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Why is Technology Important in Business?

An Original Article from eHow.com

Technology has important effects on business operations. No matter the size of your enterprise, technology has both tangible and intangible benefits that will help you make money and produce the results your customers demand. Technological infrastructure affects the culture, efficiency and relationships of a business. It also affects the security of confidential information and trade advantages.

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Communication With Customers

First and foremost, technology affects a firm’s ability to communicate with customers. In today’s busy business environment, it is necessary for employees to interact with clients quickly and clearly. Websites allow customers to find answers to their questions after hours. Fast shipment options allow businesses to move products over a large geographic area. When customers use technology to interact with a business, the business benefits because better communication creates a stronger public image.

Efficiency of Operations

Technology also helps a business understand its cash flow needs and preserve precious resources such as time and physical space. Warehouse inventory technologies let business owners understand how best to manage the storage costs of holding a product. With proper technology in place, executives can save time and money by holding meetings over the Internet instead of at corporate headquarters.

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Business Culture and Class Relations

Technology creates a team dynamic within a business because employees at different locations have better interactions. If factory managers can communicate with shipment coordinators at a different location, tensions and distrust are less likely to evolve. Cliques and social tensions can become a nightmare for a business; technology often helps workers put their different backgrounds aside.

Security

Most businesses of the modern era are subject to security threats and vandalism. Technology can be used to protect financial data, confidential executive decisions and other proprietary information that leads to competitive advantages. Simply put, technology helps businesses keep their ideas away from their competition. By having computers with passwords, a business can ensure none of its forthcoming projects will be copied by the competition.

Research Capacity

A business that has the technological capacity to research new opportunities will stay a step ahead of its competition. For a business to survive, it must grow and acquire new opportunities. The Internet allows a business to virtually travel into new markets without the cost of an executive jet or the risks of creating a factory abroad.

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Using Technology to Stay Competitive

An Original Article from SBA.gov

As a business owner, it is vital that you understand and use advanced technologies. Technology can help increase business efficiency and even expand operations.

Accounting software. This is important, even if you have your own accountant or bookkeeper. Accounting software allows you to see your profits and losses at a glance. It can also help you design and maintain a budget for your business.

Planning software or tools. A calendar system is a must. There are many online planning systems that can be utilized to help you keep your calendar organized. Find a system that meets your business’ needs and be sure to stick with it.

Time tracking software.  A time tracking device will help you determine what tasks result in a profit and what tasks do not. This will help you determine what tasks can be eliminated, outsourced, or improved.  If you’re looking at software that requires a fee, ask for a free trial first to make sure it’s the right software for you.

Email management. As a business owner, you probably use several email accounts to manage the various aspects of your company. If you streamline these emails to one account, you’ll be able to stay organized and abreast of your emails.

Mobile internet access. Access to the internet on your mobile device will not only make your life easier, it will also help you maintain a positive reputation for your business. For example, if you are able to follow up with a client by email immediately after a meeting, you will be showing that you are accessible, timely and professional.

Once you decide which types of technology are right for you and your business, you’ll be on your way to being more organized and efficient than ever.

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A Brief History of the Use of Technology in Business

An Original Article from bookfresh.com

The use of technology in business has taken a sudden but remarkable upsurge in the history of man. In the old times, business took a slow pace, thanks to the lack of tools that would allow for faster business transactions. Everything was done with the help of some mechanical tools and the bare hands, which made it unthinkable to do business instantly.

A short course in the history of technology in business would allow one to see the radical yet dramatic shift from the old business procedures to the innovative approaches as seen today. In addition, it would also give one a better understanding of how important the use of technology in business is.

Technological Boom

Innovations in technology started to rise in the nineteenth century. If you come to think about it, these inventions are rather simple, but their impact on business caused it to transform to what it is today. With a steady rise in the number of patents issued by the United States Patent Office, multiple segments of the economy revolved to gain benefits.

