Archive for January 2010
Mother/Daughter Team Partner Up For Pizza
The Frederick News: April Martin rushed from her car Tuesday to sign and pay for a food shipment for Carleo’s Italian Pizza, then began to take customers’ orders while ensuring that the eatery’s operations were intact. A Long & Foster Realtor, Martin and her husband, Jeryl, an independent siding and roofing professional, are juggling their [...]
At a time when many children find themselves nose-to-screen with their favorite television programs, it is refreshing to see more and more kids burying their nose in a simple book instead. That is, of course, unless you got that book from Little Write Brain. In that case, there is nothing simple about it. From the [...]
Nostalgia Puts Old Kiddie Rides Back In Play
Keith DeWitt was looking for a unique present for his new granddaughter when he stumbled upon a Web site, selling a lion kiddie ride for $2,000. As a big-game hunter, DeWitt thought the ride would make a nice addition to his trophy room above the garage. And it would be something his grandchildren would enjoy [...]
Online Store Devoted To Entrepreneurial Inventions
Yak About It is devoted entirely to products made by independent inventors and entrepreneurs. The site holds contests that pit two products against each other and deems the one with the highest sales to be the “most yakable.” Visitors can read about the products and the stories behind them, then make comments and purchases. Each [...]
Do you enjoy looking at vintage ads for inspiration? Feast your eyes on this: Vintage Ad Browser. The search function is especially fun. I’m not old enough to remember when marketers used babies in cigarette advertising, but now I can see them.
Cold Weather Brings Business Opportunities
It’s possible to profit from anything. Even freak weather. With the New Orleans area experiencing its lowest temperatures in 14 years, local businesses have benefitted from people’s efforts to stay warm, beat cabin fever or a potentially burdensome heating bill. Because it’s been so long since New Orleans has had a real winter, many people [...]
The “While You Were Out” form is a simple way to communicate with your local businesses. It gives you a polite way of letting a business know that you’d would have spent money in their establishment, but because they weren’t open, you couldn’t. I’m planning to use these in my community. There are four coffee [...]
photo credit: 35597202@N02 Psychic help isn’t just for people anymore. Since people will pay for anything for their pets, animal communicators, who are careful to say that they are not psychic, offer their ability to connect with you pets via telepathy for a price. AM New York: People most often call on animal communicators when [...]
More than 45,000 businesses closed their doors for good in 2009 — including some that survived for longer than a century reports CNNMoney. Here’s a look at one. On Christmas Eve, Mark Irvin closed the doors on a wholesale business that had been in his family for 125 years. Irvin Candy Company Inc. started in [...]
Next Little Thing: Invisible Power
Marin Soljacic couldn’t sleep. The problem was his wife’s Nokia cell phone. The tyrannical device beeped on the bedside table when it needed to be plugged in. It could not be disabled, reports CNNMoney. Instead of taking a hammer to the phone, Soljacic marveled at the fact that this device, and billions of others like [...]
Unemployed Developing More Inventions
With millions of Americans out of work, some of the unemployed are taking matters into their own hands, according to a story on myFoxDC.com. Experts say the number of new inventions being pushed into the marketplace is rising. Tough economic times often lead to new inventions as people out of work have more time available [...]
What would an eBay for shipping look like? Could you make shipping cheaper by taking advantage of the empty space in the backs of trucks already on the road? Matt Chasen did and he went on to found uShip. In 2001, Matt Chasen’s mother wanted to send an antique dresser from Ohio to Texas, but [...]
How many small businesses have a company web site? 17% 25% 38 % 44% 58% View Results Results on Friday. Photo by photofunia.
Moms Turn Baking Into A Business
Jacksonville.com: Lynn Yeager and Janice Copley were inside their small store on San Jose Boulevard, but Cookie Momsters wasn’t really open for business. It was a baking day. Yeager’s son Jacob, now 6, is autistic, and she started reading that gluten (the protein in wheat, rye and barley) and casein (a protein in cow’s milk) [...]
All-You-Can-Learn For $29 A Month
The Internet is making the world of learning smarter — and more profitable, reports Fortune Small Business. Students who took online courses scored an average 10% higher on tests than peers who received extra instruction face-to-face, according to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Education that analyzed more than 1,000 studies conducted from [...]
Jesus Diaz has an interesting story over at Gizmodo regarding soda cans. It not only looks beautiful, but this naked Coca-Cola can would help save energy while reducing air and water pollution. Would it really make a difference? Let’s do some math: I assume the consumption only increases through time, but let’s take the daily [...]
Inventor Readies Special Fishing Rod
Little did Joseph Morgan know his hobby would develop into a growing business. “Whenever I can grab a pole and go down to the river, or the creeks, that’s where I fish,” he said, reports WTOV9. On Monday, he got his shipment of his product, the Night Light Fisherman. It’s a 7-foot fishing pole with [...]
