Trade or Business

 What Is A Trade or Business?

The term trade or business generally includes any activity carried on for the production of income from selling goods or performing services. It is not limited to integrated aggregates of assets, activities, and goodwill that comprise businesses for purposes of certain other provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. Activities of producing or distributing goods or performing services from which gross income is derived do not lose their identity as trades or businesses merely because they are carried on within a larger framework of other activities that may, or may not, be related to the organization's exempt purposes.

Hobby or Business What?

Is it a Business or a Hobby?  A key feature of a business is that people do it to make a profit. People engage in a hobby for sport or recreation, not to make a profit. Consider nine factors when determining whether an activity is a hobby. Make sure to base the determination on all the facts and circumstances. For more about ‘not-for-profit’ rules, see Publication 535, Business Expenses.

Small Business Publications from the IRS as your first step to learning about: Starting A Buasiness Learn more

What is a business owner?

A business owner is someone who owns a business that offers a product or service that benefits its customers. Business owners typically have a thorough understanding of their industry and know who they should market their products to from the time they start running their business. A business owner who runs a company or organization can step into their role after a business is already in operation, or they might start a business of their own with support from other professionals.

Another key detail about business owners is that they profit from the success of their business, which they often use as their only source of income. This means that their primary responsibility is running the business and that they can completely support themselves through overseeing the business they own.

What is an entrepreneur?

An entrepreneur is someone who starts a business based on an original idea for a product or service. Many entrepreneurs begin establishing their companies on their own and are responsible for seeking out support like funding from investors or vendors for materials. Entrepreneurs can take risks with their business, as most entrepreneurs start with a small network and limited resources. Many entrepreneurs support themselves with other sources of income while they're starting their business, as new companies need time to build a customer base and turn a profit.

Most entrepreneurial businesses focus on innovation, which means they try to create a product or service that is not yet present in their market. This can also contribute to the time it takes their company to be profitable, as they need to advertise their product or service heavily to introduce it to potential customers.

Learn more

 

Business Inbox In Messenger

Today we’re launching a new business inbox in Messenger to help businesses respond to customer messages and easily toggle between their personal and business accounts in the Messenger app. According to our research, over 90% of Facebook business admins already use Messenger to chat with friends and family, and we hear from many that they don’t want to download and manage multiple apps. 

We also know that small businesses need tools that are reliable and easy to use to help grow their online presence and communicate with customers. According to a Hubspot survey, 90% of customers rate an immediate response as important or very important when they have a marketing or sales question. Customers nowadays have a lot of questions about store hours, product availability, delivery and pick-up options, and more. 

Learn more

Business Types META

 Business Structures META

(BTS) Business Types/Structures Jobmonsta

The most common forms of business are the sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, and S corporation.
...
Legal and tax considerations enter into selecting a business structure.

• Sole Proprietorships.
• Partnerships.
• Corporations.
• S Corporations.
• Limited Liability Company (LLC)

These are the additional Business Types alias Structures that many who are Online Businesses have but do not know this.

Question: 

• Do you have a Business?
• Are you working?
• Is it a Business or a Hobby?  

A key feature of a business is that people do it to make a profit. People engage in a hobby for sport or recreation, not to make a profit. Consider nine factors when determining whether an activity is a hobby. Make sure to base the determination on all the facts and circumstances. For more about ‘not-for-profit’ rules, see Publication 535, Business Expenses.

Meta will give you an understanding of The Tools Of Your Trade or profession, just click the following link. >>> Learn more

Then scroll to the very bottom of the page and they have it listed under this following categorie as (Business Types) the IRS calls this (Business Structures).

Small Business:

Get discovered by new customers online.

Facebook and Instagram have free tools to help build your online presence:

• Create a Page or profile for your business
• Communicate with followers using posts and stories
• Meet customers and business owners in Groups

Large Business:

Industries

Marketing solutions tailored specifically to your industry.

Discover advertising resources and marketing support to help you achieve your business goals and confidently connect with the customers you want.

Agency:

Improve your creative with proven best practices.

Our creative guidance navigator gives you data-backed strategies to elevate your creative and drive better outcomes across Meta technologies.

Media and Publisher:

Find the right tools for you

Learn the basics to start creating and managing content on Facebook and Instagram.

Creator:

Become
a Meta creator

Share your creativity. Grow your community across Facebook and Instagram to reach a larger audience. Build your business. All in a few simple steps.

