Many business owners put off writing a mission statement. Who has time to write down why you’re in business when you’re busy trying to run one! And perhaps even fewer owners have created a vision statement — possibly because they’re not sure what the term even means. There are good reasons for creating both. Lenders, […]
The difference between a mission statement and a vision statement Read More »
Do you own a business but haven’t gotten around to setting up a tax-advantaged retirement plan? Fortunately, it’s not too late to establish one and reduce your 2019 tax bill. A Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) can still be set up for 2019, and you can make contributions to it that you can deduct on your
Small business owners still have time to set up a SEP plan for last year Read More »
In business, a failure to evolve may lead to failure. One way to keep your company rolling is to regularly adjust how you market products or services to customers and prospects. A marketing strategy shouldn’t be a knee-jerk reaction to some enticing rumor or hot trend. Rather, it needs to be a carefully calculated effort
Marketing is a game of adjustments Read More »
If you’re the owner of an incorporated business, you probably know that there’s a tax advantage to taking money out of a C corporation as compensation rather than as dividends. The reason is simple. A corporation can deduct the salaries and bonuses that it pays executives, but not its dividend payments. Therefore, if funds are
Determine a reasonable salary for a corporate business owner Read More »
Most companies wouldn’t go into business without some basic types of insurance in place, such as property coverage and liability policy. For a company with more than one owner, there’s an additional type of risk-management arrangement that needs to be established: a buy-sell agreement. If your business has yet to create one, you should start
How’s your buy-sell agreement doing these days? Read More »
If you’re a business owner, be aware that a recent tax law extended a credit for hiring individuals from one or more targeted groups. Employers can qualify for a valuable tax credit known as the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The WOTC was set to expire on December 31, 2019. But a new law passed
Work Opportunity Tax Credit extended through 2020 Read More »
If you’re self-employed and work out of an office in your home, you may be entitled to home office deductions. However, you must satisfy strict rules. If you qualify, you can deduct the “direct expenses” of the home office. This includes the costs of painting or repairing the home office and depreciation deductions for furniture
Do you run your business from home? You might be eligible for home office deductions Read More »
Have you applied for a business loan lately? Or had some repairs done on your facilities? Maybe you’ve signed a contract with a certain technologically inclined customer or vendor. In any of these instances, you (or one of your employees) probably had to electronically sign a digital document. So, the next question is: Why isn’t
Digital documents with e-signatures aren’t going away Read More »
Many of today’s businesses employ workers from across the generational spectrum. Employees may range from Baby Boomers to members of Generation X to Millennials to the newest group, Generation Z. Managing a workforce with a wide age range requires flexibility and skill. If you’re successful, you’ll likely see higher employee morale, stronger productivity and a
How to make the most of your multigenerational workforce Read More »
Do you conduct your business as a sole proprietorship or as a wholly-owned limited liability company (LLC)? If so, you’re subject to both income tax and self-employment tax. There may be a way to cut your tax bill by using an S corporation. Self-employment tax basics. The self-employment tax is imposed on 92.35% of self-employment
How business owners may be able to reduce tax by using an S corporation Read More »