Tag Archives: help

Business Basics: ‘Doing Business As’ Names

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A ‘Doing Business As’ name is one of the most important parts of a business, but far too often we hear about businesses choosing to put off filing for a DBA until they are a bit more established. Unfortunately this leaves those companies open to all sorts of problems later on as a DBA name is needed for some of the most basic aspects of running a business! But what exactly is a ‘Doing Business As’ name? And why do businesses need to file for one?

What is a DBA Name?

A doing business as name, or as it is sometimes known as a fictitious business name, is the name under which you do business. As a way to reduce fraud, most states require anyone who offers goods or services under a name other than their own to file for a DBA. Doing business as names are typically handled by the Secretary of State or department of corporations of whatever state the company does business in. The entity or person that handles DBA names will sometimes even offer DBA name searches free of charge, ensuring that you aren’t wasting your time by filling out paperwork for a name that has already been claimed.

Why would a business need one?

You are entitled to use your own name for your business if you want to, but any changes or additions to the name would require you to file for a DBA name. For instance, if our CEO Deborah Sweeney opened up a business that paints houses, she could call her business ‘Deborah Sweeney.’ However, if she wanted to call it ‘Deborah Sweeney Painting,’ she would have to file for a DBA name as ‘Painting’ is not a part of her legal name. This might seem a bit silly but as mentioned before, this is largely a way to prevent fraud. As DBA laws are so important to a state’s anti-fraud efforts, you need a DBA name for some of the most rudimentary parts of running your business. Want to open a business bank account? Receive checks written out to your business? Advertise your services using your business’s name? Most states require companies to file for a DBA name before doing any of the above. And, if you don’t complete the paperwork, you could be hit with some serious fines.

How do I file for a DBA name?

Most states have a standardized form available on their website for filing a DBA name. Just head on over to the website for the state you do business in, find the Secretary of State’s page, (in some cases, this may be the page for the department of corporations) download a DBA form, fill it out, and send it in along with the required processing fee. Filing also usually involves either you or the state performing a DBA search before the paperwork is processed. And if you need a little extra help from professionals, we are always happy to help you file for a doing business as name as well!

A doing business as name is extremely important, and it is best to file for one now before you build a lot of trust into the name of your company, only to find that you were actually using a business name that was already claimed. Running a business under an assumed name without filing for a DBA or fictitious name can also land you in hot water with the state and require you to pay a series of fines and penalties. This is definitely something you want to take care of early, so once you figure out what your business name is going to be, start the paperwork and file for a DBA name as soon as possible!

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F is for Filing Deadlines

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Deadlines are definitely a necessary evil – no one likes to feel the pressure of a deadline on their back but without them, we would procrastinate. And procrastinate. And procrastinate. This week on our ABC’s for small business blogging segment, F is for filing, and meeting, deadlines.

We need a bit of a push if we ever expect to get anything done. And, for many, that “deadline” is the end of the year. It’s a simple enough deadline, and gives you 364 days of wiggle-room. We hear from a lot of people that say they want to start a business by the end of the year. They have an idea, they have a plan, and they just need to actually get that paperwork filed and their business opened. So they put it off, month after month, because they gave themselves until the end of the year.

And here we are, in October. Two months until the end. And you may be asking yourself, “Is it worth spending the time to file what I need to file for just two months of business?”

Probably not.

Opening up your business two months before the end of the year will give you two more months of sales and growth, but with them comes end of the year taxes and filing fees. It may not be worth the headache, and hit to your wallet, to get going so late in the year.

So, around this time, we typically recommend that new businesses owners look at the ‘delayed filing’ option when sending in their paperwork to the state. You can still get your business paperwork filed before the end of the year, just like you wanted, but the state will hold off on recognizing your business until January. You get two more months to prepare to open, have a set date for recognition, and can still keep that promise you made to yourself to get your paperwork in by the end of the year.

Also, if deadlines are something that you’re consistently worried about, you should consider checking out our new service, the MyCorp Vault when sending in your business filings. With it you can keep track of everything you need to keep your business in good standing with the state, and know when a deadline is approaching.

After all, preparation is key when it comes to deadlines, and staying on top of your paperwork is a great way to avoid scrambling around when deadlines loom.

