Archive for June 2009
What Partners Not To Choose For Your Start-Up
photo credit: kunalmehta When making the decision to take on a partner for your start-up, one needs to remember to choose wisely. This person should be considered as your right hand man, someone that you will be involved with for the long hall. I recently read an article on Entrepreneur.com that gives some examples of [...]
Working For Yourself Means Freedom — But It Doesn’t Come Free
The Wall Street Journal: Perhaps the greatest advantage of hanging out your own shingle or making that consulting business full-time is the independence that comes with being your own boss. But higher expenses and other costs come along with your newfound liberty. You may not be able to sock away as much pretax for retirement, [...]
Making Your Website Mobile Friendly
photo credit: William Hook In the day and age where people are constantly on the go, it’s no wonder that technology is making it possible for people to do so many things from a cell phone, as that is generally the device people are using most often. Is your site mobile friendly though? Look below [...]
For most kids, wearing eyeglasses for the first time can be a traumatic and unpleasant experience. Further adding to their anxiety is the limited selection of frames available for today’s youngsters in the marketplace; the frames are basic, standard, uninteresting, bland and lack personality, and leave very little to the imagination. As any stylish mom [...]
photo credit: Mindsay Mohan In business one of the things that needs some attention often is that of customer reviews. While this may not be every one’s favorite part of their job, it is a part of their job that will always be there. I recently found some helpful tips on managing your companies reviews [...]
Assetize: Buy & Sell Online Accounts
MakeUseOf.com: As millions of people join services like Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed, Gmail… etc, good account names are becoming a rare commodity, and it certainly true that the right name on account can attract more followers and add value to online presence. Some people are already buying and selling their online accounts just like domain names, [...]
photo credit: e-magic Throughout our adult life many of us wonder why we do certain things that we do whether it be in our personal lives or our business life. We rack our brains trying to figure out our own behavior and decisions we make. I read an article this morning on OpenForum giving some [...]
Cisco Says Telecommuting Saves Money and the World
Fast Company: Good news for homebodies: A Cisco survey of 2,000 people worldwide has revealed that employees who telecommute experience higher rates of productivity, work-life flexibility, and overall satisfaction. As if that isn’t enough, the survey also showed that telecommuting saves the company money and drastically reduces carbon dioxide emissions. According to Rob Rolfsen, Cisco’s [...]
Should You Combine Family With Business?
SmartMoney.com: In a bad economy, there may be more temptation than ever to turn a small business into a family business. Maybe your brother-in-law needs a job. Or Mom and Dad have cat food in the cupboard and don’t own a cat. Personally, the thought of hiring members of my family gives me indigestion. But [...]
photo credit: yummiec00kies Many managers and business owners today find hiring new people to be more of a hassle than they have time for. With so many out of work people at the moment, one ad in the paper brings in a ton of people wanting that ONE job for themselves. So to help out [...]
Mother/Daughter Team Celebrates One Year In The Limo Business
SeacoastOnline.com: Pat Christofferson and her daughter, Heidi Bunnell, know there’s a big difference between a driver and a chauffeur. At their Exeter limousine company, clients won’t find just drivers, but chauffeurs who pride themselves on providing personal service with added attention to each client’s preferences. That may mean a chilled glass, ice and a favorite [...]
USA TODAY: At age 26, Angela Trilli doesn’t think she’s one of those so-called materialistic Millennials she has heard about — young people who are absorbed with themselves and their consumption. She says she’s a saver, not a spender, but unlike many of her peers who didn’t have much to lose in this struggling economy, [...]
Fleece and Flannel Mean Comfort and Security
Fortune Small Business: When consumers get cold feet, what’s an entrepreneur to do? Sell them footed pajamas: a grown-up version of Dr. Denton’s kiddie sleepwear. Four years ago Valerie Johnson started Big Feet Pajama Co. from the basement of her Las Vegas home. The former stockbroker, who says she can’t even sew a straight seam, [...]
Getting Blogs To Cover Your Business
photo credit: jmerelo For those seeking coverage, blogs have developed into an ecosystem where there are hundreds of thousands of specialized media outlets, creating unprecedented opportunity to get your business’ story in front of the right people. In order to obtain coverage from blogs on your business, first things first is you will have to [...]
photo credit: h.koppdelaney When we think of selling a product or service, sometimes it almost seems as though we have to damn near sell our own soul in order to make a sale. This does not have to be the case! Here are some selling tips for you that should make your sale going smoother [...]
Unleashing Your Employees Creativity
photo credit: EraPhernalia Vintage (somewhat busy) As managers and owners of companies, we all look for new way’s and inspiring ways to help our employees unleash their creativity side within boundaries of course, which can be difficult at times. Below are some tips on how to help unleash your employees creativity sides located on Inc.com. [...]
