Business Wizard - Online Business And Online Money Guides Start And Operate A Successful Online Business 2010-03-12T05:33:15Z WordPress http://buwiz.com/feed/atom/ admin <![CDATA[Bring Your Business to Life–From Anywhere]]> http://buwiz.com/bring-your-business-to-life-from-anywhere/ 2010-03-12T05:33:15Z 2010-03-12T05:33:15Z Portable video projectors and display methods have long been a boon to small business owners looking to present to clients, speaking audiences and internal teams. Just one problem: Quality is often highly suspect when compared to traditional projection devices, and transportability isn't always as effortless as one might hope from a mobile option. Related posts:
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Portable video projectors and display methods have long been a boon to small business owners looking to present to clients, speaking audiences and internal teams. Just one problem: Quality is often highly suspect when compared to traditional projection devices, and transportability isn’t always as effortless as one might hope from a mobile option. Thankfully, a number of new solutions promise to keep potential hiccups surrounding road warriors’ public speaking ops strictly to frayed nerves and cheesy jokes–not technical hiccups.While pricey at $500, Microvision’s ShowWX laser pico projector lets you beam surprisingly bright, colorful images and video from portable devices such as an iPhone onto a wall, screen or other ready surface ranging between roughly 6-200 inches in size. Displayed in widescreen WVGA resolution, the device–small enough to fit in your pocket or purse–can go 90 minutes to two hours on a battery charge, and can connect to digital cameras, cell phones, laptops and more. Owners can also plug in to other gadgets with a TV out or VGA capability, making it possible to present images on whatever medium you feel makes the most striking impression.Also new is 3M’s MPro 150, a 5-inch long, 5.6-ounce portable projector compatible with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF files. Using the gadget, which is reputedly a third brighter than predecessor the MPro 110, you can display photos, documents, spreadsheets, presentations, videos and more. Equipped with 1GB of internal memory and stereo speakers, owners can also use the gizmo to store presentations on-board without having to tote along a separate laptop, or play digital music and sound effects. USB input and MicroSD memory slots further allow easy access to additional data. Available now for around $395, mobile marketing and sales forces can use it to project presentations to audiences of intimate size.

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Designed especially for smartphone owners, RIM’s BlackBerry Presenter further makes sales pitches and case studies a cinch to share. Costing just $199, all you have to do is connect it to a monitor or projector (as well as your BlackBerry cellular handset via Bluetooth wireless) and you can present PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 slides using your cell phone. A little black and silver box that’s easy to transport, sizing up at just 3.4 by 2.4 inches, owners enjoy a variety of options, from the ability to plan preset slide swaps at various times, pause the display or call up custom animations on command. At odds with PhoneSuit’s MiLi Pro ($399.95), a rechargeable portable video projector and speaker system for iPhone and iPod Touch models, it isn’t a stand-alone solution. However, as with all units suggested here, it does offer a similar upside: the ability to conveniently travel and give presentations without toting a clunky, full-size projection unit.While all options may cost a pretty penny, and none is likely to prove ideal for those times you need to present to an audience of hundreds or are invited to share PowerPoints with leading industry luminaries, fret not. For the routine sales pitch or client presentation, each should serve adequately, and save you a potential hernia at that.


Tecnology expert Scott Steinberg is the publisher of tech product reviews site DigitalTrends.com, and a celebrated gadget guru and video game expert who frequently appears as a technology analyst on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC and CNN, and has contributed to 400+ outlets from The New York Times to Playboy and Rolling Stone.

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john <![CDATA[Should You Do Business in the Cloud?]]> http://buwiz.com/should-you-do-business-in-the-cloud/ 2010-03-12T05:33:06Z 2010-03-12T05:33:06Z By now you've probably heard the term "cloud computing" mentioned in the press, thanks to the PR machines of Microsoft, Sun, Google and Salesforce.com, among others.  But what exactly is cloud computing, and what does it mean for small businesses?Simply put, it's computing that is done on the Web. Rather than installing software on a computer that sits in your office, the applications that you need to run your business are stored on servers in data centers owned by the software company--"in the cloud" so to speak. You access your software and your business data via a Web browser--from any computer that is connected to the internet anywhere in the world Related posts:
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By now you’ve probably heard the term “cloud computing” mentioned in the press, thanks to the PR machines of Microsoft, Sun, Google and Salesforce.com, among others.  But what exactly is cloud computing, and what does it mean for small businesses?Simply put, it’s computing that is done on the Web. Rather than installing software on a computer that sits in your office, the applications that you need to run your business are stored on servers in data centers owned by the software company–”in the cloud” so to speak. You access your software and your business data via a Web browser–from any computer that is connected to the internet anywhere in the world. Some of the benefits to this approach include:Lower initial cost: Instead of buying software, you essentially rent it. You pay a monthly fee for each user. You also avoid the expense and hassle of paying for software upgrades. There is only one copy of the software running on the servers “in the cloud” and every time you log in you access the latest and greatest features without having to do anything extra.

