Dollars & Sense

Do you have a budding entrepreneur or micro business owner on your Christmas shopping list?

Carol Topp, host of the Dollars and Sense Show podcast has some unique gift ideas for you.

Start Up Gifts for Entrepreneurs:

White Board and markers for brainstorming. See Dollars and Sense Show #27 Brainstorming Micro Business Ideas

Books:

* Micro Business for Teens

* Teens and Taxes

* Business Tips and Taxes for Writers

* Entrepreneur biographies

Consultation with an accountant. Contact me, Carol Topp, CPA!

EIN (from IRS.gov) and DBA (Doing Business As name registration in your county or state)

 

Marketing Gifts for Entrepreneurs:

Website hosting and domain name. I use MomWebs.com (but you don't have to be a mom!)

Wordpress Premium Theme or Plugins. I could spent a lot of money at Studio Press and WPMUDev!

Logo design. I use The Graphic Lady. (listen how I completely messed up her website name in the podcast!)

Business cards. VistaPrint.com is where I get mine printed.

Banners, brochures, posters, postcards, etc (Vistaprint again!)

 

Up and Running Gifts for Entrepreneurs

Tax return with a local CPA.

Virtual assistant to help with tons of things like blogging, social media, video production, audio editing, etc.

Technology: flash drives, PCs, iPads, cameras, etc.

Sales awards

 

Here are some lists from others on Christmas gifts for entrepreneurs

http://mashable.com/2014/06/14/entrepreneur-grad-gifts/

http://www.thinkentrepreneurship.com/top-20-gifts-for-entrepreneurs/

 

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Carol Topp, CPA

 

P.S. If you'd like to give me a Christmas gift, I'd like a review on iTunes. (click on View in iTunes to leave a review)

How to leave a review on iTunes

Thank you!

Does your homeschool organization need some ideas for raising money? Carol Topp, the Homeschool CPA, shares ideas for easy fundraising in this episode of the Dollars And Sense Show.

Easy fundraisers show notes:

Coupon and reward programs

Box Tops. Need 501c3 status

Shopping reward like Kroger Plus program

E Scrip

Food as a fundraiser

Pizza sales, bake sales to members

Candy, popcorn sales to public could impose a reporting to you state’s AG office

Restaurant (Chik-Fil-A) give a percent of proceeds from one night to your organization

Dinners as fundraisers

Donations

Via email, website, crowd funding, etc

Read-a-thon or walk-a-thon

Car washes and bake sales

Sell products

Ideas at TopSchoolFundraisers.com

Used curriculum sale. Charge an entrance fee, or a table fee to the sellers (or both!)

Reporting the Fundraiser income:

The IRS considers fundraisers to be unrelated to your nonprofit purpose and therefore, subject to taxation. Exceptions to the Unrelated Business Income tax:

* Under $1,000 income from fundraisers in a year

* All volunteer labor (no hired help to run the fundraiser)

* Not regularly carried on

* Selling donated items

State may require reporting to their attorney General if you sell to the public or solicit donations from the public. Usual exceptions are: only sales to members, a  dollar threshold ($25,000 is common), all volunteer labor, but these vary by state.

Warning: No Individual fundraising accounts!

See http://homeschoolcpa.com/scouts-dont-allow-individual-fundraising-account-and-neither-should-you/

More information:

Money Management in a Homeschool Organization book

Blog posts  on fundraising: http://homeschoolcpa.com/tag/fund-raising/

Article “Easy Fundraisers for Homeschool Groups” at http://homeschoolcpa.com/leader-tools/articles/

 

If you enjoyed this podcast, please leave a review on iTunes. (click on View in iTunes to leave a review)

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Are you trying to raise an entrepreneur?

Does your child have ideas on how to make money?

Join Dollars and Sense Show podcast host Carol Topp as she interviews 3 parents of teen entrepreneurs.

In the podcast, Bob, Suzanne and Jennifer, shared how they encouraged their entrepreneurial teenagers. They discussed:

* Their role as a parent

* How to school work fit into their students' lives?

* What was most difficult for their child?

* When should a parent step in?

* How do you encourage entrepreneurship?

Some of their advice:

* Don't let school get in the way of your eduction (paraphrasing Mark Twain)

* Arrange to get schoolwork done first. Balance schedule and manage time.

* HALT-Never get too Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired

* Encourage, knock down obstacles.

* Work with school to make changes in start time.

* Find resources, field ideas with your student

* Encourage. Recognize milestones and achievements. Get advisers.

If you have a teenager who want to make money, visit Micro Business for Teens.com and check out the Micro Business for Teens books and videos.

