Small Business Matters
Back in October 2009, *Duct Tape Marketing, a small business marketing site, published a survey that suggests that more and more small businesses are starting to adopt social media as a means to promote their business. Despite apparent initial skepticism, 45% of the 2,000 surveyed small businesses reported that they are now using some form of social media. The statistic may seem surprising. While many business owners already live in an online world, and find adoption of social media an inviting and essential challenge, for others simply...
Back in January 2009, 'open government' was the hot topic in Washington, D.C. In fact, President Obama's first memorandum on entering the White House proclaimed a new era of openness in government centered around the core mandates of transparency (making government data and operations more open), participation (driving greater and more diverse expertise into government decision making) and collaboration (fostering cooperation across agencies and with the public). This week, the spotlight is firmly back on 'open government' as a host of...
In business, we all struggle with highs and lows, but for seasonal businesses - those that make the bulk of their profits at certain times of the year - knowing how to optimize the lows while riding the highs requires a particularly innovative and diligent entrepreneur at the helm. Seasonal businesses are all around - from garden centers and snow removal firms to summer camps and beach stores. Some will choose to remain open for business throughout the year, while others will close during the slow months. If you operate or are looking to...
The fitness industry continues to be a lucrative market opportunity for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Despite a crippling recession, the *IHRSA (the fitness industry's global association) forecasts that U.S. health club memberships will reach 50 million by 2010 - a staggering 25% growth rate over today's numbers. Many factors play a part in fueling the success of this largely recession-proof industry - not the least of which is the growing trend among the 80 million plus baby boomers who are willing to part with their money to stay fit...
Being your own boss and earning a living as a freelancer has an appealing ring to it - so much so that approximately 25 million people in the U.S. are doing it! But freelancers are also business owners who must self-motivate, self-manage and self-promote. They must also take care of business administration, business operations, business development and business risk. Quite a lot for one person to manage! And while the savvy freelancer will be wise to factor in the cost of doing business as part of their hourly or project...
During one of the worst recessions in U.S. history, a little sugary confection - the great American cupcake - is proving to be an unexpected fast food market opportunity for many entrepreneurs. One city where the cupcake sector is booming at a rate faster than your average coffee shop is Washington, D.C., where an investigatory article by The Washington Post found that at least half a dozen cup cake eateries - or 'cupcakeries' - have opened in the past 20 months, with more on the way. ('Cupcakeries Emerge as Washington's Sweet Spot in a...
Whatever stage your business is at - from hiring your first employee, filing your first W-2, or applying for a loan - a barrage of forms will require your attention. And as a small business owner, it's more than likely your responsibility to take care of this particularly time consuming area of business management. However, in many instances, small business owners either aren't aware of their regulatory obligations or simply don't know where to find the multitude of government-wide forms they need to ensure they are operating...
Selling imported goods within the U.S. can be a lucrative business opportunity. High demand imported products such as artisan crafts, furniture and even food and beverage products such as olive oils, wine, etc. represent a significant market opportunity for savvy business owners. Margins of up to 700% can be lucrative indeed. If you are interested in importing and selling overseas goods into the U.S. market - whether you are actually based in the U.S. or not - you will need to do your research regarding both the country of export and the...
Raising funds to support the philanthropic mission of any non-profit organization can be a time consuming chore often fraught with trial and error. While splashy one-off fundraisers (otherwise known as 'episodic funding') can generate a large chunk of charitable change they can also consume much needed resources for months on end. At the other end of the spectrum, 'ongoing' fundraising tactics, while easier to execute, oftentimes don't generate the required financial rewards. To succeed in fundraising, your non-profit must diversify its...
The online social media revolution that has bought us Facebook and Twitter actually started back in the late 90's when the term 'blog', short for 'weblog', entered the lexicon. Since then the activity of blogging has exploded and it was in May 2005 that BusinessWeek proclaimed that *Blogs Will Change Your Business. They certainly have. Why are blogs important for your business? Blogs provide business owners with unprecedented ways of reaching and engaging with large audiences in a way that the traditional one-way information push of a...
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by Caron_Beesley, Community Moderator on Thursday, December 17, 2009 - 09:10