BizOp Blogs

BBC News: One of the big issues for ambitious small firms looking to grow is how to attract new customers. You know you have a great product, or offer a good service, but how do you best make yourself known to would-be buyers? Here Ganesh Selvarajah, an advisor at Business Link, the government-funded... More

BusinessWeek: 1. Keep Selling. Purchasing agents are reporting sharp drops in weekly sales calls across many industries, Rauseo says. That means less competition for your products or services. “It’s easier to get a commission-only sales force going today” with so many individuals looking... More

Financial Post: The recession has become the consuming priority for small business owners, who don’t have the clout to lobby government for billion-dollar bailouts. But help is out there. Just look at this press release that was received the other day at my friend’s uncle’s cousin’s... More

seattlepi.nwsource: * Clear, unrelenting focus around purpose and goals. * Flexibility and openness to new approaches, roles and ways of getting work done. * A climate of learning, creativity and a proactive approach to finding opportunities to improve (even when stressed). * Trust, cooperation and... More

smSmallBiz: Slash Expenses Streamlining your business can help you stay in the black even when customers make fewer purchases. Be sure to call in overdue accounts receivables, sell off unsold inventory and analyze expenses such as office space, supplies and even your company’s phone bills. “Cut... 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

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

East Valley Tribune: “Going Green” is a hot topic and one of the most popular places in town to talk about how to do it is Green Drinks. Green Drinks is a social gathering for “people interested in the planet,” according to event organizers at a.k.a. Green, a building and resource... More

BusinessKnowHow: 1. Obtain free or low cost business cards at a company such as www.VistaPrint.com. 2. Have a new or rebuilt shopping center opening in your town? Attend the grand opening and chat with the business owners and staff and hand out your free or low cost business cards. 3. Create flyers... More

5 tax-specific benefits that make the 401(k) a smart choice for any small business. Forbes.com: 1. Tax credits make it easy to get started: Businesses with fewer than 100 employees, but at least one besides the owner, qualify for a $500 tax credit to offset the administrative costs of the plan for each... More

Franchising.com: HR executives observe that the two most challenging groups of workers to retain are those at the beginning and those at the end of their careers. Each group requires a unique set of strategies to get them to stay put, according to MRINetwork, the world’s largest search and recruitment... More

It may sound almost axiomatic, but a hugfe part of growing your buisiness is positioning it well in the market place. By “positioning,” I mean distinguishing your business from the competition to be sure you have a preferred place in your target customer’s mind. Christine Comaford-Lynch,... More

Many small business owners face the dilemma of adding employees to their payroll versus contracting the job with an outside source. It is an important decision, and one which should be made only after weighing all of the factors on both sides. Darrell Zahorsky wrote a good article posing the pros and... More