As businesses large and small rush to incorporate social media into their marketing strategies, most are still
figuring it out as they go along. Lots of trial and error, lots of tweaking, lots of uncertainty as to what will really work.
While larger companies have the resources to hire experts and try various tactics, small businesses must become
social media “experts” themselves – developing strategy, implementing and monitoring. And along the way, they will ask and answer the ...
For small business owners, the repercussions from what is now being called the Great Recession just seem to
keep on coming. An unexpected piece of economic fallout involves small business owners who
in the past have relied heavily on the value of their homes as a source of capital for their businesses.
While everyone talks about the difficulty small businesses have in getting bank or even SBA loans,
who would have thought that the country’s unbelievable losses in home ...
If you’re running a business, running is undoubtedly the operative word here. Running…non-stop, all day, every day,
in all directions at once. You’re multi-tasking for 12, 14, maybe even 16 hours a day. So the last thing you want to hear
is how you can pack more into each exhausting day, right?
Believe it or not, you can do more. But first you have to wrap your head around a seemingly counterintuitive notion:
To do more, do less. And ...
You don’t need to follow the headlines to know that the economy has been struggling – you can often just feel it. But something you may not know is that conditions have begun to improve, albeit slowly. Sure, analysts have been saying this for a couple years now. After all, the recession technically ended in mid-2009. But recent trends point to a more robust recovery than any previously seen.
What trends?
This week, for example, the National ...
When forming your initial business strategy, it can be tempting to start from the inside and work your way out. That means developing a marketing plan, obtaining a business line of credit, recruiting and hiring the right people and establishing a financial strategy. But how much of those admittedly crucial endeavors have to do with the customer?
Dave Brock, founder of consulting firm Partners in Excellence, argues that the reverse strategy is preferable.
“Too many organizations design ...
Ecommerce sites are a dime a dozen these days, and it’s not difficult to see why. The overhead is low, the potential is high and the market is thriving. But if you’re considering or are in the early stages of launching an online shopping site, you should take the time to review your options. As popular as online shopping is, there are an untold number of ecommerce failures. So before you jump into action, take ...
Cash flow is a major concern for startup companies. Aside from facing mountains of debt – in most cases – small ventures usually face a long, arduous path to obtaining a consistent line of revenue – let alone profitability. What’s more, the economic struggles of recent years have put a damper on consumer activity and further restrained the flow of cash.
Accordingly, timely payment of goods and services is viewed as paramount in establishing a consistent ...
Lending standards have tightened in recent years, as banks struggle to deal with a wide array of toxic assets and losses and stemming from the global recession. The consequence has been particularly troubling for small businesses, as these ventures typically entail the highest level of risk to lenders.
Of course, banks are not the only avenue for small business financing. There are plenty of alternative lending options, such as business cash advance programs, microlenders and crowdfunding ...
According to the Federal Reserve Board’s January 2012 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices, demand for business capital loans among small enterprises spiked in the fourth quarter of last year by the most in any quarter since 2005.
Although demands for franchise business loans, secured business loans and similar financial assistance rose among small companies, banks reported “little change in standards on commercial and industrial loans,” according to the survey, which was based ...
According to Inc. Wire, in the last 3 months banks reported seeing an increase in loan requests from business owners which seem to be at its highest level since 2005. This new report implies future expansion for small business which could be great for the economy.
Analysts say, ““If a firm wants to expand, they typically need to borrow money to do it,” Drew Matus, senior economist at UBS Securities reported to Bloomberg. “So at a ...
Leadership is a vast term that has innumerable explanations. However, people generally believe that a great business leader is one who has great vision, enjoys a high level of success and has full potential to drive a great organization forward. A good business leader can lead to achievements above and beyond what the individuals will ever achieve on their own. Would you like to know the top traits that make a business leader successful?
Here are ...
As an entrepreneur, you likely already have a spark of ingenuity about you. After all, you created your venture from scratch. You – or your team – developed the idea and turned it into something meaningful and, hopefully, profitable. You are an innovator, and that ability to create is instrumental in turning your aspirations into realizations. This applies as much to mom-and-pop shops as it does to tech startups.
But it’s important to recognize the importance ...