Intelligent Office University

5 Tactics That Could be Undermining Your Search Engine Optimization

7 Keys to Success at Equity Crowdfunding

Tax Strategies for Those Who Work Remotely

Unfortunately, the tax landscape isn't always so clear for remote workers, who draw income from multiple sources and work from multiple locations. To avoid potential penalties and limit your tax obligations, consider the following tax strategies for remote workers.

What You Need to Know About Insurance When You’re Self Employed

Gender Discrimination and Financing

The research findings are contradictory — some studies suggest that there’s no gender discrimination in business financing, while others crunch the numbers and see an obvious gap in funding and loan consideration.

Year End Checklist for your Business

At this time of the year, I regularly ask myself if I’ve done enough to prepare my business for the New Year. Having a To Do list can come in very handy: (1) Write down a list of your company’s major accomplishments for 2016, and be prepared to share them with your staff. (2) Write out your plans and goals for next year. (3) Create realistic budgets for 2017 if you work on a calendar year fiscal basis. (4) Look at your Income Statement. Where do you come out? If you have a sizable profit, can you make major purchases that can be depreciated? Do you have the cash available to do this? Talk to your accountant if you are not clear on depreciation rules. (5) Review your loans and clean them up if need be. (6) See that your 1099 information is set up correctly in your accounting software. If you don’t have the proper information from your vendors, ask for it now. You’ll be able to use it every year. (7) If you have employees or third party support, think about year-end bonuses or special gifts. (8) Look for fringe benefits you should report on W2s. Some examples are health and life insurance, employee loans you’ve forgiven, school reimbursement programs, and transportation subsidies. (9) Complete a physical inventory of your products and make adjustments in your accounting software. (10) Check all links on your website to make sure they are active.*

Check Up on Business Goals Before the Holidays

With more time to plan, small business owners can more accurately foresee what will need to be accomplished and how best to undertake it so that 2016 ends smoothly and 2017 will be even more successful.

6 Mistakes to Avoid in Your Writing

Modern entrepreneurs spend a lot of time pecking away at keyboards. Unfortunately, many undervalue the importance of well-written internal and external communications. From emails and blog posts to client proposals and reports for management, poor business writing can undermine your success.

7 Ways to Get More Traffic to your Webinar

Webinars are an excellent way to convert traffic and subscribers into paying customers. That said, they only work if people show up.

Protect Against a DDoS Attack

5 Tips for Successful Facebook Contests

While some business owners credit Facebook contests for increased customer engagement, others view them as time-consuming endeavors that simply don't work. In truth, these social media tactics can be either, depending on how they're set up.

5 Tips to Build your Company's Credit Rating

Unfortunately, it can be difficult for unproven enterprises to secure credit from risk-averse banking institutions. The following tips can pave a clearer path toward accessing credit lines for your business.

How to Create Ad Copy for Different Social Media Channels

With so many options, however, it's not always easy for business owners to craft quality, actionable content across multiple unique channels. To better tailor your social media ads, learn a few best practices for some of the most popular platforms.

Impact of Ad Blockers on Marketing Strategy

Ads have become the scourge of the Internet, especially in mobile, where limited screen size makes unwanted messages even more obtrusive. In turn, more and more users are adopting ad blocking technology that wipes away marketing clutter.

Is Great Customer Service the Best Policy

Guide to Growth Hacking

The Third Wave and How to Ride It

Steve Case, former CEO of America Online and former chairman of AOL-Time Warner, recently published his first book, The Third Wave: an Entrepreneur’s Vision of the Future. In it, he describes the first, second and third waves of Internet development and how he believes entrepreneurs should interact with the latest wave. 1985-1999 saw the laying of the foundation for the online world; from 2000-2015 we saw how search, social and ecommerce startups grew on top of the Internet; and 2016 onward is witnessing the beginning of the Internet of Everything --forget about the “Internet of Things”-- when ubiquitous connectivity allows entrepreneurs to transform major real-world sectors such as banking, food, education, and health care.