your and your company.

Prophet small business CRM can help you keep track of customer information and leads.

Prophet small business CRM offers many benefits to a small business. Often it can be hard to keep track of all the customer information that a small business handles daily and small business CRM can help with this task. Small business CRM can help to keep track of important customer information so you can work at building good relationships with the customers you already have. Small business CRM can also help you with your leads as well. Not only will you see a better quantity of leads when using small business CRM but you will also see better quality leads when using small business CRM as well. Using your small business CRM to build customer relationships can improve your company by bringing your customers back to your for service again and again. Using small business CRM for your leads will help you to find prospective customers to start working with.

Small business CRM can help organize your small business.

Small business CRM can help in organizing your small business as well. It is important that your contacts are well organized so they can be accessed quickly and small business CRM can help with this task. Small business CRM will make it easy to find all contact information and can help you follow up with customers in the future. You will also be able to keep your leads organized with small business CRM as well. Organizing your leads with small business CRM will enable those working in your company to follow up on new leads quickly to keep new leads from slipping away. As you use small business CRM to organize your customer information and your leads you will find that you end up closing more sales and that your company makes more profit as well.

Knowing what to look for in small business CRM.

Small business CRM software is important to your company and it is important that you find the best small business software available. You want to find small business CRM software that can be tailored to fit your company’s needs so you will not end up buying more small business CRM than you need. You also want to find small business CRM software that is cost effective for your company and that will save you money in the long run. You want to find a quality company to buy your small business CRM from you can feel comfortable dealing with. You should also buy small business CRM software from a company that provides technical assistance if you should need it. Prophet small business CRM software meets all of these requirements.

Prophet small business CRM software meets qualifications for excellence in small business CRM.

Prophet small business CRM software can be tailored to your specific needs and is affordable as well. Prophet small business CRM software is also very easy to use so you will not have to spend a lot of money training employees of your business to use it. This small business CRM software is also very easy to incorporate into your company as well and works with Microsoft Outlook. If you want the best small business CRM software, then Prophet is the software for you and your small business.

More benefits of Prophet small business CRM.

Prophet small business CRM has many benefits that your small business can take advantage of to increase your profit. You can use this small business CRM not only for organization of customer information and leads, but also this small business CRM can be used for scheduling as well. All of your important appointments can be kept track of by small business CRM. You will never have to worry about forgetting an appointment that you wrote down somewhere because your small business CRM will keep track of these appointments and remind you when you have one. You will also be able to use this small business CRM to help you with the reports that are so important to your company. These reports are important to seeing how your business is working and can help you decide where to make improvements and small business CRM can help you create these reports with little effort.

Small business CRM can help you be successful.

Every small business wants to be successful and often this can be a difficult job with so many small businesses out there today. If you want to stay a step ahead of the competition then you should consider implementing small business CRM into your company. You can use small business CRM to make your business shine and it will help you accomplish more tasks with less manpower and less time. You will be able to build a solid company when you use small business CRM to help you along the way. If you want your business to be successful then visit Avidian.com and check out their small business CRM today.

About Avidian Technologies:

Avidian Technologies is a software company specializing in creating software solutions for users of Outlook and Exchange. Prophet, developed by Avidian Technologies on the .NET platform, is the leading contact management and sales CRM software built in Outlook. The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.avidian.com or call 1-800-860-5534.



Wilfred

Jose Vanegas asked:


Defining a Business Manager.

When an individual thinks of a Business Manager, their mind often leads to a man or woman that is in charge of a business. Often times, this case holds true, but with new technology other types of Business Managers are being used. Such a Business Manager is not a human, but in fact can be a computer program.

Prophet can ACT as a Business Manager.

Although there are many different computer programs that are available to ACT as a Business Manager, one of the most popular and effective forms of a Business Manager is the software program known as Prophet. Prophet is a Business Manager software program that is made available by Avidian, a computer company that specializes in customer relationship management, also known as CRM. CRM is highly important for many companies, as it is the relationship between a customer and a company that regulates the sales for a company. If there is a positive CRM relationship established, there is a high certainty that a client will be a repeat purchaser. Many companies give thanks to Prophet as their acting Business Manager, as the program can generate multiple sales for a company.

The multiple factors of Prophet as a Business Manager.

