Archive for May 2009
Today’s Twitter Updates 05-13-2009
# @klaatoo72 Variations on a theme. # Twitter’s “Small Settings Update” is dumb dumb dumb. http://bit.ly/Cnxbw # RT @NCStartUpBlog:New blog post: Mompreneurs in the news http://bit.ly/fsI6D # RT @Drudge_Report:Antitrust eyes turn toward GOOGLE… http://tinyurl.com/oogoow # RT @WSJSmallBiz Successful entrepreneurs talk to WSJ about finding opportunities in tough economic times: http://tinyurl.com/r87v6y # RT @LorneFisher:In case anyone [...]
photo credit: makelessnoise I just received an email from StartupNation. They are working closely with the folks at Mark Burnett Productions/ABC to help them in their search for entrepreneurs, inventors, businesspersons, dreamers, promoters, creators, innovators, etc. They hope to find someone – maybe you – who can be part of the soon-to-be-released show called, Shark [...]
How to Open a Financially Successful Coffee, Espresso & Tea Shop
I found this on Google Book Search. It says that it’s a limited preview, but the entire book is freely available. The manual delivers literally hundreds of innovative ways demonstrated to streamline your business. Learn new ways to make your operation run smoother and increase performance. Shut down waste, reduce costs and increase profits. In [...]
photo credit: Yandle Entrepreneur.com: “The copywriting outline provides a single tool where you record all the details about your product or service that you will need to produce compelling copy again and again. It’s also an evolving instrument that you add to as your product or business changes and grows.” Here are a few suggestions [...]
Get Your Product The Publicity It Deserves
photo credit: kalidoskopika You’ve spent years coming up with the ultimate product or service and your so sure that the public and media is going to love your new idea. What now? Below are three steps that will give your product or service the attention it deserves in the media as talked about on WomenEntrepreneur.com. [...]
photo credit: Arturo de Albornoz Today we spend a lot of time concentrating on obtaining more customers to help our business’ grow. The more customers obviously means more profit. Below are 3 marketing tactics that a business should use today to help increase their revenue to it’s fullest potential. ● Add PR programs. Public relations [...]
Mom Teaches Kids About Healthy Cooking
The Capital: Melissa Owens is a fast-talking, high-energy mom on a mission – and she’s constantly cooking up new ideas. The Annapolis resident runs Deliciously Nutritious, which offers classes and summer camps aimed at teaching children about healthy eating. Kids don’t just sit by and watch Owens work through recipes, either. They get hands-on experience, [...]
Family Business Puts A Twist On The Ice Cream Sandwich With Rice Creams
Ice cream sandwiches are a common treat, especially when it is hot. They taste good, they are affordable, and now they have a little competition. Rice Creams are an ice cream sandwich with a twist. Rather than the traditional cake-like exterior, Rice Creams uses 2 crispy rice treats instead. Born in the early 1980′s, the [...]
Personalized Health Care Still in Demand
photo credit: gierszewski NY Times: “Thanks to patients who still value their health in hard times, the recession has barely slowed the growth of concierge medical practices, which charge hefty membership fees for highly personalized care and around-the-clock access.” If Obama doesn’t destroy it first, someone is going to revolutionize the medical industry by cutting [...]
Why Obama’s Flickr Photos Aren’t In Public Domain
ReadWriteWeb: The White House is making unprecedented use of consumer web technologies but those technologies aren’t always well suited to fit the government’s needs. They aren’t always well suited to fit anyone’s needs – but maybe if Obama leans on them a little bit things will change. Recently, the White House launched an official collection [...]
Buffalo News: Annmarie Vanini was on her knees scrubbing behind the toilet for what seemed like the millionth time. Her son, Brian, was moving from that crucial potty-training stage, transitioning from sitting on the potty to standing at the toilet. Despite practicing with toilet targets and other potty training aids, Brian just couldn’t seem to [...]
