We’re proud to announce that BizSugar and Bloggertone have teamed up to give you the Sugartone Sweet Business Blogging Contest and there are over $6,000 in prizes are up for grabs!

There are two ways to win:

1.) Submit a business article to Bloggertone
2.) Vote and comment on Sugartone articles at BizSugar

This contest won’t be around for long so make sure you enter for your chance to win now.  The deadline for submitting articles is Wednesday, March 17th at 9AM EST (12:00PM PST).  The deadline for voting and commenting is Friday, March 19th at 9AM EST (12:00PM PST).  

So hurry on over and sweeten your small business by giving it some increased visibility online and flex your social media skills while you’re at it by visiting BizSugar, the social bookmarking site for small business, where you can vote and comment on the Sugartone articles.  Participate in the Sugartone Sweet Business Blogging Contest now.

From Small Business Trends

Short (this week only) And Sweet (Sugartone) Blog Contest Offers Up Great Prizes!

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But isn’t that a lot of work? How can a SMB owner create the needed presence without draining time and resources? I’ll show you.

Claim Your Web site

Your Web site is step one in building and maintaining a presence on the Web. Even if you plan to be really active in social media you need to start here. Your Web site is the place on the Web that you own and can control. You can’t control what happens to all those other sites. Set the groundwork for your online identity by becoming the master of your own domain before someone needs to call a Twittervention.

Once you have it, use your Web site to share your company story and information, target your neighborhood by providing localized content, give answers to common questions, establish your own authority, and to help you grow an on-site community. Your small business Web site should tell the story of who you are and why someone should trust doing business with you. If you need help, here’s a bit more on why your SMB needs a Web site and some tips for creating one. And don’t forget, once you have your site, you’ll need to claim your local business listings Everywhere. These listings are super important in helping the search engines figure out who you are and where you’re relevant to.

Start a Blog

Once your site is up, get blogging. Blogging provides SMB owner with two really great benefits. First, it allows you to talk to, engage and interact with your community the way you can’t do from your site. By giving your audience a voice and talking to them about the issues related to your business, you establish yourself as a thought leader and give them a reason to keep coming back. You make your business the ‘go-to’ place for a particular topic and you help them to become invested in your brand. The more engaged you can make them, the better.

Your blog also allows you to go after long-term keywords to help your site earn rankings for terms you’re not targeting with your main site. Often you’ll find terms that are too niche to warrant a silo on your site, however, by simply writing a few keyword-rich posts on the subject, you may still be able to get your domain to show up.

Invest in Social Media

Creating a plan for how you’ll navigate social media is becoming increasingly important as more customers enter the fold and as the search engines put more weight on social signals. LAST MONTH, Google put Social Search into its search results and changed the way we look at online relationships. You don’t have to be everywhere in social media, but you should pick two or three sites to focus on and create a strong presence on each. If you’re not sure which sites are the best matches for your customers, do a bit of research. That may entail asking them, looking at your site logs to see where people are coming from, checking out niche sites, performing searches for [industry + social network], etc. Don’t just assume that your audience is on the most popular social networks. They may not be.

Once you figure out where you need to be, learn the social media ropes and find ways to integrate your social efforts into your site. Social media doesn’t have to be a crippling time investment. The experts say just 60 minutes a day should be enough to keep the competitors away. And frankly, you could probably do it in less.

Pay Attention to Reviews

Review sites have changed the way that customers discover businesses in their areas. Searchers go to Yelp find a good Mexican restaurant in their area and to do their homework on the place the new dentist they were thinking about using. They look at CNET reviews before they purchase a new television or laptop. They read reviews about potential chiropractors on Google Local. Searchers are seeking out these destinations more often for trusted first-hand experiences and the engines are giving them more weight in the search results, as well. That means you need to manage reviews better so that you know WHERE people are leaving them and WHAT they’re saying about you. By managing your reviews you not only help create a good site-wide conversation about your business, but you earn double the points when users find them in the search results.

The days where you needn’t worry about your online presence are over. Regardless of how big or small you are, customers are going online to do their research, which means you need to be there. The four simple steps above can take your site from invisible to search engine favorite.

