Newsletter
1st Quarter, 2011
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
3525 W. Peterson Ave., Suit 204,
Chicago, IL 60659
Tel # 773 381-2622
Fax # 773 381-9541
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.mbaonweb.com
MISSION STATEMENT
To bring business people on a common
platform in order to :

Cash in on bulk buying and negotiating
power.

Encourage and support new business
initiatives.

Facilitate new business startups and
diversification.
How To Set Up a
Home-based Business
H
ome-based businesses are fast becoming a popular
way to operate your small company, while reducing
expensive start-up costs such as leasing space, lease
hold improvements, utility and phone deposits and major
office equipment. Thousands of people across the
country are finding that working from home provides
them with the advantages of earning an income with the
flexibility to work when it is best for them and take care
of family and other responsibilities that often arise
throughout the work day. However, before starting your
home-based business, consider the following advice:
* Determine local and state requirements for licensing
and zoning regulations. Be sure to check with your local
zoning office to find out how the zoning regulations in
your area may affect your business plans. Determine if
your business requires any licenses and file the
necessary forms.
* Rent a post office box and use that address on your
promotional mail and stationery, doing this will make it
less obvious that you are working from home. The professional
image you portray is very important to your clientele.
Continued on page 2...
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Amin Bhimani
President
(847) 477 1844 [email protected]
Ramzan Charania V. President (414) 915-6000 [email protected]
IN THIS ISSUE
Communicating with your creditors..... Page 3
Shehzad Amlani
Hon. Secretary (224) 678-8651 [email protected]
What’s the best age to claim benefits? Page 4
Nirmin Mehdi
Exec. Admin. (773)381-2622
Business buyer tip ………………..……Page 6
[email protected]
Nizarali Ladhani Treasurer
(773) 908 9322 [email protected]
Habiba Shallwani Director
(630) 248-9976 [email protected]
Karim Merchant Director
(708) 955 8931 [email protected]
Mehmood Mehdi Director
(847) 813 5616 [email protected]
Murad Husain
Director
(708) 268 5757 [email protected]
Nasim Kaba
Director
(847) 338 6277 [email protected]
welcomed to share with other businesses.
Hamid Virani
Advisor
(224) 623 9041 [email protected]
Salim Ukani
Advisor
(708) 846 4921 [email protected]
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
3 Mistakes entrepreneurs make.……. Page 8
6 Last-minute tax moves for 2010..… . Page 10
Your feedback/s, ideas and experience/s are
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
AN OVERVIEW
PAGE 2
How To Set Up a
Home-based Business
Business owners of Midwestern United States came together to form
an Alliance in 1999. Majority of its founding fathers were owners of
Fast Food Restaurants and Convenient Stores. Over a span of 8
years, MBA has established itself as a key Alliance of business owners
engaged different businesses in Midwestern USA and is continually
growing.
Continued from page 1
* Install a phone line in your home
dedicated to your business.
Mission Statement of the Alliance is:
* Organize your work space with great
care. Make sure that you have
sufficient space to meet your needs.
To bring business people on a common platform in order to:
 Cash in on bulk buying and negotiating power.
 Encourage and support new business initiatives.
 Facilitate new business startups and diversification.

Focused on its Mission Goals, MBA continues to explore opportunities
to promote the Alliance among the business people and keep
encouraging their active participation in the trade Alliance activities.
MBA’s endeavors are mainly focused to enhance member’s image in
the business community and on promotion of the Alliance.
MBA is always on a lookout for reliable business houses that
would cater to the needs of its membership in Midwestern United
States.
MBA continues to encourage and support aspiring
entrepreneurs by assisting them in fulfillment of their statutory
responsibilities. MBA promotes business diversification among
entrepreneurs and facilitates their diversification initiatives.
MBA continues to serve its membership by holding
educational and trade related seminars and workshops to facilitate
members in fast food and other businesses.
Time and again MBA has proved itself as keen player in
community out-reach programs, stand-alone and/or in conjunction with
other local and national level community institutions.
One of the effective tools that the Alliance uses is its
Newsletter that it publishes regularly. The Newsletter is meant to
educate and update the members on market trends, current or on
horizon.
Newsletter is also meant to updates membership on the
beneficial deals that are available to them under the umbrella of the
Alliance.