Some of the past innovative products and methods that helped to shape the face of business and economy are the barbed wire, cattle farming, railroad air brakes, sleeping cars, the camera, the carpet sweeper, and the typewriter. All of these had influenced the way people worked and led their daily lives. When these innovations were combined, they formed a powerful army that gave way to the massive use of technology in business.

Electricity and Communications

Industrial processes rely on sources of energy for them to be fully functional. Before electricity was utilized for this purpose, other natural sources such as coal and water were used. This is rather an unconventional way of fueling up factories because the said energy sources are not readily available for industrial use. With the discovery of the incandescent bulb by Thomas Edison, a series of other discoveries and inventions gave way for instant sources of energy.

Electric utilities were ushered in during the late 1800?s. Although these utilities had a low transmission range and limited power, wide residential use became possible. These utilities were further developed by George Westinghouse that made it possible to supply both residential homes and power-hungry industries the energy that they needed to perform daily business tasks.

Communications, on the other hand, was revolutionized with the invention of the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell. It was indeed a giant leap for communication, which ultimately affected the business world in many aspects. A necessary item in any business office, the telephone has certainly bridged the gap between many people and as far as business is concerned, it brought better relationships and opportunities from clients and customers.

Current Developments

The things that the past brought for the benefit of business using technology did not stop there. Typewriters were replaced by word processors, telephones have gone mobile, and every manual business transaction is being automated with various applications and software. The use of technology in business is innumerable and widespread. Even a short history of this would suffice for one to understand how revolutionary the changes have been.

Still, technology is always evolving as it continues to grow not only for business use, but also for the growth and utilization of other fields. Therefore, coping with change is imperative for one to reap the advantages of the use of technology in business.

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The Role of Technology in Business

An Original Article from bookfresh.com

Technology in business is a growing necessity. As the years go by, the business world is leaning more and more toward it, making it almost impossible to separate the two from each other. Innovation breeds business, and since technology paves the way for it, it can be gathered here that business needs technology to be sustained.

Business has always existed since the early times of man. Even though it only began with the simplistic barter system, business would not be the same as it is today without the advancements in technology. All the major industries would fall into a catastrophic collapse if one were to take away technology from business, since majority of business operations and transactions somehow involve the use of technology.

Technology as a Business Necessity

The role of technology in business caused a tremendous growth in trade and commerce. Business concepts and models were revolutionized as a result of the introduction of technology. This is because technology gave a new and better approach on how to go about with business. It provided a faster, more convenient, and more efficient way of performing business transactions.

Some of actions of technology in business include accounting systems, management information systems, point of sales systems, and other simpler or more complicated tools. Even the calculator is a product of technology. It is indeed unfathomable to summon the idea of going back to the days where everything was done manually, which basically means starting all over again from scratch.

Security and Support

With the automated processes that technology can provide, productivity reaches a higher level. This is due to the minimal resources consumed in processing business activities, allowing room for better products produced and faster services delivered to more clients and customers.

Information is also stored with ease and integrity. With this, confidential and sensitive information are less prone to vulnerabilities. The said information can also be instantly retrieved and analyzed to monitor trends and make forecasts, which can be crucial in decision-making processes.

A Link to the World

Business involves communication, transportation, and more fields, making it a complex web of processes. The technologies pertaining to other fields only pushed business further. Globalization has been realized because of the wonders of technology. Anyone can now do business anywhere within being constricted to the four corners of his room.

Technology in business made it possible to have a wider reach in the global market. The basic example is the Internet, which is now a common marketing tool to attract more consumers in availing products and services offered by various businesses.

Indeed, technology in business ultimately made living worthwhile. It cannot be denied though that technological threats to business are growing rampant, such as hacking and other malicious activities, so one has to be responsible enough in utilizing the power of technology. The good that technology brings has some excess baggage in the form of bad things that threaten to shake the business world. In the end, it is still responsible use of these that would further allow us to enjoy the benefits that technology can bring.