As Seen on TV Hopefuls Pitch Products
Developing a product in hopes that it becomes “Seen on TV” is an act of faith, so reports Popular Mechanics. Amateur designers in shops and basements across America cobble together prototypes using household items hacked up and rigged with bits of wire, perfecting their inventions for months before bringing them before the infomercial kingpin, arbiter [...]
Which Shark Tank Idea Was Best?
Yesterday was the season premier of Shark Tank on ABC. The ideas presented where: Ink Flip – Ink replacement service Chef in Black – Salad dressing mix. Romp n Roll – A educational gym for children. Hells Bells Helmets – Custom made 3D helmets. The Twister – Portable golf ball cleaner Which idea one impressed [...]
While Washington attempts to overhaul the medical industry, one franchise is gathering momentum and might just be our way out of the healthcare mess. They offer an affordable, convenient market-based solution to rising health care costs and an alternative to the current system. Any Lab Test Now is the first franchise opportunity in the medical [...]
Sometimes it seems that customers complain for the smallest reasons. Your product is red and they like blue. They hate your company’s name. Your packaging is too light. It’s easy to ignore them, right? After all you know your business better than anyone. But what if, just this once, they’re right? Could listening to their [...]
Dumbest Products Of The Decade
Inc.com put together a list of some of the dumbest products of the last ten years. Windows Vista It’s never good to have the phrase “New Coke” thrown around after a product launches, but that was the label that stuck to Windows Vista. Five years in the making, Vista consumers complained about speed, bugs, hardware [...]
Listen up, buttercream lovers, a cupcake truck is making its first San Francisco appearance dispensing deliciousness in varieties that include Red Velvet, Twinkie, and S’more. Called Cupkates, the truck rolled out last week at Caltopia, Berkeley’s annual campus welcome fest. Owner Kate McEachern — a former managing editor at Dwell magazine — told SFoodie the [...]
Five Cool Facts About Leonardo da Vinci
Tracy Grant over at The Washington Post has put together a list of five amazing facts about Leonardo da Vinci. 1. He wrote backward, so the easiest way to read his notes was to hold them up to a mirror. It’s not clear why he did that, but da Vinci filled notebook after notebook with [...]
Jumpstart Your Small Biz In 2010
It’s time to give your small business a jump start. That means planning, record keeping, and goal setting. Becky McCray over at the Small Biz Survival blog has four suggestions for you. 1. Draw Up A Simplified Business Plan. • Describe the business. • Tell about your markets. • Set measurable goals for the year. [...]
In addition to traditional Live Product Searches, Edison Nation is now hosting Name Searches to get your clever ideas for new product names. No amount of engineering or design can substitute for a strong brand and identity that instantly connects customers with a product. Each name suggestion costs just $5 to submit to cover Edison [...]
Biz Poll Results: New Year Resolutions
On Monday, we started a biz poll asking readers about their new year resolutions. Of those responding, 33 percent said they wanted to focus on increasing sales. 27 percent said they wanted to lose some weight and 22 percent wanted to manage their personal time better. 13 percent said they wanted to stop smoking, drinking [...]
Horses shoes used to be a staple of the town blacksmith. Will they be again? Horse shoes are making a comeback — this time on women’s shoes. Is this a craze you want to be a part of? See more examples in A Closer Look At The Hoof Shoe Trend: 5 Fashionable Or Freaky Hooves.
Out Of A Job & Into A Business
CNN: Denise Garlow clearly recalls the summer day when her 9-year-old daughter brought home a plate from Girl Scouts. On the plate was a transfer drawing of colorful, mouse-like creatures with large saucer ears and big black eyes. “I said, ‘Grace, what are these little characters? What do you call them?’ ” Garlow said. “And [...]
An Amish Entrepreneur’s Success Story
photo credit: cloudsoup Imagine trying to build a national food retailing business based on mail order, far-flung distributors, and trade shows—without using the Internet. No e-mail newsletters or Web site for taking orders and handling complaints, no Facebook fans, or Google ads, or Twitter following. That’s not all. Imagine doing it without using cell phones [...]
Forget exploding dye packs. Three thieves who made off with about $9,000 in cash from an Illinois bank were thwarted by a GPS device inserted in the cash that led authorities straight to their door, according to the Chicago Tribune. Minutes after an armed bank heist in Calumet City last week, the three suspects met [...]
Apps For Your Car Is The Cool New Thing
Ford is opening up their API in 2010 to developers to make apps for Sync, according to a story at Gadgetell.com. Since the iPhone, having other people make your devices famous has become all the rage; and now Ford too is jumping on this bandwagon. They plan to release Ford Sync version of the app [...]
Pez was invented in 1927 by Eduard Haas III, a Viennese food-products mogul. Small, rectangular and mint-flavored (the name is a contraction of pfefferminz, the German word for peppermint), the candy was marketed to adults as an alternative to smoking. Originally sold in tins, Pez was repackaged in the late 1940s in plain, long-stemmed dispensers [...]