There are many factors that Prophet plays upon as a Business Manager. For example, Prophet can regulate a client’s contact database for all of its customers. This means that as an acting Business Manager, all of a company’s clientele can be regulated and organized into an electronic file. A company can keep electronic records of all of their clients, including a company name, physical address, telephone number, and an e-mail address for the contact individual at the company. A Business Manager can do the same things for a company, but it will take much more time to keep everything as organized as a computer program such as Prophet can. Prophet also acts as a wonderful organizer, keeping all of the business contact information in order, as well as easily and readily accessible.

Prophet can save money as an acting Business Manager.

Another reason why many companies are turning to computer programs for a Business Manager instead of working with a person within the company is due largely for costs. The price of Prophet’s Business Manager is quite affordable (starting cost is around $100.00), which makes for a wonderful investment for any company. It is hard to find a Business Manager system such as Prophet that is as affordable as it is. The competitors are much higher, and a lot less cost effective than Prophet. Prophet has proven that as a Business Manager, that the software can keep track of sales, hold notes on accounts for reference, provide graphs and charts of projected sales as well as sales past, and the most beneficial means of gaining additional profits. Prophet’s Business Manager is indeed geared towards multi-tasking, which is what many companies are looking for.

Prophet can ACT as a Business Manager for companies large and small.

Prophet is not only helpful for companies, but for individuals and major organizations as well. For an individual, Prophet Business Manager is great for a small business. This is often the choice for entrepreneurs that have a very small staff, usually under 10 people. Just as a major company can keep track of transactions and sales projections, a small business owner can as well. Sales lead management is filtered all throughout the Business Manager, which is one of the main reasons why there is such a high demand for Prophet software. Business owners are constantly looking for additional outlets for their company, and can find such business management with Prophet.

Large size companies can benefit from Prophet as a Business Manager, too.

For those that are dealing with a larger sized company, Prophet is a wonderful tool for Business Manager as well. This is what is known as the “professional edition” of the Business Manager end of Prophet. The Professional Edition of Prophet offers the same incentives for acting Business Manager as in the small company, but it is also available as a network. When Prophet software acts as a network for a Business Manager, it can be manipulated in a variety of ways. For instance, when Prophet is networked as a Business Manager, it can simultaneously share information with those that are connected to the system of information. That being said, those that are linked with the Business Manager network can generate sales and the likes with the program. Workers that are connected to the Prophet Business Manager network can also see where others in the company have left notes of relevance on an account. This is highly important; as a note may be a flag on an account, such as payments rendered, or accounts past due of payments.

Conglomerate companies can save a lot of money utilizing Prophet as a Business Manager.

For conglomerate companies, a Business Manager is a must. A Business Manager in a large company keeps track of sales, and is responsible for where there needs to be sales generated. Prophet acts as a Business Manager on many levels, and this aspect is no exception. Prophet can be seen as a Business Manager in large, corporate setting, as it can be a Business Manager on many folds. Prophet as a Business Manager in a corporate setting can lead to an ease in record keeping, while showing where there is need for improvement in other areas. As an acting Business Manager, Prophet can demonstrate all of the duties as set forth with other levels of sales. Furthermore, as the principal Business Manager, Prophet is created to hold a plethora of information, as well as keep it all organized. Prophet certainly does the job well with the Business Manager program for corporate organizations.

Palm Pilot can operate Prophet.

Another addition that is important to many Prophet Business Manager users is the fact that it can be displayed on a Palm Pilot. A Palm Pilot, or a personal hand held electronic organizer, is compatible with the Prophet software, and makes for a great mobile Business Manager device. There are many features and benefits that can be generated from using Palm Pilot as a Business Manager. For instance, a Palm Pilot that is doubled as a Business Manager can become the equivalent of a computer, as it shares Business Manager information like the regular Prophet program would on a computer. In essence, the Palm Pilot is a mobile version of Prophet’s Business Manager software.

An overall view of how Prophet is an essential tool acting as a Business Manager.

A Business Manager is indeed an essential tool for any company, but utilizing Prophet as a Business Manager is even more efficient. The information that is needed is easily accessible, and can be transferred time and again. As a Business Manager, Prophet can utilize its electronic resources to generate sales slips and projections. Prophet is not only a Business Manager of today, but also a Business Manager of the future.

About Avidian Technologies:

Avidian Technologies is a software company specializing in creating software solutions for users of Outlook and Exchange. Prophet, developed by Avidian Technologies on the .NET platform, is the leading contact management and sales CRM software built in Outlook. The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.avidian.com or call 1-800-860-5534.



