Rocket Lawyer Polls 1,000 Small Business Owners and Provides Tips to Help SMBs Avoid Costly Legal Mistakes

Survey Reveals Small Business Owners’ Anxiety
over Legal Costs,Shows Uncertainty over
2011 Economic Outlook
Rocket Lawyer™ Polls 1,000 Small Business Owners and Provides Tips to Help SMBs Avoid Costly Legal Mistakes

Tough Economic Times
In this tough economic climate, consumers and companies are more cautious than ever about how they spend money, but legal matters still arise, often causing worry and significant unplanned costs.
Rocket Lawyer enables small business owners to easily manage multiple legal projects from their online account for peace of mind and savings. From incorporating a business to putting important contracts in writing and hiring employees, everything created with Rocket Lawyer is securely recorded, stored and can be shared and accessed by all parties through the same online legal service.
Rocket Lawyer™, the fastest growing online legal service, polled 1,000 small business owners to gauge key SMB trends and predictions for 2011.

Key Findings
51%
of small business owners say the main reason they would avoid seeking legal
counsel is because it is too expensive;
YET
25%
say legal issues pose the biggest risk to their company, according to a new Rocket Lawyer survey.

More Key Findings
52%
President Obama’s program to provide more credit access to SMBs has not opened up more credit
44%
Says it has or they don’t use outside credit
28%
believe 2011 will be a better economic year than 2010
72%
aren’t sure or don’t think it will be any better next year

Full Survey Results
Question 1
Of the following list, which would you say pose the biggest risk to your company? (Choose all that apply)

Full Survey Results
Question 2
What are the top issues your business is facing or has faced this year?(Choose all that apply)
Lawsuit or
Crisis situation
Not sure
Tax issues
Real Estateand Leases
HR needs
NewBusinessStartup
DelinquentPayments
Contracts & Negotiations

Full Survey Results
Question 3
Which one of the following reasons is most likely to keep you from seeking legal counsel? (Choose one)
51%
4%
4%
3%
1%
36%
2%

Full Survey Results
Question 4
Has President Obama’s plan to provide more credit access to small businesses opened up credit for your business?
3%
52%
41%
4%

Full Survey Results
Question 5
Will 2011 be a better economic year than 2010?
28%
40%
32%

Empowering Small Business Owners
“Running a small business is always a challenge, especially when the business is just getting started. Listen to small business owners, like we did in our survey, and they say that legal risks weigh on their minds as a key factor for their success or failure. That’s why Rocket Lawyer exists – to make it simpler and less expensive to understand and do something about everyday legal issues. While legal issues and expenses can seem overwhelming, by going online for legal help, small business owners can get legally organized at a much lower cost than expected.”
Charley Moore
Founder & Chairman
Rocket Lawyer

Top 5 Tips for Small Businesses

Put the Incorporation in Ink. To protect your individual assets and your company as a whole, look into incorporating your business. While business incorporation offers many benefits, it is not for every situation. Do your research.
Take time to Trademark. Determine trademark availability once you’ve selected your company name and register your domain name, twitter handle, Facebook page and company blogs.
Proof and Protection. It’s important to document all proof of your company’s operations, as it can be critical information if your business is involved in a lawsuit. If your company is based around proprietary intellectual knowledge or property, take the steps to patent your idea or invention.
Get Guidelines. Many companies face employee-related lawsuits, in fact, it is the most prevalent type of litigation faced by small businesses today. That’s why it’s important that companies protect themselves by developing an employee handbook that provides a clear guideline for all important issues such as employee/employer rights, HR issues and paid time off policies.
Enlist the Experts. Leverage a community of entrepreneurs and expert professionals, like lawyers and accountants, who can help guide you through the steps necessary to protecting yourself and setting your business on the path to success. There are many sites available, like www.RocketLawyer.com that can provide advice and cost-effective solutions for helping your company at all different stages.

About the Survey
Rocket Lawyer commissioned Zogby International to conduct an online survey of 1,000 small business owners from 9/21/10 to 9/22/10.
A sampling of Zogby International’s online small business panel was invited to participate in the survey.
The margin of error is +/- 3.2 percentage points. Margins of error are higher in sub-groups. The MOE calculation is for sampling error only.

About Rocket Lawyer
Rocket Lawyer™ (www.RocketLawyer.com) is the only complete legal service on the Internet, providing over a million businesses and individuals with a simple, easy and affordable way to manage their legal needs.
Rocket Lawyer allows members to personalize legal documents through a simple interview.
These documents can then be securely stored, shared, e-signed, and reviewed by thousands of attorneys in the Rocket Lawyer network.
Rocket Lawyer also offers a suite of marketing tools and customizable client referral services for attorneys who join their network.
For more information on Rocket Lawyer, visit http://www.rocketlawyer.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Rocket Lawyer Polls 1,000 Small Business Owners and Provides Tips to Help SMBs Avoid Costly Legal Mistakes

by Rocket Lawyer on Oct 13, 2010

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Rocket Lawyer Polls 1,000 Small Business Owners and Provides Tips to Help SMBs Avoid Costly Legal Mistakes — Presentation Transcript