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One of the most exciting parts of starting your own business is picking a business name that illustrates who you are and what services you offer. This is called a DBA, or “doing business as” name, although you might also hear it referred to as a trade name, operating name, or assumed name. Basically, the name you choose will be your business’ pseudonym, even if you’re a business of one. And you’ll likely find that choosing a DBA offers big benefits from a marketing and mindset perspective. Do I need a DBA?Anybody can get a DBA (whether you’re a sole proprietor or an LLC). Although registering a DBA is not required for freelance business owners, having a DBA lets you conduct business under a different identity from your own personal name. You can actually register as many DBA as you’d like. For example, perhaps you’ve been signing contracts with your own name, but you want to call your business Wizard Skills Editing; that’s a DBA. Or maybe you initially registered your DBA as ABC Consulting LLC, but you since pivoted and you now want to go by a name that’s more reflective of your current service offerings, like Gorgeous Cakes Consulting; again, that new name is a DBA. Why is it a good idea to get a DBA?There are a lot of logistical benefits to filing for a DBA and separating yourself from your business. And having a DBA can allow you to use a name that might have already been taken by an LLC in your area; this is why you might see several businesses with similar names in your town. It’s worth noting, however, that a DBA doesn’t give you legal protection! Practically, having a DBA also allows clients to pay your company rather than you. If you have a Lili account, you can add your DBA to the account and therefore receive payments made to your business or to your name. And positioning an agreement as being between two business entities, rather than a company and a person, can also be more empowering from a negotiation standpoint. From a mindset perspective, you might also find enormous benefits in separating yourself from your business. First, even considering your freelance practices as a business can have the trickle-down effect of taking the whole operation more seriously; you’re more likely to come up with a business plan, have intentional business practices, and create a business infrastructure. When you speak about your work with other people, having a business name can make the whole thing feel more legitimate. It can also help you position your business better online – when a potential client searches your business name, Google will more likely direct them to your website, rather than your personal social media profile. You can also reposition your business over time by assigning a new DBA to your work; think of it as putting a new layer of paint on the business you’re already running. A DBA name can give clients direct information about what you do. (For example, Clean Plumbing gives clients more information than using your name.) And if you want to be seen as an agency or larger entity (even if you’re just an agency of one!), giving yourself an agency DBA name can assist with that framing during marketing conversations. Finally, a DBA can give you the flexibility to launch additional brands (or even just target different audiences) without starting another business; with a new name, the possibilities for flexibility are endless. How do I get a DBA?For most U.S. states, you’ll need to check if your intended name is available first, then you’ll file the necessary DBA forms (which can usually be found online via the Department of Revenue). You’ll also pay a small filing fee to receive a DBA certificate. It’s worth noting that having a DBA doesn’t require paying extra taxes; your business will continue to function as it has been, just with a shiny new name! And there’s no limit to the number of DBAs you can have. There are now plenty of websites out there that can help you with the paperwork, like LegalZoom or Swyftfiling. But if you don’t want to pay an additional fee, you can also easily do it yourself on your state’s Department of Treasury or Revenue website. Just google: register dba [state], scroll past the ads, and find the website ending in dot gov. How to pick a good business nameFirst, brainstorm key phrases, words, or concepts related to your business. Think about the structure you want your business to have and what unique offerings you have for your clients. Second, weed through that brainstorm list and pick out favorite phrases or concepts. Riff on those key concepts on another page — and remember, hard-to-spell names can be tough for people to remember! Third, pick your top few business names and run them through the ringer: Does the name limit your business in some way, or is it expansive? Does it tell people what you do? Is it easy to remember, and something you can live with for some time? You can also ask family and friends to weigh in. Ultimately, there’s no right answer, but picking a DBA name for your business can be a deeply creative process that helps you clue into your intuition about where you want to go and who you want to work with. Choose wisely and have fun in the process! via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/31/what-is-a-dba-and-how-do-i-get-one/
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Forget email etiquette. It's not about manners. It's about clear communication. Fortunately, if you follow the suggestions below, virtually all email etiquette requirements will be met. While not an exhaustive list, these 10 recommendations will greatly improve the quality of your email communications. In most cases, the suggestions presented below can be applied to both one-to-one interactions as well as group emails. If you already use these techniques, consider this validation that you know what you're doing: 1. ParagraphsWhat a concept. While most emails tend to be short, some people write unrelieved blocks of text, skipping from idea to idea in one long text box. Not only is this hard to read, it's difficult to give a coherent, complete response.
2. Bullets and numbersThe best way to express multiple concepts is to list them rather than just include them in a series in an ordinary sentence.
