Simply Junior

When it comes to small business, it’s never enough that you have the motivation and even the expertise. It’s also not enough that you have the right core staff who can help you manage the different aspects of your enterprise. You also need good small business software, which will allow you to automate your business, speed up the entire business process, and assure more accurate and fresh data that you can utilize.

Choices for Your Business

Today, there are a lot of small business software that you can select from, each having its own distinct functions. However, because of the uniqueness of your enterprise, not all will be useful. You only need to pick those that you think will be highly essential.

To give you some idea, you can start with the following small business software:

CRM Software. This software is important for contact management. You can easily manage information that is related to your customers, such as personal information. You can also easily determine the products and services they have purchased or enquired about, which then provide you data on what sells the most and what doesn’t amongst your line. Furthermore, you can keep track of your marketing campaigns generate reports and much more.

Lead Management System. When you are looking for prospects, you need to have a dependable lead manager. A lot of them are affordable, so you can get hold of them quite easily. The lead management system can help you keep track, score, and prioritize your leads. Also, lead managers can be customized according to the needs of the business and the industry you’re in.

Accounting Software. There are various types of financial applications that you could get for your business, but you may start with the accounting software since you want to determine the actual income and expenses of your business. However, unless you have solid or at least inkling of how accounting works, it would be ideal if you can pick an accounting program that is very easy to use. To know which will suit you it is advised you read online reviews.

E-mail Platforms. E-mail will be one of the best tools your business can have. You can market products and services through it, and you can communicate with your staff. With e-mail, you may want to stick with Microsoft Outlook, but remember that your valuable customer data will be housed in multiple computers and multiple email accounts.

It is important to understand that sometimes less is more. Try to implement the minimum number of solutions as they will require expensive integration to function effectively. If possible look for 1 sales system and 1 accounting system.

Did you know that if you have an email account, you already have a powerful way to market your Real Estate business? Even if your email address is a free account you can do this. It’s preferable to have your own domain email address as that helps brand you as a professional and an expert, but these three concepts can be used by anyone with an email address.

Signature
When you send off an email, how do you close it? Do you have an automatic signature that you use? Most email programs allow you to save a signature (or more than one) for automatic insertion into your emails. Make good use of this! Not only does it save you from having to type it out each time, you can put your contact information in it as well as hyperlink to your website. Currently, I list my name, my title, my contact phone and fax, and my website. I use this signature on ALL emails that I send from my business account. Every time I send out an email (and every time it gets forwarded on to others) my information is being read. People are learning about me and what I do.

Autoresponders
If you have been researching online marketing, then you have heard the term “autoresponder”. But what is an autoresponder anyway? An autoresponder is an automatic email that is sent out when you receive an email. For example, if you are away on a vacation, you can set your email to respond to every email that comes in while you are gone with a note that says you are gone and when you will return. While this is a very helpful tool, it gets better! A “sequential autoresponder” or “follow-up autoresponder” will send that first automatic message, and then follow-up with more messages based on how you set it up. This is also known as a “drip campaign” as you keep your message in front of your prospects over the course of time. This idea would work great for a series of emails geared for first-time home buyers, or other specialty groups.

Ezine
If you are going to venture into the world of online marketing, you need a way to stay in touch with the people who find you online. Having record numbers of website visitors is all well and good, but do you know who they are? Do you have any way of contacting them to let them know about new tax laws that help out homeowners and home buyers? A great way to do this is through an “ezine”, or electronic magazine. This can be as simple as a plain text newsletter that you send them via email once a month. Or, it can be as complex as a beautifully designed HTML email that includes photos, fancy text, the works. The point is to have a way to consistently send new information to those who are interested in learning more about you.

Bonus Tip: A word of caution on using email for marketing purposes. Never send out unsolicited email. Never. Make sure that anyone you send an email to has agreed to receive email from you. Maybe they gave you their email address at an open house, or they signed up on your website. By limiting your email marketing to those who requested it, you are doing two things: 1) delivering your content to a targeted group of people who are interested in what you have to say, and 2) staying honest and above board in your marketing techniques.

If you think not filing your tax return is a good idea, think again. One of the earliest and most famous non-filers, Al Capone, tried this and it was a slam dunk for the IRS. (He underreported income in 1924-1927 and did not file for 1928 and 1929. Interestingly, the first counts were felonies and the last two were misdemeanors).

Now, you are probably not as notorious as Al Capone, but the IRS is coming after you. The 2001 IRS “Tax Gap” study specifically cited non-filings as a serious non-compliance area that the IRS will aggressively pursue. In fact, the IRS estimates that its automated non-filing program produces a 14:1 return on investment- an area worth investing by any agency. The IRS estimates that it will secure 90,000 returns this year alone based on its “refund-hold” non-filing initiatives. One wonders if the “tax stimulus” incentive was not a ploy to pull out non-filers.

