May 30th, 2010 by john
Shazi Visram started her organic food company, HappyBaby, in 2006, and if you ask her how she was able to grow it to an $8 million business with nine full-time employees, she’ll rattle off a list of mentors, advisors and industry resources.”I found people who helped and supported me,” she says.While most every entrepreneur faces a host of challenges starting out, women and minorities often have the toughest time because many can feel isolated in what is still a business world dominated by white males. Women make up less than 30 percent and minorities about 18 percent of business ownership in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
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May 29th, 2010 by john
Venture capitalists call it “sweat equity”–the idea that business owners shouldn’t pay themselves a salary while they’re building a business.I call it working for nothing and being a fool.When I see owners not paying themselves the full value of their services, I shudder. Of the more than 6,000 small businesses my company, American Management Services, has worked with, I can’t think of a single one that failed because the owner paid himself or herself a decent salary.
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May 29th, 2010 by john
Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR, is a term for describing activities and initiatives that businesses undertake as a means to connect with or give back to the communities in which they do business. CSR can range from charitable programs and community service, to environmental-impact awareness
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May 28th, 2010 by admin
These days, we all need to make the most of our resources, and for most small-business owners, human capital is a primary asset. So how do you inspire people to perform at a higher level?For most workers, job satisfaction means more than a paycheck, so monetary incentives aren’t the answer. Compensation is a satisfier, not a motivator.
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May 28th, 2010 by john
Putting things off for another day is one of the things millions of us know how to do well, but it creates anxiety, low-quality work and missed deadlines. Researchers and psychologists have come up with many reasons we procrastinate. Instead of fixating on why (years of therapy could give you an answer), its best to find ways to manage it.Here are some common and not-so-common tips to beat procrastination: Sometimes it’s good to wait
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May 28th, 2010 by john
It’s National Small Business Week in Washington, D.C., time to celebrate the entrepreneurs and businesses that, according to President Barack Obama, form “the backbone of the nation’s economy.” But the roster of sponsors for the 47th annual observance of the occasion reads more like a Who’s Who of corporate behemoths, dominated by names like Sam’s Club, Visa, Ford, Raytheon and AT&T.Dichotomies like that are feeding an undercurrent of concern in some quarters of the small-business community. The worry is that in Washington, policy-makers are continuing to let big business crash the small-business party, just as they did when George W.
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May 27th, 2010 by admin
Remember back when a marketer’s primary goal was to catch the attention of consumers in any possible way? The content of the ad, brochure or sign seemed to take a backseat to the need for catching a consumer’s attention for just a split second
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May 27th, 2010 by john
Baseball legend “Shoeless” Joe Jackson said “if you build it, he will come”–a quote made famous by the Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams . A lot of companies take this approach when it comes to public relations. They believe that a healthy stable of press announcements will eventually garner media interest and attention.
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May 27th, 2010 by john
By Randy MyersSo, you’ve decided to become an exporter. Now what?For starters, get ready to do more business
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May 27th, 2010 by john
By Jeff WuorioLinda Nagamine is much like any other entrepreneur. She’s energetic.
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