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Lower overhead: Your IT infrastructures needs are greatly reduced with cloud computing. The company that “hosts” your software and data maintains the hardware, upgrades the software and keeps the service running. You can focus on running your business rather than on maintaining your computers.  All you need is a computer with a fast and reliable web connection.Maximum mobility: Because your programs and data reside “in the cloud,” you can run your business from anywhere you can reach the Web. With today’s wireless laptops and smart phones, you don’t even have to sit behind a desk. You can check inventory while on a job site or run payroll while lounging poolside.Easier collaboration: Cloud computing makes it easier for you to collaborate with your clients, customers and employees while avoiding the logjam caused by sending large files. Instead of passing around a bulky digital file, such as a spreadsheet or a presentation, and hoping that all parties are looking at the most current version, you can all go to a Web address to view and work on a given project in real time.Increased safety: Cloud computing offers two key safety advantages. First, having your anti-malware software in the cloud generally means better, faster protection against the swarms of viruses, worms and other digital threats floating around out there. Rather than downloading the latest virus signatures to your computer to protect it at the endpoint, your security vendor can zap the bugs while they’re in the air.Second, having your business records backed up in the cloud better protects your data from losses due to catastrophes like a server meltdown. If your hard drive simply takes a nosedive, your data are backed up automatically and continuously at one or more remote locations.  Of course, you are counting on the software company to take care of the data, but in almost all circumstances they are going to much greater lengths to double and triple protect your data because their entire business depends on it.What to Look for in the Cloud
Some key features to look for when shopping for cloud-based business software and services include:Interoperability: Your applications should work together in harmony, not alone in individual silos. For example, your accounting software should mesh with your customer relationship management software. You should not have to toggle back and forth between separate CRM and financial programs when talking with a customer or the phone or when planning a new marketing campaign. Once captured, data should flow freely between these critical business applications. Reliability: Because you are putting your business records and processes in the hands of a third party, you want to make sure that the vendor has a proven track record and will stay with you for the long haul. Choose carefully. If your cloud vendor suddenly goes dark, your business could do the same. Make sure the company you use has a good track record and is going to be around for the long haul.All in all, I’m a huge fan of applications “in the clouds” and recommend it over desktop software to almost all of the small businesses I talk to. The ease, affordability, mobility, accessibility and safety of cloud computing make it one less thing you need to worry about so you can focus on growing your business instead.


Justin Kitch is Intuit’s chief growth officer, responsible for leading the web and marketing efforts for the company’s Small Business Group. He founded and previously served as CEO of Homestead Technologies.

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admin <![CDATA[Positive Steps for Managing Conflict]]> http://buwiz.com/positive-steps-for-managing-conflict/ 2010-03-12T05:32:55Z 2010-03-12T05:32:55Z
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    Situation: Morgan and Jose are arguing about which steps to take next to implement the Micah Project. Morgan wants to move ahead immediately; Jose wants to rethink the situation and perhaps consult with other members of the department to avoid making a rash decision. Morgan becomes impatient and blames Jose for dragging his feet once again. Jose doesn’t want to ruffle Morgan’s feathers, so he does nothing about the differences of opinion, hoping that Morgan will let up on the pressure. The result is a stalemate.This is a typical situation where conflict freezes progress and stymies many managers. We must first ask why Jose, like so many other employees, does nothing. The answer is because he probably believes in some very common and unfortunate myths about conflict:
    • Conflict is bad and terrible things will occur if differences in opinion are aired.
    • Conflict will rip apart the team or its esprit de corps.
    • Other employees will be mad at him.
    • He would be calling too much attention to himself by making a big deal out of the situation.
    • It’s better not to engage in conflict; harmony must prevail at all costs. 
    • The parties will never get over those negative feelings.
    • The issue will cause a chain reaction that will halt or delay productivity and involve other people.

    At this point, you as the leader might be questioning your own views of conflict, as well you should. But do you know how to actually define conflict? No, it’s not some terrible, unmanageable, out-of-control creature. Conflict is simply defined as tension, which is neither good nor bad. Positive tension, that energy that leads to increased creativity, innovation and productivity, is a dynamic byproduct of two or more people sharing their views, even if their views are inconsistent or out of synch with each other. Negative tension is an unproductive, off-putting, harmful result of people not working together to arrive at a positive solution.

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    What causes tension? The list is endless and mostly individualistic. We all have our vulnerabilities and views that lead to tension, especially the more common negative tension. Most people experience negative conflict when they are supervised and fear an unfavorable evaluation. Similarly, tension arises when employees feel they are being compared with each other or are vying for the same resources, such as time, money, people or equipment. Other employees are conflicted when under deadlines, especially when they do not have the assistance of other helpful employees. Still others have great difficulty dealing with change; breaking or changing habits is almost always difficult. Even if a change seems to be positive, it often is accompanied by some form of conflict, simply due to the change or potential performance evaluation under a new system with new policies, processes or colleagues. And finally, negative tension easily and most commonly erupts with differences in opinions, especially those that are firmly held.So what positive steps can leaders take to minimize the negative aspects of conflict?

    1. Realize that conflict is natural and happens all the time. 
    2. Stress the positive aspects of conflict; just because tension arises, the world is not going to collapse. In fact, if handled well, conflict often leads to innovation.
    3. Realize that conflict can be handled in a positive way that leads to personal and professional growth, development and productivity.
    4. Encourage others to bring up conflict and differences. Allowing them to fester inevitably encourages them to erupt later, usually at a most inopportune time.
    5. Identify the root cause(s) of the conflict. You can’t begin to unravel the potential negativity in conflict and look toward progress until you determine the source of the issue.
    6. Look at the issue from all sides. Inspect the positive and negative factors that each party sees to fully comprehend what is at stake.
    7. Devise a complete list of actions to address the issue; ensure that each party believes that he/she has had input in the final product or decision.
    8. Decide on the step that best addresses and resolves the issue. Again, all parties need to see that they have had input into this step.
    9. Agree on whatever next steps are necessary to implement the mutually agreed-upon action.
    10. Review the process that you used to arrive at the final decision, hoping to implement a similar successful plan when negative conflict next arises.

    An effective leader is willing to address spoken and unspoken negative tension and helps transform it into positive, productive tension that leads to increased understanding of the issues, the parties involved and the final outcome.


    David G. Javitch, Ph.D., is Entrepreneur.com’s “Employee Management” columnist, an organizational psychologist and president of Javitch Associates, an organizational consulting firm in Newton, Mass. With more than 20 years of experience working with executives in various industries, he’s an internationally recognized author, keynote speaker and consultant on key management and leadership issues.