Google May Be Sending Your Customers Away
Small Biz Trends: You may want to go take a look at your Google Local Business Listing to verify it still exists and is sending people to the right Web site. It seems that due to what Google is calling an “algorithm change” many Google business listings are being merged with other companies located in [...]
Small-Biz Credit Cards Not Included In Legislation
SmartBrief: Congress is considering legislation that aims to tackle questionable lending practices by credit-card companies. Many business owners use a small-business credit card for their business expenses, but the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights does not cover those types of cards. If a small-business provision is not added to the bill, biz owners may want [...]
Biz Resource: Sam’s Club Shopping Pass
Swaggrabber: Print out this coupon and get a free one day shopping pass to Sam’s Club. You must take it to customer service before you shop to get it validated but it is perfect for those of you that don’t really want to pay the membership fee but have been wanting to make one big [...]
Today’s Twitter Updates 05-12-2009
# Selling a Business During the Recession http://bit.ly/omZqD # Searching for Value in Ludicrous Ideas http://bit.ly/iKSoJ # This is not the lemonade stand game. Oiligarchy: Trash the environment, bribe the politicians and DRILL! http://www.addictinggames.com … # Correct Oiligarchy link: http://www.addictinggames.com/oiligarchy.html # Cool site from @iszuddin MiniSiteGallery.com http://www.minisitegallery.com/ # I work from home because otherwise you [...]
Weird Invention: Hair Collection Apparatus
Today’s wacky invention is perfect for our two recent posts on uses for used human hair. In 1997 Vladimir Andrew and Roger Himber patented Method of collecting hair clippings during a haircut. From the graphics accompanying the patent, it appears to be a sheet similar to the one that you normally wear in a barbershop, [...]
Another Use For Hair: Cleaning Up Oil Spills
Turns out that hair has other uses, too. Here’s a product that use human hair to prevent environmental damage from oil spills. The OttiMat uses recycled human hair to repair and prevent the environmental damage caused by oil spills. Comprised of 99% recycled human hair and 1% Polypropylene Skrim, OttiMat adsorbs (holds on to) oil. [...]
Business Opportunities in Hair
Yesterday at the barber, I couldn’t help but notice all of the hair on the floor. For some reason, getting my haircut really gets my entrepreneurial juices flowing. I asked what they did with all the hair that they collected during the day. The barber looked at me like I was from the Moon and [...]
photo credit: alanwoo If you are in business for yourself and if it’s a some what small operation, chances are you have all of your credit card statements and receipts for the year stuffed away in some droor somewhere or in a shoe box in the closet. Then when it comes time to do your [...]
Opportunities in Recession-Proof Industries
photo credit: a.drian Newsday: The economic slump has proved fatal for many businesses, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still opportunities out there. It just means entrepreneurs have to be much more careful before jumping into a new venture. To be sure, certain businesses hold up better than others during tough economic times, so if [...]
photo credit: macieklew Everyone in business is contemplating how to get out of the financial crisis we are having right now, how to secure money, profit, customers new and old, etc. But is anyone thinking about how thing’s will be after the crisis is over? What will business be like, what will your customers spend [...]
7 Mistakes All Child-Care Entrepreneurs Should Avoid
For some mom’s starting a business is as simple as babysitting the children of neighbors, friends, or family. Through child care many women are able to earn an income and remain at home with their own children. As convenient as that is, there are some mistakes that should also be avoided. According to Ms. Murray, [...]
photo credit: Matthew Clark Photography & Design If your someone who get’s around technology and automatically feels dumb, your not the only one. Many people don’t understand a lot about technology as it can be very confusing and complicated sometimes. Below are a few tips located on Small biz Technology on how you can be [...]
Buying a Coin Operated Laundry
photo credit: (le)doo [4 days off] BizBen Blog: “The Lease is your most valuable asset in a Coin Laundry. Remember, that all of the Plumbing fixtures, electrical service, the sewer and building fees, along with all of the physical surroundings of the laundry are totally dependent on the property and an asset for a limited [...]
