Accounting Play Podcast: Learn Accounting

Welcome to the Business Tax Series Part I: -Business Tax Basics & Ye Ol' Disclaimer -Solo Entrepreneurs and Taxes -Goals and Different Tax Situations -Tax System USAUsing Your Resources Get the iOS APP: HERE           Kindle Book: Business Tax Prep & Plan by Accounting Play: Small Business | Individuals | Deductions | Planning    

Welcome to the Business Tax Series Part I: -Business Tax Basics & Ye Ol' Disclaimer -Solo Entrepreneurs and Taxes -Goals and Different Tax Situations -Tax System USAUsing Your Resources Get the iOS APP: HERE           Kindle Book: Business Tax Prep & Plan by Accounting Play: Small Business | Individuals | Deductions […]

Welcome to the Business Tax Series Part I: -Business Tax Basics & Ye Ol' Disclaimer -Solo Entrepreneurs and Taxes -Goals and Different Tax Situations -Tax System USAUsing Your Resources Get the iOS APP: HERE           Kindle Book: Business Tax Prep & Plan by Accounting Play: Small Business | Individuals | Deductions | Planning    

Find out what it takes to start a retail shop in San Francisco with Problem Library... Can a self funded with precious objects, passion, and a unique store vision with no web presence survive in 2016? Join Accounting Play, with host John Gillingham and Entrepreneur Grayson Stebbins as we chronicle the emotional, relationship, and financial […]

Find out what it takes to start a retail shop in San Francisco with Problem Library... Can a self funded with precious objects, passion, and a unique store vision with no web presence survive in 2016? Join Accounting Play, with host John Gillingham and Entrepreneur Grayson Stebbins as we chronicle the emotional, relationship, and financial costs of a real live business. We will dig in on everything from permitting issues to emotional object attachments to accounting. In this episode… Living, literally, in your business Mixing work and lifestyle pleasure Challenges with leases, legally operating, and tax drama Explore the lender of last resort: the IRS Accounting issues associated with retail businesses Thinking of working from profit goals back up to revenue What could have been done differently? Can a business sustain when open only six days a month? Connect with Trouble: http://problemsf.com http://instagram.com/problemlibrary http://twitter.com/problemlibrary Photo credits Grayson Stebbins (the selfie) Stephen Sullivan (the nice ones)

Find out what it takes to start a retail shop in San Francisco with Problem Library... Can a self funded with precious objects, passion, and a unique store vision with no web presence survive in 2016? Join Accounting Play, with host John Gillingham and Entrepreneur Grayson Stebbins as we chronicle the emotional, relationship, and financial costs of a real live business. We will dig in on everything from permitting issues to emotional object attachments to accounting. In this episode… Living, literally, in your business Mixing work and lifestyle pleasure Challenges with leases, legally operating, and tax drama Explore the lender of last resort: the IRS Accounting issues associated with retail businesses Thinking of working from profit goals back up to revenue What could have been done differently? Can a business sustain when open only six days a month? Connect with Trouble: http://problemsf.com http://instagram.com/problemlibrary http://twitter.com/problemlibrary Photo credits Grayson Stebbins (the selfie) Stephen Sullivan (the nice ones)

Welcome to the wild world of financing for San Francisco start-ups! This is the conclusion of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Alex King to talk about small business financing from Idea to Unicorn (a billion dollar company). Alex’s ideal client at Bend Law is a small business owner […]