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    john <![CDATA[What to Do When Your Partnership Sours]]> http://buwiz.com/what-to-do-when-your-partnership-sours/ 2010-03-12T05:32:33Z 2010-03-12T05:32:33Z By: Toddi Gutner Even in the best of circumstances, business partnerships can be fraught with conflict. To handle the twists and turns, smart co-owners put a well-drafted partnership agreement in place to act as a road map Related posts:
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    Business on MainBy: Toddi Gutner

    Even in the best of circumstances, business partnerships can be fraught with conflict. To handle the twists and turns, smart co-owners put a well-drafted partnership agreement in place to act as a road map. Without one, lack of guidance in the event of a dispute can result in a free-for-all for partners, says Jonathan Levitt, a principal with Outside GC LLC, a team of former senior in-house lawyers who act as “on-demand” in-house counsel for clients.For partners who don’t have an agreement, or even those who do, there are a few things they should consider in order to best protect themselves when conflict arises.First, business partners need to evaluate whether they can mend fences and settle their differences. Difficult issues surface in all partnerships, and they can create stress in the relationship, “but if you work through these issues, you usually have a stronger partnership,” says Steven Thayer, an attorney with Handler Thayer LLP in Chicago.

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    It’s important to figure out what’s at the root of the friction. Ask, “What is occurring within the partnership that is causing you to make a decision to [want to] sell or liquidate?” says Terry Mackin, managing director at Generational Equity, merger and acquisition advisor for small businesses. It can come down to rifts, family dynamics or other issues. “How are those things affecting the business?” says Mackin.Business issues such as not making enough money, having too much debt or realizing your business model doesn’t work are situations that may require you to adapt and change your business plan to make it work, says Thayer. Of course, fundamental issues that are hard to move past–lying, cheating, stealing or other illegal activity, for example–can be deal breakers and a legitimate basis to terminate the relationship.Whether conflicts are resolved to make the partnership work is a business decision based in part on each partner’s risk/reward tolerance level. “Each partner should regularly assess the risks and rewards associated with their business […] to make sure they are in check,” says Thayer.To that end, ongoing communication and a periodic review of your partnership (especially the agreement, if you have one) is essential. Just as in any relationship, partnerships grow old and co-owners need to reassess how decisions are made, who makes what decisions, etc., says Kurt D. Olender, a corporate attorney in Manhattan.What do you do if you’re unable to resolve your conflicts? At this point, business partners need to determine whether or not one partner buys out the other or both sell out to a third party. In the case of a partner buyout, the two important questions to ask are “Who has the most passion for the business, and who has an immediate cash need that requires them to cash out of the business?” says Steve Nielsen, CEO of PartnerUp, an online small-business networking community. As one would expect, both partners need to agree on the next course of action. In some cases, reaching an agreement may require a good business attorney to act as a sort of “corporate therapist.”Whatever the decision, make sure you hire a good business attorney to help with the dissolution of the partnership. There is too much at stake to use your friend’s uncle or some other attorney who is not an expert in business law. Finally, “It is extremely critical that both parties either have their own independent valuations or that they agree on an independent business-valuation expert to determine the value of the business, ” says Nielsen.Most issues, serious or not, can be resolved at the onset through good communication and effective negotiation skills. “Before you resort to the worst case, try working things out by talking,” says Nielsen.


    Toddi is an award-winning journalist, writer and editor and currently is a contributing writer covering career management issues for The Wall Street Journal.

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    john <![CDATA[10 Ways to Stretch Your Marketing Budget]]> http://buwiz.com/10-ways-to-stretch-your-marketing-budget/ 2010-03-11T03:36:41Z 2010-03-11T03:36:41Z This article has been excerpted from  The Marketing Plan Handbook  by  Robert W. Bly , available on  Entrepreneurpress.com . Most small businesses have modest marketing budgets, which means you have to make every dollar count. Related posts:
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    This article has been excerpted from The Marketing Plan Handbook by Robert W. Bly, available on Entrepreneurpress.com.Most small businesses have modest marketing budgets, which means you have to make every dollar count. Here are 5 ways to get big results from a small budget:
    1. First, use your ads for more than just space advertising. Ads are expensive to produce and expensive to run. But there are ways to get your advertising message in your prospect’s hands at a fraction of the cost of space advertising.

      The least expensive is to order an ample supply of reprints and distribute them to customers and prospects every chance you get. When you send literature in response to an inquiry, include a copy of the ad in the package. This reminds a prospect of the reason he responded in the first place and reinforces the original message.

      Distribute ads internally to other departments–engineering, production, sales, customer service and R&D–to keep them up to date on your latest marketing and promotional efforts. Make sure your salespeople receive an extra supply of reprints and are encouraged to include a reprint when they write to or visit their customers.

      Turn the ad into a product data sheet by adding technical specifications and additional product information to the back of the ad reprint. This eliminates the expense of creating a new layout from scratch. And it makes good advertising sense, because the reader gets double exposure to your advertising message.

      Ad reprints can be used as inexpensive direct mail pieces. You can mail the reprints along with a reply card and a sales letter. Unlike the ad, which is “cast in concrete,” the letter is easily and inexpensively tailored to specific markets and customer groups.

      If you’ve created a series of ads on the same product or product line, publish bound reprints of the ads as a product brochure. This tactic increases prospect exposure to the series and is less expensive than producing a brand new brochure.

      If your ads provide valuable information of a general nature, you can offer reprints as free educational material to companies in your industry. Or, if the ad presents a striking visual, you can offer reprints suitable for framing.

      Use your ads again and again. You will save money–and increase frequency–in the process.

    2. If something works, stick with it. Too many marketers scrap their old promotions and create new ones because they’re bored with their current campaign. That’s a waste. You shouldn’t create new ads or promotions if your existing ones are still accurate and effective. You should run your ads for as long as your customers read and react to them.

      How long can ads continue to get results? The Ludlow Corp. ran an ad for its erosion-preventing Soil Saver mesh 41 times in the same journal. After 11 years it pulled more inquiries per issue than when it was first published in 1966.

