Hate to break it to you people, but “next year” is about to show up on your doorstep. All those goals that you have on hold, well guess what, your freezer just went on defrost. So between now and that ugly Monday that shows up after New Year's reveling, I'm going to help you—and me—get into fighting shape for the year ahead. If you want to rise above the noise, it’s time to … [Read more...]
Small Business Lessons from Black Friday
For years now Black Friday has been the best sales day of the year for a lot of small businesses. This Thanksgiving however, what I noticed were not the great deals or the savvy shoppers. I noticed the grumpiness and discontent of the people that had to work, the increased security in the malls and the general cynicism of the average shopper. So what can small business learn … [Read more...]
Women Small Business Owners Use Social Media for Marketing More than Male Counterparts [Infographic]
New studies by Web.com, reveal the differences between how women small business owners use the web and social media to grow their businesses in comparison to male small business owners. Web.com first interviewed 3,000 consumers and small business decision makers to determine if there are gaps between the two groups related to small business perceptions. Interestingly, the … [Read more...]
Got A Low Traffic Site? Here’s How to Get A Ton Of Subscribers Fast
When I was little, my dad used to take me fishing at least once per month. We lived near a nice sized lake that made fishing an easy hobby to have. I’ll never forget the first time I looked into this white barrel filled with swirly things. Ewww, I used to think to myself. Those things stink. And they’re all squishy. While I never said a word to my dad, he could tell by … [Read more...]
Customer Satisfaction: Results vs. Effort
One of the hard truths of business is that you are paid and evaluated on your results, not your effort—a fact that occasionally makes “knocking it out of the park” with pricing feel unattainable. (And job satisfaction, less than desirable.) Particularly for businesses that specialize in custom services (raising my hand; are you as well?), establishing concrete pricing is … [Read more...]
Top 10 U.S. Cities for Online Small Business
PayPal has dug through their data from hundreds of thousands of online merchants, and determined which U.S. cities are the most friendly to small business. This is the first time PayPal has ever released any findings from its transaction data (which is quite significant since the company processes 20% of all e-commerce transactions). Of particular interest, nearly 40% of … [Read more...]
10 Holiday Marketing Promotions to Boost Small Business Sales
Sponsored by VISA Business: There is no better time of year to invest in marketing and promotions than during the holiday season when people are already amenable to buying. You can boost your small business sales this holiday season with some creative thinking, but you should start planning now. Don’t wait until November to start putting together your holiday promotions or … [Read more...]
Crowdfunding Can Launch Your Business
One of the largest challenges entrepreneurs face is getting funding for their great ideas. Women business owners struggle in spite of efforts by the government to create SBA and micro loan programs to help entrepreneurs’ access capital. The challenge is that even the SBA requires good credit, collateral, and an income source to repay the loan. If you are starting a company … [Read more...]
PR 101: Customer Service Counts
Interesting business conversations can crop up just about anywhere—if you're paying attention and know exactly how, and when, to jump in. Such was the case the other day, during an informal meeting with a potential client. Informal, because our entire meeting took place at the checkout counter of her specialty food market. I knew from the start, that there would be … [Read more...]
Take your Small Business Back to School
I've always loved the Staples commercial in which a father runs through the aisles, filling his cart with school supplies; a scene set to the tune of "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year." This brilliant marketing is a great take on parenting, but also highlights the hate-to-love it excitement and promise of another academic year. As a kid, back to school season always … [Read more...]