Whether you like numbers or hate them, understanding the money picture of your business will help you make better decisions and a more sustainable business.
What’s making money?
What’s losing money?
What expenses are the heaviest?
In this episode we discuss how to take control of your business finances based on Corbett and Caleb’s hard-earned experience.
Luckily, Chase has a few puns and Game of Thrones reenactments (no spoilers) to keep it entertaining.
We also answer a couple listener questions about recurring billing tools and SEO douchebaggery.
Be sure to enter your email in the box at the bottom of this post so we can send you things. Not often. Just enough for you to be, like…
Note for our US readers: We’re wishing you all the best 4th of July celebration. Be safe out there!
It’s better to listen on the go! Subscribe on iTunes
Shownotes
TI-86 – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Xero: Online Accounting Software. Free Trial, Free Support
FreshBooks – Online Invoicing, Accounting & Billing Software
QuickBooksSmall Business Accounting Software from Intuit
Varys – A Wiki of Ice and Fire
Paypal Recurring Billing Service FAQ’s
SEO: The Free Beginner’s Guide From Moz
Learn how to set goals that actually stick!
The Top 10 Mistakes in Online Business
Every week we talk with entrepreneurs. We talk about what’s working and what isn’t. We talk about successes and failures. We spend time with complete newbies, seasoned veterans, and everything in between.
One topic that comes up over and over again with both groups is mistakes made in starting businesses. Newbies love to learn about mistakes so they can avoid them. Veterans love to talk about what they wish they had known when starting out.
These conversations have been fascinating, so we compiled a list of the 10 mistakes we hear most often into a nifty lil' guide. Get the 10 Most Common Mistakes in Starting an Online Business here »
Great content. Subscribing right now.
Thank you for being original and talking about something that few do. Good stuff. Happy 4th!
Thanks, John! Much obliged.
You’ve found a way to make business accounting entertaining! Kudos. If nothing else, it was certainly the greatest number of times the word “eunuch” has come up in any podcast I’ve ever heard. And for that, I’m heading to iTunes to give you an rave review momentarily.
More importantly, you made some references to having an attorney explain business entity basics (LLC, S-corp, etc.) to your audience. I would love the opportunity to shed light on this subject, among other things. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything I can do to help.
All good things,
Ian
Ha! Thanks, Ian. You had me at “eunuch.” We’ll be in touch in the fullness of time. Cheers!
Just found your blog for the first time. Subscribing right now! Love it so far! I will be recommending this to my SEO clients to check out.
I see you guys have great success with this podcast series! Keep up the good work! :)
I haven’t listened to your podcasts but I definitely will! :)
Thanks, Chase, for helping me to realize I’m not the only one who breaks out in hives when confronted with numbers.
Two great show ideas came out of this one. I can’t wait to listen to the episodes on legal entities and SEO. And if the SEO show turns into five shows, I’ll listen to all of ’em.
Thanks, guys. Awesome job!
Thanks Ray!
Great episode about some sides of the business many of us struggle with when first starting out.
The main points were right on from my own experience.
As suggested by my accountant – get some software to track expenses, revenue and categories, and get a separate bank account. Boom, done.
You mentioned some software suggestions in your episode and I just wanted to throw out one I’ve used and found extremely perfect for my business. (I found Quickbooks a little too complicated).
I use Wave Accounting. It’s free… yes, free and they have a reputable model. Easy to use, connects directly to my bank account and imports transactions daily. I just go in at the end of each month, categorize everything and it’s easy peasy lemon squeezy. I also use it to send invoices (allows for CC payments) and print off the reports at the end of the year to give my accountant. She loves it! No affiliation here with the software, just a great tool.
Hey guys what do you think about insurance for bloggers? I talked with a company at NMX in January about it and they’ve just sent out an email saying it’s available now. Worth it? Necessary, or waste of money? What are your thoughts?
And – would you recommend Xero of Freshbooks, starting from square one? I used to do my accounting with Simply Accounting when I was a corporation. Now I’m doing the shoebox and spreadsheet thing but I like the idea of importing the from my bank and paypal transactions automatically. So which would you recommend for a one person show, that has some accounting experience and is good with numbers?
Awesome. This is the kind of content I look forward to, great stuff guys. Keep up the good work!
This is great stuff. Way to take a boring subject like accounting and make it fun. Kudos!
Great episode guys. I’d like to echo the importance of having a separate bank account for your business.
Years ago, my wife and I started raising goats (Tennessee Fainting goats) as a business. One of the things we did soon after starting was to get a separate bank account (a personal account) and credit card. When it came to tax time, it was much easier to find all the expenses related to the farm since they were separate. It has worked well for about 10 years.
A couple of years ago, I started a laser engraving business. One of the first things I did was to get a separate bank account and credit card and luckily, I found a free business account at a local bank. The business is very small and to keep up with the expenses, I use a Outright, an online accounting site that focuses on businesses. It’s free and easy to use. Not as good as a book keeper but much cheaper for small businesses.
guys, I’m an accountant and just had to chime in that I totally LOVED this episode of the podcast. Hit all main points (separate bank account & software for tracking…get an accountant sooner than later). AGREED!
My favorites for income and expense tracking: Wave Accounting and Xero. Great job on this topic.
This is incredible stuff! I feel like I just got a world-class education on setting up an LLC, purchasing accounting software, filing quarterly taxes, and hiring employees. Thanks, Corbett, Chase, and Caleb, for helping out a 21-year-old author/entrepreneur.
dan at extremehonesty dot com
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