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4 Ways to Use Google Hangouts in Your Business

An Original Article from SBA.gov

Small business people still seem to be in the process of catching on to Google+, the social network created by Google. Google has made a number of moves to encourage people to use Google+. It has tied in several applications to Google Plus.

One of those applications is Google Hangouts. Hangouts are a type of online group meeting using webcams so that each of the participants can see and hear the others. Think video conference and webinar all rolled up in one.

With Hangouts, you can hold group presentations online and automatically record them for YouTube, and archive them for later access. You can stream live broadcasts directly from your website, YouTube channel and/or Google+ profile with just a few clicks. Even better, you can save your recorded Hangout videos and post them on your site. If you wanted to try offering webinars, this is a no-cost way to do it – because Hangouts are completely free to do.

So what exactly can you do with Hangouts? Here are 4 suggestions:

1. Conduct Team Meetings

With so many teams having members spread out in different locations or working from home, just scheduling an in-person team meeting can be a challenge. Traveling to attend meetings can be costly and more importantly, time consuming.

Conference calls are the typical way of handling meetings when everyone cannot be present. But phone communication leaves a lot to be desired. When you can’t see facial expressions, miscommunication can arise. Worse, in today’s world, team members can succumb to distraction and start focusing on their smartphones instead of the team participants. When you can see one another, those issues are minimized. People tend to stay alert and engaged.

Need to share a Web URL to the team, or share your screen to show them something? With Hangouts you just push a button and you can do that.

With Hangouts, the person who happens to “hold the floor” and is speaking at the moment, has his or her video screen showing in the large view. Other participants’ screens are minimized until they speak.

And yes, you can restrict Hangouts to make them private.

2. Hold Webinars

Have you ever wanted to share expertise and have it available online, perhaps to establish yourself or a company executive as a subject matter expert? Or perhaps you want to start a webinar series as part of your content marketing repertoire. Or maybe you want to provide a question and answer session for customers or prospects, about a product offering either for sales or customer support purposes.

Hangouts are an interactive way to do all of the above. Hangouts normally are limited to 10 active participants (available to 15 participants with Google+ premium features). Their small size of active participants keeps them rather intimate and encourages participation and questions.

With Google Hangouts On Air, you can broadcast your Hangout publicly. You can record it, edit the recording, and share the recorded event online.

If the cost of webinar software has kept you from experimenting with webinars or customer Q&A sessions, then Hangouts are a low-risk way to experiment. Same with technology issues – if you have been concerned with the technical elements of holding webinars, hangouts are pretty easy. There’s a free Google video chat plugin you will be prompted to download and install upon your first Hangout – but it’s fast and easy. You don’t have to worry about trying to make recording software sync up. You simply start a Hangout, name it and you’re good to go.

3. Offer Consulting Hours

Remember when you were in college and your professor held Office Hours so students could get individual help? Why not offer the same feature as a consultant?

You could offer customized coaching services. A Hangout session with your client can replace phone calls and emails, or lengthy and expensive travel.

For smaller consultants and professionals, it can differentiate your business from competitors. You’ll look high tech, at no extra cost. And Hangouts can allow you to offer an expanded range of services, such as paid coaching sessions that can be advertised and scheduled on your website. Musicians can offer paid music lessons. Only your imagination is the limit.

4. Hold a Press Conference

Who says press conferences are limited to big companies? Recording artist Taylor Swift hosted a Google+ Hangout to announce her new album. During the live chat, Taylor answered fan questions from around the world, let them know what they could expect from her album, and debuted its first single. When her single was released on iTunes it went straight to number one, faster than any other song in history.

Have a big announcement – whether it’s a new executive hire, a new product, or simply to announce that you’ve won an award? A Google Hangout lets you tell the world and provide an interactive record of the announcement.

There are many ways for small business owners to use Google+ Hangouts to connect with their customers, build their brands, monetize their businesses, and create buzz. Check out the Google Live Events calendar to help spur some of your own ideas. You can also add your own events to the calendar to increase your reach. And check out this article with more ways to use Google Hangouts.

