Gift Cards: From Last Minute Gift to Best Seller
Once upon a time, you would buy a gift card as a present if you were short on gift ideas. It was generally a last minute thing, and it was convenient for a person short on time. This has all changed and with gift card sales reaching the $110 billion mark, there is a huge…
Read MoreFinding Ideal Customers Using the Value Quadrant
Do you ever get an email from a prospect who asks question after question only for them to finally decide they’re not interested? You spent hours answering their questions, got excited about the possibility of a new customer, and suddenly all communication has stopped. You’ve been ghosted. In an ideal world, it would be easy…
Read MoreModern Technology Trends Even the Playing Field
For many small business owners, looking at the next big thing in technology may not always be the top priority. There are finances to manage, employees to retain, customers to please, and a business to build. However, not keeping up with new techs could place you further behind the competition. Knowing what technology trends affect…
Read More7 Reasons You Need to Incorporate Today
Choosing how a business is organized, taxed, and protected is one of the most important first decisions you will make as a new business owner. While most businesses make the decision to incorporate right at the start of the business, some wait too long and lose valuable benefits year over year. Depending on the business…
Read More3 Ways to Improve Your Leadership Aptitude
Being a leader is not the same as being a manager. Let’s consider how to become a better leader—especially for those who are not lucky enough to be “born leaders”. Being a leader is a way of life, not a job position. Leaders come from all walks of life, in all shapes and sizes and…
Read More4 Tips for Developing Branded Content
Keeping consumers engaged in a brand and its content considerably increases brand loyalty and business. But creating engaging, interesting content is easier for some than for others. For companies in the fashion or sports industries, fascinating topics come easy. But for other brands that provide run-of-the-mill products or services, it can be a greater challenge.…
Read MoreTop Startup Tips for Entrepreneurial Immigrants
It comes as no surprise to many in the U.S. that growth in the small business market is enhanced by the entrepreneurial drive possessed by many immigrants. In particular, during 2014 immigrants and Latinos provided a significant boost with regard to startup activity. In 2013, immigrant entrepreneurs launched new businesses making up 25.9 percent of…
Read MoreTurning Out the Lights is a Type of Exit
In my life as an early stage investor, I’ve been closely involved with so many businesses, there were bound to be numerous stories of failures, hopefully from which to learn lessons for all of us as we go forward. Several times in my investing life, as the final board member making the arrangements to dispose…
Read More5 Things to Consider When Buying an Existing Business
Buying an existing business is a whole other ball game than starting your own firm. There is an established financial condition, including existing debt. There is an established customer base, location, and business credit score. There is much to consider, and it can be totally overwhelming. Here are some things to consider: Third Party Financial…
Read MoreHow 3 Brilliant Entrepreneurs Failed Before They Succeeded
Sometimes it seems as though certain business people are simply born with the Midas touch that guarantees massive success in whatever they do. Life can seem a little unfair when you see how they have turned their ideas into millions of dollars with seemingly very little effort. Yet, when we look at the stories of…
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