ad:tech Coming up next week: 30% off for TCers
July 31, 2008
Just a reminder that ad:tech Chicago is next week. You can still get 30% off the online ticket price if you register using the special TECH cocktail attendee code listed below. It is a great conference and will be well with your time and money. Here is the latest update from the folks at ad:tech:
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Next week’s event, ad:tech is proud to showcase many of Chicago’s local marketing masters from in this results-driven, two day conference. Attendees are invited to kick-off ad:tech Chicago at the Opening Night Party at Enclave. Sponsored by DoubleClick, attendees will enjoy an open bar, music and hors d’oeuvres from 8pm – 11pm. Cash bar from 11pm – Closing. Be sure to bring your ad:tech badge for admission. Get more details .
The conference and expo start Tuesday, August 5th, so register now to save. We’re offering TECH cocktail members 30% off the lower online rate for a Full Conference Pass when you register before August 4th. Use code: 30CHC2. Register now !
TECH cocktail Boston 2 Storms On
July 25, 2008
TECH cocktail Boston 2 at Tequila Rain was a bit of a wet one as a summer storm sprung itself on the Boston area making it problematic for us to even get to Boston. Luckily we made it out and so did a couple hundred dedicated Boston TECH cocktailers. Thank you to everyone that made their way out through the rain.
The event was sponsored by TripAdvisor, ChicagoMicro and Genotrope. Word on the street is that Newton, Mass. based TripAdvisor is hiring product managers so you might want to reach out to them if you are looking for a new gig.
Check out the TECH cocktail Boston 2 photos from the event taken by the talented local photographer Sooz. Also special thanks to Thomas Summit for all his help being out guy on the ground in Boston which helped us make this event go off without a hitch.
The six Boston area startups demoing at TECH cocktail Boston 2 were as follows:
AmpIdea - Founder Praful Mathur, a student at University of Illinois, has been dedicating his summer to developing and deploying the AmpIdea interactive taxi cab advertising platform in the Boston Area. AmpIdea offers an impressive interactive touchscreen device. It sounds like the next step for them is to get some funding so if you are VC you might want to check them out.
Modiv Media - Modiv Media is taking a different approach to self-checkout systems in grocery stores. Modiv founder Matt Volpi showed off its shopper device software which empowers grocery shoppers to scan the products they are going to purchase while they shop. The product serves behavioral targeted product deals and savings while shoppers shop. Currently the product is rolled out in a number of stores so be looking for it in your super market soon.
Totspot - Are babies blogging? Well not exactly though that would be amusing, Totspot offers an great way for parents to blog and share photos and memories with the rest of the Web or privately to family and friends. It is like a baby book online for your baby. If you have a baby on the way you may want to get your baby’s blog setup today.
VendorCity - Startups listen up as this could be helpful as VendorCity offers a place to find, rate and recommend local vendors. Let’s say you run a business and you need to find good legal help, VendorCity could be of assistance. VendorCity is not your classic directory site as it leverages sophisticated technology to assist in recommending the best vendor for your needs. VendorCity is currently taking on the east coast but with time looks to expand to the rest of the US markets.
WebNotes - WebNotes’ mission is to revolutionize the way people collect, organize, and share information on the Internet. With WebNotes, users can annotate web pages with highlighters and sticky notes, organize their notes into projects and categories, and share annotated web pages with friends and colleagues. WebNotes is a great tool for anyone reviewing products online, gathering market data, or conducting any type of web research. Currently in private Beta, WebNotes opened up its registration to TECH cocktail participants during the event.
YouCastr - YouCastr is making following sports more personal and social by enabling anyone to broadcast live audio commentary, create sports talk shows, and interact with other fans in real-time. YouCastr is platform to broadcast live audio (and soon video) for long tail sports, such as high school and amateur sporting events. So if you want to cover the glory days of high school or college sports YouCastr is the place to go.
Social designer Josh Porter of Bokardo also made an appearance at TECH cocktail showing off and signing copies of his new book Designing for the Social Web
Finally, if you were at TECH cocktail Boston 2, be sure to join the online TECH cocktail group at “I am TECH cocktail,” our new community for TECH cocktailers. You can contribute your photos from the event as well as connect with other TECH cocktailers. Cheers!
Choosing the Right Certified Public Accountant for your Business
July 23, 2008
By Lisa Hanlon, CPA: Frost, Ruttenberg & Rothblatt, P.C.
