Website Builders

Hi! What industry are you in? If you are scheduling in person appointments for some type of physical service, there is usually an industry specific platform that works well. For example, if you are specializing in power washing or some kind of handyperson service then Jobber is a good one. Usually the platform will have a landing page that will serve as your website with links for booking, etc. There are platforms for just about anything - notaries, estheticians, coaches, yoga classes, etc. If you sell physical products, then Shopify or Etsy will usually calculate the sales tax for you as well as taking care of the invoicing and payment. It's the main source of revenue for them so watch your fees! You can always have separate parts of your tech stack do different parts of the process. Calendly for scheduling plus QBO or Xero for invoicing plus a separate website for everything else. Setup is key for accounting so make sure to begin with the end in mind!

Look into your local & state laws on whether or not you need to register your business with the city, county, or state. You may need to get a business license and/or have a sales tax permit. Every state is a bit different on which products and services are subject to sales tax but there are a few surprise ones. Photography is a good example because some states say that the photoshoot is a service (no sales tax) and any finished pictures or albums are considered taxable even if they are delivered digitally. Usually it is less of a headache to register for sales tax and file $0 returns, then the state noticing a few years down the road that you've never filed at all depending on what you are selling.

I'm assuming that you are going to choose a sole proprietorship (Schedule C on your 1040) as your business formation. The key with ALL new businesses is to keep separate bank accounts so that you can prove that your business is separate from your personal finances. Run all of your deductible business expenses through your business checking account even if you have to deposit your own savings (equity) to make the cashflow work! Check out the article linked below to make sure you are getting all the deductions that you qualify for.

gusto.com

I've been a bookkeeper for 20+ years so I'm happy to answer any questions that you have! (not looking for clients btw, just happy to share the knowledge)