If you operate a small business of any type–product or service, home-based, Main Street, on the outskirts or outside of town, new or old–you have a common bond with all other small business owners. Your common bond is the close linkages between your family and your business. Actions taken in one easily can affect the…
Photos are key for tourism promotion, so you can never have too many great photos to use online. However, most photos you find online are NOT public domain, so you do not have the right to use them. One great resource that brings together many different types of images that you are allowed to re-use…
Small businesses used to have a hard time getting approved to accept credit cards. Getting set up for a merchant account involved passing a credit check, agreeing to a long-term contract, paying monthly fees even if you didn’t accept any payments, and acquiring specialized equipment often with another monthly payment. Square and its competitors…
The Brag Basket is our tradition of sharing. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one April 5-7, 2013. What good news will you add to the brag basket? Don’t hold back because of that word, “brag.” When you hold back, you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others….
You get what you measure. That is, anything you actually go to the trouble to keep records on, you will pay more attention to and likely improve. If you make yourself write down everything you eat, you’ll find yourself feeling accountable. You’ll actually eat less or eat better things so you won’t be embarrassed to…
If no one knows about your business, the odds are it won’t be successful. Getting visible today is harder than ever before. The traditional marketing tools are still used, plus now online tools just add to the clutter that prevents your business from being noticed. This is certainly true for new businesses, but even existing…
Small towns are a natural fit for heritage tourism. That’s tourism that shares our common heritage, whether it’s historical, cultural or natural. Heritage brings together your historical museum with your festivals, artists and musicians, your agritourism and parks and nature folks. At its best, heritage tourism is active and engaging. People getting hands-on and actively…
Small town businesses have certain advantages over big city businesses. One is that we have the luxury of educating customers, knowing that if they like what they learn, they are likely to make the resulting purchase from us. In a big city, running a tasting or a sampling or a class takes the risk that…
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