Help! How do I CORRECTLY pay myself from my business?

So bit of back story, my husband and I share 50/50 of an LLC taxed as S Corp. After the research I’ve done, it looks like one of the best things to do is pay ourselves on a payroll or via check to account for owners pay (my husband and I have combined finances so everything goes to the same bank, personal and business are two separate accounts.) I think I might’ve been doing it wrong for the past few months as I’ve been paying personal expenses through the business. The question I’m asking is, what’s the best way to go about paying ourselves without paying a ridiculous amount in taxes, and so it looks good on paper if we would like to get a property in the future? (Gross income for the business is projected roughly $100,000 annually) *Please be nice, I am asking because I truly do not know and I keep getting different answers. I will continue to do my research but I wanted to reach out here as well 😊

Getting set to open in two months and thinking about hiring. Should I outsource hiring?

The place next door to me is a recruiting team. Basically they’ll hire staff workers and if I pay them $15, they’ll pay the worker $11. The key is, they also provide medical and dental options as well as covered vacation pay after a year of employment. As a startup, I can’t offer any of that. (Or maybe for $4/hr I actually could?!). But they also handle all the recruiting and background checks and all the other stuff as well as unemployment insurance, etc. it’s a full service staffing option. But for four employees I need, (2 full, 2 part) that’s an extra $2,000 a month, roughly. Or do I just offer my potential employees $14 and no services and call it a day? Any advice out there?

What is this customer asking for?

A customer found a bug in her salad bowl. We wash the salad every time and use a spinner, but the bug somehow still got its way in there. Customer came back and told us about the bug. At that time, I wasn’t present and was out getting inventory and wasn’t able to give a refund right away. My staff took down her number and I called her a day after. I apologized and offered a refund. She refused. I was confused by that. She said “a refund is not enough, I could’ve left a bad review and made a big deal out of but I haven’t”. Then I proceeded to offer a gift card in addition to a refund, and she said she doesn’t want the gift card because she wouldn’t be coming back again. She kept alluding that she wants to be compensated. But I’m scratching my head here as what she wants? I apologized. I offered a refund. And offered a gift card . Anyone know what this customer is asking for?

Taking over Small Business, asking for training/class recommendations.

Hi Everyone, I have been working for a Timber Framing company for about 2 years. I started on the field swinging my hammer and quickly moved into the Project Management/Supervisor roll. The owner is planning his retirement and I worked out a deal to take ownership of the company. I have been running the company operation with little involvement from the owner for about a year, so I know I will be able to continue my current roll once I become the owner. However, I don't know anything about the ownership side of things such as taxes, employment of others, insurance, etc. Does anyone have any recommendations for what kind of classes or training I could sign up for that could help build up my confidence in these areas? These topics could be the tip of the iceberg as I actually do not know what i do not know. I am open to all recommendations. Thanks in advance for your input.

Is there any way I can get a business loan with 0 assets?

I run a video production company with my business partner. We have some projects coming up that require travel and expenses that we could use a loan for until we get paid. We don't really have any significant assets aside from our equipment which is roughly worth 30k max. We both work remotely from home. I have excellent credit while my biz partner has ehhhhhh less than stellar credit. Is there any way we can get a business loan? If not, how can we start building credit for the business?

Stone countertop business

Does anyone have insight into stone countertop fabrication and installation businesses? I’ve recently moved to Portugal and there’s a large opportunity for a more “American” approach to stone countertop fabrication (for example most fabricators here are still doing most of their cuts on site by hand, have terrible service, etc). With the amount of automation in CNC tools, how much specific knowledge is needed to operate a countertop installation business? I’ve owned and operated successful small businesses, and I’ve done quite a bit of woodworking, but don’t have specific knowledge in this area. I’d like to start a countertop fabrication business here, and I’m curious how much and what kind of specialized knowledge I’ll need, or will need to hire. Thanks for any advice!

