Matrix

what would my husband need to do to start his own business doing water heaters and maybe other plumbing? does he need a licence of some sort? he is not a certified plumber, how do you go about that? we live in cleveland,ohio area.

If the total cost of the installation is less than $750, he can just open today as a handyman. If the heaters will cost more, he needs to get licensed. Or he needs to work for someone who has a license as a contractor.
Buy a magnetic sign for the outside of your car.
Run some ads.
Work out of home until you get rolling.
Call a reporter for the local newspaper and ask if she will interview you about the new service you are offering.
Pay tax on your income.
Live happily ever after..

I would love it if I could start my own business. I am only 17 years old but I need a way to make money because of this bad economy, plus, I think it is something I would enjoy. I need information on how to get my own website, any idea for a website, how to design it, etc…
All help will be greatly appreciated, thanks!

Unfortunately, your age will be an issue. Until you reach the age of majority you cannot sign contracts – including the ones needed in acquiring a domain name, hosting services, and product.

If you have an adult such as a parent or guardian that is willing to pay you to run the business for them (again, as a minor you cannot be a partner, only an employee), the Yahoo stores are great for small businesses.

One issue to watch out is that even if you are an ‘online’ store, you still have to have your physical location registered with the local authorities – this includes a sales tax permit with the state, unsecured property tax with the county, and a business license with the city at the minimum. I would suggest you speak with a local CPA to verify what other entities you may need to be registered with.

My sister and I want to start our own small business on rescuing animals and I was wondering if there were any government grants out there for doing that to help you out. Thanks

You stand a greater chance of getting grants if you organize yourself as a non profit entity, and not as a small business.

It is hard to find grants to start a business. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business. And yes, grants mean PAPERWORK – lots and lots of it, that is why a cottage industry of grant writers was born.

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov – these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Even if you buy books on "how to get grants" or list that supposedly has information on grants — all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same – hardly any grants for starting a for profit business.

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html…

"The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments."

Here is a listing of federal grants for small businesses. See if there is any available for individuals for starting a business — THERE’S NONE.
http://12.46.245.173/pls/portal30/CATALOG.BROWSE_BENEF_RPT.show

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT – Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women’s Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women’s business center that will train women entrepreneurs

For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center’s Foundation Grants for Individuals Online. It’s a subscription based website ($9.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for "students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices." Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don’t have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs.

Anyone familiar with Ecuador’s regulations and taxes or government when it comes to outsiders starting business on there soil. I’d hate to start a business and have them take it out from under me because I didn’t scratch the right back.
Business is exploration and mining.

That’s exactly whats going to happen, they will confiscate your business just like if you tried to start a business in USA and didn’t have the right papers , immigrant status , licenses and ownership of the land etc….With that being said you can still do it if you have all the right papers , talk to a lawyer they will set you staight….

Im starting a new business and want to offer rewards to my customers where they get a card and everytime they use it, they get points or something. How can i do this?

Rewarding your customers is always great. Keeping existing customers is always better than finding new ones. As a business coach, I always tell people to figure out what your cost is for anything you do. The usuall coffee shop – buy 10 on your card and you get the 11th free. This really means you are selling all 11 for for the price of 10 or about a 9% discount on all. So you want to play with the numbers to make sure you are still making a profit on each item after the discount. Of course, more than 50% of the people that get these discount cards lose them, so factor that in, too.

Just make sure you are rewarding the customer in a meaning full way.

Two examples. I recently purchased a new furnance and after the installation I received a lovely box of chocolates. I felt appreciated and even though the chocolates were about $25 and the furnance $3000 – I didn’t expect anything and was plesantly surprised.

The garden center I spend way too much money at give "bull frog buckets" that can only be spent at their shop during November, December and January. I believe it is $1 bull frog buck for each $25 spent. I will not likely go there in the winter as I don’t need anything of their "non- plant" gifts.

So, be sure your customers want it and it is affordable and does cause them to come back.

Hope that helps.
LindaFay
www.changinglanes.biz

Live in Texas.
Any advice for legal paper work to start business?

We did. Actually I did consult with our lawyer first and he suggested purchasing a book with all the answers and forms that you need. The best source for all legal books is through www.nolo.com. It made the whole process super easy and is handy to have the book on hand whenever there is a question. An added benefit is that the book is a tax write off

I am wondering anyway we could start business directly in UK if currently we are working under work permit. Please advise.

Sorry,you can’t be self employed on working permit .

In 2008, I did not generate any income at all, either from an employer or from my own business start up. I incurred expenses (paid from savings) from efforts to get this business off the ground. If I take deductions for these expenses, my AGI is negative. Does that mean I am entitled to a refund?

Also, is rent for a location considered deductible? What if this location was overseas?

Rent for the business is deductible. Rent for your home is not.

A negative AGI does not automatically result in a refund. A negative AGI does result in no income tax liability. (In some cases, but not yours, self-employment tax might still apply. Various other taxes, such as the 10% penalty for premature IRA withdrawals might apply.) In any case, you qualify for a refund ONLY if (a) you had income tax withheld from your income (not the case because you had no income), (b) you had sufficient "qualifying income" to receive the "rebate recovery credit" (not the case because you had no income), or (c) you qualify for certain other credits that also generally apply only to persons with income and/or children.

Brainstorming ideas for a pet sitting business and more. Specially those involving everyone’s favorite animal – Dogs!

1. Start a pet bakery business with doggie treats, fresh-baked cookies & ’scooby snacks’. Try some innovative dog recipes and brand them as your own.

2. Start a pet salon with affordable hair & skin treatments for neighborhood pets. This could include hair cuts & manicures, a mobile dog grooming service or detox solutions for dog skin problems.

3. Start a pet sitting business (doggie day care) for busy pet owners and others who want someone trusted to take care of their pets. There’s also the overnight pet care business if you’re looking for something different.

4. Start a pet rescue and/or first aid service to cater to the needs of trapped pets till animal rescue arrives. This could even be in an assistive role to animal rescue personnel, if you have the necessary experience.

5. Start a pet adoption business and recruit a few volunteers to help out on evenings or weekends. Create a simple database or website of homeless pets and help connect them with people looking to adopt a pet.

You could do any or all of the above in association with qualified people from the neighborhood — e.g., animal lovers, vets, members from PETA and similar organizations. It’s a good way to cater to your passion for pets while also running a wonderful and profitable business.

I am interested in starting a business online but not sure where to start. Can you please giv me some insight. Thanks

Imagine building a website that you have designed through a program available online. This program takes you step by step and allows you to build any website that you can dream of, even several if you wish. Next, imagine this program helping you to get ranked high on the search engines, saving you money. You can get targeted traffic to your website for free. My wife and I are using this amazing program to promote our business. I would love to share more info about it. Email me at robertbreitling@yahoo.com or see more info through my Yahoo Answers Profile page. I hope this helps.
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