The reasoning behind this explosion is easy to understand. Launching a business is more accessible than ever before, and the remote-first business world is accommodating to enterprises of all sizes.

Getting a business off the ground may be easier than ever. But beating the bigger competition has become more difficult. Surviving and thriving against bigger, more established companies is particularly challenging.

If you have a successful small business, here are several tools, tactics, and strategies to equip your company to run with the big dogs.

1. Use Tech to Consolidate Your Work

Technology is powerful. Workflow platforms have made it easier to track a team’s activity. Artificial intelligence has made it possible to generate text and automate workflows.

The problem with a small business trying to utilize the endless stream of tech solutions is that it can quickly become as big of a burden as any other business activity. An out-of-control tech stack can be expensive and overwhelming to manage.

To combat this tendency, make sure to be targeted in your tech choices. Look for all-in-one solutions that integrate multiple tech needs into a single platform. Thryv, for instance, is a do-it-all small business tool that combines communication, business operations, and marketing into a single piece of software. This allows the tool to become a central hub for tech-based activity.

Don’t just invest in tech. Look for the tools that streamline and simplify your professional digital experience.

2. Always Specialize in Something

Remember, thriving in a big business world with bigger competition doesn’t mean you have to do everything a big business would do. On the contrary, as a small business owner, you have the luxury of focusing on details that are normally out of reach for a larger organization to address.

Chances are you’re already exceptional at something. That’s why you started your business, right? Consider what that is. The answer isn’t always obvious.

For instance, Walmart may be a gigantic retailer that focuses on product variety and low prices. But in its earliest days, the company’s strength was its sophisticated logistical systems. This legendary supply chain made it possible for Walmart to compete from the get-go.

What is it that your company does particularly well? Make sure to lean on that strength and let it set you apart.

3. Target Your Marketing Dollars

Marketing may be accessible. However, like tech tools, it can also become complex and expensive if you don’t have a plan.

Fortunately, the uniquely flexible element of digital marketing makes it easy to adapt to a marketing campaign of any size and scope. For instance, Nerdwallet recommends a variety of ways small businesses can effectively compete in the marketplace.

If you can’t afford a marketing budget at all, invest in some organic social media community building. You can also create clean, helpful, authoritative content that answers customer questions on your company blog.

If you find that you do have some money to spend, use it wisely. Pay-per-click ads, for example, are effective, but they are expensive. When they’re used on their own, they lead to limited results, too. Instead, invest in low-cost initiatives, like partnering with influencers or building and maintaining a curated email list.

As a small business, you should always target your marketing dollars. Remember that access doesn’t equal success. You need to spend every dollar and even every ounce of effort and energy wisely.

4. Focus on Retention

Retention is a big deal in any business. Retaining an existing company is famously more effective than investing in attracting new business.

Forbes Business Council member Saravana Kumar points out that the cost of getting a new customer can be as much as five times that of keeping one. To put it another way, just a 5% bump in retention can lead to as much as 95% greater profitability.

Larger companies can often ignore this principle. While they want to retain customers, their sheer size makes it easier to assume that their target demographics will gravitate toward them.

Not so with smaller businesses. If you’re a small business trying to compete with bigger competition, make sure to fight not just to get but to keep your customers. You can do this through personalization, better customer service, superior products — you name it. Just remember to fight for that precious customer loyalty. It’ll pay off.

Acting Like a Big Fish in a Big Pond

The modern business landscape is enormous. Whereas small businesses used to operate in geographically limited areas, the internet has created a global business landscape that even the smallest operations can access.

If you find that your company is getting crowded out by bigger competition, don’t give up. Regroup and strategize.

Use the tips above to perfect your offerings, consolidate your workflows, target your marketing, and increase brand loyalty. If you can do that, you can play the part of David as you square off against your industry’s Goliaths.

The post 4 Ways Your Small Business Can Run With the Big Dogs appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Conducting Market Research

Conducting market research is a foundational step in starting a small business. It arms you with the insights needed to make informed decisions and tailor your business to meet market demands effectively. Here’s how to approach market research in 11 simple steps:

1. Define Your Objectives: Clearly outline what you want to learn from your market research. This could include understanding customer needs, identifying market trends, or assessing the competitive landscape.
2. Identify Your Target Audience: Determine who your potential customers are based on demographics, behaviors, and preferences. This will help you tailor your research and ultimately your products or services to meet their needs.
3. Choose Your Research Methods: Decide on the most appropriate market research methods for your objectives. Surveys and interviews are great for gathering specific insights, while focus groups can provide deeper understanding through discussion. Analyzing industry reports and data can also offer valuable macro-level insights.
4. Develop Research Tools: Create the tools you need for your chosen research methods, such as survey questionnaires or interview guides, ensuring they are clear and concise to elicit useful responses.
5. Gather Data: Conduct your research by reaching out to potential customers and industry experts. Utilize online platforms for surveys to reach a broader audience efficiently.
6. Analyze Competitors: Study existing businesses in your proposed market. Identify their strengths and weaknesses, and look for opportunities where your business can fill a gap or offer something unique.
7. Analyze Industry Trends: Stay informed about the latest trends in your industry by reviewing trade publications, reports, and market analysis. This can help you predict future changes and position your business accordingly.
8. Evaluate Market Size and Potential: Estimate the size of your target market and assess its potential for growth. This will help you determine the viability of your business idea and guide your marketing and sales strategies.
9. Understand Legal and Regulatory Factors: Identify any legal or regulatory requirements affecting your industry. This includes licenses, permits, and any specific regulations you need to comply with.
10. Synthesize Your Findings: Compile and analyze the data you’ve collected to draw conclusions about your target market, competition, and industry trends. Look for patterns and insights that can inform your business strategy.
11. Apply Insights to Your Business Plan: Use the insights gained from your market research to refine your business plan. This should include tailoring your product or service offering, pricing strategy, marketing approach, and overall business model to better meet the needs of your target market.

Conducting thorough market research is time-consuming but essential. It not only validates your business idea but also enhances your understanding of the market environment, reducing risks and increasing the likelihood of your business’s success. Armed with detailed market insights, you can proceed with confidence, knowing that your business decisions are data-driven and aligned with market demands.

Crafting a Business Plan

A well-crafted business plan serves as a roadmap for your small business. It outlines your goals, strategies, and financial projections. A comprehensive business plan not only helps you clarify your vision but also serves as a crucial tool when seeking funding or partnerships.

When creating a business plan, consider including the following key elements:

1. Executive Summary: Provide an overview of your business, its mission, and its unique value proposition.
2. Company Description: Describe your business, its products or services, and your target market.
3. Market Analysis: Present your market research findings and demonstrate your understanding of industry trends and competition.
4. Organization and Management: Outline the organizational structure of your business and the roles of key team members.
5. Product or Service Line: Detail your offerings and highlight their unique features and benefits.
6. Sales and Marketing Strategy: Explain how you plan to attract and retain customers.
7. Funding Request: If you are seeking funding, clearly articulate your financial needs and how the funds will be used.
8. Financial Projections: Provide a detailed financial forecast, including income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements.
9. Appendix: Include any supporting documents, such as resumes, licenses, or permits.

Crafting a business plan requires careful research, analysis, and thoughtful consideration of various factors that may impact your business’s success. It is a living document that should be regularly reviewed and updated as your business evolves.

Securing Funding for Your Business

Securing adequate funding is often a crucial step in starting a small business. While some entrepreneurs may have personal savings to invest in their ventures, others may need to explore alternative funding options. Here are some common sources of funding for small businesses:

1. Self-Funding: Using personal savings or assets to finance your business.
2. Friends and Family: Seeking financial support from friends or family members.
3. Small Business Loans: Applying for loans from banks, credit unions, or online lenders.
4. Grants: Exploring government or private grants for specific industries or demographics.
5. Crowdfunding: Raising funds from a large number of people through online platforms.
6. Angel Investors: Attracting individual investors who provide capital in exchange for equity in your business.
7. Venture Capitalists: Seeking investment from professional investors who provide funding to startups with high growth potential.

When seeking funding, it is essential to have a well-prepared business plan, financial projections, and a clear understanding of your business’s financial needs. Researching different funding options and understanding the pros and cons of each can help you make informed decisions and increase your chances of securing the necessary capital.

Selecting the Perfect Business Location

Choosing the right business location is a critical decision that can significantly impact your success. Whether you are planning to establish a physical store or operate an online business, factors such as demographics, competition, infrastructure, and accessibility should be considered.

When evaluating potential locations, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is the location easily accessible to your target audience?
2. Are there competitors in the area, and if so, how can you differentiate yourself?
3. Does the location align with your brand image and target market?
4. What are the local regulations and zoning restrictions that may affect your business?
5. Is the infrastructure, such as utilities and transportation, reliable and suitable for your operations?

Conducting thorough research and visiting potential locations in person can provide valuable insights into the local market dynamics and help you make an informed decision.

Choosing the Right Business Structure

Choosing the right business structure is an important legal and financial decision. The structure you select will determine your tax obligations, personal liability, and the level of control you have over your business. Here are some common business structures:

1. Sole Proprietorship: A business owned and operated by a single individual. The owner is personally responsible for all business debts and obligations.
2. Partnership: A business owned by two or more individuals who share the profits, losses, and liabilities.
3. Limited Liability Company (LLC): A hybrid structure that provides the limited liability protection of a corporation with the flexibility and tax advantages of a partnership.
4. Corporation: A separate legal entity owned by shareholders. The corporation is responsible for its debts and obligations.
5. Cooperative: A business owned and operated by its members, who share the profits and decision-making responsibilities.

The right business structure for you will depend on factors such as the nature of your business, the number of owners, liability concerns, and tax implications. Consulting with a legal or financial professional can help you determine the most suitable structure for your small business.

Creating an Impactful Business Name

Choosing the right business name is crucial as it will become a significant part of your brand identity. A compelling and memorable business name can help differentiate your business from competitors and leave a lasting impression on customers. When selecting a business name, consider the following tips:

1. Reflect your brand: Your business name should align with your brand’s values and mission.
2. Make it memorable: Choose a name that is easy to remember and pronounce.
3. Consider SEO: Incorporate relevant keywords in your business name to improve search engine visibility.
4. Check availability: Conduct a thorough search to ensure that the name is not already in use or trademarked by another business.
5. Test it out: Get feedback from friends, family, or potential customers to gauge their perception of the name.

Once you have selected a business name, it is essential to register it to protect your brand and prevent others from using it. Registering your business name with the appropriate government authorities will also help establish your legal presence.

Registering Your Business

Registering your small business is a crucial step in establishing its legal identity. The registration process varies depending on your business structure and location. Here are some common registration requirements:

1. Obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN): An EIN is a unique identifier for your business and is required for various tax-related activities. You can obtain an EIN from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
2. Register with the Secretary of State: Depending on your business structure, you may need to register with the Secretary of State’s office in your state. This step is particularly important for corporations and LLCs.
3. Obtain the Necessary Licenses and Permits: Depending on your industry and location, you may need to obtain specific licenses and permits to operate legally. Research the requirements for your business type and comply with all relevant regulations.
4. Register for State and Local Taxes: Familiarize yourself with the tax obligations for your business, including sales tax, payroll tax, and other applicable taxes. Register with the appropriate state and local tax authorities to ensure compliance.

By completing the necessary registration steps, you can establish your business’s legal presence, protect your brand, and comply with regulatory requirements.

Obtaining Federal and State Tax IDs

Obtaining the necessary federal and state tax identification numbers is essential for your small business’s financial operations. These identification numbers are used to track and report your business’s tax obligations. The primary tax identification number is the Employer Identification Number (EIN), which is issued by the IRS.

To obtain an EIN, you can apply online through the IRS website or submit a paper application. Depending on your business structure, you may also need to obtain state tax identification numbers, such as a state employer identification number or a sales tax permit.

It is crucial to understand your tax obligations and comply with all federal, state, and local tax laws. Failing to do so can result in penalties, fines, and legal consequences. Consult with a tax professional to ensure that you understand your tax responsibilities and meet all reporting requirements.

Acquiring the Necessary Licenses and Permits

Obtaining the necessary licenses and permits is an important step in starting your small business. Licensing requirements vary depending on your business type, industry, and location. Failure to obtain the required licenses and permits can result in fines, closure of your business, or other legal consequences.

Research the licensing and permit requirements for your specific industry and location. Common licenses and permits include:

1. Business License: A general license that grants permission to operate a business within a specific jurisdiction.
2. Professional License: Required for certain professions, such as doctors, lawyers, or contractors.
3. Health and Safety Permits: Required for businesses that handle food, hazardous materials, or provide health-related services.
4. Zoning Permits: Ensure that your business location complies with local zoning regulations.
5. Environmental Permits: Required for businesses that may impact the environment, such as manufacturing or waste management.

Contact your local government authorities or visit their websites to determine the specific licenses and permits required for your business. Compliance with all licensing and permit requirements is essential to operate legally and maintain the trust of your customers.

Setting Up a Business Bank Account

Opening a business bank account is crucial for managing your small business’s finances effectively. A separate bank account for your business allows you to keep personal and business finances separate, simplifies accounting and tax reporting, and enhances financial transparency.

To open a business bank account, follow these steps:

1. Choose a Bank: Research different banks and compare their offerings, fees, and services.
2. Gather the Required Documents: Typically, you will need your EIN, business registration documents, and identification.
3. Schedule an Appointment: Contact the bank to schedule an appointment to open your business account.
4. Complete the Application: Fill out the necessary forms and provide the required documentation.
5. Deposit Funds: Make an initial deposit into your business account.

Once your business bank account is set up, it is important to keep accurate records of all financial transactions, including income, expenses, and deposits. Regularly reconcile your bank statements and review your financial reports to ensure the financial health of your business.

Managing and Growing Your Business

Congratulations! Your small business is now up and running. However, the journey doesn’t end here. To ensure the long-term success and growth of your business, it is essential to develop effective management strategies and continuously adapt to evolving market trends. Here are some key areas to focus on:

1. Marketing and Sales: Develop a comprehensive marketing strategy to attract and retain customers. Utilize both online and offline marketing channels to reach your target audience effectively.
2. Financial Management: Maintain accurate financial records, monitor cash flow, and regularly review financial reports. Seek professional advice when needed to make informed financial decisions.
3. Operational Efficiency: Continuously evaluate and improve your business processes to enhance productivity and efficiency.
4. Customer Experience: Prioritize excellent customer service to build strong relationships and customer loyalty.
5. Innovation and Adaptability: Stay updated with industry trends, embrace technological advancements, and be willing to adapt your business model to meet changing customer needs.
6. Networking and Collaboration: Build connections with other entrepreneurs, industry professionals, and potential partners to leverage opportunities for growth and collaboration.

Remember that entrepreneurship is a continuous learning journey. Stay informed about industry trends, attend relevant workshops or conferences, and seek guidance from mentors or business advisors to stay ahead of the curve.

Conclusion

Starting a small business can be an exciting and fulfilling endeavor. By following the steps outlined in this comprehensive guide, you can lay a strong foundation for your business’s success. Remember to conduct thorough market research, craft a solid business plan, secure adequate funding, and comply with all legal and regulatory requirements. With dedication, perseverance, and a strategic approach, you can navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship and build a thriving small business. Good luck!

FAQ: Starting a Small Business for Beginners

How do I start a small business for beginners?

1. Identify Your Business Idea: Choose something you’re passionate about and that meets a market need.
2. Market Research: Understand your target audience and competitors.
3. Business Plan: Outline your business goals, strategies, and financial projections.
4. Legal Structure: Decide on a business structure (e.g., sole proprietorship, LLC) and register your business.
5. Finances: Open a business bank account and set up accounting processes.
6. Permits and Licenses: Obtain any necessary permits and licenses.
7. Set Up Operations: Organize your location, supplies, and any necessary software or equipment.
8. Marketing Plan: Develop a strategy to reach your target customers.

How can I start a business with no money?

1. Service-based Business: Offer services based on your skills and expertise, which typically require minimal upfront investment.
2. Dropshipping: Start an online store where you sell products without holding inventory.
3. Content Creation: Utilize platforms like YouTube or blogging to generate income through advertising and sponsorships.
4. Use Free Resources: Leverage free online tools and platforms for marketing and operations.

Is $1,000 enough to start a business?

Yes, $1,000 can be enough to start a small business, especially if it’s service-based or online. Careful budgeting and focusing on essential expenses can help stretch your initial investment.

What is the easiest business to start?

The easiest business to start is often a service-based business in an area you’re skilled in, such as consulting, digital marketing, or freelance writing. These require low upfront costs and can often be managed from home.

What’s the easiest business to start with no money?

Service-based businesses like consulting, virtual assistance, or personal training can be started with little to no money. All you need is your expertise and the ability to market your services.

What is the cheapest most profitable business to start?

Content creation, affiliate marketing, and online courses are among the cheapest and most profitable businesses to start. These ventures have low overhead costs and can reach a wide audience online.

What is the most successful small business to start?

Technology-based businesses, e-commerce stores, and health-related services are among the most successful small businesses, thanks to high demand and scalability.

Which business is best at a low cost?

Online tutoring, virtual event planning, and freelance graphic designing are great low-cost business options. They rely on skills and can be marketed through digital platforms.

What is the best business to start from home?

Home-based businesses that are popular and viable include e-commerce, blogging, consulting, and crafting. These options allow for flexibility and lower operating costs.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Tim Mossholder; Unsplash – Thank you!

The post How To Start A Small Business In 11 Simple Steps appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

In this essential guide, we dive into everything you need to know about small business grants. From unlocking financial support to fueling your business dreams, we explore how these grants can be a game-changer for your venture. Stay tuned as we unravel the secrets of accessing these grants, understanding their benefits, and successfully applying for them.

Are you ready to discover how small business grants can transform your business journey? Let’s embark on this exciting exploration together!

Key Small Business Grants to Consider

For small business owners seeking financial support, there are numerous grants available that cater to a variety of needs and industries. Let’s delve into some specific small business grants that are worth considering:

Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program

• Federal Support for R&D: The SBIR program is a federal initiative offering grants to small businesses engaged in research and development with potential for commercialization.
• Focus Areas: This program targets technological innovation across various sectors, encouraging small businesses to contribute to federal research and development.

Etsy Emergency Relief Fund

• Aid for Etsy Sellers: This grant provides financial assistance to Etsy sellers who have been impacted by natural disasters.
• Objective: Aimed at helping artisans and small business owners on Etsy recover and rebuild their businesses in the aftermath of unforeseen events.

Cartier Women’s Initiative

• Empowering Women Entrepreneurs: This global program supports women entrepreneurs in the early stages of their business. It focuses on funding, mentoring, and networking.
• Benefits: Recipients gain not only financial support but also valuable mentorship and access to an extensive business network.

National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) Growth Grants

• Support for NASE Members: NASE offers monthly grants to its members, assisting with various business development activities.
• Scope of Use: These grants can be used for marketing, advertising, hiring employees, expanding facilities, and other business growth initiatives.

FedEx Small Business Grant Contest

• Annual Business Competition: This contest awards grants to small businesses annually. Participants have the opportunity to win up to $30,000, along with business services from FedEx.
• Added Value: Beyond the monetary grant, winners benefit from exposure and business services that can significantly boost their business operations.

Conclusion

Whether it’s the federal SBIR program focusing on research and development, the Etsy Emergency Relief Fund for disaster-affected artisans, or the Cartier Women’s Initiative for budding women entrepreneurs, these small business grants offer a range of support and opportunities. Additionally, the NASE Growth Grants and FedEx Small Business Grant Contest provide avenues for business expansion and development. Each of these grants caters to different needs and sectors, offering small business owners a chance to secure the support they need to flourish and grow.

Understanding Small Business Grants

Navigating the world of small business grants can be complex, but understanding the basics is crucial for any entrepreneur looking to leverage these opportunities. This section breaks down what small business grants are, how they work, and what to expect when applying for them.

What are Small Business Grants?

• Definition: Small business grants are essentially free money given to a business to help them start, grow, or expand. Unlike loans, grants don’t need to be repaid.
• Purpose: These grants are usually aimed at fostering innovation, supporting local economies, or promoting specific industries and demographics.

Types of Small Business Grants

• Government Grants: Provided by federal, state, or local governments for various purposes, including research, development, or economic growth.
• Corporate Grants: Offered by companies to support small businesses that align with their corporate interests or values.
• Nonprofit and Foundation Grants: These come from nonprofit organizations and are typically focused on businesses with a social, environmental, or community-oriented goal.

How Do Small Business Grants Work?

• Application Process: Applying for a grant often involves submitting a detailed proposal outlining your business, how you plan to use the funds, and the impact it will have.
• Competition and Criteria: Grants are competitive, and recipients are chosen based on criteria set by the grant provider, which can include business type, size, location, or the entrepreneur’s background.

What to Expect When Applying for Grants

• Documentation and Details: Be prepared to provide extensive documentation about your business, including financial records, business plans, and detailed project descriptions.
• Time and Effort: The application process can be time-consuming and requires effort in research, proposal writing, and meeting specific criteria.
• No Guarantee of Funding: It’s important to remember that applying for a grant does not guarantee funding, and it’s often a competitive process.

Tips for Success

• Research Thoroughly: Understand the grant’s purpose and criteria to ensure your business is a good fit.
• Prepare a Strong Application: Highlight how your business aligns with the grant’s goals and provide clear, concise, and compelling information.
• Seek Assistance if Needed: Consider getting help from a grant writer or a financial advisor to strengthen your application.

Benefits of Small Business Grants

Small business grants offer numerous advantages for entrepreneurs and business owners. Understanding these benefits can help you determine if pursuing a grant is the right move for your business. Here are the key benefits of small business grants:

Financial Support Without Debt

• No Repayment Required: Unlike loans, grants provide financial aid that doesn’t need to be paid back, freeing businesses from additional debt burdens.
• Lower Financial Risk: This makes it easier for small businesses to manage their finances, especially in the early stages or during expansion.

Opportunity for Growth and Innovation

• Funding for Expansion: Grants can provide the necessary capital to expand operations, hire new staff, or increase production capacity.
• Innovation Incentive: For businesses involved in research and development, grants can be a crucial funding source, allowing them to innovate and develop new products or services.

Enhanced Credibility and Exposure

• Boosts Business Reputation: Receiving a grant can enhance your business’s credibility, as it often implies that a reputable organization has endorsed your business plan or concept.
• Networking Opportunities: Many grant programs also offer networking and mentorship opportunities, connecting you with industry experts and potential partners.

Focus on Specific Business Needs

• Targeted Assistance: Many grants are designed for specific industries, demographics, or business goals, offering tailored support where it’s needed most.
• Diverse Funding Sources: With a variety of grants available, businesses can find opportunities that align closely with their unique objectives and needs.

Encouragement for Underrepresented Entrepreneurs

• Support for Diverse Groups: Grants often aim to support women, minorities, veterans, or other underrepresented groups in business, helping to level the playing field.
• Community Development: By supporting diverse businesses, grants also contribute to broader economic development and community empowerment.

The Big Picture

In conclusion, small business grants offer more than just financial assistance; they provide a foundation for growth, innovation, and long-term success. By leveraging these benefits, small business owners can not only enhance their current operations but also lay down a strong foundation for future endeavors. Remember, while securing a grant can be competitive and challenging, the potential benefits make them a valuable option for funding and support.

Types of Small Business Grants

Small business grants come in various forms, each catering to different business needs and objectives. Understanding these types can help you find the most suitable grant for your business.

Government Grants

Government grants are provided by federal, state, or local government bodies. They are designed to support small businesses in a variety of ways.

• Federal Grants: Often focused on research and development, technological innovation, or social and environmental initiatives. Examples include the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program.
• State and Local Government Grants: These grants usually aim to stimulate economic growth within a specific region, support local job creation, or encourage innovation in certain industries. Each state or municipality may have its own set of grant programs with specific objectives.
• Eligibility Criteria: Government grants often have strict eligibility criteria. This can include the size of the business, the industry it operates in, and the specific use of the grant money.
• Application Process: Applying for government grants can be competitive and requires thorough preparation. This might involve detailed proposals, business plans, and financial statements.

Understanding the specifics of each type of government grant, their eligibility requirements, and application processes is crucial for successfully securing this type of funding. Government grants can be a significant source of support for small businesses, but it’s essential to align your business goals with the objectives of the grant to increase your chances of success.

Corporate Grants

Corporate grants are funds provided by private businesses or corporations, often as part of their corporate social responsibility initiatives or to support innovation in fields related to their business.

• Focus on Innovation and Alignment with Corporate Goals: Many corporate grants are aimed at businesses that are innovating in areas relevant to the corporation’s interests. For example, a tech company might offer grants to startups working in software development or cybersecurity.
• Support for Diverse and Social Causes: Corporations also provide grants to support diverse entrepreneurs and businesses focusing on social causes. This includes grants specifically for women-owned businesses, minority entrepreneurs, or businesses working on environmental sustainability.
• Benefits Beyond Funding: In addition to financial support, corporate grants often come with other benefits like mentorship, networking opportunities, and exposure. Winning a corporate grant can also enhance your business’s credibility and public profile.
• Competitive Application Process: Similar to government grants, the application process for corporate grants can be competitive. They often require a detailed business plan, a clear explanation of how the grant will be used, and how it aligns with the corporation’s objectives.

Understanding the specific focus and requirements of each corporate grant is key to creating a successful application. These grants can provide not only crucial financial support but also access to a broader network and resources that can be instrumental in growing your business.

Specialty Grants

Specialty grants are tailored to support specific types of businesses, industries, or entrepreneurs. They focus on niche areas, often aiming to encourage diversity, innovation, and growth in sectors that may be underserved or overlooked.

• Targeted Towards Specific Groups or Industries: These grants are often designed for particular demographics or business sectors. For example, there are grants specifically for women-owned businesses, minority entrepreneurs, veterans, or businesses operating in the green technology sector.
• Encouraging Diversity and Inclusion: A significant purpose of specialty grants is to level the playing field for entrepreneurs who might face barriers to funding. They provide opportunities for businesses that might not typically have access to traditional funding sources.
• Innovation in Niche Markets: Many specialty grants support businesses innovating in niche areas, which might not attract mainstream funding but are vital for industry diversity and specialization.
• Application and Eligibility Criteria: The eligibility for these grants can be very specific, focusing on the business owner’s background, the nature of the business, or its goals. The application process may require demonstrating how the business aligns with the grant’s specific objectives.

Understanding the landscape of specialty grants can open up unique funding opportunities, especially for businesses that fit into niche categories. These grants not only provide financial assistance but also recognize and support the diverse and innovative spirit of entrepreneurs across various sectors.

Navigating the Grant Application Process

Applying for small business grants can be a daunting task. However, understanding and effectively navigating the grant application process can significantly enhance your chances of success. This section offers guidance on how to approach the application process for small business grants.

Research and Identify Suitable Grants

• Find the Right Fit: Spend time researching to find grants that align with your business type, industry, and goals. Utilize online grant databases, government websites, and business networks.
• Understand Requirements: Each grant has its own set of requirements and eligibility criteria. Ensure your business meets these criteria before applying.

Preparing Your Application

• Gather Necessary Documentation: Most grants will require detailed business plans, financial statements, and a clear plan for how you’ll use the funds.
• Tell Your Business Story: Clearly articulate your business’s mission, goals, and how the grant will support your objectives. Be compelling yet concise.

Pay Attention to Detail

• Follow Instructions Carefully: Adhere strictly to the application guidelines. This includes word limits, required formats, and submission deadlines.
• Proofread and Review: Errors or incomplete applications can lead to immediate disqualification. Double-check all details before submission.

Seek Help if Needed

• Professional Assistance: Consider consulting with a grant writer or financial advisor. They can offer valuable insights and help strengthen your application.
• Utilize Workshops and Resources: Some grant programs offer workshops or resources to assist applicants. Take advantage of these to improve your application.

After Submission

• Be Patient: The review process can be lengthy. Be patient while waiting for a response.
• Be Prepared for Follow-up: Be ready to provide additional information if the grant committee requests it. This could include further details about your business or how you plan to use the funds.

If Unsuccessful

• Seek Feedback: If your application is not successful, ask for feedback. This can provide valuable insights for future applications.
• Keep Trying: Don’t be discouraged by rejection. Use the experience to improve your next application.