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7 Ways to Increase Foot Traffic to your Small Business

An Original Article from SBA.gov

Late last year, I hosted a web chat with the SBA offering holiday marketing tips and ideas to small business owners. And while many business owners submitted questions relating specifically to the holidays, a large percentage of the questions centered on that age-old question: “How do I get more foot traffic to my store?”

Here are seven tried and tested steps you might want to consider:

1. Start from the outside and look in

If you are in a pedestrianized area, get to know who passes by your store. Literally, sit outside or close by your window and assess the demographic of who comes and goes. Do they window shop? Have they come from another store close by first?

Next, take an objective look at your signage and window display–does it appeal to your target demographic or buyer? For example, if you run a coffee shop and most of your business is done during the hours of 8 AM to 10 AM, think of ways to optimize your merchandising and window display to attract more buyers during these times. This could be as simple as using this time to hand out coupons outside, offering bakery samples to passersby, or promoting your latest offers using sidewalk signage.

2. Host a community event with a newsworthy tie-in

One of the best ways to increase foot traffic is to host a community or charity event. A great way to do this and get noticed is to tie it to a topical event. Say, for example, your local NFL or high school team is playing a critical game. Consider teaming up with other businesses nearby to offer game-day promotions/offers or a tie-in event. Host the event as a block party or at a central location downtown (even if you have to take your business on the road for a few hours). Don’t forget to be community-oriented—consider donating a portion of your profits to charity.

Feature the event ahead of time on your website and social media. For maximum impact, don’t forget to contact local media outlets—including radio channels—and email and mail out fliers to your contact list.

3. Host a seminar or workshop

Both retail and service-based businesses can generate a good deal of foot traffic by educating their customers about how to get more out of what they are buying (even if you don’t make a sale that day). Florist shops could host a flower arranging class or realtors could host a house-staging workshop to attract potential sellers. And of course, publicize your event—in-store, online, via press releases and advertising.

4. Use location-based services to attract passersby

You don’t have to be a tech wizard to promote your small business using mobile apps that target consumers in the vicinity of your business. Groupon, Living Social, FourSquare and ThinkNear among others let you post information about your latest offers and limited-time deals to consumers within a certain distance of your business. You can also schedule deals to get delivered during key hours, for example, if you’re looking to boost foot traffic during off-peak times.

5. Engage old customers in new ways

It’s always refreshing when a store or restaurant you’ve frequented for some time starts doing something new. And thanks to the power of social media, doing something new or different and doing it well can quickly go viral.

So think about ways you can get the attention of older or existing customers. It could be as simple as offering a new type of discount (it may sound obvious, but offering something of value at a discount for a limited period of time can be attention-grabbing) or letting customers know about a new product or service you’ve added.

A straight-out sale is always a great way to bring old customers out of the woodwork. Send out an email or e-newsletter to your contact database and post it on social media. You might even host a secret sale first for a hand-selected group of customers.

If your business is service-oriented, consider offering a referral fee to existing customers who bring in new clients for you.

6. Put on your small business customer service hat

There’s a reason why consumers opt to frequent small businesses over larger chains—personal relationships. A smile, great service, product knowledge and enthusiasm will bring customers through your door and keep them coming back. So as you host new events, sales or workshops, use your small business advantage to the max!

7. Stay in touch

Staying top of mind with new and existing customers who you’ve engaged through your new efforts is not just about offering great products and services. It’s also about staying in touch.

If you host an event that brings in new customers, encourage them to sign up for your emails. A little incentive, such as a free giveaway in exchange for an email address, is always effective. Then stay in touch, set-up an e-newsletter program, send out regular updates about new product lines, company news, and events and start to engage with your customers via social media. (For tips, check out this blog).