      If a concept still has selling power but the promotion contains dated information, update the existing copy–don’t throw it out and start from scratch. This approach isn’t fun for the ad manager or the agency, but it does save money.

    3. Don’t over present yourself. A strange thing happens to some entrepreneurs when they get a little extra money in the ad budget: they see fancy four-color brochures, gold embossed mailers and fat annual reports produced by Fortune 500 firms. Then they say, “This stuff sure looks great–why don’t we do some brochures like this?”

      That’s a mistake. The look, tone and image of your promotions should be dictated by your product and your market–not by what other companies in other businesses put out.

      Producing literature that’s too fancy for its purpose and its audience is a waste of money. And it can even hurt sales–your prospects will look at your overdone literature and wonder whether you really understand your market and its needs.

    4. Use “modular” product literature. One common advertising problem is how to promote a single product to many small, diverse markets. Each market has different needs and will buy the product for different reasons. But on your budget, you can’t afford to create a separate brochure for each of these tiny market segments.

      The solution is modular literature. This means creating a basic brochure layout that has sections capable of being tailored to meet specific market needs. After all, most sections of the brochure–technical specifications, service, company background, product operation, product features–will be the same regardless of the audience. Only a few sections, such as benefits of the product to the user and typical applications, need to be tailored to specific readers.

      In a modular layout, standard sections remain the same, but new copy can be typeset and stripped in for each market-specific section of the brochure. This way, you can create different marketspecific pieces of literature on the same product using the same basic layout, mechanicals, artwork and plates. Significant savings in time and money will result.

    5. Use article reprints as supplementary sales literature. Marketing managers are constantly bombarded by requests for “incidental” pieces of product literature. Engineers want data sheets explaining some minor technical feature in great detail.

      Reps selling to small, specialized markets want special literature geared to their particular audience. And each company salesperson wants support literature that fits his or her individual sales pitch. But the ad budget can only handle the major pieces of product literature. Not enough time or money exists to satisfy everybody’s requests for custom literature.

      The solution is to use article reprints as supplementary sales literature. Rather than spend a bundle producing highly technical or application-specific pieces, have your sales and technical staff write articles on these special topics. Then, place the articles with the appropriate journals.

      Article reprints can be used as inexpensive literature and carry more credibility than self-produced promotional pieces. You don’t pay for layout or printing of the article. Best of all, the article is free advertising for your firm.

    6. Explore inexpensive alternatives for lead generation, such as banner advertising, organic search and PR. Many smaller firms judge marketing effectiveness solely by the number of leads generated. They are not concerned with building image or recognition; they simply count bingo-card inquiries.

      New-product press releases lead the list as the most economical method of generating leads. Once, for less than $100, I wrote, printed and distributed a new-product release to 100 trade journals. Within six months, the release had been picked up by 35 magazines and generated 2,500 bingo-card inquiries.

      Post all your press releases in a media or press section of your website. Optimize your press releases with key word phrases to draw more organic search traffic.

    7. Do not overpay for outside creative talent. Hire freelancers and consultants whose credentials–and fees–fit the job and the budget.

      Top advertising photographers, for example, get $1,000 a day or more. This may be worth the fee for a corporate ad running in Forbes or Business Week. But it’s overkill for the employee newsletter or a publicity shot. Many competent photographers can shoot a good black-and-white publicity photo for $200 to $250.

      When you hire consultants, writers, artists, or photographers, you should look for someone whose level of expertise and cost fits the task at hand.

    8. Do it yourself. Tasks such as distributing press releases or creating simple squeeze pages can usually be done cheaper in-house than outside. Save the expensive agency or consultant for tasks that really require their expertise.

      If you do not have a marketing manager or assistant, consider hiring a full-time or part-time administrative assistant to handle the detail work involved in managing your company’s marketing. This is a more economical solution than farming administrative work out to the agency or doing it yourself.

    9. Get maximum mileage out of existing content (text and images). Photos, illustrations, layouts and even copy created for one promotion can often be lifted and reused in other pieces to significantly reduce creative costs. For example, copy created for a corporate image ad can be used as the introduction to the annual report.

      Also, you can save rough layouts, thumbnail sketches, headlines and concepts rejected for one project and use them in future ads, mailings and promotions.

    10. Pay your vendors on time. Why? You’ll save money by taking advantage of discounts and avoiding late charges when you pay vendor invoices on time. And, you’ll gain goodwill that can result in better service and fairer prices on future projects.

    Robert W. Bly has been an independent copywriter and marketing consultant for more than a quarter of a century. He has worked with more than 100 clients including Boardroom, Phillips, IBM, Nortel, Agora, Prentice Hall and Grumman. He is the author of more than 75 books. His most recent book, The Marketing Plan Handbook, from Entrepreneur Press, is available at all major bookstores.

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    admin <![CDATA[The Stimulus Plan: A Year Later]]> http://buwiz.com/the-stimulus-plan-a-year-later/ 2010-03-11T03:36:39Z 2010-03-11T03:36:39Z
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    Veronica Rose, founder and CEO of Aurora Electric, a Jamaica, N.Y., electrical contracting company, has spent nearly 20 years successfully bidding on government contracts. One of the first women to obtain a master electrician’s license in a heavily male-dominated industry, Rose has worked on major projects at JFK International Airport and the World Trade Center. Her seven-person firm boasts a customer list that includes General Electric, NBC and Columbia University.So how much of the $787 billion in stimulus money that the government approved last year has ended up in Aurora Electric’s bank account?