From Small Business Trends

More Evidence SMBs Need A Web Presence

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And when it comes to anything with technology, buyers need the most understandable solutions. If they don’t understand the product or service, they will view it as too big a risk to sign on.

This is not surprising considering how much new technology and science is now built into most products and services today. And there’s much more on the way. The US News and World Report’s latest report of top careers shows why.  Nearly every emerging job is in a narrow technical specialty that is exponentially creating knowledge that will need to be understood by untrained buyers.

Capable buyers know they must process technical information that’s flooding in from all sides. To do so they will need more interpreters, advisors and reconcilers who can instill confidence by comfortably explaining how a technical product meets a layman’s objectives.

But from where?

In business it seems there is a widening gap between those who can invent technology and those who buy the results of technology. Large corporations have historically dealt with this challenge by employing specialized staff who were technically educated, could communicate and sell product benefits, and then train a user in how to use them. These “sales engineers” could bridge the widening communications gap. They have always been in great demand.

In small businesses, smart business owners like you have usually served as your firm’s “sales engineer.” But you’ll never grow your business if you are the only sales engineer capable of explaining your product’s and service’s benefits to buyers.

Wrapped in that challenge is an opportunity. You can seize this opportunity if you find and train sales people to sell and communicate like you do – no, even better than you do.  Your sales ability, product knowledge and confidence built your business and its success. Now it is time to pay your knowledge forward.

To profitably grow to the next level, you need to leverage your expertise and experience through your emerging employees. So take the cue of the sales engineer. Take your most empathetic people and enhance their grasp of your products. Or take your technicians who are friendly and communicate well and give them more opportunities to teach, train and sell. Invest in them; work with them. Chances are they won’t be perfectly trained overnight.  They will stumble here and there. But then, you didn’t get to this point in your business overnight, either.

In an environment where more things are being bought by buyers only as needed, the best way to increase your sales and protect your margins is to sell your expertise and improve the experience of your customer. It’s how you convey value and differentiate your company from the competition.

But don’t literally be the only person in your company who can do this. There isn’t enough of you to go around. Teach your staff to do be able to convey benefits and demystify your products.

From Small Business Trends

Secret #1 for Growth: Train Someone to Sell and Communicate Better Than You

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Leadership

Small business in the driver’s seat? In hard economic times when statistics show small businesses may be the answer, it’s time to step up. Tom Raducha’s Blog

Nothing happens without a vision. And usually it doesn’t come from the people who fit in. Open Forum Innovation

Improving your international business skills. Here are 21 tips for the small business planning to go global. Cindy King

Marketing

In search of a do-it-yourself marketing guide. Why asking good questions can sometimes also be the perfect answer. DIY Marketers

Save your money. 10 ways to avoid paying way too much on your marketing campaign. Entrepreneur.com

What are they saying about your business? Why testimonials remain one of the most powerful forms of marketing and why you need to cultivate them. NJ Entrepreneur

Seeing is believing. How virtual tours can boost an e-mail marketing campaign. Understanding Marketing

Public Relations

Learning from the pros. Avoid these four major screwups when doing PR for your own small business. The Netsetter

Publicizing your local small business online. Following even 25 percent of the 51 tips on this list is guaranteed to get you noticed.  Softline Solutions

Social Media

Enhancing LinkedIn for your business. Here are 11 tips to make a positive impact with the premier business social network. Paul Castain’s Sales Playbook

Adding value to your Tweets. How to up the ante when using social media to market your small business. The Rise To The Top

How Twitter and Facebook are affecting your search engine ranking. If you aren’t taking into the impact of social media on your online business reputation, you are missing an opportunity. SysComm International

Humor

It’s either the world’s best or worst franchise idea. Now all we’ve got to do is figure out whether Joel Libava is kidding or not. Franchise Follies

Policy

More doubt cast on small business aid program. Not only will a government plan to stimulate small business hiring not work but its delay is probably costing jobs and growth right now. The Entrepreneurial Mind

Show me the money. A year after a $787 billion stimulus package aimed at rebuilding the economy, a report says most small businesses haven’t seen any funding. Reuters

From Small Business Trends

Small Business News March 12, 2010

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Well, I finally got my very own hard-back copy in the mail last week.  Now I can finally tell you all about this short, easy and entertaining book that will get you thinking more profitably about your business.