Richard

Steve Bush asked:


Even though longer-term business finance techniques might be appropriate for many circumstances, there are some important short-term business loan options that will be less costly in producing improved credit card processing and commercial mortgage results for business owners. Short-term business financing choices can be misunderstood because of a preference by many business owners for long-term commercial real estate loan and commercial loan programs.

Two Important Short-Term Business Finance Options

Two of the most overlooked short-term working capital business loan strategies are short-term commercial mortgage loan programs and business cash advance programs in conjunction with credit card processing. Both of these business finance options are relevant for most business owners but are frequently misunderstood.

Short-term Programs for Commercial Real Estate Investment Financing

A long-term business loan is appropriate for many businesses that own commercial real estate investment property. Business properties should normally be financed with a combination of short-term and long-term business finance funds. When a longer-term commercial mortgage is viable, it is preferable to secure long-term business financing, preferably for 30 years.

However there will be many commercial mortgage loan situations in which longer-term real estate business financing is not appropriate for the business owner. In such circumstances it is important for a business owner to realize that there are viable short-term working capital management options.

When a Short-Term Commercial Mortgage is Appropriate

If a business owner plans to sell or refinance their business within a few years, it is preferable to explore short-term business finance options. The best short-term business loan will have minimal prepayment penalties in comparison to terms commonly included with long-term commercial real estate investment property financing.

The avoidance of business finance prepayment fees and lockout fees fees in some short-term business financing programs is an important benefit of these short-term commercial mortgage approaches. The absence of these potential fees could produce a savings of up to 20% or more if the business property is sold during the period which would have involved lockout fees in a longer-term commercial loan.

Short-Term Commercial Real Estate Investment Property Financing Limitations

There are some trade-offs that need to be understood if a business owner chooses shorter-term business financing even though prepayment fees will usually be avoided with a short-term business loan. When short-term commercial real estate financing is a realistic option, the loan-to-value will usually be no higher than 70%, the commercial mortgage will not be readily available for special purpose business investment properties such as golf courses and the interest rate will frequently be in the range of about 12%.

Best Investing Possibilities for a Short-Term Commercial Mortgage Loan

Warehouse, multi-family, office, mixed-use and retail business properties are the best possibilities for short-term business financing. Business owners should be comfortable with a time period of less than three years for a typical short-term business loan.

Fewer Mortgage Lenders for a Short-Term Commercial Real Estate Loan

There will typically be a very small number of commercial real estate investment property lenders who are effective at implementing the short-term commercial mortgage loan strategy properly. There are also a number of problems to be avoided with a short-term commercial real estate loan, so choosing an appropriate provider is extremely important to any business owner considering a short-term business finance program.

Credit Card Processing and Business Cash Advance Programs

For any business that accepts credit cards as a method of payment, a business cash advance is a critical working capital management tool that is often overlooked. Even thriving businesses frequently need more working capital than they can borrow. One of the least-known business finance strategies for successful businesses is potentially the single best working capital loan strategy for obtaining needed cash for growing their business: the use of a merchant cash advance or business cash advance program.

Primary possibilities to take advantage of this business financing program are service and retail businesses. This credit card processing and credit card financing strategy uses credit card receivables to determine the amount of a merchant cash advance.

Working Capital Management: Credit Card Financing and Credit Card Processing

This business financing technique is called credit card financing or credit card factoring. Some business owners might have used a business finance technique referred to as receivables factoring to sell future receivables at a discount and receive immediate cash.

Many service and retail businesses cannot document business receivables to obtain a business loan. Businesses such as bars and restaurants do not typically have receivables to use for business financing.

What these businesses do have in many cases is documented sales volume and documented credit card sales activity. It is this documented level of sales volume and credit card sales activity that becomes a financial asset to the business and its business finance strategies. Business cash advances from $5,000 to $300,000 can usually be obtained based on a merchant’s sales volume and future credit card sales.

A business financing merchant cash advance must usually be paid back in less than 12 months. For business owners that want to renew the working capital cash advance program, it is typically possible to get more working capital after payback of the initial advance.

Limitations and Problems to Avoid with Credit Card Processing and Merchant Cash Advance Programs

As with any successful business finance strategy, there will typically be only a small number of commercial lenders who are effective at implementing this working capital management strategy properly. There are also a number of problems to be avoided with business cash advance programs, so choosing the appropriate provider of this commercial financing service is extremely important to any business owner considering a credit card financing program.

Copyright 1995-2007 Steve Bush and AEX Commercial Financing Group. All Rights Reserved.