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Making Sure Your Brainstorm Isn't a Brain Fart

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People either love brainstorming, or they hate it. There seems to be no inhabitable middle ground when it comes to that type of group work. But, more often than not, those who hate brainstorming have had to live through session after session of forced meetings, with managers who shoot down any idea that doesn’t fit in with what the executive order has already thought up. What other option remains to a bored employee have in that type of a meeting than to try and beat their high score on Angry Birds?

However brainstorming CAN actually be useful – those in charge just have to structure their sessions properly. So if you’re planning on getting everyone in your department together for a little session, remember to:

1. Keep things nice and cozy.

One of the biggest problems with brainstorming sessions is that they are, well, too big. Size matters, and when you stuff a room with fifty people, there just isn’t much impetus for the sole employee to contribute. Even if they have some huge, money saving idea, they’ll keep quiet because there are forty-nine other people to compete with. People will always take the path of least resistance, and the one that is less likely to embarrass them. So when if you’re in management and you’re calling people together, keep things nice and cozy. Divy things up between groups of about five or six people. The employees that are put into these groups can be more personable with one another and, since they can actually talk to one another, they can build on good ideas to make them better.

2. Give everyone some time to think.

Ugh, the “surprise meeting” – is there anything more middle-management than a company wide e-mail, instructing everyone to gather in the conference room for a meeting? The whole idea is born out of some ill-conceived business school notion that spontaneity is the father of great ideas – don’t let your employees think too much about their ideas, or else those ideas may stagnate. Please, for the sake of everyone’s sanity, don’t buy into that. Give everyone some time to think, to jot down a few ideas. A morning before a meeting, a day, a weekend; you don’t want to stress everyone out. Just give them some time to write something down before the ball gets rolling – it will help them be more confident in their ideas, more willing to share, and better equipped to discuss what they do bring into the meeting.

3. It’s okay if you don’t find a solution to the problem.

Stress can kill innovation – lock everyone in a room and say that no one can leave until a problem is solved, and you can bet your bottom dollar that no one will suggest any answer that either hasn’t been brought up already, or has been used before. The best way to end a meeting is with a solution to the problem that inspired the little office get-together, but if no one can find one then those in charge need to be willing to say ‘Okay, well we can always try again later.’ People can only focus for so long, and their minds will fry if they are forced to churn out idea after idea after idea after idea. You can always re-visit a problem after everyone has had some time to recharge.

Just remember to always thank anyone who was willing to take time away from their work to help solve a business-wide problem. Brainstorming can be thankless work, and if people feel like their ideas are worthless, and thus the whole process is pointless, morale is going to stink and nothing will come of the meetings. But if you keep the groups small, and give your staff the breathing room they need to think and re-think an issue, brainstorming can actually be a positive exercise.

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B is for Branding

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For the second installment of our ABC’s of Business here at the MyCorp Blog. B gave us a bit of trouble – we knew we couldn’t lapse into the overtly lazy choice and just use “Business” as our B word, but we soon realized that most of the B’s we could use involve Business in some way. Business financing, Business to Business Sales, Bring Your Own Business (the new BYOB) … and while we love busy businesses, we just couldn’t be seen using the tell-tale B word for this installment. In what must have been one of the weakest eureka moments in the history of blogging, we figured out an important B that DIDN’T involve the word Business – Branding. So, for this week at least, B is for Branding.

B be for Branding

Branding is just as important to a business’s success as any other B word we could have dug out of the dictionary. Your brand is what identifies you, what inspires trust in your product and service. Businesses spend A LOT of money on branding because it is still one of the best ways to make sure that customers are able to, and want to, seek out a particular business over the competition.

Building up your brand, however, is more difficult than just coming up with a spiffy logo or clever name. You have to build the business that is represented by that brand. That means going above and beyond in customer service, and taking the steps necessary to establish yourself as an expert in your field. Your knowledge and experience helped birth your business, and your business thus reflects those very characteristics. You can invest all you want in expensive signage and packaging, but it isn’t enough to simply be set apart from your competition via superficial means. Your business has to walk the walk, if you’ll pardon the cliché.

But if you’re able to build up that trust and confidence, that spiffy logo will be associated with a strong, trustworthy company for as long as you keep up the good work. Just be sure to file for a trademark on anything you use to brand your business, or a copyright in the case of things like jingles. The last thing you want is for your competition to steal the product of all that time and energy. This type of theft may sound like it only belongs in the world of corporate behemoths, but trust us when  we say that there are plenty of small-town businesses that have seen very similar logos and signage pop up near their competitor’s shops.

