Its A Scary Fact That Nine Out Of Ten New Businesses Fail In Their First Year. But That Also Means That One Out Of Those Ten New Businesses Makes It. What Sets These Successful Ventures Apart From Their Less-successful Counterparts? According To JP OBrien, Founder And President Of Http:KeepMore.net, The Difference Is That A Successful Entrepreneur Treats Their Business As A Business. This Focus Ensures They Capitalize On Tax Breaks And Deductions, And Keep More Of Their Hard-earned Profits. If Youre Not Tracking Your Business, Youre Not Setting Yourself Up To Succeed.Legal MattersTo Get Your Business Started On The Right Track, The First Step Is Incorporating, Which Lets You Take Advantage Of Numerous Small-business Tax Benefits. Regardless Of How You File Your EBiz, Your Income From It Is Taxable. Says OBrien, Youre Not Going To Get Any Tax Breaks For Filing As A Hobby By Law, You Have To Report Every Dollar Youve Sold To The IRS.That Means Its In Your Best Interests To Structure Your Business As A Legal Entity, And Capitalize On The Tax Breaks That Doing So Affords You. Its A Simple Process That Can Save You A Lot Of Money Down The Roadyou Can Even Do It Online With A Service Like Http:BizFilings.com Or Http:LegalZoom.com.Getting On TrackThe Next Step Is Tracking Your Cash Flow. Advises OBrien, Look At Any Expenses In Your Daily Life That Are Actually Being Used For Business. All Those Things Add Up...and Can Reduce Your Tax Implication. Maximizing The Deductions Youre Permitted Can Amount To Substantial Savings:Home Offices.Equipment Purchases.Website Maintenance Costs.Business-related Auto Mileage. This Is One Of The Biggest Deductions Business Owners Fail To Track. But At Nearly Forty-five Cents Per Mile, It Pays To Record Your Product Sourcing Outings, Trade Show Trips, Client Visits, Etc.Watch Where Youre Spending And Where Youre Profitable, So You Know Whats Working And What Needs Work.Playing It SafeLastly, You Need To Back Up Everything With Documentation. With An Internet Business, Most Of Your Transactions Occur Online, So Its Important You Print Them Out And Keep Good Records. You Should Have Records For Four Yearsthe Current Year And Three Years Priorjust In Case The IRS Ever Has Any Questions. Even If Your Deductions Are Perfectly Legitimate, You Need To Have The Receipts And Paperwork To Prove It, Or They Can Still Come After You For Back Taxes. By Documenting Your Profits And Expenses, Youre Really Just Protecting Yourself.No Matter How New Or How Small Your Online Business Is, Its Never Too Early To Start Treating It Like A Business. You Want To Start Keeping Good Records From Day One. Getting Legal And Getting Organized Arent Nearly As Intimidating As They Sound, And They Can Be The Difference Between Success And Failure.
