Category Archives: General Business

Ohio Secretary of State Husted Releases Year-End Filing Figures for New Businesses

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SECRETARY OF STATE HUSTED RELEASES YEAR-END FILING FIGURES FOR NEW BUSINESSES

Announces updates to filing forms for companies to make doing business in Ohio easier.

 COLUMBUS  Secretary of State Jon Husted today announced that 82,601 new entities filed to do business in Ohio in 2011. Those numbers are up compared to 2010, in which 80,081 new entities filed. Secretary Husted also announced the roll-out of updates to filing forms designed to make is easier for domestic and foreign companies to do business in Ohio.

When it comes to the number of new businesses choosing to operate in Ohio, our state is heading in the right direction, Secretary Husted said. The Secretary of States office continues to do its part to ensure a more welcoming business environment, working to streamline the filing process for Ohio companies. We hope for an even more prosperous year for Ohio in 2012.

The year-end numbers include figures for December 2011, in which the Secretary of States office assisted with 6,463 new business filings. This is a slight increase from December 2010, in which there were 6,226 new entities filed.

 

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The grant writing process

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(I published this article in the Galion Inquirer on January 04, 2012)

I think it’s safe to say that most small businesses would love to find grant money, but once they find a grant to apply for, they commonly experience two very large stumbling blocks.  First, the proposal process can be very intimidating, and second, they don’t know how to handle the accounting (for tax purposes) of grant awards.

Before I explain the typical application process, there are a few points you need to keep in mind if you’re trying to apply for grants of any type.

First, the process of applying for a grant is referred to by many terms. Although grant writing is the most common term for this process, it might also be called a grant application or a grant response.

Second, grants quite often require the recipient to provide matching funds. For example, you may need to come up with $10,000 before the grantor will give an additional $10,000.

Third, and probably most important, is that the grant writing process is incredibly time consuming. The paperwork required can be as simple as a standardized application, but in most cases the response can be thirty pages or more, just like a business plan.  

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Ohio Dept of Commerce: Guard against investment fraud in 2012

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OHIO DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

 OHIOANS URGED TO BE ON GUARD AGAINST INVESTMENT FRAUD IN 2012

New Year Is Good Time To Set Investing Goals

 

With the New Year quickly approaching, many Ohioans may be looking to rework their investment strategy for 2012.  David Goodman, Director of the Ohio Department of Commerce, said the new year is a good time for Ohioans to review their investments and set their investing goals.

First and foremost, Director Goodman has a cautionary message for Ohio investors.  “No matter how tempting it might be, Ohioans should resist pursuing risky investing bets to overcome any losses they may have suffered during the financial crisis,” said David Goodman, Director of the Ohio Department of Commerce.  “It is important to be aware of con artists who prey on peoples’ fears with false promises of ‘guaranteed’ returns at no risk.”

Earlier this year, the department’s Division of Securities issued its top five list of the most prevalent investment schemes being perpetrated against Ohio investors. The top five investment scams are:  

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  1. Ponzi schemes
  2. Unlicensed and unregistered sales
  3. Affinity fraud
  4. Promissory notes
  5. Distressed real estate schemes

Annual Report of the Office of Economic Research, FY 2011

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In FY 2011, the Office of Advocacy’s Office of Economic Research (OER) continued to offer timely research on a variety of small business topics, with a particular focus on small business job creation and financing. In fiscal year 2011, the office published 25 separate contract and internal research reports about topics including small business innovation, demographics of ownership, and capital formation. The office produced several new well-received series, including a Quarterly Lending Bulletin and Frequently Asked Questions about Small Business Finance.  OER continued to provide easy-to-understand tables and reports downloadable from the website. Beyond research products, the office sponsored two research conferences in FY 2011, the first in October 2010, on innovation and financing in high-impact businesses, the second, in September 2011 on the small business debt and equity capital crunch.

A copy of the bulletin is located at: http://www.sba.gov/advocacy/7540/37331.

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