Entrepreneurs Club Radio : PitchEngine RSS Feed

1. Small Business Tip: 2 Legal Rules for Startups

   February 23rd, 2012

   It is very hard to believe, but many companies are started without regard to obtaining the proper insurance coverage, but also without even researching the legal issues.  Frank Manning from Manning and Manning strongly recommends anyone starting a business to see an attorney first, and become “legal” before it’s too late.

   In an Entrepreneurs Club Radio interview, Mr. Manning outlines the two major legal things any entrepreneur should do when beginning his venture.

   1. Create the entity.  It could be an LLC, or a Sub Chapter S, but your attorney can guide you accordingly.
   2. Read the documents.  When signing contracts with suppliers, vendors, and even agreements with employees, make sure you read and understand all the fine print.

   Please listen to Mr. Manning explain the importance of these two vital rules.

   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45441981/Frank%20Manning%20on%20documents%20for%20startups.mp3

    

2. Small Business Tip: You’re Startup Insurance Needs

   February 22nd, 2012

   Not all startups are the same and many have different insurance needs, but when researching the protection required for your new venture, ask this question: “What catastrophe could put me out of business?” Then go after the proper coverage.

   Most of the time you should consider general liability insurance for problems caused by an injury or damage to property, but even more insurance may be needed. Always check with your insurance agent to make sure you are safe.

   Brian Tornow, of Strassman Insurance has a vast amount of experience insuring thousands of businesses throughout his career. When interviewed on an Entrepreneurs Club Radio program he outlined the types of insurances applicable for most startups.

   Please listen here.

   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45441981/Brian%20Tornow%20on%20what%20could%20put%20you%20our%20of%20biz%202-13-12.mp3

3. 6 WAYS TAXES WILL INCREASE FOR CEOS

   February 21st, 2012

   The Following is a guest post by Glenn Levar, CEO of Shared Time Human Resources Management.

   President Obama released the 2013 fiscal year budget, a plan that heavily relies on taxes and will increase taxes by $1.56 trillion over the next 10 years.

   Americans for Tax Reform went through the plan and pulled out 8 important tax increases that will effect citizens. Of those 8, 6 are particularly business-focused:

   1.            There will be a 3.8 percent surtax on investment income. One of the effects will be new taxes on health insurance plans (that will be passed to customers as premiums).

   2.            Small employer profit tax rates will increase. The top marginal income tax rate will rise from 35% to 39.6% next year.

   3.            Capital gains tax rates will jump from 15% to 23.8% in 2013.

   4.            Dividend gains rate will jump from 15% to 43.4% in 2014.

   5.            Real tax rate on capital gains and dividends will be huge and put U.S. employers at a disadvantage.

   6.            Taxes will be raised by $147 billion on large employers. Companies will have to pay taxes in the countries in their foreign markets, but will also have to pay U.S. taxes if they choose to bring that money back to the U.S. This will deter bringing money back to the U.S. to invest in jobs, equipment, fund pensions, etc.

   The interesting context in all of this is that according to a World Bank study of doing business across the world, the U.S. was ranked fourth best country overall in which to do business. But tellingly, it was ranked 13th best overall for starting a new business–and here’s the lethal bit–the U.S. was ranked 72nd in the World Bank study in how easy it is for new companies to pay taxes and deal with regulation.

   In such a context one might suppose it would be incumbent upon government at the Federal level at least to alleviate this burden. Instead, it would appear from this report from ATR that the current administration wishes to take us in the opposite direction.  February 15 2012 by ChiefExecutive.net 

   http://chiefexecutive.net/6-ways-taxes-will-increase-for-ceos       

    

    

4. TECA Tip: Oh How Important Those Banking Relationships Can Be!

   February 21st, 2012

   The economy is on an upswing and after a few years of losses, many small businesses are coming back strong.  Is it a good time to sell your company, or even buy another one?  The answer is a resounding YES.

   There is more cash currently available in the marketplace to sell or buy a company, and the banks are opening their vaults to lend for both strategies.  However, the banks aren’t lending as much as just a few years ago, so it’s still a challenge to obtain a loan.  But if your profits and balance sheet look good, banks will be more cooperative.  Now is the time to cultivate those banking relationships, and plan for your future.

   Rick Sippola of Chautauqua Consulting is a specialist on developing packages to buy, sell and merge companies.  Listen to his views on the current financial atmosphere a recent Entrepreneurs Club Radio interview.

   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45441981/Rick%20Sippola%2C%20Chautauqua%20Consulting%20and%20Jason%20Kintzler%2C%20founder%20of%20Pitch%20Engine%20Feb%206%2C%202012.mp3

5. Time Management Tip: Delegation is a Key!

   February 20th, 2012

   Few people would equate proper delegation to time management, but delegating correctly can save small business owners lots of time.  Many entrepreneurs delegate, but do it without a plan and without understanding some of the potential consequences.

   Here are some the things that we do incorrectly:

   1. We don’t delegate fully.
   2. We don’t clarify what we want.
   3. We don’t plan for delegation.

   Plan for delegation?  Yes, just like we plan a marketing campaign, planning for delegation is a HUGE key.  For example, some people need to have clarity when asked to do something. Others have to have something put in writing with the exact needs, while many people just need a phone call.  Delegating properly and understanding personality types should be part of your time management process.

   In a recent Entrepreneurs Club Radio interview, David Rust of The Next Level Workshop, talks about planning for delegation and those pesky personality types.

   Please listen to this short podcast.

   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45441981/David%20Rust%20on%20Time%20Mgmt%20%26%20Jason%20Kintzler%2C%20founder%20of%20Pitch%20Engine%20Feb%206%2C%202012.mp3