500 Clicks from Facebook Ads but Zero sign up!?

Hello, wonderful community! I've just launched my small business an AI-powered tweet generator crafted to empower digital marketers and small business owners with compelling tweets! However, despite running 2 Facebook ads, I received 500 clicks but no signups. 😕 I'd greatly appreciate your valuable advice to help identify what might be amiss with my business.

Can I expense my lunches to the business?

Recently I’ve had to downsize to the point where I’m currently the only employee. Because of that I can’t leave the office for lunch for longer than 10 or 15 minutes. So I usually order lunch delivery or go pick up and bring back to the office. This way I’m available to take urgent calls. Am I allowed to expense these lunches to the business?

PCI Compliant Ways to Take Credit Card Info

Hi y’all, my husband is going to be starting a solo concierge / travel agent business. He will need the credit card info of guests to book them on various activities, hotels, etc. I’ve done a lot of googling but haven’t been able to find a piece of software that will encrypt the guest’s CC information and then allow him to reveal it. He doesn’t need / want it integrated. He wants to be able to view the CC info and plug it directly into the activities or hotel’s payment software Now you may ask why not just get a business credit card and then accept payments from guests? He will lose a processing percentage of his commission to taking his own payments or the guest pays a higher fee. In addition there’s just a greater risk to his business by having the cost on his business card vs. directly on the guest credit card. I hope I explained that well.

Contractors: how did you take it to the next level?

Hey everyone! Small business owner here. Contractor/Handyman who does well with my business. Almost 90% word of mouth, coming up on 3 years. 30% growth over the last 2 years. I do most of the work myself and sub guys when I need. I'm working just the right amount without killing myself and making great money (80k-100k). How do I take it to the next level of income/growth? I can't find anyone I trust to give the high quality work and customer care I give to my clients. I'm busy enough that I could have someone on the small jobs while I work on big jobs. Also, if I advertised I would definitely be way busier than I am now. I'm trying to train a guy now, but unfortunately he just doesn't have what I'm looking for in a employee or sub. Anybody been here and pushed through this? How did you grow your business with keeping the quality? TIA!

How to best pay my bills to suppliers?

I am a newer Shopify and Clover POS user and am trying to figure out the best way to pay my suppliers and bills. Any advice would be really appreciated! Any online solutions people are using?

business plan

i am from maldives, i just started my company and i have an idea of a great business which can generate millions in time. the idea is than from the company we have to farm sea cucumber and seafood like fish and clam and other. we import it to other countries like china, japan, ETC. i need a huge capital to start and that’s what i don’t have. maybe if i can get a partner we can do 50/50 and start our business.

Question about buying a business

So I have been thinking about investing in a business. I have been thinking of something like hvac or landscaping. Something that hopefully can’t be affected too much by a recession. The the businesses I have been looking at are both over 15 yea old and have about 10 employees so I guess I wouldn’t be doing much of the work that requires those specific skills and the owner are willing to help for about 6 months to help the transition. I can get the money to buy a business but I have concerns over buying a business I have never worked in. My background is mostly managing farms. Just looking to see if there are people on here who have taken that sort of leap and how they handled that new challenge and what advice they might have.

Marketing for plumbing service and repair business.

Hello all, long time reader first time poster here. I'm just about to launch my plumbing service company and was thinking about hiring a marketing company to help get it off the ground. A few questions I'd love to have an opinion on. What is your experience with marketing companies? Do you recommend going this route? Do you have any tips on getting my name out there? Thanks!

How do you manage stress and reduce anxiety when it comes to your small business?

Oftentimes I feel like I care too much. For the past 2 years, I’ve bent over backwards for customers to rebrand my laundromat. It was a dilapidated zombie-mat, in which I’ve turned from bottom 3 to arguably the best in my town. Anyway, I’ve stayed open later than hours posted, run back to my business in the drop of a dime, etc. While I know this hard work is reflected in the results, how can I care less? Now I feel like I don’t need to bend over backwards. They can conform to my hours, which are clearly posted. Now that my business is very healthy, my mental health has taken a toll. Now I just want to not give a fuck so much. But I know it’s what got me here and also I’m super passionate about anything I do, not just work. Is that a bad mentality?