Write off Equipment Purchases Now vs. Later

Posted on November 29, 2011 by

If you are looking to buy new cleaning equipment for your business sometime within the next 4 months or so, it is suggested that you actually make the purchase before the year ends.  This little trick can help you keep more dollars in your pocket now vs. later.

Here is an example of how a tax write off now can help you versus waiting until later: 

Scenario 1:  Your business makes $75,000 profit at the end of 2011.  Now, in March of 2012 you purchase $3500 in cleaning equipment.  In this scenario, you pay taxes on the profit you made in 2011 ($75,000).   Most small businesses are sole proprietorships, partnerships, S-Corps, or LLC’s.  In this scenario, your final taxes are due on April 15, 2012 for the 2011 tax year (because they are rolled up into your personal taxes).  Notice, you paid the $3500 for new equipment before your final taxes where due for 2011.  However, you didn’t get to enjoy the deduction for the 2011 tax year, because you purchased in 2012.

Scenario 2:  You make the same profit as Scenario 1 above, but now you purchase the $3500 equipment in December 2011.  So, your end of year profit now shows $71,500  ($75,000 – $3500).  Now, you only pay taxes on $71,500 due by April 15, 2012.  If you are in the 25% tax bracket, you just paid $875.00 ($3500 x 0.25) less in taxes for the 2011 tax year.  By the time April 15th rolled around, you have $875.00 more money in your hand than you did in Scenario 1 above.

It is true that you will eventually get the write off of the $3500 equipment in Scenario 1 above in 2013 when you are filing for 2012 tax year, but you would need to wait a whole year for this $875.00 in tax savings.  Most people would rather get the $875.00 savings today vs. waiting for a whole year.  This $875.00 tax savings could be used to grow your business now and reap rewards far greater than $875.00 in one year’s time.

Ultimately, you don’t just want to spend money, if you don’t need to spend it.  However, if you are looking to diversify your business or get new equipment sometime in the next few months, you may want to think about doing it in December!

 

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Christmas / Holiday Cards

Posted on November 15, 2011 by

One of the easiest ways to stay connected with your customer base during the holidays is to send your customers a Christmas or holiday card.   This can serve two purposes:  1) Letting your customers know you are thinking of them this holiday season.  2) Advertising for the upcoming slow season (Jan – Mar).  You can easily put a gift certificate in the card for $10.00 off your cleaning services as a Christmas gift to your customers.

The holidays will be here before you know it.  If you are going to incorporate some sort of holiday marketing, now is the time to start thinking about it!

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Don’t Freeze Your Carpet Cleaning Equipment

Posted on November 7, 2011 by

It’s November and those nights can get quite cold.  In many states, you probably have already kicked on your furnace at night.  You may have even brought out that heavier blanket to put on your bed.  Just as you like to be warm at night, so does your cleaning equipment and supplies.  Many professional cleaners get caught off guard during November because a night that drops below freezing sneaks up on you.  It only takes one freezing night to cause hundreds or even thousands of dollars of damage to your equipment.  Pumps, hoses, fittings, valves, etc. can easily burst from water freezing.

Most seasoned cleaners have probably gone through it in the past.  New cleaners beware!  Make sure you keep an eye on your local weather, whether by TV, radio, internet, or your phone app.  Take appropriate precautions.  Turn on your heater, move your equipment into your home, etc.

Everybody dislikes spending money that doesn’t need to be spent.  This is one expense that can be easily prevented.

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Tracking Your Advertising (Coupon Code: XX123)

Posted on October 26, 2011 by

Let’s face it; you need to spend money to make money.  As a professional carpet cleaner, your marketing strategy is just as important to your business as your cleaning strategy. Your business probably spends thousands of dollars a year in advertising.  Are you able to report how much revenue each advertisement brings into your business?

Tracking all your marketing pieces can help you answer this question.  One way of doing this is to put a “coupon code” into your marketing piece.  When someone calls your business to setup an appointment, do you ask them how they found out about your business?  Was it a “flyer”?  What does a “flyer” mean?  Was it a postcard, was it a newspaper insert, was it a door flyer, etc?  If you advertise using more than one method, you can track these individual methods with coupon codes.  Now, when the customer calls and you ask how they found out about your business, ask them for the coupon code on that flyer.

Over time, your business will be armed with valuable information to help you more wisely plan your future advertising dollars.

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CWS-Direct’s New Facebook Page

Posted on October 19, 2011 by

For those of you that don’t know, CleanCraft developed a division of the company called Cleaners Wholesale Supplies – Direct (CWS-Direct) back in 2010.  CWS-Direct was created to become a wholesale discount supply store for professional cleaners.  CWS-Direct includes cleaning necessities that professionals need each and every day (ie. wands, hand tools, chemicals, hoses, valves, jets, quick connectors, vacuums, etc.)  The new division took off like crazy.  In the summer of 2011, CleanCraft modified CWS-Direct to be a “Membership Club” for professional cleaners and enacted even deeper discounts.  Basically, professional cleaners are getting products at distributor cost, DIRECT, by being a member.  You can visit the website here:  www.CWS-Direct.com

Just yesterday, CWS-Direct opened its official Facebook Page.  The hope is professional cleaners will “Like” CWS-Direct’s facebook page to keep in touch with news, events, new product releases, and specials.  Make sure you check it out and give us a “Like”:  www.facebook.com/cwsdirect

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Welcome to CleanCraft’s Blog

Posted on October 18, 2011 by

Welcome to CleanCraft’s new blog site.  Many of our readers have been receiving our news through the CleanCraft Chatter Newsletter for years.  In fact, we have been creating newsletters for over a decade!  It is amazing how fast time flies.  CleanCraft has decided to suspend its newsletters and move to a Blog format.  We are doing this for a couple of reasons.  First of all, a blog allows an easier to read format in which we can include pictures, links, and videos.  Next, a blog is more easily searchable.  As you can see in our blog, there is a search box where you can type in text and perform a search.  It may not be too useful during our first couple articles.  However, as the articles pile up, it is nice to be able to do a quick search on a specific subject or keyword that interests you.  Another reason is that our blog allows for feedback.  If an article interests you or you have something to add, a blog allows this instant feedback.  Finally, the time is more easily mananged.  Rather than sitting down and writing five articles for a newsletter at one time, we can post a little article whenever a topic of interest hits us!

We at CleanCraft are excited about this new media and look forward to posting articles & news that will interest you and help you with your cleaning business along the way.  Happy reading!

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