Business 101, Chapter 1 - Corporate Structure

Hello Warriors,

I've decided that I'm going to start posting information that can help others start and run businesses. Everyone here is looking for a great way to make money through online and/or offline marketing. Well, marketing is only one aspect of business. I firmly believe that building your business from a strong foundation will only help the business grow.

Our first chapter is on corporate structure. I've added an image that compares some of the most used structures. These are, of course, only applicable in the USA. I am not familiar with the laws of other countries. Those of you who reside in countries outside the US, please feel free to add what you can.

This chart is by no means comprehensive and nothing posted here should be construed as a substitute for the advice of legal counsel.

I do have some thoughts for you though. I prefer the LLC structure for a few reasons:

• They are extremely easy to set up and do not have the strict requirements of corporations.
• They are not subject to double taxation like C-corps.
• They can own, and be owned by, other companies. S-Corps cannot.
• Unlike ownership in a corporation (which is by owning physical company stock) your ownership cannot be taken from you in a personal lawsuit. Your stock in a corporation can, because that stock is considered a tangible asset. Membership of an LLC is not.

Some say that when pursuing corporate credit, the C-corp is the way to go, but I have not encountered any difficulties with LLCs. I think this may be a matter of opinion, but I'm sure will have some more concrete evidence one way or another.

Hope this is useful to someone.