The grey has been defined and not loosely either. Some contractors who have held contracts for years are now finding themselves in hot water with the IRS because they fail the updated 20 point test. That’s right, even those who have been in the game for years are having to adjust.

So what exactly do you have to have now to be truly self employed? Freedom. Freedom to call the shot, use your own tools, work your own schedule, work for whomever you choose for however long you choose with a valid contract…Oh and did I mention that what you do can’t constitute the entirety of what your client does? Yeah, kind of important.
If you want to see what this whole 20 point test thing is about, you can either check out the test here or read up on the IRS rules on their website at www.irs.gov.

Why do I say traditional SEO is dead? because it is. Lets face it, keywords can only get you so far and they have to be on the page, not in the meta tags. Meta tags (the information hidden behind a web page that was designed specifically for search engines) died over a year ago when search engines discovered web developers were overusing or even misusing meta tags. That’s when the switch came to search for real live content and not hidden content for web searches. I believe they called it “live search” or some such. But no matter what they called it, it meant a lot of work for anyone who was misusing the tags. For those who used them properly it had no effect what so ever, other than not having to enter that particular extra bit when creating a new page.

Now lets discuss how video circumvented the SEO outdating…well, that’s simple enough. It’s refreshed instantly and regularly. It is the fastest growing content source on the net world wide. Did I mention the many sources and integrations with social networks? Which is why it survived even when traditional SEO is sleeping on the job.

So what are you going to do now? well, you could buy an expensive camera, take a ton of lessons and get yourself on youtube. OR you could put audio to an existing  image or powerpoint presentation and use that (always good if you’re avoiding your own image on every computer in the world)…Or you could bury your head in the sand and hope this all blows over. not likely, but you could.

The point of a business plan isn’t so much to tell others about your business. The point of a business plan is to plan where you want to take your company in the future and how you are going to get there. That’s the whole “Plan” behind the name.
So what are your goals, dreams, and plans? Are they short terms or long term? Do they line up in a nice little row or are they on different rafts in a vast ocean of possibilities? Dreaming only gets you so far in life and in business. Planning gets you the rest of the way.

I have many dreams, but most of them are about writing and personal goals. That’s ok, but those aren’t important to a business plan. Go with the important bits and take a minute or two to write them down. You just might find that you already have the dots connected if you line up your goals, dreams and ideas for the future. It just takes a step in the right direction to get yourself on the path to where you want to be.

Dream big, plan small, and always keep an eye on the future. It’s coming faster than you might think!

Your financial health isn’t just about being able to pay your bills on time or buy a house. It’s also about feeling secure and knowing that you can take care of the little things. But if you don’t look at the bigger picture how do you know that you can do these things? And if you don’t know, than all you have is stress as you worry about the little things.

Here’s an idea…create a monthly or even quarterly financial report card for yourself. Take all your in flows, all your our flows and see what you are really spending your money on each period. Know what you are saving, what that savings is ear marked for and how you will grant yourself the right to use it. (oh yes, I did say grant the right…because savings is not extra cash laying around. It’s there for a reason and should only be used for a good reason. Not because you think you need a new boat this month only to remember next month that house taxes are due.) The same goes for businesses. Use your reports. Know your goals and stick to the plan.

For a basic Report Card template Click Here. Modify it so it fits your life and your needs and use it.

I put together a table with my findings of the top five systems, including how they stack up against each other. If you are looking for an email marketing system, or are simply curious, have a look. If you don’t see a system that you love, send me the details and I’ll be more than happy to add it to the list.

I have used several of these systems personally and though I prefer one over another it’s not fair for me to say which as it would undoubtedly bias your judgment of the review. After all, one system is not going to fit everyone’s needs every time. Let the table on the following page help you decide which systems you want to look into further. The information here should be enough to give you a head start, but is likely not enough for you to make up your mind on any one system.

Enjoy the hunt!

#1 on my list: Billing Terms
It seems like an obvious item, but it’s one that is missed time and time again. You have to state in clear terms when you bill, what your bill rate is and when you expect payment. It’s also a good idea to clearly state your collections policies if you have any so your clients aren’t taken by surprise down the road when they fall behind in their bills and start seeing late fees and the like.