“Built to Sell” is actually an allegory-style business novel.  Personally, I like these kinds of books.  I have an interactive learning style and reading a book that gets me involved in the characters really helps me to integrate the lessons in the book.  It’s almost like taking a spoonful of sugar to get the medicine to go down. 

“Built to Sell” Is More About Building Systems Than Selling Your Business

“Built to Sell” almost reminds me of Michael Gerber’s “The E Myth” series.  When I first picked it up I thought that it didn’t apply to me – because I don’t want to create a franchise, nor do I want to sell my business.  But those frameworks are just there to teach me the much bigger and more profitable lesson that a systematized, turnkey business is not only more valuable in the marketplace, but more fun, easier to manage and less stressful than the alternative.

The primary purpose of any business is to make money.  Another goal for  many is to support a balanced life for the owner – and for the employees of that business.  “Built to Sell” will guide you through the process of creating a business model and system that allows you to do exactly that – create a business and not just busy-work.

Is “Built to Sell” Autobiographical?

John Warrillow is an entrepreneur.  He’s started and sold four companies, so he knows a thing or two about what it takes to build and sell a business.  As soon as you start reading the book, you’ll see that it isn’t really autobiographical.  It’s an amalgam of John’s experiences and the lessons he’s learned over time.

In fact, don’t make the mistake that I did and focus on the “story” part of this book.   There are details in the book; such as the fact that Alex, the main character, was able to sell a logo package for $10,000.  That completely spun me out because I’ve never run into a small business that was eager to spend $1,000 for a logo, let alone $10,000!  But that ISN’T the point.

It’s Not About the Service – It’s About the System

“Built to Sell” succeeds in teaching a most valuable lesson: it’s not about the service, it’s about the system.  Running a business without a turnkey process and system is like taking a 300 pound dog for a walk.  Who’s walking whom?

In the story our hero, Alex Stapleton, owns an advertising and design firm.  He is a “victim” of his business.  He has clients that jerk him around and don’t pay on time.  He loses sleep wondering how he’s going to pay his staff.  He doesn’t always like the projects he gets.  And, just when he’s sure he’s going to make a change – life hands him the opportunity of a life time.  Will he take on a client that’s handing him lots of money for work not in his area of strength or will he stick to the lessons he’s learned and build a life and a business and not just his top line.

Ted’s Tips For Building a System.

Ted Gordon is Alex’s mentor.  Ted has bought and sold several companies and he holds the key to Alex getting everything he wants out of the business.

Here are just a few tips that I got from the character “Ted”:

• “Being a generalist forces you to hire generalists and your offering will be average at best.”
• “If you run a service business that’s highly dependent on a single client who depends on you personally to tend to their account and you compete with a lot of other players who provide similar services – your business is virtually worthless.  Make sure that no one client comprises more than 15% of your revenue.”
• Define your service as if it were a product.  “Productize it”  That means that you describe your unique service process as features that are unique to you.
• If you’re selling a product, you can create a flat fee as a price and get paid up-front.
• “Prove that you’re serious about specialization by turning down work that falls outside your standard service.”

I could go on and on because there are many wonderful, practical, easily implementable tips in this book.

Read “Built to Sell” For Sanity and Profits

It might seem counter-intuitive to you to actually focus on a tighter service offering when the economy is on a downward spiral.  But the message of focus, specialization and systems that Warrillow preaches is spot on.

If you’re currently running a service business that totally depends on your being there, then you have a lot to learn from reading this book.  Implement just a few basic principles and you will see immediate improvement in your profitability and your sanity as well.

Pick up “Built to Sell” and by this time next year – you will have your very own money machine!

