May 4-8 is Small Business Week in the U.S. this year. So what do you see when you walk into or drive by your local small businesses? If you are like many of us, you see a place that offers you goods and services, a place you can go to and get what you want….
Knowing what your customer wants is the base to building a successful business. Of course, you still must meet that need, let customers know you have what they want, and price it at a level that customers feel is acceptable. But the process begin with knowing the problem they are trying to solve. Market research is…
Is 2015 the year you want to start your small business? If so, have you sat down to develop your business plan yet? Check out most how-to business guides and you will find a section on writing a business plan. Yet ask business owners and you often hear that they did a plan only because…
When marketing your small business, you need to include all possible options in your tool kit. One such option is called public relations. Many business owners think of it as free advertising. This is a myth because it isn’t free and it isn’t advertising. Parts of public relations, or PR, such as announcements of new…
Keeping your business legal is an issue for all businesses, big and small. Businesses face a number of legal hurdles, from ensuring you properly register your business, report sales, income and wages, and make appropriate tax deposits, to following employment rules and regulations. Small-business owners understand that failure to follow all of these and…
More people have a home-based business than you might think. On average, one of every 10 households is operating one or more home-based businesses. In rural areas, that number is often higher. And these numbers typically do not take into account farm and ranch operations which, by most definitions, would be considered a home-based business….
Starting a business means a need for money to help pay for a variety of things from registration fees to getting the store ready for customers to buying initial inventory. Potential business owners often struggle to find those first dollars. Asking for help to find grants, or ‘free money,’ is a common request. While there…
If starting a business is in your plans, determining your primary reason for such an effort is vital. You may think that is an odd comment to make because people obviously start a business to make money. That’s true for some, but people start businesses for lots of reasons. Money is not always the primary…
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