Small Business Information


Congress's Latest Patent Legislation a Big Win for Entrepreneurs, Small Business


"Mr. Watson. Come here," Alexander Graham Bell said to his aide, "I want you." Those were the first words transmitted through Bell's breakthrough technology, the telephone. The history books document that moment, but a pivotal event took place three days earlier. On March 7, 1876, the U.S. Patent Office granted Bell patent number 174,465, cementing his legacy as the inventor of the telephone.

Why Many Business Owners Don’t Want Their Kids to Inherit the Company


Being a business owner is considered an “American Dream” by many, yet when it comes to succession planning, a recent survey reveals that not everyone feels the same way about passing the torch onto their children.

How Small Businesses Can Manage Cashflow to Thrive in 2023


Intelligent cashflow management is the essential fuel of startups and digital businesses, particularly in a challenging economy. According to experts, it can mean the difference between surviving, thriving and failure.

How to Attract the Best Candidates for Your Business


As most business owners know, one of the most valuable assets your enterprise needs to thrive is top-notch talent.

Small Business Tips to Launch and Thrive


May, which is National Small Business Month, is the ideal opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of small business owners, take a closer look at the challenges they face, and connect them with valuable resources.

Optimism Prevails Among Minority Business Owners, Survey Shows


Even as minority business owners face new economic challenges, including supply chain disruptions and inflation, results from PNC's recent Economic Outlook survey show an impressive resiliency and positive mindset among these business leaders, according to Marshalyn Odneal, national sales executive for Minority Business at PNC Bank.

7 Things to Consider Before Buying Small Business Accounting Software


The world of small business accounting software can be a minefield for any business owner. However choosing the right package is one of the most critical business decisions you will make.

3 Essential Tools for Starting and Maintaining a Small Business


We believe that there are 3 factors that drive the success of small businesses.

The Power of Why: Your Psychological Ally To Marketing Success!


Here's why 'WHY' is such a profit-making marketing trigger."Stop taking two and three plates of food," my mother said to me angrily.

Small Business Strategies - Four Critical Success Factors


Scenario OneDuring a recent presentation, a business owner was given the following challenge. If 10 of his 100 employees were asked to name the top 3 organizational goals for the current year as they perceived them to be, would he receive the same 3 goals from everyone or would he receive 5, 10 or even 25 different goals? The business owner shook his head and thoughtfully responded, "No, I am sure that I would receive more than 3 goals.

Starting Your Small Business


Where do you find more customers?How do you compete with bigger businesses?Answer. Build loyalty and rewards.

Attributes Of Companies You Don't Want To Buy!


There are no "rules of thumb" in the pursuit of companies tobuy. Each purchase opportunity has to stand on its own merits.

How to Achieve Real Success in Business: Five Breezy Tips


Achieving real success should be the goal of any good businessman. But what is real success? I believe that it is no just money, or instant growth.

Professional House Cleaning - The Dirty Little Secret


Are you tired yet of all the books out there telling you how easy it is to start a house cleaning business? I'm not inferring that all their information is bad, but let's be honest about how "easy" it really is.There's a dirty little secret hanging over the cleaning trade that nobody talks about, but every professional cleaner runs into.

Accounting Methods - Cash and Accrual


When starting a business, you have to determine the method you are going to use for accounting and paying taxes. The two choices are the cash method and the accrual method.

How to Start a Pet Transportation Business


Pet Transportation Services are needed as the number of pets in the U.S.

Is Your Business Profitable?


What's your job profitability? Do you know?Many business owners are unsure of their profitability at a company or job level. They "think" they are making money because they have a few dollars in their checking account.

Finding the Right Virtual Assistant for Your Small Business


Articles abound advising the business community how to properly screen when looking for a Virtual Assistant (VA). Unfortunately, some of the advice may lead you astray, as it often ignores the fact that VAs are not employees but independent contractors providing professional business to business (B2B) services.