Arthur

Michael.t.brian asked:


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Are you planning to start a new business? Want to invest in a new venture? But are unable to put your plans into action because of inadequate funds? Only this reason can not stop you from realizing your dreams. Now business start up loan will provide finance to start a new business. Put all your pending plans into action with business start up loan.

Any new business requires huge initial investments. Business start up loan provides you funds to fulfill your varying needs like:-

* Setting up an office

* Purchasing machinery

* business property or there are needs like settling the plant or

* buying the accessories and equipment

Business start up loan covers up various hidden cost and contingent expenses as well. Business start up loan can be easily procured by any type or size of business. You can take funds to invest in a small or large venture or other business purposes.

Business start up loan is for everyone who needs it. If you have collateral and are ready to pledge it can pledge it to get secured business start up loan. The placement of security will benefit you with loan at cheap rates and easy terms. However, if you don’t have any collateral, you can opt for the unsecured business start up loan.

As business start up loan, you can borrow anything ranging from £50,000-£1,000,000. For a repayment term that extends from 5-25 years. A longer repayment term allows easy repayment of loan amount. Whereas, it is advised that selecting a smaller term will help you save considerable amount in terms of interest. But you can easily choose depending on your financial standing and repaying ability.

Anyone can easily apply for business start up loan. Now its time to put your plans into action immediately! You can take the funds of business start up loans to set up a small business, a medium one, a large one too.



Rina

Mel Luigs asked:


I have read, over my business career, well over 10,000 different articles and lists about how anyone can be successful with a small business be it an independent business or a franchise. Many well intentioned and intelligent consultants I have come across professionally believe that a great idea with a great marketing scheme and superior desire can make anyone successful. Do yourself a favor and tell the next person spewing this nonsense that they are absolutely wrong!

The success or failure of the vast majority of all small businesses has little to do with the desire, marketing scheme or the great idea that created the business. While these three items must be present in every successful business, solid fundamental management principles will allow a small business to prosper and succeed. Every successful company, be it a small, medium or large business, uses the same set of management principals. The size of the business determines the individuals principals used and the sophistication of the principle. As an example, a small business normally has informal and perhaps even unwritten employee hiring guidelines. A medium sized company has a legally approved, comprehensive employee manual with employee hiring guidelines as a separate section. A large global business has an entire department writing several employee manuals in several languages with employee hiring guidelines based upon legal and social issues in each country. However, the common sense management principal that all companies should have a fair, consistent and applicable employment program must be used by every company.

As I have spent the vast majority of my career with small and medium sized businesses, here is a simple and select set of management principles that every small and medium business should follow to ensure success and profitability:

 

A good accounting department with timely monthly financial statements provides the basis for all management decisions. Any business owner or officer who believes purely in his or her “gut” feel, is running what will be a failed business. Regardless of the business size, every owner and senior executive must have valid data to confirm the decisions their “gut” tells them to make. Your financial statements are a factual record of your business history and we must all clearly understand our history so we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. How can you determine whether your recent marketing campaign is a success unless you see and evaluate the financial results? We have all heard stories about the marketing campaign that brought many new customers to the company but killed the company because the advertising expense was greater than the profit margin on the new sales. A business owner does not need an accounting degree but should know enough to understand and participate in the financial information review.

Running a small business based on the cash balance in the business checking account also violates this management principle and will severely inhibit the growth and success of the business. Unless you want to remain a “mom and pop” business forever, good accounting information is a requirement.

 

Standardize and automate all routine functions. Have you ever noticed that most successful business people have a routine for most of their daily functions? They have staff meetings at the same time, they want all reports in a specific format, they want all PC’s and software to be the same in the office and they want the external phone calls to be answered with a specific greeting. By standardizing all routine functions, successful business people do not have to think about or manage these functions. They can concentrate their time and efforts on managing non routine situations.

This same principle also applies to your business. I personally know a company that, 10 years ago, had a credit department with 15 employees and 3 managers who made many decisions daily. Today, that company has doubled its sales and now has a credit department consisting of 5 employees, one manager and a set of software programs that manages electronic payments and even sends out reminder letters and emails to customers.