Conclusion

Navigating the grant application process requires thorough research, meticulous preparation, and attention to detail. By carefully selecting suitable grants, crafting a compelling application, and being prepared for all stages of the process, you can increase your chances of securing funding. Remember, persistence and a willingness to learn from each application can make all the difference in achieving success.

Making the Most of Small Business Grants

Securing a small business grant is a significant achievement, but it’s just the beginning. Effectively utilizing the grant is crucial for achieving your business goals and ensuring long-term success. This section provides insights on how to make the most of small business grants.

Strategic Planning and Allocation

• Define Clear Objectives: Have a clear plan for how the grant will be used. Align the funding with specific business goals, whether it’s expansion, product development, or marketing.
• Budget Wisely: Allocate the funds carefully, ensuring they are used as intended. A well-thought-out budget can maximize the impact of the grant.

Enhancing Business Operations

• Invest in Growth Areas: Use the grant to invest in areas that will drive business growth, such as hiring key staff, purchasing essential equipment, or enhancing your technology.
• Improve Efficiency: Consider investing in tools or resources that improve efficiency and productivity within your business.

Tracking and Reporting

• Monitor Progress: Keep track of how the grant funds are being used and the impact they’re having on your business. This can involve regular financial tracking and project progress reports.
• Meet Reporting Requirements: Many grants require recipients to provide reports on how the funds are used. Ensure you meet these requirements to maintain credibility and eligibility for future funding.

Leveraging for Future Opportunities

• Build Credibility: Successfully utilizing a grant can enhance your business’s reputation and credibility. This can open doors to more funding opportunities, partnerships, and customer growth.
• Share Success Stories: Use your success to create case studies or testimonials that can be shared with stakeholders, customers, and on your marketing platforms. This can increase your business’s visibility and attract future opportunities.

Continuous Learning and Improvement

• Evaluate Outcomes: Assess the effectiveness of the grant in achieving your business goals. What worked well? What could be improved?
• Adapt and Evolve: Use the insights gained from this experience to inform future grant applications and business strategies.

Final Thoughts

Navigating the world of small business grants can be challenging, but it can also be incredibly rewarding. Here are some key takeaways to keep in mind as you explore grant opportunities for your small business:

• Research Is Key: Take the time to thoroughly research available grants and their eligibility criteria. Finding the right grant that aligns with your business goals is essential.
• Prepare a Strong Application: Crafting a compelling grant application is crucial. Clearly articulate your business plan, objectives, and how the grant will support your growth.
• Strategic Use of Funds: Once you secure a grant, plan strategically for the allocation of funds. Ensure that the funds are used in a way that maximizes their impact on your business.
• Stay Informed: Keep an eye on changes in grant programs, new opportunities, and updates in eligibility criteria. Staying informed can help you make the most of available resources.
• Persistence Pays Off: Grant applications can be competitive, and rejection is not uncommon. Use each application experience as a chance to improve and keep pursuing funding opportunities.
• Leverage Success: If you secure a grant, leverage it not only for financial support but also for building credibility, networking, and further growth.

Remember that grants are just one avenue of financial support for your business. Explore various funding options, create a solid business plan, and continuously seek opportunities for growth and innovation. Small business grants can be a valuable resource on your journey to success, and with dedication and strategic planning, you can make the most of them. Good luck on your business endeavors!

Small Business Grants FAQ

What is the $5,000 SBA grant?

The $5,000 SBA grant typically refers to the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Advance. It’s part of the COVID-19 relief efforts and provides financial assistance to small businesses affected by the pandemic. However, the amount may vary depending on the economic impact.

How do I get money to start a small business?

To secure funding for starting a small business, consider various options, including personal savings, loans from friends and family, bank loans, angel investors, venture capital, crowdfunding, or applying for small business grants.

Does the government give money to startups?

Yes, the government offers various grant programs and resources to support startup businesses, particularly those involved in research, innovation, and community development. These grants are typically competitive and may have specific eligibility criteria.

What is the most common grant?

There isn’t a single “most common” grant, as grants vary widely in terms of their focus, objectives, and target recipients. Some common types include government grants for research and development, educational grants, and grants for nonprofit organizations.

Does the government give out $9,000 grants?

The government offers a wide range of grants, and some may provide funding in the range of $9,000. However, the availability and amount of grants can vary based on factors such as location, industry, and specific grant programs.

What is the golden grant?

There isn’t a specific “golden grant.” The term “golden grant” is not a standard grant category but might be used informally to describe a particularly valuable or highly sought-after grant opportunity.

What are the chances of winning a grant?

The chances of winning a grant depend on several factors, including the competitiveness of the grant program, the quality of your application, and how well your business aligns with the grant’s objectives. It’s essential to thoroughly research grants and submit well-prepared applications to improve your chances.

Who are mandatory grants most commonly awarded to?

Mandatory grants are typically awarded to organizations or entities that meet specific criteria defined by law. These grants are not typically awarded to small businesses but are often directed toward specific government programs or initiatives.

How can I get free money from the US government?

While the government does offer grants, it’s important to note that grants are not “free money.” They typically require a competitive application process and adherence to specific terms and conditions. To explore grant opportunities, research government grant programs and eligibility requirements, and submit well-prepared applications when applicable.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Kenny Eliason; Unsplash – Thank you!

The post 6 Small Business Grants You Could Get Approved For appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Rise and Fall: A Tale of Overvalued Unicorns

WeWork: From Peak Valuation to Bankruptcy

WeWork, once hailed as the future of coworking spaces, experienced a dramatic rise and fall. The company raised billions of dollars from SoftBank, reaching a peak valuation of $47 billion. However, its attempt to go public in 2019 exposed its staggering losses and questionable financial practices. Investors grew skeptical, and rising interest rates coupled with slow return-to-office trends further deteriorated WeWork’s financials. Ultimately, the company filed for bankruptcy, highlighting the importance of sustainable business models and transparency in the startup world.

Bird: A Flightless Journey to Bankruptcy

Bird, a scooter-sharing startup founded by former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden, followed a similar trajectory. Although its private market valuation peaked at $2.5 billion, the company struggled to achieve profitability. Investors stopped injecting cash, causing Bird’s model to crumble. Delisted from the New York Stock Exchange and filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Bird serves as a cautionary tale for startups relying heavily on investor subsidies without a clear path to sustainability.

Hopin and Clubhouse: Fading Hopes of Virtual Success

The Covid-19 pandemic created a surge in demand for virtual collaboration tools, propelling startups like Hopin and Clubhouse into the spotlight. Hopin, a virtual event planning platform, experienced rapid valuation growth, but its dependence on remote work and engagement hindered its long-term viability. Similarly, Clubhouse, a platform for virtual sessions with celebrities and influencers, failed to sustain user growth as the world reopened post-pandemic. Both companies faced the challenge of fitting into users’ post-Covid lifestyles, leading to layoffs and a need for reinvention.

FTX and Nikola: Fraud and Failed Promises

FTX, a prominent crypto exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, suffered a sudden collapse in late 2022. Customers demanded withdrawals, only to discover that their funds were misused. The lack of scrutiny on Bankman-Fried’s practices, despite investments from renowned firms, highlighted the importance of due diligence in the startup ecosystem. Similarly, Nikola, an automaker aiming to revolutionize vehicle technology, faced allegations of deception and fraud. The company’s founder, Trevor Milton, resigned amid investigations and was subsequently sentenced to prison. These cases underscore the significance of ethical leadership and transparent business operations.

Virgin Hyperloop One: A Dream Unrealized

Virgin Hyperloop One, a company striving to build high-speed transportation systems, failed to materialize its ambitious plans. Despite raising substantial funds, the company struggled to secure contracts beyond a test site in Las Vegas. Allegations of executive misconduct and a lack of market viability ultimately led to its closure. The Hyperloop project serves as a reminder of the challenges faced by emerging technologies and the need for a clear path to commercialization.

The Unraveling of the Startup Bubble: Root Causes

Excessive Funding and Lack of Profitability

The startup bubble was fueled by the availability of cheap money and the pursuit of high returns. With near-zero interest rates and stimulus efforts, investors were incentivized to take risks and bet on the next big innovation. However, this abundance of capital led to unsustainable business models and a lack of focus on profitability. Startups burned through cash without achieving sustainable growth, ultimately contributing to the burst of the bubble.

Blind Faith in Founders and Lack of Due Diligence

Investors’ blind faith in charismatic founders played a significant role in the rise and fall of many startups. The allure of transformative ideas and visionary leaders often overshadowed the need for thorough due diligence. The cases of FTX and Nikola demonstrate the importance of scrutinizing founders’ practices and ensuring transparency in financial operations. Investors must strike a balance between supporting innovation and mitigating risks associated with unproven leadership.

Shifting Market Dynamics and Post-Covid Realities

The Covid-19 pandemic brought about profound changes in consumer behavior and market dynamics. While some startups thrived in the remote work and entertainment sectors, others struggled to adapt to the post-pandemic reality. Companies like WeWork and Bird faced challenges as people returned to physical offices and sought alternative transportation options. Startups must anticipate and respond to evolving market trends to maintain relevance and sustainability.

Learning from the Past: A New Era of Tech Startups

The Path to Profitability and Sustainable Growth

The burst of the startup bubble has compelled entrepreneurs and investors to reevaluate their strategies. The focus is shifting from rapid growth at any cost to achieving profitability and sustainable growth. Startups must develop viable business models, demonstrate a clear path to profitability, and prioritize operational efficiency. This shift in mindset will lead to the emergence of companies with solid foundations and a higher likelihood of long-term success.

Embracing Transparency and Accountability

The failures of WeWork, FTX, and Nikola underscore the importance of transparency and accountability in the startup ecosystem. Founders and executives must prioritize ethical practices, maintain open lines of communication with investors, and provide accurate and timely financial information. Investors, in turn, must conduct thorough due diligence and hold startups accountable for their promises. Transparency and accountability are the cornerstones of a healthy and thriving startup ecosystem.

Adapting to Post-Pandemic Realities

The post-pandemic world presents new opportunities and challenges for startups. Entrepreneurs must identify emerging trends and consumer needs, adapting their products and services accordingly. The shift towards hybrid work models, increased reliance on technology, and changing consumer preferences require startups to be agile and responsive. By embracing these post-pandemic realities, startups can position themselves for success in the evolving market landscape.

The Future of Tech Startups: A Glimpse Ahead

A New Wave of Innovation and Growth

Despite the burst of the startup bubble, the tech industry remains vibrant and full of potential. Investors are still excited about technology, as evidenced by the strong performance of the Nasdaq Composite index. Chipmaker Nvidia’s exponential growth and Facebook Meta’s successful rebound demonstrate that there are still opportunities for innovation and value creation. The second half of 2024 is projected to be a turning point, with a new wave of great companies emerging, driven by profitability, strong growth, and a focus on building great cultures.

Navigating the Capital Markets and IPO Landscape

The burst of the startup bubble has significantly impacted the capital markets and IPO landscape. Tech companies face greater scrutiny and must prove their profitability and market viability before going public. While few tech IPOs have taken place in recent years, the anticipated rate cuts by the Federal Reserve may provide a more favorable environment for startups seeking to enter the public market. However, the emphasis on profitability and sustainable growth will persist, requiring startups to demonstrate a clear roadmap to success.

See first source: CNBC

FAQ

1. What led to the downfall of prominent startups like WeWork and Bird?

Several factors contributed to the downfall of startups like WeWork and Bird. WeWork’s financial troubles were exposed when it attempted to go public, revealing significant losses and questionable practices. Bird struggled to achieve profitability, leading to investor reluctance to continue funding the company. Both cases emphasize the importance of sustainable business models and financial transparency.

2. How did Hopin and Clubhouse face challenges despite the initial success during the Covid-19 pandemic?

Hopin and Clubhouse initially gained popularity due to the increased demand for virtual collaboration tools during the pandemic. However, as the world reopened and remote work trends shifted, both companies faced challenges in sustaining user growth and adapting to users’ changing lifestyles.

3. What ethical and transparency issues were observed in startups like FTX and Nikola?

FTX faced allegations of misusing customer funds, raising questions about ethical practices and financial transparency. Nikola faced allegations of deception and fraud, ultimately leading to the founder’s resignation and legal consequences. These cases underscore the importance of ethical leadership and transparent business operations in startups.

4. What were the root causes of the burst of the startup bubble in 2023?

The burst of the startup bubble was influenced by several factors, including excessive funding and a lack of profitability. The availability of cheap money and investors’ pursuit of high returns led to unsustainable business models. Additionally, blind faith in charismatic founders and a lack of due diligence played a role in the bubble’s expansion.

5. How can startups learn from the past and adapt to the changing landscape?

Startups can learn from the past by shifting their focus from rapid growth at any cost to profitability and sustainable growth. Developing viable business models, prioritizing operational efficiency, and embracing transparency and accountability are key steps. Adapting to post-pandemic realities, identifying emerging trends, and remaining agile are crucial for success in the evolving market landscape.

6. What does the future hold for tech startups in the aftermath of the burst?

Despite the burst of the startup bubble, the tech industry remains vibrant. Investors are still enthusiastic about technology, and opportunities for innovation and value creation persist. A new wave of startups focused on profitability, strong growth, and healthy cultures is expected to emerge in the second half of 2024. Navigating the capital markets and IPO landscape will require startups to demonstrate sustainability and a clear roadmap to success.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Proxyclick Visitor Management System; Unsplash – Thank you!

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The economic climate is rocky at best, and trends are constantly changing. Marketing tactics can feel like an expensive game of catch-up. Because of the ever-changing nature of trends, it is crucial to scale by blending trend-resistant and trend-adaptive tactics. The numbers are grim, but rest assured, breaking out of the mold is entirely possible. This article will cover three tips found in small business books that can help CEOs find their avenue of growth and tackle the transition out of the “small business” stage.

1. Practice Discipline

Many CEOs struggle financially and strategically transitioning from the “small business” stage to achieving scalable growth. In her bestselling book “Bigger and Better: A Playbook for Quickly Scaling Your Small Company with Limited Resources,” multi-industry C-Suite executive Esther Kestenbaum Prozan speaks to the role of discipline in achieving lean growth. Prozan’s playbook points out that the policies and procedures CEOs put in place for their business operations are only useful if followed. Many small businesses simply bend the rules and betray their set guidelines to avoid conflict for fear of losing a sale. The truth is this practice can put a swift drain on your enterprise value.

Saying “yes” to something that should probably be a “no” is a common snare for small businesses. The “yes” may have been easy, but declining may have provided additional growth opportunities. Having the discipline to adhere to operational guidelines, regardless of external pressures, will pave the way for plenty of future “yes” moments.

2. Embrace Innovation

Technology is constantly evolving; therefore, your business must have that layer of flexibility. Artificial Intelligence (AI) allows CEOs to give their time to more tasks by allowing AI to improve customer experience (CX), analyze data, and perform other repetitive tasks. Implementing chatbots and the like can immediately impact your available time as a CEO and your employees to focus on more tedious tasks requiring human touch and expertise.

“The Innovator’s Dilemma” by Clayton Christensen discusses the importance of disruptive innovation in a successful business’s life cycle. Embracing innovation and being agile in response to evolving technologies is a full-time job, but it will prove its worth year after year. As a CEO, you are responsible for fostering your team’s daily environment. Creating an environment that embraces both innovation and change is a great thing. This creates a new layer of trust in your employees that you want the best for them and the business.

3. Build Strong Relationships

Creating relationships is the center of all growth methodology because of its lasting impact. Someone may not be a fit as a customer right now, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be in the future. Those relationships can potentially blossom into future business and referrals. Making it a priority to build relationships without asking for something in return is imperative to setting the foundation for future growth.

In “The Relationship Economy: Building Stronger Customer Connections in the Digital Age,” John DiJulius discusses strategies for fostering lasting relationships and positioning yourself as a thought leader. Through thought leadership, businesses can position themselves in a way that creates lasting relationships with their current and future customers. This can be done by creating and sharing valuable online and offline content. The idea is that if you have established yourself as an authority in your sphere of influence, people will return to receive value from you time and time again. And, when the time comes for a customer to need your product or service, you’ll be top of mind.

Accepting the Challenges of a Startup in 2024

With today’s entrepreneurial challenges, CEOs must learn from the experiences and wisdom of other seasoned business professionals. Growth, often non-linear, unfolds uniquely for each venture. Yet, the wisdom shared here applies to almost any venture.

That’s because sustained growth transcends industries; it necessitates a shift in perspective. CEOs navigating this ever-evolving landscape must ground their compass in discipline, innovation, and nurturing relationships. It’s not about a fixed formula for success but rather maximizing a business’s intrinsic value. It is up to the CEO and leadership to capitalize on that value to move their business forward in 2024 and the years to come.

Featured image provided by Startup Stock Photos; Pexels; Thanks!

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The lean startup essentially purports a product that has an already existent demand. It’s a method that launches either a product or company typically on behalf of another product or company. Think “lean.” This is a company that’s not coming with the bulk trying to muscle through. The lean startup is a product that people have an already expressed desire for when it drops. The company knows this desire is there, ergo making it a substantially safer launch.

Also, this is the most critical point: the lean startup is the consumer dictating what types of products they are offered by their respective markets. Not the markets dictating the products the consumers will receive.

Basic Parts of a Lean Startup

The basic tenets of the lean startup are to build, measure, and learn. They are instrumented on hypotheses and are largely similar to the scientific method they are tested against for optimization. The idea is to target a highly specific area or segment with a very discerning eye on their particular needs. Then provide the service or product and see what the consumer opts toward in practice.

Lean startup examples include Dropbox, Zappos, and General Electric. All of them floated an initial hypothesis only to measure the success and perform new iterations. General Electric has even developed a program called, “Fastworks”, with Eric Ries the “Father of the Lean Startup” to create iterations on some of their product launches. With some products even going through 18 iterations before hitting the market. Optimization at its finest, targeting an incredibly well-realized product.

Below are three more lean startup examples, written in a far greater depth about the nature of their work and the proximity toward lean startup principles.

1. Slack

Slack was a lean startup, pre-built for a different intention, tested incrementally over time.

Sometimes things do not go as planned. Your company can crumble, people go awry, and so on. However, it is often in the darkest shadows, the faintest light shines brightest. Originally, developers build Slack as an internal communications software built for TinySpeck. TinySpeck had the aspiration of creating a multiplayer online game boasting a subscription model. Called Glitch, the game itself launched in 2011 only to fall back to beta production a year later.

However, offices responded incredibly well to their internal communications software, allowing for TinySpeck to begin offering trials to external companies and receiving feedback. Thus testing the demand in the market. The response was phenomenal with feedback from larger companies being instrumental in the growth of the software. After several iterations of the app and allowing nearly universal access the company is credited around 27 billion USD.

2. Buffer

A soft-sold product. Partially tested and partially invested. Yet, it is another one of our lean startup examples.

Founded by Joel Gascoigne and Leo Widrich, Gascoigne created Buffer in roughly about seven weeks. Gascoigne had read the work of Eric Ries and decided to subscribe to his ideas of the lean startup methodology. Widrich established a landing page that effectively floated the idea to potential customers.

So, the two opted to see if people could become invested in the idea of a social media planning service. While only around 18 of the nearly 190 investors they talked to were interested in the prospects of the company they secured roughly 800,000 dollars and were able to continue moving forward with their plans.

3. DropBox

The poster boy for the lean startup.

Okay, so I kind of lied. We’re going to go back and talk about DropBox again. Drew Houston created the startup. Many also know him as the man Forbes quotes as the entrepreneur who “Out-Steve Jobs’ed Steve Jobs”. Explored in greater depth by the mac-daddy of the Lean Startup itself Eric Ries, this article details the nature of Ries’ ordained “MVP” (minimum viable product).

An MVP essentially means a product that has enough features and aspects that it attracts “early adopters” as customers and is validated as a product early in its development cycle. So, this is where the lean startup comes in. It can be tailored toward consumer demand as massive interest is raised early in the product’s life cycle. This is also where the comparison to Steve Jobs is raised –  think of his classic pitches to excite people for products.

The idea is that by having the product be the bare minimum idea it allows the consumer market to start shaping and tailoring it to their whims and optimize the product to reach the highest potential demand. This is what DropBox did. By hallmarking the idea to instantly copy and share numerous files across devices, regardless of size it allowed the project to tweak and grow into a tech behemoth with over 250 million in funding.

The post What Is A Lean Startup: Three Good Examples appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

What Kind of Business Do You Want to Start?

You love sports, you might even say it’s your passion, and you want to turn that passion into your own sports-related business. You’ll be happy to learn that is, in fact, a great idea because there are so many avenues you can pursue that there’s almost certainly one that you’d love and be great at. 

Here are just four examples:

• Are you already a skilled photographer? Sports photography is a business you can operate from home with a moderate investment in equipment. As your business grows, expect to do a lot of traveling to capture your team as they compete. 
• If you live in an area where little league teams are plentiful, think about a batting cage business. The cost of construction ranges from $64,000 to $170,000.
• All indoor and outdoor sports venues need to be properly lit. So you might wish to become a sports venue lighting engineer. A great way to start learning about this trade is to review industry case studies. Getting a clearer picture of what it takes to light up large to mid-size outdoor complexes as well as indoor arenas with these powerful lights.
• An eCommerce sportswear, sports memorabilia, or sporting goods business allows you to run your company from home. Additionally, it saves you the overhead expenses of a brick-and-mortar store. You might even find great finds at estate sales for some one-of-a-kind items. 

Jump into the Game

Your first step is to make a list. Note your strengths, knowledge of the sport, experience in both that sport and in business, and your ability to finance your new company.  

The next step would then be to create a business plan. A business plan helps you in the process of starting a business. It will contain the goal, vision, and mission of your company. It also includes financial projections and a timeline for achieving these goals. You can find templates online to use that can walk you through the process and ensure you’re not leaving out any important steps.

Marketing

The first step to marketing your small business is to create a brand. A brand is an impression that you want your customers to have of you. You need to identify what makes you different from other businesses. This way you will know what people want to buy from you. This idea can be applied in all aspects of small business marketing, including social media, advertising, and even product design.

The next step in marketing your small business is to create an online presence. You can start with social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. It’s possible to create your own Facebook ads with online tools, including the ability to create your own Facebook banner that helps you stand out.

You need a website for your business where people can learn more about you and how they can contact you. It’s a good idea to hire a professional to create and manage that for you since it will be critical to your business’s success. You can find plenty of freelancers online and see their portfolios and prices with sites like Upwork and Fiverr. 

SmallBizTechnology educates business owners and entrepreneurs with information on how to strategically use technology (and more!) as a tool to start and grow their businesses. Reach out and let them get your business growing.

Involve Yourself Through Fundraising

Sports programs cost money. Between the costs of traveling to games, uniforms, and equipment, it can get pretty expensive. You can get involved and give back to your sports community by helping to fundraise for them. 

Whether you sponsor or team or organize a car wash, there are plenty of ways for you to help raise money. Decide if you want to open a batting cage, sell sports memorabilia, provide stadium lighting to fields, or wherever your passion is. Then make a business plan, market on social media, and get involved in your town’s fundraising efforts. 

It shouldn’t be long before your own sports-related business is in place and growing!

So get out there and play ball!

The post Take a Swing at a Sports-Related Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Based on the Agora Model, clients move from social sites to blogs. Then they may download a valuable resource to become a qualified lead.

This means you have to focus on marketing your blog to social sites! Yes, that’s how to grow to the first 1K visits a month.

Blog Traffic Killers

You know that the cheapest way to increase traffic to a website is to use free social channels. Here are some blog traffic killers.

Fewer Views on YouTube

YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google. And in fact, Video marketing outperforms text, audio, and slides by far. So, you need a small community on YouTube. If you publish the content customers want consistently, you will soon refer YouTube traffic to your blog.

Low Engagement on Facebook

Facebook is still a good marketing channel for B2C and D2C businesses. Consumer businesses like eCommerce, Amazon FBA, Dropshipping, and some coaching programs ought to produce valuable videos for their community. You can create a Facebook group, which serves the interests of your target clients. To keep users engaged and make emotional rather than logical posts.

Low Twitter Engagement

Omni-channel marketers should also have a Twitter account. First, for omnipresence, and secondly, for listening to consumer feedback. A good Twitter marketing plan can make your product trend for specific hashtags and locations. To get engagement, get followers manually and create valuable Twitter threads. If you ever want to boost responses, you’ll also need influencer marketing as your Twitter marketing plan.

Hidden Gems on Homepage

Most businesses have case studies, irrevocable proof, and success stories of their product. Others have utility tools, eBooks, calculators, and white papers, posted on their blog page. It’s common sense to bring focus to this valuable content on your homepage so it sends traffic to your blog. But very few people do it. If you have a video tutorial, for example, place it on the hero section, rather than near the CTA.

Weak Value Proposition

If you’re an AWS partner, you know the main problems customers want to be solved are reducing cloud costs and improving security. These keywords will bring you the most traffic compared to getting compliant. Use tools like AnswerThePublic to get main keywords and related keywords for your blog. These will be more meritorious than a press release of a recent hire who is ‘supposed to grow your blog.

Blog Traffic Boosters

The cheapest way to drive quality traffic to a website is to use one of these traffic boosters.

Boost Your Domain Authority to 40 and Outrank Competition

Begin by identifying SEO Competitors you’d want to outrank. Check their domain authority using the Moz SEO tool. If you’re in a specialized niche, chances are most or all of your competitor page authorities will be below 40. This could mean they have a low number of backlinks from highly authoritative sites. You can use freelance content writers to help with blog outreach and link building. In 6-12 months, you’ll start to see your articles’ rankings. And as they rank, your blog traffic will increase.

Increase Page Speed on Mobile

Take the Google Page speed insights test. You may notice that your website loads faster on desktop than mobile. However, more traffic is now on mobile. Optimize for mobile using the AMP plugin for WordPress. Also, minimize code and image sizes.

While doing your content optimization efforts, ensure you do not affect User Experience. Indeed, SEO is all about writing for humans. As you write for humans, you optimize for search engines.

If your article goes live, ensure that all share buttons, links, and images are working on both mobile and desktop. Don’t hit publish.

How to Get Quality Traffic to Your Website

Increasing conversion rates is the hardest part. Getting traffic is the easiest part. There are a lot of job seekers and active Internet surfers. At a cheap price, you can use tools and bots to spam your article on almost every social media platform. This will get you temporary spikes as well. However, it’s what’s called weak traffic.

To get quality traffic, you have to do thorough research about your customers. You have to write about what your customers want. Also, you have to solve real problems, and even get permission to share the article. Your article has to be unique, based on real-life experience, not something found on typical Internet advice.

Everyone is looking for the cheapest way to drive traffic. And that’s the process we use. It almost always yields traffic with high intent. Certainly, some people ask: “Is Facebook good for B2B Marketing?” Even on Facebook, you can get traffic that’s likely to reap your recurring revenue for years.

The post How To Get Quality Traffic To Your Website in 90 Days or Less appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Just as it takes the knowledge of how to open a gold IRA account for guaranteeing financial security in retirement, it takes the know-how of sourcing, testing, and estimating, to earn a name in the gold business. This guide offers you some must-have actionable insights that you can immediately implement to get an immediate edge over your competitors.

Sourcing of the Bullion

Before you set your feet in the gold business, you need to cultivate meaningful relationships with gold wholesalers. They are your desired source of getting the required amount of gold to run your enterprise. Before you get the opportunity to work with market-makers, you need to increase your profitability. Hence, start small and then think of scaling.

In the beginning, you need to frequent retail showrooms, auction houses, and pawn shops as a source of precious metals such as gold. Keep an eye out on the auctions to grab an opportunity of getting scrap jewelry. Try to discover safety deposit box auctions to acquire low-cost, high-quality metal from unpaid bank accounts.

Beware of scammers and fraudsters. Try to avoid e-commerce platforms, and only check for local suppliers.

Testing for Authenticity

Testing if the metal is authentic is an integral part of the gold business. Unlike materials bought from wholesalers, distributors, and prominent market players who conduct independent investigations to test the authenticity of the precious metals, you must test auction metals and bullions acquired from pawnshops.