If you enjoyed this podcast, please leave a review on iTunes. (click on View in iTunes to leave a review)

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Join Carol Topp as she interviews experienced homeschoolers at the recent HSLDA National Homeschool Leaders Conference. They discuss

* Why they became a homeschool leader

* What they wish they had know

* What advice they have to offer you

(I apologize for some of the poor audio! I'm improving, but I'm still learning about recording with lively background noise)

Are you a homeschool leader? Need help running your homeschool organization? feeling overwhelmed or have questions?

Carol Topp, CPA, the HomeschoolCPA is here to help. Visit HomeschoolCPA.com for helpful resources, books, podcasts and blog posts with questions from leaders like you.

If you find this podcast helpful, please share it (below!) and leave a review on iTunes. (click on View in iTunes to leave a review)

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Need an idea for a micro business you could start today?

In this episode of the Dollars and Sense podcast, host Carol Topp, interviewed teenagers (and some 20 year olds) who did a brainstorming exercise.

I think you'll be impressed by the terrific micro business ideas they came up with!

Some of the audio might be a bit difficult to hear because the room was full of a lot of brainstorming activity!

Here's some photos of the student's brainstorming.

If you'd like more micro business ideas visit MicroBusinessForTeens.com idea blog posts.

or the Micro Business for Teens Ideas Pinterest page

Do you have a great idea and need help launching your micro business? Micro Business for Teens books and videos will get you started.

 

If you find this podcast helpful, please share it (below!) and leave a review on iTunes. (click on "View in iTunes" button to leave a review)

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Join host, Carol Topp, and her guest Stacy Lane who successfully became debt free (including her mortgage) when her oldest child was a freshman in high school. She met Dave Ramsey, the debt-free guru, and got to do the famous "We're debt free! " yell on his radio show.

Could your homeschool family ever become debt free like Stacy did?

Listen as she discusses the sacrifices and tough decisions she and her entire family made to be free of debt. Stacy is honest and admits there are not 3 easy steps to be debt free.  But she does offer advice, hope and the right attitude to have when homeschooling and struggling to be debt free.

Stacy blogs about life in its many layers at LayeredSoul.com

Listen to Carol's other podcasts on teaching kids about managing money, Episodes #7-#10

Teach preschoolers about money

Teach kids about money

Teach pre-teens about money

Teach teenagers about money

Start a Micro Business Without Debt

 

Show #25 What to do when a customer doesn’t pay your Micro Business.

In this podcast, Carol Topp offers tips to micro business owners on what to do if a customer doesn't pay you.

This information is covered in more detail in Carol Topp's book  Running a Micro Business

 

 

 

Most of your clients will pay when you hand them a bill, but sometimes they forget or do not have a checkbook with them. In those cases you need to remind them.

* Send another copy of the bill, statement or invoice. Email is a good reminder or use regular mail if you must. This usually does the trick. Most people are forgetful and not out to cheat you.

* Call the customer and ask if they received your bill.

* If a customer is late paying you, do not do any additional services for them.

 

Payment Policies for Micro Businesses

After you've been running your business for a while, you will come up with some payment policies that work well for you. A few common payment policies include:

* Ask for some money up front as a down payment. This is a common practice if you will be doing a large job for a customer. It is very common to ask for a small amount, perhaps 10-20% of the total price before you begin work.

* Progress payments. Ask for payments as you do each part of a large job. For example, I asked my graphic designer to do five tasks for me. He billed me after three tasks were complete and then again when the job was finished.

* Charge a late fee for customers who are more than 30 days late in paying you. Your late fee can be a percentage of the total cost (5-10% if customary) or a flat fee such as $10.

* Have a policy regarding bounced checks. If a customer pays you with a bad check, your bank may fine you when the check is deposited. It may not seem fair, but it is a common practice. You, in turn, should charge the customer at least a $10 fee to cover your bank fees. Some stores charge as much as $25 for bounced check.

* Consider marking up your price to accept Paypal or credit card payments. Paypal and credit card companies typically take 2-4% of the payment as their fee. Most business owners usually consider these fees as part of doing business, so make sure you take the fees into consideration when pricing your products or services.

 

Join Carol's other podcasts for micro business owners on Creating a Sales Presentation and Making the Sale.

Learn more about starting and running a micro business at MicroBusinessforTeens.com

 

 

 

Show #24 Making the Sale. Tips for your Micro Business.

In this podcast, Carol Topp offers tips to micro business owners on how to complete a sale with a customer.