3. Reread or regretIt's better to take the time to review what you just wrote before you send it rather than try to repair the consequences of a regrettable blunder in grammar or content.
4. Change the subjectHave you ever engaged in an ongoing email thread with a subject line like "apple pie," but after a few exchanges you're actually discussing car batteries?
5. Did you get it, did you read it?Sometimes, you have a serious need to know if/when an email is delivered – and if/when it's been read.
6. Reply … all?In a one-to-many email, do you reply to the sender or to everyone on the address list? That depends. Does everybody on the list need to see your response? Many of us have inboxes in permanent overload. Be considerate. Don’t send a Reply All response when only the sender needs to see your response. 7. Embed yourselfWhen replying to an email that rambles from point to point, say something at the top of your response like, "Answers embedded below."
8. Mirroring and modelingSometimes it's useful to mirror the writing style of your correspondent, and sometimes you have to model the proper way to communicate. Mirroring is a form of bonding with your correspondent; modeling is a form of instructing by example. It can be a subtle power struggle.
9. KISS - Keep it short and simpleWe live in an era of information overload. Email boxes can fill up quickly. People don’t want to read long emails. Quite often, they don’t, or they bail out before finishing, which can lead to misunderstandings and outright failures to communicate. If you have a lot to say, it’s advisable to warn your recipient in advance that they’re in for a long read. Sometimes, it’s better to convert a long email into an attached document and call your recipient’s attention to the attachment. 10. Time bombEver sent an email only to instantly regret it? Perhaps you just left something out or forgot to attach the file. Worse, maybe you said or sent something in response to the sender that you regret, or even worse yet, you hit Reply All. Some email programs let you set a time-delay on the send operation, anywhere from one minute to 30 minutes or even let you schedule when email gets sent. Some people find this send-delay function quite useful. If you don’t have the delay option, see #3 on this list. All of the above are best-practice suggestions. Of course, if you work in or with an organization that has email guidelines that contradict anything written here, it's usually best to follow those guidelines. From smoke signals and drum beats to thoughtfully written letters penned in elegant cursive on linen stationery to semi-literate, emoji-laden text messages demanding your immediate attention on your cell phone right now, the nature of human communication continues to evolve. For now, at least, email seems to be the preferred medium for general personal, professional and business correspondence. I hope these suggestions help you clean up and clear up your email communication, because after all, that’s just good etiquette. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/26/common-sense-emails-beyond-etiquette/
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(Art credit: Pedro Gomes) This article was first published by the IRS and has been reproduced with permission. Subscribe to IRS tax tips here. The home office deduction allows qualified taxpayers to deduct certain home expenses when they file taxes. To claim the home office deduction on their 2021 tax return, taxpayers generally must exclusively and regularly use part of their home or a separate structure on their property as their primary place of business. Here are some details about this deduction to help taxpayers determine if they can claim it:
The term "home" for purposes of this deduction:
Generally, there are two basic requirements for the taxpayer's home to qualify as a deduction:
via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/25/how-to-claim-the-home-office-tax-deduction/
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(Art credit: Sisi Recht, "Balance") This post is sponsored by our partner Lively. Take a free online hearing test and get 15% off Lively's hearing aids and telecare for yourself or friends and family with Freelancers Union's member discount. In January 2020, I made an unusual resolution, one that wasn’t optimized for SEO’s top searchable best ways to a new you. I made a promise to myself that I was finally going to get my hearing checked. Despite my fastidiousness about standard well checks and ensuring all were routinely taken care of for my son and husband, I had let concerns about the sharpness of one of my five senses fade into the abyss of the bottom of my to do list. With my 40th birthday barely in the rear-view mirror, I was in partial denial because I’m “still young-ish” and because I could “hear just fine,” experiencing minor auditory challenges in loud restaurants, when water was running and people were talking, at certain conference venues, and when my husband mumbled at me from another room. None of this meant that I had hearing issues. It was just a sign that I no longer belonged in establishments that offered 25-cent pitchers of anything and that event organizers should provide sharper PA systems. However, leading up to this decision there were other signs that led me to believe I was struggling with hearing loss. As a young child, the breeze from my bedroom window enveloped summer accompanied by a soundtrack of cricket wings chirping. Nearly three decades later, I listened to the same sounds, only these crickets were named “tinnitus” and lived in my head. This time, however, the setting was my apartment in Chicago and any sort of nature sounds were at best the alley rats in search of leftover deep dish pizza crusts. Sometimes the crickets in my ears were louder than others. Too much caffeine, not enough sleep. It was the same ringing that I heard over the years after both performing and enjoying countless evenings of live music. Little did I know that the crickets in my ears combined with increased troubles understanding certain consonants, were