Change May Be Your Ace in the Hole


Whether it has been thrust upon you by external market forces or it has simply bubbled up from the internal dynamics of your enterprise, change itself always presents opportunity for improvement. And in a knowledge based economy, change may be the only thing we can count on as small business people.

7 Tips to Improving Your Cash Flow


Cash is King..

Five Facts and One Motivating Factor Behind a Successful Home Business


All legitimate home business entrepreneurs insist and announce loud and clear that a successful home business is not about an overnight thing. And that you cannot get rich overnight and so on.

Breaking The Chains!


Everyday, customers and business owners are bombarded with billboards, logos, print and electronic ads from huge corporations. With annual ad budgets that are more than our businesses' SALES in an entire year, our small independent businesses are getting squeezed out of consumers minds (and wallets) more and more each year.

Todays Chef, Tomorrows Restaurateur -- Startup Tips by Restaurant Consultants Inc


Researching information for a recent business plan, I came across an interesting number of 54,000. What is the big deal about that? Over 54,000 new restaurant business licenses were applied for in the last twelve months nationally.


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SBIR - A Nice Add-on Business
If you are a small business and qualify to participate in the SBIR program, it is a natural enhancer to your existing business. If you are small enough you may be able to start a company using SBIR funding, but you will soon come to realize that if your sources of income are not diversified (with SBIR being only one source) you might fall victim to funding cycles and no income.
Designing a Franchise Training Program
If you intend to franchise your company you will need to design a bullet proof training company for your new franchisees. This is above and beyond the training program you will design for them to administer to their new employees.
Excuses Franchisees Make; When They Violate Exclusive Territory Agreements
One of the biggest excuses franchisees of home based and serviced based franchises make when violating their exclusive franchise agreement with their franchisor and fellow franchisees is: My Family Works There. As a franchisor, I cannot believe how many times neighboring franchisees steal each others clientele or work outside their exclusive franchise area.
Window Cleaning Business Start Up
Should you buy a business opportunity or Franchise if you want to get into the window cleaning business? Or just start your own and work hard; grow the business into a full-time profession and expand from there? Let us talk briefly about window cleaning franchises is in general.One could argue without too much difficulty that buying a window cleaning franchise is simply a waste of money, after all you could simply go down to be 99 cents store and by a bucket 3 towels and a squeegee and hey, you are in business right? Well one could argue that, since to really be in business, you probably need to get a business license, insurance, buy some business cards and make a few flyers.
Reaping the Rewards of Cost Cutting
In these days of insecurity and uncertain futures, the tendency is to manage for survival but the smart business leaders are actively hunting for profits.And they are doing this without launching costly new initiatives or major capital investments.
Due Dilegence 101 Or What You Do Not Know Can Kill You! - Part 1
Introduction:This article is written as a general discussion on the subject of "Due Diligence". It is for informational purposes and not intended to be a definitive guideline for your exact situation.
Get Out Of The Rut And Back On the Track
Do you sometimes find yourself just going "through the motions" of your business from day to day? Has the excitement gone out of your daily routine?What happened? Remember way back when you began doing this? You were excited and enthusiastic about what you were going to do. What went wrong? Where did the excitement and enthusiasm go? More importantly, how do you get it back?Of course, this may be a signal that it is time for you to make some changes or to "move on.
Local Search and Internet Yellow Pages - A Whole NewVocabulary for Small Businesss
Buyers want both online and local information about where to buy Most small businesses are local in nature, serving people who live nearby. Their customers found them through traditional methods like the Yellow Pages or newspaper ads.
Promote Yourself More Successfully
