From the Editor's desk at Route 422 Business Advisor — Relevant news and information of interest to business owners and operators along the Route 422, Route 100 and Route 30 corridors in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Please visit www.422bizmag.com

Do you have a Roth IRA? Should you have a Roth IRA?

The Roth IRA is celebrating its 20th Anniversary. It started January 1st 1998.

The Roth IRA is growing stronger than ever. You may be already reaping the tax benefits of owning your own Roth IRA or, did you hesitate to open one?

Here are 20 ROTH IRA Facts you need to know:

Local SEO - What Local Businesses Need to Focus on 2018 and Beyond?

2018 is the year to raise your local SEO game to another level!

If you’re a local business that wants to get noticed in search engines and generate more customers, you need a local SEO plan in place.

SEO vs. PPC

Assuming you have a website, your 24/7, three-hundred-and-sixty-five day per year online brochure is up and running. The question is what now?

This article will attempt to educate the reader on the advantages and disadvantages of Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Both will require a monthly investment, in either time, effort and the pocketbook.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Why Mobile Marketing Needs to be Part of Your Digital Marketing Strategy

The hype and fanfare surrounding the recent introduction of the iPhone 8 and iPhone X are proof that smartphones are an integral part of our lives.

According to comScore, an American media measurement and analytics company, smartphone penetration in the United States has crossed 80 percent in 2016. When the iPhone was launched in 2007 only six percent of the population had a smart phone!

Cash Management: Enhance your financial position and take control of your finances

A fundamental building block of financial planning is cash management. Effective financial planning requires the accurate examination of cash inflows and outflows and the examination of assets and liabilities. The process of monitoring and examining cash flow allows people to prioritize and address financial goals and monitor progress.

Cash Inflows: Sources of Funds

• General income sources, for example, salary, wages, bonuses, commissions, alimony, child support, rents, royalties or trust distributions.

What is a cash balance plan? (And why you should care)

Cash balance plans allow professionals and small business owners to compress 20 years of retirement savings into 10 years and generate additional tax savings that are substantial.

Tax Reform Proposal Unveiled

The much-anticipated Republican proposal for tax reform has been released in the form of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, an over-400 page long major rewrite of the Tax Code.

Individual Retirement Accounts

IRA rules are left largely untouched by the Act. Contribution limits and requirements are unchanged, stretch IRAs remain in place, and favorable treatment for Net Unrealized Appreciation remains available as before.

Health Insurance: Executive Order

On October 12, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order. What does this mean for health insurance? What changes will take place in the health insurance market now? What changes might happen to health insurance in the future?

What If You Could Pay Health Care Costs in Retirement with Tax-Free Dollars?

As medical expenses continue to increase, planning for them in retirement takes on greater importance. One approach is to shift thinking of the Health Savings Account (HSA) as an account to defray medical expenses annually to an account with pre-tax dollars and tax-free earnings to defray medical expenses years from now in retirement.

Consider this planning strategy to help insulate your lifestyle dollars from medical expenses:

• Fully fund an HSA to the maximum annual contribution allowance, potentially to age 65.

Processing Workplace Incidents

In the last article, we reviewed Workers’ Compensation file basics. In this article, we are looking at processing workplace incidents. Workplace incidents include workplace accidents and "close-calls." There were approximately 2.9 million non-fatal workplace injuries and illnesses reported by private industry employers in 2015, which occurred at a rate of 3.0 cases per 100 equivalent full-time workers, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reports that more than a dozen workers died every day in American workplaces in 2013.

What Does an Exceptional Leader Look Like?

Abraham Lincoln once said, “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” In a Google search I found a Leader defined as “the person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country.” Abraham Lincoln predicted that our Nation had to abolish slavery in order for our Nation to truly be the “land of the free and the home of the brave,” and he led our Nation to that vision. This was a very bold and challenging undertaking in our Nation’s history. Through his Leadership skills, he helped create and shape the America we know today.

Wave of New Investment Accelerates Pottstown’s Revitalization Process

When the Third Annual Pottstown Investors Conference gets underway at The Hill School on April 12th, presenters and attendees will no doubt be encouraged by the veritable tsunami of recent investment along East High Street in the heart of the downtown, as evidenced by the sale of several dozen properties over the past few years, including seven transactions in the last seven months. And the good news is that multiple investors and investor groups are acquiring these properties for reasons that will ultimately bring enormous benefit to the borough and the downtown.

Your Biggest Security Threat!

By Scott Guinther, I.T. Shield, LLC

Member, Small Business Resource Association

Most business owners today know they need IT security to keep their businesses safe. Antivirus/malware protection and firewalls are the basic security measures used by most businesses today. But with these necessary and valuable security measures, none of these can prevent the biggest threat to your company — Your People!

“Success Thinking”—It’s All About Attitude

As a small business owner, you’re not just “the boss.” You’re also the leader, the person employees, vendors, customers, and prospects look to for guidance, support, and confidence. And being a leader is easier than you think. It begins with a positive, “can-do” attitude that your business delivers what it promises, and can achieve any goal.

Managing Your Business Website: 7 Things to Consider

At Hureka Technologies, we have served over 50 businesses with new website designs and digital marketing services. Consequently, we understand the challenges business owners face while managing a website. Be it for just maintaining the online presence, or as a key driver in your business’s value delivery cycle, a website makes a huge difference, yet it’s astonishing that over 46 percent of small businesses in the U.S. still don’t have a fully operational website.

New Tax Savings for Your Business

There’s good news if you’ve purchased depreciable property for your business in 2018!

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which has reduced taxes across the board, has several new mechanisms to reduce taxes paid by small businesses that will be applicable for the upcoming tax filing season.

One of these mechanisms is depreciation.

Businesses have always been able to deduct the cost of tangible property placed into service with their business, over the useful life of the property.

RISK MANAGEMENT Insurance Coverage Considerations

Risk management is an important aspect of the financial planning process. As a financial

advisor, it is essential to assess a person’s insurance coverage to determine areas of strength and

areas for improvement. Any person who is not adequately covered with life, disability, medical,

automobile, homeowners and any other appropriate insurance may have a serious risk

management problem. For retirees, an appropriate medicare supplemental plan and possibly a

long-term care policy should be in place.

The Changes in SEO Process in Last 10 Years

The ever-changing SEO landscape has put many well-known SEO experts out of business; making the space only for real marketers who understand customers and combine their SEO knowledge with effective marketing techniques.

But it was a gradual change. For a while, everybody thought Google would never be able to stop the spammy websites from manipulating search engine rankings. Black hat and grey hat techniques were rampant. One by one, algorithm updates were rolled out, changing the entire SEO process over the last decade.

Benefits and Challenges of AI-Enabled Recruitment Chatbots

As Hureka has successfully delivered AI-enabled recruitment bots, we have an animated discussion on the benefits and scope of these bots for a small business. In this article, we discuss the benefits and challenges of recruitment chatbots and how it can help a small business streamline its hiring process, make it more efficient and improve candidate experience.

Long-Term Care Planning — Why You Can't Afford to Ignore It

Long-term care planning (or LTC planning for short) isn’t the most exciting topic. But most people can’t afford to ignore it in retirement. It’s the four-ton elephant in the room. "Long-term care is the unsolved problem for so many people," said AARP. Not only the fact that seven out of ten seniors will need some type of LTC, but there’s also the hefty price tag to consider.

What is Long-Term Care?