a signal that my hearing was declining. Unlike a pain in your mouth where a toothache manifests or perhaps a headache triggered by vision loss—hearing loss can be subtle, gradual, and opaque. In addition to the ringing, I would mishear the name Cody as Coby. I also noticed that the volume was always turned up on my phone, and when watching television with others, I missed bits and pieces because the sound wasn’t loud enough for me. Despite once having “perfect pitch,” it turns out my ears needed some help. So, back to my resolution. It might have taken nearly two decades of noticing and dismissing signs of hearing loss, but this was the year I was finally going to do something. Just to check and ensure everything was OK. And because multiple members of my family had now commented recently when I asked them to repeat themselves multiple times, missed parts of conversations, combined with my own self-reflection, I felt it was time to find out what was really happening in my ears. Turns out that the reason that I struggled to hear in certain settings — loud restaurants, when multiple conversations were happening simultaneously— was due to the fact that I had untreated high-frequency sensorineural hearing loss, which is a pretty common issue. Although my perception was that I could hear sound in most situations, I struggled to understand certain words. All of those years in the front row near the speakers had finally caught up to me. The upside was that I learned that this type of loss could be addressed with hearing aids which were now state-of-the-art bluetooth-enabled, discreet medical devices. Now that I knew my diagnosis and the benefits that I would receive by treating my loss, I was ready to proceed with hearing aids. I nearly fell out of my chair when my audiologist told me that hearing aids were going to cost $5,000 for a pair plus the fitting and follow up appointments. I share all of this with you for a few reasons. 1) Hearing loss is invisible. You can’t tell that someone is hearing impaired by looking at them, and it can be challenging to self-diagnose because you might be able to hear in certain situations but not in others. 2) There are barriers to treating hearing loss. There are 38 million people in the United States with hearing loss, and only 20% actually do anything about it. It’s expensive and time-consuming to access care through traditional channels. 3) Freelancers Union is announcing a new hearing care benefit! Freelancers Union is partnering with Lively to offer you (and your friends and family) access to a significant discount on Lively’s premium hearing aids and included hearing care (already priced thousands less than $5,000!) that you can access via telehealth from your couch. Learn more about the partnership here. Eva Gabel Sippola is the Strategic Channel Lead for Partnerships at Lively Hearing Corporation. She has spent thousands of hours exposed to loud music of all genres, including training for multiple marathons accompanied by headphones with the volume cranked up (oops). She proudly wears hearing aids and now uses noise protection when enjoying live music. Her past freelance experience includes grant writing for nonprofit organizations. Lively hearing aids are not appropriate for children under 18 years of age, and may not be appropriate for certain types of hearing loss. Visit the Lively website for more information about eligibility, products, returns and warranties. Freelancers Union receives marketing fees from Lively. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/24/make-a-new-ears-resolution/
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(Art credit: Andrea Hernandez, "The Perks of Quarenteen") This article is posted with permission from our partner Lili. Get the digital bank account designed for freelancers with Lili and manage your business expenses, estimate your taxes, and save for a rainy day all with zero account fees. Start a Lili account today. As freelancers, we often get so caught up in the busyness of client work that we forget (or run out of time!) to work on ourselves. But self-reflection is an essential step to ensuring you can continue showing up and putting in your best work. As you head into the new year, take some time to sit with yourself and reflect on where you are right now, both professionally and personally — and where you want to be. Not sure where to start? Here are seven reflection questions that will help you slow down, recharge, and get inspired for the new year ahead! 1. What Inspires Me to Be Creative?Sure, creativity sometimes comes like a bolt of lightning. But it can also be manufactured. Think back on the times you’ve felt most inspired to create something. Were there any common factors? Maybe most of those occurrences happened at a particular time of day, or after you completed a particular routine. Maybe you were listening to a certain type of music — or no music at all. Whatever the case, once you’ve identified your muse (or muses), use that knowledge to set yourself a “getting into the creating zone” ritual. Don’t just sit there waiting for inspiration to show up — discipline it into appearing on command. 2. What Kind of Work Excites Me?Obviously, we all have to do some work that we just don’t enjoy. Freelancing isn’t always going to be fun and exciting, or even interesting. That’s life. But some kinds of work will light you up even on your worst days, and that’s work you should be pursuing as much as possible. Just as you shouldn’t expect all of your work to be fun, you also shouldn’t force yourself to only do work that bores you. You have a lot of freedom as a freelancer to pick the kinds of clients you work with and the type of work you focus on, so use it! 3. When Do I Feel My Happiest?Try approaching this question in a similar way as the creativity one. In general, what kinds of activities or experiences precede most of your happy feelings? Getting things done? Talking to a friend? Kicking back with some Taco Bell and an episode of Parks and Rec? How can you consciously incorporate little moments of happiness throughout