Archive for March, 2009
How the Stimulus Package Effect Small Businesses
Small businesses and home businesses are springing up across the country – despite the recession – adding to the many that already exist. So what does President Obama’s stimulus package have in store for these businesses? The following article by John Blake lists some of the provisions geared toward small businesses: http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/worklife/03/10/tax.changes/index.html
Add comment March 31, 2009
What Not to Do When Starting a Business
The recession has been harsh on many U.S. businesses. Last December, I posted Starting a Business in a Bad Economy May Not Be a Bad Idea. This article listed the benefits of starting a business during the economic downturn. Recently, I found another blogger’s take on the same subject matter.
In his article, 20 Things Not to Do Before Starting A Business, Dane Carlson suggests taking the less traditional route to starting a new business. Although his suggestions may not be applicable to all types of businesses, he does bring up many valid points.
Add comment March 30, 2009
Business Web Sites vs. Business Blogs
You may think that since your business has a Web site, you’re set—it’s Web presence, right?
There’s a problem with this thinking. While yes, Web sites do establish some presence for your business, many business Web sites are often static and lack fresh content. That’s where blogs come in. In his article, “Business Blog Value Exceeds a Website,” Martin Zwilling weighs the value of a business blog against that of a Web site. His verdict is that since blogging gives you the power to frequently add new, relevant content to your Web presence, it’s vital for a business in today’s “Web 2.0″ world. The more content you have associated with your business, the higher your business will show up in search rankings—and that’s exactly what you’re trying to achieve.
Checking out Zwilling’s article at http://blog.startupprofessionals.com/2009/03/business-blog-value-exceeds-website.html. You’ll find more reasons as to why you should consider blogging, as well as helpful advice and tips on starting and maintaining a blog for your business.
Add comment March 27, 2009
Ask.com Tries New Placement for Sponsored Ads
Per Barry Schwart’s post, Ask.com Ads Display Ads to Home Page, Ask.com has decided to prominently display an ad on its home page. Of course, simply seeing the screenshot wasn’t enough for me. I immediately had to go check it out for myself. And there it was, above the search bar − a rather sizeable ad for Match.com
So far, Ask.com is the only search engine using this strategy. Perhaps others will catch on. Or, maybe Ask™ will decide to go back to its original format. What do you think? Is the homepage of a search engine an appropriate place for an ad?
Add comment March 26, 2009
Will the iPhone™ Create a Mobile Economy?
In a recent article posted on Mashable.com, Ben Parr explores the ways in which the Apple iPhone™ can create a “mobile economy.” In his article, “How the iPhone 3.0 Will Create a New Mobile Economy,” Parr discusses the implementations of a feature that will allow iPhone users to purchase goods and services from within a paid application. This is great news for app developers. In the past, the developer-customer relationship usually only lasted one transaction. Now, developers can offer fee-based subscriptions, updates, eBooks, and so forth with 3.0’s in-app purchasing ability.
Head over to http://mashable.com/2009/03/21/iphone-economy to read Parr’s full article.
2 comments March 25, 2009
Finding Capital: Separating the Bad from the Good
According to a recent small business report comprised by the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business and Network Solutions®, “the single biggest competitive disadvantage of America’s small businesses today is in meeting their capital needs to grow their businesses.” As a result, sites like TheFunded.com are quickly gaining popularity.
From what I can see, theFunded.com is an online community for entrepreneurs who are looking for quality investors. Members can easily search for investors by geography and funding level. They can also find out whether or not an investor is rated highly by other members or rate the investor(s) themselves.
This site is only free to CEOs; therefore, I did not create an account to further my exploration. If you wish to learn more about TheFunded.com, check out the following video demonstration: http://www.revoltizer.com/movies/index.html
Add comment March 24, 2009
Free Online Business Tools
Did you know that you can have your Web site analyzed, create online surveys to send to your customers and research keywords − all online, all for free? The following article, written by MySolutionSpot™ member Sian Simon, provides a list of complimentary online business tools that you can use to enhance your businesss: http://www.mysolutionspot.com/online-marketing/free-online-resources-for-business-1231/
Add comment March 23, 2009
Are You an Entrepreneur?
If you consider yourself to be an entrepreneur—and let’s face it, many of us do—then you’ll want to check out this article. Dan Schawbel’s article, “Top 10 Social Networks for Entrepreneurs,” lists some of the best social networks out there for entrepreneurs and budding business owners. Whether you’re looking for a job, seeking advice on starting your own business, or trying to make business contacts, you can do it through a social network; the benefits of social networking are endless.
There’s a good chance you’re already part of a social network, like LinkedIn® or MySolutionSpot™, but you should consider joining multiple social network sites. Take a look at Schawbel’s article, and give one of the mentioned social networks a try.
Add comment March 20, 2009
Remember, It’s Your Job to Make Consumers Remember You
We’ve all heard the phrase, “Out of sight, out of mind.” Consumers have short attention spans; they are fed so much information every day. Therefore, it’s your job to remind them that your business exists and is worth visiting and revisiting. You can achieve this by using direct mail.
There are many forms of direct mail. Here are some you can try:
Promotional Postcards
If you are in business to sell something, whether it’s a service or a business, you should provide special promotions from time to time. Of course, you must advertise your special promotions in advance. Promotional postcards are quite effective when used to announce upcoming savings. While they may be classified as junk mail, the mere fact that they do not have envelopes helps them get noticed. You should send out promotional postcards to area consumers, as well as previous customers, prior to each sale.
Email Newsletters
A good customer retention strategy is to distribute newsletters via email. Email newsletters provide your customers with information about new products or services, upcoming special offers and other worthy updates. Of course, you will need some sort of customer database in order to send these newsletters. You can recruit subscribers by featuring in-store signup, as well as online signup if you have a business Web site.
Reminders
It’s pretty self-explanatory. Reminders are mailers that help consumers remember your business. Reminders aren’t necessarily used to announce any kind of savings. Rather, much like email newsletters, they are used to enhance customer retention. Reminders are particularly valuable to service-oriented businesses that require periodic visits, like eye-doctors, mechanics and dentists.
Whichever type(s) of direct mail you choose to utilize, you should always provide some reference to your local search listing. By mentioning the URL to your business listing, you can provide consumers with additional information about your business without taking up a lot of space.
2 comments March 19, 2009