Teens Are Building Their Own Job Engine
The New York Times: Periods of high unemployment tend to be particularly hard on teenagers, who wind up competing for jobs with more experienced, laid-off adults. When Faith Borden, 16, of Metuchen, N.J., applied for a job in March to be a counselor at a summer day camp, she looked around and saw “all these [...]
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography Very good reminder here about the way words get diluted, and then useless. In my early days in the PC industry all software was supposedly “user friendly.” And that phrase ended up mocking, humorous, a caricature of hype. I read a recent post by Tim Berry that listed five words that [...]
Sewing Bizs Finding Niche In Midst Of Recession
Loveland Reporter-Herald: Instead of a seam ripper, Bonnie McLeod uses a razor blade to rip out the outer seam from her old red jeans. She plans to add a strip of material down the leg to jazz them up into an original. McLeod, a seamstress by trade, trims, cuts and tucks old clothes into a [...]
Bill On The Table For Home Offices
photo credit: Travis Isaacs Home based businesses are one of the most rapid growing in our nation today. Many people all over the nation are switching to working from home, and over time are adding employees to their home based office providing jobs to those who are out of work. U.S. rep Charles Gonzalez is [...]
Entrepreneur Aspires To Sell 1 Million T-Shirts
Everyday Christian: In his business and his faith walk Rob Gettemy has felt blessed by the circumstances around him. His business—producing and selling T-shirts—is hardly uncommon. How he got to the point he is now and what his shirts represent is. Gettemy is the co-founder of 1M4JC, shorthand for “One Million for Jesus Christ.” His [...]
photo credit: Andres Rueda Business owners often times think of charge cards and credit cards as being the same thing, just using a different name to refer to them. However, they are actually two totally different things and should be completely understood before you choose either one of them. With a credit card you are [...]
Michael Jackson: King Of…Patents?
MediaBistro: As the world mourns the death of Michael Jackson, we remember his patented anti-gravity footwear. That’s right, intellectual property fans, Jackson is listed as the first of three inventors on United States Patent 5,255,452, granted in 1993 for a “method and means for creating anti-gravity illusion.” Translation: special loafers fitted with heels that can [...]
photo credit: visualpanic We often think of obtaining good PR as being difficult in business, with so many different avenues to take and choices to make. Below are some simple steps towards obtaining good PR that are sure to work for everyone in business. Obviously the first step is making sure you are aware [...]
Where Do You Get Your News? Newspapers Radio TV Internet View Results Photo by loonapix.
Summertime Is Business Time, For Your Entrepreneurial Teen
Summer is the time of year when kids would normally go out looking for a part time job, somethng to fill their free time while they wait for school to start back up. Unfortunately, thanks to the recession, kids are less likely than ever before to find the job they want. Many mom’s start a [...]
photo credit: Olivier Bruchez I don’t know if this is real or not, because no companies are mentioned by name: Luxury ocean liners in Russia are offering pirate hunting cruises aboard armed private yachts off the Somali coast. Wealthy punters pay £3,500 per day to patrol the most dangerous waters in the world hoping to [...]
Is it the End of Amazon’s Affiliate Program?
If you make any money from Amazon’s affiliate program and you live in North Carolina or Hawaii, I have some really bad news for you. Amazon.com Inc. closed accounts with its affiliates in North Carolina to avoid paying a proposed sales tax, according to media reports Friday. In an email, Amazon reportedly told marketing affiliates [...]
Unique products to inspire and amuse. Bacon Gumballs. No time for breakfast? That’s okay, chew some of these on your way to work. Pizza Boss. For the power tool guy in your life. Cap Sac. When you like to carry stuff on your head. Beanzawave, the world’s smallest microwave. When you only want to pop [...]
Online Branding for Small Business
My guest post on MerchantCircle‘s weblog is now live. Here’s a snippet: As you develop an online presence, don’t try to make your business appear larger or more “professional” than it really is. Don’t try to create an intangible brand to replace you the owner as your business’s image. In your community there are probably [...]
I read today that according to the Environmental Protection Agency, American homeowners spill 17 million gallons of gasoline annually in their uncoordinated attempts to fuel lawn and garden equipment. 17 million. That’s a lot of gas! There is also an opportunity here. My guess is that the spillage occurs by overfilling the gas tank. So [...]
PerpetualKid.com: Here’s a low cost way to advertise your business or web site. Scrolling License Plate Flash Frames (USD 39.99) allow you to express yourself while on the road or stuck in traffic. Simply create and enter up to 5 messages (up to 120 characters in length each) using the included remote control. Then select [...]
Niche Service Helps Pet Owners Say Goodbye
The Coloradoan: When Merlin, a Labrador/Doberman mix, was nearing the end of his life last summer, the family that had loved him for 14 years resolved that he would draw his final breath at home. When the time came, Marie Commiskey’s son and two daughters, who had grown up with Merlin, gathered at her Littleton [...]
