Finances

Finances are one of the most important areas of your business. They can make or break your business, literally! We have gathered information about financial basics, budgeting, financial statements, accounting and bookkeeping and the ever popular taxes. These resources will help you get your business off to a great financial start, or improve your financial stability! Before you begin to go through this links, click here for your printable Finance worksheet.

Diaper Business Start up Guide
So you want to start your own cloth diaper business? Not sure where to start? Diaper Decisions exclusively offers the definitive start up guide, appropriately titled So you want to start your own cloth diaper Business?: A Start-up Guide. The guide includes information that will help you decide if you want to become a manufacturer or a retailer, which diapers offer wholesale options and which diapers offer cottage licenses. You learn about copyrights, trademarks and patents and what that means in the cloth diaper business. You will also find information about what the IRS and your state wants from you! The guide is 36 pages and bound with a plastic comb. Visit the Diaper Decisions store to purchase your guide.

Financial Basics
Not sure what a particular financial term means? This online glossary will help you decipher even the most complicate financial mumbo-jumbo.

Every business needs a bank to transact business with! But how do you choose? It seems there is a bank on every corner these days. This informative article will help you decide which bank services are important for you business. Once you pick out a bank, be sure and read up on how to set up your accounts, and then reconcile them.

Do you need an accountant? What will an account do for me? When would I use an accountant? Isn�t an accountant expensive? How can I keep accountant costs down?

We have all heard the saying �It takes money to make money�, but how much money does it really take to start up a business?

Small business owners often live in the now, managing the day to day operations of their business. Planning for the future is an oft forgotten task. Have you worked on your retirement plan lately? What type of retirement plan is best for my business, a SEP or Solo 401(k)?

Bad things often happen to good people, and good businesses. Are you protected in the event of a mishap?

All small businesses earn their keep by providing services and goods to consumers. What do you do when someone does not pay? How do you collect what you are due without breaking any laws?

Budgeting
Budgeting seems like a very simple place to start, so simple that many small business owners just skip it! Why do you even need a budget? What can a budget do for you? How do you prepare a budget anyway?

Financial Statements
Business analysts report that one of the main reasons businesses fail is poor cash management. What the heck does cash management mean? Once you understand the basics of cash management, you will need to give your business a check-up at least annually to make sure you are on the right track. What should be part of your at least annual check-up? We recommend financial statements such as a cash flow statement, a balance sheet, an income statement and a breakeven analysis.

Now you know what statements you should be preparing�. But how? We have found a cash flow statement template, a balance sheet template, an income statement template, and even a breakeven analysis calculator (which even works for Canadians and French Canadians). You will need to have Microsoft Excel on your computer to use these templates.

Accounting and Bookkeeping
This seems like the most complicated and confusing part of financial management! Do you need an accounting degree to figure out how to keep accurate records? NO! We have some links that will break everything down into laymen�s terms.

As a small business owner, we need to always remember our big brother, IRS, and his love of records and paperwork. Don�t worry, you won�t need a whole separate file room for your records. What does burden of proof mean to the IRS? Why should you even keep records? What kind of records should you save? How long do you need to keep them?

So how do you keep the books? A basic understanding of accounting and bookkeeping can be helpful in figuring out how to keep track of everything. Every business needs to decide whether they will use cash system or an accrual system. What the heck do these terms mean? Each business will also need to decide if they will use a computer program to assist in bookkeeping or a ledger.

There are many different bookkeeping programs available, one to fit every budget. Below you will find links to some popular programs.

We use the Internet Tax Helper to keep all of our books and recommend this program! It is an extremely simple program that will organize everything for you, and make it much easier to file your taxes.

Peachtree Accounting Software

Quickbooks Financial Software

Cashbook Complete Accounting Software - Cashbook offers options for users that live in US, UK, CA or AUS

TaxesNot many things are more terrifying than the thought of doing taxes for a small business. The IRS seems to have so many ins and outs! And there is always the thought at the back of your mind that if you do your taxes wrong, an audit may be in your future! Take this introductory tax course presented by the IRS to gain insight into the basics of your tax responsibility.

Tax Basics
Before you file any business taxes, there are a few things you need to know. Do you have a business or a hobby? When does your tax year begin and end? What income is taxable? How does the IRS view bartering? What are informational returns? What the heck is intangible property? Do you have employees or contractors? Do you need a federal tax ID number (US)? TFN (Australia)?

Small business owners owe many different types of taxes to many different agencies. Do you know what you owe to whom?

Federal Tax
Small business owners all owe self-employment taxes. Do you owe any other types of taxes? The IRS has a myriad of forms to file. Which forms do you need to file? Check out this tax calendar to always be up to date on what is due.

What federal taxes does your partnership, S-corporation, corporation or LLC owe?

We want you to get every deduction and credit allowed you by the IRS! Here is a list of available credits with links to the forms. What exactly is the home office deduction? Have you taken all the common deductions, and looked into the often overlooked deductions?

So you filled out all the right forms at all the right times and you still got an IRS notice in the mail. What do all these codes mean??

In the UK � NIT � Do you owe?

In Canada

State and Local Tax
With all the different agencies located in our cities, counties, and states it can be hard to figure out what tax you owe to your state, county or city. Click here for links for your state tax agencies and here for your local tax agencies.

Sales Tax
Most of us will have to pay sales tax to our state, county, city or some combination of the above. Most states you need to apply for a license and in some states you must pay a fee. Be sure to check if there is an income minimum. You may be able to avoid applying for a sales tax license, if your projected revenue is below a certain amount.

GST in Australia � What is it? Do I need to register?

VAT in the UK � Do I need to register?

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