r/smallbusinessUS

I’ve noticed that a lot of business owners spend hours every week on things like:

Managing social media
Following up with leads
Organizing files and spreadsheets
Customer support
Research
Admin tasks
Canva graphics and content scheduling

Sometimes having someone handle the day-to-day tasks can free up enough time to focus on growing the business instead of just maintaining it.
I’m always curious—what’s the one task you’d outsource first if you had the chance?

About to start a small landscaping business in Alabama and everyone keeps telling me to just form an LLC before I take on any real clients. Makes sense, I get the liability protection side of it.

But every guide I read makes it sound like a 10 minute process and I'm not sure I trust that. File with the Secretary of State, get a registered agent, get an EIN, done. Am I actually missing something or is Alabama genuinely that straightforward compared to other states?

Also wondering whether it's worth paying for a formation service or just handling it directly through the state website. The filing fee seems pretty low so I'm not sure what a service would actually add here.

Anyone who's done this in Alabama recently, how did it go?

Starting a construction LLC in Texas and spent way too long trying to get a straight answer on actual costs.

Here's what I pieced together since most guides conveniently stop at the filing fee.

The state filing fee is $300, one time, straightforward.

You'll also need a registered agent which runs anywhere from $100 to $300 a year depending on who or what you use. That's the part I find unsettling since I can basically use my address right?

Texas has a franchise tax. It's not an income tax but it functions like one for a lot of businesses. Below roughly $2.47 million in revenue you owe nothing, but you still have to file a no tax due report every single year. That filing requirement means a recurring compliance deadline, and if you're using an accountant to handle it that's a billable hour you weren't budgeting for.

Going in blind to that annual requirement is exactly how small business owners end up with late penalties on a tax they didn't even know applied to them.

Anyone running a small LLC in Texas, what does your actual annual compliance cost look like in practice?

we’re a b2b company doing low‑ to mid‑six figures a month in revenue, with most invoices on net 30 and net 60 terms. A handful of bigger customers now represent a large share of our receivables, and the current way we manage credit limits and approvals (basic checks, notes, spreadsheets) is starting to feel a bit fragile.
i’m trying to work out whether b2bcredit management software is actually worth it at this stage or whether we should just tighten the process we already have. If you’ve put a credit tool in place around this size, did it noticeably change approval speed, reduce bad debt, or make it easier to keep everyone aligned on limits? On the flip side, if you looked at these tools and decided they were overkill for your current scale or team, I’d be interested in what made you hold off.

Hey everyone I run a crochet business in India I have regional women making exclusive crochet products in acrylic yarn cotton blend and wool as per peoples requirement and I would love for my product to sell outside India if anyone is interested in branching out or looking for a supplier would love to connect !! Also if you think this is a good idea

Hey everyone,

I've been working at a small web development agency for the past few months, building client websites and, more recently, AI agent projects.

My current arrangement is that I receive 10% of each project's value. I didn't think much about it at first, but now that I'm contributing more, I'm wondering if it's actually a fair split.

I'm considering looking for another agency or a different opportunity, but I'm not sure if I'm overthinking it.

For those who've worked in agencies or freelanced, does 10% sound reasonable, or would you start exploring other options?

I'd really appreciate your thoughts.

Every business owner has at least one of these stories.

The invoice that suddenly gets "lost" three times in a row. The client who loved the work right up until the final payment was due and then had seventeen problems with it. The one who disputed the charge, disappeared completely, or just went silent and hoped you'd eventually stop following up.

Some of them are creative. Some are just brazen. All of them are infuriating when you've delivered exactly what was agreed on and the only thing missing is the money you're owed.

What's the worst one you've dealt with? And did you ever actually collect?

Hi everyone,

I need your help in improving the ux for setting up a business email. Here is the current flow -

1. Users enter their custom domain
2. We give them 2 nameservers, which they have to copy paste it their DNS settings on the GoDaddy or Namecheap or wherever they bought the domain from.
3. Just Link your gmail id. You receive a verification link and done.
4. You can add custom aliases like support / hello / billing / sales / etc. @ yourdomain all mapped to your gmail inbox.
5. There is just 1 issue - you can receive emails / reply to threads via your gmail inbox, but for starting a new thread you will have to use our mail composer. Does this work for you guys ?

