Personal and Business Development Consulting

It’s time for your second lesson. I hope you found lesson on informative.

In this lesson we will start going over the steps you need to take to ensure the safety of your online business.

I am guessing that, since you decided to sign up for this crash course, that you have already started your own online business or you are thinking about starting one soon.

However, there are risks involved that you may not know about and there are things that you should do to protect yourself from losing everything that you are working so hard to achieve.

Did you know that the courts are levying increasingly heavy fines on people who have been found guilty of online business crime?

They don’t care if you didn’t realize you were doing anything wrong. They will still hunt you down and charge you. By not knowing the basic laws you could get yourself into trouble completely by accident.

Although there is a wealth of reliable information online. The simple fact of the matter is when it comes to protecting your online business you shouldn’t rely on second hand information or other online marketers for legal or accounting advice.

One of the first things that you should do is find a good lawyer and accountant. If you can’t afford a lawyer you may want to find a paralegal or check into an online service like legalzoom.com. Just be sure to check their credibility before you give them your money.

When it comes to legal matters, in particular, you will need to look for a professional that understands the nature of running a business on the Internet.

Because the laws that govern what you can and cannot do or say on any sales enabled websites that you create are generally going to be the laws of the country where you currently live.

However, you are most probably going to transact business with customers from many different countries, and you need a lawyer who can handle any legal problems that arise from such international, cross-border transactions.

You will also find that most lawyers are probably not familiar with how Internet businesses are run, and therefore you need to search for someone who can really help and protect you. Look for somebody who

understands the nature of transacting business online and the ramifications of running a business that genuinely does not recognize international borders. The best place to start is online. Try doing a search for “lawyer Internet law” and you will find several resources that can help you track down a qualified professional.

Do not be tempted to try to teach any lawyer that you approach how Internet business works, because the information that you provide to them will probably be based on what other people have told you, and we have already established that such information is often incorrect and inaccurate.

Finding a suitable accountant, on the other hand, should not be a complex matter, because your business is essentially no different from any other, apart from the way that you accept payments.

Unlike a ‘real world’ offline business, you are unlikely to issue invoices to your online customers, and therefore the ‘paper trail’ that would most commonly be associated with accepting payments is a little more complex and obscure than normal.

Make sure that the accountant you engage is aware of this from the outset, and ask them what kind of documentation you need to keep for them. Taxation is something that you need to talk to them about too and we will talk in more detail about that in your next lesson.

Ken Mathie

Enhancing People’s Lives Through Creative Technology

ebizstore.net

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