Launching & Building a Brand For Dummies. Amy Will
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Название: Launching & Building a Brand For Dummies

Автор: Amy Will

Издательство: John Wiley & Sons Limited

Жанр: Малый бизнес

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isbn: 9781119748052

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СКАЧАТЬ C corporation (C corp for short) is separate from the owners and operators of the business and is subject to corporate taxes. Corporate taxation is a form of double taxation; your corporation pays taxes on its profit, and then you pay taxes on capital gains paid to you as a shareholder of the corporation. A C corp provides the strongest protections against the loss of an owner’s personal assets in the event of bankruptcy or lawsuits.

      S corporation

      An S corporation (S corp for short) is a simplified version of a C corp with lower costs to set up and manage. As such, it’s more attractive to smaller organizations. With an S corp, profits pass through the corporation to the owners, so it’s not susceptible to double taxation.

      Another key benefit is that as an owner, you can receive money from the corporation as employee pay or as dividends paid to investors. The money you take out in pay is subject to income tax and self-employment tax, whereas the money you receive in distributions is taxed at capital-gains rates (typically lower than income tax rates) and isn’t subject to self-employment tax.

      One important disadvantage of an S corp, compared with a C corp, is that an S corp can sell only up to 100 shares, which limits its ability to raise capital for growth by selling shares to investors.

      Registering your business

      Registering a business simply means establishing it as a bona fide entity with state and local licensing and taxing authorities. If you’re creating a personal brand as a sole proprietorship, registering may not be necessary (depending on the jurisdiction and nature of your business), but if you’re operating as a corporation, your business must be registered.

      

Check with your state, county, and municipal government organizations or a local branch of the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) to find out what you need to do in terms of registration and license for the type of business you’re starting.

      Registering a business name

      When you form a corporation or LLC, you choose a business name other than your name as part of the process. If you’re operating your business as a sole proprietorship, you have the option of using your name as the business name or choosing a DBA name.

      

Depending on the state or locale in which you do business, you may need to register your DBA with the secretary of state or another state agency. Alternatively, you may need to register with the county or municipality where you do business.

      Registering with taxing authorities

      If you operate as a sole proprietorship, you’ll use your Social Security number to pay federal, state, and local taxes. If you form a corporation or create a DBA, you register your business under a separate name and can then apply for an EIN to use when you pay your taxes or withhold and pay taxes for employees.

      Getting a license (or not)

      Depending on the location and nature of your business, you may need to be licensed to conduct business in a certain jurisdiction. Rules vary among states, counties, and municipalities. In most states, freelancers such as writers, editors, and graphic artists don’t need a license to do business, but if you plan on opening a restaurant or bricks-and-mortar retail store, or if you’re a building contractor or insurance agent, you’ll need a license. Again, check with your local SBA or secretary of state to determine licensing requirements.

      Getting a trademark, patent, or copyright

      If you’re creating something unique, you need to do more than register your business; you also need to register your ideas to protect your intellectual-property rights. Depending on what your “something unique” is, obtain a copyright (for books and other publications), patent (for inventions), or trademark (for a business or brand name, logo, or design). You may need all three.

      You can trademark, patent, or copyright your intellectual property yourself through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks) or hire an attorney to do the job for you. You can find plenty of law firms online that offer intellectual-property legal services. Just search the web for “how to” followed by “trademark,” “patent,” or “copyright” to pull up a list.

      

I cover this topic in greater detail in Chapter 19, but I mention it here because depending on your business and brand, it may be a crucial part of the getting-started process. You don’t want to come up with a multimillion-dollar idea only to have it stolen.

      Depending on the business/brand you’re building and launching, you may be able to work with on a shoestring budget of your own money, or you may need to find additional sources of cash. If you’re creating a personal brand to promote yourself as the world’s leading expert on raising chickens, you can probably do that (or at least start) with a website, blog, and podcast, which don’t require much money. By contrast, if you’re aiming to create your own clothing line or build an international dog-grooming franchise, you’ll need to scrounge up the money by recruiting partners, borrowing money (from individuals or banks), or selling shares in your company to investors.

      In this section, I introduce you to various sources of financing. But before you even think about exploring available financing options, create a budget so that you’ll know just how much money you’ll need.

      Budgeting for your business/brand

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