Monthly Archives: September 2011

Speak Out: Small Biz Open Mic Gives Entrepreneurs an Outlet to Express Business Concerns

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On Tuesday, the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) released their small business optimism index report for August. Unfortunately, the Optimism Index dropped for the sixth consecutive month. This report suggests that American small business owners are very pessimistic and uncertain about the future. This doesn’t come as a surprise for many small business owners who have voiced concerns given the current economy.

The report also suggests that small business owners aren’t optimistic because they are facing low consumer demand coupled with new regulations from Washington. High taxation and an uncertain economy contribute to the pessimism. In order to combat the growing problem, the House Small Business Committee announced Tuesday a new interactive online forum, Small Biz Open Mic, that it says gives U.S. entrepreneurs a chance to speak directly with policy makers. The site is a blog-style media forum that invites small business owners to leave comments and share stories.

The site poses the question, what burdens does your small business face? Users are encouraged to comment on government policies as well as Committee news and legislation. General interest stories about small businesses as well as policy news will also be posted on the site.

Committee Chairman Rep. Sam Graves describes the site as a “… new media forum that encourages blog-type comments and testimonials from small business owners across America regarding government policies, and allows participants to comment on Committee news, legislation, hearings, and news stories that relate to small business growth and development. Comments from participants about legislation and policies that impact small businesses will be used to help the Committee conduct its official business.”

The goal is to encourage small business to speak out about their experiences and their struggles. Chairman Rep. Graves stated “to do our jobs well, we need to hear directly from small companies about how government is helping or harming their business, With their help, we can make certain that Washington supports policies that allow small businesses to thrive and pave the way to economic growth, innovation and job creation.”

The forum provides an excellent opportunity for members of the small business community to communicate not only with lawmakers but also with their small business peers. Reading the success stories and tales of failure of others gives small businesses great way to learn new strategies as well as how to tackle similar hurdles. In addition, the site contains a resources page filled with applicable legislation, articles and FAQ’s to provide small business owners a point of reference.

The small business community has a history of working with and helping each other in order to strengthen the small business presence as well as to help individual businesses. The new Small Biz Open Mic site provides another outlet for small business owners to communicate with lawmakers and legislators in order to make their concerns known.

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Awesome Affiliates: SalesGuard

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We’re mixing it up a little bit here at MyCorp and featuring an Awesome Affiliate for Thursday instead of our trusty Wednesday standby- today is all about our good friends at SalesGuard. SalesGuard specializes in providing cash coverage and protection for all of your business-related needs without an upfront cost or monthly premium involved (but an expense is incurred if used).

They’ve got tips you need on why being prepared in advance is beneficial to both you and your business. No matter what season you’re in, SalesGuard will help you to “weather” the storm and protect your start-up, read on!

Owning a business can be both challenging and rewarding, but survival is based on profitability and positive cash flow. Having access to cash is an absolute necessity to deal with an emergency or generate additional revenue.

Most business owners can’t afford to wait for banks, which require large amounts of paperwork, financials, tax returns, personal guarantee, collateral and excellent credit (83% of all small business loan applicants have been declined in 2011) Being prepared is the difference between staying in business or closing your doors.

Natural Disaster Preparedness Is Essential
At the end of August, Hurricane Irene struck the entire east coast. The projected devastation and loss of business and revenue sent chills all the way to the White House. As the storm came and went there was tremendous relief that it was not as devastating as it had been expected. The next concern was the flooding that can be equally if not more devastating than the Hurricane itself. The hurricane and flooding combined, stranded towns, made roads impassable, flooded streets, and caused damage to homes and businesses. Most businesses had adequate insurance to cover the damages but lacked the resources to cover their deductible. The revenue lost by businesses being closed makes it even more difficult to survive during any economic time. Unfortunately, the insurance companies don’t pay your bills, your rent or your employees. Their job is to provide businesses with necessary coverage to recover from the natural disaster. Without immediate and ongoing access to cash, insurance alone is not enough to weather the storm.

