Running a Side Business

Your Business Companion

1. Starting the Right Side Business

• Before You Start: Nine Things to Consider
• Can You Really Maintain Your Full-Time Job and Your Side Business?
• Common Side Businesses
• Do You Need a Business Plan?
• Avoid Side-Business Scams
• What If … ? Should You Consider Quitting Your Day Job?

2. If You Go Online

• Free Stuff
• Invoice Customers and Get Paid Online
• Sell Stuff via Amazon or eBay
• Earn Money With Ads and Affiliates
• The (Very) Basics of Driving Traffic to Your Site
• How to Build a Website in 24 Hours
• Basic Legal Rules When Going Online

3. Managing Your Money

• Record Keeping and Bookkeeping
• Accounting Methods
• What Is Cash Flow and Why Is It Essential?
• Five Accounting Principles You Need To Know
• What Is Forecasting?
• Should You Separate Business and Personal?
• Raising Money for Your Business
• What’s the Difference? Equity vs. Debt
• Borrowing With Credit Cards
• Bank Loans
• SBA Loans
• Borrowing From Family and Friends
• Social Lending Networks
• Getting Paid
• Invoiced Accounts
• Checks
• Getting Paid With Credit Cards
• Ten Tips for Collecting Accounts Receivable

4. Protecting Personal Assets

• Using Business Entities to Limit Liability
• What Are You? Sole Proprietorship or Partnership?
• What’s the Difference? LLC vs. Corporation
• How to Convert to an LLC or a Corporation
• An Interview With LLC and Corporations Expert Anthony Mancuso
• Insurance
• Basic Coverage
• Package Deals
• Insurance for Employees
• Ten Tips for Saving Money on Insurance
• Reduce Your Risks

5. Avoid the Lawyers

• Ten Common Contract Problems and How to Solve Them
• Drafting and Formatting an Agreement
• Who Signs the Agreement?
• When You Have to Review a Contract
• Maintaining Paperwork
• Are You Afraid of Negotiating Contracts?
• Avoiding Legal Problems With Names and Trademarks
• Perform a Simple “Knockout” Search
• Federally Registering a Trademark
• Staying Out of Trademark Trouble
• Four Steps to Legally Protecting Your Business Ideas
• What Ideas Do You Have?
• Ensuring Rights: Registration and Other Measures
• Chasing People Who Rip Off Your Ideas
• Licensing or Selling Your Rights
• What If You Copy Somebody Else’s Ideas?
• Ideas Created by Your Employees or Contractors
• Ten Ways to Save on Legal Fees
• Evaluate Your Attorney’s Services

6. Licenses, Permits, and Other Paperwork

• Basic Registration Requirements
• Register Your Fictitious Business Name
• If You Sell Goods, Get a Seller’s Permit
• Permits and Licenses for Specialized Fields

7. Working From Home

• Ten Tips for Maximum Home Office Efficiency
• Self-Assessment: When Should You Move Your Side Business Out of Your Home?
• Studios and Storage: When You Need More Space

8. Working With Others

• Employee vs. Independent Contractor: What’s the Difference?
• Five Reasons Why Hiring an IC Is Usually a Better Choice For Your Side Business
• Legal and Paperwork Requirements: ICs
• Legal and Paperwork Requirements: Employees
• Ten Tips When Hiring Family Members

9. Marketing Basics

• What’s the Difference? Marketing vs. Advertising
• Ten Marketing Tips
• Your Marketing Toolbox
• Do You Need a Marketing Plan?

10. Taxes and Deductions

• What’s the Difference? Hobby vs. Business
• How the IRS Judges Your Business
• Proving a Profit Motive
• Classic Hobby Loss Abuse
• Paying Taxes
• Will You Get Audited?
• How Businesses Are Taxed
• What Taxes Your Business Will Have to Pay
• Paying Estimated Taxes
• Preparing Your Taxes
• Keeping Records for the IRS
• Tax Deductions
• What’s a Tax Deduction Worth?
• Tax Deduction Basics
• Deducting Home Office Expenses
• Qualifying for the Home Office Deduction
• What You Can Deduct
• Five Home Office Deduction Tips
• Deducting Long-Term Assets
• Immediate Deduction Using Section 179
• Depreciation
• Deducting Vehicle Expenses
• Deducting Travel Expenses
• Deducting Meals and Entertainment
• An Interview with Attorney Stephen Fishman

Index