Welcome to the wild world of financing for San Francisco start-ups! This is the conclusion of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Alex King to talk about small business financing from Idea to Unicorn (a billion dollar company). Alex’s ideal client at Bend Law is a small business owner or entrepreneur who is looking to evolve and grow. They might have 50 employees and a couple owners already, they might have a small start-up, but the key quality is that they’re looking to plan for the future. Financing is the lifeblood of business. Whether it’s a start-up looking for 10X growth or a small business that’s happy with steady progress, raising money from great investors is how you get there. Want to learn about financing and its legal ramifications? This episode has you covered. If you haven’t heard the previous episodes in this series yet, check out Part I with Doug Bend about business entity structures and tax implications, and [Part II with Tucker Cottingham] about intellectual property and brand protection for small businesses. In this episode… Business entity formation and the implications of that choice on raising funding for your new business Ownership, partnership, and equity: who are your investors, and what do they want? The trade-offs of the S Corp: tax benefits, but investor drawbacks A word association game! John names a business entity structure, Alex describes its associations in terms of financing A case study about a bike shop in LA that recently raised around $250,000 with Alex’s help What kinds of due diligence materials a company needs before raising a round (compliances, term sheets, disclosures) What are the legal costs and fees associated with raising investment? How much should the company budget out of the round? What can go wrong if you don’t file your documentation properly Guaranteed payments to investors and when those come into play When fundraising terms can be renegotiated What accredited investors are and how they change the investment rules What start-ups should be thinking about from the moment of inception Where valuations and share prices play in, and what the lawyers’ roles are in them John and Alex role-play a consultation about raising funds for Accounting Play Why Delaware C Corporations can have an easier time raising money What levels of equity make sense to give to early employees What the various kinds of stock options are, and which ones are right for which people What a convertible note is and how it might fit into your business’s growth early on How the inherent risks of start-ups might affect investors The realistic timeframe for investors to make their money back (through an IPO, another big round, or whatever kind of liquidity event) Who owns how much of the company after all this stuff   Links Bend Law Group website Email Alex or connect with him on LinkedIn

Welcome to the wild world of financing for San Francisco start-ups! This is the conclusion of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Alex King to talk about small business financing from Idea to Unicorn (a billion dollar company). Alex’s ideal client at Bend Law is a small business owner or entrepreneur who is looking to evolve and grow. They might have 50 employees and a couple owners already, they might have a small start-up, but the key quality is that they’re looking to plan for the future. Financing is the lifeblood of business. Whether it’s a start-up looking for 10X growth or a small business that’s happy with steady progress, raising money from great investors is how you get there. Want to learn about financing and its legal ramifications? This episode has you covered. If you haven’t heard the previous episodes in this series yet, check out Part I with Doug Bend about business entity structures and tax implications, and [Part II with Tucker Cottingham] about intellectual property and brand protection for small businesses. In this episode… Business entity formation and the implications of that choice on raising funding for your new business Ownership, partnership, and equity: who are your investors, and what do they want? The trade-offs of the S Corp: tax benefits, but investor drawbacks A word association game! John names a business entity structure, Alex describes its associations in terms of financing A case study about a bike shop in LA that recently raised around $250,000 with Alex’s help What kinds of due diligence materials a company needs before raising a round (compliances, term sheets, disclosures) What are the legal costs and fees associated with raising investment? How much should the company budget out of the round? What can go wrong if you don’t file your documentation properly Guaranteed payments to investors and when those come into play When fundraising terms can be renegotiated What accredited investors are and how they change the investment rules What start-ups should be thinking about from the moment of inception Where valuations and share prices play in, and what the lawyers’ roles are in them John and Alex role-play a consultation about raising funds for Accounting Play Why Delaware C Corporations can have an easier time raising money What levels of equity make sense to give to early employees What the various kinds of stock options are, and which ones are right for which people What a convertible note is and how it might fit into your business’s growth early on How the inherent risks of start-ups might affect investors The realistic timeframe for investors to make their money back (through an IPO, another big round, or whatever kind of liquidity event) Who owns how much of the company after all this stuff   Links Bend Law Group website Email Alex or connect with him on LinkedIn

This is part two of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. This time I was joined by Tucker Cottingham to talk about intellectual property and brand protection for small businesses, from the small shop to big start-up dreams. Tucker and team just launched the standalone BLG Trademarks website, and he’s been working on […]