The Holiday Season Brings Joy, Laughter, and Sales
As October rapidly approaches, many business owners are terrified that they will not have adequate inventory and advertising to generate and support the increase in sales. Buying for the holiday season begins as early as August for those businesses that purchase products overseas or have extended lead times; otherwise, the beginning of October is the official start of the holiday buying season. Making purchasing and marketing commitments after a slow month or quarter is extremely challenging but necessary to ensure a successful holiday season. Consumers will be buying and will spend their money with businesses that have inventory and appealing offers. That’s why every business owner must have immediate and ongoing access to cash.

Until cash flow insurance is available, SalesGuard provides immediate and ongoing access to cash when you need it. Nobody wants to be caught without coverage, so why not protect your business with SalesGuard! There is no cost or obligation and you only incur an expense when and if you ever use it.

SalesGuard is your immediate and ongoing access to cash, just like a line of credit up to $250,000.00 per month. SalesGuard approves 95% of businesses that accept payment at the time of product or service delivery. Internet and Home Based businesses do not qualify. Having SalesGuard means businesses as usual… so don’t worry, we got you covered. Visit our official website or call (888) 838-1717 for more information.

Interested in becoming an affiliate with MyCorporation or finding out more about Wpromote? Contact Cindi Sokoloff, Affiliate Manager at MyCorporation at (818) 746-2264 ext 320.

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Top CEO Apologies and Lessons Learned from Them

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By now we are sure you’ve seen Netflix CEO Reed Hastings’s apology for becoming arrogant and introducing the new pricing scheme without adequately explaining the reasons for the price increase. If you haven’t seen it yet, the apology is embedded below:

The apology has been met with a “too little, too late” attitude by most critics, and while it shows that Reed Hasting is attempting to make things right, the fact that he kept the price increase and used the apology to announce a new DVD-by-mail service, Qwikster, had many wondering how sincere he was. Most major company apologies are usually seen in similar ways; consumers don’t trust most corporations to begin with, and when that mistrust is validated it can ruin customer-company relationships.

Sometimes though, CEOs hit all the right marks and make an apology that repairs bridges and props stock prices back up. Below are what we feel are the four best CEO apologies from corporations in the last few years, and what other business owners can learn from them.

Mark Zuckerberg – Facebook

When it comes to Facebook, it feels like change is always on the horizon. You just get used to the last set of changes and BAM, added functionality. More often than not, these changes are for the better; the people working behind the scenes of Facebook spend a lot of time testing most of these changes before rolling them out, and after a month the user base is perfectly happy with their new social media site.

Occasionally though, they make a change that deserves the outrage it gets. Back in 2008 Facebook opened itself up and, suddenly, you didn’t have to be in a person’s network to see their information. This angered quite a few people who felt a small smidgeon of security knowing that there was an exclusivity barrier separating the internet from their information. They demanded more security and, surprisingly, Mark Zuckerberg responded in an open letter. Facebook worked to code better privacy controls and gave the user a little more control over who could see their information.

Of course, advertisers will always be able to access your information. But the proactive action that Mark Zuckerberg took did a lot to stabilize the choppy waters Facebook suddenly found itself in, and despite all the calls to boycott the service, many of us are still avid users.

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Patents: Understanding the America Invents Act

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The need to re-vamp the countries almost ancient patent system was great. Thankfully, the Obama administration answered the call. The President signed sweeping reform to change the system for determining priority for inventions at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Formally known as the America Invents Act, the law also aims to shore up more financing for an agency that’s suffered through years-long applications backlogs and out-of-date computer systems.

The law changed the previous “first to invent” system that has long been the standard for getting a patent in the U.S., to a “first to file” basis. The hope is that the move will help simplify the patent process for companies aiming to file applications in multiple countries, which use the “first to file” system.  In addition, the reforms will help reduce the time it takes to get a patent and lower the number of frivolous patents. However, although these changes are positive, many small business owners and entrepreneurs are unsure of how the new legislation will affect them.

Some are concerned that the cost for filing a patent through the new system could drive overall costs higher, and, in the process, favor bigger companies that can afford to file for patents more frequently. Under the former, first-to-invent system, there was a one-year grace period that gave inventors time to perfect their inventions. This grace period has been eliminated. Now, inventors who want to protect their invention must pay for their patent first. Unfortunately, filing a patent is not cheap. Costs can range from $7,000-$10,000, thus making it difficult for many to file.              