Consider utilizing electron testing, acid testing, or X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) testing to get your job done.

As hallmarks in jewelry and coinage are easy to fake nowadays, you need a thorough test of your bullion. Employ an acid testing kit to hand-test your gold, silver, or any other precious metal. To cut costs, follow DIY acid testing methods that utilize low-cost materials.

Electron testing is a far superior method that focuses on testing low-carat metals (lower than 15-carat). You can get one of these electronic testing kits from sites like Amazon for around $200.

The last alternative is the XRF test. It is a relatively pricey option but gives better accuracy than electron testing because the latter can misinterpret gold-plated materials as genuine pieces. Using the XRF method, you can detect the authenticity of an article in less than 10 seconds. These pieces of testing equipment can cost you several thousands of dollars or even more. Although it is an expensive option, obtaining an XRF kit is by far the most reliable testing process.

Estimating the Value of Gold

Finally, it is imperative to know about deciding a bullion’s value. As a businessperson, it is a skill you must possess to profit from your endeavor. The sole objective is to buy low and sell high. For this reason, estimating the actual value of the scrap metal you buy, refine, and sell becomes crucial. This trusted formula to estimate the price per gram of gold (PPG) gets used widely in the industry:

• Recent spot price x purity (in carats) x (PPG you’re paying the supplier) / 31.1 = market gold PPG

Thus, you can manually calculate the market value of your gold based on the spot price.

Alternatively, you can seek the help of mobile applications or online services to determine your metal’s value. Remember, the closer the value is to 24-carat gold, the more worth it holds by weight.

Professionalism

Before you can make seven-figure annual sales and deal directly with the industry leaders, you must make efforts to nurture your professionalism in the precious metals business. Visit your local auction houses, estate sales, and pawn shops as a start. Then by meticulous testing and estimating, you can establish your name as a trusted gold investor.

Wrapping up

There is no shortcut to achieving a respectable position in the precious metals business. But no matter how challenging or prolonged your journey is, if you can acquire a chunk of the market for yourself, the efforts will be worth it. And eventually, you will be able to establish yourself as a professional broker or wholesaler.

The post Things to Know Before Starting Your Gold Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

But not all small businesses can afford to hire these specialists.

The good news is, that you can easily increase the conversion rates of your campaigns without spending any extra money on specialists.

The facts are, that there are many factors that make a potential customer take an action. If you tweak any of these factors, chances are, you’ll increase conversion rates.

What does ‘increase conversion rate’ mean?

In internet marketing, increasing conversion rates involves optimizing a page for higher response. If you run Facebook Ads, you want more clicks. Entrepreneurs using landing pages want more sales. You may want more subscribers to your email list, more clicks for your emails, or maybe even more sales for your Shopify store.

If you have low conversion rates, you have erratic sales and if you have erratic sales, you have no business. For startups, increasing conversion rates should be the main business.

Web traffic is a vanity metric, while conversion rates are a true metric directly tied to sales. Unless you’re a mainstream publication relying on sponsored ads for revenue, your focus should be on getting conversions.

How do you boost conversions on low-traffic websites?

The best way to increase conversion rates on new sites is to write a sales page around specific long-tail transactional keywords.

I consult with small tech businesses a lot because my goal is to apply the skills I’ve learned, from leading marketing agencies to small startups.

Most small businesses have good products. Some run ads and get significant traffic, but no sales. They often think they need more traffic so they can get more paid customers.

Not so. The truth is if you can’t get one out of 100 people to take an action, you can’t get 10 out of 1,000 people to take action.

For this reason, most startups misfire their marketing efforts. They get little to no results, end up discouraged and finally give up.

But with good conversion rates, even a low-traffic website is a goldmine.

As a freelancer, I can honestly say that 8 people out of 100 people who visited my site downloaded my free eBook.

Eight is a low number for a free eBook download. But in comparison with other B2B sites that get 0.01% conversion rates, I’m 800 times ahead. It may not bring a direct income since the eBook is free, but the conversion rate acts as a vote of confidence to scale my marketing efforts with a larger budget.

Because small businesses often rely on social media, you have to increase conversion rates at all stages of your funnel.

• If you increase conversion rates on your Ads by 1.4X (40% more), and on your landing page by 1.10X (10% more) — that’s a 1.51X increase in conversion rate and sales.

Checklist: Increase your conversion rate by 1.4X on Google Ads.

Whether you run ads on Google, Instagram, or YouTube, chances are, your ad will be ignored. Why? Well, customers are actually looking for information and people, not ads.

So the best use of search engines such as Google is to make your ad mimic an informational piece, a.k.a. an advertorial. For YouTube, use infomercials and influencer partnerships. This is known as social search. For Facebook, use infomercials and viral-type ads. And if you’re advertising in an official-like trade publication, use a corporate style.

The secret is to blend with the platform so you get their attention. You are there to seek attention, you should not be ignored.

The small business product for this demo is CRM software.

• Did I use an advertorial style…instead of typical ads?
• Does my headline appeal to self-interest rather than general appeals?
  • Can you be a better email marketer rather than the best CRM software for email marketers?
• Do I add some curiosity to my headline?
  • Lessons from Hilary Clinton: Use emails to make you a better email marketer.
  • Look to Quora headlines to get a sense of curiosity.
• For social ads, do my ads invite a conversation?
  • The goal is to engage. Filter top posts on Reddit or any platform…that’s how your advertorial should look.
• Do you push your ads organically?
  • If you have the best product, you will want to do everything to ensure it reaches everyone.
• Is your product unique?
  • This “wow factor” causes products to trend (and even go viral).
• Did you add some urgency?
  • Why should people click now? Limited availability, limited editions?

Checklist: Designing websites that convert.

So which methods can you use to increase conversion rates on low-traffic and new sites?

• Messaging: Does my landing page stick to the principle of copy focus…or are ideas all over the place?
• Do my hero area and headline solve an urgent problem, call out a target customer, and continue the conversation from the advertorial?
• Does my product/service have credibility and proof elements, education, statistics, examples, case studies, track record, and demonstrations to back up my claims?
• Do I make a big, believable, unique promise?
  • This is the only way to move a saturated market.
• Do I have a clear call to action, and an irresistible offer someone would be dumb to ignore? A.K.A. “value.”

You’d be surprised at how many websites fail at each of these.

eCommerce: How to Increase Your Conversion Rates

Unlike B2B businesses, eCommerce drop shippers could be D2C and B2C businesses. As a result, their product pages require less copy and should be more graphic-rich. The aim of every graphic is to increase sales.

• Do I use direct response design tips?
• Do my images show the fulfillment of the promise rather than a problem, i.e. show glowing radiant skin rather than acne skin?
• UX: Is my website loading fast, with 99% uptime, with 1-3 clicks to checkout?
• Do I practice up-selling — recommending higher-priced packages, down-selling for abandoned carts, and cross-selling — recommending similar packages?
• Does my ordering system use notifications?
• Do I use countdown timers and scarcity plugins?
• Do I use customization? Am I calling visitors by name, location, using gamification techniques?

Unlike SEO, conversion rate optimization doesn’t change. These timeless principles remain evergreen.

People buy because they have a problem. All you have to do is to present a solution, like a caring friend, with utmost trust and clarity.

The post Looking to Increase Conversion Rate 1.51X? Use a Credibility Checklist. appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

This month commemorates the second anniversary of Covid-19, which brought the small business globe to a standstill.

Main Streets throughout America have withstood one of the most challenging battles since the Great Depression, and the small businesses that survived are more robust than before the outbreak.

Although the virus is here to stay, companies and communities are returning due to Covid-19 vaccinations and booster doses.

A complete recovery will take time, particularly for small firms throughout the nation.

We’ve learned a lot about our economy and the sort of Main Street we should strive for post-pandemic via this catastrophe.

Lessons Learned from the Last Two Years

Here are five of the essential things we’ve learned in the last two years.

1. Never undervalue the tenacity of small businesses and ambitious entrepreneurs.

The number of small companies forced to shut down will always be one component of Covid-19’s consequences, but another will be a narrative of how many found ways to survive.

The number of Americans who established their own small companies during the outbreak was even more astonishing.

According to Yelp statistics, almost 500,000 new businesses debuted between March 11, 2020 and March 1, 2021.

This was just a 14% decrease from the previous year leading up to Covid-19.

2. Long-standing disparities persist and worsen during a crisis.

While many firms could thrive, mandates shut down many unfairly.

The epidemic revealed exactly how vulnerable small company owners, particularly Black and Brown business owners.

Between February and April of 2020, 41% of Black-owned firms closed, as did 36% of Latinx-owned businesses and 25% of women-owned enterprises.

All firms must have quick access to finance to withstand the next crisis.

3. Programs like the American Rescue Plan aided in the survival of innumerable small enterprises throughout the epidemic.

A variety of government initiatives, like the PPP, aided companies in surviving the first year of the epidemic.

The legislation helped them make it to the other side. The American Rescue Plan made an investment of $1.9 trillion in various sectors. Indeed, expanding the Child Tax Credit for nearly 40 million families with 65 million children and lowering healthcare premiums for 14.5 million Americans purchasing coverage through the Marketplace.

In addition, 85 percent of Americans got economic impact payments of $1,400.

These initiatives led to 2021 being the most significant employment creation, with 6.7 million new positions added to the workforce.

4. It may take longer for small firms to recover from a crisis, but the Act of Bi-Infrastructure would assist.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act (BIL) will aid in the recovery process.

This once-in-a-generation bipartisan bill will provide a much-needed boost to the economy and Main Streets throughout America.

One way it will achieve this is through expanding broadband internet access so that small enterprises may attain their full potential.

More than 30 million Americans live in places with no broadband infrastructure to provide a minimum amount of internet quickness. The thing proposes $65 billion to address this, including $40 billion for a formula-based grant program for broadband deployment to states, territories, and the District of Columbia.

5. More has to be done regarding fairer taxation and capital access.

Throughout this instability, multinational firms in the United States paid less than 10% in corporate income taxes on earnings earned in the United States.

This is unjust, but it also makes it more difficult for small firms to get the financing they need to expand and compete in the same market as multinationals.

Small companies are experiencing the effects of these pressures, according to a May 2021 study conducted by Small Company for America’s Future, with 76 percent of small business owners stating they are disadvantaged when multinationals utilize tax loopholes to avoid paying taxes.

A global minimum tax and a more equitable tax policy will aid in reducing this imbalance.

The lessons acquired from a disaster are often the only silver lining.

We should use what we know today to create a more egalitarian Main Street ready for the next crisis we face.

Small business marches on

You can’t make a calf’s ear out of sow’s purse. This is a truism. With current supply chain problems, you can’t get calf ears to begin with. All joking aside. The problem remains intractable to small minds. Think in the boxers. Drone mentality. Herbal tea bag brains.

You’re not that type. Are you? Hopefully not. Hopefully you’ll realize that your small firm needs more creative thought. Not manuals. Drop the cubicle. Whether remote or at the office. Think big. Talk small. And act bigger. Good luck.

The post Lessons Small Business Learned Later appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Small businesses can teach big companies a few things about innovation. SMB’s are recognized for being resourceful and imaginative, whether because such qualities are part of their image and beliefs or because they have limited resources. Whatever the cause, they deploy and survive on some clever techniques, including the technology of automation.

Firstly, there are many things major organizations can learn from their smaller — but often more innovative — counterparts, ranging from structure to innovation.

1. Consider the company as a small business franchise.

Small companies often turn to franchising for growth. While giant firms may not be interested in franchising, they may discover opportunities to innovate by thinking of their company as a franchise. They might uncover chances for innovation and simplification. That could be if they record and standardize marketing, operations, and sourcing. That is to say as if they were trying to reproduce themselves in new areas.

2. When scaling, maintain a strong culture.

Employees are the actual worth of any company. It is a vital fact that many leaders forget as companies develop. Retaining a strong culture as a company grows is a piece of wise advice that large organizations may learn from tiny enterprises. Therefore, people management is personalized and focuses on culture-driven productivity as small enterprises expand in a “pod-like” structure.

3. Complete small business transactions as soon as possible.

The number of departments through which a single transaction may transit differs between large and small firms. Because they have a flat structure, small businesses tend to react quickly. Yes, screening (for example, marketing material) is beneficial, but time is valuable in any organization. It is critical to carry out tasks in a timely and efficient manner.

4. Quickly respond to customer feedback.

The essential thing to keep in mind is not to over-complicate things. This is something that small firms must do, but the more individuals between the consumer and the decision-maker, the lower the customer happiness. Therefore, they react fast to consumer input by empowering employees close to the decision. Only bring in people with a critical purpose. Consequently, enhancing customer pleasure, loyalty, and revenues become easier.

5. Shorten the time it takes from concept to small business execution.

The idea of execution time-frame is something that tiny firms excel at. Cumbersome processes and coordinating schedules sometimes slow down performing market research and generating a viable product in more prominent firms. For example, smaller firms are far better at transitioning from the strategy to the execution stages — a process that larger enterprises may learn from.

6. Form self-organizing, smaller teams.

Put together smaller, self-organizing teams around particular challenges based on a single metric. This is due to the way small businesses function. Allow these teams to function as a small business, with a lean approach to inventing, building MVPs, failing quickly, and pivoting as required. Also, allow them the time they need and avoid overburdening them with bureaucracy and micromanagement.

7. Be able to quickly react and pivot.

Of course, because huge organizations have smaller staff, they can respond and pivot more swiftly when necessary. For example, the entertainment industry’s maturity has prevented TV networks from comprehending the TV. That is to say, a TV is just a monitor into which you input material. Rather than a “thing” that people would continue to watch with ads. It’s healthy to change your opinion.

8. Allow for quick and easy small business collaboration.

Do your workers know what to do if they have an excellent idea? Although this may seem straightforward, the answer is “No” in many giant corporations. Entrepreneurial individuals generally work in small businesses since there is less red tape and bureaucracy to deal with. However, when developing a brilliant concept, they can rapidly cooperate with their more minor team and put it into action.

9. Put more emphasis on customer engagement.

By their very nature, small companies excel in providing excellent customer service. Daily, they know who their customers are and build meaningful personal connections with them. However, large corporations are often disconnected from their customers and are distracted by the complexity of their operations. Therefore, as a large corporation, is there any way to interact more with your customers and make them the focal point of every choice you make?

10. Promote small business pilot projects.

Allow for trial and error in prototype programs. However, small firms are known for their flexibility, rapid implementation, and willingness to make errors. Therefore, policies, procedures, and processes become increasingly vital. Consequently, firms sustain the brand experience, but they may also stifle innovation and advancement. When large corporations cut the red tape from these procedures, innovation may speed up.

The post Small Business/Big Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

If you are not an MBA holder with tons of experience in the business world, you already know that there are things you don’t know. That could actually give you a small advantage because you are aware of your shortcomings, and are far more likely to seek help when it is needed. When you run into friction, you are not just going to forge ahead and try to get by on bluster and false confidence. You are not going to proceed as if you already know everything. You are going to sit down and take a look at the aspects of business for which you need expert advice. That will be your shield against most of the bad things that threaten your success.

Three areas of business you will not be prepared for are logistics, operations, and IT. Most people are aware of how much they don’t know about technology. They know they need technology help. You likely need even more technology help than you think. The other two categories have a lot of hidden complexities. It is possible that you think you know more than you do about those subjects. Before you launch your grand opening, here are a few things you need to know about the things you don’t know as well as you think you do:

Logistics

There is more to logistics than affixing postage to a box and handing it off to a delivery person. That is to logistics what correct spelling is to writing. It is merely the tip of the iceberg. If you really want to understand it, you have to consider all the ways your business can lose money when it is done poorly.

Your best bet is to find someone who can help you with full-service logistics consulting. The following is some of what you can expect:

• Assessment of your current contract and 3PF wish list
• Direct negotiation with the incumbent or evaluate the market via RFP
• Ensure provider accountability

The first two are directly related to saving you money. The third is explained by the makers of Shipware in the following manner:

By working Service Level Agreements (SLAs) into your contract, we hold your 3PL or 3PF accountable to measurable service and performance standards. This way, you can ensure operational efficiency in your supply chain and logistics processes

Did you know that you might be eligible for discounts, refunds, and credits from your shipping provider? If you are handling your logistics by yourself, you could be losing a lot of money that is due your business. 

You also need to consider warehousing and fulfillment. You can’t do it all yourself. And you can’t compete with Amazon without help. Consider hiring a consultant to audit and assess your warehouse facilities. A logistics consultant can suggest improvements such as utilizing dedicated pallet racks for better organization, or they may recommend a more efficient inventory management system.

You might also consider third-party fulfillment opportunities that handle the warehouse and inventory component for you. With the right software and partners, you can offer your customers much of what they are used to with Amazon while managing your inventory in a way that maintains profitability. You can spend the next several years of lost opportunity to figure it out on your own. Or you can bring in the experts and give your business the boost it needs.

Operations

The key to ops is recognizing the type of business you have, and knowing its operational priority. For example, a service business operations focuses on getting the most out of both the front end and back end portions of the business. The front end is about consumer-facing processes such as delivery, customer service, technical support, and the like. The back end is more about proper staffing and training as well as keeping the operation on budget. 

The challenge for the operations officer is to improve the entire system for greater efficiency and profitability. This is done by measuring performance, keeping up with the latest trends, and finding ways to streamline processes. If your company has 50 or more workers, you should have someone looking out for business operations who knows the territory.

Technology

Do you know what a server is? How about SaaS? Cloud computing? BI? HRM? We could go on this way for a long time. If you have to look some of this up, there is a good chance you need some help with tech if you are planning a company with over 50 workers. 

Even if you are planning something smaller, you need to know about business networks and how they differ from the broadband you use at home. Making the right call regarding internal and external networks can make or break the security of your business. You need to know which systems to air gap and which to allow communication with the internet. An air-gapped system is one where no connections to external networks are possible. Systems with client data such as stored credit cards should not be accessible by systems connected to the open web. Your system backups should be air-gapped from everything else so that you have a hedge against ransomware attacks.

There is also the matter of data security. Whether or not you are aware of it, there are people trying to get into your data right now. And they are much better at getting to it than you are at keeping them out of it. Your clients’ data deserves more protection than some consumer software you picked up from the discount rack of a big box store. 

You don’t need to know everything before you can safely start your business venture. But understand that some gaps in your knowledge can be more costly than others. Get expert consultation when it comes to logistics, operations, and technology for your business. 

The post Logistics, Operations, and IT: Here’s What New Entrepreneurs Need to Know appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

In fact, many employees struggle because they haven’t been able to keep up with the needs of the modern workplace. Ironically, you might not realize they’re having trouble staying ahead of the pack. However, your company’s numbers will show that there’s an issue.

For instance, your customer conversion rates might go down without any obvious reason. Or your Net Promoter Scores could begin to fluctuate strangely. Perhaps you notice that team members seem to be working harder but turning in fewer projects. If you can’t find an obvious answer to these signs, consider the possibility that you have a skills gap challenge.

Fortunately, it’s not hard to fix this issue with the right education. And here’s some excellent news: A move toward more corporate-approved training could pay off. As a LinkedIn Learning survey shows, 94% of participants said they’d stay with an employer that provided professional development opportunities. In other words, a little learning can lead to serious loyalty.

But which topics make the most sense if you’re committed to upskilling your team? Below are a few types of training that can help bridge the breaches in your group’s collective knowledge.

1. IT and AI Training

Even if your workforce skews younger in terms of overall age, your employees may not understand tech concepts. (Remember: They’re tech natives, but not necessarily tech experts.) This can leave workers feeling looped out, not to mention hesitant to embrace or understand the full scope of IT or AI efficiencies. The answer is to make self-paced or structured tech-based programs available.

Training experts at IBEX have seen how giving workers a path to IT certification can boost a company’s competitiveness. According to IBEX’s research, 90% of tech professionals stated that IT certifications directly correlated with a more effective workforce. Nearly everyone needs to interface with advanced platforms sooner or later. 

Bottom line? It behooves you to make sure your workers are comfortable with emerging tech-related concepts. 

2. Soft Skills Training

Critical thinking. Problem-solving. Communications. They all fall in the bucket of so-called “soft skills.” Yet they’re surprisingly hard to get right. 

You may have overlooked your team members’ soft skills in favor of more “nuts and bolts” abilities. Now, it’s time to push forward and address gaps in the softer areas of working, managing, and coworking.

Take the concept of empathy, for example. Hosting online or office-based workshops on empathy can increase camaraderie between coworkers. It can also boost the comprehensive level of empathy in your workplace. As of 2020, only around two-thirds of people told BusinessSolver their employers demonstrated empathy. One way to make empathy more present in any organization is to give everyone the tools they need to practice it. That way, they can fuel a sense of compassion and understanding for each other, not to mention towards customers.

3. Leadership Training

“Leaders are born, not made.” Like many old sayings, it’s not true. Yes, some individuals seem to have a knack for leadership. However, plenty of workers have developed their leadership acumen over time.

You may have future leaders in the mix at your small business but not know it. One way to let your diamonds in the rough shine through is by making leadership training available. Leadership training can take both formal and informal shapes. As an example, you may want to set up a mentorship program. 

Mentoring allows senior leaders to transfer their knowledge to up-and-coming colleagues. Pair a winning supervisor with a budding leader and you could be halfway to meeting your succession planning and growth goals. Just make sure both the mentor and the mentee understand expectations upfront. You might even want to work with a consultant to create a one-of-a-kind, branding proprietary mentorship experience.

4. Data Analysis Training

We’re all living and working in the era of Big Data. What does that mean to the average employee, though? Sure, your team members can collect and arrange data. Yet the data won’t move your company forward if no one quite understands how to make sense of what it shows.

All the data points in the world are useless without more insight. Even charts and graphs can give false impressions if you’re not careful. The last thing you want is to base any corporate decision on data that’s been incorrectly interpreted.

You may have to bring in someone from outside your company for this type of training. Look for a data analyst professional who can bring the art of curating and analyzing data to life. Not everyone on staff needs to know about data. Nevertheless, be sure people from marketing and sales are involved in this key training.

Instead of worrying that your team’s education isn’t what you need to scale in the coming years, take the initiative today. A few simple surveys can help you identify skills gaps among your personnel. Once you know what’s missing, you can plug in the holes with training to lift all your ships—and sail successfully ahead. 

The post 4 Types of Training Your Small Business Is Missing Out On appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Perhaps, then, this might be the best time for digital transformation in every type of business.

Unfortunately, many businesses fail to utilize their most valuable data resources to make this transition smoother and more successful. Research from Gartner reveals that more than half of companies don’t include data and analytics as key factors in their digital transformation strategy.

Moreover, 62% of companies have experienced stalls during the digital transformation process. McKinsey reported that the most common reasons for these delays were a lack of direction or clarity, ineffective planning or design, and misinformed strategies.

Source: https://www.zdnet.com/article/digital-transformation-spotting-the-winners-and-losers-in-2020/

It’s quite clear that any strategy needs to be built upon a foundation of accurate data to succeed. So why is it any different when it comes time to boost digital transformation?

The fact of the matter is that data needs to fuel decisions throughout any process. Here’s how business leaders need to approach and integrate data along the digital transformation journey.

Boost Digital Transformation by First Identifying Opportunities from Data

For most companies, the process of digital transformation seems incredibly overwhelming. But the fact is that it does not need to happen all at once. Neither do you have to take a formulaic or one-size-fits-all approach.

For instance, digital transformation can give SMBs a much-needed leg-up against their competitors. While they can’t match large corporations’ million-dollar budgets, small businesses can focus efforts on specific areas that make the greatest impact.

Companies of any size can succeed at their efforts to boost digital transformation by solving some of the most significant issues first. Data can provide the roadmap and crucial starting points to get the transformation going.

Say your website’s traffic numbers are high but conversion rates are significantly lower. This could signal an issue with the user experience (UX). You can use data analysis to pinpoint the steps in the buyer’s journey where your numbers start to fall off. Tools such as Google Analytics will tell you which pages on your website people are spending the most time on. Others such as Hotjar will point out how visitors are interacting with those pages.

Make the Customer Journey Easier at All Times

It’s important for every company to focus on cutting costs, improving efficiency, and maximizing revenue. However, since customers (not money) drive business, the real transformation needs to start in customer experience (CX). This warrants that digital transformation takes place beyond marketing campaigns or web/app technology.

The best way to measure and improve CX is by creating a better internal structure that allows the business to personalize interactions. In a study by PTC, C-suite executives agreed that the greatest benefit to digital transformation was improving the customer journey. The report found that providing employees with the right information and tools was the best way to do this.

A good starting point is using data tools to create complex, data-driven customer journey maps. The entire organization can have the tools they need for better decision-making simply by monitoring the audience’s behavior. AI-powered algorithms can take these data points and transform them into actionable journey maps that show what needs to be done to keep customers engaged, retarget them, and close the deal.

Track Both Qualitative and Quantitative Data

To truly unlock the power of data, it is important to understand the difference between qualitative and quantitative.

• Quantitative data is usually affixed to a numbering system. These are common metrics that businesses track, like revenue per quarter or the number of leads generated per channel.
• Qualitative is a bit more difficult to organize since it is based on variables instead of specific numbers. This requires more advanced technology to categorize, especially for metrics like customer sentiment.

These two data types need to be used together to truly boost digital transformation. This goes beyond just stating that quantitative data is measurable in numbers while qualitative data is based on characteristics.

For example, if you’re conducting marketing research for the launch of a new product, your team should be collecting and analyzing both types of data from consumers in order to deliver a product that has market fit. You need to use automation as well as AI technologies, such as natural language processing and predictive analytics. This lets you combine hard data (quantitative) and uncategorized data (qualitative) for accurate insights.

Separate the Transformation Strategy from the Data

The quickest way to make organization-wide positive changes is to make data accessible for strategizing and decisions.

According to a McKinsey study, companies that successfully implemented digitalization derived the greatest benefits by providing employees with better tools. Complement this by making information accessible across all departments and creating digital programs to assist customers and employees.

Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/unlocking-success-in-digital-transformations

McKinsey also found that the greatest barrier to transformation was a lack of leadership and direction through the transformation process. Robust data sources and top-of-the-line analysis programs are useless unless your entire team knows how and when to use them.

To make the transition more seamless, you can start with specific types of transformation. For most organizations, there are four key approaches:

• Business Processes: Applying technology for system support, such as inventory management or automation.
• Model Transformation: Incorporating technology to improve an aspect of the industry, such as digitization.
• Analytics: Centralized performance monitoring of all initiatives, especially digital, with end-to-end observability.
• Organizational Transformation: Integrating new systems to support the internal workings of a company, such as collaboration tools and data-sharing technology.

No matter which approaches your business goes with, you need to support every new strategy or system with data. Then monitor the results of these changes to see what is making a positive or negative difference.

It’s Your Turn to Boost Your Company’s Digital Transformation

There is so much potential that companies of any size can unlock if they have the data to do it.

Data analytics, processing, and organizational tools are critical pieces to the puzzle of digital transformation. Leaders must understand how to interpret the data they collect before, during, and after the digital transformation process to ensure continued success. Good luck!

The post How to Boost Digital Transformation Using Data appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

If you’re considering scaling your small business, especially as quickly as possible, you want to go about it the right way. Here are a few essential steps that you should take into consideration before you start.

1. Identify the Need

Scaling a business is a normal activity. Doing so quickly, though, can add significant stress and strain to your operation. That’s why the first thing that you want to do is slow down and consider if scaling at a rapid pace is the best decision for your business at this moment. Here are a few questions to ask yourself to see if now is the time for quick growth:

• Do you have a brand new startup or is your small business fully launched and well-established?
• Do you have consistent business processes in place?
• Are those processes and your other business tools scalable, or do they need to be upgraded or even replaced as you grow?
• Do you have a solid team of employees that have bought into your vision?
• Do you have funding and/or revenue that you can count on as you scale your operation?

It’s important to ask these questions before investing in growth. If you find that now isn’t the time to grow in an aggressive manner, you can avoid wasting resources or, even worse, setting your new business back.

2. Start With Your Brand

If you find that you are in a prime position to grow, the first place you should start is with your brand. Your company’s brand should be a consistent and clear reflection of your vision, mission, and goals. As Bob Goldwater, partner at Goldwater Law Firm, concisely puts it, the concept of branding boils down to “clearly communicating what we are all about and then standing behind those statements.”