Developer:

META FOR DEVELOPERS

Connect with customers and improve efficiency with our featured platforms.Startup

Business Partner:

Become a Meta Business Partner

Meta Business Partners have access to unique benefits like training, support, analytics reports and client matching opportunities.

Applicants can apply for a variety of specialties, including agency, feed management and conversion data.

Game Invites

Game Invites offer players the ability to quickly and easily invite friends to play their favorite games.

Question:

• Are you a Videogame Streamer?!

Facebook suggests friends to invite and shows social and game-specific details on suggested friends. Players have the option to share their player name or real name when sending game invites and can be sent to multiple friends with a call-to-action for the game.

Developers can provide in-game rewards when invited friends play the game for the first time and can send follow-up game play updates through Messenger as well.

Learn more @ META and WIN Big Go Gig

The Workforce System & You

 The Workforce System

The workforce systems, which often involve complex networks of:

•  organizations, 
• industry, 
• government policies, 
• and resources. 

Understanding local workforce systems can also help local leaders assess how well the needs of their workforces are being met. Populations served by The Workforce System, key organizations involved, and broad functions performed. Local workforce systems prepare individuals for successful careers and connect skilled workers with employers.

What Is a Local Workforce System? 

A local workforce system can be generally defined as the organizations and activities that prepare people for employment, help workers advance in their careers, and ensure a skilled workforce exists to support local industry and the local economy over time. Local workforce systems include various organizations that often perform multiple functions to serve the adults and youth who may need help preparing for and succeeding in the workforce. Strong collaboration among government, local employers and industry, training providers and educational institutions, service and advocacy organizations, philanthropy, and other local organizations is often needed to support and deliver effective workforce services (Cordero-Guzman 2014, 7).

Social Security Retirement Benefits Planner

How much Social Security income you’ll receive depends on:

• Your earnings over your lifetime

• The age at which you'll begin receiving benefits

• Whether you'll be eligible to receive a spouse’s benefit instead of your own

You can use Social Security’s retirement benefits planner to:

• Estimate your benefits at each age, from 62 (the earliest you can receive them) to 70 (when you hit your greatest amount)

• Apply for retirement benefits

• Learn about earning limits if you plan to work while receiving Social Security benefits

How Get Federal Benefits

To begin receiving your federal benefits, like Social Security or veterans benefits, you must sign up for electronic payments with direct deposit.

Social security benefits include monthly retirement, survivor and disability benefits. They don't include supplemental security income (SSI) payments, which aren't taxable. The net amount of social security benefits that you receive from the Social Security Administration is reported in Box 5 of Form SSA-1099, Social Security Benefit Statement, and you report that amount on line 6a of Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return or Form 1040-SR, U.S. Tax Return for Seniors. The taxable portion of the benefits that's included in your income and used to calculate your income tax liability depends on the total amount of your income and benefits for the taxable year. You report the taxable portion of your social security benefits on line 6b of Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR.

Your benefits may be taxable if the total of (1) one-half of your benefits, plus (2) all of your other income, including tax-exempt interest, is greater than the base amount for your filing status.

The base amount for your filing status is:

• $25,000 if you're single, head of household, or qualifying surviving spouse,
• $25,000 if you're married filing separately and lived apart from your spouse for the entire year,
• $32,000 if you're married filing jointly,
• $0 if you're married filing separately and lived with your spouse at any time during the tax year.

Learn more

In-work credits

In-work credits grew in popularity worldwide during the late 1990s and 2000s as a means of reforming welfare systems in ways that could both encourage work and reduce poverty.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, provides noncash benefits to help low-income households buy food. All adults ages 16 to 59 who are not otherwise exempt must comply with a general work requirement to receive SNAP benefits: they must register to work, accept a job if offered, and not quit a job without good cause. People exempt from SNAP work requirements include children, pregnant women, seniors, and people with certain health limitations.

Able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) ages 18 to 49 have a more intensive work requirement: they can receive SNAP for only 3 months within a 36-month period, unless they are participating in work activities for at least 20 hours a week. States can ask the federal government to waive time limits and work requirements for people subject to ABAWD rules who live in areas with high unemployment or insufficient jobs. During the Great Recession, virtually all states waived or partially waived the ABAWD time limits on SNAP. Over the past few years, however, states have been reinstating them.