In fact, the IRS has almost 4 million taxpayer delinquency investigations ongoing. In 2006, they assessed over $23 billion on these delinquent return activity.

What is the penalty for filing late? Answer: penalties are up to 22.5 %. And if you also fail to pay the total percentage is bumped up to 25%. This is because the failure to pay penalty adds .5% per month for the five months during failure to file, or “FTF”, penalty assessment. (The penalty is assessed only if there is a balanced owed on a return. However, if the IRS files for you, i.e. a “Substitute for Return” or “SFR”, you will be assessed based on the worst possible scenario: the least advantageous filing status, all income without deductions, and only yourself as a dependent. Most times, this leaves you with a tax debt – one the IRS will collect on without remorse.)

If you have unfiled returns, the best method is the proactive one – filing before you are asked to file or worse yet, “enforced” to file. Willful failure to file is a criminal offense, subject to the maximum 1 year in prison per section 7203 of the Internal Revenue Code. Ask Wesley Snipes – he knows about it.

If you have unfiled tax returns, consult a professional and file them accurately and IMMEDIATELY. Do not end up like Willie Mays Hayes – “Runs like Hayes, goes to jail like Capone.”

With easy access to money through credit cards, many people find they spend more each month than they actually have or can afford. It’s easy to charge an expensive item on a credit card because money does not physically change hands. For example, one might charge a $200 item on their credit card without much thought, but probably think seriously about the purchase if required to pay for it with cash money. This leads to large credit card balances that can be difficult to pay off due to the monthly accrual of high percentage interest rates.

In recent years, bank debit cards have gained widespread use by people who want to avoid running up a large charge account balance with their credit card. However, debit cards can be as dangerous as credit cards because they are just as easy to use and people don’t feel the emotional pain of money actually leaving their wallets. Furthermore, debit cards can lead to an overdrawn bank account. An overdrawn account can incur large overdraft fees which place additional strain on the already depleted account. Paying with cash is psychologically more difficult to do than merely swiping a piece of plastic where you don’t actually see or handle the money.

If you can develop a habit of spending cash rather than using your credit or debit card, you will probably spend less, and reduce impulse buying.

One way to control spending and climb out of debt is to set up a budget. A budget will help you manage your personal finances more effectively. There are many inexpensive and free consumer budgeting solutions available, all the way from pencil and paper budget systems to sophisticated budgeting software. It need not be complicated, expensive or time-consuming. Any budgeting system is good as long as you use it consistently. However, doing “more of the same” of what you’re doing now will only result in continued financial angst.

One easy system to implement is the envelope budgeting system. As the name implies, it uses envelopes to budget your spending. You merely set up a system of envelopes for each spending category you have, and put money in the envelopes to pay for each category’s expenditures for the month. When the envelope is empty, you’re done spending for the month. No going to the ATM for more money, no charging on your credit card, no more spending — period.

By spending only what you have in the envelopes, you are forced to stop over-spending and charging up your credit cards. An envelope budgeting system will help you manage your finances more effectively and learn how to live within your means. But whether you use an envelope system or some other budgeting program, living on a budget can become a normal lifestyle as you pay off your debts, save more money, and build financial stability in your life.

The Public Employee Retirement System is a benefit plan that gives benefits to employees once they retire. This will be based on the number of years they rendered service and on their average salary.

The Public Employees Retirement system also covers survivor and disability protection. The system also allows those with 30 years of service to file for an early retirement. They also provide death benefits and beneficiary benefits. Every Public Employee Retirement System of every state is committed to ensuring the retirement benefits of every employee.

Contributions are deducted from the employee’s payrolls. The amount may vary for every employee depending on their retire plan and coverage. Currently, the contribution rate is 8.5 percent of the salary of an employee and will increase up to 9.5% in the year 2007. Employer contributions however, range from 13 to 17%.

The benefits that you will get once you retire are dependent on your contribution and position as well as your employer’s contribution. The benefits are fixed depending on the legislation set by every state. That is why it is always recommended for members to know their benefits and coverage so that they can get the most of their contributions once they retire.

Although the Public Employee Retirement System is compulsory for all employees, there are still criteria that you have to meet to become a member. Here are the criteria that you need to meet to become a member for most states’ Public Employee Retirement Systems:

1. The applicant should be a regular employee and the annual salary of the applicant should be $1,500 or higher.

2. The applicant’s position should be under the coverage of the Social Security System.

Generally, these are some of the most common grounds for ineligibility:

1. If the person does not meet the minimum annual salary required which is $1,500.

2. If the applicant is not covered by the Social Security.

3. If you are a temporary employee

4. If you are currently employed by the Job Training Partnership Act and being paid by their federal funds.

5. Students who are employed by their schools and universities where they attend regular classes sometimes may not qualify for the PERS.

6. Inmates in correctional institutions are not eligible.

7. Mental health and retardation patients do not qualify for the Public Employee Retirement System.