Mompreneur Gives Diabetics Affordable, Stylish And Functional Options For Their Diabetes Supply Bags
24/7 Press Release: Unveiling its Spring 2009 collection, Stick Me Designs further established its reputation for breakout style and innovative functionality with its latest selection of attractive glucose meter testing bags. In addition to introducing four fresh patterns to its best-selling Deluxe carrying cases, the Spring ’09 collection launches an entirely new line of messenger [...]
Seven Mistakes All Child Care Entrepreneurs Should Avoid
For some mom’s starting a business is as simple as babysitting the children of neighbors, friends, or family. Through child care many women are able to earn an income and remain at home with their own children. As convenient as that is, there are some mistakes that should also be avoided. According to Ms. Murray, [...]
Branding: An Effective Strategy
photo credit: Caveman 92223 Our newest post is up on the Small Business Marketing Guide. It’s entitled Branding: An Effective Strategy and was written by Angela Shupe. Here’s a preview: What does every business have in common? A brand. It might not be the same for everyone, but it is a strategy they all have [...]
Starting Over—As An Entrepreneur
The Wall Street Journal: Jessi Walter was a Wall Street wunderkind. At 21, with a degree in economics from Harvard, she was hired by Bear Stearns Cos., and eventually rose to the position of vice president in credit strategy. But the J.P. Morgan merger last summer ended her career. “They just didn’t need me,” says [...]
Springwise: If fire protection kits can be upgraded with a splash of style, then why not first aid kits too? Canister UK’s new OW! brand does just that with an assortment of all-in-one kits cutely packaged for various purposes. Four OW! kits are available for GBP 5.99 each through Boots stores across the UK as [...]
The Wall Street Journal: Over the years, they’ve been comfort to insomniacs, the punch line of many jokes, and the butt of “Saturday Night Live” skits. But here’s something you may not know about infomercials: They work, and a growing number of small businesses are using them. In fact, amid widespread weakness in the retail [...]
America’s Main Street Sees Wallets Opening A Bit
Reuters: As customers timidly return with slightly open wallets, small businesses across America say their concerns over the slumping economy are easing slightly. As of yet, there is no rush to hire new staff, and indeed Friday’s U.S. payroll figures showed that employers cut another 539,000 jobs in April. But fears of the recession extending [...]
The Most Inventive U.S. State Is…
AbsolutelyNew Blog: Vermont. Yes, Vermont! At least that’s what Forbes magazine says, if you measure inventiveness based on states’ patents per capita – in other words, each state’s number of patents relative to its population size. And what states round out the top 5? 2. Idaho 3. Washington 4. California 5. Massachusetts Of course, these [...]
Measuring the shelf-life of student interest in their subjects, using Google Trends http://is.gd/yOoT # How I learned to haggle http://tr.im/l20b # The Price of Children http://bit.ly/SaGFf from @marcwarnke # If you’d like realtime updates, follow danec on Twitter.
photo credit: John Kratz I came across a very fun article on The Franchise King Blog about the top franchise to buy for the month of May. I couldn’t believe it when I read the top franchise is a mobile photography business called Grins2Go! It’s the only traveling photography company to the best of their knowledge. [...]
photo credit: kozumel One way or another, bad debt is going to get you in some way. Wether a customer buy’s something on credit and then doesn’t make good on the payments, or a vendor lends a business inventory on credit and the company folds anyway in the long run, it happens. However, that bad [...]
Penny Pinching Tips For Your Business
photo credit: swimparallel Most entrepreneurs will tell you that skimping on pennies will add up after a while, and today in this economy…it really pay’s to be a penny pincher to the extreme. The more you save, the more you can bank for when you need it the most during slow times to offset your [...]
Weird Invention: Pet Urn that Looks Like Your Pet
Charles J. Johansen, Jr. has patented a pet crematory urn for storing the cremated remains of a deceased pet. A decorative figure in the nearly exact likeness of the deceased pet provides a sealable repository chamber for receiving cremated remains of a deceased pet. I have heard of people having their pets freeze dried and [...]