 

Review and analyze the Balance Sheet before the Profit and Loss Statement. Your monthly P & L tells you whether you were successful last month from your operations but your Balance Sheet tells you what shape your business is in and what you can do in the future. I have seen a company that doubled sales one year and closed their doors less than six months later. I have also seen a business that went bankrupt even though their P & L’s showed reasonable success. The company Balance Sheet shows how the company uses its daily operations to fund the long term success of the business. Analyzing Fixed Assets, Accounts Receivable, Long Term Debt and Retained Earnings will give us the long term view for our company. It is not as exciting as analyzing our new customers and product offerings but is necessary for the long term.

 

Business Planning and Budgeting will allow you to slow down the daily business fires and take advantage of opportunities. There are an unusual number of small and medium businesses that do not work hard at either annual or strategic planning and budgeting. Most are too busy fighting fires and struggling to keep up with daily business activity. There is no time for planning and budgeting in their 80 hours work weeks. We have all been in this position. The unfortunate issue here is that the fire fighting and long weeks will never slow down or cease until some planning and budgeting is put in place. The need for planning and budgeting becomes more intense as a business grows due to your inability to “manage by walking around.” The planning and budgeting can start simple and will grow naturally as the business expands. This management principle will allow all employees to see the vision and the focus of the business which will start to reduce the daily fires that pop up.

The greatest advantage of planning and budgeting is that it allows every business owner to evaluate quickly and easily how an unexpected opportunity might be of benefit to the business. I have talked to many business owners who stumbled across a sudden and potentially great opportunity such as a competitor for sale, a good supplier needing a partner, a potential new customer that would immediately double sales or a potential new product that would require an entirely new set of tools and equipment. These opportunities happen to all business owners regularly but many also go away quickly. Those companies that have a good plan and budget in place can evaluate these opportunities quickly and easily to determine if the new opportunity fits into the company’s long term plans. These companies also have the ability to quickly approach a bank with solid financial proformas if additional capital is needed. 

 

It isn’t a sale unless you collect. Most small and medium businesses spend way too much time in the sales process and far too little time with the collection process. Most companies are willing to pay a six figure salary to a salesman who can generate tremendous sales for the company and, at the same time, put an entry level accounting clerk in charge of collection with little or no oversight and procedures. The company borrows more and more money to increase sales while an accounting clerk with no customer service experience struggles to collect. The sales department in every business must have a part in the collection process and the company must have a strong, fair and customer oriented collection process to ensure that a sale really means money in the bank.

This process must always start before the sale is made. Collecting information up front to determine whether the potential customer is able to pay and ensuring the potential customer clearly understands the credit terms and payment requirement will benefit all parties. All good potential customers will appreciate this process because we all enjoy dealing with quality companies. I have never found any company that was unwilling to pay for quality products and services when everyone understood the terms and requirements.

The credit department must also have a good set of processes and procedures to ensure that the payment process flows smoothly and efficiently. Supplier employee turnover, cash flow issues and other unexpected issues stop or slow down the payment process. The credit department must, in a customer oriented fashion, work to keep our cash flowing.

 

Run the business as if it your grandchildren will take it over.  Every business is a living and vibrant organization that has many similarities to our children. Your business starts out as an infant and learns to crawl and eventually walk. We would never make a decision for our child that does not take into account the child’s future and we should not do this with our business either.

Working with a supplier who has inferior quality but the cheapest price might be a great short term cash solution for our company but will eventually run off our customers and destroy our business. How many times has a business lost all its records because it decided it couldn’t afford computer backups or a fire alarm system on its warehouse? Have you hired an employee before you had them take a drug test? I even once jumped at the chance to hire a salesman from a competitor because I thought he would be able to bring over many customers. Unfortunately, he cost too much and didn’t bring over any good paying customers at all. There is no such thing as a good short cut for efficient management principals and the long term success of your organization.

 

Hire the smartest and best people. How many of us have hired our friends, the salesman we thought was a bargain, the bookkeeper who spoke the best during the interview or the manager we thought was most like us? Many small and medium sized businesses are littered with employees who were hired for these reasons because small businesses can’t afford high wages and all the fringe benefit packages that large companies can afford. We tend to hire the best we think we can get.

We need to set our expectations higher and use our planning process to find perfect employees. The first issue is that your company must have a good annual plan as well as a logical 5 year plan on where the company will be. Your company can then lay out what employees will be needed during this 5 year period. Now that we have defined what employees and what responsibilities are required, we need to find the individuals who meet these requirements and not just who we can afford today.

I have always tried to hire people who are smarter and have more experience than I have at the specific position. Any owner who believes he is the smartest individual in every area will never be able to hire the right people. A company will never be greater than its weakest employee so we must always hire the best.

