Tax/Business/Copyright Notes
Because I love all my readers who ARE bloggers (and the ones who aren’t but might be interested) I’m posting my notes from the Taking Care of Business seminar at BlogHer08 unedited (because I don’t really have time to perfect it.)
Defamation - reasonable listener - something wrong with my meal and manageer was extremely rude and gave examples that it’s false - truth is an absolute defense against defamation - doing it with malace and to harm reputation. If your just saying but this is just my opinion that’s not enough continually show that it’s jut your experience and oponion.
Copyright Law a work is considered copyrighted and protecgted by the law as soon as it is created. Labeling is great, but whether you label it or not, it is copyrighted.
Fair use has to do with commentating and criticism and there have been cases in the news AP case and Harry Potter case. You can see both sides of it but there are 4 factors that the court looks at - what are the factors?
* Nature of the Work
* Amount taken
* Purpose of the Work
* Effect on the Market - really huge. effect on competition. Original creators right can be stiffled by someone else using pieces of their work in a non-fair mannor.
Creative commons - started the org. nonprofit, objective really allow for online digital remixing and creativity to occur even though we live with this weird copyright system. A way for online digital creative commons liscense - some rights reserved license - hand out - restricting access but always getting attribution. Urge everyone to look into that.
Respecting trademarks, likelyhood of confusion,not using it exactly but if it’s in your same market and it could confuse consumers that is a problem.
Liabilities. Starting or in business, comes with responsiblities and costs - not a single answer. What are the tax implications? Selecting management structure going to be like, what your assets are - just for yourself. What can you do from a financial standpoint and personal liabiliy. Limits your personal liabilty from the assets of the company - house and car protected from a claim from a preditor - corporate veil respected and running it as a company.
Terms of use: appropriate rights and taking care of liability.
Allocate risk in agreements everyone shoudl know they can negotiate an agreement. Read it understand it and ask question if you dont understand it and negotiate it. Not boilerplate the way it is.
Collaberative blogs, Silicone Valley Moms blog - not thinking through all issues- coblogging agreement.
Kelly Philips Erb - TaxGirl.com, b5media channel editor
4 times the length of the bible - the tax code.
Income is like everything you get, (even stuff to review) - unless it’s excluded.
1099s - paid you more than $600. If company doesn’t give 1099 you don’t have to report income - NOT TRUE.
IRS is prety smart - claiming large deductions for your work in blogging
Keep track yourself, report all income - worldwide taxation.
Includes services and products - very aggresive review on product reviews - if it’s disposable it’s not income for me. If I eat them it’s not income.
Like to see matching up - reporting deduction and income.
Ordinary and Necessary
Don’t be afraid to claim a duduction.
If you were not blogging yuou would not be at BlogHer - ergo BlogHer deductible.
Business Cards - that’s a deduction, except for your blog.
Laptop just for me and my work - deduction.
Expenses can be prorated amount of time for use on the blogg
Home office key is that it has to be soley where you work. Section is fine, dedicated works space. Caviate city occupancy tax - chome office deductions will expose you to business occupancy tax for the city. Tax your home office.
Have your income offset by your deductions - not uncommon to have a loss - if I lost $1,000 you can carry it forward for the next year. Do you have a business or a hobby? do you have a motivation to make money? Just for fun not marketing or treating it like a business.
Scan reciepts save it in shoeboxes - know your good with. Don’t buy the software if you’re eally going to shove the reciepts in shoeboxes.
Giveaways - a wash.
If you can physically control something the IRS cares.
Sabrina Parsons, CEO Palo Alto Software - We exist to help people succeed in business. Tools content and advice.
HOW DO I MAKE MONEY? How to I make my blog a money generating activity.
You should be putting a SALARY in the books as a loss. Biggest mistakes poeple make is not paying themselves a salary. Don’t actually have to pay myself $15,000 but put it in the books. Once you start making money you can take that money out of the next year . Figure out some price for the things you do.
Biggest thing you have to do is look at what you’re doing as a BUSINESS. No reason you should be working for free. Take it seriously. Make it your business and once you do that figure out your business goal and figure out what it’s going to take.
1st step to pricing your services.
Connection with freelance writing and consulting services. Seeing you as a person or expert. See what your competitors are doing. Just ask and they’ll tell you and there are salary websites. Salary calculators online.
Freelance websites where people are posting. Type in freelance writer in Google and trying to be a journalist and product reviews. There’s going to be people who want to have your attention. Maybe you’re charging them a commission.
Break it down: I want to make $10,000 then what’s my quarterly goal $3,300.
Become the spammer - contact the companies business development person and then say who you are and what they want. Go out and contact them - be in control of what you want - pick out the top 10 websites and present them with a package. they are soliciting it. Go out and soliciting it. Here’s who I am, this is how many page views I get, here’s my demographics. Use google analytics, you can do all kinds of things to prove what it’s worth.
My stuff is worth what I say it’s worth! Give it a shot - I’ll give it 8 weeks, to be in a relationship. We both bring something to the table. show them how they will be better off. Taking a few risks, maybe some free stuff to prove themselves. Make sure you set it up if you give it for free, you don’t have to give it for free forever.
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