Here at SurePayroll, small business is our business. We are always working to create and share content that can help small business owners like you. Check back every Friday to get some light reading in before the weekend hits.

Payroll mistakes can happen faster than you think, and are often expensive and time-consuming to fix. Using a payroll service is the first step toward minimizing financial risk and taking back control of your schedule—but not all payroll services are created equal.

Spring is the season that for many represents growth and new beginnings. People get excited to leave the snow and bitter cold from winter behind, and gear up for warmer days, fresh flowers, and the delightful sounds of birds chirping. Because of the energy of the spring season, it’s the perfect time to not only dig into some spring cleaning at home, but tackle your small business as well. We have some tips for the different ways you can spring clean your small business.

National Employee Appreciation Day is an unofficial holiday observed each year on the first Friday in March. If your small business employs others, you should definitely mark this holiday on your calendar. 

A lot of number crunching goes into running a small business. When your books get overwhelming, don’t get scared, take a deep breath and consider the options available to you for help. Accountants and bookkeepers can help manage the books for your small business and keep everything flowing smoothly.

Small businesses take many forms—some operate out of the owner’s living room, some out of an office or retail store, some are on the road. Working outside the state in which you live can add a layer of complexity to tax filings and payroll calculations.

The holiday season has come and gone, presents have been unwrapped, your tree is down and decorations are away, and you’re nearly a month into 2018. But while your small business is gearing up for the new year, your consumers might not be as ready to dive right in. While December is known for being a big spending month, particularly in the consumer space, the same cannot always be said of January. 

You probably think January 17^th is just another day. In reality, January 17^th is actually Ditch New Year’s Resolutions Day. While this isn’t an official bank holiday, it’s does mark how quickly people abandon their positive intentions for the New Year. 

We know, we know—‘tis the season for “New Year, New You” style articles. And yes, we’ve already covered some best practices for being physically and mentally healthy as a small business owner in 2018…but have you considered your small business health even more holistically? Including, for example, financial health? This final installment in our three-part New Year health series will focus on getting your finances into tip-top shape throughout 2018.

Last week in the first of our three-part New Year small business health series, we focused on ways to be more proactive about your physical health in 2018. But as we all know, holistic health is about more than just your cardio rate and how much you can bench press—it also includes areas like mental and financial health. In today’s post, part two in the series, we will cover some best practices for being mentally healthy in the coming year.

We know what you’re thinking, “another article on being healthy in the New Year (insert eye roll emoji).” And you’re right – to an extent. We are going to share some health tips for the new year, but with a spin to fit your lifestyle as a small business owner.

Word of mouth—it’s everywhere, and it’s more powerful than ever. Last week we covered what to if you encounter negative reviews about your business. This week, we are focusing on the positive.

How often have you heard that word of mouth is crucial to the success of a business, particularly a small business? Living in a world where you carry the internet in your pocket has greatly expanded what word of mouth means and how quickly it can spread—it’s no longer restricted to friends, relatives, neighbors, and colleagues. 

This week, Americans officially kick off the holiday season with the celebration of Thanksgiving (don’t worry, we won’t tell if you’ve already been blasting holiday music since November 1).

Small Business Saturday is quickly approaching, taking place this year on November 25. In a previous post we discussed what Small Business Saturday is and shared some of the important stats from 2016. 

Since 1952, Black Friday, the day following Thanksgiving Day, has been known as the day that kicks off the holiday shopping season. Since its start, the unofficial holiday has evolved in ways such as starting earlier and earlier each year, most recently bleeding into Thanksgiving Day, and has become characterized by countless videos of consumers going wild for crazy cheap items as basic as dish towels. 

Depending on where you live, natural disasters might be a more common occurrence or possibility than in other areas. But even if you are used to the cadence of hurricane season, or live in an area that has seen more than its fair share of tornados, for example, it's hard to be 100% prepared, especially when you are likely preparing on both the home and business fronts as a small business owner.

The end of summer brings a lot of things – cooler temperatures, final cookouts, one last pool day, and, for some seasonally staffed businesses, lost employees. As a small business owner, you likely employ high school and college students during the summer months. When they head back to school, what are you supposed to do?

As a small business owner, there are many legal requirements that you cannot afford to overlook, some of which may be more obvious than others. One which may not come immediately to mind is accurately displaying the employee posters that apply to your business.