If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to learn something new, you’re in luck, so says NorthernCheapskate.com. HP.com just added some new free online classes to their Learning Center. These free classes are a great way to learn a new skill or learn a few new tips and tricks. The courses are self-paced and [...]
Start Your Biz Year With A Bang
Natalie Sisson at the Womanzworld blog has put together some ways to start your business year with a bang. 1. Expect The Best For Yourself. There’s nothing selfish in wanting to live the best possible life. Set your sights high, push yourself and always keep the big picture in mind. You’re going to need a [...]
Inventor’s Products Wow Shoppers
Inventor David Allen of Genoa Township said his recently launched business — Wow Products USA — is rightfully named, reports The Livingston Daily. When people see them, the first word out of their mouth is usually: ‘Wow,’ ” Allen said. “Our products have to be unique, one of a kind. That’s how we compete,” he [...]
Celebrate the New Year with a new you — by dipping into our smart batch of strategies to keep you happy and healthy (at no cost!) all year long, reports CNN health. Borrow (Don’t Buy) Your Next Fitness DVD Join the local library — for the workout DVDs. Most libraries have a big selection, the [...]
Recession Good for Infomercials
NYTimes: The recession has had a silver lining for direct-response advertisers, who found they could afford to advertise on TV in prime time rather than late at night after banks and automakers curtailed their advertising and ad rates dropped. None of the latest crop of infomercials has been a bigger sensation than the Snuggie, which [...]
You can only sell your business once. If that isn’t enough pressure, just imagine what the steps to come will be like. But there is no need to fear! The New York Times has put together a short list of tips that will help you get started, if that is really what you want to [...]
The Orange County Register: Judy Pomykata was breathless with excitement. She just got the contract of her life. Pomykata is a former event planner whose bridal clients kept asking for something different, like an open bar stocked with candy instead of vodka, scotch, wine and beer. She tried it and fell in love with the [...]
Mompreneur Strikes Sales Gold On Etsy
wacotrib.com: Kristiana Reinhart’s kitchen table is piled high with folded fabric. A tower of textiles in bright colors and modern designs leans toward her sewing machine, where it will eventually become stylish baby bibs, changing pads or dish towels. “Thank God we have a dining room because we don’t eat here anymore,” said Reinhart, 34. [...]
Love Handles For Your Motorcycle
Thanks to the inventive mind of a motorcycle-loving couple, Bill and Mary Freer, you can now hold onto a pair of love handles that are not attached to the driver.
photo credit: pfala With the new year comes new technology, marketing, advertising and yes…social media techniques. Look below for some great keys to this new years social media success. Start observing and researching more this new year. Start paying attention to what your customers are saying to your prospect customers, this information comes in handy [...]
photo credit: blakespot Most businesses surprisingly do not back up their data, which is strange for today’s technology and all of the many simple way’s that one can back up data. These businesses often feel that their system is so state of the art that a crash, hacker, etc can never happen to them so [...]
Tavi Gevinson sat in a west suburban cafe consuming cheese pizza, hot chocolate and a fruit roll-up — the type of meal you’d expect from a 13-year-old, reports The Chicago Tribune. No idea that since she began blogging about fashion from her suburban bedroom at age 11, Tavi has become an international sensation, viewed as [...]
Over the next few days, as you tuck your holiday gifts away, your thoughts may turn to paying some of your good fortune forward, reports The New York Times. Perhaps the fastest-growing way to act on these altruistic instincts is participating in microfinancing. You take a relatively small amount of money and, through an online [...]
Virtual Goods Give Web Firms New Revenue
The Internet made shopping without checkout lines a no-brainer. Now, some Web companies are betting that people are ready to forsake another shopping tradition: tangible products according to a Reuter’s story. Often available for a $1 or less, virtual goods range from video game accessories like extra weapons for shooting games, to electronic birthday cards [...]
Anthony Ha has an interesting story over at DigitalBeat about a new site called Blippy based on a pretty provocative idea — it allows users to share all the purchase information from one of their credit cards. Once you buy a movie ticket from Fandango or a cup of coffee from Starbucks, Blippy automatically publishes [...]
Some time or another, you’ve probably contemplated how the name Walmart came about, or how a name like Starbucks became so popular. Womans Day wondered the same things, so they set out to learn the origins of some popular brand names. 1. BANANA REPUBLIC This popular and classic clothing store began in 1978 with founders [...]
Keep Your New Year Resolutions
Now that Christmas is over, it’s time to start thinking about New Years resolutions ideas. For most people, that means making a list of goals that will hopefully last two or three months, before they are forgotten entirely, reports MakeUseOf.com. Perhaps you need a bit of inspiration to start your resolution-making for next year too? [...]