One of the great challenges for independent professionals and small businesses, especially when starting out, is generating visibility to ultimately lead to generating sales.One of the specific challenges, I have found, is knowing what to say about yourself and your operations and services when asked "so what do you do?"? Have you ever stumbled over your words when asked what you do?? Have you ever received the response, "Oh, I see", followed by silence?? Do you ever feel as though you do not know what to say about yourself?I am reminded of the 'elevator speech theory' (I do not know to whom to attribute its invention), which simply poses "if you were in a lift that opens on the tenth floor and in walks Bill Gates who asks what you do - what would you say, and you have only until the elevator gets to the bottom?"I have personally struggled with this at times, and equally have found that when I get it right, results flow - which initially could be as simple yet important of getting more time to converse with the person asking the question of you.
Making Your Purpose Your Business Step #2- Getting From Point A to Point B
In my previous article, Step 1, your challenge for the month was to research where your passion lies. Based on your research you might have discovered that self investigation can lead us to two places; either we find out our answer or we realize we need to ask more questions to get that answer.
Tips on Setting Up Your Small Business Bank Account
One of the first things you will need to set up is a bank account. We recommend a large bank because:They have locations everywhereThey have longer hoursThey will probably buy out your local community bank anywayIf you are an owner/operator of a small business, you will appreciate having a Debit or ATM card for your business.
Mobile Car Wash Market Opportunities in California
The current lack of industry leaders represents an exceptional opportunity for a large and organized mobile car wash company to achieve regional domination and eventually dominate the Southern California carwash market. The best place to start a regional assault on this market would be to concentrate North and West of Los Angeles; Chatsworth and Simi Valley to Malibu and Tarzana to Santa Barbara.
Mobile Pressure Washing and Cleaning Scheduling
If you own a mobile car washing, pressure washing or auto detailing business you know that when your crews and machines are parked and working that you are making money. You also know that when those units and crews are driving or stuck in traffic you are losing your shirt in costs and inefficiencies.
Australian Workplace Agreements - How They Work For You
The employer / employee relations environment has been constantly evolving during the last 25 years. In Australia, as in many western nations, the balance between employers and employees has shifted back and forwards usually in response to supply and demand.
Small Business Essentials: Start Here
Thinking of starting a business on line? If so there are two things you absolutely must commit to before ever opening shop on the web. Any one who refuses to realistically consider these two factors should not be in business.
De-Ionization Decisions in Mobile Car Washing
Many mobile car wash operators would like to add de-ionized water to their cleaning process. However before you do this you need to understand the reality of the return on investment.
Modern Clear Coats, Auto Detailers and visit to Lexus of North America
We visited Lexus USA, home of the Lexus North America Head Quarters to help us better understand the latest innovations in automotive clear coast. As professional auto detailers we must know our customers cars and finishes.
Top 7 Small Business Resources for 2005
If you want to start a business in 2005, and start making money almost immediately, the sites listed below are some of the best I have found. I've chosen each site because it is absolutely outstanding in providing the tools you need to get started, as well as taking you through the steps you need to get started immediately.
Incorporating a Small Business: S corporations versus C corporations
If you've been considering incorporating your small business, you've probably been confused about the difference between S and C corporations.The similarities between S and C corporations are as follows:1.
Five Break-through Ideas to Immediately Increase Profits and Improve Cash Flow
Too often in business we get trapped into reviewing our sales numbers without analyzing the all important "profit" number. This is commonly referred to as the "bottom-line" of a business.