MBA is an active member of National Alliance of Trade
Associations (NATA) whose membership strength is over 4500
businesses all over United States.
DISCLAIMER
Midwest Business Alliance, Inc. (MBA) expressly disclaims and is not responsible for the accuracy and validity of any representation, comments or other
statement by the party presenting and/or offering product and services. Any
questions and complaints concerning the product and services must be directed to the appropriate party and not to Midwest Business Alliance, Inc.
* Use an answering machine
incoming business calls.
for
* When scheduling appointments with
clients, consider meeting at your
client's office or renting a conference
room to maintain a professional
image.
*
Establish
contacts
with
your
competitors and join associations
pertinent to your business. Have your
clients suggest possible new clients
and ask if they will recommend you.
*
Keep
excellent
records
of
entertainment and travel expenses.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
tends to audit home-based businesses
more frequently—especially when they
are writing off a variety of expenses,
including the percentage of the
mortgage or rent for your office space.
There are several good record keepers
such as Day Timer®, Franklin Quest®
and Day Planner that will help you
keep track of your expenses. Your
accountant, a CPA is recommended,
can advise you on deductions you can
take and records you must keep for
the IRS.
* And above all, put some of your
earnings into a savings account for
those times when your business is in a
slump . . . and it will happen.
* Discipline yourself. You must be a
self-starter and follow a routine, just
as if you were working for any other
business. In many cases, you are the
only person you can rely on to get the
job done. Unless it's an emergency, do
not baby-sit or chat with your
neighbors.
Brought to you by SCORE, America's small
business mentors, at www.score.org.
Ask SCORE
PAGE 3
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
C
VOLUME II
ommunicating with your creditors early and
often is vital to the process of resolving debt
issues. If you know you won’t be able to pay a bill
on time, contact the creditor immediately.
GreenPath recommends following these steps when
communicating with your creditors:
agreements. Include basic identifying information
such as account numbers and current contact
information. Also, save any letters or emails from
creditors. Having copies of your correspondence
can be a great asset if the circumstances become
dire and you have to go to court.
1. Make the Call
6. Follow Up with a Letter
Call your creditors as soon as you realize you won’t
be able to pay your bills and clearly explain the
situation causing your financial challenges. Also,
explain
any
encouraging
financial
developments coming
in the near future (like
a new job, tax return,
divorce
settlement,
disability payments, etc.). Creditors are more likely
to work with you if they know you’ll have sufficient
future income.
Follow up all calls with a letter sent by certified mail, and
be sure to request a return receipt. The letter should
include your account number, current interest rate and
payment,
and
should
summarize your financial
hardship and the new agreed
upon terms.
Communicating
with Your Creditors
As you go forward with
your negotiation, know your abilities and
limitations. It can be very tempting to offer more
than you can realistically afford, but don’t do it. If
you think you can send a payment in two months,
ask for three. If you make a payment early, great,
2. Speak with a Decision Maker
but if you fail to meet your self-imposed deadline,
The first person on the phone is usually a customer
you may not get another chance for a break. Pay
service representative, who may or may not have
close attention to your budget and what you can
the ability to help. Ask to speak with a manager or
afford while negotiating with your creditor.
supervisor regarding your account. They usually
(GreenPath, Inc. is headquartered at
have more authority to strike a deal or make
payment arrangements.
38505 Country Club Drive, Suite 210,
Farmington Hills, Michigan 48331)
3. Know Your Options
There is more than one way to approach a debt
when times are tight. Your lender may be willing to
offer you a hardship program that temporarily
reduces your monthly payment. Or you may be
able to negotiate a modified payment program
such as a loan re-write, extension, deferment or
change to your due date.
4. Propose an Alternative Payment Plan
Many creditors have pre-defined internal programs
available to help people in trouble. Depending on
the creditor and how you approach the situation,
your own negotiated terms may be more
advantageous than a standard offer from the
creditor. Start by suggesting something you can
afford ¬— for example, half of the required
minimum payment, with no fees, for three months
— and see what happens.
5. Create a Paper Trail
Carefully log all dates, times and names of the
people you spoke with, including the terms of any
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
PAGE 4
What's the Best Age to Claim Benefits?