Mom Finds Niche As Gluten-Free Baker
Boulder Daily Camera: On any weekend, you’re likely to find Bridget Lane baking cookies. But her cookies are a little more complex than the average chocolate chip treat and not just because they’re gluten free. Lane’s cookies got their start in a special situation and have grown into a business designed to nourish those in [...]
Biz Poll Results: Free Software or Web Applications
Monday, we started a biz poll asking, “Do you use free software or applications to run your business?” Of those that responded, 82 percent said YES, and 18 percent said NO. Of that 18 percent, I think a lot don’t realize the free software/applications they are already are using. If you are reading this blog [...]
EcoMaids Takes On The Eco-Friendly Approach To Cleaning
We hear the word often, but eco-friendly is not just a passing trend. Since the start of the ‘green’ movement, we have seen many companies and individuals successfully reduce their carbon footprint. As this consumer base continues to grow, companies that employ a green cleaning process and effective products, like EcoMaids, are able to flourish. [...]
Today is National Handshake Day. Did you know that a kiss spreads less germs than a handshake?
photo credit: ndanger So social media (Facebook, Twitter, and blogging, for example) is fun; but is it business? If you’re wondering, then it’s about time to take a step back, breathe deeply, and revisit the fundamentals. While many social media applications are fun and handy for just about everything, not all of them fit for [...]
Out-Of-Work Student Now A Green Entrepreneur
The Orange County Register: The work is a lot like being a chimney sweep. The business model invented by Chris King, 19, a freshman at USC living in Huntington Beach, Calif., with his parents during summer break, is pretty simple: extract built-up lint from long, winding clothing-dryer ducts, and charge $39 for the service. It’s [...]
Entrepreneurs Pack Up And Go Home
The Wall Street Journal: In February, after 12 years in a downtown La Jolla, Calif., storefront, Brett and Kimberly Buffington packed up their children’s clothing boutique, Eurochild LLC, and moved it into their home. “Business just stopped on a dime” 18 months ago, Buffington says, and he and his wife were unable to renegotiate their [...]
What Amount Should You Invest In A Franchise
photo credit: NNECAPA I don’t feel that you should invest one dollar more than you are completely comfortable with. The amount you invest should not keep you up at night. Every franchise is going to be obviously different in terms of yearly fees, supplying the franchise, the initial franchise fee and so on. Generally there [...]
Marketplace For Home-Cooked Meals
Springwise: Consumers who lack the time, energy or skills to prepare delicious home-cooked meals themselves already have semi-cooking options to help them along—including shopping and delivery services, as well as meal prep stores, with or without instruction. When even those are too much, BookOfCooks is a new online marketplace that can help consumers find local [...]
Women Entrepreneurs Boosting Productivity
photo credit: michale Women entrepreneurs are a fast growing sector of business, as they move into new businesses everywhere and even are moving into innovation more and more. So how do they prioritize what is important with everything else that they tackle during their day? OpenForum posted a very interesting article regarding how women entrepreneurs [...]
15 Home Biz Ideas That Thrive During Recession
PowerHomeBiz.com: Many people are fearful of starting a business during a recession. Times are tough, and people are curbing their spending, which makes the idea of starting a business in a downturn economy even more daunting. Here are some types of home-based businesses that thrive during an economic downturns and present opportunities for home-based entrepreneurs: [...]
photo credit: dustinj Everyone in business knows that you have a certain demographic or market that you target your products and services towards. There are several different markets that a business owner can target towards depending on what they are offering. Entrepreneur.com recently posted an article regarding your many different markets. Obviously with all of [...]
Hartford Business Journal: I’m convinced you can turn the summer of 2009 into one of your most productive ever. And I’ve come up with nine steps to make your summer a business success: 1. Develop your fall marketing plan. Be ready to hit the ground running when your customers are ready to start buying again. [...]
Secrets To Becoming A WAHM eBay PowerSeller
ElitesTV: Whenever there is something that people can’t find in their local stores, they usually turn to online shopping because of its easy accessibility and convenience in ordering products. eBay is one of the major sites that brought online shopping to the mainstream and now there are many buyers satisfying their needs and sellers making [...]
Baby Business Cards Help Moms Keep Schedules Straight
BigNews.biz: How often are new moms fumbling in their purse for a pen and paper to mark dates for story time and mommy fitness, to schedule play dates, or jot down an important doctor’s appointment? Mom Tanea Smith found herself in the same predicament one afternoon at her pediatrician’s office. After attempting to exchange numbers [...]
The Laughable News is a black and white newsletter printed on the front and back of one sheet of 11 X 17 inchIt is filled with quirky news, fun facts, puzzles, cartoons, and jokes. It is designed to be read in restaurants, while waiting for your food to arrive. Earlier this year, Angela did a [...]
I’ve been using this for a long time, but if you’re still calling 411 you should try Google’s 411 service, Goog-411. It’s free and better in one important way than your phone company’s information service: Have ever had your car battery die in the middle of the night, in a scary part of a strange [...]