your day? Again, you aren’t going to feel happy 100% of the time. But happiness, like creativity, can sometimes be summoned. You just might have to train yourself how to summon it. 4. What Do I Need to Hear Daily?If you aren’t used to taking care of your needs first, this one might be a little difficult to answer. But trust us, it’s worth figuring out. If you’re struggling, try thinking about it backwards. What are some things you’ve heard from people around you that made you feel great? That energized and motivated you to keep going, or helped ease your tension? Then, once you know what you need to hear, communicate that to the people you need to hear it from. 5. What Do I Do Best?Chances are you already have your elevator pitch down. You know what services you offer and what kind of people you help. But your skills and talents extend beyond your professional offerings. Are you a good listener? Do you love making people laugh? Do you have a particular knack for managing your time or finding unique solutions to complex problems? How can you use those specialties to enhance your offerings and make your own life easier and more enjoyable? via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/21/7-questions-to-ask-yourself-to-do-your-best-work-this-year/
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(Art credit: Kathryn Sheldon) A few weeks ago, we discussed the importance of knowing what a CRM system is and how you can pair it with your email marketing to make the best of both functions. Today, we'll do a deep dive into the benefits and features of CRM email marketing, and inspire you to get started on optimizing your email and CRM function. Keep reading to find out more! Benefits of integrating CRM and emailLet’s take a look at some of the main benefits that come with integrating CRM and email. Some of these might be more helpful depending on what kind of small business you run and whether you have a dedicated sales and marketing team. Centralized DatabaseWith CRM software, all relevant customer data is stored in a single location. This makes it much easier for anyone in your organization to access it whenever they require it. Important trends and patterns also become more evident when large amounts of data are stored and viewed holistically. Integration with Marketing ChannelsA good CRM software is usually integrated with marketing channels and tools, allowing you to use the stored data and customer insights in actual tasks. See the Big PictureWhen all the data is in one place, it’s easier to see what’s working, why it works, and what needs improvement. You can also try out new strategies and see how they work in a more holistic view. Targeted CampaignsNo more generic blanket campaigns. Now that you have customer information and contact details, coupled neatly with the individual customer data, you can begin focusing your campaigns on specific audiences for better results. This is one of the main benefits of small businesses coupling a CRM software with an email marketing tool. Important features of CRM email marketingThere are several important features that CRM email marketing presents. Some of these are: Lead NurturingTo nurture a lead essentially means you develop and work on your relationship with your customer through their journey, at every stage in the sales funnel. No matter where you source your leads, this ensures you develop an actual relationship with your customer base and generates loyalty down the line. AutomationA good CRM software will allow you to automate things like lead scoring as well as several other tasks that involve customer data. A good sales management tool with powerful marketing automation allows you to free up your time to do more important work. You no longer have to manually complete tasks. Bulk EmailA good email marketing tool will allow you to send out mass emails with a single click. This saves you hours of time. Note, however, that this is only for emails that have information that everyone needs to see, like a seasonal sale or discount. You don’t want to be sending out mass emails all the time, instead, you want to be personalizing and picking specific customers from your target audience. Engagement TrackingDon't waste your time on a strategy that isn’t working. By tracking engagement, you can see how many people are clicking your links and opening your mails, and decide accordingly if your strategy is working. Drip CampaignsYou ideally want to set up automated emails that get sent out to your customers based on certain triggers, which can be actions they perform. For example, if they were about to buy something but left the store, you can remind them that their cart is waiting for them via email. AnalyticsYou want a steady stream of customer data coming in at all times. Your marketing channels or campaigns should be decided on customer information. As small businesses have smaller budgets, you need to ensure that you’re making more data-driven decisions and focusing on the right marketing channels. How to combine CRM and email marketingThe oldest and most tried-and-tested way of combining CRM and email marketing is by importing all the data you have on your customers and then setting up an automated email marketing campaign based on the data and information you have collected. After this, you can segment and optimize your emails with more personalization added in for better results. When you’re collecting high volumes of data, you need to be categorizing and storing it efficiently and segmenting. By combining CRM with email marketing, you essentially are giving yourself a recipe for success because you’re boosting your chances of making a serious impact on your customers with your emails. It’s worth considering taking the time to integrate third-party apps into your emails so that you can embed email forms and other social media features into the already personalized emails you’re sending out to your clients. Create and Nurture Lifelong Customer RelationshipsBy now, you know all the benefits of combining CRM tools with email marketing. To put into perspective why you