Getting Started
Your first steps into online business: choosing a model, setting up, and making your first sale without wasting months.
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Free Help for Your Side Business: SCORE, SBDCs and Other SBA Resource Partners
The SBA lists free or low-cost advisors for new business owners. Here is what SCORE, SBDCs and other partners offer and how…
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The Minimum Setup for a Side Business: Domain, One Page and a Way to Get Paid
You do not need a full website to start. Here is the minimum setup for your first 90 days: a domain, one…
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Side Business Taxes 101: Schedule C, Self-Employment Tax and Estimated Payments
Your side income is taxable from the first dollar. Here’s a plain-English guide to Schedule C, the 15.3% self-employment tax, the $400…
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How to Choose a Business Name Without Trademark Trouble
A good name is easy to say, easy to spell and not already someone else’s trademark. Here is a simple four-step check…
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Open a Separate Account for Your Side Business: Why and How
Mixing side-business money with personal money makes taxes and tracking harder than they need to be. Here’s why to separate them, what…
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How to Find Your First Customer Before You Have an Audience
You don’t need followers to make your first sale. Here’s a step-by-step way to find, talk to and serve your first paying…
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Read Your Employment Agreement Before You Launch a Side Business
Your day job pays the bills while your side business grows. A 30-minute review of your employment paperwork helps make sure the…
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What It Actually Costs to Start an Online Business on the Side
A lean online business can start for less than most ads suggest. Here’s a realistic minimum setup with prices checked in October…
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Write a One-Page Business Plan for Your Side Business
You don’t need a 30-page document to start. A one-page plan based on the SBA’s lean startup format forces the decisions that…
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Do You Need an LLC Before Your First Sale?
Forming an LLC can wait for many low-risk side businesses, but not for all of them. Here is how to think through…
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