Like many small business owners, I CRINGE, everytime tax season rolls around.  Tax planning is tough and I always rely on my CPA to help here, but over the years I’ve learned a few tips and tricks to help minimize my tax liabilities aka save money wherever I can.

We all know the most common types of business expenses you can write-off:

Meals

Travel

Cell phones

Office & Home Office expenses

Retirement Contributions

Professional Services fees (like accountants, lawyers, biz coaches)

Courses and Continuing Education

Health Insurance Premiums

A  little known tax deduction is called an “in-kind” donation.  That means you are donating your professional goods and/or services to a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, basically a non-cash donation.

Think about it this way, if you sell Instagram templates and want to make a donation of 100 templates to a non-profit, you can literally expense or write-off the cost of those 100 templates.  The same goes if you were to donate used office furniture for example, but the write-off would be for the fair market value of that furniture at the time of donation.  Pretty cool, huh?

When it comes to an “in-kind” donation of your services, it’s a bit more complicated.  Generally, donation of personal services is not tax deductible, but professional services are deductible if supported by provable expenses such as payroll cost of an employee’s time that went towards the “in-kind” donation.

If you have any questions about how an “in-kind” donation could benefit your company or your charitable interests, check with your local tax professional such as a CPA.

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” -Winston Churchill

-Amber :)

One of my least favorite things is when I have to tell my 1:1 Trademark clients that they have to consider rebranding, which 9 times out of 10 involves a name change.

Luckily, I’ve got the steps down pat on how to change your LLC name so hopefully, I can save you the headache of looking that up yourself. 

If you’re considering a name change for your LLC follow these steps to make it official:

1. Research to make sure your new business name is available!  This usually starts with an internet search, running a State database search and preliminary trademark search. Don’t forget to check if your domain name and social handles are available too!
2. Submit a Name Change Request on your Secretary of State’s Corporations website or portal.  It’s usually just a form you fill out and pay a nominal fee to have processed.  These name changes are usually approved and made official at the State level within a few days after the request 
3. In order to make the name change official on the Federal level (aka with the IRS), you will need to write a letter to the IRS informing them of the name change and send to the address where you filed your most recent year’s tax return.
4. If applicable, update your name with any Permitting or Licensing offices in your state.
5. Don’t forget to update your bank with the name change as well!  You will usually need to send them confirmation of the name change once approved by the State.  Occasionally, a bank may ask for an updated Form SS-4 from the IRS which is your EIN or Tax Payer ID number and includes your business’ formal name.

Happy Business-ing!

-Amber :)

Let’s start with the basics...

A trademark is a unique identifier of your brand that helps consumers recognize your product or service offerings in the market and distinguish them from competitors.  A trademark can be anything from your business name, to a signature product or offering, to a course name and includes both logos and wordmarks (names).  You can also register design marks for design elements, as well as trade dress for things like product packaging.

You should carefully consider a trademark if you plan to offer products or services beyond a hyper-local setting, and especially if you plan to have an Internet presence for your brand.

Registering your trademarks can help deter potential infringers, and can provide a mechanism for legal recourse in the case of infringement.  Adding registered intellectual property to your business can increase your brand value exponentially opening up the door to licensing opportunities and more.  Crafting unique identifiers, even if they are unregistered trademarks, can also strengthen your brand by setting you apart from competitors in consumers’ minds.

Here’s a quick assessment to determine if you should apply  for a trademark registration:

1. Are you going to do business in interstate commerce (i.e., selling goods or providing services across state lines)?
2. Do you think you may expand your business into another state in the future?
3. Do you plan on marketing your business across state lines?
4. Does your business sell products or operate a store online?

If the answer to any of the above questions is “yes,” you should consider registering your trademark.

Because of the complexity of trademark law and the fact that registering a trademark incorrectly could cost you big time down the road, working with a trademark attorney to secure your trademark is always best.  Click here to schedule a trademark consult with my law firm Gilormo Law.