want to be building and maintaining lifelong relationships with customers, remember one little statistic. It’s about 5 to 25 times more expensive - depending on your industry - to acquire a new customer than it is to retain an existing one. When you look at things from this point of view, it’s a no-brainer. You want to be doing everything in your power to retain the existing customers you have and make them lifelong loyal customers. Combining an email marketing tool with your CRM tool is a great way to make the process easier. Not only will it allow for marketing automation, optimization, and using your email as a CRM repository, it will also save huge amounts of time for you as a business that you can use to double down on areas that help you stay ahead of the competition. At the end of the day, you need to be doing everything in your power to grow and add value, and this is the first and most important step. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/20/optimize-your-customer-email-for-bigger-better-wins/
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(Art credit: Karen Fischer, "Mountains") The gig economy is gearing up, and if you have been a freelancer for any length of time, you are helping to drive it forward. Congratulations on your success! However, it is critical not to lose sight of the tax obligations that come with operating as an independent contractor or freelancer in the gig economy, otherwise what is now a lucrative and enjoyable business can turn into a headache and significant stressor. To avoid this pain, you need to have your tax obligations in order. Whether your gig economy income is your side hustle or full-time income, the ideal time to start managing your freelance tax obligations is right now as you prepare to file your 2021 taxes for your freelance business. This 2021 tax year checklist for freelance and gig economy businesses will help you simplify your tax return preparation and position yourself for success in 2022: 1) Accept the fact that all gig work is taxable. Earnings from gig economy work are taxable, regardless of whether you receive a Form 1099-NEC or not from the clients you work with. This means some gig workers will now receive an information return. This is true even if the work is full-time, part-time or if an individual is paid in cash. 2) Claim all your business income. This includes any payments received through Venmo, PayPal, Facebook, and other peer-to-peer platforms. For 2022, the reporting requirement for issuance of Form 1099-K for payment cards and third-party network transactions has changed for payments received in 2022 to totals exceeding $600, regardless of the total number of transactions. 3) Pay the right amount of taxes throughout the year. If you are solely self-employed, then it is up to you to stay on top of quarterly estimated tax payments. Remember, even as a part-time gig worker, you are required to make quarterly estimated income tax payments and pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. Which brings us to the next point… 4) Make sure your clients classify use the correct worker classification. While providing gig economy services, it is important that you are correctly classified by your clients. This means that any business you work for must determine whether you are providing services as an employee or independent contractor. This is a critical distinction because the tax reporting and payment obligations are quite different. A breakdown of how to tell if you are classified correctly can be found here. 5) Keep your tax and business records updated. As an independent contractor, you may be able to deduct business expenses, such as home office space, supplies, equipment, mileage, and more, however it is critical to keep records of these deductions so you can file your taxes accurately and in case the IRS ever audits you. 7) Get some good advice. In addition to doing your own due diligence using the IRS website to learn more about your freelance business and gig economy tax responsibilities, make sure you reach out early and often to a CPA or tax preparer if you have questions or need assistance filing your gig economy taxes. The expertise and current tax knowledge these professionals have may help you save considerable time and money while also ensuring that you stay in compliance with your obligations as a business owner. The tax filing window is opening January 24, 2022, if you make a move now to get your tax documentation and seek professional help if needed, you’ll be all set to file early to give yourself the best possible chance of expediting any refund you may be owed and eliminating the chance that you do not meet the deadline or documentation requirements for tax year 2021. Jonathan Medows is a New York City-based CPA who specializes in taxes and business issues for freelancers and self-employed individuals across the country. He provides tax, accounting, and business articles for freelancers on his website, http://www.cpaforfreelancers.com, which also features a free newsletter, blog, and comprehensive freelance tax guide. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/19/the-freelancers-guide-to-gig-economy-taxes/