So protect yourself, protect your business, and protect your brand!

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How to Select the Right Social Media Service For Your Company

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There are a ton of social media sites and services out there. Nearly every major network has a handful of tiny competitors, who all hope that they can attract even a small percentage of the unique visitors checking out their behemoth counterparts. Understandably, this can create some confusion for new businesses. Which networks should you focus on? Do you need to have a profile on every single one? Or can you just hit the big guys and skip the little ones? Well the answers aren’t a simple yes or no, but there are some questions you can ask yourself to help figure out where you should focus your resources, and who you can ignore.

1. What is the size of the service?

This one is pretty darn important – after all, if no one is using a website then it isn’t worth your time. But there are some services that sort of fall in a grey area – an odd limbo-esque state wherein there is a sizable, core group of users but not much interaction outside of them. Google+, for example, is one of those sites. You should always make a profile for Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Those are the major players in the social media world, and are where most of your customers are going to be. Then start to look at the smaller guys. Google+ enjoys a very large core group of tech aficionados so if you’re a tech company, you should be on Google+. But if you don’t see much of your target audience on the smaller sites, then feel free to ignore them. You should cast as wide a net as possible when it comes to social media, but sometimes it’s just impossible for new businesses to devote that much time and effort when first starting out.

2. Why am I using this site?

A pretty basic question. Why are you devoting your time and energy to this particular social media site? Is it to get people to read the articles you put on other outlets? If so, you should consider looking into services like StumbleUpon and, as long as your articles weren’t only written to sell something, Reddit. StumbleUpon is a little bit more relaxed and simply guides traffic to any articles filed under a particular broad heading, like business or sales. Reddit is trickier, and requires that the user-base positively reacts to your submission. If they don’t, no one will read anything you submit.

But maybe you aren’t writing anything for anybody, you just want a place that customers can find and follow. In that case, stick with Facebook and Twitter. Keep in mind, though, that you have to give your customers a reason to follow you. Typically that reason is pretty basic and doesn’t change from the time-tested formula of ‘If I follow them, they will give me discounts’ but it’s up to you to figure out if you want to expand your profiles beyond being another source of coupons.

3. Can I honestly maintain this outlet?

This question is key. There is nothing more damning to a potential customer than an outlet that hasn’t been updated in three months. Going off of your Twitter account alone, they may even wonder if you’re still in business! You need to be able to dedicate at least an hour a day to updating all of your social media outlets – especially for services like Twitter that expect constant updates. Anything less and you’ll be doing more harm than good. And remember that your updates shouldn’t just be a constant stream of updates and tweets that essentially say ‘Buy stuff from me because I’m the best!’ Like we said above, you have to give your followers a reason to follow you. Post news about your industry, updates from the office, pictures of cats (if you think that they are appropriate). And never forget to talk with your followers – social media is about opening channels of communication, giving your customers a bit more of that all-too important human element.

Starting and maintaining a presence with social media sites is more complicated than people think. It requires an enormous amount of creativity to keep from stagnating, and it is very easy to put off updating your feeds to focus on things you consider more important. If you don’t think you have the time to update eight different sites every couple of hours, that’s fine – you just need to remember to pick the ones that both fit your needs, and that you enjoy using. Social media shouldn’t be a chore, so don’t get in over your head and just start out with whatever you think you can handle. You can always sign up for more accounts later!

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How to Write an Elevator Pitch That Lifts You Up

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Oh, the elevator pitch. Everyone is supposed to have one – tucked away in their back pocket, ready to be unleashed. Typically most elevator pitches have been hanging on with their writers since college,  hurriedly scribbled down the night before class. They’ll tweak it depending on the occasion, but after a while the delivery goes stale.

Disclaimer: It may not be appropriate to give your pitch in an actual elevator.

Minds always begin to wander the minute an opener like ‘Our company represents the future of…’ is uttered anyway.

Elevator pitches are important. They are supposed to be able to captivate the attention of an audience of any size, from a boardroom of bigwigs to a colleague in the hallway. You want one that will actually lift you up, rather than one that’ll send you down to the parking lot. While we can’t promise you’ll get a standing ovation at the end of it all, we can assure you that if you follow our advice, you’ll be able to open the door for future business.