-Amber :)

Isn’t it funny that sometimes a new business or course name will just pop into our heads and other times it seems to take forever to come up with a name?

As a practicing Trademark lawyer, I regularly give people advice on the best practices to use when picking a business name, so I wanted to share a few tips with you here!

First and foremost, before you pay an expensive (or even cheap) designer to create your logo and other branding elements around your chosen business name, the first thing you want to do is make sure that you’re not infringing on anyone else’s business name or trademark.  While this is always important to consider, it’s especially important if you plan to be involved in interstate commerce or have an Internet presence.  Ideally, you would want a trademark attorney to run an in-depth search on any potential business names you want to use. This search will check trade databases, trademark registries, domain names, business entities, and scour the Internet to find uses similar to yours. The expense of running a comprehensive name search pales in comparison to a trademark infringement suit or having to rebrand all of your media, advertising, etc. after you have begun using it.

Second, names that are suggestive, arbitrary or fanciful rather than descriptive of the products and services you offer are always going to be more easily Trademarked and will distinguish you better from your competitors.  For example, Apple as a brand name for computers is arbitrary and highly distinguishable from something like Your Laptop Device Company.  Also, you simply cannot trademark Apple when used to describe the fruit apples since it is “descriptive” of the thing you referencing.  There is nothing wrong with having a descriptive name like Your Laptop Device Company, but if you plan to build a brand and register a trademark, you will want something distinct.

Lastly, there are 2 different trademark registries.  One is the principal registry where most of the arbitrary, fanciful and suggestive marks are registered due to their distinctiveness.  The second registry is called the supplemental registry, where a bunch of descriptive marks are initially registered.  The difference between the two registries lies in the level of protection you gain as a registered trademark with the principal registry essentially giving you more protections, but the supplemental also keeps infringers at bay.  Something to consider is that after 5 years of doing business even with a descriptive brand name you can reapply to be put on the principal registry due to gained market recognition and distinctiveness through consistent use.

If you are struggling to come up with a brand name that fits your business, I highly recommend the book Hello My Name is Awesome by Alexandra Watkins, which goes over a ton of naming tips and tricks and also lays out a strategy for creating amazingly suggestive brand names.

Happy Naming!

-Amber :)

P.S. This blog contains an affiliate link for the book Hello My Name is Awesome.

Do for yourself in order to show up for others

Gentle reminder to myself and all the moms out there--we’ve got to remember to prioritize ourselves in order to show up as our best self for others.  

I can’t count the number of times that I’ve moved my doctor’s appointment because the kids had something going on or I had a conflict with work--and working out, what is that again?

My employees always hear me say that there’s never enough time in the day, but instead you have to be excellent at prioritizing what needs to be done. In our line of work, there’s always going to be more to do.  As it turns out, I haven’t been practicing what I preach.  I’m getting a ton of work done, but in the process sacrificing myself.  That’s not sustainable and honestly, what’s the point of all the work if you’re not around to enjoy it?

So, I’m not going to wait for a New Year’s Resolution to get my act together.  For the remainder of the year I’m making myself a top priority. I’m challenging you to turn yourself into a top priority in your life too.

We’ve got this!

-Amber :)

A healthy person wants many things, but an unhealthy person only wants one.

I’ve been preaching ‘health is wealth’ for over 11 years in my personal injury law practice, but in daily life not implementing this practice.

With all the crazy unforeseeable happenings these last 2 years (hellooooo COVID), so many of us have had our lives turned upside down and dealt with immeasurable loss.  These past 2 months have been exceptionally hard for me, my health literally forced me to a full stop.  This was a blessing in disguise of course because I was able to shift my mindset to focus on the most important parts of my life which, for me, are my health, family,  and enjoying life.  Without those 3 things in working, nothing else has much meaning.

As entrepreneurs, it is so easy for us to get caught up in the hustle and 24/7 work grind.  We often forget the why of it all--why we are doing it in the first place.  

Note to self: health is your #1 priority in all forms! 

In health,

-Amber :)