At my house we don’t have cable and don’t really watch TV, but when I’m traveling and staying in a hotel, it’s always a treat to watch the reality show “Pawn Stars”, which somehow always seems to be playing. I’m not sure whether I’m more into the lively family that owns the shop or the crazy things that people bring in. Not surprisingly, those small businesses that appear on reality shows like that, find business booming from all the attention, along with lots of fans hanging around. I definitely chuckle a little thinking about CheckMark being on reality TV.

What about you and your business? If you had an opportunity, would you take up a reality TV opportunity for your business? Do you think the potential boom in business would be worth the potential downsides?

Inspired by Washington Post article “Lights, camera, sell: Small businesses cash in as they take the spotlight on reality shows.”

It’s pretty crazy reading in the news stories of fraud, identity theft, embezzlement, and so on, especially from people and companies you trust. Many small business owners were left high and dry when AccuPay filed for bankruptcy and small business clients were finding their payroll taxes had not been paid for years. Of course, when you sign up for a service, or even a payroll software, you expect things to be accurate, timely, and most of all, honest. Many of these clients paid for payroll service for years as well. A shameful tragedy, indeed.

As a small business owner, you may already find tax law overwhelming to keep up with and may be nervous about a service. CheckMark has been in the payroll and accounting business for almost 30 years. Thirty years of doing things right, putting our customers first, and offering good customer service. Whether you want to keep payroll in your own hands with Payroll Software, or pass it along to one of our certified payroll specialists, you can be assured that you’ll received the most up-to-date payroll taxes and laws and accurate and timely service. Thank you for your trust! We’ll continue to earn it.

I’m guilty of using services like Groupon and Living Social Deals. Having been only out of college for a few years, sometimes you just have to shop for deals. These Daily Deals can serve as a good way to gain general brand exposure for your company as well as bring in a lot of new customers. Having moved to Fort Collins a few years ago, it has also encouraged me to try out some new places I wouldn’t have otherwise considered (hello, Chocolate Cafe!).  It’s definitely turned me on to some companies as well as totally turned me off of others.

If you are opting for a Daily Deal, the biggest issue is over-promising. Example: I called in for a Living Social Deal massage three days ago and still haven’t received a call back. Maybe the massage will be out of this world if I am able to get a hold of someone, or maybe it’s going to reflect the callback time. Either way, if I ever want to try to schedule a massage with someone in the future in a pinch, I probably won’t be calling them.

Another big issue is not charging enough to at least break-even. If you are losing money on every transaction, that’s just bad business and it isn’t sustainable. Give them an excellent product or experience, at least break even, and give them an incentive to come back! One of my favorite strategies I’ve seen locally is after a massage (hey, I like massages) was being given a punch card that offers you a discount on your next 5 massages. If you are shopping on Daily Deals, won’t that little discount perhaps spur you to action next time around? I’m also personally a big fan of referral programs because a word of mouth recommendation is the best and most influential kind of recommendation, right? Read more about Daily Deals and business here.

Have you used Daily Deals or similar with your company? What was the result?

Are you running an older version of MultiLedger? If so, you could be missing some really great features that can make your accounting for your business a piece of cake.

• Print Deposit Slips. Avoid errors by printing deposit slips with your bank information and routing number directly from MultiLedger.
• Email invoices, quotes, item purchases, and POs directly from MultiLedger.
• Save and open select reports with Excel or other spreadsheet programs.
• Keep 30 Months Open. Enter and modify transactions for a full 2½ years.
• Tighten your MultiLedger security, control who has access to the Cash Account in the Bank Rec and Transaction Journals.
• New Financial Snapshot Report to quickly get a “Financial Snapshot” of your business current cash, receivables, payables, and many financial ratios.
• MICR Encoded Check Printing, allowing you to print on  blank check paper.

If you are running MultiLedger 7.4, you can order online to get MultiLedger 7.5 for $99. If you are running MultiLedger 7.3 or older, call 800-444-9922 to order MultiLedger 7.5 for $199. Questions? Email info@checkmark.com.