Given the uncertainty of these new rules, small business owners and entrepreneurs should keep several things in mind regarding the patent process. First, keep your invention secret! First to file means just that, the first to file, and have their patent accepted, is the owner. As such, keeping your cards abreast will help avoid a possibly costly and heart wrenching mistake in the future. Next, file quickly! Once you have determined that you do want to file a patent, don’t delay! Even if you have kept your ideas to yourself, you never know who else may have developed the same ideas. In the new land of patents, speed rules. Finally, do your research. Similar to filing a trademark, filing a patent may be confusing. Consider consulting an attorney before you file. In addition, make sure you visit the USPTO website. Thoroughly read all of the material surrounding patent applications to ensure you fully understand what the process requires.

Now that you know what to do, get out there and get inventing! If you obtain a patent for a good or service, consider starting your own business. MyCorporation can help you get started!

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Awesome Affiliates: Wpromote

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MyCorporation welcomes back Wpromote for it’s second round as an Awesome Affiliate. Their contribution this week happens to coincide perfectly with it being national social media week! Check out Wpromote’s take on Facebook advertising:

With more than 750 Million global users, Facebook is easily the most engaged website on the Internet.  With the precise targeting abilities that come with Facebook advertising, businesses should no longer sit on the sidelines when it comes to social media marketing. In order to stay competitive in today’s fast growing social world, Facebook advertising campaigns are a necessary supplement to traditional advertising campaigns.

Wpromote, the #1 ranked Integrated Search Engine Marketing Firm based in Los Angeles, created SocialBoost to provide small businesses with a powerful, cost-effective way to capitalize on the Facebook advertising market. With SocialBoost, clients can get expertly designed and professionally managed Facebook advertising campaigns, for just a low monthly fee and no long-term commitment.

The turnkey process is what makes SocialBoost appealing to so many.  With SocialBoost, clients simply choose their target audience based on age, gender, location, hobbies, education, interest, etc. and only those within the demographics selected will see your ads.  An expert SocialBoost account manager will then craft the perfect message to your target audience along with an eye-catching image.  Your advertisements will then be placed on Facebook and will start driving highly targeted traffic to your website or Facebook profile page.  With SocialBoost clients can reach their next customers with breathtaking accuracy, resulting in increased brand awareness, website traffic and sales.

When clients sign up for SocialBoost they receive the following:

• Expert Ad Creation

• Dedicated Account Representatives

• Easy Online Account Management

• Ongoing Ad & Bid Optimization

• Monthly Visibility Reports

• And Much More!

SocialBoost is a great solution for anyone looking to advertise on Facebook, but simply doesn’t have the time or know-how to manage such campaigns.  We work with a wide range of clients in various industries.  With Wpromote’s SocialBoost service, no client is too big or small.

Interested in becoming an affiliate with MyCorporation or finding out more about Wpromote? Contact Cindi Sokoloff, Affiliate Manager at MyCorporation at (818) 746-2264 ext 320.

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Free Day is Almost Here!

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Be sure to use coupon code "MYFREE"

If you haven’t heard (and I’m not sure how you’ve gotten away with that!) we are going to be having our “Free Day” on September 20th. By using our coupon code “MYFREE” you can partake of our free incorporation or LLC services, a copy of Quickbooks and a free domain name. Our promotion will be running all day, starting on 12 AM on the 20th and ending at 11:59 PM PST the same day. So be sure to take advantage while you can. And if you have a family member or friend who is always going on about having the next big idea, be sure to send them some information about the promotion as well!

You can reach us at 1 (877) 692-6772 or tweet us @mycorporation with any questions or concerns. Finally, thank you everyone for all of your support, we look forward to talking with you and supporting all of your business endeavors!

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Awesome Affiliates: Outside The Cubicle

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This week’s affiliate, Silvia Johnson, is sharing her pearls of wisdom in the form of a guest vlog (video blog for those of you not up on your internet lingo). We welcome Silvia to share her words and passion with you concerning female entrepreneurship.

An introduction to Silvia:

Silvia Johnson is the founder of Outside the Cubicle, LLC and the creator of the Thriving Business Model™. Having a knack for modeling success and an ability to walk others through the steps to achieve their own goals, she has transformed thousands of lives and businesses on an international scale. She is the Thriving Business Mentor, supporting female experts in creating businesses that allow them the financial freedom and lifestyle the truly desire while having an impact in the world. Learn more about her and her business at: http://OutsideTheCubicle.com

Guest Vlog

Catch that free gift Silvia offered up? OTC-20 is your key to the six-figure success package.

