Doing business in a small town or rural area does have some differences from traditional business thinking. Aliza Sherman, famous entrepreneur and writer, asked me to do a joint post with her with tips for “really rural” businesses. Aliza currently does business in Alaska and is moving to a town of under 2000. She shares…
You are most valuable, not at the far edges of your skills, but at the intersections of your knowledge areas. For example, if you know travel and cooking, you are more valuable leading exclusive cultural trips featuring local cuisine, than simply leading “normal” trips. If you know both motorsports journalism (an intersection of its own)…
Common mistakes can kill your small business, but most of them can be easily corrected or avoided. Today’s bad example: mis-using your service providers. Dear Client: Saying, “I don’t like this,” is not feedback. Tell me WHY you don’t like it. I am a writer, not a mind reader. Love, Kristen –@KristenKing, via Twitter If…
The Two Week Perspective is a different way to view your schedule. I use Google Calendar. I like the weekly view, but when you’re on Thursday or Friday, mostly you see the past. So I changed to a Two Week view, and made that the default. Now I see more of what’s coming up. I’ve…
Jeremiah Owyang offers an excellent, well-written, post: The many forms of monetization using the web.Every business take heed. But small(er) business would benefit the most from heeding his advice. Why? What makes people want to visit any store, any site, any business…linger and mingle, peruse and purchase, is unique content. You as a small business…
By Paul Swansen What really are advertising and marketing, how are they different, and why are they important to your small business? According to Wikipedia, “Advertising is a form of communication that typically attempts to persuade potential customers to purchase or to consume more of a particular brand of product or service.” And Wikipedia says…
Young entrepreneurs are our future. Rural young entrepreneurs, however, can be just a little different. Here’s a new twist on the old lemonade stand idea: @LizaJne tweeted: the boys are out in the yard selling frogs, slugs, grasshoppers and other bugs. they’ve already made $6.00! Lessons you can learn: Don’t believe the grownups who tell…
Your business can’t survive alone. You can greatly improve your chances by networking with other entrepreneurs. My hometown of Alva, Oklahoma, is working on this, with Fast Forward Fridays. Alva Area Chamber of Commerce Director Alexandra Mantz explained, “We hope to bring budding entrepreneurs in the region together to talk and find resources that will…
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