Education: AA Liberal Studies, Limestone University
Erica has been writing about small business finance and technology since 2008. She joined Merchant Maverick in 2018 and specializes in researching and reviewing business software, financial products, and other topics to help small businesses manage and grow their operations. Her expertise has been cited in MSN, Reader’s Digest, Vox, U.S. News & World Report, and Real Simple. She is a Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, a graduate of Limestone University, and currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.
One form of relief offered to small businesses is the Employee Retention Tax Credit. First introduced in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, this tax credit could be claimed by eligible employers on quarterly tax returns. This program was expanded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act signed into law in December 2020, making the credit accessible to more employers.
The SBA offers a variety of loan programs that vary according to business needs. Its flagship program is the 7(a) loan program, which offers loans for most general business purposes. However, it also offers special programs such as microloans and disaster loans. Find out more about SBA loans, including who qualifies.
QuickBooks Online is cloud-based accounting software. It has the complex accounting capabilities that small business owners need and supports numerous integrations. Quickbooks Online has a lot to offer in terms of features, accounting, and usability.
Seed funding can be any amount of money, from any source, that helps move a business from the conceptual phase to the implementation phase. Seed funding is typically a small amount of money relative to the scope of the business proposal and often comes from personal sources like family and friends.
A buy-now-pay-later can give customers the ability to spread out payments in a budget-friendly fashion. Issuing short-term loans to customers yourself can be risky, both financially and legally. The smart choice might be to partner with an established BNPL partner like Klarna to give customers financing options while keeping your own risk low. Read on for more information about Klarna!
Payroll can be hard to stay on top of for a small business owner. Even if you’re doing your employees’ payroll as a solo job, best practices will help you keep track of submission requirements and deadlines without affecting how much you get done. Read on to discover nine payroll best practices you can start working on today to make your payroll process a breeze.
Small business owners are no stranger to the need to be self-sufficient and balance competing tasks. Some responsibilities, such as paying taxes and employees, are difficult to complete without proper planning. Additionally, there are many legal and financial risks for not fulfilling these obligations, especially in the state of Maryland. We know time is precious, so we’ve broken down the essential regulation and steps needed to complete payroll for small businesses in Maryland.
Learning how to do payroll in-house can keep costs down, but crunching the numbers and double-checking your work takes patience and practice. It’s not impossible, though — no matter how daunting it may seem. Read on! We’ve put together a comprehensive guide to handling payroll that will take the guesswork and stress out of the picture.
Small business owners setting up shop need payroll records, legally speaking, just as much as CEOs of nationwide enterprises. Your payroll records help you prove to the government that your employees are collecting the money you owe them, on-time. But, as a business owner who’s still building out their company infrastructure, it can be worth it to manage employee payroll records yourself.
The more complex details of payroll and payroll taxes can be time-consuming and confusing, but they are absolutely essential for avoiding legal issues and penalties. We know small businesses have plenty on their plate already, so in this article, we’ve broken down all the steps involved in doing payroll in New York State — and the key regulations to be aware of. Ready to learn how to do payroll in New York? Read on!
Blessed with no state or local income taxes, Floridian businesses enjoy one of the laxest tax codes in the country. That leaves them with much less number crunching and heavy lifting to do in their payroll management. And coupled with highly intuitive payroll management software, small and medium scale business owners in Florida can process their payrolls personally with relatively greater ease. Learn more about Florida payroll rules and regulations here!
It can take a little time and head-scratching to figure out the best Shopify hardware setup for your business. Your hardware options will depend on various factors, such as your device, your Shopify plan, your credit card processor, and what country you live in. Read on to learn everything you need to know about Shopify hardware.
Ever wondered what the difference is between a 1099 contractor and a W2 employee? Believe it or not, the answer is both easier — and more complicated — than you might expect. It all boils down to this: If you tell your workers both what to do and how to do it, then they are probably W2 employees. On the other hand, if you only control the results and not the process, then they are probably 1099 contractors. Read more about the 1099 VS W-2.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.