The last company I worked with laid out a plan showing they were going to need their first CPA in 5 years. After 3 years, they told me they hired this CPA and were very surprised because this individual had other job opportunities with large national firms who were offering huge benefits. However, this small firm could offer professional growth and responsibility not available at the larger company. The vast majority of good employees prefer to have a more responsible position with a smaller company with a grand future than a less responsible position with a large company.

 

You can grow yourself out of business. Cash is king in business and those who recognize this fact will succeed and prosper. I have seen far more businesses that grow too fast with no good business plan and are forced to close their doors or find a quick buyer. Companies that are struggling watch their cash daily and doing what they need to keep the doors open. However, those companies doubling their sales see huge profits on their monthly financial statements and get caught up in the emotion and success. They watch their Accounts Receivable double, their Inventory double because they must buy much more product, their employees double because they must take care of these sales and suddenly they do not have the ability to make this week’s payroll because they have no cash in their checking account. Their company literally grew itself out of business which many small and medium business owners have trouble understanding until they have lived through it.

 

The culture of every business is as important as its mission. As mentioned earlier, a business is a living and breathing organization. The culture of every business is as important to the overall success of the company as the products and services offered. The owner of the business cannot delegate this function and must be involved. There is no right or wrong here as the business culture is a reflection of the quality, morals and ethics of its owner. A successful company’s culture is not a constantly changing but evolves based upon the growth and expansion of the organization. Constantly changing a company’s culture is a sure way to close a business.

A company with a strict dress code, time clocks that are strictly enforced, and many processes and procedures is no better than another company with no dress code, few processes, and telecommuting for employees. The only difference is the type of employees they retain and the way they do business.

 

Your quality competitors are essential to your long term success. You can stop laughing now because this is really a fact that every successful company understands. This is an unusual concept but one that great businessmen and women all embrace. Competition is a wonderful concept in every free market economy and quality competition makes us all better. Quality competitors push us to come up with quality improvements, quality products and services and ensure that we have a quality customer oriented operation. We have all seen businesses spring up offering a 50% price reduction for a cheap knock off of our products. Our sales drop and we spend time and effort away from our core business chasing this situation. They stay in business for a short period of time and accomplish nothing more than causing our customers to question our industry. Quality competitors push us all toward greatness and there is plenty of room in every industry for multiple organizations.

 

 

Outsourcing reduces costs and improves your weaknesses. Many individuals hear the jokes about the language issues at large company call centers in India or the Philippines and tell themselves they will never make that mistake. However, that might be one situation that is not really a mistake. A good IT programmer in the U.S. can cost upwards of $100,000 annually with payroll taxes, fringe benefits, etc. That employee in India with the exact same intelligence, skills and experience can cost as little as $30,000 annually.

The management principle here is that we should all concentrate on our strengths and outsource everything else where feasible. No business person thinks twice about using an outside tax accountant to do our Federal and State taxes. This is a highly technical area that changes constantly. Most of us also have an outside legal firm. Why do we primarily limit our use of outsourcing to those two areas?? Today, there are professional payroll firms, employee leasing firms, credit and collection firms, IT and Web programming firms and marketing firms. These companies work with many business organizations, stay on top of industry best practices and can better stay on top of the technical changes in their area of expertise.

The only area of any company that I advise against outsourcing is the area that is crucial to the success of your company. Never allow the core of your success to get outside your control. As an example, if your company has a proprietary marketing scheme or a customer database or an engineering method or a production process that is key to your success, do not let it out of your control.



Lisa

Alex Sutovsky asked:


The positive economic atmosphere in the market is also felt in the large number of new businesses opening in Israel. Each day, many new businesses are opened, most of them small and medium sized. More than once this relates to young people who have finished their world tour and now are full of energy and attack the market with a view to conquering it. Our office feels the reawakening of the economy and mentioned that recently there has been a sharp increase in the number of those contacting us in order to receive advice and to open a new business. Also, the new reforms planned by the Ministry of Finance make the establishment of new businesses more worthwhile and more profitable.

Nevertheless, even if a business owner has a fantastic idea and a tremendous potential for success, incorrect decisions at the start of the road may decide the fate of the business already at its infancy. Most of these incorrect decisions in opening a business result from a lack of knowledge of legal and accounting affairs connected with establishing a business. In order to assist businesses at the outset, we hereby submit a complete manual for opening a business:

Location of the business

Throughout the country and in the center of the large cities, there are many areas available for leasing. The prices are lower than at any time and one can choose the most suitable building for the business’s needs. In a new business, it is not recommended to sign a lease for over a year, but to have an option to extend the lease under identical conditions. A short-term agreement will ensure the transferring of the business to another place should the chosen location not be successful from the business’s point of view. When choosing the location of a business, remember that the costs of transferring it are very high and include transport, renovations, etc.; and therefore, it is most important to choose a suitable location.