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Tips for Veteran Owned Small Businesses

An Original Article from SBA.gov

Are you a veteran-owned small business and thinking of selling to your former boss – the U.S. federal government?

Part of the mission of the SBA is to provide assistance to veterans and service-disabled veterans who return home to start, resume or grow their businesses. In addition to supporting veteran business owners through entrepreneurial training, and providing access to capital, the SBA also provides resources, tools and support to help veterans start and grow businesses through government contracting.

If you are a veteran-owned small business, check out these 10 tips for getting started selling to the U.S government and winning a government contract.

    1. Boots to Business – Get Help Starting Your Business – Boots to Business is a public-private partnership program that gives service members support to help them learn the nuts and bolts of how to start and grow a business and access SBA tools and resources available to them.
    2. Find a Veterans Business Outreach Center – The SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development oversees multiple Veterans Business Outreach Centers across the country. In addition to helping veterans build a business plan and start a business, these centers can help veterans land government contracts, get access to mentoring services, and find training.
    3. Review your Financing Options – In addition to a range of other loan programs, SBA’s Patriot Express Program is specifically designed for small businesses that are more than 51 percent owned or controlled by veterans or members of the military community and are available up to $500,000.
    4. Yourself with Small Business Incentives for Government Contracting – The law mandates that government agencies establish contracting goals that require them to reach out and consider small businesses and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses for procurement opportunities. Currently, 23 percent of contracts must be awarded to small businesses and three percent to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. These opportunities will help open doors, but you must still be able to sell your business on performance, price and ability. Contact your Veterans Business Outreach Center to learn more about these and other incentive opportunities.
    5. Learn About How the Government Buys – The government applies standardized procedures to buy products and services it needs from suppliers that meet certain qualifications. The primary contracting methods used by the government include micro-purchases, simplified procedures, sealed bidding, contract negotiations and consolidated purchasing. Learn more about these in another SBA online training course, Government Contracting 101: How the Government Buys, or read a quick overview of the process in my earlier blog: Government Contracting – Learn how the Government Buys from Small Businesses.
    6. Understand the Rules – Understanding the government’s procurement rules is critical to your success as a government contractor.  The FAR, or Federal Acquisitions Regulations, is the roadmap for doing business with the government. Check out these resources on SBA.gov to help you become familiar with the regulations that apply to most federal contractors.
    7. Size Does Matter – As a small business, certain government programs may apply to you. The question then becomes: What is a small business, or, more specifically, is your firm a small business? Over the years, SBA has established and revised numerical definitions for all for-profit industries, and this numerical definition is called a “size standard.”  Use SBA’s Size Standards Tool to help determine if your business is truly “small” and qualifies for government contracts.
    8. Learn the Process of Selling to the Government and Find Opportunities – Selling to the government is not as big of a mystery as you might think. There are several fundamental steps you should follow:

For a deeper dive into this process, read Selling to the Government – Get Started with These 5 Steps or check out SBA’s information about Registering for Government Contracting, which explains the easy steps you need to follow to being bidding on government proposals.

  1. Find Subcontracting Opportunities – An alternative to seeking prime contracts is to explore subcontracting opportunities. Subcontracting with a prime contractor can be a profitable experience as well as a growth opportunity for a business. To help small businesses find opportunities, SBA maintains SUB-Net, a searchable database of available subcontract opportunities.
  2. Have a Question? – If you have questions about the federal marketplace, government contracting methods, contract opportunities or winning recovery and other federal contracts, check out the following resources:
    • SBA’s Government Contracting Guide – Explore the process of government contracting with easy how-to guides and resources.
    • Government Contracting Classroom – Available via SBA’s Learning Center, these self-paced, free online courses cover the fundamentals of selling to the government as a small business owner.
    • Get In-Person Assistance and Training – SBA and its resource partners can answer your questions about the federal market place, government contracting methods, and finding contract opportunities. Find your local SBA office, Veterans Business Outreach Center and more with this interactive map.