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(Art credit: Pedro Gomes) This article is posted with permission from our partner TaxAct. File your freelance taxes with confidence using TaxAct’s easy-to-use tax software. Freelancers Union members get 25% off the cost of federal and state tax filing. Freelancing brings a lot of great benefits to the table. You get to control your own schedule. You can charge what you want for your services. You can work from practically anywhere. Yet, being a freelancer also comes with its own set of challenges. One of those challenges is something that everyone dreads: taxes. What’s So Different about Taxes for Freelancers?Regardless of whether you’re self-employed as a freelancer or working in the corporate world, you must pay taxes. The main change (and the change that scares people the most) is that no one will withhold your taxes for you. Consider the last paycheck you received from an employer. Your paystub showed you how much was withheld by the company for various federal and state taxes. So, the money you got in your paycheck was yours (until it’s time to pay the bills!). As a freelancer, you get paid from a client (or clients), and taxes aren’t removed from it. It feels like you’re getting a big, fat raise. However, quarterly or yearly, you’ll still need to pay federal and state taxes on that money. And unfortunately, it’s up to you to figure out exactly how much money to withhold and pay in. Get a Handle on Your Taxes from the Start of Your Freelancing CareerChoose the Best Legal Structure for Your BusinessSelf-employment taxes can change depending on how your business is structured. What does that mean for you? It means that if you start as a sole proprietor, your tax situation is different than someone who registers their business as a pass-through entity like an S corporation. The good news is figuring out which business entity will best affect your taxes isn’t very difficult. You can research on your own, talk to a lawyer, or talk to an accountant. Paying money to a lawyer or an accountant may seem expensive, but it helps protect your business in the long run. You can also write it off. The 1099-MISC and YouThink back to your days as an employee. Remember how you’d get a W-2 at the end of every tax year? A W-2 tells you how much you made during the tax year and the amount you paid in for both federal and state taxes. You then use that information to file your tax return. As a freelancer, you don’t get a W-2. So, what do you get? At the beginning of every tax year, your clients should ask you to complete Form W-9. A W-9 provides them the information they need to complete Form 1099-MISC. If you earn at least $600 from a client, you should receive a 1099-MISC. That’s true for every client that pays you $600 or more in a tax year. They should mail that form to you by the end of January of the following tax year. For instance, if you made $1,200 from a client during 2017, you should have received Form 1099-MISC from them by the end of January 2018. The 1099-MISC is like a W-2 for freelancers. It shows you the total that you earned, and it shows any withholdings (such as backup withholdings) made by the client who paid you. Remember, it is not the responsibility of the client to withhold taxes on your behalf. You need to pay taxes on what you’ve earned. Separately, if you hired a subcontractor to help with various projects for your freelance business throughout the year, you may be on the hook to issue a Form 1099-MISC as well. For instance, say you hired a photographer to take pictures for your website or social media accounts. If you paid that photographer more than $600, you have to issue him or her a 1099-MISC reporting that payment since their work is used for business purposes. Put Back 25 percent of Your Earnings for TaxesThe general rule is to save around 25 percent of your freelance earnings so you have enough money for taxes. Of course, how much you need to set aside depends on the tax bracket you fall into because of your income. It can be hard to determine what you’ll make for the first year or two of freelancing. It also depends on whether you’re filing as single or married. Calculate your tax bracket here. Get the Right Bookkeeping SoftwareOne of the easiest (and cheapest) ways to get a handle on your taxes as a freelancer is to choose and use the right bookkeeping software. It’s much easier to take care of your taxes if you faithfully record what you’re making and spending on your business. You can run specialized reports and compare them to your receipts and to the 1099-MISC forms you’ve received before preparing to file your taxes. Bookkeeping software is inexpensive and can save you a giant headache. Do Your Taxes Before They’re DueYou are encouraged to file your taxes by the tax season deadline. And remember, if you don’t file your taxes on time, you are subject to late filing penalties by the IRS. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/17/get-a-handle-on-your-freelance-taxes/
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(Art credit: Sisi Recht, "Reading Rainbow") Your website can become a great tool to attract new clients and build your brand. Instead of relying on freelance marketplaces and competing with a pool of other freelancers, create your website to stand out from the competition and even set higher rates. While launching a personal website can be beneficial for your small freelance business, there are certain situations when building one can be a bad idea. In this article, we will help you understand when it is the right moment to invest both your time and money in creating one and the benefits standing behind this process. Reasons for creating a freelance websiteBefore we describe the situations when creating a website can be detrimental for your freelance business, let’s first understand why so many freelancers want to build a website in the first place. 1. Build more trustA personal website can become a tool to build trust with future clients. You can integrate social proof elements such as testimonials, awards badges, or case studies. For example, you can place customer testimonials in the form of text or video on your main page. You can also go the extra mile and prepare interviews with your customers, record videos, and then transcribe them. Well-written case studies can establish even more trust with the leads who consider working with you. Check out how a freelance SEO consultant, George Papatheodorou, uses testimonials on his website. Source: George Papatheodorou 2. Show your portfolioYour website can help convince clients to work with you by showing your previous work, achieved results, and helping them learn more about what type of clients you work with and your way of work. For example, to become a digital marketer with a pretty full diary and an influx of new clients, you have to show the results behind your work (an achieved ROI on ad spend). If you are a copywriter, linking to your previous articles