HeatherStone commented on the following stories on BizSugar
Sole Trader: What Form Should Your Business Take?
"Hi Martin, Two problems with sole proprietorship here in the U.S. (as elsewhere I'm sure) are taxes and liability. I'm not an attorney so this is based on my limited knowledge of how businesses here are set up based on asking a lot of questions. First, if you are essentially self-employed in the U.S., you face double the level of unemployment tax as everyone else because you end up paying your own personal unemployment tax plus essentially the company's half of unemployment. That's the part your employer would be responsible for, if you had one. However, since you work for yourself, my limited research suggests it is very difficult for you to ever collect the unemployment you are paying in, because, essentially, if you're self employed, you can't really lay yourself off, no matter how bad business gets. Some of these issues can be resolved by incorporating (for example forming an LLC.) This kind of incorporation can also be important for liability purposes to prevent someone from attaching personal assets in a suit against your business. Again, I'm no attorney, so anyone reading this would need to double check everything I'm saying with a qualified expert, but it does seem to make the idea of being a sole proprietor, in a strictest sense, a bit tricky. "LinkedIn or Leaked-in: How Much Should You Share with Business Connections?
"Hi Diane, Maybe I'm overly cautious, but I would just not under any circumstance share anything on social media that I wanted to keep private. Security and privacy settings aside, there is just no way for LinkedIn, Facebook or any other social media site to guarantee your data won't be compromised. What's more, you aren't paying them to secure your data and, if there is a breach, you will be only one of many social media users clamoring for action. Here's a way to adjust your social media strategy. Share only the information you want spread. Social media is really good at that part. "5 Ways Small Business Owners Can Stay on Top This Year
"Hi Bri, These are all great suggestions and though some of 'em may not seem that revolutionary, the challenge is to take everyone of these ideas to the next level in your business this year. Thanks to Cate Costa for sharing this awesome post via BizSugar."Do Small Businesses Need Social Media Policies?
"Hi Debbie, To add just one qualifier to your comments here, I would say that, for some of your employees sharing socially will be the most natural thing in the world and you won't much need to encourage it. For others, it will be something they perhaps don't do so naturally and you may have to be a bit of a cheerleader. In either case, it's important not to create a social media policy so restrictive that employees are discouraged from sharing much of any value. By creating too restrictive a policy, will shoot yourself in the foot and destroy any chance you have of developing a vibrant social media outreach. Instead, create a culture that encourages the sharing you would like to see. That's the best kind of social media policy any company could hope for. Thanks to Harry for sharing this post with the BizSugar community. "10 Reasons Why I Refuse to Follow You on Twitter
"Hi Jenn, Well, I have to admit I haven't seen too many bios with all hashtags. Maybe I don't get out enough. :) I would qualify #4 on your list by saying there is a natural ebb and flow of tweets, and that what I look for are accounts that have at least periods of activity. Natural sharing may not be a set number of times a day or week and sometimes people, including myself, like to unplug a bit. This said, I would add another point, those who tweet too often. A steady stream of tweets that overwhelm my feed and block out everyone else is a big turnoff. Maybe it's just me. It's kind of like being with someone who won't let anyone else get a word in edgewise."Subscribe
Celebrating Young Entrepreneurs on Lemonade Day
"Hi Martin, Thanks for the post on Lemonade Day, the power of entrepreneurship and the problem with too much regulation. It's one thing to provide regulations that protect citizens and quality of life, but when these regulations extend to preventing something as apparently harmless as a young person's lemonade stand on a day meant to celebrate entrepreneurship, perhaps things have gone too far. Thanks for sharing this post with the BizSugar community."