Running a Web Design Business: Defining Your Business Structure

Course details

Sole proprietorship, general partnership, corporation, or LLC? Choosing a business structure is one of the tougher decisions web designers face when establishing a new company. In this course, entrepreneur Martha Garzon walks you through the advantages and disadvantages of each business model, and helps you decide which one is right for you. You'll also take a deep dive into two key business structures–sole proprietorship and LLC—to see how they affect licensing and permitting processes, taxes, and recordkeeping for a hypothetical web design business. This practical information will help you clear early legal and financial hurdles, and help make sure your business hits the ground running.

Learning objectives
Understanding your business-structure options
Choosing your business structure using five key questions
Establishing business names and fictitious business names
Obtaining local licenses and permits
Applying for city/county tax receipts
Opening a business bank account
Understanding state and federal taxes

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Welcome
02 - Disclaimer

1. Overview of Business Structures

03 - Understanding your business-structure options
04 - Sole proprietorship - Advantages and disadvantages
05 - Partnerships - Advantages and disadvantages
06 - C corporation - Advantages and disadvantages
07 - S corporation - Advantages and disadvantages
08 - LLC - Advantages and disadvantages
09 - Choosing your business structure using five key questions

2. Sample Businesses

10 - Introducing Amy's web design business
11 - Amy's web design business as a sole proprietorship
12 - Amy's web design business as an LLC

3. Forming a Sole Proprietorship

13 - Getting started with business names and fictitious business names
14 - Obtaining local licenses and permits
15 - Applying for a city business tax receipt
16 - Applying for a county business tax receipt
17 - Opening a business bank account
18 - Understanding state tax obligations
19 - Understanding federal tax obligations

4. Forming a Limited Liability Company (LLC)

20 - Getting started with a name for your LLC
21 - Filing the Articles of Organization
22 - Creating an operating agreement
23 - Obtaining local licenses or permits
24 - Applying for a city business tax receipt
25 - Applying for a county business tax receipt
26 - Understanding tax election for LLCs
27 - Applying for an Employer Identification Number (EIN)
28 - Opening a business bank account
29 - Understanding state tax obligations
30 - Understanding federal tax obligations

Conclusion

31 - Next steps - Finding professional support