In this Issue:
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE | UPCOMING EVENTS | WHAT YOU MISSED | ARTICLES | NEW
MEMBERS | CREDITS
Recently, a photographer whose father was desperately ill and in the hospital called me. He had a shoot planned for the following day, and it could not be rescheduled. Now, after all the effort he'd made to get and keep a client, he was on the verge of disappointing this one through no fault of his own. He asked that I stand in for him.
In order to protect your client, your reputation, and your paycheck, you should sit down with a trusted and talented friend/competitor and make plans to cover each other in the event of an emergency. You friend would jump in a take over for you on a job for one day or cover you for a long illness. You want someone who will recognize that these are your jobs and clients and the arrangement you work out should meet the needs of both your businesses.
How should you split the fees? I propose it be 50/50, acknowledging that one of you worked hard to get the job and should not lose out, and that the other pitched in to help when needed. Of course, this understanding must be reciprocal.
-Phil Cantor, photographer
It was as exciting, as hectic, and as open-ended as its subject. -the Internet. Moderated by member Bill Cross, the January event drew close to 100. Panelists were Phil Patton, contributing writer for Wired, Alan Benezra, owner of @Alan's Internet Cafe in Montclair, and artist Manuel Morales.
Instead of shipping out his portfolio by messenger or bringing it in person, artist Morales has set up a home page that makes work samples available 24 hours a day for a phone call. It saves time, he said, and $6,000 in expenses for six professional portfolios.
When few in the audience admitted having a home page, Benezra said, "You need one." And writers he said were needed to improve the content of those that did exist.
To get on the Internet, one needs a computer, modem, and an on-line service. (American Online, etc. provide indirect access; AT&T, etc. provides direct access.) To put graphics on a home page, one needs a scanner (about $400) or to bring art to a service bureau for a GIF file. For current analog lines, 28.8 modem speed is needed. When digital lines are available, perhaps leased for $24 to $40 per month by cable systems, modem speed will not be a factor.
Don't pay any more tax than you have to, urged tax advisor Alyssa Lebovic at the February meeting. She offered these tips for filing 1995 taxes and planning for 1996
The home office deduction isn't getting easier to qualify for, but is no longer a red flag for an audit. If you spend most of your working time in your home office, use this deduction. Keep a daily log of time spent in your office vs. in the field.
Graphic designers in particular should consider limiting purchases of equipment to $17,500 annually. The Section 179 depreciation form allows up to that amount to be written off in the year of purchase.
Don't lump travel and entertainment expenses. Travel is 100 percent deductible, food and entertainment only 50 percent.
Short on cash? A request for an extension is granted automatically.
-Cindy Mehallow, writer
If you owe New Jersey back taxes, you can catch up during a 90-day tax amnesty program expected in begin in March. It covers all types of taxes (payroll, sales, corporate, individual, etc.) back to 1987. More details later.
Three SWAN members were featured speakers at Barnes & Nobles' first program in a new seminar series for entrepreneurs. The program was held February 20 and drew about 25 people. Speakers were Peter Adler, Rudi Seligman, and Phil Cantor.
As four members move off the board in 1996, SWAN wants new volunteers to get involved with committee work and prepare themselves for future board service.
"Volunteering is an obligation of SWAN membership," says Phil Cantor, president. "But it's also the best way to get to be known by others. The people who are the most active in our organization are the people who get the most work through SWAN."
Volunteers are especially needed for the programming committee, portfolio reviews, and publicity. "Entrepreneurs are used to working alone" says Jim Irwin. "Volunteering helps you meet new people, and create a better SWAN."
The SWAN directory will be the largest in history, as 108 members and 6 associates have paid their 1996 dues. The printing of 5,000 copies will be donated by Printastics of No. Arlington, NJ.
Do you charge your clients a sales tax? Should you? Must you charge if you only provide a service, not a product? What is a service? How do you avoid charging a tax when your client is not an end user? What is an end user?
Would you believe that people in state government do not agree on the answer to these questions? So what is a freelancer to do? Come to the April meeting, 7:30 pm at the Bergen Museum, to discuss this issue. Featured speakers include Joseph Dietz, president of JM Kesslinger Associates and founder of the NJ Advertising, PR and Communication Sales Tax Coalition, and Alan Preis, CPA, an authority on the NJ sales tax. SWAN supports the Coalition. What is it doing for you, and what can you do to protect yourself before getting caught in the maze this issue represents?
The '96 Directory will include the following new SWAN members:
Copyright © 1996 Cygneture
SWAN seeks news about members and their achievements.
EDITOR: Bob Parker
STAFF WRITERS:
Kathy Fairclough
Cindy Mehallow
Luisa Frey-Gaynor
Printed Newsletter Graphic Design: Carrie Oesmann
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