Featured Business Guidance Articles

Recovery at Hand for Small U.S. Businesses?

Owners of small U.S. businesses don’t seem to be experiencing an economic rebound. Not by a long shot. They also appear to have little confidence that better times are near. This is in contrast to both public equities (i.e., the “stock market”) run that continues unabated and regular media reports of improvements in global macroeconomic indicators. Here are excerpts from the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) January 2010 survey of U.S. business owners (2010 Small Business Economic Trends Report).“2009 did not end on an uplifting note,” reads the January 2010 Small Business Economic Trends report issued by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).

Tax Tips for Business Owners

Though the tax-filing deadline is near, there’s no need to panic. You still have time to employ some smart strategies and avoid common problems and hassles. The tax experts at Grant Thornton provide the following suggestions and reminders.

Get Your Story Told!

Every business must create awareness. How else do you get your phone to ring? But doing so is tough. Advertising is E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E. Free publicity is the ticket, of course, but how do you get it? Sure, you can hire a PR firm to work its magic, but that’s expensive, too, and results are not guaranteed. How can a business get press coverage without hiring a PR firm?

Latest from The Business Owner Blog

Why Business Owners Should Watch the Super Bowl

“Want to compare yourself to someone, make it someone great,” my father used to say. Okay, maybe I should compare myself to a winning football coach, such as Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints. After all, a professional sports team is a business.

Free Fraud Prevention Webinar for Business Owners

A leading cause of business failure in the U.S. is employee theft.1 Organizations lose 5% of their revenue to fraud.2 Small businesses suffer disproportionately2 and the perpetrator is typically a “most trusted” employee. One in twenty-five employees are sociopaths and looking for opportunities to swindle you.

Let Them Be Distracted

The great news for you is, odds are, your competitors are not hitting on all cylinders. It’s just not the real world. The really well functioning teams are the extreme exception, not the norm.
You remember. You worked for a variety of companies before you became owner. Were they well functioning or did they survive, somehow, despite themselves?