Goldwater goes on to connect branding to things like authenticity and focus. A clear brand helps you avoid drifting from your objectives (more on that further down). It can also differentiate you and help you stand out from the competition.

If you want to scale your company, start by ensuring that your brand is developed, fleshed out, and on point. This gives your organization a clear identity as it begins to grow and change.

3. Create a Plan and Set Goals

Branding is an important high-level aspect of successful growth. However, when the rubber hits the road, you’re also going to want to have a clear plan in place. This helps you stay on track and remain efficient as your organization gains momentum.

A growth strategy can consist of many different things. Your sales team, HR department, marketing reps, back office, and many other areas of your company will need clear direction as you grow together. Creating a comprehensive growth strategy is a critical part of successfully growing your enterprise. This should include things such as:

• Identifying and building on your existing strengths;
• Conducting market research to define your ideal customer and find new market segments worth pursuing;
• Studying your competition to see how they’ve managed their growth;
• Securing existing revenue streams and finding areas where you can gain new income.

Along with these, you also want to set the metrics that will define success. Find key indicators that allow you to measure the success or failure of your growth efforts. This could be sales growth, new SKUs, or any number of other activities. However you choose to set your goals, always remember that the most efficient growth is measurable growth.

4. Review Your Internal Systems

Scaling always puts pressure on how your business runs. A tool or method that works well now may not work well in a larger organization. With that in mind, always consider how you can prep your internal activity for the demands of a scaling operation, such as:

• Outsourcing activity: Find the areas of your business, such as distribution or marketing, that you can outsource as the demands of your company grow.
• Investing in tech: There are countless pieces of tech that can make scaling easier, such as finding an automated small business payroll solution to help your accounting team.
• Hiring the right people: Creating a recruitment strategy is key, as you want to invest in quality talent that also lines up with your vision and can support your growing business’s needs.

There are many ways that you can prep your company’s internal operations for a season of growth. Once you begin growing, you’ll be glad you put in the effort ahead of time.

There’s no end to the number of tips that you can find when it comes to scaling a small business. However, any growth strategy should always start with these four considerations. 

Assess if now is the right time to grow. From there, review your brand’s readiness for growth. Then create a thorough growth strategy and set achievable goals. Finally, review your company’s internal systems and consider where you can use tech, outsourcing, and hiring to smooth the path to future growth. These four tips can help you start your next growth cycle in the best position possible.

The post 4 Tips for Scaling Your Small Business Quickly appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Stay Organized

While it may seem obvious that organization is an important part of your business, it will become harder to stay organized as you continue to grow and hire more people. You can increase your focus on organization by making it a part of the work routine for you and your employees. 

If everyone spends the last 10 minutes of their day straightening their workspace, getting rid of trash, and making sure that they are prepared for the following day you can stay on top of organization. Employees preparing for the next day ahead of time can help everyone be more productive first thing in the morning.

Show Up in Search Results

Whether you sell a product or offer service, you need to be relevant on Google and other search engines. Local search is still how several clients will find you and if you aren’t visible, it will be hard to work with you. 

Investing in learning about Search Engine Optimization (also known as “SEO”) and how you can improve your approach will help you rise in the rankings. Take note of what others are doing well in this area and see how you can adapt those strategies to your business. 

Focus on Data Management

Data is everything in business. It is the catalyst for changes to be made and gives you the information needed to make decisions about your business. 

Investing in master data management can give your business the information it needs in real-time and mesh the business and IT forces to make the most of your business data. This is an important investment for your business because you cannot afford to fall behind the competition or industry with data management. New information comes in quickly and having a system that can handle and repurpose this information is vital for success and growth.

Goal Meetings

Does your business set yearly goals? How often do you check in on these goals? What happens if you hit a goal early?

Goal meetings are important as a business grows for a few reasons. First, accountability is the name of the game. If you wait until halfway through the year to check in on your goals, you may be playing catch up. Working as a team to hit the revenue and other goals you have is important and these meetings will allow everyone to share their input on how they think you can improve.

Sometimes you hit your goal earlier than expected. When this happens, you can use this meeting to set a new goal and celebrate achieving the previous one.

Don’t Stop Learning

Business education is a nonstop journey of learning for employees at every level. There are new areas and updated information to be trained on daily. Incorporating learning and continuing the education of your staff can help set your business apart. 

A business that starts off with 10 employees will operate differently than one that has grown to 200 employees. Knowing how to navigate these waters will help your whole team be a sponge for information and turn it into action. 

Investing in a guest speaker to present on a Friday afternoon or sending your IT team to a tech conference are ways to accomplish this.

Survey Your Customers

What do your customers like most about your business? What changes would they like to see made? How are you going to make these changes?

Whether it is through testimonials or survey questions, it is important to gain feedback from your current customers. Finding out what makes them loyal to your business and why they make repeat purchases is the valuable information that you need. Presenting new ideas or concepts to your customers can also be beneficial when you are trying to gauge the future success of a new product or service. Their feedback early in the process can help you fine-tune it before you launch. 

Learn From Your Competition

What thoughts come into your mind when you think about your competition? How are they doing things differently than your business? Where do you see room for your business to grow in comparison to them?

Sometimes there is a negative connotation when thinking of competition within business, but there can also be an opportunity to learn. Take note of what they do well and see how you can apply it to your operations. You can also learn from their mistakes and try not to make the same ones.

Innovate

Does your business encourage innovation? How are you planning for the future to stay relevant? 

The past year has been an excellent example of businesses that innovated in order to stay in business and ones that were slow to change or refused to. Finding new ways to reach customers and enhancing your customer service experience is extremely important to growth in the future. Businesses that never innovate will have a hard time continuing to see growth year after year.

Encourage Creativity

How do you encourage employees to present new ideas for your business? Are there ways for them to channel their creativity at work?

Creating an environment as you grow that allows for creativity in the workplace will help your business from becoming stale and doing the same thing year after year. This can be as simple as challenging your employees to a competition in which you see which team can find the most unique idea or offering a reward for certain ideas. Changing the layout of your office space can increase productivity and creativity at the same time. 

Take Action Today

Now that you have read more about tips for business growth, you can put these into action today. Whether you are a startup or have been in business for 20 years, there are always opportunities to grow in new ways. Check out our website for more informational business articles like this one.

The post 9 Tips for Business Growth appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

If you’re ready to start your handyman business, there are some important factors to consider. You don’t want to get yourself into a bad situation and you don’t want to take on tasks that you aren’t capable of doing.

What are you good at?

The life of a handyman may include anything from switching out light fixtures, to putting in baseboards or painting a house. It’s important to look at all the things you can do, you like to do, and that you are comfortable doing to build your handyman business. Once you settle on the tasks you are best at, you can create a plan to get the word out about what you’re doing.

State regulations

Some home repairs are regulated at the state level. It’s important to know your local laws and to understand where you fit in those laws. While you may be allowed to fix a leaky pipe in a bathroom, your local laws may not allow you to re-do all the plumbing in a house.

Business setup

You’ll want to register your business with your state or county. There are several options and they each have certain benefits. Many handymen choose to go the sole proprietor route to start, but for others, they choose an LLC. In general, there is more personal risk as a sole proprietor if something goes wrong, so a lot of handyman businesses choose to start a single-member LLC instead.

Insurance

No matter which way you decide to set up your business, a liability policy with at least $1M in coverage is a good idea. You never know what could go wrong when you are fixing someone’s home or yard, and you want to make sure you can cover those expenses if something bad happens. Additionally, you could include personal injury in the policy to cover any injuries you may incur. Falling off a ladder can lead to anything from bumps and bruises to broken bones and hospital stays.

Value of good reviews

Word of mouth is the best way to build your business. When you do a great job, people can’t help but want to tell others about you. Another way to build your reputation is by signing up for a quality review site. They help customers find contractors, handymen, and more. You can easily ask your past clients to write a review on the site to help you tell others about your good work.

Marketing

At its core, marketing is simply about sharing what you do with others in a way that makes them want to use your services. Nowadays you don’t need a huge marketing budget to make a big impact. You can leverage Facebook groups, websites like Craigslist, Angie’s List, and even your website to draw in new customers. SEO is a powerful tool that many small businesses underestimate. A website with well-developed SEO, combined with a Google My Business listing can help you grow online.

Tools of the trade

What tools do you have? And what tools do you need? If you take on a handyman job, make sure you have all the tools you need to complete the job. There are certain items like tarps, coveralls, and sprayers that help with paint jobs. You may need specialized wrenches to get into tight spaces under a sink, and you might need hedge trimmers if you take on a landscaping gig. Other tools might be a little pricier. You may eventually need a truck or trailer to haul everything you need to work. Be creative though. A minivan with all the seats down or out can haul small ladders and even two-by-fours of smaller lengths.

Set Clear Expectations and Boundaries

Make sure your customers know what you can and cannot do. They must understand the limitations of hiring a handyman, especially from a legal standpoint. You can also use contracts to help set those expectations in advance. Online services like Legal Zoom have general contracts that can be used for your business. A small business lawyer might also be a great resource if you want a more specialized contract.

Small Business Loans

If you need tools, a new truck, or other business supplies, a small business loan might be needed. Some banks will lend low amounts like $500 or $1,000 for small business expenses. These might be in the form of a credit card or line of credit. Other banks will give larger loans for specific needs. You may need to wait until your business is more established before you get access to these loans, but in the long run, they are a great asset as you build.

Hiring help

What happens when you grow? You may need to hire help. This is a great opportunity to hire people that can help you make the jobs go faster. Two people painting for instance can get more area done in a shorter amount of time. While you will need to pay the help, overall it means more opportunity to increase your income. You’ll want a solid contract in place with your workers and they may need to carry their insurance unless your policy will cover them too.

Starting a handyman business is a great option for a man or woman who has a lot of different home repair skills. People love small businesses and they love to support people who do a great job. With the right things in place, you can easily start getting paid to help people with repairs around the house.

The post Starting a Handyman Business Is Easier Than You Thought appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Whether you’re just starting a business or have been in the industry for years, there are always corners that you can cut to save some extra dough. You might not be as “high-tech” as some of your competitors, but you won’t be in debt and will be able to use your money for improving the quality of your business rather than the things behind the scenes. You will even have more financial freedom just by cutting out small unimportant things. Don’t let the financial burden of a small business deter you from continuing your dreams!

Cut Extra Costs

One of the best things that you can do to save some money as a small business owner is to cut extra costs. If you already have a laptop or desktop computer that works perfectly fine, don’t unnecessarily buy a new one. Keep your eye out for store or business liquidation sales to get any extra business supplies like desks, office necessities, and decor. Keep an eye on Facebook Marketplace, eBay, and Craigslist for any other items that you may need or just simply want. You never know when someone is getting rid of something almost brand new (like after Christmas!) that could fit perfectly into your office.

An even better way to cut costs is to work remotely. Hire employees to work at home on their own laptops and you’ll save a lot of money by not having to rent an office and furnish it. In addition to this, you can even still have office meetings through Zoom or Google Meet due to the improvement of technology over the past couple of years. If you want to save even more money, consider hiring one or two-time work freelancers. Hiring freelancers is one of the best ways to save some extra money while still meeting deadlines.

Utilize Free Resources

When managing a small business, don’t pay for services that you can easily find free online. Instead of purchasing a subscription to Microsoft Word and other Microsoft applications, utilize free Google resources such as Docs, Sheets, and Slides. These applications still have the same capabilities as Microsoft, if not more. You can also find free business guides, books, and seminars online for free. Don’t needlessly spend money when you can find things of the same quality for free. 

As your business grows, make sure that you’re utilizing the proper financial resources. Find free banks with little or no fees to save as much of your hard-earned money as possible. Many checking accounts have fees, but you might be lucky enough to find a free checking account or credit card service. On top of this, make sure that you find a way to save your money and capitalize on high interest rates. Whether you invest some of your profits or get a high-interest savings account, make sure you choose the best option for yourself and the future of your business.

Get on Social Media

Yes, you read that right. Although social media is sometimes written off as superficial, it is a great way to start marketing your business for free. Your platform may differ depending on your desired audience, but all social media pretty much works the same. Share what’s going on in the office, new accomplishments, or even some freebies. Build a relationship with your following and your clients may even start to recommend you to their peers or keep you in mind for when they need something in the future. Posting on social media is free and is a great way to build followers without having to purchase a billboard or business cards!

Although you can utilize social media as a completely free platform, you can also use ads to get your business out in a targeted audience’s feed. By using paid ads, you are pretty much guaranteed that you will reach someone, especially those of your targeted audience. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and more recently, TikTok, are all great platforms for both social media users and businesses that are in search of more clients.  Although purchasing ads may not be free, it’s certainly cheaper than constantly buying business cards that might get thrown away or signs that will waste away time. By using social media, you can be sure that whatever you post or advertise will always be online for free!

Believe in Yourself

As you work hard on your business, make sure that you believe in yourself and don’t let financials stand in the way of achieving your dreams. Pinch pennies where you can and be frugal, but don’t stop yourself from improving your business. Work hard every day and know that you have the power to change your business for the better. Don’t be afraid of what can happen and plunge yourself into working hard. The benefits will soon add up and you will be thankful for your hard work!  

Overall, saving money and pinching pennies as a business owner is one of the best things you can do to grow your business and your wallet! Be sure to cut out any unnecessary costs and save money by using equipment that you already have or can buy for cheap. Utilize free resources and technological innovations instead of paying for subscriptions or pricey newsletters. Make a presence on social media to push your business above others without spending any money. Remember to always believe in yourself and you will soon reap the benefits of saving money while being a small business owner.

The post 4 Big Ways to Save Money as a Business Owner appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Talented people live all over the world. The trouble is navigating the legal, managerial, and cultural hurdles to find and hire them. You’ll learn quickly that you aren’t in Kansas anymore. 

Don’t let distance be a barrier. When it’s time to expand your operations beyond U.S. shores, use these five tips to hire the international team members you need:

1. Partner with a Global Employment Solutions Provider

Different countries play by different rules. You need to find a global employment solution provider who knows how to operate in your expansion locations. 

An international employer of record (EOR) allows you to legally and indirectly hire team members in other countries. It’s responsible for compliance with labor laws, benefits administration, global payroll, and tax withholding.

Look for an EOR that does more than just handle the paperwork. Any EOR worth its salt makes employees feel like they’re on the “A” team through cultural support and managerial consulting. 

Avoid EORs that charge a percentage rather than a flat fee. EORs with percentage models will make you want to pay your foreign employees less to keep your costs down. 

No matter where you are in the world, better pay and benefits attract better employees. Particularly if you’re hiring for leadership or technical positions, skimping on compensation is a good way to shoot yourself in the foot. 

2. Hire Employees, Not Contractors

It’s tempting to just pay a contractor in another country to work for you. But there are a lot of reasons why hiring employees is a wiser choice.

For one thing, your company will generally bear more of the compliance burden than the contractors it employs. For example, if you aren’t compliant in your classification of the contractor, you pay the fines and penalties. 

Using contractors can also increase the risk of intellectual property issues. In some countries, the contractor could wind up owning some of the IP that he or she creates on behalf of your company.

If you’re going to engage a contractor regularly, hiring them as an employee is probably more cost-efficient as well. Plus, the people you hire will appreciate the consistent pay and benefits that accompany employment. That benefits the employee, of course, but also creates a more cohesive and deeper company culture for you.

With that said, there are times when hiring a contractor makes more sense than hiring a full-time employee. If you just need a logo designed, for instance, then it probably isn’t a good idea to employ the designer. Look to your EOR to help you weigh the pros and cons.

3. Don’t Assume Domestic Agreements Will Work

Toss that boilerplate employment contract or non-compete agreement you use at home when expanding abroad. Categorically, home and international versions might be similar. But the details will differ, often substantially.

It’s critical that you have contractor and employment contracts, non-compete and non-disclosure agreements, and agreements designed to protect your IP. But they all need to be drafted to comply with local rules and laws to be effective.

Courts can and often do throw out contracts over a single clause. Beyond that, legal representation can be expensive and difficult to find in a foreign country. 

Your EOR should have employment attorneys in your expansion country. They can make sure all the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed, no matter the local language or the law.

4. Preboard Before You Onboard

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed that working remotely can be challenging for both the employer and for the employee. This is doubly true for remote work conducted across international borders.

Be diligent. Consider not just communication with remote workers, but data security, local infrastructure, and cultural differences. You don’t want to find out that your employee can’t use their company computer because its plug won’t fit into local wall sockets, for example. 

The good news is, many preboarding best practices should be familiar. Set realistic expectations for the role. Provide opportunities to meet regularly with management. Discuss what data is sensitive and how it should be handled. Talk through any limitations on their access to company infrastructure and information.

The best way to prevent post-hire surprises is to do your homework on the front end. It’s better to find out that a relationship won’t work early than after you’ve integrated a new team member into your workflow. 

5. Speak the Language

Speaking the language of international employees means more than speaking their actual language. It also means developing a corporate culture in sync with a country’s cultural norms.

You need to be aware of any cultural taboos so you can avoid accidentally insulting or offending one another. For example, avoiding eye contact is seen as a sign of respect in some foreign countries. But in the U.S., it’s viewed as rude or a sign that someone is lying. 

Ignorance of cultural norms is not a defense. Constantly pleading with each other for forgiveness is not a productive working relationship.

Provide one-sheeters to each remote team about the cultural tendencies of each country in which you operate. Convene an ice breaker session to get to know each other and discuss potential points of friction. Getting cultural differences out in the open is the surest way to prevent feelings of resentment from festering. 

Another component of speaking the language is choosing your communication tools wisely. For example, some domestic phone plans cannot send or receive international SMS messages. Slack, on the other hand, is used around the world for team communication. 

When in doubt, ask: How would your international team members prefer to communicate? Are there things that you say or do that frustrate them? What sorts of compliments motivate and inspire them? 

Expanding internationally is a big, exciting step for any startup. Success or failure is going to depend on your ability to recruit, hire, and retain great employees. That’s just as true in China and Canada as it is in Kansas.

The post 5 Tips for Startups Hiring Internationally appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

1. Utilize your best content in many forms

If your latest eBook has proven to be a best-seller, consider turning the chapters into a series of podcasts. Not only will you increase the reach of the content, but you’ll also make it more accessible to people who don’t have the time to read. In the process, you’ll enrich your brand’s and business’ digital footprint.

2. Emotionalise your connection

The ultimate prize in marketing is the creation of an emotional connection with customers. Podcasting makes your brand voice audible, and it leaves a deeper, bigger impression on your  listeners. Your sincerity and commitment can be communicated in a way that really sticks with consumers.

3. More time with your target audience

With a captivating tone of voice, you can hold on to your target audience’s attention longer. As with any text-based content, the chances of readers just skimming through the content is high. With podcasting, you have a silver bullet to hold on to their attention and spend more time with your target audience because of your voice. Using a variety of pitches and tones, you can take the ‘boredom’ out of going through content with podcasting, which creates more opportunities for you to be listened to.

A podcast is another way you can bring in revenue. All of the above play vital roles in ensuring this desired outcome, and additional tips for how podcasting can generate revenue are included below.

Paid content

Once you’ve established your authority in a given area, you’ll have the bandwidth to charge for future podcasts. In a way, it’s monetising the trust people have in the quality of your thoughts and ideas.

A selling platform

Your podcast can be a platform to sell products and services. For example, if you’re a motivational speaker, you may choose to sell a leadership course or live webinars.

Distribution

If your podcasts have established a reputation as an authority on online selling, don’t be surprised if an eCommerce giant seeks the right to distribute your podcasts on their platform. After all, it’ll work in their favour, too.

Podcasting is a rapidly growing business. To get started, these are the three basic pieces of equipment you’ll need.

1. Condenser Microphones

You’ll need a dedicated condenser microphone since most standard computer microphones aren’t good enough.

2. Studio Headphones

It’s essential to ensure the quality of your recording. Poor sound quality sits right next to poor content in poorly performing podcasts.

3. Audio editing software

It’s the final piece in ensuring you’ll be heard. For a start, you can download free programs available online.

If you are new to podcasting, you can consider getting podcast packages and bundles to get started on your podcast journey and see real growth in your business.

The post Increase Your Business Revenue With Podcasting appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

While there is a lot you can predict and plenty of articles to read, it’s probable that there are some aspects of entrepreneurship you’ve overlooked. Let this article be your helpful reminder of the complexities that often go hand-in-hand when launching your business off the ground. Here are five lesser-discussed things you need to account for when starting your business. 

1. It’s not often a straight shot to success

Success in a new business is often viewed on the outside as a linear trajectory. New business owners who start with excitement picturing this predictable growth pattern are more often than not disappointed. Too many new businesses start without a contingency plan for what to do in the event something goes wrong. What will you do if you have a slow few months, backtrack after six months, or if it takes a full year of losses before you’re profitable?

There is a chance you’ll be profitable straight away, but it’s also possible that you won’t be. Plan for that in advance.

If you’re a service-based business, what will you do if clients don’t pay you straight away? Is it going to create a cash flow problem?

Take some time to think through how things could not go as expected and decide how you’ll handle it ahead of time. In the event the worst happens, you won’t panic because you already know what to do.

2. Bookkeeping should start right away

Even if you are simply making a domain name purchase with no other planned expenses for another month, it’s important to start bookkeeping right away.

Small business owners often get so caught up in the product/service creation and sales process that the more mundane tasks like Bookkeeping perth or looking into pre paid business cards often get left to the wayside. Small business owners wear many hats at the beginning of starting a business, but to be successful, money is the most important part. Understanding where it’s going and where it’s coming in (staying on top of expenses) will help you prioritize and keep a lean operation. Consult a small business accountant if you’re not sure how to do it, or if you simply haven’t got the time.

How much does it truly cost you to obtain a customer? What is the lifetime value of that customer once you’ve got them on board?

These questions are going to be crucial in running a successful operation and you need to know them inside and out.

3. There are many variable costs to consider

If you’re starting your business today, you’re already aware that you’ll have fixed costs to get going. Whether that’s the purchase of a new computer, a printer, a building you’ll lease, or an electric bill you’ll pay.

But have you considered some of the other costs you’ll face?

If you’re going to accept credit cards (which you absolutely should) you’ll pay anywhere from 2-4% of your gross revenue in average credit card processing fees for that privilege. You may also be subject to business license and registration fees, insurance premiums, and self-employment taxes. These types of payments and risks should be considered carefully so you know how much it really costs to get started. 

4. You are not your target market

The best businesses solve a problem, and many entrepreneurs are inspired to solve a problem in their own lives. While this is a valid and popular way to find an idea, it doesn’t immediately mean it will be a success.

You are not your target market. There needs to be someone else out there who also believes it’s a problem and they need to believe it can be solved in the way you plan to. Validate your problem and your solution through target market research. Maybe your problem isn’t widespread enough to be a viable business. Maybe the solution you’ve created isn’t the best way to solve it.

Target market research is crucial to ensure your business idea has a market.

5. You don’t have to have it all figured out to get started

Many people are afraid to start a business because they don’t have the answers to all of the potential questions they could face. While there’s merit to doing research of course (if you’re reading this, you already know that), but there’s also a lot to be said for just digging in. You’ll figure out what you don’t yet know very quickly.

By starting with a lean and flexible operation and digging into the trenches, you’ll quickly see what works, what doesn’t, and where you should pivot or optimize for the best results. There are so many things ahead of you that even the most well-prepared entrepreneur can’t have it all figured out. And that’s ok. You’ll learn as you go, gain skills, make mistakes, and find your way much quicker if you get started. See what resources are available to you. Enlist the help of human resources software to help you manage your staff. Rome wasn’t built in a day and no one is a master of all areas when it comes to launching a business.

Concluding Thoughts

Starting a business is not for the faint of heart. There are many twists, turns, surprises, and exciting moments ahead. While it’s important to do research and understand what you’re really getting yourself into, it’s equally important to dig in and get your hands dirty. 

A perfectly planned business simply does not exist. A business executed imperfectly is far better off than the not-yet-started one waiting on the sidelines. Don’t wait for that perfect moment or else you’ll never start.

The post 5 Things to Account for When Starting Your Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

When everyone’s trying to get you to open your wallet, it can be tough to know which expenses are actually worth it. The solution? Focus on investments that will make a difference to your business’s bottom line — whether it be by enhancing productivity, cutting costs, or avoiding risks like employees overworking, this can be a very bat headache for your wallet .For many cases in which Wrongful dismissal occurs, the violation is overlooked.

trader training will help you play your strengths and create an edge on your way towards your goals of having greater profits. This kind of training will aid a trader the advantage of avoiding in falling into trap of some of the big companies in the industry.

With all the hassles and difficulties brought about by trading, it is but necessary that you find ways that will help you perform without the need of much effort. Everything in life comes with some element of risk and it’s true to say the stakes are somewhat higher in trading online. You can read more about the risks and how to take caution here: https://traderoomplus.com/is-online-trading-safe/. You will have all the luxury to make more money whilst relaxing and comfortably attaining the highest trades. This kind of trader training allows a trader to get into lesser duties yet, acquiring all possible profitable trades. you will get best trader training if you are wondering about why train with Axia Futures, do visit.

This can also help in learning how to do business given a small amount of money. This would entitle a trader to have less tendencies of losing and greater chances of obtaining the most price trends without worrying too much of the cost and value. This means that traders are subject to earning more profits with lesser value yet, with rapidly and in a short span of time. This is a place where not all traders can go in. With the higher amounts of funds they invest it would be very difficult for them to access this spot. Thus, more of the earnings will surely go to those with lesser amount of funds. Another way to increase your finances is contacting a professional marketing company and ask to get listed in online business directories like RankPivot.

trader training has gained popularity for one can trade in the market with lesser amount of money and bigger tendencies of winning. This doesn’t obviously take away all the risk, so don’t invest too much money if you are just beginning. There will always be risk involved, that’s what investing is all about but there is nothing wrong with doing your correct research beforehand.

They may cost money, but these seven expenses are worth it for small businesses:

1. Analytics software

Don’t guess whether your company is on track to achieve its goals; measure it. Until you put hard numbers to areas like sales, marketing, and product development, you won’t truly know what’s working, personally I fully suggest working in partnership with digital marketing agency Boston.

Data science tools exist for everything from SEO to social media management. Prioritize areas for analysis, and choose tools based on a few factors:

• Features: Does the tool do what you need it to do? Even a cheap solution is a bad investment if it doesn’t address a need.
• Price: Can you afford the tool? Most SaaS tools are billed monthly. If the package you truly want is out of reach, ask yourself whether a basic edition would work.
• Usability: Software is useless if it isn’t used. Get feedback from team members who will use the tool before buying in.
• Support: If you run into issues with the software, will the provider help you solve them? 

2. Office technology

Updated technology is secure technology. And because new computers tend to be faster and easier to use, they can also boost your team’s productivity. You may consider looking at online marketing courses if you want to expand your marketing skillset.

Don’t skimp if you know your team needs a certain type of computer. Most creative software is made for Apple products, for example. Buying Windows machines for your designers could force them to spend hours per week dealing with bugs.

New computers are expensive, of course. Trade in your Mac or other Apple products to offset the cost. Small businesses don’t have a ton of extra money lying around, but investing in high-quality technology can be worth it if it helps the company run more efficiently.

3. A small business attorney

For many small businesses, the end of the road is but one lawsuit away. Don’t take the risk. You can find here the best corporate law firm Singapore.

Although you can find templates of legal documents online to use, they’re no substitute for professional legal advice. If you hire a business lawyer from SPZ Legal before you have legal issues, that person can get to know you and your business, steer you away from potential hazards, and immediately jump in when a problem arises.

Entrepreneurs juggle a zillion things, so glossing over the idea of adequate legal representation before a crisis is a common, but fatal, mistake. You’ll want to choose someone who’s familiar with your industry and experienced with the type of contracts you regularly draft. Keep in mind that business attorneys can also help you negotiate a fair price when you want to acquire another company or sell part of yours.

4. A certified public accountant

After payroll, taxes and South Carolina business insurance are some of a small business’s costs. First-time entrepreneurs, in particular, can find clarity by hiring a CPA. 