    “We haven’t seen any of it,” Rose says. “The stimulus money went to the big infrastructure companies that build highways and bridges–the bigger, deeper, heavier part of our industry where you have to be a big company in order to compete.”Aurora Electric is not alone. A year after the government rolled out the biggest economic stimulus plan in history, small businesses like Rose’s are wondering where the money went and why so little of it came their way. While VC-backed startups like Tesla Motors, the Palo Alto, Calif., company that makes electric cars, got a $465 million taxpayer loan, most of the stimulus dollars have ended up in the pockets of big companies that employ thousands of workers, not the millions of small businesses like Rose’s that each employ only a handful. In fact, much of the stimulus money has gone to government agencies, bypassing the private sector completely.

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    According to a recent analysis by The Wall Street Journal, $112 billion of the $179 billion in stimulus funds shelled out last year went to state governments to plug the gaps in education, Medicaid and unemployment benefits budgets or to boost funding for food stamps and other social services programs. An additional $700 million was spent on administration, and about $47 billion went toward transfer payments, such as $250 checks for Social Security recipients. Some $70 billion in social spending is in the pipeline already, the Journal reported, including grants for local organizations conducting job training programs.What’s more, ground has yet to be broken on many projects that were touted as “shovel-ready” as government agencies in charge of high-speed rail construction and electric vehicle initiatives struggle to get organized. Only about $20 billion was handed out for infrastructure projects in the first year of the stimulus plan, the Journal reported. Widely touted “signature” projects–such as $20 billion for doctors to create electronic medical records, $4.5 billion for an energy Smart Grid and $7.2 billion for broadband networks–are still in their early stages.But while small businesses saw only a trickle of stimulus money last year, better news is on the way in 2010 and 2011, stimulus experts say. Deniece Peterson, manager of industry analysis at INPUT Inc., a Reston, Va., market research firm that analyzes government spending, says that roughly $6 billion of the $21 billion earmarked for businesses that contract with the federal government either directly or through a partner has been set aside for small businesses, defined by the SBA as businesses that employ 500 workers or fewer. Most of that money will go toward businesses in infrastructure-related industries such as construction, engineering, environmental services, and research and development.
     
    “The industries that will benefit the most from the stimulus program are the ones that have the biggest job-creation impact and are aligned with President Obama’s priorities,” Peterson says.One of the reasons why the stimulus funds have been slow to reach small businesses, Peterson says, is because much of the money went to state governments that have yet to parcel it out. While companies that work directly with the federal government should start seeing money faster, many of the federal projects are still tied up in red tape and could take a year or longer to get started.”We’re seeing 2010 and 2011 as the years when the bulk of the money will start flowing,” Peterson says. “The government is actually doing a good job of spending the money quickly.”But for small businesses in retail or service industries not related to construction or infrastructure, the stimulus package won’t offer much relief this year or next.”The biggest losers of the stimulus program have been the traditional mom-and-pop businesses, and that’s been borne out by all the ‘For Lease’ signs along the main streets of America,” says Bob Coleman, editor of The Coleman Report and an SBA lending expert. Although the stimulus plan increased the SBA’s 7(a) loan guarantees to 90 percent of a qualifying loan and temporarily cut or eliminated fees, banks are still leery of lending to small businesses. According to a U.S. Treasury Department report released in January, the nation’s largest banks cut their small-business loan balances by another $1 billion in November 2009, marking the seventh straight month of declines. The banks’ total lending fell 4.6 percent in that seven-month period to $256.8 billion, the Treasury Department said.”The banks are picking the winners and the losers,” Coleman says. “When you have General Motors and Chrysler in trouble, who can the bankers really trust?”What about local car dealers who saw sales skyrocket last year when the government’s Cash for Clunkers program gave consumers up to $4,500 for their trade-ins? “All that did was accelerate future purchases,” Coleman says. “If you look at restaurants and hotels, there’s still too much supply compared to the weak consumer demand.”If the majority of small-business owners are to see any benefit from the government’s stimulus program, however, it’s likely to come in the form of an increase in SBA-backed loans, which now appear to be on the upswing. Despite the big banks’ reluctance to lend to small businesses, the SBA’s 7(a) lending program guaranteed 12,393 loans for a total of $3.8 billion in the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2009, a 37 percent increase from a year ago at the height of the financial crisis. On Feb. 22, the SBA reactivated the queues for Recovery Act loan applications, the applications that were conditionally approved by the SBA while awaiting the availability of additional Recovery Act funds.”We’ve seen some lending interest from banks this year, but the terms are more expensive and have made us cautious as we evaluate the best options,” says Sanjyot Dunung of Atma Global, Inc., a small New York City multimedia education publisher. “Even with personal guarantees and the SBA guarantee, it still seems that there are fewer options for firms in our industry.”

    Dunung says that she would like to see the SBA start lending directly to businesses, similar to the way the government runs its student-loan program. “This would make the process more streamlined, faster, and likely provide for better terms for firms like ours,” she says.For small contractors like Veronica Rose of Aurora Electric, who had hoped for a shot at some stimulus money, it’s back to business as usual. Rose says her firm is currently working on a large government project she originally bid on in 2005 in addition to smaller projects for customers that her firm has been working with for years.”It’s like the bailout,” she says. “Most of the money will go to the big guys.”

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    john <![CDATA[Should Your Idea Pass Go?]]> http://buwiz.com/should-your-idea-pass-go/ 2010-03-11T03:36:35Z 2010-03-11T03:36:35Z
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    BuWiz.CoM:

    A die-hard belief in one’s business or product has been the key to the success of many entrepreneurs and inventors. Generally speaking, I’m a strong advocate for determination and action, and the press is filled with stories of successful entrepreneurs who refused to give up. Less well-publicized are the opportunities entrepreneurs decided to pass up. So how do you know when it’s time to let go of an idea or invention?

    Frankly, most inventions, and most new business ideas for that matter, should not “pass go”–not because the ideas are not creative, clever or innovative, but because there is no market to support them. I’ve met many inventors who have filed a patent and handed thousands of dollars to an invention promotion company only to wonder if the invention was worth the money and effort.