1. Stay focused, and don’t hide your objective

Obviously, you want something from the person you’re talking to. You know it, and they know it – it’s just part of networking. The trouble begins when you try and pretend like you just want to chat, or try to catch them off guard by being really roundabout. Don’t beat around the bush and leave them wondering what the heck you want. They’ll quickly realize you’re trying to deceive them and they won’t trust a word you say. So when writing ask yourself – do you want a business card? Or do you want their business? That will help you define the objective that your pitch revolves around.
2. Be a teller, not a seller.

If you walk up to a stranger and then immediately start ranting about all the money your business is making or all the wonderful, phantasmical things your new product can do, they’ll quickly tune you out. We see and hear too many advertisements already, and commercials are boring enough whether they’re coming out of the TV or from the mouth of an actual person. When writing and presenting your pitch, stay grounded. It’s understandable to be excited about your field or business, but you need to realize that whoever is listening has probably heard tons of hyperbolic statements and pitches. Tell them why whatever you’re selling fills a particular niche, and speak to them like you would an actual human being.

3. Update, refresh, and re-write

This step is absolutely key to writing a good pitch. You probably have the bare bones framework of an elevator pitch already created, so work with what you have and shift things around. Write new pieces, or take chunks out. Feel free to experiment until you really like what you hear. Just remember that a great elevator pitch is going to evolve. Even if you wrote a killer speech for an investor’s conference you attended, you’ll still have to change it every time you face a new audience. You don’t want to be the person going around the room at a social media meet-up telling everyone about stock options and bottom lines.

These steps may be more effort than you want to put into a 30 second speech, but a solid elevator pitch will really help you stand out in a crowd. Just remember that the pitch actually only gets your foot in the door – you’ll need to be able to carry on the conversation after your thirty seconds are up. They’ll have questions and concerns, and there’s nothing more unprofessional than staring at them, mouth half opened, trying to collect your thoughts to answer a simple query. A good elevator pitch will sound organic and effortless, and will naturally blend into the rest of the conversation. Relax, be prepared, and you’ll be racking up new business in no time.

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Three Entrepreneurs and Their Fathers

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Before we begin, we want to send good wishes to all of the dads reading our blog. We hope you had an absolutely outstanding Father’s Day, and that your family’s dedication to the celebration didn’t end with a poorly wrapped tacky tie!

Fathers inspire – that quality kind of comes with the job. We look up to our dads, literally and figuratively, from the minute we can crane our heads upward and comprehend everything the most important man in our life does for us. So it is no surprise that some of our favorite entrepreneurs were so drastically shaped by their experiences with their own fathers.

  1. Samuel Adams Brewing Company – Jim Koch

    2. Jim is one of the most visible beer moguls in the country, and his love for the brew came directly from his dear old pa. Jim comes from a long-line of brewers, according to his company’s website, and tucked away in his parent’s attic was an old recipe for Louis-Koch Lager; the spiritual “father” of Sam Adams Lager. Jim even bought the Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewery, the very brewery his dad was apprenticed to in Cincinatti, and converted it for his own business. And, even though his father thought it was a little silly to leave a corporate position to brew beer, the elder Koch still supported his son and was proud to see the Koch brewing tradition flare alive once again. That support paid off – Sam Adams is a wildly succesful independent brewer, and Jim installed his dad onto the Board of Directors.

  2. Comcast – Brian Roberts

    3. Comcast is a company that has been able to stay in the family. Brian’s dad Ralph started the business back in 1963 and his son Brian showed a keen interest in the family business from his early teens. Company rumor has it that Brian was able to find an accounting error that had mystified the older employees at Comcast. Brian’s keen attention to detail reportedly varies from the managerial style of his father, who he describes as being much more of a risk taker. Saying he is a constant source of encouragement and blessed with endless patience, Brian clearly looks up to the elder Roberts. It seems that the son is never afraid of asking the father for advice, and Comcast has clearly benefited from the close familial connection in the board room.

  3. And, of course, MyCorporation’s Deborah Sweeney

    4. We couldn’t very well skip over our own CEO, could we? Deborah says that her love of entrepreneurism came with the her father’s dedication to hard work and the lessons that her father taught her. Deborah says that, if nothing else, her dad is a hard worker – he literally climbed his way up from the mailroom to eventually become Director of Sound at Warner Brothers. He’s a no-nonsense kind of guy, and though she’s a little more loosey-goosy she still embodies his focus and dedication. Even after he retired, we still see him in the office delivering corporate documents to the state! Deborah says she feels extremely lucky – not just because he delivers documents for the company, but because she gets to see her dad and chat with him whenever they both have some downtime.