Many small business owners lose thousands of dollars each year by doing their taxes themselves. Aside from delivering tax savings, CPAs also provide representation and audit protection in case the IRS comes knocking. Professional financial advice, at the very least, is worth the cost of working with an accountant.

5. Marketing

A surprisingly large number of small business leaders assume that, simply because their doors are open, customers will show up. But no matter how valuable the company’s products or services are, consumers have to know about them in order to buy them.

Be sure you have a competent marketing agency or a thorough in-house plan before you start spending. Do your research and think creatively: What channels do your customers pay attention to? Where might your products or services stand out? Newsletters, organic content marketing, reduced-rate radio spots, and word-of-mouth marketing are all inexpensive options.

Blog marketing can be quite complicated for anyone that has never even blogged before. If you are considering getting into small business blog marketing, you will want to first have a blog and see what that is like before you get into something more. Blogging requires dedication and patience. You have to update your blog on a regular basis in order to keep your readers happy. Doing so will keep them coming back for more and to see what you have new to say.

Small business blog marketing consists of blogging about your business. It definitely is a great tool that you should use to get your business out there and known by others. However, you will need to be patient because it is a long process that will require much of your attention. Just because you have a blog does not mean that someone is going to find it and read it. You are going to have to make it known. If you have a website for your business, you can link your blog to it and that will let the ones that know about your business and business website know about your blog as well.

Small business use blog marketing tactics and is something that anyone can do. There are affiliate blog tactics for WordPress marketers and online businesses that could help you out improving the results of your business. Having a blog and keeping it up to date with the latest information is not hard. All you need to have is a plan and you will be set to market any type of business from your blog. Whether you are selling a product or a service, it does not matter.

So you are probably wondering how you are going to accomplish this small business blog marketing. When you are marketing a blog, you pretty much do it the same way that you would market a website. It is going to need keywords, and content. You can write the content yourself, or pay someone else to write it for you.

6. Quality contractors

Labor costs take a bigger bite out of most small businesses’ budgets than any other category. Salary, bonuses, commission, benefits, profit sharing, and other human resources functions are costly. 

Given those costs, it’s crucial to hire people who are not only aligned with your business goals, but who also have a strong work ethic. If full-time employees are too expense, consider contractors, which can save a company around 30% on labor costs. 

Think, too, about what can be automated. Things like email marketing, payroll, and invoicing can all be automated to some degree, allowing you to spend more time on your core business. 

7. Tech support

Small business owners are used to doing it all themselves. Unless you’re a tech genius, it’s wise to outsource your data storage and security needs to the professionals. Mistakes in these areas can be catastrophic. With Axxel Marketing Singapore you are able to get the best website for your business online and also improve your service and communication with your clients.

You should have constant access to your documents. Customers should be able to find your company online 24/7. Chatbots offer an always-on customer support solution. 

Although frugality is important in the small business space, certain expenses are well worth the cost. Use your resources wisely, and you’ll thrive today — and long into the future.

The post Marketing: 7 Expenses That Are Worth It as a Small Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Historically, less than 1% of U.S. companies have received venture capital funding. The reality is that 80% of startups are self-funded through money from the owner’s savings, credit, family, or friends.

If neither you nor anyone in your immediate network has the money to start a business, you’ll need a line of credit. But what if you have bad credit? Should you forget about entrepreneurship altogether?

Beating Bad Credit

Bad credit doesn’t have to be the death knell of your business idea. Here’s how people with less-than-stellar credit scores can still pursue their dreams:

1. Get to the root of the issue.

Just because your credit score is bad doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. The factors that influence credit scores are numerous and not always easy to manage. Although paying your bills in full and on time is an obvious path to a better score, there are some subtler problems that might be holding your score down from obtaining a secured business line of credit.

Finance guru Jackie Lam lists a number of less common issues that can plague credit reports, like opening a retail credit card. Do a full assessment of your financial situation to make sure there aren’t any “leaks” in your credit. Even padding your score by a few extra points could put you over the threshold to get a loan. 

2. Do a grant search.

Loans aren’t the only way to bring cash into your business. Especially if you’re a member of a historically disadvantaged demographic group, you may qualify for a small business grant. And unlike a loan, a grant comes with no pressure to pay it back. 

Grants are difficult to come by, unsurprisingly, and competition for them can be fierce. Lydia Roth of Nav has compiled a list of 21 groups that offer grants to small businesses, but the options don’t stop there. Look for grants specific to your sector and geographic area. Although applying for them might be time-consuming, the potential payoff could be huge. 

3. Opt for a business line of credit.

If your company has short-term or seasonal cash needs, a business line of credit (LOC) might be a better option than a traditional loan. Business LOCs are set amounts of cash to which your business has continued access, but interest only needs to be paid on the amount you take out. 

For example, you might have a $100,000 business LOC but only need $20,000 of it. You’d be required to pay back just that $20,000 at a pre-set rate of interest. And because LOCs have lower default rates than credit cards and some types of loans, interest rates on LOCs tend to be lower.

Another advantage of LOCs is that they’re generally easier to obtain than loans. Through a 10-minute online approval process, online lenders like Kabbage offer LOCs of up to $250,000. 

4. Find a microlender. 

Microloans are very small loans, often made to startups or newly established businesses. These may be backed by nonprofit, for-profit, or government entities. The U.S. Small Business Administration provides funds to nonprofit community lenders, which then make loans of up to $50,000 to business borrowers.

Many microloans are even smaller. Andrew Mosteller at Lendio found that the average microloan is around $13,000, but microloan options exist all the way up to six figures. Although most microlenders still perform credit checks, the minimum credit score required tends to be lower than for traditional loans. 

5. Finance your invoices. 

As a budding business, it can be frustrating to see so much of your cash tied up in outstanding invoices. Invoice financing, which involves offering those future invoices up as collateral, is a relatively new option for getting the money you need now. If you work with reputable companies that pay their invoices in full each month, a loan financed with invoices carries very little risk. 

Jared Hecht of Fundera reports that 64% of small businesses have unpaid invoices that are at least two months old. By treating those outstanding invoices as IOUs, you can get around the barrier of bad credit. Just be sure your financial projections reflect that you’ve already allocated those invoices to paying back your lender. 

Bad credit doesn’t have to spell the end of your dreams of being a business owner. By getting creative with your financial sources, you can overcome your credit score — and maybe even boost it in the process.

The post Want to Be an Entrepreneur? Here’s How to Overcome Bad Credit appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

What do business leaders say to help keep themselves motivated?

Innovation

“You can’t have everything you want, but you can have the things that really matter to you.”
Marissa Mayer, cofounder of Lumi Labs and former president and CEO of Yahoo!

“If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat.”
Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and CEO of Leanin.org

“If you don’t innovate fast, disrupt your industry, disrupt yourself, you’ll be left behind.”
John Chambers, chairman emeritus of Cisco and CEO of JC2 Ventures

“We want to build technology that everybody loves using, and that affects everyone. We want to create beautiful, intuitive services and technologies that are so incredibly useful that people use them twice a day. Like they use a toothbrush. There aren’t that many things people use twice a day.”
Larry Page, co-founder of Google

Focus on People

“Customers should be number one, employees number two, and then only your shareholders come at number three.”
Jack Ma, co-founder and former executive chair of Alibaba Group

“Transparency within your organization is the difference between having a business that’s simply running, and having one that’s moving in one direction.”
Michael Riedijk, CEO of PageFreezer Software and director of West Coast Ventures and Lucent BioSciences

“If you’re competitor focused, you have to wait until there is a competitor doing something. Being customer-focused allows you to be more pioneering.”
Jeff Bezos, founder, CEO, and president of Amazon

“It’s very difficult to design something for someone if you have no empathy.”
Stewart Butterfield, co-founder of Flickr and Slack

Skills

“Engineering is the closest thing to magic that exists in the world.”
Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX, co-founder of Tesla, and co-founder of PayPal 

“Our industry does not respect tradition — it only respects innovation.”
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft

“For me, it matters that we drive technology as an equalizing force, as an enabler for everyone around the world.”
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google

“Stone Age. Bronze Age. Iron Age. We define entire epics of humanity by the technology they use.”
Reed Hastings, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Netflix

Personal Development

“Work takes on new meaning when you feel you are pointed in the right direction. Otherwise, it’s just a job, and life is too short for that.”
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple

“You don’t have to be a genius or a visionary or even a college graduate to be successful. You just need a framework and a dream.”
Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell Technologies

“Desperation sometimes drives innovation.”
Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber

Trends and Tips

“Make every detail perfect and limit the number of details to perfect.”
Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Twitter

“One way to understand human progress is to look at how technology has made products and services — once reserved for the elite — progressively more accessible and affordable.”
Dan Schulman, president and CEO of PayPal and chairman of Symantec

“Growth and comfort do not coexist.”
Ginni Rometty, president, chair and CEO of IBM

“Do you feel good in your role? If yes, that’s the perfect time for you to experiment with something new, to get out of your comfort zone.”
Pierre Nanterme, former chairman and CEO of Accenture

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
Thomas Edison, inventor 

Beat the business blues by keeping these motivational quotes close by.

There’s no one better to learn from than leaders who have been there and done that. Motivational quotes mean more when the source is someone who’s gone through the frustrations we experience and come out the other side.

The post 20 Motivational Quotes from Technology Leaders appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Benefits of a Good Credit Score

One of the most common reasons people look up their credit report is to understand their credit rating. A great rating has several advantages. For example, you may notice improvements on most types of insurance, such as lower rates on key man, auto, and life insurance.

With a strong credit rating, insurers are likely to see you as low risk and if you want to compare car loans and are looking to buy a car then it will help you secure a better rate. Another benefit of having a good report is that getting a loan for your business or even lower rates on your merchant processor.

Factors That Affect Your Credit Score

There are three familiar credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Although the agencies gather roughly the same type of information, there are important differences. The influence of each agency varies from location to location. They also use different calculation models to determine your credit score. This means that a score from Experian won’t necessarily match the score from TransUnion. In general, however, factors such as the amount of credit owed, the limit on open credit cards, the number of credit applications on your history, the number of late payments, and bankruptcies all affect your score. If your business is ever on the verge of bankruptcy, then consider learning more about chapter 7 bankruptcy to get some financial help.

Access Your Free Report

If you understand how your score is calculated and know how to read the rest of your report, you can take steps to improve your score and your financial situation in general. For example, each of the credit reporting agencies offers services that help consumers improve how they manage their credit. The first step is accessing your report. A 2003 federal law requires that each of the three major credit bureaus provide you with a free annual credit report. You can request a report from one or all three credit agencies. With the report in hand, you’re ready to make improvements to your finances.

Recognize the Differences Between Reports

A consumer credit report from Experian is pretty easy to read. Each section is clearly labeled and comes with explanations of the information provided. If you request a copy from TransUnion, you can read through it with the help of an online, interactive guide that walks you through each section of the report.

Equifax organizes their report in groupings of open and closed accounts rather than in a monthly format. The Equifax format helps you quickly recognize old information versus new or current information. As you read through the reports, you may prefer one format over another. Employers and landlords may also have favorites. As you work on improving your credit, use all three to get as much information as you can and to watch for signs of identity theft.

Recognize the Similarities

The three agencies have many differences, but there are some important similarities, as well. Every bureau, for instance, gathers personal information including your name, date of birth, current address, and the name of your employer. They access account summaries from your creditors and read through public records to factor in any bankruptcies or judgments against you. They also obtain credit checks and inquiries from creditors. Although the agencies are searching for the same information, some lenders only share information with one or two of the agencies. As you read through your own reports, make sure you fill in any gaps.

Review the Report for Mistakes

It’s very important that you read through your reports, looking for mistakes, watching out for suspicious activity, and making sure your credit history is accurate.

• Review your personal information and make sure there aren’t mistakes or misspellings. If any of the information is incorrect, it won’t hurt your credit score, but you should correct it. Read this section to be sure the credit report is talking about you and not another person.
• Read through your credit summary. This section outlines the types of accounts you have (often listing current and closed accounts.) Make sure it accurately describes mortgages, credit cards, lines of credit, automobile loans, school loans, collection actions, and other miscellaneous accounts. It will also mention inquiries made against your credit for the past two years.
• Study the account history and make sure you recognize each creditor and type of account. You should see information about how much your monthly payment is, what the existing balance is, what the credit limit is, whether you have anything past due, and even remarks made by creditors.

For some consumers, getting a credit report card and reading through it is a strong motivation to make improvements.

Improve Your Credit

As you become familiar with your report and take advantages of available resources, the process of improving your score should seem pretty simple. One of the most important steps is to make all payments on time, especially your mortgage payments, and pay them in full. Next, begin reducing the amount of debt you owe. Finally, don’t apply for new credit cards or use existing accounts. This will help you obtain debt relief faster and assist in improving your credit score sooner.

In today’s market, you need to have a credit history. Use reports from credit bureaus and online resources to make sure your history has a positive effect on your life. If your score isn’t where you want it to be, check out a credit report card that breaks down your debts and gives specific advice about how to improve your score.

Sometimes improve your credit becomes a challenge and there is no way to recover from this, as a result the only viable option is bankruptcy.

The post How Online Credit Tools Can Help Your Funding Chances appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Technology continues to change the way companies do business every day, and it’s poised to become even more influential as time goes on. No sector is safe from change, and it’s important to have a plan in place for dealing with any potential continuity issues your business may face. 

If disruption were easy to predict, it wouldn’t really be disruption. While there’s no surefire way to know what’s next for your business, there are a few key factors to keep a close eye on, including: 

Cybersecurity

The number of targeted large-scale cyberattacks increases 27 percent annually, but that number is hardly surprising to anyone who reads the news regularly. Yahoo, Equifax, Sony — the list of major companies affected by poor cybersecurity seems to grow almost daily. 

This isn’t just a problem affecting the big players, either — 55 percent of business experienced a cybersecurity breach in 2015 and 2016, with each attack costing, on average, $2 million in recovery costs and damage to normal operations. Investing in adequate digital security infrastructure may be costly, but it will almost always outweigh the potential harm a breach would do to your business. 

As operations become increasingly digitized, your business is at risk. If your company is doing business more frequently on digital platforms, digital threats should be one of your biggest disruption concerns. 

Government Regulation

It’s not the kind of disruption we tend to think about, but government regulation has a massive impact on who wins and loses in any industry. Think about the 2018 Farm Bill and how it legitimized and legalized large portions of the hemp and CBD industries overnight. Any movement from world governments can have a massive impact on the way your business operates.

Tabled legislation like the Green New Deal could affect anything from energy costs to building materials. You should be keenly aware of how the government sees your sector and how it might influence the way you do business. Changes in spending, subsidies, or even legality can turn everything upside down — be prepared for it by keeping an eye on tidal changes happening within your industry. That’s an early signal that the government will take notice. 

Artificial Intelligence

When a group of experts was asked whether it thought AI would cause a net loss or a net creation of jobs by 2025, the members were split on the issue, 48% to 52%. The contention around the impact of artificial intelligence is obvious, but one thing is certain: It’s already changing the way business is done. 

AI has already started increasing the value of user data, eliminating the need for menial tasks and beating humans at just about every game imaginable. Calum Chace, one of the world’s top futurist speakers, has long researched the relationship between computer and human cognition and determined a serious possibility of human unemployability in the face of increased automation. AI may affect every business differently, but it’s something all businesses should be prepared for. 

New Partnerships

Partnerships might be old news in business, but they’re increasingly happening in new and innovative ways. Fifty-seven percent of disruptive business are making innovation happen by branching out of their organization. Whether it’s through acquisition or alliance, innovative partnerships are bound to shake things up in a big way. 

Take Burger King, for example. Its partnership with startup Impossible Foods facilitated the creation of the Impossible Whopper — a vegan burger that looks and tastes like real beef. While some might see this as a gimmick, the numbers say otherwise: Foot traffic at franchises offering the Impossible Whopper increased by 18 percent, while foot traffic at others fell by 1.75 percent. 

Innovators like Impossible Foods are hungry for the opportunity to showcase their offerings on a larger scale, and its partnership with Burger King shows how successful combinations like those can be. Look for potential partnership opportunities in your sector — how could they affect the way you do business, and are you prepared for that kind of shift?  

If you knew how you were going to be disrupted next, you’d never be disrupted at all. While you can’t be sure what’s coming next, you can take notice of fast-moving segments. Remember that disruption waits for no one.

The post How Will Your Business Be Disrupted Next? appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

With open positions at an all-time high, hiring is expected to become more competitive for 74 percent of recruiters in the next several months. Maintaining an edge doesn’t just mean offering the highest salary or most benefits — it means using the right hiring techniques, like getting help from a cloud talent recruiting agency, to find the right people for your position.

Bringing a new employee to your team is a long and difficult process, and many companies still use outdated practices. If you’re looking to hire the right way, make sure to:

1. Identify your business’s needs.

Take a step back, and determine what caused you to want to make this hire to begin with. Is there simply too much work to be done for you to do it all? Do you need someone with technical knowledge that your business doesn’t already have? While it may be obvious why you’re adding someone new to the payroll, asking questions like these can help determine what kind of hire is right for your business.

The point of these questions is ultimately to determine whether a full-time employee is what your business needs. Expanding your company is expensive, and it’s almost always cheaper to outsource or hire contractors for small-scale work. Full-time employees are a major cash investment that also require extensive work in getting integrated into the culture of your office. If your business’s need is long-term or specialized or requires hands-on work from multiple workers, a new hire might be the way to go. 

2. Determine the actual cost.

It’s common knowledge that taking on new workers is a massive expense, but it’s not always easy to tell exactly what that means in terms of dollars and cents. Between salary, benefits, insurance, and other expenses, calculating the ROI of a new hire is a murky process. 

Going over expense sheets for current employees is a good place to start, and tools like OnPay’s employee gross-up calculator can make the number-crunching easier. This is a model you can also spread to existing employees: Once you have the likely ROI for a new hire, compare that to the ROI of existing employees. Knowing how much a new employee will contribute to the value of your company is critical information for deciding what kind of hire to make.

3. Get the job description right.

Getting the position listing correct from the beginning can save you lots of time down the line. Work closely with HR and the team the position is part of in order to get the specifics of the job description correct; you don’t want to alienate anyone with poor use of technical language or unreasonable requirements. A poorly written job posting can easily attract the wrong applicants. 

Tools like Indeed’s job description template are a good place to start for crafting the structure of  your posting, but the description itself requires some heavy lifting on your part. Think about what you value most in your current employees — is it their knowledge? Friendliness? Education? Indicate in the job description that you’re looking for employees who have the same qualities as your best workers. 

4. Hold the right interview for the role.

The classic interview model is broken. One-third of employers state that they know whether they’ll hire someone within the first 90 seconds of an interview, despite that not being nearly enough time to know what someone is capable of. As tempting as it can be to make hires based on appearance, demeanor, and “fit,” consider taking a more contemporary approach to interviewing.

Working interviews are becoming increasingly popular, with employees working in the office for anywhere from an hour to a week to demonstrate their professional capabilities. More technical roles often include assessments like programming challenges, which show specialized knowledge as well as problem-solving ability. Develop an interview that tests for the qualities you’re looking for specifically. (Remember that any work needs to be paid.) Before finalizing the candidate, most of the companies tend to prefer background check of the candidate. Background checks need to be made all of the time. they’re finished employment reasons and that they are finished volunteers. Companies need to confirm that folks are the proper ones for them. Landlords can also do background checks. Background checking is that the procedure which involves finding and collection of all quite criminal, financial also as commercial records of an individual . Usually, these records are used for employment screening of a person before hiring. Employers bring into play these checks to guage a candidate’s character, qualification, and fitness also . A record check of a person is important to be evaluated if he’s seeking employment involving high security or trust like government, schools, airports, etc. Hiring professional background screening company to perfrom  your background checks for you and obtain your results delivered subsequent day.

5. Don’t neglect onboarding.

The facts supporting the importance of onboarding are striking — new employees who go through onboarding are nearly 70 percent more likely to remain at a company after three years than those who don’t. Yet 35 percent of companies continue to spend no money on onboarding whatsoever. Maximizing the ROI of a new hire is impossible if new employee retention remains low, so onboarding should be a nonnegotiable part of every new hiring process.

Onboarding isn’t just about keeping employees around; it’s also about getting them working well. A good onboarding process should include training components that maximize a new hire’s productivity as quickly as possible. Transitioning to a new position can be jarring, and a well-developed onboarding process helps ensure that employees are ready to do their best work as quickly as possible.

Hiring a new employee is always a risky task, so it’s important to refine every step of the process to ensure that the role is going to the right person. Hiring doesn’t end with a handshake, however, and it’s just as important to set your new employee up for success from his or her first day on the job. A new hire isn’t a momentary expense, but a long-term investment in the future of an individual — and your business as a whole.

The post 5 Things to Consider Before Hiring Your Next Employee appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The challenge, however, is there are so many potential business opportunities on the landscape these days, that it’s often overwhelming to identify one that involves minimal risk, upfront investment and training.

So we’ve done the research for you. The following are 5 great home-based business ideas that are engaging, affordable and flexible all rolled into one.

Become a Freelance Writer

If you are a skilled writer, then there’s a good chance you could be an excellent freelance writer. Freelance writers can work from anywhere – you could opt to sit in your local coffee shop or travel around the world with laptop in hand.

You must have a grasp on tone and grammar and the ability to edit and research topics you aren’t familiar with in order to find success. Another benefit is that sometimes you are forced to do research about topics and learn things you never would have known if you weren’t writing about it.

Start an Air Freshener Business

This at home business is ideal for men, women and retirees. You can choose your own territory, training is minimal, there isn’t a requirement for lots of storage. The commercial air-freshener business is a growing industry – without odor neutralizing products, the workplace and commercial restrooms would smell unpleasant and negatively impact repeat traffic and company morale. The increase in demand for air fresheners has created a great opportunity for entrepreneurs who seek home-based business opportunities. In order to find great success, it’s vital to know that the secret to good customer service is real people – like you.

Act as a Virtual Assistant

If people think of you as being very organized, then a virtual assistant could be a good fit.

Executives eventually find themselves in a place where they’re unable to manage all of the emails, calls, appointments and other responsibilities they must take care of – they’re busy running their businesses.

Insert a virtual assistant; if you become a virtual assistant, you would use your email, skills, phone and other online tools to handle online calendars, make reservations, set up reminders, schedule appointments, organize events and file documents.

Manage Social Media Accounts

If social media is one thing you have down pat, but never thought it could turn into something you could make a living doing, there’s some good news.

Many businesses are happy to pay people well if they have the ability to manage social media accounts. If you are able to stay on brand, reply to customers intently, use correct grammar and share appropriate content, you could find a lot of success as a social media manager.

Become a Personal Trainer

If you’re into health and wellness, you could think about becoming a personal trainer.

When you’re a personal trainer, you make house calls, let clients come to you if you have the correct equipment and visit a gym. You have to be extremely knowledgeable about the human body, understand safe and proper exercises for body types and have the skill set to buy sildenafil from canada get people motivated and help them stay motivated. You should also have the people skills to get to know your clients and learn more about what they want and what works best for them.

The right home-based businesses allow entrepreneurs to be more in charge of their own lives. Whether you have children at home, prefer to sleep in or like to take long lunches, home-based businesses are beneficial. Or maybe you want to ditch those quarterly reviews and be your own boss and travel when you want. These reasons are all enough for you to explore the low cost home-based businesses out there. Consider your areas of expertise and interests to help you decide which business idea will work best for you.

The post 5 Perfect Low Cost Home-Based Business Opportunities appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Invest in advertising

When it comes to advertising your small business, it’s not something to take lightly. You don’t want to spend a fortune advertising in every direction – it can be a waste of time. Consider the options and which make the most sense for your business like technical seo. It may be a good idea for you to advertise in local newspapers. Placing ads in various newspapers offers a wide visibility – you extend your reach to those who read hard copies and online readers.

You can also network at trade shows. If you sell home décor, a trade show will attract your target customers and is the perfect place to gain maximum visibility, you just need to make sure to use the best Trade Show Booth Design to attract customers. When it comes to “first hires” we always suggest to get them from a Trade Show Booth Staffing where you can find more options.

Now is also the time to advertise on social media. Decide which platforms are the ideal place to show what your business believes in and offers. If you aren’t sure you can take this task on alone, look at pros and cons to outsourcing social media marketing. No matter who does the marketing, make sure it’s done well.

Invest in training

There are numerous ways you can further train your team — even if they come to you with years of experience, every new employee needs proper training. However, when you’re overwhelmed running the business, this very important task can get brushed aside.

Instead, as a small business owner you should write down every element of the training. Record each job’s tasks, how-to’s and notes on company policies. This is very helpful with each new hire, so you can follow the list to complete the essential training without any lost time.

Remember that if you simply can’t make the time to train your employee, you don’t have to do it all yourself. You can also use online sites like the Amazing Selling Machine review by GFKamerica.com. This is a great resource that breaks down how to effectively sell on amazon, teaching employees about everything from how to build the product opportunity list to how to make the perfect product page and launch the product. There are a wealth of excellent training resources online; you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

Invest in your employees

You know that employees are your most important assets. They’re the ones who communicate with customers, adhere to your brand values and in turn help to grow your business. Keep in mind that employee turnover is a bigger problem than you may imagine – the cost of replacing each employee is between 6 and 9 month’s salary, based on the role.

This is why you have to invest in your employees. When you offer perks such as flexible working hours, professional development, fitness and health options and the ability to work remotely, you better support your team. When you support your employees, you keep them happier. The higher morale means higher productivity and higher employee retention. How you treat your employees affects the reputation of your business, especially now that sites allow employees to explain what it’s like to work for any business online for the world to see. When you treat your employees well, your brand will be seen in a more positive light.

It’s time to see the importance of investing in all areas of your business; whether it’s something you’re yearning to do or approaching with a large dose of trepidation, do your due diligence to make sure you are taking the necessary steps to make your business thrive.

The post 3 Resources to Make Your Small Business Grow appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

To understand the role, it’s crucial to explore the life cycle of businesses. While much of today’s conversation is focused on high-growth startups in the Silicon Valley, the reality is that many smaller companies that may never even hire employees are the economic drivers of the small business economy.

According to a report by J.P Morgan Chase Institute on 1 million SMBs, these businesses are not considered as a uniform sector because they differ either in cash flow management, growth, or a number of employees.

How are small businesses contributing to the American economy?

As it is clear that new ventures and small businesses are having a significant impact on the economy, cash flow, and employment, policymakers need to look to SMBs as an engine for future economic growth. Even in the future, small companies are not going to rely too much on financing or hiring employees; they’re likely to generate significant revenue which helps in the growth of the economy. As per JP Morgan Chase, the average life expectancy of a U.S. SMB is 5.3 years. The real estate firms have the longest life expectancy of 9 years, whereas the restaurants have the shortest life expectancy of 3.7 years. In the industry, the non-employer firms are 5x more likely to go out of business than those firms which hire employees. Also, each year, a small percentage of non-employers become employers, but the likelihood of their transition decreases as firms mature.

Different kinds of SMBs and how they contribute to the American economy

JP Morgan Chase classifies SMBs into four segments depending upon their size, dynamism, and complexity to understand the impact of the SMBs on the Americal economy.

1) Financed Growth

The share of the financed growth small businesses is 3%, and it includes businesses like a tech startup or a pizza chain, or other ventures, which will grow in the future using the external financing. The financed growth firms are more concentrated in some industries and cities. 20% of these businesses fail within 4 years of inception, but the contribution to the economy is significant in the years of operation.

2) Organic Growth

These companies enjoy a share of more than 50% of all the companies and are present in every industry and city. It primarily includes companies which are founded by people with significant industry experience such as the consultancy business. The future growth of these companies is dependent upon limited external financing. Furthermore, organic growth firms are responsible for generating revenue and small firm payroll but can cease to exist in the marketplace. The firms play a critical role in generating revenue, but are most fragile and still prefer to take bigger risks as 31% of these firms fail within 4 years of inception. Companies located in areas such as San Francisco and San Jose are 3x more likely to be financed growth small firms. The organic growth firms, on the other hand, is responsible for contributing to the economic growth. Furthermore, such firms share the advantages of the growth across geographies.