This is part two of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. This time I was joined by Tucker Cottingham to talk about intellectual property and brand protection for small businesses, from the small shop to big start-up dreams. Tucker and team just launched the standalone BLG Trademarks website, and he’s been working on developing that content to benefit Bend Law Group clients. IP involves so many specialty legal services — including copyright and trademark registration, monitoring, enforcement and prosecution — that it really deserves to be broken out separately from BLG’s main legal services. This episode will help any entrepreneur navigate that complex landscape of intellectual property. Intellectual property is what gets Tucker up in the morning… and what keeps him up at night. He comes from a family of small business owners. He entered law school after doing advocacy work and realizing that the strength of a legal team is a key part of helping people. In this episode, Tucker teaches us that intellectual property is property law. You have a right to protect your property and “police your mark.” As Tucker says, “If you cut corners now, you’ll pay the price later.” This may not sound like accounting stuff, but that’s exactly why we need to know it. Want to learn how to protect your brand and represent your work to the world? Check out this episode. If you haven’t heard it yet, check out Part I with Doug Bend about business entity structures and tax implications. Stay tuned for Part III, the last episode in the series, about seeking funding! In this episode… The fixed costs of IP — such as applications and registrations — versus the potential ongoing costs, like cease-and-desists and litigation (yuck!) The many types of intellectual property: so-called “soft IP” (copyrights and trademarks) versus technical kinds like patents What is a copyright? What is a trademark? What’s the difference? Common law rights: the protections your intellectual property already has without needing legal representation What to do if someone else is using your brand name for similar services When you need to register your intellectual property and how to do it, state versus federal registration How to do your due diligence before creating your own brand How does insurance cover intellectual property? 4 Layers of Protection for all business decisions: Entity structure Insurance policy that covers the activity Contracts on the terms you want Human relationships. Remember: people sue people! Try to defuse conflicts just through relationships Nasty lawyer letters: What happens when you get one? When do you need to send one? When in the development phase should a new business start thinking about IP issues? When is it time to start paying for legal services? Cheap robo-legal documents: not much cheaper than BLG’s rates, and way lower quality A role-play of an initial consultation with a new BLG client building an app business looking for legal help with intellectual property Creating a liability-limiting business entity Protecting the name of your company, the name of your product(s), and your logo first Making sure you’re protected before you start marketing How to handle changes to IP or business entities and what that might cost in legal fees General examples of how small businesses should and shouldn’t handle legal issues involving intellectual property What’s all this going to cost? The various statuses of IP protection and how to communicate them to the public. (For example, what do ™ and ® mean?) Links BLG Trademarks: Protect your brand Tucker Cottingham on LinkedIn Email Tucker or call him at +1 (415) 294–0522 if you have specific questions about trademark or copyright Bend Law Group main website           

This is part two of our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. This time I was joined by Tucker Cottingham to talk about intellectual property and brand protection for small businesses, from the small shop to big start-up dreams. Tucker and team just launched the standalone BLG Trademarks website, and he’s been working on developing that content to benefit Bend Law Group clients. IP involves so many specialty legal services — including copyright and trademark registration, monitoring, enforcement and prosecution — that it really deserves to be broken out separately from BLG’s main legal services. This episode will help any entrepreneur navigate that complex landscape of intellectual property. Intellectual property is what gets Tucker up in the morning… and what keeps him up at night. He comes from a family of small business owners. He entered law school after doing advocacy work and realizing that the strength of a legal team is a key part of helping people. In this episode, Tucker teaches us that intellectual property is property law. You have a right to protect your property and “police your mark.” As Tucker says, “If you cut corners now, you’ll pay the price later.” This may not sound like accounting stuff, but that’s exactly why we need to know it. Want to learn how to protect your brand and represent your work to the world? Check out this episode. If you haven’t heard it yet, check out Part I with Doug Bend about business entity structures and tax implications. Stay tuned for Part III, the last episode in the series, about seeking funding! In this episode… The fixed costs of IP — such as applications and registrations — versus the potential ongoing costs, like cease-and-desists and litigation (yuck!) The many types of intellectual property: so-called “soft IP” (copyrights and trademarks) versus technical kinds like patents What is a copyright? What is a trademark? What’s the difference? Common law rights: the protections your intellectual property already has without needing legal representation What to do if someone else is using your brand name for similar services When you need to register your intellectual property and how to do it, state versus federal registration How to do your due diligence before creating your own brand How does insurance cover intellectual property? 4 Layers of Protection for all business decisions: Entity structure Insurance policy that covers the activity Contracts on the terms you want Human relationships. Remember: people sue people! Try to defuse conflicts just through relationships Nasty lawyer letters: What happens when you get one? When do you need to send one? When in the development phase should a new business start thinking about IP issues? When is it time to start paying for legal services? Cheap robo-legal documents: not much cheaper than BLG’s rates, and way lower quality A role-play of an initial consultation with a new BLG client building an app business looking for legal help with intellectual property Creating a liability-limiting business entity Protecting the name of your company, the name of your product(s), and your logo first Making sure you’re protected before you start marketing How to handle changes to IP or business entities and what that might cost in legal fees General examples of how small businesses should and shouldn’t handle legal issues involving intellectual property What’s all this going to cost? The various statuses of IP protection and how to communicate them to the public. (For example, what do ™ and ® mean?) Links BLG Trademarks: Protect your brand Tucker Cottingham on LinkedIn Email Tucker or call him at +1 (415) 294–0522 if you have specific questions about trademark or copyright Bend Law Group main website           

