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Freelancing isn’t easy or right for everyone, and it can take at least a year to get into the full swing of things. Here’s advice from Ariana Green on how to decide if leaving the corporate world is right for you
Fertile Ground for Startups: History shows that a certain breed of entrepreneur feeds off adverse conditions, and this recession is no exception
Small BusinessThe Wall Street Journal- Small Business
Entrepreneurs: How to start your own business, USA Today/Money
Yahoo (BAnk of America) Small Business Answers Center
- Get answers to your questions
- Read expert answers and articles
- Find groups, forums and more
Budgeting and Tax Advice for the Self-Employed
Start by squirreling away cash. Then prepare a business plan and budget—and understand what’s involved in paying taxes yourself
Independent Contractor
How to Become an Independent Contractor
Learn how to legally operate a business as an independent contractor, including compliance with tax and employment laws and regulations.
Download Sample The AllBusiness.com Practical Guide to Independent …
111-page Business Guide discusses key provisions of consulting and independent contractor agreements, as well as the tax implications, …
Entrepreneurs Find Success With Specialty Lenders
WSJ By EMILY MALTBY
Some banks cater to niche area such as…
A survey of useful sites for entrepreneurs
A survey of useful sites for entrepreneurs By SUZANNE BARLYN
Franchising / sba.frannet.com
This online seminar from the Small Business Administration offers an overview of franchising basics for entrepreneurs who are thinking about franchise ownership. Prospective franchisees can find out about the legal responsibilities of franchise ownership, financing and more.
franchise.org
The website of the International Franchise Association offers a wealth of information. Among the free features: a search engine for finding details about more than 1,100 franchise opportunities and a course on franchising basics. There’s also a forum where prospective franchisees can talk to each other, as well as an industry expert. For a fee, the site’s Franchise University section offers online courses and a certification program for franchise executives. Costs run from about $50 to $450.
franchisehelp.com
FranchiseHelp aims to provide an independent source of information to prospective franchise owners. Most features are free, including a search engine where users can find companies based on industry, location and their available capital. Articles and webcasts address topics from conducting due diligence to closing the deal. The site, run by FranchiseHelp Holdings LLC in New York, also includes a library of franchise disclosure documents, at $220 per file.
Managing Technology
indinero.com
InDinero Inc.’s site helps entrepreneurs manage company finances in real time. Users enter company bank and credit-card account information when they sign up, and inDinero updates data from those accounts regularly. The information gets aggregated on a “dashboard” that users can check to monitor balances and expenses, as well as see financial trends over time. The site can also generate more detailed information, such as how much the business is spending on certain products. The Mountain View, Calif., company says it uses multiple technologies and practices to protect information. The free version of inDinero tracks up to 50 transactions per month; more robust plans cost $29.99 and $99 per month.
postling.com
Postling lets users publish on multiple networking sites through one centralized location. A dashboard shows your recent posts and comments. You can also write posts in advance and schedule times for their publication. A daily digest summarizes account activity from multiple sites. The site, from Waffl.com Inc. in New York, offers a basic account free. A premium account, which also helps you monitor your business’s online reputation, costs $49 monthly.
contactme.com
ContactMe, from Webs.com in Silver Spring, Md., centralizes contact information for customers and prospects. Along with keeping a record of people’s email addresses and phone numbers, business owners can note details such as when they send out estimates to people in their contact file. Owners can also create a “ContactMe” button to use on their websites; when visitors click on the button, they can send a note but can also enter all of their contact information in a form. The data are then automatically swept into the site owner’s contact file as a new entry. There’s no charge for a basic account, but expect to pay up to $120 per year for service with more flexibility.
Legal Advice
nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/ business-llcs-corporations
Nolo, a Berkeley, Calif., publisher, opened 40 years ago to make the law more accessible.
techagreements.com
Small businesses can use TechAgreements for a low-priced glimpse at high-priced lawyering. The website, from Socratek LLC in Lexington, Mass., includes actual agreements used in over 500,000 transactions. Users can read the existing agreements to get ideas about how other companies dealt with similar situations, such as an intellectual-property agreement on behalf of Procter & Gamble Co. Free previews are available for all agreements. Downloading a complete document costs $35.
smallbusinessnotes.com/
managing-your-business/legal
This free site, from Internet Brands Inc. in El Segundo, Calif., offers easy-to-read yet comprehensive guidance on a range of issues. The site makes information simple to find through hundreds of links that lead to more specifics, including details about tax forms, illegal business practices and protecting consumer information from identity theft.
Finding Financing
chubbybrain.com
Want to find a potential investor with a minimum of legwork? ChubbyBrain promises to help.
angel.co
AngelList is a free networking site for start-up companies and angel investors.
sec.gov/info/smallbus/qasbsec.htm
This Q&A by the Securities and Exchange Commission includes an overview of laws that can apply to raising capital.
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