on the portfolio page can be a good idea as well. Behance is an example of a website that gives graphic designers all the necessary tools to create and publish their portfolios online. Source: Behance While it’s easy to publish a portfolio on Behance, this website remains a big marketplace with the rampant competition. That’s why you should publish your portfolio on your website and optimize it for SEO. This way, you can stand out from other freelancers in your field. Check out how Lesley Vos shows her copywriting work using the Contently tool. Such tools make it easy for clients to find influential bloggers and copywriters as they are SEO-optimized. Source: Contently 3. Stand out from the competitorsFreelance marketplaces are a great starting point for freelancers who are just starting and want to grow their portfolio from zero. Some think of freelance marketplaces as a place where they can get a logo or website designed for a reasonable price. When starting using freelance marketplaces, freelancers usually offer the lowest prices just to get their first gigs. Over time, they can increase their rates as they get more positive reviews and more requests for work. However, even with dozens of positive testimonials, you will appear in search results with hundreds of other talented freelancers who have also worked out good reviews. For example, by searching for a graphic designer on Upwork, I have ended up with thousands of freelance profiles just for one location. Also, when getting clients through a marketplace, you will always have to work through a middleman. Freelance marketplaces often place strict rules as to how one can cooperate with freelancers. Your client would have to pay huge fines when working with you directly, trying to avoid the commissions of a freelance marketplace. By developing your website and helping your potential clients to find you online directly, you can avoid competition. As a result, it gives you more space to set higher rates and charge more for your skills and expertise. 4. Diversify your client acquisition channelsIf you have one major channel for client acquisition you can start to drive more projects, by creating a website and positioning it in Google search results. For example, if you get new projects only through client referrals, you can get a few extra projects every month through your website contact form. Having a few channels that bring new projects is a great way to keep your freelance revenue stable. If one channel underperforms this month, the other one can cover the difference in workload. When building a website is a bad ideaHowever, in some situations, building a website might not be the right thing for you. So when is building a website a bad idea? Let’s look at the most popular reasons against creating a personal website. 1. You should focus on sales firstIf you don’t have clients now or are just starting as a freelancer, it’s worth focusing on getting your first gigs instead of focusing on creating your website. For example, you could start by posting on a freelance marketplace or work out your first portfolio project for friends or family at a reduced price. Building a website involves some costs such as hosting, graphic design, personal website templates, or development work. It also takes time to position in Google search results. Your website is a long-term project that won’t likely bring results right away. Without a steady income, it might be difficult to build a decent one. 2. You don’t have a strategy to promote itWebsite development doesn’t stop at setting your website live. To get some traffic, you have to focus on at least three activities – SEO optimization, paid ads, and social media. If you are strong in SEO, you can work on optimizing on-site and off-site SEO, so your website shows higher in search results. To use paid ads (Facebook or Google Ads), you have to dedicate a certain budget to this activity and know how to set ads up and optimize them over time. To get some reach on social media, you have to know how to distribute content effectively so it turns up in the social media feeds of your potential clients more often. Here is how Brian Dean from Backlinko is using social media to get clients to visit his page. With an effective distribution strategy, he has managed to drive loads of comments, reactions, and shares. Source: Facebook 3. You haven’t nailed your clientele just yetBefore you even get down to creating a website copy and choosing a website template, you have to know who you are creating the website for. It’s a good idea to position yourself as an expert in the field working for companies of a certain profile. For example, you can direct your message to corporate clients or startups from the tech field. Both will expect a different story from your website and skills and experience from you as a freelancer. When you assemble your portfolio page, you have to select the projects that would resonate with your ideal customer persona. For example, if you know your most profitable clients are those from the pharmaceutical field, you should showcase more projects you have done for this industry. 4. You are planning to do it halfwaySome freelancers create some websites just to have one. Often, they are slow one-pagers that contain general information with fake testimonials and a contact form that doesn’t work properly. A weak website can turn clients away and even hurt your reputation. Imagine a developer’s website showing a 404 error or loading indefinitely. Would you trust them to build your website? Running your website is a part of online reputation management. It can help build trust with clients or kill it. That’s why if you are planning to do it halfway, it’s better to focus on current projects more and save more money to build a professional website in the future. Building a professional website is also about dedicating time to research and choosing the right technology solution. While some freelancers choose to go with WordPress CMS, it might turn out that it’s not be perfect for you. If you are a developer specializing in the Vue framework, it can be a good idea to showcase your Vue development skills by creating your website in this technology. In this case, it’s worth spending some time on finding a good VueJS admin template before proceeding with development. If you are developing Shopify or Shopify Plus websites, you should also spend some time showcasing them on your portfolio page. Summing it all upTo sum up, building a good website is all about having the right resources – time and money. You have to invest both if you want to make the right impression on your clients. Sometimes, it simply doesn’t make any sense to create a website if you don’t have resources or have to focus on other things to grow your freelance career. It’s important to know when it’s the right time to start building a website and when you don’t need one just yet. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/13/does-every-freelancer-need-a-website/