This episode kicks off our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Doug Bend to talk about business entity structures and tax implications. Doug’s specialty is entity formation, helping business owners figure out what type of legal structure makes the most sense for their business. His firm’s clients range from hardware […]

This episode kicks off our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Doug Bend to talk about business entity structures and tax implications. Doug’s specialty is entity formation, helping business owners figure out what type of legal structure makes the most sense for their business. His firm’s clients range from hardware to software businesses, and from sole proprietorships running out of owners’ basements to brick-and-mortar companies. While many BLG clients are based in the Bay Area, more clients are coming in from around the world. He’s a funny, straight-talking human being who clearly cares about his clients and their work. In the show, Doug gets into how he reaches prospective clients, how he explores the client relationship and finds the right fit, and when he might refer a project to someone else, which he does generously and often. Wonder whether your business could run as a sole proprietorship? Or maybe you’ll need an LLC or a larger-scale C Corporation, S Corporation, or B Corporation? This episode will help you find the answers. Stay tuned for Part II about intellectual property law and Part III about seeking funding! In this episode… What small businesses should be thinking about and when they need legal advice How to protect your small business from liability Why one of the best legal protections for small businesses is great customer service How to weigh the legal issues with hiring employees versus independent contractors When a small business needs insurance A role-play of an initial consultation with a new BLG client What the ballpark legal costs will be for a small business How to think about equity and estate planning for employees At what stages in a start-up’s life it makes sense to revise earlier legal documents What happens when your company gets sued and how much it could cost Class action lawsuits and what kinds of companies might be affected What kinds of businesses should set up as an LLC, and what the costs and benefits are How the LLC structure affects investment in the business and what the tax implications are What kinds of companies should use the Delaware C Corporation structure (hint: big ones and aspiring big ones) What an S Corporation is, and why it’s better for tax purposes than a C Corp for some small businesses What the required annual meetings and filings for corporations are Why a B Corporation might be the right choice for businesses that need to weigh the social impact of their work (and why Bend Law Group is one and specializes in creating them)   Links Bend Law Group website Email Doug or call him at +1 (415) 299 0257 Modify Watches (BLG’s first client)  

This episode kicks off our three-part series with the Bend Law Group. I was joined by Doug Bend to talk about business entity structures and tax implications. Doug’s specialty is entity formation, helping business owners figure out what type of legal structure makes the most sense for their business. His firm’s clients range from hardware to software businesses, and from sole proprietorships running out of owners’ basements to brick-and-mortar companies. While many BLG clients are based in the Bay Area, more clients are coming in from around the world. He’s a funny, straight-talking human being who clearly cares about his clients and their work. In the show, Doug gets into how he reaches prospective clients, how he explores the client relationship and finds the right fit, and when he might refer a project to someone else, which he does generously and often. Wonder whether your business could run as a sole proprietorship? Or maybe you’ll need an LLC or a larger-scale C Corporation, S Corporation, or B Corporation? This episode will help you find the answers. Stay tuned for Part II about intellectual property law and Part III about seeking funding! In this episode… What small businesses should be thinking about and when they need legal advice How to protect your small business from liability Why one of the best legal protections for small businesses is great customer service How to weigh the legal issues with hiring employees versus independent contractors When a small business needs insurance A role-play of an initial consultation with a new BLG client What the ballpark legal costs will be for a small business How to think about equity and estate planning for employees At what stages in a start-up’s life it makes sense to revise earlier legal documents What happens when your company gets sued and how much it could cost Class action lawsuits and what kinds of companies might be affected What kinds of businesses should set up as an LLC, and what the costs and benefits are How the LLC structure affects investment in the business and what the tax implications are What kinds of companies should use the Delaware C Corporation structure (hint: big ones and aspiring big ones) What an S Corporation is, and why it’s better for tax purposes than a C Corp for some small businesses What the required annual meetings and filings for corporations are Why a B Corporation might be the right choice for businesses that need to weigh the social impact of their work (and why Bend Law Group is one and specializes in creating them)   Links Bend Law Group website Email Doug or call him at +1 (415) 299 0257 Modify Watches (BLG’s first client)