Small Business Hints

Five Businesses You Can Start on a Shoestring

Luca Mansfield — Tue, 15 May 2012 07:41:59 +0000

Starting a business may seem like a great venture, but when the startup costs are added up, the risks may seem too great for some. At times when startup capital has become scarce, many entrepreneurs look towards lower-cost ways of starting their own business. Here are five options to consider.

Brain Businesses

For most entrepreneurs, their knowledge and skills, or intellectual capital, will be their greatest assets. Businesses driven by this intellectual capital, also known as “brain-businesses,” often require little fiscal capital to establish, according to John O’Brien, principal at the business valuation company, BVC Group.

“My business is a prime example,” he says.

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How I Increased Our Conversion Rate 50% In 30 Days

Owen Dods — Sat, 12 May 2012 08:51:02 +0000

For years, at the bottom of every single web page on our web design & internet marketing site was a call to action.

Each one of those calls to action was a unique link that led to our contact form.

Contact us today for a free consultation.

Learn how search engine optimization can bring new prospects to your site.

Move your static website to a content management system.

It was fairly effective, but I wondered if there was a way to remove a step and increase our conversion rates.

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Charter Hall buys Perth office tower

Gabriella Catts — Sat, 12 May 2012 05:52:54 +0000

Property fund manager Charter Hall announced today that it has moved to fuull ownership of 225 St Georges Tce, after buying out co-owner The Wyllie Group for $96 million.

The purchase price compared to the $61.5 million that Charter Hall paid in 2006 for its initial 50 per cent stake in the building, known as St Georges Square.

The 19-level building is 100 per cent leased, with BHP Billiton occupying 71 per cent of the net lettable area.

Charter Hall said it looked forward to pursuing other opportunities with The Wyllie Group in the future.

The acquisition price represented an initial yield of approximately 9% and a market capitalisation of 8.5%.

The purchase was made by the Core Plus Office Fund.

Business Owners Try to Make Sense of Health Care

Luca Mansfield — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:57:35 +0000

As if managing health care insurance isnt complicated enough already, the Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on the constitutionality of the partially implemented Affordable Care Act. During the most recent meeting of our business group, we asked the owners to talk about how they are handling this increasingly complicated, costly and uncertain issue.

Jessica Johnson, who owns Johnson Security Bureau, said that her employees fall into several categories.

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12th Grant First Round Finalists in a Tight Competition. Preliminary Voting Results Revealed. Only 3 Days Left

Owen Dods — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:27:59 +0000

Well, the clock is always ticking in our biz/lives. This time we’d love to draw your attention to an important countdown. You have only 3 days until Wednesday to vote for the April winner, if you haven’t already done so. This is your last chance to support your favorite business idea.

Here you can find out more about our finalists business wisdom and plans to reach out and help others in some way. Visit the voting page , and vote for the company you want to see at the finals!

Since the poll was open, the nominees have received significant support from their admirers.

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Mark Zuckerberg arrives at Facebook’s IPO roadshow in New York, line around the block

Gabriella Catts — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:20:02 +0000

NEW YORK – Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg fielded questions about the No. 1 social network’s slowing revenue growth and its $1 billion purchase of Instagram as he kicked off a cross-country roadshow to promote the company’s $10 billion initial public offering. Read full article…

Jeffrey R. Scharf, Everybody’s Business: The problem with the Affordable Care Act

Gabriella Catts — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 06:38:10 +0000

Last week, the Supreme Court held three days of hearings regarding the constitutionality of the Affordable Health Care Act.

On Monday, the court focused on whether there was a case to be decided before the penalty provision of the ACA takes effect in 2014. On Wednesday, argument centered on the severability of the statute and the coerciveness of the Medicaid requirements imposed on the states. But the main event was the Tuesday hearing regarding the mandate, which forces individuals to buy health insurance or pay a fine.

Before going further, it is important to note that the case is not about the self-evident need for an individual mandate.

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Don’t Shoot Yourself in the Foot

Luca Mansfield — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 06:53:48 +0000

As an owner of a small business in difficult economic times, it is tempting to take anything and everything that offered in terms of work. After all, the bills have got to be paid! But stop! Wait. Think. What you do NOW sets a precedent for the future.

I know of trainers who have more than halved their usual daily rate to secure work and pay the bills. They think they are doing this as a ‘one-off’, but is that how the person purchasing their services sees it? Probably not – in their eyes a price for services has been set, and it will be very hard for that trainer to suddenly go back to their ‘normal’ fees. They have

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7 Easy Video Blogging Tips to Increase Traffic and Search Results

Owen Dods — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:01:07 +0000

Video blogging is all the rage these days, and it’s not too difficult to see why. Consumers like it because it adds freshness and diversity to a website. Advertisers like it because it opens numerous doors for embedded video advertising.

And bloggers like video, of course, because of this excitement it can generate among the consumer and the digital marketing agency alike.

On an SEO front, video blogging can be good for business, too. It can bring in more traffic and a higher page rank by helping a blogger diversify his content and thus his readership base. I

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Should You Attend the Social Media Success Summit?

Owen Dods — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:15:24 +0000

A few years ago I attended the first Social Media Success Summit (aff). It was a virtual event where you could attend from your desktop, watching social media experts talk about Twitter, Facebook and blogging.

As you can see from the video below, I had my doubts of what I could actually gain from a virtual event, but I took the chance and signed up.

Its no exaggeration that the Social Media Success Summit changed the way I approached social media marketing, and thus the way I ran my business.

It was the best $300 I ever spent.

So flash forward a few years, and now Im presenting at SMSS2012. Why they let some guy from Maine speak on the same virtual stage as Mari Smith, Brian Solis, Mike Stelzner, Chris Brogan, Amy Porterfield, C.C. Ch

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Aricept 23—A Misleading Drug Enabled by the FDA

Luca Mansfield — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 11:01:14 +0000

In some ways, Alzheimer’s is like arthritis. Its symptoms can wax and wane, making it difficult to determine if a particular treatment is successful. Who’s to say if a symptom subsided because a drug worked, or because it was going to diminish anyway?

And, like arthritis, Alzheimer’s cannot be cured, only moderated. That can lead sufferers and the people who care for them to become desperate for any new treatment—what have they got to lose?

So dementia leaves its victims particularly vulnerable to new, if not improved, ways to treat it, and one such recent attempt raised the ire of two professors at Dartmouth’s Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice. As report

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Gorgon progressing on-time, on-budget: Chevron

Gabriella Catts — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 20:07:47 +0000

Construction continues at Chevron’s $43 billion Gorgon project. Read full article…

A Survey Finds Small Businesses Driving Growth through Online and Social Media Channels

Owen Dods — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 03:28:55 +0000

The majority of small business owners are increasing their use of the Internet and social media platforms to grow their business, according to a new survey conducted by Citibank. It was also discovered that small business owners under the age of 45 are the primary drivers of increased online efforts.

Sixty-five percent of the 749 small business owners surveyed across the United States cited increasing marketing activities as a key step in growing their business. While the overwhelming majority used their company website as a marketing channel, 41 percent said they have used social media channels, such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, in the last year.

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How Stress Impacts Your Workers’ Performance

Luca Mansfield — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 17:35:03 +0000

Nearly half of all workers suffer from moderate to severe stress while on the job, according to a recent survey. And 66 percent of employees report that they have difficulty focusing on tasks at work because of stress. Stress has been called the health epidemic of the 21^st century by the World Health Organization and is estimated to cost American businesses up to $300 billion a year.

But there are ways to reduce its impact on human lives and companies’ bottom line, even though stress is a daunting, pervasive problem, experts say.

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