In 2019, the US Department of Agriculture adopted a regulatory change that tightens criteria states must meet to waive work requirements in areas with limited employment opportunities. States are currently resubmitting waiver applications to comply with the new rule, which goes into effect April 1

Your comments are welcome!

Moderation Assist: Comment Moderation, Simplified

 Facebook Moderation Assist: Simplified 

• Control what comments appear on your Page or profile with a virtual moderator

• Easily edit any actions Moderation Assist takes, whenever you want

• Reduce your manual workload and focus on what matters to you most

Recommended That You Start With This Tool

Assign actions for Moderation Assist to perform automatically on your behalf. You can access this tool any time from your Professional Dashboard.

Question: Are Your Sur Your Not Working?!

• Use this is you the Author/Page Adminustrator/Creator have no friends or followers

Learn more

Grow Your Page Following On Facebook

 

How To Grow Your Page Following

Now that you've created a Page, you want people to check it out.

It's important to build a following of people who are interested in you and the content you share. There are several ways to create a following for your Page, but making people aware of it is the first step.

Maintain an active community.

If people come to your Page and see that it's active, they are more likely to like your Page and engage with the existing community. You can also use Page Insights to see when your followers are most active online and what kind of content attracts the most engagement, then tailor your content accordingly.

Share your Page outside of Facebook.

Don't forget about other platforms. Share your Facebook Page on your website, in marketing materials and in blog posts to make sure that everyone who might want to follow your Page sees it.

Are You Sure Your Not Working?!

Learn more

Who's LinkedIn For?

 What Is LinkedIN?

Anyone looking to navigate their Professional Life.

Gain A Better Understanding Of Data 

 It's time for you to unlock the advanced capabilities of Google Analytics, and take your skills to the next level. Hi, I'm Brad Batesole, and in this course, we'll take a closer look at using Google Universal Analytics to create and manage filters, assign custom channel groupings, and interact with segments. We'll also dive deeper into how Google Analytics processes data, how to create custom calculated metrics, how to debug your Analytics setup, and so much more. There's a lot of great learning ahead, so let's get started.

Watch This Video From LinkedIN

Learn more

 Social Media What Is It?

Social media facilitates the sharing of ideas and information through virtual networks. From:

• Facebook and 
• Instagram to 
• Twitter and 
• YouTube, 

social media covers a broad universe of apps and platforms that allow users to:

1. share content, 

2. interact online, and 

3. build communities. 

Did You Know?

More than 4.7 billion people use social media, equal to roughly 60% of the world’s population.

People who play video games online are called streamers. Most often they can be found on such popular sites as YouTube and Twitch.

Oxford Dictionary Definition:

me·di·a¹

^{1. the main means of mass communication (broadcasting, publishing, and the internet) regarded collectively.}

^Question:

1. Are you working?!
2. Are you doing anyting to earn an income?
3. What is Earned Income?
4. Are you working for yourself?

Earned income includes all the taxable income and wages you get from working for someone else, yourself or from a business or farm you own.

For the year you are filing, earned income includes all income from employment, but only if it is includable in gross income. Examples of earned income are: wages; salaries; tips; and other taxable employee compensation. Earned income also includes net earnings from self-employment.

Learn more

 Computer Training Pratt Library

The Library offers instructor-led computer and technology classes for a variety of ages in person at the following locations. View a PDF of our computer training classes, or explore the calendar.

All computers can be used for up to one hour. Reservations are not available.

For registration, information, or one-on-one help, call (443) 984-4944. Questions? Email computer.class@prattlibrary.org.

Learn more

Peer Navigators Pratt Library

 Peer Navigators @ The Pratt Library

Peer Recovery Specialists

Peer Recovery Specialists are individuals with lived experience, personally or through loved ones, of substance misuse, mental health, or behavioral health challenges and recovery.

The Peers are trained to guide and assist those at every stage of their recovery journey, as well as in providing practical and emotional support to those who need it. They serve as role models for recovery while connecting community members to community resources and promoting overall wellness. Whether someone is seeking to enter a treatment center, dealing with trauma, or looking for guidance on supporting loved ones through recovery, the Peers are there to offer support and guidance.