#2: Liability Disclaimer
However you want to word it, this is imperative to have in any agreement. Without a statement of limitation of liability you basically say it’s alright to hold you accountable for any issues, financial or otherwise, that come from your assistance and work. That is not ok. You work hard. It is only fair that once you are paid for your work you are release from any responsibility as to how it’s used or the ramifications of that use.

#3: Statement of legal authority
This statement is two-fold. On the one hand it states clearly the separation between the contractors business and the contractee’s business. In simple legal terms, “Each party shall establish and maintain proper records and reporting obligations required by any applicable law or corporate policy.” The second part to this statement literally says both parties will abide by the laws of X, with X being either the state or province that has legal authority over the agreement holders business.

#4: Copyright and other Proprietary Data Rights
Knowing what you own, versus what you are signing away is important both for you as well as the company you are contracting with.

Do you have a particular clause in all your agreements that you couldn’t live without? I’d love to hear it.

As small business owners, we work with many different businesses for many different reasons. From purchasing supplies to run our business, to working with contractors to performs tasks that we aren’t as adept at doing ourselves.One of the biggest questions I get around this time of year is, “How much do I need to know about my contractors business?” The answer is very little. Outside of knowing they are a legal business and having their tax identification number, you don’t need to nor would I encourage you to know any more about a contractors business practices. It’s not that you don’t care, but rather for legal purposes and your own sanity, keep it professional.For a better look, lets define what we are really talking about.

Contract Vendors: Individuals or companies that you hire to work with you for a specific task or project. These are highly skilled individuals and are not employees. (for the difference between an employee and a contractor I suggest checking out the IRS’s rules.) Any Contract Vendor that you work with must have a legal business, an IRS number (EIN or SS, their choice), and have signed a contract with your company stating the terms of work contracted.

Contract Vendors are sent a 1099-misc at the end of every year. This shows how much you have paid them and makes it simpler for them to do their taxes. At present you are only required to send this document if you have paid this type of vendor over $600 in a calendar year. What the ruling will be next year is anyone’s guess.

For more information on filing 1099′s, the various types of 1099′s and all other tax questions I suggest checking with the IRS website or a licensed tax accountant. Happy filing!

So how do you work around such changes? That depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. For some things you can use the “field” codes to take the place of mail merge codes. In other instances you can use bookmarking and referencing to copy content from one place to another.

There are other difference between the two formats and it’s going to take a lot more than one or two templates to figure them all out. I hope you will share some of your experiences with me so I can learn just as I try to share my knowledge with all of you.

Enjoy the snow!

Kristi

Technique #1 – copy checks before you deposit them. Whether you do this physically or have the ATM do it for you, it is important to keep a record of who paid you, in what form and how you processed that payment. Newer ATMs do a lot more than just accept deposits these days. Most of them offer the option of a detailed receipt that includes images of all checks, a count of all cash and a notice of any withdrawal’s. This is all vitally important information, especially to us number crunchers.

Technique #2 - Store all records, including the copies mentioned above, in one location. The location and the organization of that location are up to you, but have everything in one place. This will make is easy to find a receipt when you have a questions or at tax time when your accountant needs to see all your records. (of course if you have most of the records in an accounting system your accountant likely won’t charge as much to process the information. But that’s a personal choice.)

Technique #3 - Actually look at every bill and statement that comes in. This may seem like a lot of work, but it will save you from being overcharged, defrauded and otherwise bilked of your hard earned money. Taking a moment to review your statements and invoices for errors is a small price to pay for piece of mind.

How you organize your files isn’t as important as having them. Understanding everything on a financial statement isn’t as important as knowing it’s accurate. Some times it’s more about knowing you have everything than knowing how it all works. After all, there are people in this world that love numbers and solving the puzzles provided in a shoebox full of receipts.

Most recently I got to help a client transfer their existing website from Windows Live to WordPress. There wasn’t anything truly creative about the project, but it was a lot of fun none the less. The project went fast for many reasons. Number one, because it was something I love doing. Number two, because we were organized and took the time to plan out the details of the transfer.

I love solving puzzles and helping others. This website transfer was a simple puzzle, but one that gave myself and my client a lot of satisfaction.

Do you know of someone who is considering transferring their website over to wordpress? I would love to work on a similar project again.

Have fun with everything you do.