Interested in becoming an affiliate with MyCorporation or finding out more about OTC? Contact Cindi Sokoloff, Affiliate Manager at MyCorporation at (818) 746-2264 ext 320.

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The Five Worst Freebies and Promotions

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Promotions can be a great boost to business and sales if done properly. However, nearly every company tries to hold some sort of promotion, and not all of them can be winners. One of the most controversial promotions to come up recently is from a RadioShack in Montana offering a free gun (the customer’s choice of a Hi Point 380 pistol or 20 gauge) to anyone who both buys a Dish Network contract and passes a background check. While it apparently has increased his subscribers, the blowback against Radio Shack, and Montana, has been quite noticeable. In the end, it is always up to the business owner as to whether they choose to assume the risk in the hopes of a great reward by the promotion’s end. But business owners can, and should, educate themselves, so here are our five worst promotional items and why we think marketing should think twice before incorporating them into any campaign.

Another present to put in your closet and never ever see again.

1. Restaurants and Promotional Food

Going to a restaurant to take advantage of a deal makes sense, and will increase a restaurant’s customer base, but two things suffer during these promotions; the restaurant’s reputation and the employee’s satisfaction. A lot of restaurants make the mistake of offering too many coupons far too often. What ends up happening is customers simply wait with the e-mail inbox open as they end up expecting some sort of deal and won’t even think about going to that restaurant without one. The second biggest problem with these promotions is the toll it takes on the employee. One anonymous Red Lobster employee posted quite the riveting explanation as to why Red Lobster servers, chefs and dishwashers all dread the Free Shrimp festival. According to them, all this promotion means is two months of soul crushing torture as they run shrimp back and forth all while enduring lower table turnover, and thus less tips. So when laying out a plan for your promotion, remember to ask yourself two questions; what will this do for repeat customers, and how will my employees handle it? A few days or a week of extra exertion on your employees is one thing, two months may be more than they want to handle.

2. Terrible, cheap pens

While on the topic of harming your company’s reputation, we should also address another terrible sin in the world of promotional items. The free pen is a pox on marketing, merely because there is no item where corners are cut more than with a free pen. If you are handing these out to customers, make sure they don’t do anything you wouldn’t want a pen to do, like leak or break or refuse to write. Chances are your customers are going to stick this in a bag or a pocket and only reach for it in a dire writing-related emergency. The last thing you want is for them to be filled with frustration because of a little piece of plastic and ink with your company’s logo emblazoned on it. A good idea is to use these pens yourself; do you like it? Would you use this pen and not want to chuck it across the restaurant after it tore a hole in your receipt? It doesn’t have to be an expensive, sleek instrument of writing, but it should be capable of just that; writing. If it isn’t, consider finding a new supplier.

3. Printers

If this one seems out of place, then you’ve likely not been to a college orientation festival or a major corporate trade show. For whatever reason, printers have become cheaper than ink. It’s just how our wonderful, futuristic world works. There are closets and closets full of printers because it is often cheaper to just buy another one than an ink cartridge. But this comes with a cost; mainly, these printers are terrible. They jam, they don’t print right, they aren’t compatible with anything made after 1995. Whatever the problem, printers have gotten a rap for being some of the worse pieces of technology around. So if you run an office supply company or a bank or simply are trying to offload your own closet full of printers by placing a corporate sticker on them and passing them out, give it another thought. These things shouldn’t be so cheap that banks and office supply stores can pass them out to desperate college students.

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Making Sense of Retirement Plans

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As retirement plan sponsors, small businesses assume many responsibilities regarding their employees’ path to retirement, often acting as fiduciaries. Over the next year, any employer offering such plans faces new regulations from the Department of Labor. The rules, known as 408(b) (2), were originally scheduled to go into effect this past July, but have been postponed until April 1, 2012. The rules aim at providing greater transparency to the retirement industry as a whole, through documenting the fees participants pay brokers and retirement plan contractors for managing their accounts.

Retirement plans can be a burden to small business owners. This is due to the fact that upon becoming a plan sponsor, owners become a plan fiduciary and therefore must act in the sole interest of their participants. Owners cannot make a profit off of retirement plans. Any gains must be reimbursed to the plan.