How your benefits are affected if you continue to work
Q. I am 60 years old and trying to
The "Benefit Based on Age"
every
decide when to take my Social
chart above
$14,160, Social Security will
Security benefits. What are my
your
options? If I continue to work for a
tied to the age at which you
few years, how will that affect my
begin your benefits.
how
payments
are
with
a
monetary
to you. When you reach your
factors
worth
full retirement age, Social
be
reduced.
Why?
66. In that case, it might be
prudent to wait until age 66
before taking benefits at all.
Taxes on Social Security
benefits
Social Security benefits are
you
subject
your
expected
payment
thinking about.
get
$1,320
—
percent increase.
about
a
32
higher income taxes.
Taxation of benefits is tied to
The Social Security
"combined income," which the
earnings limit
retirement age of 66. If you
you waited until 70, you would
income
sooner you may begin to pay
$1,000 a month at your normal
reduced benefit of $750. But if
federal
you take your benefits, the
is
retired at 62, you would get a
to
taxes and thus, the earlier
benefits
Let's say, for example,
to
Security benefits until you're
early
until age 66 or age 70.
benefit
not see much of your Social
permanently
delays
will
$14,160 a year, you might
a longer period of time than a
who
your
your
you earn much more than
will be getting more checks for
person
increase
and
But, in the short term, if
monthly
Because
review
work.
age.
will
record,
not paid because of your
benefits prorated to reflect your
benefit
will
earnings
a full monthly benefit was
different
choose
Security
account for all months where
between 62 and 70, with your
your
Earnings limitations go
withheld is eventually returned
You can retire at any time
you
withhold $1 in benefits.
age 66, and, indeed, the money
be in your monthly payment.
If
above
Before you make your
calculation for how much will
retirement,
earn
away in the month you reach
Each of these options
comes
you
decision, there are two other
Social Security payments?
A. Basically, you have three
options:
early retirement, full
retirement at age 66 or late
retirement. If you take early
retirement, you can collect
your Social Security benefits as
early as age 62. With full
retirement, you wait until age
66. Late retirement means
deferring your benefits until as
late as age 70.
illustrates
monthly
$2
IRS defines as the sum of your
If you plan to take your
adjusted
gross
income
plus
benefits and continue to work,
nontaxable interest plus half of
be aware that in 2011 you will
your Social Security benefits.
be allowed to earn only up to
Individuals
$14,160 before you run into
incomes of $25,000 to $34,000
Continued on page 8
the
earnings
limitation.
For
with
combined
PAGE 5
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
VOLUME II
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
PAGE 6
BUSINESS BUYER TIP
How to Get A Business Loan
S
By Anita Campbell
ee if the following sounds familiar: You
bootstrap your business to get it off the
ground, perhaps with personal savings or
FFM (family and friends money). After a
while you tap into credit cards as a quick source of
cash to pay expenses. Before you know it, credit
cards aren't enough. Or the finance charges make
them an unwise choice for large expenses.
also be required to put up collateral or security,
either from the business or sometimes from
personal assets. Again, don't be surprised.
Here are some tips to get your ducks in a
row before applying:
Go get a copy of your personal credit report
in advance. If your credit history has black marks
and you have time, try to establish a clean record
That's when you start thinking about a loan for a period. If you have high credit card balances,
or a line of credit. And that's good, because it try to pay them down. Go to MyFico.com to find out
means you are thinking for the long term. Just more.
don't wait too long to apply for a business loan.
Make sure any business trade references
Don't wait until you're a week away from missing
and
business
credit (through D&B, for instance) are
payroll or your credit cards are maxed out. In
in
good
order.
short, don't wait until your business is in crisis.
Ideally, the decision to go after a business loan
Most lenders will require up-to-date financial
should be a strategic one. Try to anticipate the statements, including an Income Statement and
need for a loan in advance. Give yourself time to Balance Sheet. Accounting software or an
shop around for the best loan terms. You can't deal accountant can help with this. The Small Business
with lenders from a position of strength if you're Administration (SBA) also offers downloadable
desperate.
financial statement templates for DIYers.
As you start your loan quest consider two
key issues:
Your reason for needing a loan—"I need
more money" isn't a good enough reason to saddle
your business with a big loan—or even a small one.
Do you need to hire additional staff? Or do you
need a line of credit to smooth out seasonal dips?