Should a company who has a mission largely beyond maximizing profits, such as having a big focus on environmental or social issues be able to be recognized for that? In some states- California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts  Virginia, South Carolina, New Jersey, Maryland, and D.C.- you can. In another baker’s dozen or so, including our own Colorado, similar legislation is being considered.

Two of the main questions that keep arising are

1) Should those companies be held to the same goals, even when profits are slim or nonexistent?

2) What are these goals and should they have a standard? Otherwise the concern is companies would become benefit corporations simply for marketing and not really have an  positive impact.

Hopefully our legislature will come up with a solution that can have a great impact on our communities! Read more about benefit corporations at the Wall Street Journal.

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It’s everyone’s favorite time of year…Tax Time. Taxes are definitely a headache for most. For your farm business, here are some tips from the IRS on Farm Income and Deductions taken from the IRS email notifications:

Ten Things to Know about Farm Income and Deductions

If you earn money managing or working on a farm, you are in the farming business. Farms include plantations, ranches, ranges and orchards. Farmers may raise livestock, poultry or fish, or grow fruits or vegetables. Here are 10 things about farm income and expenses that the IRS wants you to know.

1. Crop insurance proceeds. Insurance payments from crop damage count as income. They should generally be reported the year they are received.

2. Deductible farm expenses. Farmers can deduct ordinary and necessary expenses as business expenses. An ordinary farming expense is one that is common and accepted in the farming business. A necessary expense is one that is appropriate for that business.

3. Employees and hired help. You can deduct reasonable wages you paid to your farm’s full and part-time workers. You must withhold Social Security, Medicare and income taxes from your employees’ wages.

4. Items purchased for resale. If you purchased livestock and other items for resale, you may be able to deduct their cost in the year of the sale. This includes freight charges for transporting livestock to your farm.

5. Repayment of loans. You can only deduct the interest you paid on a loan if the loan proceeds are used for your farming business. You cannot deduct interest on a loan used for personal expenses.

6. Weather-related sales. Bad weather may force you to sell more livestock or poultry than you normally would. If so, you may be able to postpone reporting a gain from the sale of the additional animals.

7. Net operating losses. If deductible expenses are more than income for the year, you may have a net operating loss. You can carry that loss over to other years and deduct it. You may get a refund of part or all of the income tax you paid for past years, or you may be able to reduce your tax in future years.

8. Farm income averaging. You may be able to average some or all of the current year’s farm income by spreading it out over the past three years. This may lower your taxes if your farm income is high in the current year and low in one or more of the past three years. This method does not change your prior year tax. It only uses the prior year information to figure your current year tax.

9. Fuel and road use. You may be able to claim a tax credit or refund of federal excise taxes on fuel used on your farm for farm work.

10. Farmers Tax Guide. More information about farm income and deductions is in Publication 225, Farmer’s Tax Guide. You can download it at IRS.gov, or call the IRS at 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676) to have it mailed to you.
Additional IRS Resources:

• Publication 225, Farmer’s Tax Guide
• Schedule F, Profit or Loss From Farming
• Other Items Related To Schedule F

The IRS has been making it’s rounds to small businesses, checking in to see that they have their workers classified correctly. On average, small businesses classify 10-60% of their workers incorrectly. Why? Independent contractors have less paperwork, less benefits, and you can hire them just when you need them. They also come with their own set of rules for perks to an independent contractor, such as setting their own schedules. With the health-care penalty going into effect next year, many employers are trying to avoid the penalty threshold by using a mix of employees and independent contractors. To avoid penalties, make sure you classify your workers correctly!

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324392804578358473085106876.html?mod=WSJ_SmallBusiness_LEFTTopStories

While donuts are quite delicious, if you are trying to be healthier, you might find that the daily donut doesn’t quite fit into your repertoire. Inc had a fun article on easy ways to be healthier at work. So grab that cup of coffee (coffee made the list!) and enjoy the read.

At CheckMark, we’re lucky to have a gym and yoga studio next door that our company provides a membership to. The convenience definitely makes it easy to incorporate a little sweat into the day and provides a nice mental break to boot!

Do you have any other suggestions or does your company have any health incentives?