3) Stable Small Employer

These firms include a local lawyer or a doctor’s office, which employs anywhere between 5-20 people. Such businesses rarely seek external financing, and 12% of such businesses are likely to go out of business within 4 years of launch.

4) Stable Micro

Such type of SMBs hires no or very few employees, such as a dry cleaner’s shop. The small businesses under this category provide economic support to many households of SMB owners who otherwise might find it difficult to grow. 15% of the total stable micro firms exit the marketplace within four years of operation.

Why Small Businesses Exit the Marketplace?

Most of the small businesses never grow into mid-sized or large corporations because they run out of business within a few years. Here are a few reasons why they exit the marketplace so soon.

• Over time, new and small businesses usually have regular and extremely stable cash flow patterns, or else they will leave the marketplace.
• SMBs with volatile expenses will quickly exit than those with non-volatile cash flow patterns. It means for SMBs, massive and unexpected expenses are difficult to manage, which can lead to their early exit.
• The stable firms never go out of business, declining firms go out of business, and the growing, dynamic firms become more predictable. Also, new and dynamic small firms usually have irregular cash flows, making their survival tough.
• Financed growth firms have erratic revenues, and organic growth firms have both expenses, and revenue with improper timing. These types of irregularities always result in the early exit of the firms.

Until the recent research by JP Morgan Chase, the value and the role of small businesses in the economy was underestimated primarily because the businesses are small. But, on the contrary, there is nothing small about the impact they have on the economy. Right now, the owners need to channelize their energies to grow their business, reduce the challenges and leverage the opportunities that knock on their door.

The post JP Morgan Chase Study – Understanding Opportunities and Life-Cycle of American Small Businesses appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

What’s a basic tech skill that small business owners must have to oversee day-to-day operations?

These answers are provided by Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. YEC has also launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Public Cloud Navigation

The on-demand servers available from public cloud platforms can host websites, business applications, collaboration and communication tools, analytics, data and a lot more. A basic understanding of what the cloud is and how to deploy and manage cloud servers can help small business owners access infrastructure that was once only available to much larger companies at an affordable price. – Justin Blanchard, ServerMania Inc.

The post 12 Basic Tech Skills You Need to Master to Run a Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Contractors

A contractor is someone you hire for a specific length of time rather than on a permanent basis or for an unspecified period of time. While contractors are sometimes more expensive than workers in the short term, they come with the advantage of not requiring you to pay them if the work they do slows down or becomes unnecessary. Bringing ir35 contracting for important work projects lets you scale up expertise quickly and without the necessity of a long-term commitment to the employee that can become onerous in later days.

Rentals

Similar to hiring contractors, renting equipment that you will only need temporarily can cut long-term costs by keeping your physical space usage down and keeping capital from getting tied up in heavy machinery. Renting equipment for a project ensures that you have the tools you need for as long as you need them. Of course, in the modern cloud computing environment, increasing numbers of businesses are also outsourcing functions like IT, storage, and other technology issues. Doing so keeps your in-house IT trim and fit and helps businesses that are not primarily IT-driven avoid carrying too many expensive technologies and staffers.

Set Objectives

Growing businesses can too easily lose sight of where they need to be going. Setting a long-term goal is a great way to focus the company on a singular vision, but big-picture goals are often too lofty to guide day-to-day decisions. Instead, try setting up a group of medium-range goals to inform immediate progress. Try to focus on growing a specific product or enhancing one area of the business. If you want to get ambitious, you can set reasonable medium-range goals for each of your departments.

Watch the Customers

Every business in the world has one thing in common, and that is its ultimate dependence on the goodwill of its customers. Businesses deliver products or services to their customers, and these customers either like or dislike what they get. And those customers are often not shy about letting you know where they stand. Sending out customer satisfaction surveys is a reasonable way to gather information, but sending too many or soliciting them too intrusively can make you look pushy. Asking big customers if they have the time for a more personal talk about their experiences is a decent tactic. Moreover, make sure you have a clear route to receive and resolve any complaints.

Growth need not to be a scary thing. A well-prepared company will embrace growth and come out stronger on the other end. Just be sure you have a plan, and things should go seamlessly.

The post 4 Hacks to Manage Growth Like a Pro appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Ignore the statistics.

People will always share the scary statistics – only one in five businesses survive past their first year of operation, and half no longer exist after five years. Do not listen to those people. They throw around those statistics to give you an easy out if you want to throw in the towel. Many people start businesses and don’t commit, or they fail to learn how to manage their money. Don’t worry about the odds that aren’t in your favor. Focus on the odds that are.

Start a business that focuses on something you care about.

Don’t start a business that you want to do temporarily. Think about what you’ll still enjoying doing in five or ten years. Why? Because hopefully you are successful, and if so, you’ll be running this same business in five or ten years.

You won’t know everything.

Truth be told, you won’t know a lot when you start. Go ahead and start anyway. You’ll learn as you go along, figuring things out based on real life experiences or with the help of mentors. Don’t let your fears stand in the way of starting that business you’ve always dreamed of. You’ll learn which tools start-ups need to succeed and how to best manage others. Give yourself time and don’t be afraid to ask other successful business owners for help.

Don’t partner with just anyone.

Select your partner with care. Partner with a person because he or she makes you stronger. The wrong partner will make the business you’ve dreamed of not be the business you’ve dreamed up. They may cause more problems that they’re worth and you could end up not enjoying your work. 

Learn all about financing options before you leap.

Starting a business means you need to secure small business financing options and there’s a good chance you aren’t sure where to begin. From SBA loans to merchant cash advance to business lines of credit, the type of financing you utilize to pursue your business can have a profound impact on the future of your business. Take your time and evaluate your options so you can learn about financing for small businesses so you can make an informed decision.

Realize there’s a difference between dedication and obsession.

Go ahead and go on past that line of dedication. Don’t let anyone tell you that you are too obsessed or overly passionate about anything, especially your business idea. It’s okay and a good thing if you feel so strongly about something. That obsession will help you find success and not throw in the towel when the going gets tough.

Read books as often as possible.

Make it a point to sit down and read. If you don’t have time, listen to audio books in the car or when you’re completing other tasks. Read more than just business books. Read self-help books, motivational books, fiction books, and biographies – anything and everything you can get your hands on.

Entrepreneurship can be a little scary. The tips above can help you navigate your way through the uncharted territory of business ownership with some confidence.

The post Seven Things You Should Know About Starting a Small Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

• 96 percent of executives said that the long-term success of their organization depended on the development of new ideas

YET…

• 82 percent of those same executives didn’t make a meaningful distinction between significant innovation and achieving incremental performance gains.

An organization’s success depends on the ability to innovate, but you have no way of making a distinction between whether your company is being innovative or just ‘doing better’, there is a problem. And the problem stems from the fact that most companies do not have a formalized innovation process in place that allows them to work towards success.

Here’s a final fact from the Accenture study you need to know:

• 72 percent of companies allow innovations to languish because there is no formalized process or organizational home for such initiatives

Building an Innovation Process: The 5 Stages

Finding success by innovating poses a number of challenges. The hard reality is that most companies who find success do so simply by chance: serendipity.

To change that, companies need to adjust their mindset about innovation, start taking the right approach and find the necessary resources to enjoy the strategic benefits of growth. They would then be what researchers in the Innovation: Management, Policy & Practice study call robust companies. These are companies that “have found a recipe for sustainable innovation programs rather than mere spurts of innovation.”

The study defines five specific stages most common to this sustained, successful innovation:

1. Idea Generalization and Mobilization
2. Advocacy and Screening
3. Experimentation
4. Commercialization
5. Diffusion and Implementation

Creating an effective process that includes these five stages can greatly help businesses find success through innovation. But, like all business processes, if the process has a weak spot or a company lacks the discipline to follow the system, you are once again relying on chance for success. Managers are the one line of defense that companies have to ensure that processes don’t break down.

A great manager, one with the proper education on not only core business concepts like project management and organization dynamics but also how to build a culture of innovation, is vital to an organization’s success. Many universities offer online MBA programs that help today’s managers sharpen their skills in these specific areas. Because as outlined in the Innovation: Management, Policy & Practice study, to effectively assist with the innovation process, managers need to:

• pay constant attention to operational details of innovation projects.
• be clear about how ideas are selected and evaluated
• respond to external constituents and provide their opinions for experimentation
• pay attention to customer desires and perceptions

If you want to find greater success through innovation, start building your process today and ensure that you have a talented manager who understands exactly what is needed to find success at the helm. This will help ensure you find greater success more often, and not just by chance.

The post Study Shows Successful Business Innovation Relys on a Strong Process and Management appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Many of us fanaticize about quitting our day job, becoming our own boss, and gaining financial freedom by doing something we love beyond words

The intrinsic barriers that come with building a startup company is what keeps many out of the entrepreneurial game.

The single most daunting hurdle that stops the majority of people from ever launching is the same one that keeps them locked in soul-sucking jobs: Money.

Obtaining the necessary funds to begin a business can be a frustrating and arduous process; no one will argue that. But in today’s world, there are more options, tools, and platforms available to business owners than ever before; this this has made acquiring startup funds a tangible reality.

In fact, if you’re willing to think outside the box you may be surprised at how accessible your business dreams are. For example, a service called CloudKitchens allows restaurateurs to grow and expand by renting a ghost kitchen in Austin, Los Angeles, and many other cities. Coworking spaces allow consultants to “fake it until they make it” with a legitimate office address. Phone answering services do the same.

If you’re ready to join the ranks of those who left behind the proverbial safety net, I’ve got the resources for getting your startup funded.

Don’t Fear the Small Business Loan

Stop cringing; loans are not what they used to be. This is a perfectly viable way to get your business launched.

There are two types of loans to consider: Small Business and Personal.

Let’s deal with the small business loan route first. Since most banks won’t make loans to startups, a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan is your best hope. There are several SBA loan programs to choose from, though this is not who actually makes the loan. The SBA merely provides a guarantee for the loan if the applicant passes the screening process with an accredited SBA lender.

SBAs are particularly beneficial as they can help startups acquire funding, informational resources, and mentorship options.

To make sure that you obtain the lowest financing costs available, it is wise to use a business loan calculator to figure out a loan’s APR and get the best pricing possible.

If you have long-standing and satisfactory relationships with a bank, you could attempt to procure a business loan. If a loan is at all a possibility, be prepared to enter into an extensive loan application process that will include collateral for the loan.

Your second option will test the level to which you’re willing to be humble and ask for help. There are countless stories of successful entrepreneurs that launched their business with help from family and friends. If you are fortunate enough to know someone (or a collection of someone’s) who has the resources to and willingness to fund your company, this can be an ideal situation as it significantly cuts down on the paperwork and red tape you have to deal with.

As an established rapport already exists with your potential lender, it’s much easier to have open and honest conversations about the risks and rewards of the venture.

Be aware, however, that personal loans come with some significant potential downfalls.

Considering that more than 50% of startups fail in the first 4 years of operation, you are risking your relationship with whoever puts up the money.

Additionally, friends and family members likely don’t possess the experience necessary in order to provide guidance or help with business-related questions. This could also have adverse consequences on your business and relationship.

Those are the conventional options. Let’s move to the myriad of digital opportunities that can help you acquire the capital you need.

Specialized Funding Platforms

The online world enables startups and small business owners to gain all of the necessary resources for building a business. There are now a plethora of digital platforms that cater to entrepreneurs in need of funding.

Alternatively, platforms like FundingPost, Angel Investment Network, and Gust all help entrepreneurs and startups to connect with angel investors across the globe.

Each of these platforms has their own unique spin on the process so it is necessary to identify which is the right fit for you.

FundingPost connects entrepreneurs and investors at physical events in over 23 cities.

Angel Investment Network connects hopeful business owners and venture capitalists in the virtual space.

Gust also operates in the digital realm, but provides a variety of other tools and council for entrepreneurs to leverage along the way.

If none of these sound like a fit for you, there is yet another powerful route you could go to acquire money.

Start a Crowdfunding Campaign

Crowdfunding is an increasingly popular option for startups. The World Bank has estimated that crowdfunding will become a $90 billion industry by 2020 and many others have predicted that this medium will have surpassed the venture capital industry by the end of 2016, though this has yet to come to fruition.

For these reasons, platforms like Kickstarter, GoFundMe, RocketHub, and similar websites are particularly viable funding destinations.

Additionally, Indiegogo recently announced its entrance into the equity crowdfunding space through its partnership with Micro Ventures. This makes Indiegogo a particularly appealing option for startups as the site receives more than 15 million visitors per month.

Raising money can certainly be an intimidating and (at times) disheartening process. Thankfully, there are now an abundance of options for entrepreneurs to rely on. If you find yourself rejected from certain institutions or platforms, simply refine your pitch and move on to the next one. You can even use a combination of these options to turn your startup dreams into a reality.

Stay diligent. Don’t lose your passion. Persistence is always the secret sauce to success.

The post Where to Acquire the Funding to Start Your Own Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Benefits of Mentorship for Small Business Owners

As a small business owner, you are already quite busy. Should you make time for mentorship? Is it really that important? If you want to succeed, the answer is yes. This article shares three important areas where a business mentor can help you learn and grow – a true eye opener for those of us who tend to do things on our own.

Click to read Don’t Go It Alone: How Having a Business Mentor Can Change Your Business

Tips for Attracting Mentors

A mentor is typically someone who is a ‘step ahead’ of you in the business world – they’ve been through it all and have lived to tell the tale. But how can you appeal to someone who is obviously very busy and get them to share their time and experience with you? The answer is by being a good mentee. In this article, guest contributor Ella Rucker shares five ways you can become a mentee that your ideal mentor cannot refuse.

Click to read 5 Smart Ways to Maximize Your Potential for a Business Mentor

Business Growth Tips from GlambitiousIAM.com

Glambitious I Am is an innovative network for female entrepreneurs who have a diverse set of professional experiences and are eager to share their advice with others. In this article, six members of the “Glambitious Power Circle” contributed their top tips for business growth. It’s no surprise that mentorship made the list (“Join a Group of Like-Minded Entrepreneurs” and “Find an Accountability Partner”), but to see what else made the list, you’ll have to read the full article.

Click to read 10 Business Growth Tips from the Glambitious Power Circle

An Inside Look at Entrepreneur Ramon Ray

Ramon Ray, Editor of Smart Hustle Magazine, is used to being the one who interviews others. In this twist, Ramon finds himself at the other end of the interview table! Zev Asch, President of Ledaza, sits down with Ramon to ask him about his entrepreneurial journey and other personal questions, like his biggest wins and mistakes, and who inspires him the most.

Click to read Zev Asch Interviews Smart Hustle Magazine Editor Ramon Ray: What the Entrepreneurial Journey Is Really About

The four articles listed above all have a common theme: mentorship. Having other entrepreneurs around you who inspire and push you is an important part of running a small business. In fact, we felt so strongly about this that we created the Smart Hustle Community to help business owners network and learn from each other! Check out the community here, and for more great articles, head over to SmartHustle.com.

The post Smart Hustle Recap: The Power of Business Mentorship appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Tell the Customer Story

Gather stories about the customer experience. Why do they use your product or service? What value do you bring them? Gather that feedback and create simple, effective stories centered around how you bring your customers value. You’ll often find that the story of “why” a customer uses your product or service will resonate with others. That usually results in more customers.

– JT Allen, myFootpath LLC

2. Hone in on What Your Clients Really Want

Data for any business is invaluable. We have continuously used feedback to hone in on what our clients and vendor partners want most. If you find that a client doesn’t care about a costly component of your product or service, that’s money to be used elsewhere. If you learn that a certain aspect has been well-received, that’s an opportunity to tailor your product or service even more.

– Alex Lorton, Cater2.me

3. Create a Referral Program

One effective way to use data from existing customers is to offer them incentives to refer new business. Companies like DirecTV use a simple “Give $100, Get $100” referral program for existing customers to refer new customers. This idea is powerful, as your existing customers would love to save money on future business with you, while also referring friends and family as new customers.

– Obinna Ekezie, Wakanow.com

4. Better Define Your Ideal Clients

When we understand the wants and needs of our ideal customers, we are able to develop targeted marketing campaigns that speak directly to them. Use the data you collect to better understand your ideal buying persona. How old are the people who are buying from you? What is their socioeconomic status? What are their professions? Develop campaigns around these findings.

– Nicole Munoz, Start Ranking Now

5. Focus On Effective, Efficient Growth

Use analytics and data to determine where you should invest your time. For instance, if most of your converting customers are coming from Instagram, you should focus your efforts there even further to continue to improve. In addition, don’t simply look at the current data. Look at your business and industry trends to see where to invest your time and money.

– Anshey Bhatia, Verbal+Visual

6. Turn Data Points Into Personal Connections

Small businesses need to compete with larger ones by having a personal connection with the customer. Big corporations can spend millions on analyzing big data but what they can not do is turn these data points into fans of and mavens for their company. Know who your customers are with data and then go above and beyond to befriend them and make their connection with your brand a personal one.

– Matt Wilson, Under30Experiences

7. Create Custom Audiences

The two most powerful and cost-effective forms of digital marketing are custom audiences and re-targeting. Small businesses would be best served by uploading their customer lists to Facebook and Google to create audience campaigns. An audience campaign will allow the small business to focus limited resources on getting existing customers to buy more, and re-targeting will drive conversions.

– Kristopher Jones, LSEO.com

8. Create Buying Funnels

There’s so much that can be done with data. But for companies with limited resources, the best approach is to use data to increase revenue. To do so, companies should use the data they already have to create a strong buying funnel, which can then be used to market to those customers more effectively using email marketing, retargeting and content creation.

– Marcela De Vivo, Brilliance

9. Determine How to Differentiate Yourself

A small company can fill niche needs that sometimes a big company cannot. The data they receive can provide insights into the competition not meeting those needs, so the small company can use that as the basis to develop exactly what their audience says it’s looking for. This intelligence gathered through the data can provide a significant competitive advantage.

– Cynthia Johnson, American Addiction Centers

10. Collect Customer Contact Information

A business grows by building its customer base. The best way to do this is to acquire customer contact information and keep up consistent, relevant communication. Give the customer a reason for needing their contact information, such as sending an email or a text when their appointment is ready. Add this information (with their permission) into your monthly newsletter list.

– Andy Karuza, FenSens

11. Create Micro-Targeted Campaigns

One of the best ways to use the data you collect on your customers is to use micro-targeted marketing campaigns. When you really get to know your customers, you can put them into buckets and market to them in a much more effective way. For example, when sending emails to your clients, it’s much more effective to send a customized email to all the people who live in Brooklyn and are married than to batch everyone together.

– Joe Apfelbaum, Ajax Union

12. Try CRM Marketing

The main way we use our customer data is to send them more useful and specific messages. We segment our customer base into over 30 different groups based on spend amount, what they’ve purchased, and the frequency of their purchases and location. This way we’re able to send them a more targeted email or show them more relevant banner ads.

– Fan Bi, Blank Label

The post 12 Ways to Make the Most of Your Customer Data appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

If you are planning on starting a restaurant or something similar, then you should checking out and EXPLORE OUR HEALTHY SANDWICH FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY | PITA PIT FRANCHISE. 

Entrepreneur Advice on Leaving Your Full-Time Job

Many entrepreneurs and budding small business owners face that point in their career when they have to make the decision to stay in the 9-5 or to leave that full-time job and pursue their business idea full time. No matter how confident you are in your ideas, this is a tough decision because it means saying goodbye to the structure and safety of a regular job with a regular paycheck. In this interview with Jessica Mah of the accounting company InDinero, Jessica gives advice for making a smoother transition into entrepreneurship. She also comments on the importance of refining your product and creating a long-term business plan.

Click to read Advice to Live by for Startup Entrepreneurs from Jessica Mah of InDinero

Entrepreneur Advice on Creating a Niche Business

If it’s been said once, it’s been said one hundred times – small businesses shouldn’t try to be everything to everyone; instead, they should find a specific niche and focus on bringing a unique product or service to a distinct market. If you are starting (or dream of starting) your own niche business, check out this entrepreneur advice from junk pickup Phoenix, an eco-friendly junk removal company. Josh talks about the importance of niche businesses to focus on one thing, partner with the right people and enhance your customer care so you can benefit from referral marketing.

Click to read Business Growth Strategies for Niche Businesses: An Interview with Josh Cohen of Junkluggers

Entrepreneur Advice on Franchising

Other readers may be further ahead in the game. Perhaps by now you have set up a steady and successful business but are curious as to how you can take it to the next level. Have you ever considered franchising as a way to expand your brand to a wider market with the help of others like you who dream of running their own business? In this interview with Ciarra Stockeland of MODE, a discount fashion store, Ciarra shares her advice on becoming a small business franchise. She speaks about the differences between franchising and retail, the limitations of a franchise, and the importance of mentorship. Her advice is helpful for those who want to create a franchise out of their own business as well as those who want to buy into a franchise to become a business owner.

Click to read Entrepreneur Ciarra Stockeland on the Challenges and Nuances of Starting a Franchise Business

The articles above will provide you with excellent entrepreneur advice, and if you’re looking for even more, I want to remind you about the Smart Hustle Small Business Conference that takes place October 20^th in Midtown NYC. The conference will feature speakers including Joe Connelly, Peter Shankman, Ramon Ray, Gene Marks and other entrepreneurs who are going to share their best advice with conference attendees. Tickets are on sale but are selling fast!

The post Smart Hustle Recap: Entrepreneur Advice to Grow Your Small Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Asking and Listening

Ask customers, members of your team and trusted people around you. It doesn’t matter the platform, be it a survey, email or in-person conversation. What matters is that you really listen to what they have to say with an open mind, impartially and without getting defensive. It can be tough sometimes, but it’s always worth it.

– Ophir Tanz, GumGum

2. Wyzerr

Customers usually dislike surveys and feedback forms, as they are long, repetitive and boring. Wyzerr’s “smart” forms adapt as the user answers the questions, using gamification to entice responses. The result is more consumer responses and fully completed surveys.

– Beck Bamberger, BAM Communications

3. Analyzing Behavior Patterns

Nothing speaks better than actual user data, that is why we spend a lot of time analyzing patterns of behavior within our products. Also, A/B tests will give you a much more relevant and applicable answer — we utilize them a lot. We found out that customers were never interested in features users supposedly like in surveys once we implemented them in our app.

– Ivan Tsybaev, Trucker Path, Inc

4. Emailing

Email is still one of the best tools for soliciting feedback. With a bit of digging, you can reach just about anyone. If you’re already collecting customer data, you should have access to numerous people who can provide you with valuable feedback with regards to your product, service or website. Your email list is also an invaluable resource for conducting surveys.

– Ismael Wrixen, FE International

5. Doing Monthly Calls

We keep in monthly contact with every single client. This helps build our relationship with each client. In turn, they feel more comfortable giving us honest feedback about the work we are performing. Because of these calls, our clients feel comfortable calling or emailing us anytime there is an issue. It also helps to eliminate problems in the early stages.

– Phil Laboon, Eyeflow Internet Marketing

6. Shopper Approved

For my website, I use Shopper Approved. Shopper Approved is easy to set up, provides feedback from only individuals who have purchased your product, and allows you to display your rating on PPC ads and organic SERPS, as well as on your website. I personally read every review, and the real-time feedback helps us spot trends and potential issues with our site.

– Patrick Barnhill, Specialist ID, Inc.

7. Using Third Party Companies

Hiring a third party company to conduct customer interviews, surveys, etc. is the best way to elicit unbiased, honest and useful information from actual buyers or potential buyers. This works well because you have eliminated any factors that might influence someone’s opinion. They can speak freely and unabashedly.

– Andrew Kucheriavy, Intechnic

8. UserTesting.com

UserTesting.com gives you unedited videos of people using your site and talking about their experience. These are people from your target demographic, trying to accomplish tasks you set out for them. As soon as you watch three or four, you’ll notice patterns in use, which will inform you on how to improve your product design.

– Aaron Schwartz, Modify

9. Invision

The InVision app makes it easier than ever to prototype and test new web or app designs. This tool allows you to invite team members or even customers to collaborate by providing notes and feedback right on top of the design mockup. It’s easy to use because the mockups are accessible online from anywhere, by anyone you invite, and the UI is quite intuitive.

– Andy Karuza, FenSens

10. SurveyMonkey

SurveyMonkey works well because it’s easy to implement and has multiple features that allows you to gather all of the feedback and data you could ever need. You can completely brand the surveys and deploy them via email or social media, in addition to housing them on your website. Several third party integrations are also available. For example, we have used the platform together with Mailchimp.

– Jonathan Long, Market Domination Media

11. Qualaroo

Qualaroo is a great tool that lets you set up a question or set of questions that pop up for users on your website. It’s easy to set up and runs automatically, which can give you more results than an email survey or reaching out to users individually. Best of all, the tool comes pre-populated with many questions you can ask your users, such as Net Promoter Score or Signup Hesitation.

– Mattan Griffel, One Month

12. MixPanel

What users say and what they do are two totally separate things. It is great to hear the thoughts of your users, but to get the whole picture you need to see how they use your product. There’s no better way to do this than to drill down into individual actions and users (far beyond what Google Analytics provides), and this is where the event-based analytics of MixPanel shine through.

– James Simpson, GoldFire Studios

13. Using Post-Project Client Surveys

A short survey at the end of the project works great. Keep it to a few questions that are critical to learning how to improve, why you were chosen, what went wrong/right, and perhaps ask for a testimonial. Disgruntled clients give the best feedback on how to improve. Happy clients give excellent testimonials.

– Peter Boyd, PaperStreet Web Design

14. TryMyUI.com

It’s a pretty awesome tool because not only does it cost less than most usability testing services out there, it gives you the same services. You get a video of the user’s screen as he or she uses your website. You also get written answers to a questionnaire. If you have your own users, TryMyUI will actually curate and send your questionnaire out to your own users at their email address.

– Cody McLain, SupportNinja

15. Desk.com

We’ve been using Desk support for our support for the past year and find it one of the easiest ways for our customers to solicit feedback, questions and suggest features out there. It’s easy to use, quick to install and works like a champ. We couldn’t live without it and our customers feel the same.

– John Rampton, Due

Updated: August 2021

The post The 15 Best Tools for Collecting Customer Feedback appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Finding Your Niche

As a small business, it is important that you define your identity, values, and market. It not only helps people understand who you are, but it also gives you a roadmap for how to drive your company forward, including marketing and product development. In this interview with James Hill of High Cotton, we learn about a company that “started with a yard of fabric on the kitchen table” and then grew into a million dollar business. They did this by targeting a very specific market and building an identity that would resonate with this group. If you could use some help finding your niche, this article is for you.

Click to read Developing a One-of-a-Kind Brand: James Hill and the Story of High Cotton

Small Business Legal Issues (And How to Avoid Them)

Your small business is driven by your passion but, unfortunately, if you make the wrong legal choices the business can quickly go off course. This article explores five of the most common legal mistakes that small business owners make, regarding legal structure, intellectual property, shareholders, investors, and payroll taxes. VanillaLaw firm is an international law firm for the for the global business community.  You’ll learn more about each of these important small business legal issues and also how you can avoid making disastrous legal mistakes.

Click to read 5 Common Legal Mistakes that Can Hurt Your Small Business

Lessons Learned About Becoming an Entrepreneur

The road to becoming an entrepreneur isn’t paved, and each person who sets down that path experiences his or her own bumps along the way. In this interview, we speak with Inger Stapleton, the owner of Inga’s Lingua, an educational program helping busy professionals learn the Spanish language.  Inger shares three of the most important lessons she’s learned from becoming an entrepreneur. Some of her points will be familiar for those who have entered the world of entrepreneurship, and other points just might surprise you.

Click to read Lessons Learned and the Importance of Setting Goals and Being Flexible – An Interview with Inger Stapleton

You may have noticed a theme in the articles chosen for this week’s Smart Hustle Recap: all are about the road to becoming a small business owner or entrepreneur, and how the choices you make along the way can either drive your success OR your failure. Finding your niche, avoiding legal issues, and learning as you go are all strategies that can drive your success. As you’re cruising down the road of entrepreneurship, take a quick break to get these and other lessons on SmartHustle.com.

