BizOp Blogs

MarketWatch: 1. Triage payments Make a list of all payments due for the next three months. Give payroll priority and see what else you can negotiate to pay later. You may be able to slide with utilities; subcontractors can often be persuaded to wait a bit. 2. Accelerate collections Call customers to... More

BusinessWeek: Can developing free software for mobile phones be a business? It can if you’re Illusion Labs, a fledgling company in the Swedish port city of Malmö. Illusion Labs was started a year ago by Carl Loodberg and Andreas Alptun, who had worked together at another Swedish company called... More

Canadian Entrepreneur: * Critical thinking: Learn to question everything, to look for alternative solutions. Find the weaknesses in other people’s ideas and plans. Learn to articulate what is wrong with them and why things should be different. * Understand strategy: Strategy is a consistent process... More

PR Web: Few people understand the effect of increased expenses during the summer better than stay-at-home parents. The kids are home from school and living in-house which means higher grocery and utility bills. In addition, what follows is the end-of-summer woe otherwise known as back-to-school shopping.... More

Corsavoo.com: A business plan is a necessity for obtaining business startup loans and funding for your business. Without one, most banks and investors will not even consider providing you with business startup loans or other funding for your new business. But a business plan provides more than just... More

Meryl.net: 1. Listen. Sounds obvious, but freelancers might not understand the client’s request and start working on the project without understanding what the client said. It’s OK to ask for clarification. Better to ask and get it right the first time than produce something off target and have... More

SmallBusinessTrends: 1. The Nine and Zero Effect. People associate the number nine with value and zero with quality. Look at the difference between fast food and a gourmet restaurant. A burger meal can sell for about $4.99 while a gourmet entree at the best place in town may go for $30. So the psychology... More

Get Entrepreneurial: 1. Embrace change. It’s an inevitable part of running a business. Rather than fighting it, wasting valuable time and eventually losing, you’re better off anticipating, planning for, and embracing change. As a small business owner you should be nimble and react quickly... More

Internet Mastery Marketing Blog: Manage Your Cash Flow What do online entrepreneurs, freelance writers, real estate agents, virtual assistants, and plumbers all have in common? We face periods of uneven cash flow. To ensure that you always have money reserves, be sure to develop a budget that allows... More

Fortune Small Business: Question: Our current Web site, fusedsolutions.com, does an okay job of portraying the appropriate information to those that get there, but unfortunately not many get there. Can you please give us a few tips on how to get our site to the top of search lists and build substantial... More

CRM Buyer: Have you been bumped from a flight? Belittled by a hotel clerk? Or stewed in a doctor’s waiting room? Then Rupert Barkoff wants to hear all about it. By day, Barkoff is a lawyer at Kilpatrick Stockton in Atlanta and a national expert on business franchising. But his hobby — his... More

U.S. News & World Report: Running a small business can be a life-consuming process, so sometimes small-business owners miss the forest for the trees. Maybe that’s why only about 16 percent of businesses with fewer than 50 employees in the United States have 401(k) plans. Small-business owners... More

RisMedia.com: With so many Realtors facing a more challenging market, the agents who best differentiate themselves, will be the ones to ultimately lead the pack and obtain the most business. To get started, here are a few tips from Simon Payn, founder of Ready to Go Newsletters, for agents who are looking... More

HollandSentinel.com: Some tips for helping find success with a small business: * Networking. Social networking sites are a great way to connect with other small-business owners who understand the issues you’re facing every day and to secure strong contacts before starting your business. * Business... More