Bank and credit frameworks

Despite the fact that many self-employed continue to run the business also using their private bank account, this is not recommended. The management of a separate account for the business provide a more precise indication of the business result and makes the management of cash flows in the business easier. In addition, in order to recognize bank expenses and commissions as recognized expenses, the tax authority requires the business to have its own account.

It is recommended that the business account will not be kept in the bank in which the private account is kept. Generally, the bank will see both accounts as one account for the purpose of giving credit frameworks and calculating indebtedness. The opening of a bank account with another bank can increase the credit framework given to the business.

It is very important to see the bank as a partner and to maintain a positive reputation with it. When a problem is expected in cash flows, it is recommended to inform the bank and come to a joint solution. Cooperation with the bank is even more important due to the new regulations which forbid the bank to allow an overdraft without approval as from July 1, 2006. Maintaining good relations with the bank does not contradict that it is recommended to negotiate the amount of interest and commissions, and in this way to save money.

Funds for small businesses

One of the central problems of new businesses and businesses in general is credit difficulties. In Israel, there are many funds that operate and encourage new, small, and medium – sized businesses with the method of granting credit changing from time to time.

Generally, assistance is given to businesses that already exist and operate, but there are also funds that give loans to businesses being established. At the time of taking credit, it is important to ensure that the business can meet the monthly repayment. For businesses that cannot meet immediate repayment, there are loans where repayment is made only after a period which is decided in advance.

Value Added Tax

The business can operate only after registering and opening a VAT file.

There are two types of independent business:

a. An exempt business – where the expected annual turnover will not exceed NIS 65,720 – generally, these are small business and employees who are only starting their activities as self employed. Such a business only reports once a year to the VAT and does not collect and cannot set – off VAT. Businesses such as the liberal professions cannot register as exempt businesses, no matter what their revenues

b. A taxable business – anyone whose annual turnover is expected to exceed NIS 65,720 must be registered as a licensed dealer.

When filing an application to the VAT authorities for opening a business, you should have the following documents: an application to open a business signed by the dealer/partners, a photocopy of an identity card/identity cards, a cancelled bank check / any other document showing details of the bank account and details of the holder of the bank account and the rental contract.

In certain cases, the Value Added Tax Authorities are entitled to demand additional documents such as future engagement agreements etc.

Income Tax

After the change in the law, about a year ago, dealers are required to report to the Income Tax on the opening of a business, and anyone who does not do so is exposed to administrative fines. In order to register an independent business, an application to register one must be made with the assessing officer. Despite the fact that it is possible to open a business with the tax authorities independently, it is recommended to obtain the assistance of a CPA to do so.

Opening a deductions file for employees

If the business employs people, a deductions file must be opened with the assessing officer. The opening of a deductions files with the National Insurance Institute is carried out automatically by obtaining data from the Income Tax Authorities.

National Insurance Institute

In addition to registering VAT and income tax, an independent dealer must register also with the National Insurance Institute. Registration is done by completing the annual report form. The Institute requires that the number of hours expected and the level of expected income. There are two types of self employed in National Insurance:

1) A self employed person who meets the definitions of a self employed person – pays advances on account and insures the income for which he pays advances.

2) An independent who does not meet the definition – a dealer who works in the business less than 12 hours a week and earns less than NIS 3,692 per month. This status generally is suitable for employed people where the business provides him with complementary income. When the business is registered with the National Insurance Institute – the Institute examines whether insurance fees were paid from the age of 18 until the age of opening the business -whether there are periods where the dealer was abroad or did not work – he will be required to pay for these periods.

Keeping books of accounts

Every person who has income from a business or profession must keep books. The method of keeping books changes according to type and size of the business. At the start, it is recommended to keep close contact with a professional person – certified public accountant or tax consultant in order to obtain a detailed explanation of the method of managing the books and the procedures of issuing invoices and receipts. In addition, cooperation with a certified public accountant assists the business in understanding more correctly and releasing its owners from waiting unnecessary time.

