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Small Biz Tip: Blogs: Marketing Your Business

Tips from March 17, 2010 The Small Business tips today discuss marketing your business with your blog. Listen - Do you know what is going on in your industry? Your blogosphere? The world today? You need to listen to know what others are talking about, what people want to know, and what people need to know. Listen first, then blog. Personal & Professional - Create a relationship with clients, or potential clients, in the blogosphere. Include others you work with who contribute to your blog. Create a short bio on each employee, and let them interact as well. Don't Be Too Salesy! It is okay to sell to your readers, but only after you create a brand and a relationship with your readers. Avoid being too salesy, instead, blog about what is important to your industry, followers, and clients, and add a short product placement at the end. Get into a rhythm of posting to your blog. Post a few times every week, about 2-3 times is a go... [Read Full Article]


New Credit Card Rules' Double Standard

In the NewsStimulus Funding for SBA Loans Runs Out—AgainIn a case of legislative déjà vu, the Small Business Administration has announced that funding for two popular lending programs is on the verge of running out - again. WSJ.comIn the NewsConsumers Buy Into 'Buy Local'More groups are forming to send shoppers to home-grown independent businesses. But their impact on jobs is hard to quantify. BusinessWeek.com Management & Operations [Read Full Article]


Get a Head Start on Taxes

Government & PoliticsSmall Business Incentives Face a Hard Road in CongressPresident Obama’s incentives for small business to create jobs appear to be foundering at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. Those proposals — tax credits for hiring and investment and initiatives to spur lending to small firms — all face strong resistance, and not all of it comes from the Senate. Each chamber has embraced separate elements of the administration’s agenda, and, for the moment, none of those elements overlap.Government & PoliticsU.S. Salary-Increase Budgets Hit 25-Year LowChanges to salary structures... [Read Full Article]


Small Business Owners to Shoppers: Stay Put

Management and OperationsIdentify New Consumer NormsThe recession has changed how customers shop, possibly forever. Entrepreneur.com Management and Operations Resolving Employee Complaints Before They Hit the Internet The question is what to do about employee complaints about the workplace. It's more than a matter of damage control. Trying to repair the harm to internal morale, recruitment efforts, and corporate reputations after the fact is not as effective as preventing the damage in the first place. ManageSmarter.com Management and Operations [Read Full Article]


Need to Teach Employees How to Break Out of Jail?

Management and Operations“Enlightened” Profit. A Better Way To Build A Business.Values are the key to building value. More and more of today’s CEO’s now see a three tiered metric of profit as essential to building a strong and sustainable company. TheWisdomGuy.comManagement and OperationsWhen Bad Things Happen to Good Business Owners and EntrepreneursStuff happens. As a business owner and entrepreneur, the more successful you become, the more you open yourself up to criticism, negative feedback or just plain being attacked. BusinessKnowHow.com Management and Operations [Read Full Article]


Fending Off Empty Holiday Shelves

Government, Politics, and the Economy No Rebound Yet For Smallest Businesses Confidence among America’s smallest business owners fell to the lowest level since February, according to the latest Discover-Small Business Watch. BusinessWeek.comManagement and OperationsDisaster Protection: The Need for Small Business ContinuityBusinessKnowHow has reprinted the latest edition (Fall 2009) of Disaster Recovery Journal and the article “The Need for Small Business, Business Continuity” by Mark R. Lupo. BusinessKnowHow.com Management and Operations [Read Full Article]


Small Biz Tip: Human Resources: Hiring for Sales

Tips from November 20, 2009 The Small Business tips today discuss how to hire employees for sales. Know the environments your candidates have worked in previously. Try to choose the candidates that have been in an environment that is similar to yours to adapt quickly to the culture. Previous work in sales is extremely important, especially if you are hiring for a higher level position. Check their references for sales positions to ensure they are not exaggerating on their resume. Inside sales and outsides sales are completely different. Know what you need to hire, and hire specifically for the position. Generally, the two sales positions don't cross. If you come across a candidate who has both, be sure to look into it. Have a trial session with candidates during the interview. Ask them to role play and deliver a pitch to you. Analyze their tone of voice, body language, and their wording of the pitch. This will help you determin... [Read Full Article]


Business Know-How Start-Up Cost Calculator

In The News Workplace Shootings in Florida, Texas Again Put Focus on Violence on the Job The two shootings are the highest-profile incidents of workplace violence since a Yale University student’s strangled body was found in the university laboratory where she conducted research. A co-worker, Raymond J. Clark III, was later charged with the murder. Workforce.comManagement and OperationsHow to Resolve Workplace Conflict Conflict in the workplace is a painful reality and a key reason for poor productivity and frustration. Do you have people in your workplace that cause problems for everyone else? Do they create additional work for o... [Read Full Article]

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