Would you be willing to pay for this setup ? Flat $14 per year.

Is this convenient for users ?

I'm researching how small businesses spend their time and I'm trying to understand the biggest day-to-day frustrations. If you could instantly hand one repetitive task to someone else (or an AI employee), what would it be? Examples: Responding to customer messages Following up with leads Scheduling appointments Invoices Email Social media I'm not selling anything—I'm just trying to learn from real business owners. Thanks!

Forming a New Mexico LLC for the privacy benefits and low cost, and need to sort out the registered agent requirement. New Mexico requires a registered agent with a physical New Mexico address.

Most of the recommendations I've seen are for the national services, but I've also come across some smaller New Mexico specific providers that are cheaper. For a simple LLC with no employees and no complex legal situation, is there any reason to prefer a national service over a smaller local one?

Also curious whether the anonymity benefits of a New Mexico LLC are actually preserved if you use a large national registered agent service that has your information, or whether that's a misunderstanding of how the privacy protection actually works? Thanks!

And in hindsight, which would you recommend?

What happened and do you regret it or stand by it?

Hello everyone,

I’m wondering if it’s hard to find stores/businesses that sell vintage Christmas glass ornaments?

If anyone knows owns one or knows of any stores please let me know. Thanks in advance

Hi guys, I urgently need to change the registered agent for my US LLC.

My current service raised their renewal price significantly. The process looks simple enough on paper, file a statement of change with the Secretary of State and pay the amendment fee.

But I want to make sure I'm not missing anything. Does the current registered agent need to consent or notified to being removed? Does the timing matter, like should I wait until after any pending legal notices or annual report periods? And how quickly does the change take effect after filing? The current one is meant to renew in 6 days time.

Anyone who's switched registered agents before, was there anything about the process that was more complicated than expected?

Everyone warns you about the hard work. The long hours, the uncertainty, the fact that you're now responsible for everything. That part gets talked about constantly.

But there's always something underneath that, the stuff that hits you six months in or two years in that no book, no mentor, no YouTube video ever prepared you for. The thing that made you stop and think "why did nobody mention this."

Maybe it's something psychological.

Maybe it's a specific operational reality. Maybe it's how it changed a relationship, how it changed the way you see money, or how it changed the way you see yourself.

The "obvious" answers don't count here. Not "it's harder than I expected" or "cash flow is tough." The specific thing that genuinely caught you off guard that you never see discussed anywhere.

What is it?

We are building a tax services firm and looking for creative ways to scale the org.

Offering free website development seemed to work to draw in smaller businesses - but would love to hear from the community about interesting ideas.

We all have that one thing. The subscription you'd pay almost anything to keep. The tool that if it went down tomorrow morning you'd be texting your team in a panic within the hour.

Not what you think you should say. Not the most impressive answer. The thing you'd actually feel a physical panic about losing access to.

What is it and what does it actually do for your business?

Looking into starting a small in home daycare and quickly realized this isn't like most home based businesses where an LLC and a business license cover most of it. Childcare licensing usually runs through a state health or family services agency, not the Secretary of State, and there are capacity limits based on the number of children and their ages. Background checks for anyone in the household, fire safety inspections, and sometimes CPR or first aid certification requirements all seem to come before you can even apply for the license. Some states also cap how many kids you can care for before you're required to move from a "family child care" category into a more regulated "group home" category. For anyone running a licensed home daycare, what part of the process took the longest or surprised you the most? Trying to plan a realistic timeline before I commit.

Good day everyone this post is made to satisfy my curiosity. I'm thinking of starting a software consultation /development company out of İstanbul we are currently focusing on data analysis and custom software solutions i have developed an efficient method turning raw data into easily readable reports , would any of you consider hiring or contacting a company based in İstanbul? I'm asking this because I'm trying to understand the current consensus because Turkish lira is so unstable and we have our own set of problems long story short I'd appreciate some inputs i might launch in another country.