Tips for making sure you get paid as a freelancer
As with anything, being a freelancer, independent contractor, or business owner comes with its own set of pros and cons.
How to turn your blog into an ecommerce business
There’s a question that pervades the world of sales: Which comes first, the product or the customer? Like the age-old dilemma of the chicken and the egg, the answer changes depending on the perspective.
How to cut expenses and manage cashflow
Small businesses have shut down all across the country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and many of those remaining have seen massive losses in revenue. If you’re dealing with negative cash flow problems, you’re...
Sell more and limit exposure to germs using contactless payments methods
The coronavirus pandemic has created economic shockwaves around the world, and the long-term effects on the business landscape are still taking shape. The shelter-in-place orders that kept people out of public venues...
Paycheck Protection Program Extended to August 8th, 2020
On the evening of Tuesday, June 30th, the US Senate voted unanimously to extend the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) through August 8th, 2020. That is a 5-week extension to the program.
Setting Boundaries When Working from Home
When I transitioned to freelancing full-time back in 2015, one of the first things I did was set up a makeshift home office in my dining room. Emphasis on “makeshift.” My workspace was a tiny corner of my kitchen. It...
Tips on Starting Your Own Online Store
In a very short period of time, the coronavirus pandemic is creating massive shifts in our economy and the way we work and live at large. In turn, we entrepreneurs are tasked with discovering ways to swiftly adapt and...
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Loan Forgiveness for Sole Proprietors
The PPP is a government loan program intended to help small businesses weather the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Azlo Business Foundry Project
With historic levels of unemployment in the U.S. due to the pandemic, Azlo is stepping up to help.
PPP Loan Forgiveness FAQs
If you secured a loan through the Payment Protection Program (PPP), getting your head around exactly how you might be able to get your loan forgiven is probably top of mind.
11 Ways to Bootstrap Your New Small Business When the Economy Is Down
boot·strap /ˈbo͞otˌstrap/ verb gerund or present participle: bootstrapping Definition: get (oneself or something) into or out of a situation using existing resources.
How to Level Up Your Freelance Career Into A Small Business
When you transition from being an employee and into working as a freelancer, you develop a different perspective of time and money than you had before. When you’re an employee, potential is fixed. You make a certain...
What I Learned Helping Launch an Immersive Art Business During a Pandemic
My partner’s long-time dream of starting his own immersive art gallery came into fruition last fall. He had secured enough funding from investors and landed on a great space in LA’s Chinatown.
How to Start an Affiliate Marketing Business
If you've recently been laid off or gotten furloughed, or maybe you’re working part-time and stuck at home, now could be a perfect opportunity to start an affiliate marketing business. All you really need to get started...
COVID-19 (CARES Act) Paycheck Protection Program FAQs
On April 21st, the Senate approved $310 billion more for COVID-19 (CARES Act) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, and the House passed the second PPP tranche on April 24th.
Common Financial Pitfalls Freelancers Make When Starting Out
Have you ever thought you would master something only to find yourself falling flat? In my early days, this was me and my money skills as a freelancer.
How to Build Your Brand Working from Home
Your personal brand is much more than just your name or social media handle. It is something intangible, something that identifies and represents your business. It’s a tool that can attract followers that identify with...
Ideas for quickly getting alternative sources of income
Pandemic aside, this is a common question amongst us all, “How can I make money and how fast can I do it?”
Small Business Banking Expertise
COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on our economy, and small businesses, solopreneurs, and freelancers are some of the most affected. Government relief programs have already given hundreds of billions of dollars in aid, but...
Get Paid to Teach What You Know
As the saying goes, “Knowledge is power.” Well, your knowledge can be the power that fuels a new income.
What to do when your business must pivot.
Agility is one of the most important traits that an entrepreneur can have. The market is always changing and evolving, and this is more true now than ever before. Success, if not actual survival, depends not only on...
E-Commerce Opportunities During a Pandemic
As if running a business wasn’t hard enough, along comes the COVID-19 pandemic to disrupt life in ways that seem Hollywoodesque.
How to Quickly Start Your Business with Rapid Prototyping
Launching a business can become a complicated task. You have to meticulously plan out every detail from idea to production, marketing, billing, and even customer service.
How to Market Yourself When Starting a Freelance Career.
Freelancing definitely comes with a lot of perks.
Freelance Resources During an Economic Downturn
As freelancers, we’re all-too-familiar with “feast or famine” cycles. Sometimes you get an influx of work … And other times? Seeking client opportunities can feel like a barren wasteland.
How entrepreneurs can respond to the coronavirus pandemic
Within the past couple of weeks, communities across the U.S. have taken swift and drastic action to slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). Schools have been closed, events canceled, and businesses have changed their...
Surviving as a consultant in a COVID-19 world
You’ve been consulting, and business has been good and growing. Personal networking, partnerships, marketing, or targeted sales have helped your growth. Then you started to hear about COVID-19 virus, first overseas and...
Taking an accidental business to the next level
Our journey into entrepreneurship began in 2012 when we launched a Kickstarter campaign.
How to Test a Business Idea
There’s a reason why so many successful entrepreneurs have a pivot story—the moment when they decided to change their products and business model because their original vision wasn’t working.
Announcing new COVID-19 lending resources
We recently asked our customers what they needed, the most, to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their business. Over 73% of them said that a government stimulus package was going to be essential.
Loans, debt relief, and other economic programs to support entrepreneurs through the COVID-19 pandemic
Small businesses are perhaps the hardest hit by COVID-19, with many businesses experiencing an overwhelming decrease in revenue or the inability to remain open altogether.
What Kind of Company Should I Form?
There are several business types and structures to choose from. Each has its own list of pros and cons, including complexity of formation, liability protection, and tax implications. Here’s a quick overview of the...
How to raise money for your new business
You’ve heard of legends who went from basement to boardroom. You may even have family or friends who started a business with nothing and are now running their own empire. One thing these inspiring stories often gloss...
How do I form a business?
You’ve come up with a brilliant business idea. You’ve researched the market, estimated your profits, made a website, and even secured your social media handles. Now, you just need to figure out how to manage your...
How much does it cost to start a business?
So, you’re an aspiring entrepreneur with a killer business idea and plenty of hustle. You know you’ve got the skills and the ambition to succeed. You might even have found the right business partner. All you need is...
How to come up with a business idea
If you’re reading this, you probably want to start a business but you’re not yet exactly sure what that business should do. Maybe you have ideas, but you’re not quite confident in them. Maybe you have a problem you want...
How to start bookkeeping for your small business
When you’re just starting out as an entrepreneur, there’s a long and admittedly overwhelming number of things to do and learn. Bookkeeping is one of the items on that list, and it’s a task that many new entrepreneurs...
4 ways to fund your business without getting a loan
Obtaining funding for your small business is often stressful, time-consuming, and occasionally risky. Unless you’re the owner of a Silicon Valley unicorn startup, you’re most likely bootstrapping your venture with...
What every entrepreneur needs to know about self-employment tax
When you’re starting a business, you’re likely to encounter a whole host of new tax concepts. One of them is self-employment tax. Read on to learn exactly what this tax is, who needs to pay it, and how it’s calculated....