This information is covered in more detail in Carol Topp's book  Running a Micro Business

Many sales are lost because the sales person never asks the customer to buy. That's seems unbelievable, but it is true. A business owner can spend a lot of time creating a sales presentation and marketing material, but never bring the customer to the point of actually making a purchase.

There are several techniques you can use to move from a sales pitch to completing a sale including asking questions and using forms.

 

Ask leading questions

* Would you prefer _________ or ___________(you show different products)?

* What is the best day to _____________(offer your service)?

* When would you like me to start?

* How many ___________ do you need?

* Would you like to see a price list?

* Can I get you an order form?

* What questions can I answer?

* Would you like me to do ___________ next?

Put paper in their hand

Use an order form, price list, registration form, agreement of services (engagement letter). I use CarbonlessonDemand.com for order forms. I also collect names and emails on my order form.

What to Do if the Customer Doesn't Seem Interested

* Ask if you could give a demonstration or a sample. Say “Would you like to see how this works?” “Would you like to taste a sample?”

* Provide additional information by asking, “Do you have any questions?”

* Ask if they would like a flier, brochure, or price list. Try to leave something in their 
hands.

* Ask if they have a friend or neighbor who could use your service. 
Always be polite and thank them for their time or for listening to you, even if they say no. They will remember your politeness and may contact you in the future.

 

Join Carol's other podcasts for micro business owners on Creating a Sales Presentation and What to Do If You Don't Get Paid.

Learn more about starting and running a micro business at MicroBusinessforTeens.com

 

 

Show #23 Creating a Sales Presentation

In this podcast, Carol Topp helps micro business owners create a sales presentation.

This information is covered in more detail in Carol Topp's book  Running a Micro Business

 

 

 

What is a Sales Presentation?

* Short, 15-30 seconds. Like a TV commercial

* Could be in person or used on website, flyer

* Includes a short sales statement (tag line)

Parts of Sales Presentation

* Your name and business name

* Main product or service

* 2-3 benefits to customer (not features)

* Demonstration, sample or photo

* Uniqueness

* Price

* Contact information

* Call to action

Example; Adam, birthday party entertainer

I'm Adam (name) and I visit children's birthday parties (business) as Jedi Master. I can train your child and his friends in light saber fighting (main benefit). It is perfectly safe, because I use Styrofoam pool “noodles” as light sabers (second benefit). Let me demonstrate (demonstration). I'm avail- able for birthday parties where I come in costume and offer games, stories, demonstrations and dueling practice. Here's a brochure describing my prices and how to contact me (price and contact information). Does your child dream of becoming a Jedi knight? (tag line) Give me a call. (call to action).

Example: William Lynch Floral designer at  http://lynchdesignflorist.com

Flowers (main product) bring color and life to any space (benefit) – be it the office, hotel, home or chapel – and any occasion – including weddings, memorial service or other special event. At Lynch Design (name), we know how flowers can set the style for your room or event, or bring a smile to the face of a colleague, friend or loved one (benefits). Whether you’re looking for classic, contemporary, elegant, fun, or unique designs – or arrangements that convey love and friendship (uniqueness) – our floral design experts can do it all. Shop online or contact us phone number (contact and call to action).

 

Join Carol's upcoming podcasts for micro business owners on Making the Sale and What to Do If You Don't Get Paid.

Learn more about starting and running a micro business at MicroBusinessforTeens.com

 

This is the last part of a four part series on career exploration for high school students. Host Carol Topp offers advice and tips on choosing a college and a major to prepare for your chose career.

The 4 Step Career Exploration Process

1. Investigate: Discover your personality, abilities, skills, and priorities.

2. Match possible careers to your personality.

3. Research potential careers to see if there is a fit.

4. Prepare a plan to pursue your career choice.

Episode 22: Career Exploration Part 4: Picking a college

Some students apply everywhere and then visit colleges where they have been admitted. Some visit colleges first and then only apply where they want to go.

Ask friends: Why this school? What was 2nd and 3rd choice college? Start building a list of potential colleges.

College Review sites: take the negative criticism with a grain of salt.

http://onlineuniversityrankings2010.com/2010/top-25-sites-for-real-college-reviews-by-students/

http://www.studentsreview.com/

Ratemyprofessor.com and Ratemycollege.com

CollegeBoard.com gives details on admission SAT scores, size,etc. You can filter on tons of criteria.

College course guides and student handbook. Look at the Statement of Faith if the college is a Christian school.Read the student newspaper

College visits. Stay overnight in the dorm.

Listen to Hal and Melanie Young's podcast on college visits. Making Biblical Life Practical Making College Visits Count

 

I hope you enjoyed this podcast series on career exploration.

Carol Topp, CPA