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Take on Venture Capital and Keep Control of Start-Up

An Original Article from SBA.gov

Considering options for funding your start-up? Wondering if now is the right time to seek venture capital, but worried about losing control of your business?

Here are some tips for weighing your funding options, finding the right venture capital firm for your needs, and working with them once you’ve received your first injection of seed money.

Is Venture Capital Right for Your Small Business?

If you are looking for funding under $200,000, smaller angel investors (this could include borrowing from family and friends) or peer-to-peer lending or crowdfunding might be better options than a larger VC firm. Other alternatives include SBA loans. SBA doesn’t provide the loan; instead, they provide a repayment guarantee to banks, removing much of the risk of lending to small businesses. If your business is engaged in a high-tech industry or R&D, another option is a Small Business Innovation Research Grant. These federal funds support the critical start-up and development stages of small businesses.

Finding the Right VC Firm

If you have a proof of concept and are ready for a significant investment to fund your next stage of growth, then venture capital (VC) might be for you. But how do you find the right VC firm with which to align your business?

Given that a VC firm is going to be involved in your business’ funding and management, choosing one that provides a good match for your business is critical. Look for companies that have experience with businesses and industries like yours. Since a VC is going to be actively involved in your business, other factors such as its personality and core values are also important. A VC that is located close by might also be important.

So where can you find potential VC investors? If you have a good network then there’s a strong likelihood you can pinpoint potential investors via this route. Start locally and extend your search from there. Here are some tips and resources that can help:

  • Start in your Community – If you are involved in a local Chamber of Commerce or other small business group, start your search here. Talk to experts and business peers alike. Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) and Women’s Business Centers may also be able to help introduce you to local investors. Find a center here.
  • Talk to Your State Economic Development Agency – At the state level, State and Local Economic Development Agencies may be able to help refer you to investors in your region.
  • Consider Trade Associations – Most industries are represented by a trade association, this is another great place to expand your search and meet potential investors. You can also look into national and local investing and venture capital groups like the National Venture Capital Association and the Angel Capital Association.

Your next step is to present any potential investor with a business plan.  SBA’s online Build a Business Plan tool can help you create one.

How to Maintain Leadership Control of Your Company

Many small business owners are reticent to invite VC funding because they’re concerned about losing control of their business. While it’s true that a VC firm will insist on controlling more than 50 percent of an early-stage entrepreneurial enterprise—does this mean you actually relinquish control of your business? Not necessarily. VC deals are structured around mutual incentives and milestones that are beneficial for all, and are rarely about one-sided control. VCs want business founders to aspire to grow and succeed, and they structure the financing deals to ensure this. For example, the terms of typical VC financing dictate that the investors don’t realize a profit until management does (assuming that they’ve already seen a return in capital invested) and vice versa.

Another emerging trend, as reported by the New York Times, is that VCs are increasingly putting a premium on young, visionary entrepreneurs who grew up with the Internet, social media and mobile technologies. With this clout behind them, these young founders are becoming more assertive in funding rounds, securing better terms and even cashing out their investors before an initial public offering.

That’s not to say your VC can’t move to replace you if your business isn’t performing or hitting key milestones. Some other things you can do to ensure you retain some level of control include the following:

  • Insist on an Employment Contract – This can minimize the risk of founders getting fired by their board of directors. Negotiate this before any seed money has exchanged hands.
  • Hire Stellar Employees – Poor staff will compromise the success of your business and jeopardize your position on the management team. By hiring right, you’ll ensure key milestones are understood and met, and profits are realized.
  • Collaborate with your Investors – In addition to funding, investors bring a wealth of experience. Capitalize on this and treat your VC as a partner—not as a threat.

For other tips, read Surprising Ways to Maintain Control of Your Business with Investor Approval from Yahoo Small Business Advisor.