Though we could only feature three, we know that there are millions of heart-warming stories from plenty of other small business owner. So if you’d like to share a treasured memory of your own father, or father-figure, we’d love to read it in our comments!
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Great Advice from Terrible Lawyers

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Is there anything that television can’t teach us? Well… yeah there is plenty but let’s focus on the positives. Lawyers have been the butt of television jokes for years – the stereotype of a sleazy, underhanded fellow in a cheap suit is alive and well on the tube.

Despite their lack of ethics and, in some cases, formal training a few of their key soundbites can instill a life-long lesson in those willing to listen. And the MyCorp Social Media team is always willing to listen to TV.

So, whether you’re a budding entrepreneur, a mid-level manager, a prisoner to your cubicle, or something else entirely, here are a few good tips from four bad lawyers.

Lionel Hutz

Can you imagine a world without lawyers?

When one of Springfield’s favorite small business owners, Moe Syzlak, steals a cocktail that Homer had invented and is suddenly flushed with success, Homer is left wondering what possible recourse is left open to him. So Homer pays a visit to his lawyer Lionel Hutz, who unfortunately gives him a bit of bad news.

Marge: So, Mr. Hutz, does my husband have a case?
Hutz: I’m sorry, Mrs. Simpson, but you can’t copyright a drink.
Homer: [whines] Oh!
Hutz: This all goes back to the Frank Wallbanger case of ’78. How about that! I looked something up! These books behind me don’t just make the office look good, they’re filled with useful legal tidbits just like that!

He didn’t know something, and used the resources available to him to find an answer! Amazing, right? While there is nothing wrong with asking for help, there are plenty of people who are afraid to do any research themselves. You should always try and educate yourself on matters of importance, even if you are going to seek out a professional, because it puts you in a better position to ask the right questions. So expand your knowledge, just like good old Mr. Hutz.

Richard Fish… from Ally McBeal (in case you don’t remember that one)

We felt this would be more useful than an actual picture of Richard Fish

Richard Fish was a bit of a standout character because, in true ’90s fashion, he said things with no other purpose than to shock and awe the audience. While people remembered him, and he apparently found some success in the field of law, it is hard to understand how he possibly did so well. In one of his more poignant moments, he goes into what drew him to law:

Fish: “I didn’t become a lawyer because I like the law. The law sucks. It’s boring. But it can also be used as a weapon. You want to bankrupt somebody, cost him everything he’s worked for, make his wife leave him, even cause his kids to cry? We can do that.”

A little sociopathic, sure, but what is important is that he found joy in his work, even if he was never really attracted to it in the first place. Finding that bit of motivation helps a job from becoming stale and tedious. That little nugget may not be obvious, but it is worth unearthing.

Saul Goodman

We'd buy a used car from him.

A lawyer, a criminal, a criminal-lawyer. In the series Breaking Bad, Saul is actually a fairly competent lawyer, he’s just a sleazy person. But it’s from that sleaziness that his prowess in court shines through, as he explains:

Goodman: “If you’re committed enough, you can make any story work. I once told a woman I was Kevin Costner, and it worked because I believed it.”

‘Believe in yourself’ is an ancient mantra that teachers and parents have chucked at us for years. It sort of loses its meaning after a while, but there is a lot of wisdom behind it. When you hold yourself in a certain way, exude a certain mood, people pick up on it. Be confident in yourself and what you do, or risk losing the confidence of others.

Barry Zuckerkorn

He's very good!

Barry Zuckerkorn is a bad lawyer, full stop. There really is no mincing words about the man’s talent. But he does show  some common sense in Arrested Development‘s first season:

Barry: “Sorry, sorry, sorry I’m so late. I had another hearing. Here’s the good news: I think I’m going to get off, huh? I have a good lawyer.”

If there is one piece of advice we can leave you with, it’s know the name of a good lawyer. They are a lot like insurance – you don’t want to be caught in a situation where you need one, but don’t have one.

Be prepared, find joy in your work, believe in yourself, and know the name of a great lawyer. Four great pieces of advice, from four not so great attorneys.

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Does Pinterest Have A Future?