Secret To Great Email Newsletters
photo credit: Mzelle Biscotte If your in business for yourself and your starting to contemplate sending out email newsletters, i’m sure your wondering how you can make newsletter stand out from the rest. I recently read a great article on Word Of Mouth Marketing that was simple but packed full of suggestions. One great suggestion [...]
The Right Way To Close Your Doors
photo credit: .Martin. Have you ever had the not so pleasureable experience of finding out that your company is closing it’s doors by watching it on the news at home? That is exactly how some of the GM and Chrysler employees at the Kenosha plant found out that they would soon be out of jobs. [...]
Entrepreneur.com: A staggering $2.1 billion in affiliate marketing fees were paid to blog and website owners in 2008. This finding in a recent study by Jupiter Research confirms what many savvy Internet marketers have known for a while: Affiliate marketing has become one of the top business opportunities online because the startup costs are so [...]
Bizs Cater To Non-Gluten Niche
Loveland Reporter-Herald: Clyde Canino, owner of Canino’s Italian Restaurant in Fort Collins, keeps some gluten-free pasta in his kitchen, ready to serve up to any customers who cannot eat gluten, a protein in wheat, rye and barley. Canino’s is part of a growing trend of restaurants, bakeries and stores offering gluten-free options for those with [...]
Painter Is Gambling On Rolla-Wipa Invention
Otago Daily News: Brett Stanley is gambling on his Rolla-Wipa invention hitting the jackpot at a massive United States hardware trade expo in Las Vegas this week. Stanley said he came up with the idea for his invention about 10 years ago. He described the Rolla-Wipa as a “simple” plastic sleeve, which is used by [...]
Recession Makes It Tougher On Inventors
Associated Press: Got a bright business idea? Take a number. Americans haven’t stopped dreaming up newfangled gizmos or sketching engineering marvels on the back of cocktail napkins, but tight credit and business cutbacks have slowed the pace of getting the latest U.S. innovations to market. Venture capital investments have plummeted. Lenders aren’t lining up to [...]
Do You Backup Your Data Off Site? Yes No Sometimes View Results
Four Redding Women Share Their Success Stories
Redding Record Searchlight: Today’s women wear many hats, constantly juggling home, work and relationship. There’s a growing trend adding to this complicated mix – well-educated moms with young children starting their own companies. What makes this challenging journey work? A few women in Shasta and Siskiyou counties shared their stories and insights. “A lot of [...]
Business Owner Attributes Success To "Lipstick Theory"
SalisburyPost.com: Local women involved in direct-sales business agree with Jennifer Carracio, who says that these niche businesses are untouched by the economy. Jennifer is a director with Thirty-One, a business which sells purses and other accessories through home shows. Lori Tatarka of China Grove thinks she knows why direct-sales businesses are doing so well right [...]
Our Future With Our New President
photo credit: Tony the Misfit I’m sure that everyone is wondering what is going to happen to the economy, jobs and most importantly…their business now that President Obama is in office. What does the new president administration hold for our future? With president Obama appointing Karen Mill’s to head up the SBA…quite a few thing’s [...]
photo credit: Mykl Roventine When starting up a business and formulating your marketing plan, it is important that you get it right otherwise it could cost you time and money in the future. Below is a list of the top five marketing plan mistakes commonly made, do yourself and your business a favor and learn [...]
photo credit: henribergius Businesses spend a lot of time reviewing their employees as far as their production, speed, qualifications, performance, and how they get along with their co-workers to name a few. But how do managers and owners rate on these scales? Take a look at some of these area’s below taken from Officeher and ask [...]
photo credit: aloshbennett Even today you can see people sitting down with a cup of morning coffee or on their lunch break reading a newspaper. Even online newspaper reading is a booming trend today. Advertisers are reaping all kinds of revenue benefits from this medium, you can not afford to pass this advertising opportunity up. [...]
