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The Launch Blog: Expert Advice from the CorpNet Team
How to Legally Start a Nonprofit Business
There is nothing more fulfilling than directing time and energy toward helping others in need. If you're passionate about a cause, you may have wondered how to start a nonprofit business. Some aspects of starting a nonprofit organization are similar to starting a for-profit business, but nuances exist. Incorporating a nonprofit can be confusing and complicated. Let’s dive into what it means to be a nonprofit organization and explore some of the considerations and steps involved in becoming one. Please keep in mind that the information that I'm about to provide in this article [...]
What Does It Mean to Have Multiple Trademark Owners?
One of the many risks business owners face is one that rarely comes to mind—but could put your business in a dangerous position. We’re talking about trademark protection for your intellectual property. A trademark is a word, phrase, name, or symbol that identifies the source of a product or service and distinguishes it from competitors. You can trademark your company name, product names, logos, and taglines. Running a Business Without Trademark Protection Without the protection of a federally registered trademark: Your company or product name could be stolen. Without trademark ownership, it’s easier for companies [...]
Outsourcing to Get Back to Business
Making plans to get your business back on track post-coronavirus pandemic? Here are five responsibilities you should consider outsourcing so you can devote more of your time and energy to the areas where you are most needed. 1. Website Updates and Maintenance Your website is likely the most important marketing tool in your arsenal and yet it also probably gets neglected from time to time—especially in the aftermath of a crisis, such as a coronavirus. Unless you’re into coding and application updates, outsourcing IT tasks such as website fixes is a great place to start [...]
How to Start an Amazon Business
You may have thought about how to start an Amazon business if you've been intrigued by the flexibility and income potential of selling online. According to an Adeptmind survey in 2018, almost half (46.7%) of internet users in the United States started online product searches on Amazon's website, which is over 10 percent more than the 34.6 percent who went to Google first [1]. There's no denying Amazon's reach and reputation! Starting a business on Amazon, just like launching any commercial endeavor, comes with many considerations and to-dos. In this article, I’ll discuss many [...]
10 Mistakes to Avoid When It Comes to the CARES Act Funding Relief
With tons of misinformation swirling out there, you may be afraid of making a crucial mistake when it comes to applying for and receiving CARES Act relief funding. Here are 10 mistakes to avoid. Application Mistakes 1. Not Being Prepared Any delay in your application could mean your business gets bumped to the bottom of the list. Have on hand: Basic business and contact information Average monthly payroll costs including employee salaries, wages, and commissions; payment of cash tips; payment of vacation; parental, family, medical or sick leave, insurance premiums, etc. 2019 Tax Forms [...]
The Small Business Mid-Year Checklist
How are we nearing mid-year already? If you’re like me, the current business climate has been a whirlwind of trying to keep up on new information, planning for post COVID-19 recovery, and still maintaining running our business operations. Now that we’re approaching the mid-way point of 2020, we think it’s a good time to remind you there are some deadlines you need to keep an eye on and important decisions yet to make. Business Taxes The tax deadline has been pushed to July 15, 2020 which gives individual and business taxpayers more time to [...]
9 Tax Benefits in the CARES Act
There are more advantages to the CARES Act than just relief funding that can help your small business save money and those come in the form of tax breaks. Although most of the breaks are temporary, it’s important to take advantage of all that’s being offered to business owners now, so your company has the best chance of coming out of the pandemic healthy and if not profitable, at least in recovery mode. Here are nine tax breaks and benefits you and your employees can take advantage of today. Tax Benefits For Your Business [...]
How Loan Forgiveness Works for the PPP and the EIDL Loan Programs
Now that we are in full swing of the coronavirus pandemic, small businesses across the country are trying to make sense of the CARES Act and how the relief funding can help keep their businesses afloat. One area of confusion seems to be how a business receiving funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and/or the Economic Injury Disaster Program Loan (EIDL) will have their loans forgiven. To date, details and information appear to change daily. According to the Small Business Administration (SBA), there will be additional guidance on loan forgiveness within 30 days [...]
COVID-19 Relief Funding Alternatives
As of April 16, 2020, the SBA announced all appropriations for the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan were exhausted. Small business owners are now in need of COVID-19 relief funding alternatives. Below is a list of some COVID-19 funding options that are still available. SBA Express Bridge Loans (EBL) Eligibility: Small businesses that currently have a business relationship with an SBA Express Lender. Loan Amount: Up to $25,000. Purpose: Support for small businesses experiencing a temporary loss of revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic. The SBA Express Bridge Loans can [...]
Paycheck Protection Program for the Self-Employed and Sole Proprietors
By now we have all at least heard about the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and the Paycheck Protection Program enough to know what the acronyms EIDL and the PPP stand for. Even the infamous Pandemic Unemployment Program aka the PUA has become part of our daily vocabulary. But what are these programs and how do they work? More importantly, how do they work for us, for our clients, and are they enough to get us through this crisis? Like me, you have no doubt been hunkered down at your desk watching recorded webinars, participating [...]
What Government Loan Program Should You Apply For?
Can’t decide whether you should apply for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan from the SBA or the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) from the U.S. Treasury? Truth be told, many of your fellow small business owners have already turned in their applications for one or both and some are starting to receive their funding. If you’re still trying to sort out the differences or seeing if some of the confusion gets resolved, maybe we can help. Here’s what we know. Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) You probably already know the basics of the PPP, [...]
Adapting Your Business to Remote Activities and Shifting Business Hours
Who would have imagined we would be in the situation we’re facing today? The coronavirus pandemic has turned our world upside down and created an entirely new definition of “business as usual.” Many entrepreneurs, including me, have had to shift their business hours and adapt their companies to working remotely. For business owners not accustomed to handling customers and staff virtually, this pivot to remote work may be especially challenging. Let's explore some ways you can help ensure working remotely will work for your business. 5 Tips for Running Your Business in Chaotic Times [...]
Paycheck Protection Program Loan Checklist
The SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program is an amazing opportunity for small businesses. It provides a 100% forgivable loan to cover payroll, rent, and utilities. The United States government has moved swiftly to get this program funded and operational. And in some cases, a little too quick for the average business owner to keep up with. Small business is the core of CorpNet and our service offering. We’d like to make sure we do everything we can to help business owners obtain PPP loan funds. To do this, we need to make sure you have everything [...]
Don’t Lock Your Credit if You’re Applying for a CARES Act Loan
I'd like to do a very quick public service announcement to alert you of something that can turn into a pretty big mistake. Things are moving so quickly with the CARES Act and Coronavirus relief that I almost didn't catch it myself. If you've locked your credit profile at Experian, Equifax, TransUnion, or another credit reporting agency, you could be in for an unpleasant surprise. By locking your credit profile you are prohibiting banks from doing the due diligence related to the Payroll Protection Program loan or other funding options provided under Coronavirus relief [...]
How to Calculate Your Payroll Protection Program Loan Amount
To help small businesses keep their business going and their staff employed, the federal government passed the CARES Act, which is administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA). One of the most useful parts of the CARES Act is the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, which encourages small business owners to keep their employees on the payroll. Under the program, the loans will be forgiven if the business only uses the money for payroll, rent, mortgage interest and utilities. Businesses must keep paying their employees for eight weeks. The PPP loans are 2.5 times [...]