The post Smart Hustle Recap: Finding Your Niche, Avoiding Legal Issues & More appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

How can a small, relatively unknown business use technology to attract the best talent?

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Source Online and Build Relationships in Person 

The post 12 Ways Small, Relatively Unknown Businesses Can Use Technology to Attract the Best Talent appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

 On Passion and Humility

Many a small business is driven by passion, but for every passionate business owner who starts out, there is another waiting in the shadows, uncertain of how to take that passion and turn it into a realistic business idea. Our interview with Alvin Perry of P5 Designs shows how it can be done. We chronicle Alvin’s journey from Corporate America to successful business owner, showing how a little humility and hard work can make your dreams a reality.

Click to read Be Passionate and Humble: Business Advice from Dr. Alvin Perry of P5 Designs

On Handling the Logistics

Our next interview almost takes off from where we left you in the Alvin Perry interview (although not intentionally). So you have passion, and you have found a way to turn it into a viable business idea. How do you deal with the logistics of actually getting your product made and your business off the ground? Like Alvin Perry, Laina Gossman started a product-based business and was challenged with figuring out how to actually get that product manufactured. Her interview shares the steps she followed to find manufacturers, select the right one for her product, and then get the product made and out to customers.

Click to read Using the Power of the Internet to Build a Manufacturing Business: An Interview with Laina Gossman

On Executing Your Vision

If you’ve followed this series of interviews, you’ve learned how to take your passion and make it into a business, and how to iron out the logistics of getting your products made. But what happens after that – when your business is up and going, but you encounter people who have other opinions about how you should run the business and what the ‘end goal’ should be? Should you stay true to your vision, or pivot based on the ideas of others? In this interview with Dawn Dickson, we learn that it’s best to use a mixed strategy. Dawn shares with us her unique vision for her company, and how she is carrying out that vision, but also how pivoting slightly from that vision at critical moments has helped her survive.

Click to read Following Your Vision & Knowing When to Pivot: Small Biz Advice from Dawn Dickson of Flat Out of Heels

Smart Hustle interviews are what makes Smart Hustle such a unique website for small business owners. The business stories we are used to hearing are those of wildly successful entrepreneurs whose status many of us will never obtain (nor do many of us want!) There are actually thousands of small business owners just like you who are dealing with the same challenges you are facing and whose inspiring stories can motivate you to keep pushing forward, even on your toughest day. Check out the interviews above (which contain written text as well as audio if you’d rather listen!) and for other Smart Hustle interviews, visit SmartHustle.com.

The post Smart Hustle Recap: 3 Outstanding Smart Hustle Interviews Take You Through the Small Biz Journey appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

How do you see small companies using cloud computing to get ahead of their competitors?

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. It Will Allow More Time for Growth

The post 11 Ways Small Companies Can Use Cloud Computing to Get Ahead of Their Competitors appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

 is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched  a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Hardline Your Connection

Never trust Wi-Fi. Get an Ethernet to Thunderbolt adapter and keep it plugged in the entire time. Your speed will increase 5-10x, and you’ll have virtually perfect uptime.

2. Prepare for the Worst

While you may not know there will be a blackout or fire alarm in the middle of your web conference, make a list of the potential worst case scenarios and then determine how you can address them should they arise. Prepare for the worst so your audience is impressed that you managed to keep the conference going against all odds. Even if the unexpected doesn’t happen, you have peace of mind.

3. Plan for Success

The most important element of any webinar is preparation. Six to eight weeks in advance of the event, outline key dates and required assets, and assign responsible individuals. Don’t forget to include dates for a full event dry run, finalization dates for all presentation materials and video content, and opportunities to test technology in advance of the event.

4. Test Before Hosting

Even if you have heard great things about a web conference platform, you don’t want to just assume it will work. Instead, run a test first to make sure everything works, such as whether your presentation will load and how the meeting works with the web conference tools that are included with that platform.

5. Find the Right Platform

Scout out a platform that’s easy for participants to register and join. Your target audience might not register if they have to create an account or jump through other hoops just to join. Also, make sure your platform works well on a variety of devices because not everyone will be joining from a computer. Find one that includes a mobile app or can be connected to via phone.

6. Have a Moderator

You need to test and have a moderator who is actively assisting. The speakers should be concentrating only on their presentations and not having to worry about the technology. This moderator can also handle any emails, IM, social media pings and calls with issues. Think of contingencies in case of computer crashes, internet outages, clients unable to connect and so forth.

7. Ask Participants to Help

No matter the webinar software platform or the number of times you practice and run through the presentation, technical difficulties are bound to happen while live. To reduce the technical errors, begin your webinar/conference by checking the audio and slides/screen. Simply ask people to locate the chat box and type “yes” if the sound/screen is working. Bonus: this kickstarts engagement.

8. Use a Reliable System

One of the best ways to deter customers and annoy them is to make them download software to see your presentation or webinar. So one best practice for hosting would be to have an easy to use, reliable system (at EVENTup we use join.me) that does not require the viewer to do anything further than tune in, which makes the whole operation run much smoother.

9. Invest in a Quality Microphone

Invest in a quality youtube mic. There’s a reason your favorite radio host, podcasters and DJs use them. Copy what the pros do and sound like a pro. You don’t need to go crazy — a $100 to $200 one will have you sounding awesome instantly.

10. Rent a Private Office at a Co-Working Space

When I’m traveling I don’t like to take risks hosting webinars or virtual events, so I will often research a co-working space that will rent me a private, soundproof office with a dedicated Internet line. Many cities have these options now and I have found these spaces to be more reliable options than hotel Wi-Fi.

11. Expect Problems

In five years I don’t think I’ve run or attended a single error-free live event — the technology is just too unpredictable! So we stand ready with a team to engage attendees, answer questions and send an email if plans change. It can’t be perfect, so consider what could go wrong and know how you’re going to communicate with your audience.

The post How to Hold a Glitch-Free Web Conference appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Recruiterbox

We use Recruiterbox and are very happy with it. We used to keep everything in Gmail tabs and Excel, but Recruiterbox offers a free version which has plenty of functionality for us. You can easily add tabs to applicants, message them, and track their stage through the interview process.

– Fan Bi, Blank Label

2. Podio

We use Podio as our internal project management system. We created an extension within Podio where all the applications for specific positions come in and go through a processing funnel. We review them, tag them, rate them and the ones we interview are followed up with via this system. It’s a bit customized for our purposes, but it works great for us since nothing is hard-coded.

– Duran Inci, Optimum7

3. Salesforce

When people think of Salesforce, they likely think of sales or customer service. What may be new to some is the AppExchange, an app store for Salesforce apps. It’s where I discovered that we could install apps for a variety of business functions, with many of them being free. One of our favorites is the Recruiting app. It took a lot of the guesswork out of standardizing our hiring process.

– David Ciccarelli, Voices.com

4. JobDiva

JobDiva is a web-based applicant tracking and sourcing tool with automated resume harvesting, synchronization with major job boards, and a vendor management system. It is also compatible with mobile devices and offers features like “Resume Search for Skills By Years of Experience,” greatly reducing the amount of work it takes to get through a stack of potential candidates.

– Angela Ruth, eCash

5. Jazz.co

We use Jazz.co to track all of our potential recruits. Jazz makes it simple to access resumes, cover letters, contact information, and other fields that are automatically populated when a candidate applies on our website or from a job board. You can sort and rate candidates and even sync with your calendar to set up calls and interviews.

– Andrew Kucheriavy, Intechnic

6. Connectifier

Connectifier arms our recruiters with access to candidates who have not only created an active LinkedIn profile, but anyone who has a digital footprint at all. Connectifier aggregates data from all over the web to create profiles, capture their personal contact information, and import it directly into our ATS. Surprisingly, it consistently produces different search results than LinkedIn Recruiter.

– Peggy Shell, Creative Alignments

7. Proposify

Propisify was originally developed for design and development companies to send proposals to their potential clients. Fortunately, it is very easy to use the system to track contracts with potential hires. This is especially effective for a growing company that has multiple contracts in the wild with applicants who may or may not be proactive in reviewing and agreeing to employment terms.

– Nathan Hale, First American Merchant

8. Workable

Workable has features you’d probably expect in just about any applicant tracking system, but the one that was most helpful to us was the ability to customize the hiring process itself. Rather than forcing us into a process they’ve designed, we’re able to tell the system what our process and stages are. This has helped us tremendously.

– Erik Reagan, Focus Lab, LLC

9. Hireology

The one we use is Hireology, because it is affordable and it replaces emails and spreadsheets with an applicant tracking system. From writing great job descriptions and posting to multiple job boards, it shortens the manual work to recruit new team members. You can also create custom questionnaires and personality tests that rank the applicants and keeps all information in one place

– Nick Friedman, College Hunks Hauling Junk

10. Lever

We use Lever and love it. It allows multiple stakeholders to manage applicants and automates many of the menial tasks around recruitment and communication. I highly recommend it.

– Jeff Epstein, Ambassador

11. Greenhouse

Greenhouse’s system focuses not only on the technology, but also on the process of hiring. They want you to be better at hiring. With their system, we’ve been able to remove some bias from our process. For example, they encourage us to use consistent scorecards for every interviewer and applicant. They also have integrations with other recruiting sites like Hired and Angel List.

– Bhavin Parikh, Magoosh Inc

12. Workday

We run a pretty tight ship at SupportNinja, so I need to make sure that I can effectively fill positions, organise my local team, and pay my global teams. I’ve tried a lot of various ways to do it, but very few offer a “hire-to-retire” lifecycle that provides planning analytics, time tracking, recruiting, HRM and payroll solutions like Workday.

– Cody McLain, SupportNinja

13. HelloHired

HelloHired is a fairly new entrant, but we’ve been using them since their beta and love the simplicity and focus on design. Not only do you have access to applicant tracking tools on the backend, but you also get a wonderfully designed (and customizable) landing page to outline all of your open positions.

– James Simpson, GoldFire Studios

The post 13 Pieces of Software That Make Hiring Easy appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Adding Two-Factor Authentication

The biggest bang for your buck for organizations comes from enforcing two-factor authentication (usually offered at no cost by application providers) across all critical systems and applications. By doing so, organizations can protect themselves from one of the most common attack vectors: stolen credentials.

– Varun Badhwar, CipherCloud

2. Using Cavirin for Cloud Computing

For cloud computing, Cavirin is a tool that protects both your cloud workload and associated accounts. It conducts an IT audit and searches for outdated and unpatched servers — the No. 1 culprit implicated in major IT security breaches. Cavirin also checks yourfirewall, OS configurations and monitors your accounts to improve your company’s overall data security.

– Brett Farmiloe, Marketing Auditors

3. Implementing Security Policies

Two-factor methods should always be considered when performing authentication. But we need people to do the basics as well, such as coming up with complex passwords that they can easily remember. Don’t have the mentality of “it can never happen to me.” The sooner you implement security policies, the better your employees will adapt to them. Also, don’t ever send password information via email.

– John Rampton, Due

4. Getting Rid of Shared Passwords

The best solution is to get rid of the shared passwords and Post-It notes around the office. Users having their own passwords protects them and their identity/security, and also protects the company.

– Marjorie Adams, Fourlane

5. Eliminating Shared Accounts

Too often, vital accounts are logged into by a number of people sharing the same login credentials. This could be your social media accounts, but could also extend all the way to your online banking accounts. It’s time to draw a line and proactively eliminate shared accounts. Most enterprise systems are set up for multi-user access, where each person has a unique username and password.

– David Ciccarelli, Voices.com

6. Using the 1Password Extension

1Password is an extension that is easy to use and available through multiple platforms. In our opinion, it is much safer than relying on the Cloud because it keeps your vault of passwords local, and you can share on your own terms (through Wi-Fi syncing and more). 1Password also alerts you when websites you use have been breached, so that you can immediately protect data.

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

7. Dashlane and Two-Step Authentication

A good alternative to LastPass is Dashlane, which has a range of unique features. For those who are willing to pay a bit more for the clean, consistent and user-friendly interface, Dashlane is truly the best entry-level password manager. Always set up a two-step authentication process for additional data protection, and track all digital changes in order to hold employees accountable.

– Sathvik Tantry, FormSwift

8. Keeping Disks Clean

After backing up necessities, it’s important that companies use tools like Data Wiping Software to be sure that whatever they have deleted is absolutely gone. It’s a very “low-tech” way of doing things, but reformatting disks also does the trick and further ensures data security. I would recommend that every company trains their staff in doing the aforementioned as frequently as possible.

– Cody McLain, SupportNinja

9. Educating Employees

Unfortunately, your system is only as secure as your employees allow it to be, so train them well on how to keep the company’s data secure. Knowledge sharing gives team members the tools they need to keep the company safe from outside attacks.

– Robert De Los Santos, Sky High Party Rentals

10. Adding Meldium

Meldium has two-factor authentication password management that allows team members to share login credentials securely without writing down or sending passwords.

– Sam Saxton, Salter Spiral Stair and Mylen Stairs

The post 10 Solutions for Updating Your Company’s Data Security appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Slack

We switched over from Skype to Slack, and it’s worked wonders for our team. You can divide the conversations into specific channels with their own members and use the “@” function to notify multiple members at once. It keeps our communication organized, and having the app on our phones makes it easy to communicate from wherever.

– Micah Johnson, GoFanbase, Inc.

2. iDoneThis

iDoneThis is a tool our team has used for years because of its simplicity and accountability. iDoneThis will send you and your team an evening email reminder to ask what you did that day. The team replies, and the next day everyone gets a digest with what everyone on the team got done. It’s very simple, and allows remote employees to celebrate and stay on top of team successes.

– Brett Farmiloe, Marketing Auditors

3. Sococo and Slack

Our team uses a combination of Slack for chat, and Sococo, which is a virtual office. It has offices, conference rooms, chat, video and screen sharing. The combination of these has drastically improved our remote team’s communication and productivity while supporting Revel’s culture. These encourage information sharing and keep everyone in the loop without too much noise.

– Kayla Wagner Faires, Revel Interactive

4. Wrike

Most of our team works remotely in various parts of the country or around the world. Wrike is awesome because it lets us collaborate on projects without having to email progress updates; it has real time notifications. It centralizes the information so employees can start working instead of trying to figure out what’s been done since they worked on the project. It has sped up our development process a lot. There are great business communications solutions offered in the industry.

– Peter Daisyme, Hosting

5. Trello

We have found Trello to be a helpful platform. We can communicate easily through the site in an organized fashion. It keeps track of what’s being worked on, who’s working on what, and where something is in a process. It also allows for checklists that keep you updatedon how much work, percentage wise, you have done.

– Stanley Meytin, True Film Production

6. Screenhero

Screenhero is an incredible tool that promotes effective collaboration remotely. The technology enables you to hold conference calls and screen-shares, but also goes a step beyond by allowing team members to actually control one another’s screens as needed. It’s a very powerful piece of software, and we have started to use it daily to collaborate across multiple time zones.

– Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.

7. Asana

We have all our projects organized in Asana, and use it to communicate on projects every day since we’re a virtual team. My team loves the massive checklists in Asana, and we use the thread for each task to chat and give feedback if we need to. We’ve tried a lot of systems, and this is the one that has worked best for us and allowed us to cancel three other tools. Asana does it all!

– Natalie MacNeil, She Takes on the World

8. Salesforce

Salesforce allows me to watch what each employee does on a daily basis. It tracks each representative’s activity, sales, steps, etc. I am always checking in on this to make sure I am up to speed on everyone’s progress.

– Jayna Cooke, EVENTup

9. Teamwork

In dealing with clients and team members remotely, using a cloud solution like Teamwork is essential. Owning a web development company, it’s important to have privacy with your team members with the versatility of including and excluding the client when necessary on communications, files, etc. In testing all of the solutions out there when trying to find the best software, we chose Teamwork.

– Vinny Galiano, Galiano Brands

10. DoneDone

Although DoneDone is the most effective for development and software teams, it really can be used for company-wide communication and collaboration through one central hub. This platform easily detects issues in process, no matter what department you are a part of, and helps teams come together to solve said problem. DoneDone is extremely easy to use and team members adapt to it quickly.

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

11. 15Five

The beauty of 15Five is its directness and simplicity. Employees answer questions ranging from what is and isn’t working to where they need help. The opportunity to answer specialized questions on a weekly basis keeps teams agile. You’ll find that sometimes you’ll receive a greater level of honesty or thought when your team is able to respond outside of the typical meeting or stand-up environments.

– Zach Robbins, Leadnomics

12. Projectplace

If you’ve used a platform like Trello and want to step it up a little, then you’ll like Projectplace. Just like Trello, it uses the Kanban method of project management (with Kanban boards). You get tools like Task Management, Project Overviews, Issue Management, etc., and it’s all visual so you won’t feel too overwhelmed.

– Cody McLain, SupportNinja

13. Confluence

There is no better way to collaborate with a remote team than with an internal wiki. With Confluence, you can upload files, document business processes, interlink pages, as well as tag specific team members to projects and comments where they need to address an issue. You can also set up email notifications for yourself and your team so that everyone is aware of new updates made to pages in the wiki.

– Brian David Crane, Caller Smart Inc.

14. Whatsapp

Most of my team is spread out around the world. The best way to check up on them is through whatsapp. It’s really awesome to know when someone you contact has seen your messages. Whatsapp does just that, and with over a billion users, calls can be made instantly anywhere. Even Facebook’s messenger (acquirer of whatsapp) adopted the message received feature. Pro tip: When it’s urgent, I use both.

– Robert De Los Santos, Sky High Party Rentals

The post 14 New Ways to Check in With Your Remote Team appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Box

Box is a UK-based file sharing service that has both personal and business options. It offers unlimited storage on business accounts and it integrates with Microsoft Office 365. It’s simple to use, secure and affordable.

– Jonathan Long, Market Domination Media

2. Google Drive

We use Google Drive for file sharing among our team and also clients. It is free till 15 GB for each user and get 100 GB is only $2 a month. We can share any type of file and also create Google office files and share. It comes with apps for desktops and smartphones that we can download and synch from there. It maintains the versions. Also, many people have Google accounts, so we can share easily.

– Piyush Jain, SIMpalm

3. BitTorrent Sync

BitTorrent Sync is the best file sharing solution we’ve used by a mile. For most use cases, it is completely free no matter how many users you have via a torrent. It has higher security because it never gets stored in the “cloud.” It’s also fast, especially within a local network, precisely because it goes directly between the users rather than uploading and then downloading on other cloud services.

– James Simpson, GoldFire Studios

4. Slack

People think of Slack as a chat, but it’s a lot more than that. It’s a perfect solution for a remote-working and mobile-friendly team to search, share and store files that need to be ready at a moment’s notice.

– Brennan White, Cortex

5. Copy

Copy is a great service that I’ve used over the past couple of years. It works basically the same as Dropbox, but you get a few more bells and whistles while spending around half the yearly price as most other services like it.

– John Rampton, Due

6. A Shared Server

All of our computers are connected and have a shared folder via Wi-Fi. This method is very low-cost and secure.

– Andrew Namminga, Andesign

7. Hightail

We have a unique Hightail upload link that makes it easy for employees and clients to send bulk files all at once, without dealing with multiple emails. Since our business heavily relies on receiving photo and video content from clients, Hightail has made our lives much easier.

– Micah Johnson, GoFanbase, Inc.

8. Dropbox

I find Dropbox relatively inexpensive for what you get, and with the new functionality of being able to comment on files, it makes my life much easier. If I were to pick a negative, it would be purchasing more storage for your account, which can get pricey for multiple users.

– Jayna Cooke, EVENTup

9. WeTransfer

I love Google Drive for many things, but for sharing it doesn’t always work right. Wetransfer.com is my go-to solution for quick, free and painless sharing for anything up to 2 GB. You don’t even need an account to send anything, and I’ve used it at least 200 times over the years.

– Josh Sprague, Orange Mud

10. OwnCloud

The available SaaS file–sharing services aren’t always a great fit: they have limited features, aren’t easily customized and security is a coin toss. OwnCloud is a self-hosted file–sharing and collaboration solution with great encryption. It’s hosted on your own servers, in a data center or in the cloud. The major benefit is that your IT department has full control over where and how data is stored.

– Vik Patel, Future Hosting

11. Chatter

If you’re already a Salesforce customer then you may be familiar with Chatter, what we describe as our internal social network. We communicate in department groups and often share relevant information — such as training material or marketing collateral — by posting it directly to the group. Chatter shows a PDF preview of uploaded files and allows people to like, comment and download a copy.

– David Ciccarelli, Voices.com

12. MediaFire

If you have a lot of files to share but not a huge budget, MediaFire is a great choice for you and your company. There is no limit on storage space and the interface is extremely easy to work with and show to your teams. There is no limit on how many users can dial in to this tool, and it is a great space for team members to communicate, share files, bounce ideas back and forth and more.

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

13. Streamfile

With Streamfile, you can send and share files up to 300 MB for free. No registration is required, and your files are encrypted. You also get 1 GB of bandwidth each month, and premium accounts are available starting at only $79 per month.

– Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance

14. Seafile and OwnCloud

Seafile and OwnCloud have seen some some good success, are actively supported and offer community editions that are free. They also have paid versions that are reasonable and low-cost compared to more mainstream big tech companies.

– Kevin Conner, Vast Bridges

The post 14 File Sharing Tools Perfect for Growing Teams appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Donate Your Old Equipment to Charity

What better way to put your still functioning computer or IT equipment to good use than to donate them to a local charity! At AquaMobile, we donate our old computers to our local Goodwill store, which has a great partnership with Dell to ensure that any brand of computer gets refurbished or recycled responsibly. All participating locations are listed here.

– Diana Goodwin, AquaMobile Swim School

2. Give Both Talent and Treasure

Donating seems like the logical solution, but consider stretching your influence by donating your treasure and your time. Pair up with a local job training program focused on IT (my favorite is Per Scholas) and give the equipment as a charitable donation. But also offer to do one-on-one coaching/mentoring or conduct skills-based training seminars. Nonprofits need your talent more than anything else.

– Suzanne Smith, Social Impact Architects

3. Donate Them to Your Employees

The popular recommendation is to donate your old equipment to charity; while we do encourage this method, we’re also big fans of donating to our own team. Do you employ a mom whose child needs a computer for school, or a fresh college grad living on a budget? Incentivize your team and show them that you care about their needs. It’s a small but important gesture, and one that pays dividends.

– Blair Thomas, EMerchantBroker

4. Give Them to a Local School

I donated my old system to my local school where it is used by low-income children. Also, in some cases they give equipment to kids so they can open and understand the assembly of computers and printers. It works as a donation and also a creative tool for kids to learn about machines. I learned about computers when I played with my brother’s old system. Look at Computersforlearning.gov or Computers for pcrr.com.

– Piyush Jain, SIMpalm

5. Donate Old Equiptment to Younger Startups

Donating old equipment to younger startups is a huge help for the startup ecosystem. At my first company, we were hiring new employees but couldn’t afford enough laptops. Luckily, a friend of mine had a startup that was a few clicks ahead of ours and already hitting break-even revenues. He had some old laptops collecting dust in the corner of his office, and he happily donated them to us.

– Ryan McGann, InLoop Inc

6. Offer Them to Hackerspaces

I recommend finding a local hackerspace and seeing if they will accept the old equipment.  We have Pumping Station One in Chicago, but they are very selective about what they take so it can’t be too old.

– Lane Campbell, June

7. Reach Out to Local Nonprofits

Ask your team which local nonprofits they support and have them reach out to see if the organizations are in need of any of the equipment. Have the employee offer time to deliver the equipment and train the organization’s staff on how to use the equipment if necessary (and if the employee has the time and desire). Let that start a relationship between a worthy nonprofit and your company.

– G. Krista Morgan, P2Binvestor

8. Have an Upcycled Computer Art Day

Artists have been making really cool objects out of old computer parts — lamps, benches, desk clocks, you name it. I’ve seen mailboxes and coffee machines made out of old computer towers. Invite artists to use your old parts and even have a company computer art day. You’ll create some cools stuff for the office, but more importantly, you’ll also inspire your team to upcycle more.

– Dave Nevogt, Hubstaff.com

9. Repurpose It

Even if your equipment is getting too old for its intended use, there are still plenty of ways to squeeze functionality out of old hardware. One way is to use old machines to power the dashboards and dummy terminals your team uses to monitor its key metrics. You can also give old computers to your team’s QA department and let them use them for browser testing.

– Manick Bhan, Rukkus

10. Put Them on eBay or Craigslist

New computers and IT equipment are not cheap, and cash is tight, especially if you’re a startup. That’s why I highly recommend that you post your old stuff on eBay or Craigslist. That way, you’ll be able to subsidize a portion of your new purchases. In fact, you might also be able to justify an upgrade to your monitor size or memory — two things that we often avoid because of the added cost.

– Obinna Ekezie, Wakanow.com

11. Find a Charity or Recycle Them Properly

Let one of your team members contact a charity and facilitate the donation. Then communicate this donation internally to encourage other team members to do the same. We have cases in which equipment has been donated to a school that a child of one of the employees attends. If we can’t find a charity to donate it to, we make sure that we send it to a place that recycles electronic parts.

– Dan Adika, WalkMe

The post 11 Cool Things to Do With Old IT Equipment appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Calendly

We’ve had great success using Calendly. You include your link with available meeting times in an email, and the client schedules their own appointment from there. It eliminates the back and forth of trying to find a time that works for everyone and is super easy to use.

– Micah Johnson, GoFanbase, Inc.

2. ScheduleOnce

Since using ScheduleOnce’s MeetMe for scheduling meetings with clients, there’s been a vast improvement in organization and a reduction in the back-and-forth emails that normally ensue when trying to set up an appointment. It’s easy to use, reduces admin effort and removes headaches.

– Thomas Smale, FE International

3. x.ai

Amy, the virtual artificial assistant from x.ai, is really sophisticated and has handled a number of my complicated scheduling requests without fail. Most of the time, the other side has no idea that they are interacting with a computer-generated program.

– Reza Chowdhury, AlleyWatch

4. Google Apps

Google Calendars is tried and true for a reason. It syncs with nearly every phone, computer and email account, allowing me to have constant access to my calendar and add appointments wherever I am. While there are other options out there, this is easy to use and virtually everywhere.

– Matt Doyle, Excel Builders

5. Mixmax

Mixmax is a Gmail integration app that has a feature that really takes the hassle out of scheduling meetings. You just add calendar spots to your email and the person you send it to just clicks on the time that works for them and it’s booked. There is no back and forth. It easily saves me hours every week.

– Thomas Cullen, LaunchPad Lab

6. Pick.co

Scheduling should be an easy task but tends to have the most complicated solutions catering to it. Most of them often miss the point: getting the appointment set quickly. Pick.co makes it so easy to set your preferred times and connect with your existing calendar. Then you’re good to share your calendar link with the world.

– Rahul Varshneya, Arkenea LLC

7. Sunrise

Sunrise is a great calendar app. The way it handles invites and meeting dates/times is beyond what others do. It’s a fusion between Google Calendar and Doodle. In addition, the mobile app is wonderfully executed as well. It’s a real time-saver.

– George Morris, The FRAMEWORK

8. Front Desk

Front Desk is the most reliable, simple and flexible solution that I’ve used for scheduling within my team, company and clients. The software adapts to my company’s unique workflow and does not force us to schedule in ways that we are not used to. The entire team adapted to Front Desk immediately, and it makes communication flow easily and successfully.

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

9. Assistant.to

We all hate the back and forth that happens when trying to set up a meeting. Assistant.to is a lifesaver in that department, and its integration with Gmail is nothing short of beautiful. With just a couple clicks you can send your availability, which stays up-to-date in real time. Then, people can select their time and book. It’s automatically added to both calendars. Done!

– Christie Kerner, Launch MiE

10. Keeping It Old School

I prefer the old school method of having a secretary or personal assistant to take over once a connection has been made. This way makes us different compared to everyone else using online apps and provides a personal touch when scheduling that brings us back to the days when folks would connect much more in person.

– Engelo Rumora, Ohio Cashflow

The post 10 Apps That Take the Stress Out of Scheduling Appointments appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses. If you need a quicker way to manage your payments, then try out this payroll software.