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Starting

Fringe Benefits

An Original Article from SBA.gov

You love your staff and want to show it by giving them more in a tangible way. Increasing their pay may not be the best strategy for you or your employees. Added pay is taxable to employees, so they net less (how much less depends on their tax bracket). And added pay has additional costs to you in the form of payroll taxes. What to do? Think about giving them fringe benefits.

Overview

You’re not obligated to provide any benefit (starting in 2014, employers with more than 50 full-time employees will have to provide health coverage or pay a penalty for not doing so). If you choose to give fringe benefits, it’s a win-win for you and your employees:

  • You reward your staff without incurring additional employment taxes, such as the employer’s share of FICA (covering Social Security and Medicare taxes) and state unemployment insurance. Some benefits won’t even cost you a penny because you merely arrange for workers to buy them on their own with favorable tax results to them (explained later).
  • Your employees get valued benefits that do not increase their taxable pay. If they’d had to buy these benefits on their own, they would have had to earn enough, after tax, to cover the cost. For example, say you offer dependent care assistance of $2,500 annually for all employees. If an employee in the 25% tax bracket had to pay this cost on her own, she should have had to earn about $3,350 more in wages to cover this cost.

If you provide any fringe benefits, you must do so on a nondiscriminatory basis (with few exceptions). This means that benefits cannot go merely to owners and highly-paid employees; they must be available to rank-and-file employees as well.

Tailor your benefits plans to the needs of your staff and to your pocketbook. Remember that health coverage and retirement plans are the top two most-valued employee benefits.

Transportation fringe benefit

Employees know that their commuting expenses are not deductible, regardless of the length of the commute or how much it costs. However, you can pay for certain transportation fringe benefits that will be tax free to employees. For 2013, transportation fringe benefits are:

  • Free parking, transit passes and vanpooling up to $245 per month
  • Bicycle assistance (to maintain and store the bicycle) up to $20 per month

Alternative: Instead of paying these benefits, you can arrange for employees to pay for them on their own on a pre-tax basis (i.e., the portion of their wages used to pay for the benefits don’t count as taxable income). Your cost: only minimal administrative costs. For more about this, look at *TransitChek or the websites of other companies that arrange for transportation fringe benefits.

Child-related benefits

You can help your staff with family obligations in a tangible way by paying some child-related costs:

  • Dependent care assistance. You can pay up to $5,000 of assistance for each employee each year; this amount is tax free. Alternatively, you can enable workers to pay for their dependent care needs on a pre-tax basis by setting up a dependent care flexible spending account (FSA). The funds in this FSA cannot be combined with funds in a medical FSA.
  • Adoption assistance. You can pay up to $12,970 for adoption assistance in 2013 (the limit increases annually for inflation).

Small employers may not be able to offer these benefits and enjoy them personally. The law prevents “highly-compensated employees” (e.g., owners) from excluding company-paid benefits if the plan skews benefits toward them. In other words, the plan must be nondiscriminatory for all workers.

Cafeteria plan

Workers usually prefer to have a menu of benefits from which they can choose. A cafeteria plan lets employees choose between cash (or taxable benefits) and tax-free benefits; they are not taxed on the tax-free benefits merely because they could have opted for cash.  Some of the benefits you can offer under the plan include:

  • Adoption assistance
  • Athletic facilities
  • De mimimis (minimal) benefits
  • Education assistance
  • Employee discounts
  • Employer-provided cell phones
  • Health benefits
  • Meals
  • Moving expense reimbursements
  • No-additional-cost services
  • Transportation commuting
  • Working condition fringe benefits

As a small employer (no more than 100 employees), you can opt to use a simple cafeteria plan. A simple cafeteria plan is presumed to be nondiscriminatory. You must make minimum contributions (e.g., at least 2% of worker’s pay) to workers in the plan who are not highly-compensated employees; all employees can enjoy benefits under the plan. Your contributions to the plan are tax deductible.

You can find more about cafeteria plans in IRS Publication 15-B, Employer’s Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits. (The 2013 version is not yet out but should be shortly.)

