Watch This Space

 

Starting next month Mike Lupo, Treasurer of Score South Florida will be presenting a series of articles on finance and related subjects. The articles have been authored by

Donald M. Scherzi, CPA, CFP, LLC of Jupiter, Florida. The series will be titled and numbered: Finance X. The last in the series will also be identified as such.

 

 

 

Kickstarter Rules

 

https://www.kickstarter.com/ruleshttps://www.kicKicksgacreative pr

Kickstarter Rules

We welcome and support projects in the diverse categories of Art, Comics, Crafts, Dance, Design, Fashion, Film & Video, Food, Games, Journalism, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology, and Theater. There are three rules every Kickstarter project must follow.

1.    Projects must create something to share with others.

Kickstarter can be used to create all sorts of things: art and gadgets, events and spaces, ideas and experiences. But every project needs a plan for creating something and sharing it with the world. At some point, the creator should be able to say: “It’s finished. Here’s what we created. Enjoy!”

2.    Projects must be honest and clearly presented.

Our community is built on trust and communication. Projects can’t mislead people or misrepresent facts, and creators should be candid about what they plan to accomplish. When a project involves manufacturing and distributing something complex, like a gadget, we require projects to show a prototype of what they're making, and we prohibit photorealistic renderings.

3.    Projects can't fundraiser for charity, offer financial incentives, or involve prohibited items.

We're all in favor of charity and investment, but they're not permitted on Kickstarter. Projects can't promise to donate funds raised to a charity or cause, and they can't offer financial incentives like equity or repayment. We also can't allow any of these prohibited things.

These rules don't cover every possible use of Kickstarter, but they explain our purpose and perspective.

 

Prohibited items: https://www.kickstarter.com/rules/prohibited

Kickstarter Q&A

Handbook - https://www.kickstarter.com/help/handbook

 

 What is Kickstarter’s fee?

Kickstarter collects a 5% fee from a project’s funding total if a project is successfully funded. There are no fees if a project is not successfully funded.

Pledges on Kickstarter are collected and processed by our payments partner, Stripe. These payment processing fees work out to roughly 3-5%.

Creators never give up any ownership of their work to Kickstarter or backers. You keep 100% ownership and control over your work.

 Where does the money come from?

Millions of people visit Kickstarter every week, but support always begins with people you know. Friends, fans, and the communities you’re a part of will be your biggest supporters. They’ll help spread the word to people they know, and so on. A good idea, communicated well, can spread fast and wide

 Do I have to make a video?

A video is strongly encouraged but not required. More than 80% of projects have videos, and those that don't have a much lower success rate. Making a video isn’t that hard! Here's one we made for inspiration

 

 What happens if I get funded?

It's time to bring your project to life!

First, your backers' cards are charged. After about two weeks, funds will be sent to your bank account from our payments processor, Stripe. And now, the rest is up to you!

As you work, share your progress with backers. Post updates when big news arrives, or about once a month when it hasn’t. They'll love hearing from you. Even when things go wrong, let them know. They'll appreciate it.

When rewards are ready, our survey tool will help you get all the info you need from each backer – things like mailing address or t-shirt size. Get a few friends to help package rewards, and mail them with love. All done!

 What happens if I don’t get funded?

If a project on Kickstarter does not reach its funding goal, no backers are charged and no money changes hands. But there are still positives: creators can get useful feedback and often find new people interested in their work. Creators are welcome to relaunch their projects on Kickstarter and apply lessons learned from the first go-around.

 

Source: https://www.kickstarter.com/learn?ref=nav

 

Susy Marcario, SCORE Counselor

Visit us at: www.scoresouthflorida.net

 

Clean Walks

The first impression a prospective customer gets upon approaching a “Brick and Mortar” retail business is the front of the shop itself. Most retail businesses have walk ways in front of their premises. Some may be in a mall, others on the street. But there is still a walk way used to view and approach the premises. Have you cleaned your walk today? Some business operators clean their walk every morning prior to opening for business. Others have landlords that perform this task.

What do you think the prospect will do when approaching your business with a walkway that has napkins from a neighboring food operation, cigarette butts, even cigarette cases, or spilled drinks, coffee cups or other “trash”?

I, for one, do not enter the premises.

 

What are you doing to be sure your walks are clean and inviting?

 

Steve Koenig, SCORE Counselor

Visit us at: www.scoresouthflorida.net

 

 

Restaurant Story

 

Here is the situation. You operate the most exclusive restaurant in a resort area. You use white linen. The reception staff is dressed in formal wear. The serving staff is in suit and tie and/or full dark dresses (no slacks). The menu has only a few limited entrees, with all the appetizer, vegetable and potato/rice choices anyone could want. The china and silver service is real and original. You are open only for dinner, are known for the view and sunsets, and have two seating’s each evening. Your reservation book is filled to capacity for the next month, and you require gentlemen to ware jackets and evening ware for the women. Oh yes, your prices reflect the image of exclusivity.

 

Now into this setting at the height of the season your phone rings with a request for a reservation for four in two day’s time for a very special event. There are a number of options. You can simply say, you are sorry and have nothing available for that evening. You can attempt to add a third seating, well after sundown, because you expect more requests and some earlier folks will simply stay on for a while. You can attempt to add a table somewhere. You can tell the caller you will call them back if someone cancels.

 

What would you do?

 

Steve Koenig, SCORE Counselor

Visit us at: www.scoresouthflorida.net

 

 

Special Counselor of the Month

We are delighted to shine the spotlight on a distinguished member of our staff who by his or her efforts brings great credit to our organization. This month we are honored to salute:

DAWN LYON   

 

If ever there was a person in this organization who deserved to be honored  it is our own Dawn Lyon, Administrator extraordinaire.

Some of you may remember when Dawn started with us, working at the desk where Mike Lupo now presides. The thing that stood out about her, from day one, was her work ethic. No matter the assigned task, Dawn treated each one with unflinching devotion to doing it right the first time, on time. (When you look about the office and see those Counselor Manuals binders; Dawn did every page in them, and assembled many copies for the members). Always with a smile, never with a complaint.

As helpful as Dawn is to every member, so too is she “there” for each and every client, striving always to be helpful, guiding them, encouraging them, going the proverbial extra mile.

And when you get to know Dawn’s family, the picture is complete. Husband Eric, a successful Financial Planner, and three talented and striving children: Hannah, Jenny, and Nick. (Hint: keep those names in mind. We expect there are a couple of aspiring entrepreneurs and a developing baseball player in there). The Lyons’ Five have just moved into a beautiful new home, and we wish them much happiness in their new surroundings.

We began by saying how much Dawn deserves this recognition as our Special Person of the Month for January, February and March. How she earned her spurs with us, from the assistant’s chair to the Administrator’s perch. We can all agree she earned it, and we are grateful to her in more ways than this article could ever state. Keeper of the keys, Grand Marshal in charge of everything we do, from office operations to major conferences, bringing joy and talent wherever she is, we are honored to call her our Admin. We are blessed to call her friend.

So, take a bow, Dawn Lyon. YOU are our new Special Person of the Month!