1. ADP

We currently use ADP for our payroll. It’s not the cheapest on the market, but it sure is the easiest. We don’t deal with deductions, taxes, filing, etc. Everything is taken care of. We just click one button every two weeks.

– Torrey Tayenaka, Sparkhouse

2. Local Services

We use Horizon Payroll Solutions out of Dayton, OH. I highly recommend them. They have been fantastic to work with. We have a dedicated representative who is top notch and is a phone call or email away at any time. With local and state taxes/laws constantly changing, I always suggest considering a company that is local and understands your business environment. Not to mention, they’re usually inexpensive.

– Travis Smith, V.I.P. Waste Services, LLC

3. Zenefits

We use Zenefits as our health insurance broker, vacation time tracker, employee onboarding and for payroll and independent contractors. It’s an incredibly useful platform that dramatically reduces my daily tasks as a founder. I’d highly recommend Zenefits. The above said, they’re a startup as well and I’ve noticed they’re going through some growing pains at times. Still, I highly recommend them.

– Mitch Gordon, Go Overseas

4. TriNet

I couldn’t be more impressed with TriNet. Payroll is seamless, and inputting changes such as vacation days, bonuses and overtime is quick and easy. They also have an app for employees to view where they stand whether it is personal days left to use or their insurance co-pay for the month. We’ve explored other benefit companies, but, for a founder, this is the easiest by far!

– Kim Kaupe, ZinePak

5. Intuit Payroll

We have used Intuit Payroll for the last five years. It integrates with our bank and accounting software as well. It can do both W2 and 1099 payments along with reimbursement. We can also file quarterly and monthly payroll reports. It is very inexpensive and charges only $2/month for additional employees. It also has the online paystub option. It’s designed for small businesses, so we can easily scale up or down.

– Piyush Jain, SIMpalm

6. FreshBooks

FreshBooks is simple to use, especially for those who aren’t experts in accounting. Also, our virtual workers can easily submit their invoices for payment. It helps us save time and stay organized, allowing us to focus more time on other important parts of our business.

– Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance

7. Gusto

Gusto (formerly ZenPayroll) makes everything simple and streamlined. Payroll takes a matter of minutes and their customer support is amazing. They offer all the bells and whistles of more expensive services but at very cost-effective rates. Gusto takes all the stress out of payroll so we can focus on serving our customers and building the business.

– Rachel Rodgers, Rachel Rodgers Law Office

8. Namely

When looking for a brand new platform for any facet of our company, we always tend to look for those that bundle multiple assets into one system. With Namely, we can not only utilize a full-service payroll system that is easy to use and integrate with our existing systems, but we can also upgrade our talent management and benefits strategies. Namely offers all of these services in one!

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

9. Paychex

Paychex is a cost-effective, easy-to-use payroll platform. Our time clock automatically sends information to Paychex, which also administers our health insurance and worker’s compensation, making it extremely convenient to input employee data. Paychex is also tech savvy, with direct deposit options and records accessible online. We’ve never had a single problem with this reliable platform.

– Vladimir Gendelman, Company Folders, Inc

10. Employers Resource

We use Employers Resource because I have a personal account representative there that responds to my calls/emails in minutes. ER does more than just payroll; they handle all of our HR, including coming on-site if we have a big hire or termination to make sure everything goes smoothly. All of this coverage is $15 dollars per employee, per paycheck.

– Brandon Stapper, 858 Graphics

The post 10 Solutions for Payroll That Will Make Your Life Easier appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Intro.JS

If you like open source, Intro.js is perhaps the most flexible and cheapest option on the market. While there are many tools that allow you to create onboarding tours for your customers, they are either limited by functionality or flexibility. Conversely, as an all-encompassing tool, intro.js is incredibly easy to set up, 100 percent free forever and also allows you to retain your brand identity.

– Pratham Mittal, VenturePact

2. Google for Work

We’ve since left more robust applications, like Confluence and Basecamp, behind. And although we still use JIRA for project management functionality, we’ve found that a simple collection of organized documents is much more intuitive for our new hires than a fully featured Wiki site with lots of unnecessary text, interface clutter, and ancillary application integrations.

– Blair Thomas, First American Merchant

3. Screencast-O-Matic

We have recently started using this online tool to video record every single process. So far it has worked like a charm and instead of spending 2-3 weeks answering questions about the particular role, we now get every new hire to spend 2-3 days watching all of the videos and asking any questions during that time. It also serves as a great reminder when we forget a particular process.

– Engelo Rumora, Ohio Cashflow

4. Trello

While there are many specific tools available, we’re a huge fan of creating Trello cards for all new hires to ensure everything is completed. It’s a simple, yet powerfully effective way to streamline onboarding.

– Nick Genty, Iconic Solutions

5. Zoom

While several programs are necessary to keep my agency team running smoothly, for face-to-face onboarding chats, Zoom streamlines video conferencing and cross-platform chat into one platform so it’s easier for me to connect with my new clients and employees.

– Nicole Munoz, Start Ranking Now

6. Zenefits

We switched to Zenefits in October, and it has streamlined our hiring process and nearly eliminated paperwork. One of our new employees said using Zenefits was the easiest onboarding he’s had yet. New hires often spend their first day filling out paperwork. With Zenefits, we email everything to them beforehand. Because it’s connected to our payroll company, you only have to input information once.

– Joshua Dorkin, BiggerPockets

7. Streak

I just recently stumbled upon Streak.com, but I am already hooked on its possibilities. Streak lives entirely within Gmail which works perfectly for our company (90 percent of our onboarding process is done through email). The system is extremely flexible, so whether you are onboarding clients or doing blog outreach, you can manage the process easily.

– Mark Daoust, Quiet Light Brokerage, Inc.

8. Asana

We use Asana for project and task management throughout our company. For onboarding, we have a “template” project which contains all tasks that a new hire should take on in their first week, ranging from reviewing our annual plan to getting a key to the office. We add to and edit the template based each new hires experience, so the onboarding process gets better over time.

– Bhavin Parikh, Magoosh Inc

9. Basecamp

Basecamp is an old guard at this point in the SaaS project management space. Yet its flexibility and simplicity make it an excellent tool for streamlining an on-boarding process. There is a template feature that lets us build out new projects and assign roles to key people then track progress. It’s also great for managing documents during this process.

– Lane Campbell, Creately

10. Slack

With our team spread all over the world, the most important part of the onboarding process is feeling like they are part of the team. With the ability to create a watercooler-like experience on the mobile or desktop app, Slack helps new employees immediately be looped in on all our team communications. Rookies can ask questions, understand our culture, and have access to important documents.

– Matt Wilson, Under30Experiences

11. LegalZoom

One of the most critical aspects on on boarding new employees is making absolutely certain that you put in place basic legal agreements. I recommend a subscription to LegalZoom.com as a cost-effective alternative to hiring an expensive attorney. LegalZoom offers access to all the legal forms you’ll need to onboard, including employee agreements, non-disclosures, stock options, and non-competes.

– Obinna Ekezie, Wakanow.com

12. Flowdock

Flowdock is both a team chat app and a stream of activity across other services such as GitHub, UserVoice, etc. The first thing we do during onboarding is bring them into Flowdock so they can meet the rest of the team and get some context on what has been happening within the company in recent days, weeks or months.

– James Simpson, GoldFire Studios

13. Confluence

As a small business begins to scale, it is essential to have standard operating procedures (SOPs) during onboarding — whether that’s for new employees or clients. We use Confluence to document all of our SOPs. Using a combination of written instructions, images and videos it has significantly streamlined a number of our processes and also allows us to make continuous improvements at all stages.

– Thomas Smale, FE International

The post 13 Best Tools for Streamlining Your Company’s Onboarding Process appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Do You Store Credit Card Information On Your Server?

You want to make sure that your credit card details aren’t being stored on the SaaS vendor’s server in addition to their credit card processor’s server. The card processing companies have proper security, and while not 100 percent safe (as evidenced by recent hacks), they are more secure than most vendor’s servers. There is no reason they should be storing card details in addition to the merchant.

– Jonathan Long, Market Domination Media

2. Do you have Two-Factor Authentication?

In this day and age, a password cannot be the only protection a SaaS vendor gives you to protect access to your application. A security aware SaaS vendor will offer you the option to have two-factor authentication to access your application. That can be like the Google Authenticator integration you have with Amazon or an SMS code sent to your phone when you try to log in.

– Tim Maliyil, AlertBoot

3. Who Owns This Data if We Stop Using You as a Vendor?

While it should be a given with all SaaS vendors that you as a client own the data, how valuable will that data be should you have to terminate this SaaS relationship? Inquire as to what it takes by cost, time and mechanism to access the data before you terminate your relationship with a SaaS provider. This ensures you have a firm understanding of what the end of the business relationship will be.

– Robby Hill, HillSouth

4. Is Your Platform Externally Audited?

There are a number of external certifications that cloud vendors and other hosting providers can use: ISO 27001, SSAE 16 and PCI DSS certification are common examples. You can ask a vendor any security question you want, but the only real way to know you’re getting a honest response is if they have been audited by a trusted third party.

– Vik Patel, Future Hosting

5. Are you PCI-Level 1 compliant?

I’m amazed at how often major (sometimes public) companies let their guard down in working with SaaS commerce and payments companies that are processing personally identifiable information (PII) and financial information for their end-user customers. PCI-Level 1 compliance is a rigorous process to ensure that sensitive information is treated with the utmost care.

– Noah Glass, Olo

6. How Do You Prevent Breaches, and How Do You React to Them?

Ask a potential vendor about the timing and details of its recovery procedure. If there is a breach in the system or some other issue that puts your data at risk, you need to know how the vendor will keep your data secure, recover any lost data and how much time it will take to restore service.

– Jason Thanh La, Merchant Service Group, LLC & K5 Ventures

7. Have You Ever Had a Security Breach?

Asking them to detail you on their history of security breaches will give you a good indication of their security. This also gives the vendor an opportunity to explain any corrective measure they have taken to ensure breaches do not occur in the future.

– Ashu Dubey, 12 Labs

8. Can You Tell Me About Your Company’s Physical Security?

Encryption and data security are important, but you also want to know about the vendor’s physical security at their office and server location, and how often they’re audited. Follow up by asking what prevents an insider at the firm from downloading all your data onto a USB stick and walking away. Physical security often gets overlooked, which is why it’s a key weakness of many SaaS firms. ICORP security services have been providing organizations with a professional security guards and other protection services.

– Dave Nevogt, Hubstaff.com

9. Does Your Company Have a Dedicated Security Team?

Before working with a new SaaS vendor, it’s important to look into what kind of security personnel they have on hand. Although it is not required for the vendor to have a full security department or a large security staff, it is good to know what kind of staff are available for any questions and emergencies that may come up.

– Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

10. Do You Provide Transport Layer Security (TLS)?

With data leaks at an all time high, SSL isn’t providing the same level of security it once was. SaaS providers need to ensure their users’ data is secure, and that they minimize the risk of their — or their customers’ — information becoming compromised.

– Blair Thomas, EMerchantBroker

11. What Is Your Technology Stack?

Some technology stacks are more vulnerable than others. Are they built in .NET, Java, Node.js, PHP or others? Do the research to find out how up-to-date they keep their code and how frequently they apply patches, as older code is much more susceptible to vulnerability and attack. BuiltWith.com is one possible tool for figuring out what kind of tech stack your SaaS vendor uses.

– Mattan Griffel, One Month

The post 11 Vital Security Questions for SaaS Vendors appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Make Sure You Are Not Stepping on Anyone’s Toes

Invest in a preliminary legal check to make sure the domain name is not likely to cause customer confusion which could result in trademark litigation. The last thing you want to do is spend time and money directing traffic to a domain only to have to change it because of legal concerns.

– Doug Bend, Bend Law Group, PC

2. Make Sure It’s Unique

Most businesses will receive a lot of searches and inbound visits from people using the business name (or something close to it) in their favorite search engine. If you have a generic name with lots of other companies with a similar name, you are unlikely to stand out and it could cause confusion. People directly trying to search for your brand are often the best customers, so being found is key.

– Thomas Smale, FE International

3. Keep Credibility in Mind

With an array of different TLDs (top level domains) available, it’s easy to get carried away when selecting a domain name. You want a new website visitor or potential customer to trust your brand, and a quick way to scare them off is by selecting an outlandish TLD. Keep it simple and use a .com whenever possible, and if necessary, use dashes (wine-club.com) or a “the” up front (thewineclub.com).

– Robert Lee, Circa Interactive Inc

4. Choose a Domain Name That Markets What You Do

While many people first opted to select a domain name that was their company name, this doesn’t always tell others what it is that you do or how you are different. It also doesn’t provide any SEO opportunities like a domain name that uses unique keywords to describe and market how you are different and useful to your target audience.

– Angela Ruth, eCash

5. Beware of Accidental Innuendos

There are a few times when you put words together that they form a completely new word between them. For example, think ofHills Winery turning into Hill Swinery for some people. There’s also the possibility that your business name actually means something in another language, even if you think you made it up. Do your homework and research how people respond before committing to a domain name.

– Jared Brown, Hubstaff

6. Consider What to Avoid

What to look for may be obvious: short, snappy, and catchy. What to avoid is more important. If the name is spoken aloud, will someone spell it right? If you’re using a ccTLD, will this harm your search rankings? Check Google’s special exceptions for gccTLDs. Also, don’t overvalue keywords in domains. These can have a minor impact, but nothing like they once did.

– Corey Northcutt, Northcutt Inbound Marketing

7. Don’t Get Too Fancy With It

I know of a company who purchased a “.es” domain name because it completed the last two letters of their name. Unfortunately, customers always put .com and were unable to find them. Even worse, Google assumed that the company was catering to an audience in Spain, as the .ES domain is reserved for that country. Stick to a slightly longer .com instead of one that customers can easily get wrong.

– Jeff Jahn, DynamiX

8. Make Sure You Can Find Social Media Matches

Make sure that the name is not already taken as a business name in your county and/or state and make sure your social media handles can closely match it and aren’t already being used.

– Ajay Gupta, Stirista

9. Choose a Domain That Is Easy to Spell

Many times I see people making the mistake of choosing a business domain name that is too open for interpretation and is hard to spell. Try to pick a business domain name that the vast majority of people will know how to spell. This way, people will be able to easily find you online and they won’t get frustrated and give up as they try to find your company online.

– Diana Goodwin, AquaMobile Swim School

10. Tie It to Your Brand Image

Use the domain name as a way to highlight your brand’s image, focusing on those keywords that describe your business or are memorable to your audience. With so much more that can be done with a domain name, it’s possible to even turn it into your company’s slogan.

– Cynthia Johnson, American Addiction Centers

11. Consider a New Extension Option

There are so many new TLDs now available to further customize your domain name, differentiate your company from the competition, and further optimize your domain name for search engines. Many companies have found these extensions as valuable marketing tool that also helps make the domain more memorable for the target audience.

– Murray Newlands, Due.com

12. Create Something Memorable

As an SEO expert, it’s always been my knee-jerk reaction to pick what’s called an exact match domain (EMD). In recent months/years, Google has given less stock to these types of domains, and in fact I’ve found them to be a little finicky. If it’s a business I intend to keep around for a while, I now default to something that people will remember — something that rolls off the tongue nicely.

– Adam Steele, The Magistrate

The post 12 Things to Consider When Choosing a Domain Name for Your Business appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. EditMe

EditMe is a Wiki where I can organize all my notes; I can also share my notes with my team, constantly edit the notes and leave comments. It also has a history log that shows who made the most recent change.

– Fenella Kim, Reliance Star Payment Services

2. A Note Pad

I’ve tried all the tech apps to take notes and track to-dos. The problem with all of them is that they run on the world’s most interesting devices, the phone and the computer. You may think that’s a good thing, but the problem with your phone and your computer is that they will very often suck you into someone else’s priorities. Write your own notes without Wi-Fi and without distractions.

– Gregory Raiz, Raizlabs

3. Workflowy

Workflowy is my all-time favorite tool for organizing notes. The application works seamlessly on desktop and mobile, even in offline mode, so it’s ready to use anytime I need. The design is elegantly simple and enables you to organize and share lists packed with notes. Workflowy’s tagline is “Organize your brain” and it really does empower you with that capability.

– Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.

4. Asana

We already use Asana for organizing our tasks, and recently we’ve also been using to organize new client and new hire notes. It keeps everything in a searchable database and allows you to share notes with whomever might need them by adding them as a follower.

– Micah Johnson, GoFanbase, Inc.

5. Microsoft OneNote

If I’m not using or sharing Google Docs, I’m using OneNote. It works the exact same way as Google Docs in that I can access my notes, files, documents etc. across various platforms — from my computer to my tablet and my phone. I can also scan in documents and just keep track of everything in a nice and neat fashion. If there’s ever a ban on Google Docs, this will be my savior.

– Cody McLain, SupportNinja

6. A Pen and Spiral Notebook

I’ve tried out many organizer software tools out there, but I always come back to my pen and notebook. I don’t have to worry about online security or it syncing across all my devices, and when I’m trekking through the Amazon or am in a tuk-tuk in Southeast Asia, I know I can take out my pen and notebook and they won’t break, fail to connect to the Internet or attract a thief’s attention.

– Cedric Hodgeman, UBELONG

7. OmniOutliner

I’m a big fan of outliners. I use Evernote as my “everything bucket,” but for notes and other structured information I always use OmniOutliner, which is an exquisitely configurable application and the most advanced outliner I’ve come across. I particularly appreciate that it’s available on the Mac and iOS, so my notes are available wherever I am.

– Vik Patel, Future Hosting

8. Trello or Todoist

Depending on what kind of note it is, these two pieces of software have my back in the office, and when I am mobile. Bigger tasks that require more detail and organization go into Trello. Everything else, in Todoist. I am already using Trello to manage my business, so why not everything else? Likewise with Todoist. It doesn’t hurt that they are free, too!

– Adam Steele, The Magistrate

9. Bullet Journaling

Even with all the apps and tools out there, nothing beats the simple but effective method of bullet journaling. Our entire team uses this method so it makes all of our notes compatible and uniform. Plus, if digital notes are needed, it is really easily converted.

– Christopher Swenor, East Coast Product

10. Podio

We use Podio to organize notes. Our team has workspaces for different clients or initiatives, and notes are kept within each of those relevant spaces. We also use Podio Magic as a way to add items directly from Chrome into Podio, thus saving additional time when it comes to adding notes to the corresponding workspaces or apps. Through Podio, we can also add comments and track projects and tasks.

– Marcela DeVivo, Homeselfe

11. Google Keep

Google Keep is an absolute charm. It’s fast, intuitive, and is available on the web, Chrome, and on Android and iOS mobile devices. It allows you to quickly add notes, lists, and reminders, create labels for organization and search, and even share notes with team members or personal contacts. You can easily drag and drop the order of your notes and change the way you view your notes on the fly.

– Blair Thomas, EMerchantBroker

Updated: Feb. 2022

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The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Use Amazon Web Services

Our biggest drain has been manually dealing with servers and web services that go down. Not only does it directly harm the business, but it sends stress levels through the roof for the rest of the day. We moved to Amazon Web Services and partially automated the creation of servers last year, but this year we plan to go the extra mile and build a fully redundant and self-healing infrastructure.

– James Simpson, GoldFire Studios

2. Reduce Human Error

Reduce human error by clarifying job roles and responsibilities. Also, if you do it more than twice, write a small script to automate it. Chances are, you’ll do it over and over.

– Kevin Henrikson, Outlook iOS & Android @ Microsoft

3. Hire a Programmer

Automate all the things! One of the best moves I made in 2015 for me and my customers was hiring a developer. Not only are we saving tons on labor (and more to come), but our customers are receiving more value. For example, we automated reporting, which now means reporting is going out on time, every time. I don’t even have to think about it anymore. It’s a beautiful thing!

– Adam Steele, The Magistrate

4. Provide Contracts Digitally

A great way that everyone wins is by having contracts provided digitally to your existing and future clients. It makes the execution of contracts traceable for both parties, shows the history of changes, and limits cumbersome processes like scanning/emailing or even faxing completed contracts back and forth to one another.

– Michael Spinosa, Unleashed Technologies

5. Automate Finances With Digital Tools

We are continuing the integration of TSheets, Bill.com and QuickBooks to automate our time-tracking with financial processes and business analyses. There are so many options for a growing business like ours and this trifecta of tools creates a much-needed automation and synergy that has enabled us to focus on other, more time-consuming tasks.

– Peggy Shell, Creative Alignments

6. Set Email Alerts

Many people already use this tool, but we built new analytic software into our system to collect extensive information about customer behavior. People sign up on our platform, and we automatically enroll them to receive updates and alerts on a schedule, increasing our customer outreach. Then, we track the lifetime value of the customer, cost per order, and all kinds of other information.

– Ty Morse, Songwhale

7. Refine Automated Services

Last year, we began automating our customer signing process, which drastically increased our conversion rates and improved customer flow through our application. This year, we’re refining those tools by taking a deeper look at our application and weeding out areas which still require manual input, building automation for those aspects of our app, and ensuring our signup process is seamless.

– Blair Thomas, EMerchantBroker

8. Refine Your Content Review Systems

Our content team has expanded quite a bit, so this year we’re working on refining our content review systems so our publishing is seamless and automatic. Content is one of the backbones of our business, so making sure that everything goes through and to the right channels is important to ensure there are no mistakes, everything is in line with our brand, and we are delivering useful information.

– Dave Nevogt, Hubstaff.com

9. Automate Through Slack

We continue to build processes and integrations around Slack. As a software company, we are consumers of over 15 different platforms – all necessary. But without a way to aggregate these point solutions, we’d be lost. From web chat to code management, we’ve structured our business around this communication hub.

– Mike Trevino, Indigenous Software

10. Create a Faster Response Time

This year, we are heavily focused on user experience. As part of that, we’re sending all incoming inquiries to directly drop into Salesforce and assign a representative immediately, so we can be alerted right away and create a faster response time.

– Jayna Cooke, EVENTup

11. Define Business Roles

Since I bootstrapped my own business, I grew comfortable with performing a lot of different roles. As the business grows, it is easier to automate various responsibilities and roles by taking the time and effort to define business processes. For example, content marketing can break into social media management, writers, influencer outreach, etc. Break up roles granularly, then automate that.

– Mark Daoust, Quiet Light Brokerage, Inc.

12. Put Mandatory Vacations in Place

We’re forcing employees to take vacations. Before someone can leave, they have to document their process so that others can follow it while they’re gone. And it’s a good idea to have them passively working the week before, just to make sure if anything goes wrong, there’s someone around who knows how to fix it.

– Mattan Griffel, One Month

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The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Freshbooks

We have used Freshbooks for several years and have never had a problem. It integrates with our merchant account and sends out professional invoices that our clients can pay online. It’s easier for the client, and we don’t have to wait for a check to come in the mail. It’s a win-win situation for both sides.

– Jonathan Long, Market Domination Media

2. PayHub

Disclaimer: I’m in the credit card processing industry so I know a lot about the options. I love PayHub.com because it’s free to set up and just $8 a month for features that include easy to set up recurring billing, as well as mobile payments, online payments and virtual terminal options that can integrate with swipers for retail sales. It’s a great, inexpensive and scalable platform.

– Darrah Brustein, Network Under 40 / Finance Whiz Kids

3. Paypal

People feel very comfortable using paypal. There is massive adoption, and it gives them control over when they want to cancel their subscriptions. We’ve tried using other system, but in the end, Paypal has performed best as people know the system, trust it and have fewer qualms about creating recurring subscriptions through it.

– Marcela DeVivo, National Debt Relief

4. Stripe

Stripe has totally changed the game for easy-to-use payment APIs. We work with a lot of payment gateways, and Stripe’s recurring billing API is by far the easiest to integrate with and has the most sensible behavior.

– Matthew Weinberg, Vector Media Group

5. Recharge

Recharge for Shopify is an amazing app for anyone using Shopify. It offers killer customer support and an easy-to-integrate product, which make it a winner for our recurring billing needs.

– Ross Resnick, Roaming Hunger

6. BeanStream

Beanstream is a credit card processor that offers a powerful API; you can customize the look, feel and functionality of how the payments are processed. They process all major credit cards, and the funds are deposited directly into a business bank account. There are also flexible options for setting up recurringbilling which will please both your customers and your finance people.

– David Ciccarelli, Voices.com

7. Recurly

We use Recurly for its easy-to-use tracking and reporting interface. We like the clarity of information Recurly is able to show on historical subscriber and transaction growth. We can also quickly add teammates to give them access to the data.

– Nanxi Liu, Enplug

8. Authorize and Fusebill

Our firm processes hundreds of credit cards a week, all for recurring clients. Our favorite recurring monthly billing services and or platforms have always been the ones that have the least amount of resistance. Authorize.net offers easy set up models for billing and push notifications that show accepted or declined transactions. We then intermingle Fusebill for our infrastructure to cut CPA costs.

– Sheldon Michael, Netjumps International

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However, if more than half of small business owners are currently using freelancers, we could also flip the statistic and examine it from the other end – almost half of small business owners are not using freelancers. Some of the likely reasons include that they may not know where to find freelancers, how the small business-freelancer relationship works, or what the benefits are to their company.

We need to clear up this confusion right away because embracing the freelance trend can give your small business a competitive advantage.

On that note, I want to point you in the direction of my latest Smart Hustle interview with Constantine Anastasakis, the head of business development at Fiverr. Fiverr is an online platform that connects business owners who need specific tasks completed with talented freelancers who can do the work for a reasonable fee.

In this interview, we will clear up pretty much all the questions you have about using freelancers in general and the Fiverr platform specifically. The interview includes:

• What is Fiverr?
• How do you use the platform?
• How does the Fiverr platform make the small business-freelance relationship safer?
• How are small businesses using freelancers, including a fictitious example of how “Becky’s Bake Shop” could use freelancers to grow her business.
• Tips for ensuring your freelance transactions go smoothly.
• The benefits that using freelancers and independent contractors bring to small business owners.

Small businesses who embrace the freelance trend can get ahead because they can get more accomplished, develop a remote team of experts, and focus on their most important tasks – all without having to hire additional employees. There are several signs that this on-demand economy is the future of the American workforce. Don’t fall behind on the freelance trend – get informed and get ahead by listening to my interview here.

The post New Fiverr Interview Shows Small Businesses How to Capitalize on the Freelance Trend appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.

Turning Your Hobby into a Business

They say you need to be passionate about your business to make it successful, but does this mean you can take something you enjoy as a hobby and turn it into a business idea? For the dreamers out there, we have a story of inspiration that proves you can. In this feature story, you’ll learn about Cassy Saba from Cassy Saba Jewelry. A bead kit she received at the age of 12 gave her the push to become a childhood entrepreneur and as a young adult she’s still hustling to make her dreams come true today. This story will provide inspiration to childhood dreams and smart hustling small business owners alike.

Click to read Cassy Saba Jewelry & the Journey from Childhood Hobby to Successful Business.

Who Is the On-Demand Economy – and Will the Government Step In?

Although the full time job is still the norm, a new group of workers called the on-demand economy or the gig economy is redefining how you can make a weekly paycheck. These workers are classified as independent contractors and you likely have experience with them in your small business – whether you have called an Uber driver to get a ride or have hired a freelancer to help you with small business tasks. A new Intuit survey is shedding light on who this group of workers is – but the on-demand economy is also catching the eye of the government, who is considering whether or not to reclassify independent contractors. Learn about this top small business news story here.

Click to read The On-Demand Economy & the Changing Face of the American Workforce.

Get Outsourcing Help in this Outsourcing 101 Guide

Outsourcing can help small business owners and solo entrepreneurs find the team of workers they need to execute small tasks and push the business forward – without the need to hire full-time staff. If you need help leveraging the power of outsourced work, check out this Outsourcing 101 guide that looks at four strategies that can make outsourcing work for your small business.

Click to read Outsourcing 101: Find the Right Partners to Help Build a Business.

There you have it, the top Smart Hustle articles from the week of February 7-13. Stay informed by clicking to read one of the articles above, or check out the homepage to read other recent stories.

The post Smart Hustle Recap: Outsourcing 101, the Changing American Workforce + Taking Your Business from Hobby to Reality appeared first on SmallBizTechnology.