The Lifecycle of Your Business
When considering business ownership, it is easy to think about the short-term effects it will have on your life. There are a great deal of changes that occur in the first year, but what about ten years down the road? Part of the research and planning process involves realistically imagining your life with the business you choose…
Read MoreGoogle Analytics Can Reveal Your Best Opportunities
Does your small business “sort of” use Google Analytics? Maybe you’re set up with an account, but unclear on how to unravel data from the vast amount of complexity? If so, you’re not alone. Google Analytics (GA) holds all kinds of power. Unfortunately, this includes the power to intimidate newcomers. But once you get the…
Read MoreEmbrace Emojis in Your Online Marketing
I’m a millennial, but for a long time I was staunchly anti-emoji. I found them occasionally funny and mildly annoying. I would get them in text messages from friends and roll my eyes. However, one day I downloaded the emoji keyboard to my phone and used emojis for the first time. I may have gone…
Read MoreState Supreme Court Decides in Favor of Nasty Reviews
The Oregon Supreme Court recently reaffirmed the legal protection of nasty reviews as free speech. Which reminds me of the ongoing opportunity and problem of reviews. Amazon.com reviews, Yelp reviews, Google, TripAdvisor, and all of them are a combination of powerful, important, and yet also full of problems. Users care and we generally love the idea…
Read More3 Ways to Reduce Cost of Goods Sold
The cost of the materials used to make the product or service you sell directly impacts your profit. This is easy to see, because the less you have to spend to get the product, the more money you get to keep when you sell it. It would seem to many then, that the cheaper the…
Read More5 Secrets to Creating Great Content, According to Matt Keezer
Marketing has evolved and changed greatly in the online age. From company websites, to online ads, and content marketing, staying on top of best practices in the online industry is about mobility, quality, and, perhaps most importantly, being deliberate. In an effort to wrap my head around how to be at the forefront of content…
Read MoreSet Specific Goals for Text Marketing
Mobile marketing continues to increase in strength and demand. This is partly due to the sizable market and partly because texting is engaging, effective and interactive. These statistics will show you exactly what the SMS market in the United States consists of: 97% of adults, in America alone, use their cell phones at least one…
Read MoreCustomize Events to Reflect Your Brand’s Personality
What is your brand’s personality? Are you formal, fun or just plain boring? Brand personality is a set of emotional and associative characteristics that are connected to your company name. Brand personality can differentiate your brand, particularly when your competitors have similar products. Your brand personality should influence your brands voice, values, mission, as well…
Read MoreWhat is the Schedule K-1 Tax Form for Businesses?
According to the U.S. federal tax code, businesses can be arranged as pass-through entities. This designation means that instead of a business being taxed separately at the corporate level, its taxes, deductions, losses, and other activities pass through to the personal tax requirements of its owner(s). Some examples of these business structures include a general…
Read MoreHow Do You Measure Your Effectiveness as a Leader?
There are many roads to Rio, so they say. But there is one overwhelming method of appraising the effectiveness of a business leader. Outcomes. We can invent lots of metrics to measure progress for a leader, including revenue, profit, employee satisfaction, cost containment, percentage of available market, and more. But these are all individual roads…
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