Small Business Tips

Some employers are using the Internet to check up on potential employees before making hiring decisions, but did you realize that potential clients could be checking up on small business owners, too? Making sure you know what is being said about you and your company on the Internet should be a regular part of your business activities. Use these three tips to keep track of your online brand.

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Summer is almost over, but it's not too late to implement these 3 summer business building tips. This Monday Marketing Moment offers tips to keep your sales high during the hottest months of the year. For many small business owners, summer represents a slump in sales. Many of our potential customers are more interested in vacations and outdoor activities than in office meetings and store visits. Rather than let your sales suffer, follow these 3 business building tips to give your company a boost this summer.

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Today I have the pleasure of posting 16 small business tips learned from the Donald Trump Entrepreneur Expo in August 2010. Journalist Marcie Hill of The Write Design Company was in attendance and allowed us to reprint her notes. These common sense tips will surely take your business to the next level.

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Today's tips are a result of a question received about attracting a certain type of consumer. While the answer is specific to the massage industry, it can be applied across a variety of businesses. Question: I have a friend who's starting out as a massage therapist. How can he position himself as a source for upscale clientele? Answer: If your friend wants to position himself as a massage therapist for upscale clients, he should perform the following tasks.

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Small business owners love clients. They are the lifeblood of the company and ensure that employees are paid and the office lights are kept on. However, there are some customers that entrepreneurs can do without. Are you one of them? Read on for the top 5 small business pet peeves and how to avoid them.

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Can you believe that half the year is almost over? It feels like yesterday when we were writing out our business goals for 2010. Here are a few tips for maximizing the rest of your year.

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This is a quick tip for the solo entrepreneurs out there. As a sole proprietor myself, I understand how passionate and attached one can feel to a business.

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Okay, the title of this article may be a bit harsh, but I still urge you to rethink your small business' use of flashing text, scrolling photos and music as the first things potential customers see on your web site. Remember, your site visitors are coming to you web site to learn about your products and services, not to be entertained by your logo dancing across the screen. Here are a few questions to consider before asking your web designer to create a Flash intro for your site:

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Our partner web site, Inspired Graphics Media, is now offering paid project referrals for all marketing strategy and design work. For every paid project referral, Inspired Graphics Media will give you a $25 gift card to a vendor of your choice on http://www.giftcardmall.com. This site has cards for clothes, cash, movies, music and more.

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Last week, we talked about meeting a consumer's unmet need with your product or service. You may have been left wondering - who is this "consumer" person, and how do I reach him or her? Generally speaking, a consumer is someone who uses goods or services. What your business is most interested in is finding its target consumer - that group of people who is both interested in your product or service and willing to purchase it.

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For many new small business owners, one of the hardest things to figure out is pricing. This is especially true for service-based businesses that charge by the hour. I know I've been kept up at night after sending off a proposal wondering whether I charged too little or too much. I say no more of this. I declare 2010 the year to stop second-guessing your pricing plan.

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For many small business owners, creating an online store is a natural step in their business growth. Perhaps you own a brick and mortar clothing boutique and are ready to expand your client base worldwide, or maybe you’re a new business owner who will sell your products exclusively on the Internet. Either way, you should follow a detailed plan to get your store up and running. While selling on the Internet can seem intimidating, it doesn’t have to be. Continue reading as we cover four key steps, from registering your domain name to creating a credit card processing account, that will get your online store open for business in no time.

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Have you ever been in need of an image for brochure or website but thought you couldn't afford a professional image? Think again! There are many online options that make professional images an extremely attractive option these days.

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In addition to finding a professional, affordable web site designer, securing a web host is another crucial step in the web site design process. A web host is a company that stores your web site's files. All the pages you see on the net are a collection of pages stored in an online folder. You pay a web host to store your files in its online folder. Having a reliable web host is crucial to your business. Everytime you send a potential or current client to your site, you need it to be up and running error-free. Since this is so important, we have listed a few guidelines in selecting a reliable web host.

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How can we achieve that ever elusive work-life balance?

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When you are selling a product online, good photos are crucial. The pictures on your web site will probably be the only chance a customer gets to see your products up close prior to purchase. It’s important that they look good. The best option is to hire a professional photographer, …

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