Be specific. Your reasons for needing the loan will
dictate the loan amount you request, the loan
terms, and which lenders to approach.
Your ability to repay the loan—Run the
numbers. Make sure your business is
fundamentally strong with the realistic prospect of
repaying the loan. We may be tempted to jump on
a loan as the answer to our business financial
problems. In reality, a loan may just mask deeper
problems (such as a business in trouble, with costs
that are too high or sales that are too feeble).
How to Prepare for Your Loan Application
Lenders look at your personal credit history,
business credit history (if established), and your
ability to repay the loan. They also look at whether
your business is solid and viable. Almost certainly
you will have to personally sign for a small
business loan – it's standard, so don't be surprised.
Depending on the type and size of loan, you may
Assemble copies of the last three years' tax
returns (personal and business).
Depending on the size and type of loan, you
may need a business plan. The business plan
demonstrates that your business is solid and
feasible. The executive summary is crucial—make it
crisp and compelling. Go to BPlans.com for
business plan resources.
Finally, before you formally apply, call or
visit a few different lenders to get an idea of loan
terms and key requirements. All of this planning
and preparation may sound like a lot of work but it
will be well worth it, as getting a loan can help you
to grow your business and accelerate the pace.
(Anita Campbell is editor of Small Business
Trends, a site that tracks trends affecting the
small business market.)
Midwest Business Alliance
A platform of businesses for businesses
to keep themselves aware of current
trends and opportunities.
PAGE 7
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
VOLUME II
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
by Michele Pariza Wacek
O
ver the years I've had
the pleasure of working
with both very successful
entrepreneurs and ones who
aren't so successful. What
ma k e s
one
e n t r e pr e n eu r
successful while the other one
not-so-much? Chances are
they're making one (or all
three) of these mistakes.
1. Marketing their business
is not a priority.
This is probably the biggest
reason why I see businesses fail
or either get sucked into a
stressful feast-or-famine model
(either too many or too few
clients). They don't make
marketing their business a
priority.
If you want to have a full
pipeline of clients at all times
then it's crucial you make
marketing a priority.
So what do I mean
exactly by marketing your
business? Basically two things -you have one or more ways to
bring new leads in the door and
you have one or more ways to
turn those leads into clients.
One of the easiest ways
to do this is to set up an opt-in
box on your website so you can
collect the names and email
addresses of the people who
visit your site, then have a
follow up system in place once
they give you their email
address to start warming them
up so they become clients.
Ezines and teleclasses are two
great tactics to use as follow up.
2. They don't take action
(or they don't take action
fast enough).
Successful businesses are built
on momentum. Momentum is
built on taking action. Whether
it's
creating
informati on
products,
launching
new
programs or even getting your
new website up (or your ezine
out), it's all about taking
action.
Now there is a caveat
here. It's not enough just to
take action. You need to take
the RIGHT action at the RIGHT
time in the RIGHT order. So
how do you know if you're
doing that or not?
Well, one way to do that
is to educate yourself about
marketing
and
businessbuilding. Or an easier (and
faster) way is to find yourself a
business/marketing coach or
mentor who can quickly assess
your situation and give you a
plan of action. (Of course, once
you have that, then you need
to make sure you actually
implement that plan.)
3. They give up too soon.
Look, every successful business
person and entrepreneur I
know has had a few stinkers.
The difference is they've been
in a business long enough to
know a failure or two every
now and then is normal and
they move on. Entrepreneurs
who are new or a little unsure
PAGE 8
of themselves tend to create a
story around their failures that
are simply not true. They'll
instead think there's a problem
with the product or the industry
or themselves or something
else -- you get the picture.
When the reality could be they
didn't market enough or they
didn't take enough action or
they skipped a couple of steps
when they were marketing their
product or a myriad other
easily preventable mistakes.
Before you throw in the
towel on something -- whether
it's a product you just created
or your entire business, stop
and ask for some help. Find out
if success is just a few tweaks
away or you really do need to
do something more drastic.
Michele PW (Michele Pariza
Wacek) is your Ka-Ching! Marketing
strategist and owns Creative
Concepts and Copywriting LLC, a
copywriting and marketing
agency.
She helps entrepreneurs
become more successful at attracting
more clients, selling more products
and services and boosting their
business. To find out how she can
help you take your business to the
next level, visit he site at http://
www.MichelePW.com Copyright 2009
Michele Pariza Wacek
What's the Best Age to Claim Benefits?