Non keeping of proper books causes their disqualification by the tax authorities. This sanction is likely to result in a situation where the assessing officer will determine for himself the annual assessment that the business owes, and its owner will have to prove the exact income according to which the tax is paid.

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For additional details regarding the specific requirements of every client, send us your query and we will gladly get back to you with a response regarding your specific needs.



Howard

Jimi Adeboyejo asked:


Starting a business is an exciting venture but it is easy to get overwhelmed with all the various tasks needed for the initial launch of the business. Underestimating the difficulty of starting a business is one of the biggest barriers faced by entrepreneurs.

Many people think that starting a business is easy. I know for a fact that it is far from easy.

Before starting out it is important to list your reasons for wanting to go into business. Having a mentor to help guide you through the steps to starting a business is invaluable. Every little bit of advice helps when you’re starting a business – provided it’s good advice.

Before you start your business you need to ask yourself some serious questions:

(1) Can I handle the difficulties and challenges that come with starting a business?

(2) Who is my audience/or business aimed at?

(3) Where is my business to be located?

(4) Am I starting full-time or part-time?

Starting a business requires determination, motivation, and knowledge. Starting a business can be a complicated and daunting experience. Not everyone has what it takes to be successful in business. A lot of people fail because they jumped into business without honestly appraising their lifestyle to know if it fits in with running a business. It could also be possible that they underestimated the amount of effort involved in starting or running a business.

It is very important to discuss your intention of starting a business with your close family (and friends). Many a relationship has been broken because the ‘other half’ could not understand why all the attention seemed to switch from them to starting and nurturing a new business. In my opinion close friends and family need to be put in the picture regarding what to expect when you’re starting a new business

Have you got a good business idea? You would think this an obvious question anyone thinking of starting a business will ask themselves this question. Many people seemingly run with the first business idea that comes to their mind. They seldom pause to investigate the viability of their business idea. A good business idea is one that meets a customer’s need, fills an empty niche, solves someone’s problem or answers someone’s question(s).

A good way to generate good business ideas is to look inwards. What do you enjoy doing? What hobby or hobbies do you regularly indulge in? This may hold the key to your business idea. Unless you are a serial entrepreneur with a proven track record you may struggle badly if you venture into a business you do not have background knowledge of or one without any bearings to your previous experience(s) in life.

Location, location, location. Except when setting up an online business, the location is of great importance for your new business. You need to think very carefully about the location of your business. The over-riding factor in deciding the location for your business should be customers. After all the whole point of starting a business is to serve customers (and also make money, of course). As such the business should be located where the customers are located. You also need to think about the amenities available in the area such as bus, tube, train etc.

Not everyone has the confidence to go full hog into business. You may decide to continue with your day job while building your business part-time. Although this may mean taking more time to build your business to its full potential it nevertheless reduces the risk of loss of income if you were to pack in your day job to concentrate solely on building your business.

Once you’ve answered the pertinent questions enumerated above you then need to add the necessary ingredient of a successful business namely: A Business Plan. Many people often skip this very important step, thinking they are saving time. In the long run it costs them time if not money as well. This, I believe, is because working through a business plan will tell you whether or not your idea for starting a business is viable. A business plan may also be necessary for securing funding. A business plan explains your business concept, highlights the details of your business and generally helps you focus the direction of your business, amongst other things. Not giving these factors proper consideration may cost you time and or money in the future.

A well prepared business plan can help you secure funding for your business. In that wise money/funding is not as important as putting together a good business plan for your proposed business.

If you are not experienced in writing a business plan you can get someone else to write it for you. A good place to look is elance website. You can also try ebay website. Another good source of help is friends and family. Inform your friends and family about your intention of starting a business and ask if they can or know anyone who can be of help in putting together a business plan.

Now you’ve decided on a business idea and you’ve put a business plan together, what next? You need to source the funding for your business. The following, not an exhaustive list by any means, are sources of funding you may consider:

(1) personal savings

(2) loans from friends and family

(3) loan from a bank/building society/other financial institution

Running your own business is one of the most rewarding but challenging things you can do.

Starting a business is an exciting and sometimes confusing endeavour. The toughest part of starting a business is, in fact, making a start – going from your passion to the reality of running a business that fulfils your hopes and aspirations. Starting a business is incredibly hard work. Starting a business is a big step and it takes planning.

If you are thinking of starting a business my advice to you is to go for it – it’s very rewarding to create something from nothing.

Remember: “The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing, and becomes nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn and feel and change and grow and love and live.” – Anon.



Colin