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Pinterest has received quite a bit of positive attention, mainly due to its filling of the niche demographic of younger women, but is it destined for social media greatness, or will it fizzle and be sent to the same grave that MySpace and Google+ have been relegated to?

In the hopes of answering these questions, Social Media Today is hosting a webinar to discuss how Pinterest made such a splash, how it will mesh with other social media juggernauts, and what the future of the new kid on the block will hold. Our very own CEO Deborah Sweeney will appear on the panel to give her expertise regarding the legal concerns of the service. Mrs. Sweeney has also written for Social Media Today on the copyright woes Pinterest may soon face.

The webinar will be held tomorrow, March 13th starting at 12:00pm EST/9:00am PST. You have to register to attend, which you can do here, but the webinar is completely free for anyone interested.

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Simpsonian Wisdom: Taxes

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This is not the first time we’ve decided to impart advice to our lovely readers based on the wisdom of Matt Groening and the Simpsons Team. Sure they entertain, but they have a message.

A message we typically dredge up from the depths of the episode and then spell out for you underneath a video clip.

Sadly for little Otto, there will be no Metallica concert this April 15th. I'm Kent Brockman.

MyCorp is clicking into tax season with the rest of the business world, so we only thought it fair to bring the lovable misfits from Springfield back to see what they have to say on the subject. You’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who enjoys doing their taxes, except maybe for Ned Flanders, but hopefully a bit of humor will take the bite out of the process.

Or maybe it will just give you an excuse to procrastinate. That’s almost as good.

Be Prepared, like Homer!

Homer very rarely finds himself prepared for any of life’s little challenges, but we see quite a bit of maturity in the lovable head of the Simspons family. Sure, he is doing his taxes on a toilet and maybe toilet paper isn’t the best medium on which to draft your returns. But he’s saved the returns from year’s past! And he is consulting them to ensure consistency!

What a guy that Homer Simpson. As long as he remembers he has to file taxes every year, he is prepared. Now the question falls upon you, dear reader.

Are you as prepared as Homer Simpson? Hopefully you are! But if you aren’t, now is a terrific time to start sorting through that box of old receipts and getting everything in order.

What the heck are you even paying?

The finger thing – it means taxes!

The citizens of Springfield have never proven themselves to be the most educated group of people, at least politically. All you have to do is sing a song and you can sell them Monorail, so it is no surprise this little debate devolved fairly quickly.

Now you don’t want to be like them, do you? Unsure what they are paying for, going through the motions and yelling at politicians. Acting out your frustration by driving up to the IRS and booing.

The general public is woefully uneducated when it comes to taxes. Either they stop by their accountant sometime in February to let them deal with the looming April deadline, or they frantically try to figure out what forms they have to fill out and whether or not the pencils they bought for their home office count as a business deduction.

Make a point to do a bit of that old book learnin’ and try to demystify the tax season. Even if you have a magnificent accountant and you never think twice to look over what they filled out in those little boxes, it would probably do everyone good if we stopped treating taxes like theoretical physics.

Taxes will follow you wherever you go

Sadly, we don’t have a video for this one, so you will have to use your best Kennedy impersonation and a little bit of imagination.

When some foolhardy Hollywood producers decide to film Radioactive Man in Springfield, Quimby makes sure that the town gets their fair share of the production budget. And then some.
Director: [covering his eyes] We’re shutting down production.
Assistant: Yeah, well, we only have $1000 left anyway.
Quimby: Uh, there’s a $1000 leaving town tax.

Uncle Sam is waiting at every restaurant, shop, and place of business with his hand out. Occasionally the state government locks him out in the cold, but typically local politicians are all lining up for their cut of spending dollars.

Some of the larger cities are now forcing local restaurants to charge ‘meal taxes’ to diners in an attempt to fatten up their coffers. After all, tourists have to eat somewhere and who better to benefit from humanity’s need to feed than city politicians?!

If you decide to take your tax return and buy a vacation, try enjoy as much of it as possible by researching the tax laws of your destination of choice. Cities like Virginia Beach or Chicago are going to hit you where it hurts when you go out for dinner, and states like New York and Louisiana depend more on sales tax than on state tax for funding.

So, while the last thing you may want to think about after tax season is tax, we want to make sure you aren’t taking your return from Uncle Sam and handing it to someone like Diamond Joe Quimby.

And now that you’re done wasting time in Springfield, go do your taxes!

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