Continued from page 4
may have to pay taxes on 50 percent of their Social Security
benefits.
If an individual's combined income rises above $34,000, or
a couple's goes above $44,000, up to 85 percent of their Social
Security benefits may be subject to income tax.
The Social Security website is a valuable source for information
onretirement benefits. For additional information on taxes, call the
Internal Revenue Service at 1-800-829-3676. Ask for Publication
554, "Tax Guide for Seniors," and Publication 915 "Social Security
and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits."
(Stan Hinden is a longtime financial writer and author of How to Retire Happy:
The 12 Most Important Decisions You Must Make Before You Retire.)
PAGE 9
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
VOLUME II
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
PAGE 10
6 Last-Minute Tax Moves for 2010
I
t's a shame to find out
3. Make charitable contribuup to $2,500. If you haven't
about a good tax-saving
tions with a credit card. If
spent enough to take advanstrategy in January, when
you're
short
on
cash
in
tage of the full credit, pay your
it's too late to take advantage of
December but still want to
student's 2011 tuition bill in
it. That's why it's important to
make a charitable contribution,
advance
by
the
end
of
give some thought to your tax
see if the charity will accept a
December.
return for 2010 before year's
donation by credit card. Many
end. Consider these six lastdo. As long as the credit card is
6. Set up a self-employed
minute ways to cut your tax
charged by Dec. 31, you can
retirement plan. If you or a
bill that may add some
family member has any
cheer to your holidays —
income from either full- or
There's
still
time
to
lower
and make April 15 worth
part-time
selfyour IRS bill — if you act now employment, the best
celebrating,
as
well.
Here's to many happy
and most flexible selfreturns.
pay the bill in 2011 but deduct
employed retirement savings
the payment on your 2010 tax
plan is the so-called solo
return. Also, if a contribution
401(k). Many brokerage firms
1. Itemize your clothing
you make by check is in the
and mutual fund companies
donations. Stuffing old clothes
mail by the end of the year,
offer these plans at no cost, but
into a bag and dropping it off at
you
can
take
the
deduction
this
the plan must be set up by
Goodwill is certainly easier, but
year — even though the check
Dec. 31. You don't have to
preparing a detailed list of
doesn't clear until 2011.
make a contribution until your
donated items can result in a
tax return deadline in 2011, but
more generous tax deduction. A
4. Spend FSA money. Many
you'll still qualify for a 2010
detailed list also comes in handy
employers
offer flexible
deduction.
in the event of an IRS audit.You
(All the information presented on
spending
accounts
(FSAs)
that
should indicate the fair market
AARP.org is for educational and
allow workers to put pretax
value of the clothing, as well as
resource purposes only. We suggest
dollars toward certain medical
any donated furniture or other
that you consult with your financial
and
child
care
expenses.
personal property, and note the
or tax adviser regarding your
Employees who don't use the
condition. Expensive donated
individual situation. Use of the
money in their accounts by the
items might require an appraisal
information contained in this website
end of the FSA year lose it.
to support the declared value.
is at the sole choice and risk of the
Some
FSAs
expire
in
reader.)
December, while others expire
2.
Donate
appreciated
at different times of the year.
securities. Thanks to strong
If you have an FSA, make sure
gains in the stock market since
you use up all the taxearly 2009, you may have some
advantaged benefits by the
stocks, mutual funds or other
Food Sanitation classes
deadline.
investments with sizable capital
gains. Appreciated
securities
are scheduled on
5.
Take
advantage
of
make ideal donations because
April 9 and 10
education tax credits. The
you don't have to pay capital
enhanced American
gains taxes, yet the total value
(Saturday and Sunday).
Opportunity
Credit for
of
the
donated
securities
Interested members can
undergraduates expires at the
qualifies for a deduction. Your
end
of
2010.
Qualifying
charity of choice can provide
contact MBA office at
individuals who pay at least
you
with
the
information
773-381-2622
$4,000 in college tuition in
necessary to transfer securities
2010 can claim a tax credit of
from your brokerage account.
Midwest
Business Alliance
PAGE 11
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
VOLUME II
VOLUME II
MIDWEST BUSINESS ALLIANCE
PAGE 12