The Launch Blog: Expert Advice from the CorpNet Team
5 Ways to Show Administrative Professionals a Little Appreciation
There’s an important holiday on Wednesday, and it’s likely one you’ve overlooked. It’s Administrative Professionals’ Day, and a day that you need to make sure you show support to the people in your office that help you run like a well-oiled machine.
How I Make Time for Myself After the Stress of Tax Day
Thank goodness tax time is over, right? I, like most small business owners, find this time of year a bit stressful. So after April 15 passes, I’m all about rejuvenating and recharging my battery.
When you run a business, whether you’re the only staff or you manage a team of ten, it is essential that you make time for yourself. Otherwise, you’re a stressed out ball of tension that puts your business —and your health — in jeopardy.
We’re all in the same boat here, so I thought I’d share how I decompress.
Fees for Incorporating by State: Understand Your Costs to Become a Corporation
Here’s a question I get almost daily: what’s the best state to incorporate in?
The second most asked question I get is: “what are the fees for incorporating in [state]?”
It’s interesting that the fees vary so much. For example, to incorporate in Connecticut, it costs $455. That’s on the high end! On the opposite end is Mississippi, at just $50.
Knock Your Next Networking Event Out of the Park with These Tips
All your social media efforts, blogging, and emails might not get you as far as one simple strategy: in-person networking. By building relationships with people in real time, you can pave the way for future sales success.
Still, few people actually master the art of smart networking. I’ve gleaned a few helpful strategies over my years of attending networking events to help you.
5 Tips to Creating Loyal and Long-Term Employees
One of the things that I’m most proud of in running CorpNet is how long our staff has been with us. Many were there at the start. Our turnover is incredibly low. Clearly, we’re doing something right to keep our employees happy! Here are a few of the ways we do that.
5 Small Biz Secrets of Success When Your Kids are Home for the Summer
Whether you work from home or run your business elsewhere, having your kids at home for three months can create a logistical problem that can threaten your small business’s productivity during the summer.
Short of closing your business for several months (not happenin’, am I right?), here are a few strategies to help you keep your business booming while still being a kick-butt parent.
Just Starting a Biz? CorpNetNellie’s Top 10 Pieces of Advice
If you’re at the start of your entrepreneurial journey, congratulations. You’ve got a lot of exciting times ahead of you, as well as a lot of lessons to learn. Let me help you get started on the right foot with some advice I’ve learned on my own path to small business ownership.
What Successful Entrepreneurs Know (That You Don’t…Yet)
I spend a lot of time reading articles and books written by successful business owners to learn from them. After all, if they share their wisdom, maybe a little of that success will rub off on me! Here are some of their nuggets of wisdom that you can learn a lot from.
10 Things You Should Know About Incorporating Your Small Business
If you’re considering incorporating your small business, read this first. This is not a decision to be taken lightly, so make sure you’re aware of what you need to know and do to run a corporation.
6 Pieces of Advice You Shouldn’t Listen to When Starting a Business
It’s funny how when you hit a certain milestone in your life, everyone’s there with unwanted advice. Like when you are expecting a baby. Getting married. Or...starting a business.
5 Marketing Tools I’m Grateful For
In honor of Thanksgiving this month, I wanted to share the marketing tools I'm loving right now. These are tools that you should check out, since they're free or extremely affordable, and help you do more in less time.
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!
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 it’s time to take your hobby up a notch: You’re Super Busy Filling Orders - You might have started out just making products for friends and family, but now you can’t keep up with demand. If your hobby is taking over your world, it might be time to consider doing it full-time. You’re Making More with Your Hobby Than Your Job -...
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.
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.
What I Love About Having My Business Partner as My Valentine
One thing that makes CorpNet unique is that it's run by husband/wife team, Phil and Nellie Akalp. In honor of Valentine's Day, Phil answers a few questions about working with the one he loves.
What's the best thing about working with your spouse?
Well…we have A LOT more to talk about at dinner and on date night. Although it’s important to separate the stressful part of our work lives from our personal lives, I find it very beneficial to our relationship to share and discuss the exciting and/or creative parts of our business…even during “personal time.” We really “connect” when we are excited about something at work. Thus it’s always a good idea to discuss a new project or idea…but we NEVER discuss accounting, taxes, or legal matters on date night.
Incorporate a Business: the Best Way to Protect Your Assets and Save Taxes
We’ve written before extensively about all the benefits of incorporating a business, so I thought I’d take a different approach. Let’s look at some scenarios where being incorporated would help you in your small business.
6 Ways to Lead by Example
Running a company — and therefore being in charge of people — is both a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing because it’s fulfilling in so many ways. But it can be a challenge because every day, regardless of how you feel, you have people looking to you for guidance. You’ve got to be on your toes and ensure that you’re doing your best to lead by example so that your staff emulates what you do and works their hardest for your company.
Here are 6 tactics I’ve found effective in my leadership strategy.
Obtain Your California State Contractors License with an LLC
The state of California recently passed new legislation making it possible for Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) to be licensed contractors in California. This is big news, as it makes it possible for more companies to do business in California as LLCs. However, there are a few requirements that your company needs to keep in mind to avoid delays and errors in getting your LLC approved for a California contractor license which is highlighted in this post.
CorpNet Staff Spotlight: Amanda Beren
One of the things I love most about being a small business owner is the relationships I get to create over time with our small business employees. I love working with all of our CorpNet staff, but one of them has been with us longer than any of the others – she’s really more like a daughter to me than an employee, and she’s seen it all during her time at our company: so I’m pleased to put the “CorpNet staff spotlight” on Amanda Beren, our Senior Document Analyst.
CorpNet Staff Spotlight: Milton Turcios
CorpNet has a talented team of dedicated people who help our customers start a business, incorporate a company and manage business filings every day. One of our team members is Milton Turcios, who works in Document Fulfillment and Customer Service. Milton, like CorpNet CEO Nellie Akalp, is the child of immigrants, and he was the first child in his family to be born in the United States. In addition to his full-time job at CorpNet, Milton is currently attending Cal-State University Northridge (CSUN), majoring in Cinema and Television Arts with a focus in TV Production.
Interested in Forming an S-Corp? Read this First!
If you decide to incorporate as an S-Corporation, the company itself will not pay taxes. Instead, the taxes are handled by “pass through taxation,” where the earnings “pass through” to the company’s owners and employees. S-Corporations also ensure limitation of personal liability for the business owners, helping to separate your personal finances and protect your personal assets from those of your business.
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 ten things you may not have considered.
How to Start a Cleaning Business
If you're looking to get into the cleaning business, there's plenty of opportunity 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 cleaning service or go out on your on, there are a few things you need to take care of before you can start accepting clients.
How Becoming an Entrepreneur is Easier Than it Was 10 Years Ago
For those of you who started a business before the age of social media, blogging, and websites, you can attest: it’s a lot easier to be an entrepreneur these days.
Back then, we spent more time on the phone cold calling, and direct mail was booming. Networking was done face-to-face, and we couldn’t always track our marketing efforts. My, how times have changed.
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.
Creating a Five-Year Business Plan
It may be hard to envision what your company will look like in five years, but smart businesses at least try to project where they want to be in the future. Having a five-year business plan can help you create a vision of where you want to take your business.
Start with the End in Mind
Have you ever considered what your exit strategy is for your business? Meaning: will you sell it down the road? Transfer ownership to a family member? Run it until you die? Even if you can't imagine ever stopping what you're doing, consider the question. Maybe you'd like to move on to a different type of business in a few years. Knowing how long you'd like to run your business and how you'd like to exit can help you in creating your five-year business plan.
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.
10 Ways 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.
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.