    So inventors and new entrepreneurs should ask themselves if they are willing to change their minds if necessary. It’s important to be willing to change your mind for two reasons. First, in today’s economy, people who are seeking a new way to generate income cannot afford to waste time or money. Launching an invention can cost thousands of dollars and years of effort. If something is not going to work, it’s best discovered early in the process.

    Second, when you enter the process with a willingness to change your mind, once you have concluded that the idea is indeed worth pursuing, you can do so with all the more conviction.Don’t be afraid to find out that you should not pursue your new idea. Inventors and entrepreneurs are innovative by nature. If you need to dismiss one idea, there is probably another waiting in the wings of your mind for a chance to take the stage.So how, you might ask, does one pursue an invention with conviction yet remain willing to abandon it at any time? The answer is research and planning.

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    Here are some tips I recommend for any new invention or business:

    1. Become a student of the industry you are going into. Visit the industry trade association website, identify the main trade publications and talk to people in the industry. Find out which products or companies are doing well and which are not. Ask about products that are similar to yours or companies that could be competitive, and identify prospective partners. It is amazing how quickly critical information can be learned and how with a casual conversation you can find out that there is little or no demand for your much-labored invention.
    2. Gather as much information you can about your product. This includes what similar products exist, issues around the materials that may be used, safety issues relevant to your invention, likely costs to produce the product, and related patents that have been issued.
    3. Identify your goals and limitations. Do you want to develop and sell your product yourself, or would you prefer to license it (i.e., selling your idea to a manufacturer)? If licensing is not an option, are you prepared to make and sell it yourself?
    4. Write a one-page business plan. It is possible to write a plan after the invention is launched. However, people buy products, not inventions, and selling products is a business. It should not be surprising that the most successful inventors have written business plans. This is because they have clearly articulated their goals, customers, strategies and action steps.

    If you have gone through these steps and feel that the path is not clear, then you may decide to move on to your next idea. On the other hand, if the decision is to proceed, you will be doing so with tremendous confidence and the advantage this critical thinking has afforded you.

    Tamara Monosoff is the founder and CEO of mominvented.com, where entrepreneurs get information and inspiration to turn their ideas into successful businesses. Tamara is the author of The Mom Inventors Handbook, Secrets of Millionaire Moms and co-author of  The One Page Business Plan for Women in Business.

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    admin <![CDATA[Pique Interests With a Sample]]> http://buwiz.com/pique-interests-with-a-sample/ 2010-03-10T02:57:31Z 2010-03-10T02:57:31Z By Barbara Findlay SchenckLast December, a group of noted New York City architects, designers and contractors made news, friends and client contacts when they gave away half-hour design consultations to anyone who wandered into their one-of-a-kind Pop Up Design Clinic in the SoHo neighborhood."We put competition aside, divvied up the outlay of time and money, and for 10 days we provided design as a public service," clinic co-host Edward Gavagan of PraxisNYC explains. "Because it was free, anyone could sample it."Poonam Khanna, an architect who collaborated to host the clinic, adds, "We wanted to bring high-end design to a wider audience in a fun, accessible environment. Related posts:
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    BuWiz.CoM:


    Business on MainBy Barbara Findlay SchenckLast December, a group of noted New York City architects, designers and contractors made news, friends and client contacts when they gave away half-hour design consultations to anyone who wandered into their one-of-a-kind Pop Up Design Clinic in the SoHo neighborhood.”We put competition aside, divvied up the outlay of time and money, and for 10 days we provided design as a public service,” clinic co-host Edward Gavagan of PraxisNYC explains. “Because it was free, anyone could sample it.”Poonam Khanna, an architect who collaborated to host the clinic, adds, “We wanted to bring high-end design to a wider audience in a fun, accessible environment. Our clients varied greatly. There was a wonderful cross section of ages, gender, ethnicity and economic backgrounds.”

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    Sampling overcomes fear of the unknown
    The Pop Up Design Clinic booked more than 170 appointments. “Some clients needed spur-of-the-moment help following floods or fires,” Gavagan says. “Others saw the clinic and had an ‘aha’ moment, realizing they could get help improving a situation they otherwise may have left unaddressed. The clinic let them see that architectural and design service isn’t intimidating or wasteful.”With that statement, Gavagan sums up the value of product sampling.When people are uncertain about what something will cost, what the customer-business relationship will be like, or what they’ll get in return for their time and money, they do nothing, or they revert to a familiar solution even if it’s less than ideal.Samples lead people past their hesitation. It’s why department stores have dressing rooms, auto dealers offer test drives, software companies give limited-service free access, media outlets offer complementary subscriptions, and museums host free-admission days. Try it, they’re basically saying, you’ll like it.The Pop Up Design Clinic is proof you can shrink even the most intangible and customizable offerings down to sample size.Know when to sell and when to sample
    A key to sampling success is to know when to give away your product in order to inspire new business and when to stick to the profitable activity of selling what you have to offer.”We hosted the clinic during an otherwise slow time in our industry,” Gavagan says. “Plus, people don’t usually start major design projects right before the holidays.” In other words, the clinic generated buzz without bumping paid business. That’s good timing advice to follow.Know the difference between a client and a contacta
    “Many of the Pop Up Design Clinic clients weren’t prospects for our businesses because their projects don’t fit the scale of what we do,” Gavagan says. For that reason, not all contacts were future business prospects. “It was still productive, because we could provide a public service while gaining attention for our industry and businesses,” he adds.That doesn’t mean, though, that sampling doesn’t lead to new business. For one, hundreds of business cards and good impressions were carried away from the clinic, and in a world where word of mouth rules, that alone made the effort productive. Articles in The New York Times and Interior Design Magazine were another bonus.Further, the clinic offered a menu of follow-up design services available for fees ranging from a site visit for $250 to $10,000 for a preconstruction package that includes a schematic design, preliminary budget and schedule, and measured drawings and specs. The menu, Gavagan says, was a “huge hit.”More good advice to marketers: If you’re going to sample, build publicity around the effort and prompt follow-up business by promoting easy-to-understand introductory package offers.Make a great impression
    Gavagan gives the following advice to those who decide to sample their offerings:

    • Find a great space
    • Time it so it matches market interest and your business cycle
    • Make it affordable and accessible
    • Make it useful and intriguing
    • Attract a wide range of people, including some who match the scale of your established clientele so you’re developing prospective new business
    • Promote follow-up offers

    He adds a final piece of advice, which I second: Have fun. After all, you’re giving away your offering, so make it enjoyable for yourself and those you’re introducing to your business.
     
