Iowa is a Great Place to Start a Business and Incorporate

A guest post from Dwolla founder Ben Milne on the Silicon Prairie News site says what I have been saying on the legal side for years: Iowa is a great place to start a business (and incorporate).

It's fantastic to see companies like Dwolla enjoying success and creating considerable buzz. I've long thought that Iowa just needs one of its start ups to blow up and it could kick start a whole generation of entrepreneurs. It happened in Seattle with Microsoft and in Austin with Dell. Why not here?

I like Ben's post but I suggest that you Zoom Past LegalZoom. In particular, the Iowa LLC laws have changed in the past year and I would trust only an Iowa business attorney if you are drafting operating agreements for multiple partners. It could have a big impact on keeping you out of court down the line.

Franchise Help: The Best Franchise Blogs in 2011

It is flattering to be included in FranchiseHelp's Best Franchise Blogs in 2011. There are a lot of great blogs on the list, so it's always nice to be recognized with such outstanding writers and franchise industry experts. Here's what they had to say about Rush on Business:

The only thing that could potentially be more important than figuring out what to do when running a franchise is figuring out what NOT to do. With 16 years of experience in franchisor legal services, Rush Nigut knows what aspects of the business make or break the young franchisee. This blog has trusted content about both franchising and law, making it great for those who don’t want to get too bogged with the legal complications of starting a franchise.

Some of the others on the list include The Franchise King Blog, Blue MauMau, The Franchise Chatter Blog, Franchise Today / franchisEssentials, Franchise Lawyer Blog, and FranchiseCafe Blog.

And while you are at it, you may want to read this post from FranchiseHelp on why you should hire a franchise lawyer before you buy a franchise.