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(Art credit: Pedro Gomes) You quit your salaried job to become a full-time freelancer. Hooray! You’re the boss of your own time and your business. Now you have a lot going on, from handling clients to managing the projects you choose to work on. But wait, there’s bookkeeping! You know fellow freelancers who sort their paperwork by name, type, and date and think, meh, they’re just strange souls who value rigid order rather than maximizing their creative time. So, you pull out a shoebox and throw in all your receipts, bank statements, deposit slips, and invoices. That should work, right? Until it doesn’t. Why? Because “shoebox bookkeeping”:
Bookkeeping doesn’t have to be a time-consuming chore. You can automate the process and level up your tax and financial game in an efficient and scalable way. But first, let’s see how bookkeeping can add value to your business. Why bookkeeping is importantIt’s easy to think that bookkeeping matters just for taxes. Er, kinda, but it’s more than that. Bookkeeping is the record-keeping arm of your business that provides a paper trail of your money, so you know how much you made and spent. Here are several reasons bookkeeping should be a priority:
See? Bookkeeping is a lifesaver for your freelance business. Now let’s explore how technology can help you automate this tedious, headache-inducing, yet unavoidable task. How technology can help your bookkeepingYou’re a freelancer, not an accountant. So, you may not have all the skills needed to crunch numbers, compile financial documents, and make decisions from them. You could hire someone to do the bookkeeping and other tasks beyond the basics. However, many bookkeepers charge hourly, which becomes an extra expense. You can do your bookkeeping, cut costs, and save hundreds of dollars with cloud accounting software. But don’t take our word for it. Here’s how such tools can help you automate your bookkeeping. Bank syncingCloud accounting software is your ally: It’s user-friendly and integrates with your banking for easier record-keeping. You no longer need to go line by line through bank statements and then enter that data into a ledger or spreadsheet — it’s unnecessary and time-consuming. The software connects directly to your bank account and downloads transactions and key information like dates, amounts, and descriptions from the bank into the program. Your part is to tell the tool who you paid or who paid you. No more typing a bunch of numbers or information — just enter the payee’s name and income/expense category, and you’re done. Cloud accounting software can remember your spending patterns and enter payees or categories for you. But you’ll still need to review what the tool does just to confirm that everything is correct and adjust where necessary. Don’t struggle to key in your transactions into a spreadsheet or ledger manually each month. Switch to a cloud accounting tool and shave off hours, automate bank syncing, and reduce your stress levels. H3: Digital invoicing and collecting paymentsHere’s what invoicing used to look like for many freelancers:
Sounds familiar? That’s the old manual way of invoicing, which was time-consuming, tedious, and prone to errors. But it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. You can automate how you bill your clients and collect payments directly from the invoice and into your bank account with cloud accounting software. Just enter the service you’re billing for, quantity, and your rate — the software will do all the math for you. Once you hit send, your client will receive a digital invoice via email, and they can view and pay for it online. A recent study by Wave, a cloud-based accounting software, found that enabling instant electronic payment increases getting paid on time by over 15%. Automating the invoicing and payment collection saves you and your clients the hassle of creating invoices, writing checks, and depositing them manually. The software keeps tabs on unpaid/overdue, open, and paid invoices. It’s practically impossible for any invoice to slip through the cracks. Oh, and you can send invoice payment reminders with just one click. Expense trackingThe more you automate your bookkeeping, the more time you’ll have to focus on your client’s projects. Cloud accounting software integrates with other apps that automate and simplify your expense tracking so you can:
The result: Reduced admin work, cost savings, and you stay on budget, too. Make bookkeeping work for youAs a freelancer, getting paid is one of your top concerns, no matter how many clients you have. Bookkeeping helps you track your income and expenses so you can quickly see the state of your cash flow. If you find you run out of time for regular bookkeeping, automate the process and free yourself up to do more of what you love. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2022/01/12/how-to-automate-your-bookkeeping/ |
AuthorI have 5+ years experience working as a medical transcriptionist. When I am not working, I enjoy sports like playing basketball or judo. I love making friends and connections. Archives
April 2023
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