    Barbara Findlay Schenck is a small-business strategist, the author of “Small Business Marketing for Dummies” and the co-author of “Branding for Dummies,” “Selling Your Business for Dummies” and “Business Plans Kit for Dummies.”

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    john <![CDATA[Why Isn’t My Company Making Money?]]> http://buwiz.com/why-isnt-my-company-making-money/ 2010-03-10T02:57:27Z 2010-03-10T02:57:27Z
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    BuWiz.CoM:

    Some people are in business to save the planet or share their unique gifts with the world. Some people are in business just to make money. Either way, whatever a business does, it succeeds by making money.So let’s forget about social value, put aside purpose and look at a simple question: How do I make money in my business?For most business owners, the answer is simple: We only get what we want if we manage it consciously. Do you manage your company’s money every day, every week and every month? Whether you’re hard-driving with huge goals or you just want to see results improve a bit, a simple plan and a bit of attention will go a long way.If we don’t make a money plan and track it daily or weekly, then our subconscious attitudes and assumptions will manage our work, time and money. That will keep us locked in at the same level of profit–and net revenue–month after month.

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    When things are going well, you put on the brakes and go easy on yourself. You do that each week. You push when it’s slow; you ease up when you are doing well. That’s exactly the mentality that limits your business’s potential.And results never improve.That’s the problem. What’s the solution? Make a plan, track work, income and expenses daily or weekly, define the work, and track progress monthly.1. Make a plan.
    Your money plan can be a simple Excel spreadsheet. The key is to link work activities to income. What does each employee do that makes money? What do you sell?

    If you sell products, then you need to make individual sales projections. If you sell flat-rate services, then you need to track contracts closed and the dollar value of each contract.

    If you sell hourly services, then you need to track contracts closed and billable hours. The basics are:

    • Set up goals and consequences. Let each team member know what they contribute to the team, and make sure they get incentives. Whatever is good for the business has to be good for the employee. Incentives include recognition, thanks, appreciation and, of course, more money.
    • Give each team member a choice. Set a range, with a low goal and a high goal, and provide tangible incentives for achieving the high goal. This gives the employee a sense of control. During a good month, they make the high goal. During a month when their kids get sick a lot, they still know what they need to do to satisfy you and be secure in their jobs. When people feel safe but also have an opportunity to contribute to get more, they are highly motivated.
    • Avoid de-motivators. Keep distractions away from your team. If team members are worried they aren’t doing well enough, or that the company isn’t doing well enough, they won’t work well. If they feel threatened, they won’t do well. If there are unclear expectations about some part of their job, it will cut into their work time. So give everyone a clear job description and let them go for it!

    2. Track work and income daily or weekly.
    Check in weekly. Each week, track employees’ time and numbers with them. Ask how things are going and how they can do better. Don’t pile on pressure. Do be clear, encouraging and specific. Look at the work in relation to the plan. This is key. Don’t look at work in relation to interruptions or excuses, or anything else.

    Begin with a clear commitment and, in a no-blame environment, take an honest look at the gap between the plan and actual achievement. If the team member isn’t meeting the goals, find out why.

    When you find the cause, determine if it’s a one-time thing or if it will happen again. If a blizzard buried your town or the guy was off on his honeymoon, then let it go and get back to work. But what if the cause of the problem is ongoing?

    This is when you need to decide whether the cause of the problem is in your control, under your influence or outside your influence entirely? Then begin working to fix things that are either in your control or under your influence. If it’s out of your control, accept what you cannot change and figure out what you can do to reach your goals.

    Sometimes the solution will be obvious and practical. Other times, you’ll have to get creative. Do whatever it takes!
    4. Define all the work.
    Employees who aren’t in sales may not be adding to revenue, but they’re affecting the bottom line. Every team member contributes to delivering value to customers, reducing cost or reducing risk.

    Find the critical success factor that each employee contributes to the company. For example:

    • A marketing assistant may send out notices, announcements and ads that increase business.
    • Your tax accountant reduces your taxes.
    • A security guard prevents break-ins, thefts and attacks on employees.

    When critical activities are defined, it makes the employee’s job worthwhile. This is not a job description to file with HR. This is a tool that the team member uses daily to stay focused and that you review with them to help them improve and add more value.5. Track expenses daily or weekly.
    Too many businesses let their financial information pile up in a shoebox until the end of the year and then hand it to an accountant. Money is the lifeblood of a business, and you should be taking your financial blood pressure on at least a weekly basis. How much money are you spending? How does that compare to your plan? Are you spending the way you planned to spend? If you know the answer to those questions weekly, you can correct course and speed, and reach your destination.6. Track progress monthly.
    The final step of this plan is checking progress–or income–monthly. Ask yourself what you can do to earn more and spend less, and how you can deliver results sooner and get paid faster. As you keep finding ways to improve in these areas, you’ll build momentum and reach greater net revenue sooner.Businesses succeed by linking each job to earning money, reducing cost, delivering better results sooner or reducing risk. Motivate your team members by letting them know that what they do matters. Then show them how to make more of a difference, week by week and month by month.Do this and you won’t just meet your goals–you’ll exceed them.