Conclusion

Whether you offer benefits, what they are, and how much you pay depends on your company’s financial situation. Obviously, you can only do what you can afford to do, no matter how generous you may want to be. Always discuss your benefits plans with a knowledgeable tax advisor.

*denotes non-government website

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Paying Yourself When You Start a Business

An Original Article from Businessweek.com

(Clarifies sixth paragraph to show two types of taxes would be owed.)

I recently formed a recording studio as an LLC, but I am anxious about all the income going into accounts receivable and having less immediate income for me and my family. Does this money circulate within my business only to pay business expenses, or can I use some of the money to enjoy the fruits of my labor without putting myself on the payroll right away? —J.U., Phoenix, Ariz.

Since you formed your company as a limited liability company, as the owner you are considered a “member” of the LLC by the Internal Revenue Service. If you’re a one-member LLC, the IRS will treat your company the same as a sole proprietorship for tax purposes. While you can hire employees, you will never put yourself on the company payroll since you are not considered an employee.

Instead, when you want to take money from the company, it will be in the form of an owner’s draw, says Jim Sharvin, a CPA with McDowell, Dillon & Hunter in Torrance, Calif. It is as simple as writing a check from the company to yourself and depositing it in your personal account, which should be kept separate from your business accounts.

“You may use money from the business for yourself, but know that the money you take out of the business will be subject to taxes at the individual tax filing level and subject to self-employment taxes,” says Lisa Schwartz, a CPA with Mitchell & Schwartz in Camarillo, Calif. In 2012 the self-employment tax rate is 13.3 percent for business owners on the first $110,100 of income and 2.9 percent on any income more than that amount.

For practical purposes, this means you’ll need to keep track of all your draws and set some of that money aside for taxes if your business is profitable. After your business gets established, you will pay self-employment tax in estimated quarterly payments to the IRS—something that can come as a shock if you’re used to being an employee and having taxes withheld from your paycheck.

Along with self-employment tax, you’ll need to remember that your recording studio’s 2012 profit or loss will be reported on your personal income tax return next April. If you make a profit, you’ll pay both self-employment and income taxes on that amount whether you have taken it for personal use or not.

All this will be much clearer if you work with an accountant familiar with small business, says Gregg Landers, managing director at accounting firm CBIZ MHM in San Diego. A trustworthy accountant can help you forecast your balance sheet so “you can understand what your studio’s cash-flow needs will be in the future and have an idea how much money you can take out of the bank and still have sufficient money left in the company,” Landers says.

With your business just getting started, it’s best to forgo removing funds immediately if you can. “The business should be adequately capitalized to carry itself through the startup phase,” says Richard Clement, a certified financial planner with Campbell Wealth Management in Alexandria, Va. You “should ideally have enough personal savings or other income sources available to cover personal expenses until the business gets established.”

Michael Eisenberg, a CPA and personal financial specialist at Eisenberg Financial Advisors in Los Angeles, advises clients to keep a minimum of six to eight months’ worth of working capital in their company accounts. That cushion will keep your business up and running through any seasonal revenue downturns or the general rough stretches that inevitably crop up, he says.

Once your business is established and profitable, you should begin to take regular draws—even if they are no more than $1,000 a month, Clement says. “Start small and build in a regular amount for yourself over time, both to establish discipline for your business and so you have a true picture of the business and how it’s doing” financially.

Another issue to discuss with your accountant, once you hire one, is that as your business grows, your draws will no longer be optional. That’s because the IRS requires business owners to pay themselves a “reasonable” salary, says Steve Sahlein, co-president of the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers. “The IRS is going to challenge any annual salary that is less than the Social Security wage limit—$110,100 for 2012—to catch those who are trying to avoid paying Social Security taxes,” Sahlein writes in an e-mail.

While most people think of salary and payroll issues as mundane office chores, they are much more complicated than that because they involve tax law, Sahlein notes. Do yourself a favor and get some professional advice so you don’t make decisions that come back to haunt you.

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