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Is it Time to Incorporate?
For those who have been running a sole proprietorship and looking to protect their assets from others as your business starts to grow, you may want to consider incorporating. Incorporating means changing the legal structure of your business to an LLC or an S Corporation. The main benefits of incorporating are protecting your personal assets from creditors and tax flexibility. You can gain corporate status while still having taxes pass through the company to your own personal income tax return. Read more

Owning a Small Business and Securing Retirement
According to a recent survey, only 45% of small business owners say that feel very or even fairly prepared for retirement. An ever increasing number of owners continue to are concerned about how they will fund the 'golden years', worrying that they will outlive the money they need to retire. As a result of longer life expectancies and the impact of the recession, the majority of small business owners can no longer embrace a traditional view of retirement and many plan on working 20 years or longer or perhaps never formally retiring. Read more

New from around the Web
A recent series of hacking attacks on companies such as Sony, Playstation and Google has caused many to reconsider switching to cloud computing, which refers to Internet-based computing. Google invests $280 million in the San Fransisco residential solar startup, SolarCity, continuing their support of clean energy. Pandora Radio, the internet radio website which recommends music, has joined the public market. Its shares, however, like those of other Internet companies that have recently gone public, has fallen after a strong IPO. Read more

Banks only apply for less than half of SBLF
As a sign that banks are not yet willing to lend more money to small businesses, only half of the money in a $30 billion fund created by the Small Business Jobs Act has been applied for. A total of 847 banks have applied for $11.6 billion by the June 6 deadline. However, it is not only the banks that are still reluctant about increasing lending, small business owners themselves are not yet ready to take on more debt, especially in this uncertain economy.

VoIP for Small Businesses
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a technology that has been on the market for a number of years now, yet a number of businesses are not ready to make the switch. VoIP refers to Internet-based communications services, in which you can make phone calls via the Internet. Not only will using VoIP decrease your monthly expenses, the number of extra features that often come with a VoIP service, can offer more ways for you and your employees to stay connected. Read more