Your call is important. Please hold!
July 30, 2010 | 
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Time to put some sparks in the blog this week and take it from the realm of tax related issues to a practice management topic.
Recently the Madow Brothers e-Letter, which is always informative and entertaining, dealt with the topic of answering the phone or lack thereof when an existing or new patient calls your dental office. This e-letter really caught my attention and I want to pass along this important information.
Dave and Rich found that even in the middle of a normal workday, many offices did not answer the phone, instead having an answering machine with a message that said some variation of:
“If you have reached the office during normal business hours, we are either on the other line or busy helping another patient. Please leave a message blah blah blah yadda yadda yadda…..” Or “We are now at lunch” and the ever frustrating prompt game: “Push one for Susie; push two for Angie in billing…”
Don’t do this!!!! If someone calls your dental office and you are too busy for them what message does that send? What about that potential new patient who can’t get to speak to a human voice? You don’t think they’ll get tired of being on hold for upwards of three to four minutes and call the competition down the street? How important is that call if your office staff cannot even answer it?
“The point is – when your patients need you, you need to be there for them, especially during normal business hours – and that includes on the telephone. Yes, your office should be busy, but never too busy for the most important people in the world: your patients!”
Take a hard look at your phone answering procedures and see if you can improve on them if you are making some of these common mistakes.
Questions for Larry the Accountodontist?
larry.goldberg@glassjacobson.com
GJ Named a Top Wealth Manager
July 28, 2010 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed
Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors is pleased to announce our recognition in the 2010 Top Wealth Manager Survey by “Wealth Manager” magazine. The survey represents the largest, most well established Registered Investment Advisors in the country, and we are proud to be named among them.
Read about the survey criteria and the named firms here.
I Want to take you H.I.R.E.
July 22, 2010 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed
Those kings of acronyms, the United States government, have done it again. The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) act makes it possible for dental practices who hire new employees to claim a credit for those new hires. But, as always, for all things that sound too good to be true there are some criteria that must be followed to allow the dental practice to claim the credit on its tax return.
First any dentist with a practice in the United States or US territories will qualify. Any new dental assistant, dental hygienist or administrative employee hired must have worked less than 40 hours in the previous 60 days prior to the hire date. The qualified employee must certify the above by signing an affidavit, Form W-11. By now those little turbines in your head are probably furiously turning figuring which family member you can hire or which dental assistant you can fire so you can hire someone new and claim this credit. Unfortunately the writers of the bill were thinking the same thing so they specified that the employee cannot be a family member or other relative and the new employee must only replace an employee who left voluntarily or for cause.
The new qualified dental employee must be hired after February 3, 2010. Upon hire the dentist retains the employer portion of the 6.2% Social Security tax with each payroll processing until December 31, 2010. But wait there’s more. If the qualifying dental employee(s) remains employed for 52 consecutive weeks from the date of hire the dentist receives a $1,000 credit per employee as long as the individual’s wages during the last twenty-six weeks are at least eighty percent of the wages paid during the first twenty-six weeks.
This is a great opportunity for dentists to hire unemployed workers and reap the possible benefit of two tax credits. Your payroll service or CPA can be help advise you in this matter.
Questions for Larry?
larry.goldberg@glassjacobson.com
A Basic Checklist for Starting a Business
July 19, 2010 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed
If you are starting a business, here is a 6 item checklist to follow to ensure you get yourself set up properly. IRS Publication 583 provides even more information.
- Decide your business entity type. This will determine which tax forms you have to file. The most common types are sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation and S Corporation. Your circumstances will determine which is the best set-up for you, and will have a big impact on your financial and tax planning, so be sure to talk to your CPA and attorney before making this choice.
- Be aware of the different types of taxes- your entity choice determines which type of taxes you pay. The four general types of business taxes are income tax, self-employment tax, employment tax and excise tax. There are pluses and minues to each scenerio. Again, this choice will depend on your individual circumstances and goals.
- Get an Employer Identification Number. EIN are used to identify a business entity. Generally, businesses need an EIN. Visit IRS.gov for more information about whether you will need an EIN. You can also apply for an EIN online at IRS.gov.
- Start off on the right foot by keeping good records. This will help you ensure successful operation of your new business. You may choose any recordkeeping system suited to your business that clearly shows your income and expenses. The business you are in affects the type of records you need to keep for federal tax purposes, and if you are interested in doing business with the government, you will need a special kind of record system. Glass Jacobson has in-house certified QuickBooks Pro Advisors (here and here). If you are using that system, they can help you set it up effectively. By keeping good records, you also protect yourself from fraud.
- Every business taxpayer must figure taxable income on an annual accounting period called a tax year. The calendar year and the fiscal year are the most common tax years used.
- Each taxpayer must also use a consistent accounting method, which is a set of rules for determining when to report income and expenses. The most commonly used accounting methods are the cash method and an accrual method. Under the cash method, you generally report income in the tax year you receive it and deduct expenses in the tax year you pay them. Under an accrual method, you generally report income in the tax year you earn it and deduct expenses in the tax year you incur them. As when you chose your entity type, your unique circumstances will determine which method is best for your business in terms of financial and tax planning.
Questions?
2nd Quarter 2010 Investment Update
July 14, 2010 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed
Click here to read our 2nd Quarter 2010 Update, “The Wisdom of Great Investors” from GJIA’s Jon Dinkins.