Do you conduct credit reviews on your long-time customers?

If you extend credit to your customers, how long has it been since you’ve done a credit check on your accounts? If it’s been more than a year, it’s been too long. You may know that JK Harris & Co. was my client (I was the ghostwriter for JK Harris’ books Flashpoint, Sales Flashpoint, and IRS Tax Secrets, and handled additional business writing and content marketing projects). When the firm filed...

Caution: Beware of counterfeit checks and overpayment scams

Orlando’s beleaguered KEL law firm has been scammed out of about $285,000 by a  phony client. According to news reports, the firm was contacted via email by someone (obviously a sophisticated scammer) pretending to have lost wages from a fictitious employer. The firm received a settlement check; the “client” requested that the funds be sent to his account in a Japanese bank. The law firm did so before the...

Save Money: Have employees empty their own trash

If you use a commercial cleaning service to clean your office, a way to reduce that cost would be to ask your employees to empty their own trash. It’s a small thing on a per person basis, but it can add up to a substantial savings on your janitorial costs. Sharon L. Cowan of Cleaning Business Consulting Group notes that emptying trash cans, especially in large offices, is a very labor intensive chore for...

Tax Planning: Deducting a Bad Debt

When a debt — whether business or personal — becomes uncollectible, it can be claimed as a deduction on your tax return. You do not have to wait until a debt is due to determine that it is worthless. A debt becomes worthless when there is no longer any chance the amount owed will be paid. To deduct a bad debt, you must show that you have taken reasonable steps to collect the debt. This includes sending...

Yahoo! Has Done the Right Thing

Good news: Yahoo! has taken the Clever Homemaker's list down. Applause to Yahoo! for demonstrating respect for intellectual property rights. I hope the list owner has learned a lesson. I am grateful to Charlene Davis for bringing this to my attention and being responsive to Yahoo!'s requests for additional information. I also appreciate the support of the American Society of Journalists & Authors (ASJA),...