Learn more

Conversion Funnel

 Conversion Funnel Marketing

Conversion Funnels Create a Better Customer Journey

"A conversion funnel, sometimes called a sales funnel, is a term used to describe the different stages of the buyer’s journey potential customers go through before they take the desired action (i.e., convert). As a salesperson, you guide people through the funnel in order to convert them from potential buyers into customers." https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/conversion-funnel.

"All leads begin at the top of the funnel. As they learn more about your business, they move down and get closer to purchasing your product or service. This conversion process is called a funnel because companies often have more leads than they do customers, making the top of the funnel a larger pool of people than the bottom.

Understanding how people flow through your conversion funnel is essential to being an effective marketer or salesperson because it helps you engage leads, answer questions about your business, and address concerns. It also lets you organize leads into categories and create customer touchpoints that can entice each group to convert.

That's why every funnel should be designed for how your customers buy, not how you sell. The focus is on providing such a great experience within the customer journey that you convince them to convert.Before diving into the details of how to analyze and optimize your funnel, we need to talk about an important aspect of this process: the customer journey." https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/conversion-funnel

Example Of A Conversion Funnel:

Invite friends to follow your new Page

To invite friends to follow your new Page on your mobile device:

1. Open your profile.
2. Search for your new Page and open it.
3. On the new Page, tapthe icon with three dots ... below your Page’s cover photo.
4. Tap Invite friends.
5. Check the box to select friends you would like to invite.
6. Tap Send invites.

You have invited friends to follow your new Page.

Note: You can only invite up to 200 friends to follow the new Page.

Learn more

Similar Page Suggestions Facebook

 What Is Similar Page Suggestions On Facebook

Pages are a way for businesses, brands and public figures to connect with their fans on Facebook. Learn more about the difference between a profile and a Page.

Pages that you manage may be in the new Pages experience. Learn more about new Pages or see if your Page is in the classic or new Pages experience.

When someone visits your Page, they may see a Related Pages section on the left side of your Page, which may list Pages similar to yours. When you turn off these recommendations, your Page will also stop being recommended when people visit Pages that are similar to yours.

You'll need to be an admin or have Facebook access to a Page to turn similar Page recommendations on or off.

Learn more

Follow More Public Figures and Others On Facebook

 Follow More Public Figures & Others

Example: You’ll see more useful content here by following public figures and others that are relevant to ArtQuest.

What information does Facebook use to show suggestions in People You May Know?

People You May Know suggests people you might be likely to add as a friend on Facebook. Friend suggestions come from things like:

• Having friends in common.
• Your profile information and networks (example: your current city, school or work).
• Your Facebook activity (example: joining groups or being tagged in the same photo or post).
• Contacts you or someone you may know uploaded to Facebook or Messenger.

If you upload your contacts through the Facebook app, learn how to manage contact uploading. If someone has uploaded their contacts and it includes your mobile phone number or email address, you may show up as friend suggestions for each other.

For more information, please see our notice on contact uploading for Non-Users.

 Short URLs From Microsoft 365!

Short URL App is a Microsoft 365 / Microsoft Teams App / SharePoint Add-in and Power Automate Connector that allows the creation and use of vanity and shortcut hyperlinks fully integrated within SharePoint and Microsoft Teams! Short URL can also be used as part of the Power Platform!

The Short URL App provides you with a choice of sensible, secure Domain names from which to create Short URLs. All Short URLs are processed on our Secure Servers with a license option available to host within your own Azure and dedicated Domain name.

SharePoint Short URL is an Microsoft 365 / SharePoint Online Add-In / Microsoft Teams App that allows the creation and use of vanity and shortcut hyperlinks fully integrated within the SharePoint Online environment and/or Mircosoft Teams. Developed and supported by APPS 365 LTD, Short URL is used and trusted by many of the top companies worldwide!

Learn more

Venture Capital Is What?

 What's Venture Capital?

Venture Capital Definition 

From Silicon Valley Bank

Venture capital (VC) is generally used to support startups and other businesses with the potential for substantial and rapid growth. VC firms raise money from limited partners (LPs) to invest in promising startups or even larger venture funds. 

For example, when investing in a startup, VC funding is provided in exchange for equity in the company, and it isn’t expected to be paid back on a planned schedule in the conventional sense like a bank loan. VCs typically take a longer-term view and invest with the hope they will see outsized returns should the company be acquired or go public. VCs usually take only a minority stake — 50% or less — when investing in companies, also known as portfolio companies, because they become part of the firm’s portfolio of investments. 

Learn more