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Get more customers without advertising: Show up where they can find you

By Chris Brogan

Two diverse workers installing new shingles on a roof. One worker in a red shirt cuts a shingle. A woman uses a push hoe to remove nails and debris.

How the Roofer Nailed Marketing Guest Post by Chris Brogan Let me tell you about an experience I had in a little diner in Lewiston, Maine. I sat at the counter of a busy Maine diner slinging breakfast to a crowd of mostly locals, it seemed. One guy a few seats away from me did […]

January 13, 2026 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, marketing, rural, Small Biz 100 Tagged With: Chris Brogan, guest post, marketing small business, service businesses

How to let customers know when changing your business hours

By Becky McCray

Screenshot of an instagram post with Christmas week business hours. One comment asks, "How late are you open new year's eve?"

Post extensively on social channels, and pin your hours post to the top of your page Your small business has times when you need to change your hours either for holidays, staff issues or (my favorite) extending into evening hours. How do you retrain your customers so they notice the change? Let’s look at a […]

March 12, 2025 Filed Under: customer service, entrepreneurship, marketing, rural, Small Biz 100, social media Tagged With: effective marketing, entrepreneurship, marketing, retail, rural, service businesses, small business

You don’t have 52 weeks this year

By Rob Hatch

A very busy, full planner with many notes, highlights and scribbles.

By Rob Hatch Thirty-six weeks. Part of my process for planning my business for the New Year is to do a little reality check on exactly how much time I have to work with. What are you talking about, Rob? You have a year. Technically, that’s true. However, on closer inspection, I only have 36 […]

December 9, 2024 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, management, planning, rural, Small Biz 100 Tagged With: annual planning, entrepreneurship, guest post

Test your business idea with small steps: starting a quilt retreat

By Becky McCray

Three quilts on display in early 2020 at Mississippi Cultural Crossroads Port Gibson Mississippi. Photo by Sheila Scarborough.

Uniontown, Washington, (population 300) has a strong base of arts, artisan and craft entrepreneurship. When I toured Uniontown, a woman spoke up who wants to start a quilt retreat, a place for people to come and quilt together. More than a local quilting bee, she’s imagining a full retreat space. She owns a historic home […]

May 7, 2024 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, failure, rural, Small Biz 100 Tagged With: building a business, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, idea friendly, service businesses, small business, startup

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