USA Today is up today with an article on the top trends of 2008. They only have five posted at this time, but more will follow later. The author, Steve Strauss, takes great pains to explain these are not predictions, but trends:

This is not a predictions column but a trends column. Predictions are inherently speculative, trends are not. New trends are forces that are already occurring, but which may be flying a bit under your radar.

Good enough for me.

There is a great article from Chicago's Daily Herald that talks about New Years Resolutions for small business owners. It's a great list and one that we should all look at. I'm going to run through a few of them that I consider to be the most important. 

Large financial purchases: You need to ensure your accountant is with you throughout the process. In small businesses your accountant is a team member. Before you commit a large amount of money to something make sure the accountant is in the loop. This helps you do two things: 1) Make sure you are spending the money properly and 2) Ensures that you take advantage of any tax or other benefits.

With the holiday season ending, we're seeing more and more reports of small businesses donating goods and/or services to groups in their communities. An interesting article from the Kansas City Star looks at one small business' effort to donate blankets to a local community agency. 

There are a few things to consider if you are going to make a donation on your small business' behalf:

1. Good or services. Will you donate goods or services? The choice can have tax implications depending on the amount you intend to donate and the manner of the donation. Consult with your accountant to learn the most effective way to choose. Keep in mind that if you decide to donate your own goods there might be a public relations backlash. This happens if you are doing it as more of a marketing campaign than a real donation. For instance, in the article the company supplying the blankets is myubby.com, and they are in the blanket business. 
2. Owner or team effort. Is the owner making the decision or is the whole team. Sometimes it's a good idea to consider bringing your employee's and team member's opinions into the mix. If the organization you're considering donating to doesn't align with their values you might alienate them.
3. Need. You should due your homework and ensure the donation is needed and wanted by the organization you're targeting. An example of not making sure the need exists is with computers. Many schools will decline offers of computers based on age.
4. Cost of delivery. How much is it going to cost to transport the donated goods? If you want to ship items to the military overseas have you considered the cost? It might be easier to cut a check.

Donating, even if it's not during the holidays, is a wonderful idea for small businesses. Make sure you do your homework first so you don't run into issues. 

Evidently, you can. Even though there are 26.8 million small businesses (Yeah, it's a PDF file. I have no idea why the SBA doesn't release their press releases as HTML files.) in the United States, PNC thinks they have a handle on how the small business owners feel about the economy. They released their report PNC Economic Outlook Survey Fall 2007 today. 

The United States SBA (Small Business Administration) was formed to help the economy of the country by assisting small businesses. Eevery year the SBA puts out a roadmap for how they will meet their goals for the upcoming year. The 2008 plan was just released, so let's touch on some of the more important parts. 

You need to understand the stated goals of the SBA in this document:

• Outcomes Driven
• Customer Focused
• Employee Enabled
• Accountable, Efficient and Transparent

Yes, they are buzzwords, but they do a good job of explaining them. One would think that a group organized to help small business would focus, so this is heartening.

There were two interesting reports released this week concerning small business payroll. Looking at data about payrolls, even if it only represents a small percentage of small business, is important to see trends. In this case, it appears both the trends are positive.

The first report comes from Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP), which is one of the larger payroll processing companies.  They publish a report called the The ADP National Employment Report on a regular basis.

When you start an S corp as a small business, you'll find there are many taxes you need to pay. You might be used to a simple schedule C as a sole proprietor, but the S corp brings the bigger game. 

We're going to review three taxes that you might not be familiar with. It's a shame that alot of S Corp owners run into issues because no one explains to them about the taxes they don't know about.

Here are the three you might not know about:

Unemployment taxes: You might be your only employee, but the state expects you to pay this tax. You cannot draw against it if you lay yourself off, nor can you opt out of this. While it makes sense to pay this tax is you have employees that aren't your family, it makes no sense if you're the only employee. 

As a small business owner you're constantly communication with employees and customers. The time will come when you'll have bad news to deliver and you'll be faced with a decision. Should you communicate the information honestly?

The answer to that question is yes, but not just a simple yes, a definitive yes. Honest communications is a hallmark of integrity, and that is something you cannot afford to lose.

Many people will tell you to sugar coat something or put a positive spin on it. You can do that, but don't do it too much. Look for the positive in your message, but make sure you're communicating the honest truth. As a small business person your employees will respect you, and your customers will expect it.

As a small business owner your time is very valuable, which is why dealing with decision makers is critical. Like yourself, the decision makers make things happen for you and your business.

Which decision makers do you need to worry about? All of them including customers and vendors. When you deal with the decision makers in an organization you cut away the levels that impede you and your small business.

Think about it for a second. Is your time important? Do you want to do something once and not again? If so, then you need the decision makers.

Decision makers are sometimes walled off by people who think they have their best interest at heart. These human land mines keep you from reading the person you need to talk with. Here are some ideas on getting around those human land mines and make the contact you need.