Nellie Akalp

A pioneer in the online legal document filing space since 1997, Nellie has helped more than half a million small businesses and licensed professionals start and maintain companies across the United States, most recently through her Inc.5000 recognized company, CorpNet. She closely follows trends in the industry and shares her wealth of knowledge across various CPA and small business communities, establishing Nellie as one of the most prominent influential experts on business startup and compliance matters.

How To Find Motivated Employees for Your Small Business

When you first start a business, you may not need to hire, But as you grow, you start looking for people to help you take your business to the next level. But where can you find the right motivated people? Sure, you can post your job on a job board, Craigslist, or career site, but you can’t always know that you’re getting quality applicants.

So where DO you find the right people?

Group of People Holding Hands

Owning Real Estate in a LLC: Pros and Cons

Owning investment properties can be an exciting and lucrative decision. However if you're considering an investment in real estate (whether a vacation rental, long-term rental, or for re-sale), be aware that these properties can also create liabilities.

Short sale real estate for sale sign in from of ranch home

How to Create an LLC

A lot of new small business owners assume that creating an LLC is a complicated thing. It’s not, actually. But it is one of the best things you can do to protect your personal assets and your business. Let’s take a look at what it takes to set your business up as a...

Close up of legal document's signature line

7 Places to Find Inspiration for Your Small Biz

Ah, a new year and a fresh start for your business. I’ll admit, sometimes my ideas for CorpNet get a little stale, so I have to look for inspiration to rejuvenate my brain. Here I share five places you, too, can be inspired with creative ingenuity for your brand.

Woman in sundress leaping in weeds

Let’s Make This Year The One We’re Honest With Ourselves as Entrepreneurs

As people -- more specifically as entrepreneurs -- many of us feel obligated to put up a shield to hide what’s really going on. When we’re asked how things are going with our businesses, we’re more inclined to focus on the highlights rather than the brutal truth. That truth might be that we’re working too much and getting sick a lot. Or that business has ground to a halt. Whatever that truth is, we feel it makes us vulnerable, and we feel like that compromises our ability to succeed.

Successful Woman Celebrating

5 Small Biz Excuses That Shouldn’t Follow You into the New Year

Do you ever find yourself blaming everyone around you when things don’t go the way you want in your business? Maybe it’s “the economy” that kept you from hitting your sales numbers this year. Or your lack of employees that had you in the weeds all year. Whatever your favorite excuse, put the the kibosh on it in 2015.

If any of these sound familiar, make a New Year’s resolution to strike them from your vocabulary.

Highway sign with no excuses words

5 Signs That Your Hobby is Ready to Be a Business

You’re passionate about your hobby, whether that’s hand sewing baby clothes or creating terrariums. And maybe you’ve started to make a little money selling these items. So when should you take your hobby to the next level and build a real business? Five signs that...

Middle age woman working on her blog

10 Inspirational Tips for Entrepreneurs

Ask anyone who knows me, and they’ll tell you I’m full of inspirational advice for entrepreneurs. Now and then, I like to share what I’ve learned here to our blog readers. Hope you find them useful!

Young Female Business Owner

Answering Your Questions About LLCs

If you’re considering forming an LLC, you’ve probably got questions. Fortunately, we’ve got answers. We’ve helped thousands of people form an LLC, so you could say we’re kind of experts on the subject. Here are some of the questions we get the most. What Exactly is...

LLC Letters Built Out of Cubes

8 Top Secret Tax Tips the IRS Doesn’t Want You to Know About

When it comes to filing your small business taxes, it can seem overly complex. After all, what qualifies as a deduction? Are you filing as the proper status?

Don’t let tax season overwhelm you. Believe it or not, the IRS isn’t out to get you, but they do want you to play by the rules. These tips will help you alleviate the stress you feel this time of year and help you maximize your refund.

Man Cutting Tax With Scissors

How to Break the Ice at a Networking Event

It’s a classic scenario: you arrive at a networking event armed with business cards and ready to make connections. But once you get there, you can’t seem to pull yourself away from the wall and mingle with everyone who acts more confident than you feel. Get to Know...

Casual Catering Discussion Meeting Colleagues Concept

5 Tips for Being a Happier Entrepreneur

People are drawn to the entrepreneurial lifestyle for a variety of reasons. Some dislike having a boss or dealing with office politics. Others are tired of the cubicle monotony or feel like they can do it better on their own. And most entrepreneurs are driven by a passion for what they do and a desire to carve out their own future.

Yet too often, that initial passion is dampened by the realities of running the show. Working for yourself or starting a business is difficult work. There’s no guidebook or map to show you the way. You might encounter a few bad customers, people who don’t pay their bills, competitors who undercut you, and business partners who don’t treat you fairly. With too much work, entrepreneurs can become tense, anxious, and unhappy.

Dawson and Associates Has a “Great Marriage” with CorpNet

Linda Dawson, owner and CPA at Dawson and Associates, works closely with CorpNet to help startup clients get up and running. She says CorpNet and her company have "a great marriage" in that they both work together to help small business owners start a business. In...

Is it Time to Look at Your Business Structure?

Another tax time has come and gone. If you’re self-employed operating as a sole proprietor, tax time can be yet another reminder that you haven’t addressed your business structure yet. Maybe you started your business as a side project, and a sole proprietorship made sense. But is it best for your needs now?

The end of tax time is a perfect time to reassess what’s next for your business and legal structure. Here are some things to consider.

How to Start a Cleaning Business

If you're looking to start a cleaning business, there's plenty of opportunities to go around. In fact, the role of professional cleaning specialist is slated to be the fastest growing occupation for the next ten years. Whether you plan to buy an existing franchise...

Various Cleaning Products

How to Start a Construction Business

So you've decided to start a business in construction. Congrats! Despite the ebbs and flows of the real estate industry, there will always be work for you. While you may have the basics of your business, such as who to hire and what to call your company, here are...

Blueprint with tools on top

Subscribe to Newsletter

Practical business and financial insights, lessons, perspectives, and know-how brought right to your inbox.

Thank you for subscribing!

100% satisfaction guaranteed or we will refund 100% of our service fees with no questions asked!