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Related Articles

Commodity Sales Prospecting - How to Stand Out From Your Competitors
I have received a number of requests for advice from salespeople and sales managers that sell "commodity" products and services. When I refer to commodities, I don't just mean pork bellies or frozen concentrated orange juice.
The Achilles Heel of Management Coaching
While heading home at day's end, you begin reflecting on a coaching meeting you had earlier that day with an employee, Chris. You hope that, this time, you finally succeeded in getting her to understand the importance of spending less time in disruptive socializing in the office and more time elevating her performance.
How to Sell Strategically
If you want to maximize your sales performance, take a strategic approach to selling. After all, wouldn't you agree that "the 80/20 rule" applies to customers, where approximately 20 percent of customers produce approximately 80 percent of sales?The starting point for strategic selling is figuring out a) which customers produce the bulk of your sales, and b) what they are buying.
5 Secrets to Managing Your Sales Manager Productively
Many people believe that the main reason for representatives leaving their organisation is that of money in that they leave for a bigger salary. In fact, the biggest reason why people leave organisations is that the role they are doing is no longer offering any challenge or excitement.
Is Sales Process & CRM Stopping Sales?
Standard metrics and KPI's (Key Performance Indicators) are created usually between The Sales Director, The Financial Director and The Managing Director. These KPI's tell the sales teams what they should be doing.
14 Top Lead Generation Tactics
According to former Harvard Business School professor David Maister, typical marketing practices are not only inapplicable for professional service firms, but they may be dangerously wrong.Often professional service firm principals tell me they are frustrated with the quality of their marketing materials, they are concerned with their firm's low profile or they feel pressure because their efforts are not generating enough new client leads.
6 Steps to Avoid Losing Summer Sales
It's a fact - the online world dies down in the summer time. Kids are out of school, families are on vacation, there's fairs to attend to, and many are just spending too much time outside to be online.
A Fracas in the Franchise - Keep Your Customers by Keeping Your Workers
As a previous owner of a Franchise I know the importance of maintaining employee commitment, loyalty and enthusiasm in maximising customer satisfaction, generating positive customer perception and protecting your investment.Repeat business is the life-blood of any business worth its salt.
Is Your Sales Trust Factor High Enough to Win Against the Competition?
How high is your sales trust factor?Is it higher than the sales trust factor of your competition?It should be, if you want to increase your success in sales.Your trust factor represents the level of trust that buyers have in you as a seller.
Drop Discounts and Earn Top Dollar
Every dollar you discount is a dollar of pure profit you're giving away. Therefore, your efforts to remove discounts will be richly rewarded.
The Nine Warning Signs that You Need a Sales Video
Corporate videos are an important sales tool that can often be overlooked in marketing budgets.We look at the top nine tell-tale signs that indicate whether your company is in need of an innovative and effective way to promote itself.
How To Build A Worldwide Distributor Network
When your product is market ready and has a good bargain, it will be no value to you if you don't know who's going to buy it, or how you are going to tell the world about it. Your product will only sell if it has a good wide distribution network.
Getting Off The Advertising And Sales Rollercoaster
Seeing the results of advertising your business can be like watching a roller coaster. The day you run your ad you see a flurry of activity; your ph0ne starts ringing, your web site traffic increases and/ or potential clients visit your store.
10 Things to Help Your Business When Sales Are Slow During the Holidays
Twiddling your thumbs and waiting for some business to come in? Why not use this downtime to set yourself up for greater success in the new year? Here are my 10 picks, but you don't have to do them all. Even doing just one will get you another rung higher on your business ladder.
Sales & Marketing Plan Strategies
Design and Implementation of a new Sales & Marketing campaign must be carefully thought through from the beginning. What message do you want to send about your company, products, and services? What are the anticipated results? What is the execution strategy? What is the cost ratio versus expected return?These are just a few of the questions that run through our minds in the early stages of planning.
Pointless Targets
I recall a heated discussion with a sales director some time ago where I proposed that the long-term effect of setting activity targets for salespeople would eventually lead to failure. He vehemently made the point that he had systematically imposed activity targets on his sales force and that the result had been to treble average income per salesperson within 18 months.
3 Ways to Increase Your Sales
Last week I got a call from Jose, who was looking for help improving his ads. He'd been running the same ad in four local papers for two months and only gotten one response.
Increasing Business Through Distributors
You're a small company with a good product. You are confident that the product can sell, but you don't have the financial resources to hire a team of fifty salespeople to market and sell the product for you.
The Hardest Job Of A Trade Show
You've heard this before: There were four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure Somebody would do it.
Shorten Sales Cycles in Complex Sales Environments
Help buyers discover the answers they need to understand and align all of their decision variables.In complex sales, salespeople often find themselves negotiating their way through a web of decision influencers, conflicting initiatives, and multiple priorities.