Running a business in today’s world can be one of the most exciting and overwhelming challenges in a person’s life. Choosing the right business advisors that will assist an entrepreneur in starting a business or taking an existing company to the next level is a significant step in this process. There is little doubt that the most important business advisors are your accountant (CPA), lawyer and banker. Ultimately, this “dream team” will work together in helping you meet your goals. The CPA firm that you hire should do more than just balance your books or reconcile your checking statement; they should add value to your business which, in turn, will add value to your life.
When choosing the right CPA, consider the following guidelines:
The CPA that you hire must have significant experience with your industry. In the long run, this will save time and aggravation. A good CPA will see the “big picture” and be dynamic in their thinking – offering ideas based on their experience. Request the firms most recent peer review report if you are hiring them to do an audit. Make sure your CPA understands how your cash register rings. Get referrals from people that you trust.
Try to limit the interview process to no more than three candidates. Any more than this will just complicate the decision making process.
After describing your long and short term objectives, ask the prospective CPA to discuss what they can do to assist you in meeting these goals. They should be able to offer suggestions and planning opportunities. Don’t be afraid to ask for references, so that you can talk to other business owners that have the employed the CPA’s services. Be sure that you understand the fee structure up front; this is really an interview process for both parties. Remember to observe whether this individual is good at both listening and speaking. Ask yourself, “Does this CPA appear to be genuinely interested in my business needs.”
After interviewing the candidates, make your final decision based on all of the various objective and subjective considerations, as well as such factors as chemistry and attitude. Trust your instincts when deciding which CPA to hire. You’ll know which one has the passion to help.
Once hired, don’t be afraid to consult your team of advisors when making decisions affecting your business. Open communication with all of your advisors is a key ingredient in making these relationships work. The right CPA, lawyer and banker should be actively involved in your business. Use them as a sounding board when making key financial decisions. From personal experience, keep in mind, that using your CPA in a manner that will allow them to be proactive rather than reactive to financial disasters will make your business more successful and your life easier.
One thing is for sure, without the right team of advisors, your job as a business owner will be more stressful and difficult. Instead of thinking of these advisors as another expense item on your profit and loss statement, think of them as a valuable asset that will give your business the edge it needs to compete in today’s highly competitive marketplace.
TECH cocktail Community Contributed Knowledge
Lisa M. Hanlon is an officer with Frost, Ruttenberg & Rothblatt, P.C. with offices in Deerfield and Chicago. She works with closely held and family-owned businesses in a variety of industries. Lisa can be reached at LHANLON@FRRONLINE.COM .
Connect Before & After TECH cocktail
July 22, 2008
Join the TECH cocktail COMMUNITY
We have been hosting TECH cocktail events for quite some time now and have received a lot of suggestions along the way. One reoccurring suggestion was that TECH cocktailers wanted a better way to connect with other attendees after in between events. We have been meaning to do this for quite a while but we finally got our act together and are are happy to launch the new TECH cocktail COMMUNITY extension (iam.techcocktail.com). We have been able to help the community offline thus far and this new online community should help the community keep the conversation going online as well.
The community site offers TECH cocktailers the ability to add photos and videos from our events, create groups and discussion forums and even post blogs. As a community both online and off we can now all help each other in a number of different capacities from finding new developers or designers to basic business questions.
Connect with like-minded TECH cocktailers today: iam.techcocktail.com
TECH cocktail Boulder 2 Coming August 20th RSVP Now
July 21, 2008
It’s time to head back to the Rockies as we look to host our second TECH cocktail in the startup rich soil and fresh mountain air of Boulder, Colorado. We are pleased to announce TECH cocktail Boulder 2 on August 20, 2008 at the Boulder Theater in Boulder, Colorado. Join us for an evening of fun mingling with other technology enthusiasts, VCs, bloggers and entrepreneurs.
Here are the details… you must be 21+ to attend and must be on the RSVP list for the event to get in.
When: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 - 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST
Where: Boulder Theater
What: A “cocktail of TECH people”
Price: FREE thanks to our sponsors listed below.
Sponsored by:
If you are interested in sponsoring or demoing at TECH cocktail Boulder 2 please contact the organizers Frank Gruber and Eric Olson ASAP at cofounder [at] techcocktail dot com.
SocialDevCampChicago Is Coming Soon RSVP
July 18, 2008
If you are developer in the midwest you might be interested in checking out the upcoming SocialDevCampChicago. SocialDevCampChicago is an unconference for people passionate about social networks, web applications, platform development, new media, and any of the exciting (but messy) topics in-between. This event promises to be a packed day of sharing, learning, coding, and relationship building with thought leaders in the social web landscape!
Date & Location
SocialDevCampChicago will be held from 8:30am-6:00pm on Saturday, August 9th at the Illinois Institute of Technology McCormick Tribune Center (http://www.iit.edu/mtcc/). For details, visit the event site at http://barcamp.pbwiki.com/SocialDevCampChicago.
