Most businesses that close their doors have one thing in common: They ran out of money. Don’t let this happen to you. This indispensable book, part of Allworth’s popular Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide series, will help you to save money on every aspect of your business, from advertising to overhead. With invaluable cost-cutting tips for all types of businesses, from e-commerce and home-based operations to services and retail, this guide will help you create a blueprint that will allow your business to survive and thrive. You’ll save on: Advertising Marketing Purchasing Transportation and shipping Labor Financing Facilities Operations Taxes And more! In today’s economy, small business owners must seize every opportunity to keep costs down, and every penny saved goes to your bottom line. Follow this street-smart advice to lay the foundation for a business that will be profitable for years to come.

This comprehensive, step-by-step guide walks the reader through everything an aspiring small business owner needs to know before getting started. It’s not as easy as just hanging up an “Open” sign and letting the money roll in! Planning every step of your business and being aware of all the questions, demands, and challenges you will face will make the difference between just opening up shop and actually running a successful business. Coming up with a great idea for a business is only the first step. How will you find the start-up funds you need? Have you thought about your market? Do you know how contracts work? How about the difference between an employee and an independent contractor? Are you aware of your competition and the trends in your industry? Do you know how to keep accounts? Do you know what your breakeven point will be? Do you even know what a breakeven point is? If the answer to any of these questions is “no,” then this is the perfect book for you! With clear, friendly prose and helpful diagrams and charts, The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Building Your Business is every prospective entrepreneur’s new best friend.

Helps small buisness owners create logistical and financial plans for the future, and includes such issues as planning a business model, calculating expenses, writing an executive summary, and developing a marketing strategy.

The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Working with the Government is a thorough mentor that explains how to find, secure, and succeed with government contracts. Designed for any business eager to expand into the governmental arena, it also covers special small business opportunities for companies in areas with chronically high unemployment and for companies run by minorities, women, veterans, and disabled veterans. Cutting through the red tape, this careful guide also informs the reader as to the legal and financial pitfalls that must be avoided when doing business with the government. Coverage includes: Where do you find government procurement needs? How do you register to qualify for special opportunities given to companies owned by women, minorities, veterans, and other special groups? How do you prepare bids, offers, or proposals? What are the various types of government contracts? When can you negotiate with the government, and what’s the best way to do it? What types of free government grants and loans are available? What regulations govern your hiring regulations, payrolls, contracts, and other dealings with employees? What is the best way to settle disputes? This book covers all of the most up-to-date regulations that affect business owners and entrepreneurs today, and helps them to navigate such issues as foreign trade agreements and the timely submission of bids. It also discusses how owners can team together, proper and improper business practices, and how to handle controversies over who gets a contract and disputes about contracts that have already been awarded. All in all, this is a unique and definitive source for anyone seeking to sell to the government. Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, publishes a broad range of books on the visual and performing arts, with emphasis on the business of art. Our titles cover subjects such as graphic design, theater, branding, fine art, photography, interior design, writing, acting, film, how to start careers, business and legal forms, business practices, and more. While we don't aspire to publish a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are deeply committed to quality books that help creative professionals succeed and thrive. We often publish in areas overlooked by other publishers and welcome the author whose expertise can help our audience of readers.

“Well written and logically organized.” —Booklist. This handbook makes planning and problem-solving easy with its clear explanations of complex issues. In The Law (in Plain English)® for Small Business, Fifth Edition, Leonard DuBoff and Amanda Bryan guide entrepreneurs and small business owners through the maze of legal obligations and protections they need to understand. Chapters cover important topics such as: Licenses Trademarks Insurance plans Franchising Incorporating Advertising eBusiness considerations Taxes Succession planning Whether one is just about to open a small business, reassessing an existing business, or simply have a few questions, The Law (in Plain English)® for Small Business, Fifth Edition, is the go-to resource for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

“Well written and logically organized.” —Booklist. This handbook makes planning and problem-solving easy with its clear explanations of complex issues. In The Law (in Plain English)® for Small Business, Sixth Edition, Leonard DuBoff guides entrepreneurs and small business owners through the maze of legal obligations and protections they need to understand. Chapters cover important topics such as: Licenses Trademarks Insurance plans Franchising Incorporating Advertising eBusiness considerations Taxes Succession planning Whether one is just about to open a small business, reassessing an existing business, or simply have a few questions, The Law (in Plain English)® for Small Business, Sixth Edition, is the go-to resource for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Many great ideas fail because the inventors do not take the appropriate steps to protect, promote, and profit from their ideas. This friendly guide will walk you through everything that needs to be done before you can expect to realize financial gain from your invention. Experienced patent attorney Carl W. Battle provides methods for commercializing your invention, sources of information and assistance, and helpful guidelines for obtaining a US patent on your idea. Specific topics include: Using patent attorneys and agents Dealing with invention brokers and promotion firms Maintaining confidentiality of your ideas Obtaining foreign patent rights Enforcing your patent against infringement Licensing opportunities And much more This invaluable handbook also offers information that can assist in the selection of an attorney or patent agent, and will help you to get involved and monitor the patent and marketing process. Finally, easy-to-use forms and step-by-step instructions give you the option of saving money by handling the patenting and commercializing processes without hiring a patent attorney or invention broker. If you have an idea for an invention that could improve productivity, create jobs, or solve some long-standing problem, then pick up this Pocket Legal Companion™ and learn how to maximize your profits.