The 10 Best and Worst States for Small Business

December 8, 2012

Thinking of starting a small business? Our infographic breaks down the best and worst states for business by real change in GDP, top level state income tax, and number of INC 5000 businesses. Whether you’re starting a web firm or a traditional brick and mortar business, this infographic provides highly-useful information with regard to the incorporation decision process. Local economic climates and state taxes can be a heavy burden on web startups and other small businesses. Making the right decision can save you thousands of dollars in the end; it did for us.

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Filed Under: Management, Strategy Tagged With: ,

Do you know about IRS form 1099K?

November 25, 2012


Come January, the festive season will be over and will soon be followed by the tax season. Small business owners will start sending and receiving form 1099’s showing the money paid and received for the services they rendered in the year 2012. One of the newer forms that IRS has introduced is 1099K starting in 2011. Sellers of items on E-commerce sites such as eBay and Etsy, that include many home-based merchants, are the typical recipients of this form. Many of them were caught by surprise last year upon receiving this form. There was also lot of confusion surrounding the form resulting from the instructions provided by IRS on this form (What else did you expect from IRS?)
So what is form 1099K and what does it include?
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Filed Under: Finance, Management Tagged With: ,

What you must know about Employment Law in UK

November 17, 2012

Guest Post (Brought to you by CP Law)

The working environment around us is full of principles, rules, and regulations. Some people who work around you have a propensity of using aggressive behavior against others and some are very polite in nature. The main aspect of having the employment law in such working places is to ensure that every employee is working in the safe environment. If you are an employee or an employer, you have to obey the employment law within your state. It is very important that employees must understand their responsibility set out by the employment Law.

Get familiar with the legal rights for an employee:

The right to be paid maternity leave/casual leave/sick leave/sudden leave
A core and fundamental right is the national minimum wage
Greater holiday allowance
Parental leave
Right to work in flexible hours

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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With:

How can you be Tough without being a Jerk to Succeed in Small Business?

November 2, 2012


There is a crucial difference between being tough and being a jerk when it comes to running small business. Many small business owners take it to the extreme when it comes to being tough and, as a result, end up alienating their employees and everyone else around them. In the previous post I described why you don’t have to be a jerk to succeed in business.
I have received interesting feedback from the readers on that post. Some of them maintained that when you have to deal with number of people, many of whom are out there to take advantage of you, you have no choice, but to be a “jerk”. This is where many of us get it wrong. While you don’t want to come out as too “soft” to make sure people do not take you for a ride, you don’t have to go to the other extreme either to succeed. There are ways by which you can portray yourself as tough and still be respected by people around you. Read on to find out how:
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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With:

Do you have to be a Jerk to Succeed in Small Business?

October 27, 2012


All successful business people are jerks to some degree, right? Steve Jobs, one of the most brilliant and successful entrepreneurs, who is liked (worshiped) by many had personality that many of us would not be able to stand. He fired quarter of the team working on next generation computer called Lisa because they were not “A-players”. He even refused to pay the share of bonus he and his partner, Steve Wozniak, had received after laboring for 4 grueling days to meet the deadline to produce a prototype.
These and the stories of other successful people may make us think that the only way to succeed in entrepreneurship or in small business is to be a jerk and screw people of their fair share. But is that a fair assessment? Were they successful because they were jerks or is there more than what meets your eyes?
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Filed Under: Management Tagged With:

Who Makes Better Small Business Manager – Internal or External Candidate?

October 13, 2012


My previous two posts on hiring a manager for small business received interesting feedback from the readers. Some made arguments both for internal promotion, while others said external candidate is the best choice. To recap, the first post focused on why you should promote a manager from inside . I believe this is the best course of action when small businesses need to fill in the manager vacancy. However, there is a case to be made for hiring an outsider as laid out in the second post based on suggestions received from the readers.
It appears which candidate will be a better choice depends on your particular situation – what state the business is and how the newly hired manager fits in that situation. Instead of looking at this choice in black and white, you need to take a step back and look at your needs and see how the manager will help you fulfill them. So here are my thoughts on when to hire each type of candidate.
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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With:

The Case for Hiring an Outside Manager in Small Business

October 6, 2012


My previous post on the biggest mistake of hiring a manager from outside generated considerable interest and feedback. The feedback covered both pros and cons of hiring a manager from outside for small businesses. While many agreed with my assessment that hiring an outside manager is a big mistake, several others raised valid points on the flip side. Those points do have merit and worth mentioning here to be fair.
The drawbacks of hiring an internal candidate has mostly to do with the internal competition / conflict between the manager who gets promoted and others that are not, along with the fact that internal candidate is not likely to bring fresh perspective. In this post I will attempt to summarize the pitfalls that arise when your business does not bring an outsider for the manager job, but instead chooses to promote an internal candidate.
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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With:

7 Qualities of a Good Small Business Manager

September 21, 2012


One of the most important decisions you will make as a small business owner is hiring a manager to take care of day-to-day operations of your business. This is the person who will be running the show for better or worse. Hiring a bad manager can hurt your business in a number of ways. The customers will walk away. The employees will complain and leave. The reputation of your business will decline beyond repair. In the end, the business will become a mess that can take long time to recover, if at all.
That is why it is imperative to pay careful attention and take time in hiring manager. I discussed best practices in hiring a manager in earlier post. I mentioned that you need to consider personal qualities of the potential hire – even more than the skills. So what are those qualities you need to look for when hiring a manager?
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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With: ,

7 Best Practices in Hiring a Small Business Manager

September 8, 2012


Manager is probably the most important person for small businesses, after you. He is the one who manages day-to-day operations when you are not around, ensures that employees perform their job and is responsible for customer satisfaction. Yet many small business owners rush to hire managers without doing sufficient due diligence and end up regretting their decision afterwards and paying price in terms of business decline.
It is true that not every business needs a full-time manager, however in many situations it is a necessity for various reasons. For example, if you are running an absentee business manager is the one who will run the show. In some cases, business operating hours are more than you can provide yourself. Or you may just want to focus on high-priority strategic items and let the manager take care of operations. No matter what your reason is for hiring a manager the best practices described here will help you hire a manager who will help you grow your business.
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Filed Under: Employees, Management Tagged With: ,

Sell your Business Fast by Following these Best Practices

August 28, 2012


In my non-scientific estimate every one month delay after you have put the business up for sale reduces the price you will get by about 0.5%. For a business worth $100,000 this translates to a loss of approx $500 every month! In addition, the delay in completing the sale can not only result in deterioration of the business, but you can start losing important employees and customers if they get a hint that you are planning to sell the business. That’s why it is imperative for the business owners to complete the sale as quickly as possible after you have decided to sell it.
Now, selling the business is an inherently complex and time consuming process. It is not uncommon to find businesses that have been on the market for 6 months before the sale is complete. However, with little planning and preparation it is possible to reduce this time. Read on to find out how.
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Filed Under: Management, Sellers Tagged With: ,