RSVP and Connect with Guests
The event is free to attend, but please RSVP to help determine a headcount for the food & drink budget. To do this, simply add your name to the SocialDevCamp Chicago wiki (https://barcamp.pbwiki.com/SocialDevCampChicago). You can connect with other guests before the event by looking at the RSVP list or by joining the Facebook event here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=20586291919.
Schedule & Call for Presenters
SocialDevCamp Chicago follows the BarCamp tradition of encouraging unstructured attendee participation. Talks can range from 5-10 minute informative presentations to hour-long discussions on coding techniques and trends shaping social networking. If you are interested in a specific area of the social web, see the Schedule and Call for Presenters on the wiki (http://barcamp.pbwiki.com/SocialDevCampChicagoTopics) and add your topic to the schedule.
Example Topic Areas Include:
- Mobile Social Applications
- Niche Social Networks
- Leveraging the Social Web for Business
- Monetizing Networks & Platforms
- Identity Management and Data Portability
Visit the wiki (http://barcamp.pbwiki.com/SocialDevCampChicagoTopics) for a complete list of proposed talk ideas. Remember, all ideas relating to social development and trends are welcome!
Donate to SocialDevCampChicago
SocialDevCampChicago is free to the public but campers are welcome to donate for coverage of food and drinks. Refer to the wiki for updates on budget and donation figures. Contact Tim or Andy for further information on donation opportunities. Look forward to meeting an interesting group in August.
Acknowledgements
SocialDevCamp Chicago was inspired by SocialDevCamp East, hosted on May 10 in Baltimore which we previously pointed TECH cocktailers to. The name remains the same (with permission of course). SocialDevCampChicago is being organized by Tim Courtney (www.timcourtney.net) and Andy Angelos (www.andyangelos.com). Same mission, different minds!
Contact
For more information, contact:
Tim Courtney – tim at timcourtney dot net
Andy Angelos – andy.angelos at gmail dot com
ad:tech Chicago Discount
July 10, 2008
ad:tech Chicago is coming up in August (Aug 5 - 6 : Navy Pier) and they have been kind enough to extend a 30% discount to all TECH cocktail members. Also, if you order your ticket before Friday you can get your 30% discount plus the early bird discount. Not bad! Check out ad:tech today if you are in the media/tech space. It’ll be worth your while.
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From ad:tech:
ad:tech brings together top executives and today’s leading brands to tap into the pulse of digital marketing. Connect with your peers and leverage the networking opportunities ad:tech Chicago provides. Attend the Full Conference, and as TECH cocktail members, get 30% the already low Early Bird rate when you register by Friday, July 11! Use code: 30CHC6.
TECH cocktail Boston 2
July 1, 2008
We are excited to announce we are coming back to Boston for our second TECH cocktail event this summer. You may recall, last fall we visited Boston for a super TECH cocktail Boston 1 which brought out a great crowd and showed off some local startups. You can check out the photos from TECH cocktail Boston 1 to see what we are talking about.
Join us for an evening of fun mingling with other technology enthusiasts, VCs, bloggers and entrepreneurs.
When: Thursday, July 24, 2008 - 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST
Where: Tequila Rain by Fenway (Boston)
What: A “cocktail of TECH people”
Price: FREE You must be 21+ to attend and must be on the RSVP list.
If you are interested in sponsoring or demoing at TECH cocktail Boston 2 please contact us ASAP!
Choosing the Appropriate Form for Running Your Business
July 1, 2008
Editor’s note: Gary contributed this article and we’re posting it through the new “contribute” idea/feature on TECHcocktail.com. Check out techcocktail.com/home/contribute for more details on how you can submit articles to TECH cocktail. It is our hope that more people will start sharing their expertise with the community via TECH cocktail’s contribute feature.
Now, back to Gary who outlines the pros and cons of various legal structures you should consider as you look to form your new company.
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By Gary Barron, CPA: founding member of the tax department of Frost, Ruttenberg & Rothblatt, P.C.
There are numerous considerations in determining the type of entity to be used when starting a new business. The form or structure chosen will determine a number of the business’s features, such as the taxability of the business and its owners, control, legal liability, transferability, as well as countless other aspects. No form is perfect, and the decision usually comes down to weighing the advantages and disadvantages of each type of entity and then making an informed decision.