These gains can be detected by the Department of Labor. Due to the April 1 start date of the rules these audits have been greatly increased. Although this might cause headaches for some small business owners, having a healthy retirement plan is still very important. Providing a retirement plan is a great way to ensure longevity among current employees. This is also a great way to attract bright new employees. There are two steps small business owners should take in order to safely navigate the retirement plan waters.

First, employers should understand what type of plan they provide, or want to provide, to their employees. There are two main types of plans, defined benefit and defined contribution plans. A defined benefit plan, funded by the employer, promises you a specific monthly benefit at retirement. The plan may state this promised benefit as an exact dollar amount, such as $100 per month at retirement. Or, more often, it may calculate your benefit through a formula that includes factors such as your salary, your age, and the number of years you worked at the company. For example, your pension benefit might be equal to 1 percent of your average salary for the last 5 years of employment times your total years of service.

A defined contribution plan, on the other hand, does not promise you a specific benefit amount at retirement. Instead, you and/or your employer contribute money to your individual account in the plan. In many cases, you are responsible for choosing how these contributions are invested, and deciding how much to contribute from your paycheck through pretax deductions. Your employer may add to your account, in some cases by matching a certain percentage of your contributions. The value of your account depends on how much is contributed and how well the investments perform. At retirement, you receive the balance in your account, reflecting the contributions, investment gains or losses, and any fees charged against your account. The 401(k) plan is a popular type of defined contribution plan.

Second, small business owners should become familiar with the new rules. Come April 2012, business owners, as plan sponsors, will be responsible for:

1. Identifying all service providers working for their employees’ retirement plans, including part-time workers, contractors and sub-contractors.
2. Have these workers put all of the duties they are performing for the plan in writing.
3. Have them put in writing whether or not they accept fiduciary responsibility.
4. Find out how much these workers make either from the retirement plan company or assets.
5. Make sure these fees are reasonable for the services being provided.

Providing a solid retirement plan will create stability and contentment both among small business owners and their employees.

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Awesome Affiliates: Netpay

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This week’s Awesome Affiliate is our payroll friend Netpay. We invite them to tell you a bit about what it is they do and why they’re considered one of the best in the biz.

Netpay offers American businesses perfect payrolls, access to a free online HR Service Center, and a single point of contact thus assuring superior customer service – all at one low price.

The IRS says, “1 out of every 3 clients gets a penalty because they didn’t do their payroll properly.” Netpay assigns a well-trained payroll specialist who personally oversees all aspects of service. Netpay’s commitment to quality control and a payroll system that forces the payroll specialist to double check totals virtually guarantees Netpay clients a perfect payroll every time. And if we are tardy or inaccurate in filing your payroll tax returns we pay the late charge and penalty.

For over 16 years Netpay Payroll Inc. (www.netpay-payroll.com) has been providing premium, reliable payroll solutions and the finest customer service in the industry across all 50 states – at typical competitor savings of 20-40%. There are no extra charges for such items as payroll re-runs for the same check date or multiple state filings; there are no hidden costs; there are no setup or training fees; there is no additional expense for the preparation or filing of quarterly and annual payroll tax returns or for payroll tax deposits; and you will never face a price increase for so long as you maintain uninterrupted service with Netpay.

The payroll specialist assigned to your account will assist your transition and promptly respond to all of your questions. Your transition to Netpay includes a free year-to-date audit that guarantees a seamless transition and provides Netpay with the ability to issue W-2’s/1099’s for the full year – regardless of the date your service began. Our payroll solutions allow you the option to report your payroll online, pay employees using checks, direct deposit or debit cards (a Payday Advance option is included with the latter), and to receive all reports electronically.

As a part of your payroll package, you will have access to a free online Human Resources Service Center that includes a free employee handbook and hundreds of forms that are updated quarterly. You will also have access to Netpay’s array of employee benefit programs including health insurance, workers comp and retirement plans.

Interested in becoming an affiliate with MyCorporation or finding out more about Netpay? Contact Cindi Sokoloff, Affiliate Manager at MyCorporation at (818) 746-2264 ext 320 or contact Netpay directly at 646-450-8913 or e-mail blipsius@netpay-payroll.com.

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