    Sid Kemp is president of Sid Kemp Enterprises, the premiere solution for small business problems. Kemp’s consulting services help small-business owners solve problems and improve profitability fast, leading to long-term success. Kemp is the author of the Amazon.com bestseller Ultimate Guide to Project Management for Small Business  and eight other business success books. Kemp is an author, motivational speaker, trainer, consultant and executive coach–he’ll do whatever he can to help you “Fix Your Business.”

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    admin <![CDATA[Give ‘Em Something to Crave]]> http://buwiz.com/give-em-something-to-crave/ 2010-03-10T02:57:01Z 2010-03-10T02:57:01Z
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    BuWiz.CoM:

    A tour through the New Belgium Brewing Company’s sunny, Fort Collins, Colo., headquarters starts with an invitation to taste what the company’s all about–literally.”We’re going to drink five beers this size over the course of the tour,” says tour guide Marie Kirkpatrick as she passes around 4-ounce glasses of spiced ale to the dozen or so visitors. “Is everyone OK with that?”Over the next hour and a half, visitors will not only get to taste five craft beers brewed on site, but also peer into the giant canisters where barley is cooked into beer, smell the fruit peels and spices that flavor the brews, and go for a ride down the corkscrew slide meant to remind employees to have fun.

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    Though the wine industry was the first to capitalize on the concept of the “experience economy” –the idea that consumers crave experiences rather than just products or services–entrepreneurs in a variety of fields are now finding success by opening their doors and inviting customers to see, smell, hear and touch their wares.Here’s how to incorporate the concept into your own business:

    1. Understand that work is theater. Joe Pine, co-founder of Strategic Horizons and co-author of The Experience Economy, says entrepreneurs should view employees as actors capable of engaging a very specific audience: consumers. He says Robert Stephens understood this when he had employees at his computer repair company wear dweeby-looking white shirts and black ties when they made house calls. Best Buy acquired Stephens’ Geek Squad in 2002, and Pine says the squad’s success carries important lessons for entrepreneurs looking to sell their business one day.

      “Stephens said he wanted to make the computer repair experience so engaging that customers couldn’t wait until their computers broke,” Pine says. According to Pine, entrepreneurs who achieve that standard will likely enjoy a strong following through word-of-mouth advertising. “Stephens once said that ‘advertising is a tax you pay for being unremarkable,’” Pine says.

    2. Open your doors. When Celestial Seasonings built its new tea factory in Boulder, Colo., in 1990, guest relations ambassador Steve Spencer made sure he organized a tour that highlighted every aspect of the tea-making process, from the milling of the herbs to the cellophaning and heat-sealing of tea boxes. Two decades later, the all-natural tea manufacturer, known for cult-favorite herbal blends like Sleepytime and Red Zinger, now attracts more than 120,000 visitors per year with its free tours, making the tea factory the No. 2 stand-alone tourist attraction in Boulder. “People come here because they want to see that we are who they think we are,” Spencer says. “And when they’re able to do that, it enhances brand loyalty the way nothing else can.”
    3. Tell a story. Most entrepreneurs have an interesting and highly personal story behind their decision to launch their business, but many forget to share that story with customers. On New Belgium Brewing Company’s tours, visitors learn the tale of founder Jeff Lebesch, an electrical engineer with a home-brewing hobby. Lebesch traveled through Belgium on his mountain bike in 1989 and returned home with a plan to open his own brewery. The name of New Belgium’s signature Fat Tire Amber Ale is a reference to his mountain bike. In the beginning, Lebesch’s wife, Kim Jordan (now New Belgium CEO), handled marketing and finances, and his neighbor, a painter, designed the iconic label art.

      “It’s a romantic story of a young man riding his bike in a foreign country and a young couple who made a sort of scary entrepreneurial leap to make a dream into a reality,” says New Belgium spokesman Bryan Simpson. “That story is key to who we are, so we think it’s important to share it.”

      Similarly, Celestial Seasonings, which was acquired by the Hain Food Group in 2000, starts its tours by telling the story of how Mo Siegel founded the company in 1969 by harvesting fresh herbs from the Rocky Mountains by hand, packaging them in hand-sewn muslin bags and selling them at local health food stores. It reminds visitors that “Celestial Seasonings is a classic entrepreneurial success, not a corporate concept,” Spencer says.

    4. Let consumers taste. And smell. And touch. Visitors spend most of their Celestial Seasonings tour time on the factory floor, where they can feel their eyes water and nostrils burn in the pungently scented mint room, watch the robotic palletizer lift and package stacks of tea boxes, and smell lemongrass, hibiscus, cloves and other ingredients during the milling process.

      “It’s all about that multisensory experience,” Spencer says.

      Pine says ambitious entrepreneurs can step it up a notch by taking cues from Cabela’s, the outdoor superstore whose Nebraska headquarters offers a host of amenities above and beyond its retail offerings, like an indoor archery range and museum-quality animal displays. 

    5. Make shopping fun. Small internet and packaging upgrades can make a big difference in creating a fun purchasing experience. “Is there a casual game you can add to your website to get people to spend more time there?” Pine asks. “Is there a way you can improve your box-opening experience? People wax poetic about Apple’s box-opening experience when they buy their MacBooks and iPhones.”

      Spencer says Celestial Seasonings pays close attention to its packaging, inscribing inspirational quotes and commissioning independent illustrators to design whimsical drawings for each box. “The final product is more than the sum of its parts,” Spencer says. “People are enamored with our brand because of the flavor, but also because of the whimsy and inspiration.”

    6. Throw a party. New Belgium has strengthened brand loyalty by hosting events across the country, such as the Tour de Fat, a traveling bike festival and parade now held in eleven cities. “In the industry we’re in, people tend to choose two or three brands that they’re very loyal to, and then do some sampling of other brands,” Simpson says. “To be one of those two or three brands, you really have to stand out. And the experiential stuff is where our brand–our culture–really comes to life for people.”

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