The five primary types of entity available for conducting a business include Sole Proprietorship, C corporation, S corporation, Partnership and Limited Liability Company (“LLC”). The following is a brief overview of each of these business structures:
Sole Proprietorship - A Sole Proprietorship is easily formed merely by opening a bank account. Some states or local authorities may also require some type of registration or license, depending on the nature of the business. As a result of the ease of formation, most legal and other professional fees associated with the creation of a new business can be avoided. Control of the business rests with the sole owner. Because of the structure, capitalization is limited to the assets and borrowing potential of the sole owner.
The owner of the Sole Proprietorship has unlimited personal liability. In many instances, some of the risk can be mitigated by insurance. Since the results of operations are reported directly on the owner’s individual income tax return, there is only one level of taxation. Although payroll tax filings for the earnings of the owner are avoided, the results of operations are subject to self-employment tax. This form of business also has no continuity of existence beyond the life of the sole owner.
Because of its ease of form and operation and limited flexibility, the Sole Proprietorship may be perfect for a new entity before it really takes off. At that time, it might be necessary to consider one of the other, more sophisticated forms for doing business discussed below.
C & S Corporations - The formation of a C or S corporation usually requires the creation of formal articles of incorporation and other necessary documentation. A corporation wishing to elect S corporation status must file with the IRS a signed form indicating that intention. A corporation must also register with the state, and annual state filings and fees are usually required. As one can see, the initial startup costs are significantly greater for a corporation than those incurred for the creation of the Sole Proprietorship.
Corporate bylaws need to be created to set forth the rules governing the entity. The shareholders have the sole authority to approve articles of incorporation, merger and dissolution, and they are granted the authority to elect the directors of the company. C corporations may have more than one class of stock, and the various classes of stock may grant the holders different rights or preferences over other classes.
There is basically no limit on the number of shareholders that a C corporation may have. As a result, the C Corporation usually has the potential to raise or borrow significantly more capital than the Sole Proprietorship or any of the other business forms discussed. In contrast, an S corporation is limited to 100 shareholders, and certain individuals or entities are deemed to be ineligible S corporation shareholders. The S corporation may also have only one class of stock. Shareholders of both C & S corporations also have any potential liability limited to their investment in the corporation.
From an income tax point of view, the C corporation is a separate entity that pays tax on its net earnings. Those earnings, once distributed as dividends, are taxed again to the shareholders. The S corporation, while a separate entity, is not subject to federal tax. The shareholders are subject to tax on their distributive share of the corporate earnings, whether distributed or not. The S corporation shareholder can also deduct their distributive share of any losses recognized by the corporation. The ability to deduct an S corporation loss is limited to the shareholder’s basis in his or her stock, plus the balance of any shareholder loans to the corporation.
There are a number of other significant differences between the C & S corporate structures which are beyond the scope of this article. It should be noted that as a separate entity, the corporate structure provides a continuity of existence that extends beyond the life of any individual shareholder.
Partnership & LLC - The formation of a partnership can be accomplished on the most basic level through a mere handshake, although a signed partnership agreement is definitely advisable. The agreement is needed in order to establish such points as profit and loss ratios, control, admission and withdrawal of partners, and other necessary factors. An LLC is created through the drafting of articles of organization and an operating agreement.
With respect to control in a General Partnership, each of the partners usually has the ability to transact business and sign contacts or loan documents in the name of the partnership. In a Limited Partnership or an LLC, the agreement designates certain individuals as having sole responsibility for the decision-making authority for the partnership.
Like the C corporation, there is usually no limit for the number of potential investors in the entity. Therefore, the partnership form usually affords the entity with a greater opportunity to raise capital or borrow funds. Limited partners or non-managing members of an LLC have their liability limited to their investments in the entity. General partners can be fully liable for the liabilities of the partnership. Neither the partnership nor LLC format is subject to federal tax. Each of the partners/members is taxed on their distributive share of the entity’s earnings. Losses of the partnership or LLC can be deducted by the investors to the extent of their partnership basis, which in certain circumstances can include the partnership or LLC’s debt.
The above information provides a very brief overview of the basic factors that need to be considered when determining the appropriate structure for a new business. This information is by no means a complete analysis of the topic. If additional information is desired, please email me at the address indicated below and I’ll be happy to forward on to you a copy of a tabular analysis of “Choice of Business Entity Issues” prepared by a leading tax research service, BNA
TECH cocktail Community Contributed Knowledge
Gary Barron CPA, is the founding member of the tax department of Frost, Ruttenberg & Rothblatt, P.C. of Chicago. His humorous articles regarding tax, the accounting industry and business have been printed in the Chicago Tribune, Crain Chicago Business and various other local news publications in the Chicago metropolitan area. (See – www.frronline.com/tax-articles/ ) Gary can be reached at gbarron [at] frronline [dot] com.
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