From Small Business Trends

How “Built to Sell” Could Help You Become a Millionaire

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This list of events, conferences and webinars for growing small businesses and entrepreneurs is brought to you twice a month as a community service by Small Business Trends and Smallbiztechnology.com.
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GROWCO Grow Your Company Conference
March 14-16, 2010, Orlando, FL

In 2010, Inc.’s GROWCO Conference pulls together a dynamic program with a curriculum designed specifically for the nation’s rising entrepreneurial stars, including smaller organizations that want to make an appearance on the Inc. 5000 and Inc. 5000 honorees that want to break into the higher ranks of the list or repeat their success in years to come. High-profile growth experts teach seminars that will give attendees actionable information with which to develop or maintain their own growth initiative. Cost is $895.

Fifth Annual Small Business Summit
March 16, 2010, New York

The Summit is for small business owners and entrepreneurs who want to meet the challenges of the new economy head-on and THRIVE in 2010. The theme this year is Business & Technology: Strategies for the New Economy.

We have some incredible speakers lined up for this year’s Summit, including Seth Godin, who will be talking about being indispensable to your customers. The Summit is always about generating great ideas from some of the best talent in the business world, but also about networking, making profitable connections and having fun.

New this year is the Small Business Strategy Award. One attendee will be recognized for entrepreneurial strategic excellence that has led to significant increased profits, expanded market and/or improved market position.

Western Regional Business Matchmaking
March 16, 2010, Los Angeles, CA

The Business Matchmaking Western Regional Face-to-Face Event will be hosted at the Marriott Los Angeles Airport Hotel located in Los Angeles, CA on Tuesday, March 16, 2010. Participating firms will receive advance education and tools to prepare for face-to-face meetings with buyers from federal, state and local government agencies and major corporations.

* Individual business counseling and guidance provided by SCORE, SBDC and other resource partners
* Access to the Business Matchmaking System in advance of the event to be matched with participating procurement representatives and setting a schedule for appointments with buyers
* Face-to-Face meetings with procurement representatives of federal, state and local government agencies and major corporations
* Small business specific and topical workshops available throughout event day
* Exhibits and networking with regional small business resources including access to capital, SBA loans, insurance, federal qualification requirements, women and minority business tools, certification, etc.
* On-site Internet access and email capabilities provided at the HP Tech Center
* Access to representatives from private sector co-sponsors for information about their companies

Bizmore Webinar: Social Media 101
March 16, 2010, 11:00am PST

Learn how to market your products and services on The Big 3 Social Networks: Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter; attract new customers and generate more business. Scott K. Wilder, the former head of Intuit’s Small Business Community website, will show you how.

As a bonus, webinar attendees will receive a free copy of Wilder’s must-read Marketing Menu for Achieving Success on The Big 3.

How to Sell: Establishing Your Unique Selling Proposition
March 17, 2010, 12pm ET, Webinar

Presented by: John W. Heinrich, President of The Solutions Forum and Chief Mentor of The International School of Entrepreneurship
It is critical to have a unique selling proposition (USP). Otherwise, why would a potential customer buy from you rather than a competitor? If you don’t have one, you’ll be forced into competing on price, with adverse effects on profits and close ratios. It is also imperative to focus on the mechanics of how many cold calls, appointment and closes you need to increase sales. You’ll learn:
- How to establish a USP
- How to properly qualify customers, so that productivity is maximized
- How to work backwards from closes through appointments to cold calls to INCREASE BUSINESS
- How to improve sales through qualification of customers
- How to set up the metrics to increase your business

2010 Mega Mixer Business Expo
March 18, 2010, Rye, NY

The Business Council of Westchester (BCW) will hold its annual Mega Mixer Business Expo at the Hilton Rye Town hotel in Rye, New York from 2:00 to 6:00 pm on March 18. The event is expected to draw 1,500 attendees from Westchester and beyond and feature 200 exhibitors in more than 70 different industries.
Features a Green Aisle of eco-friendly companies, Speaker’s Spot of short expert seminars, and Mega Samplers array of food and drink samples throughout the day.

Marketing Up: Finding Clients with Real Budgets
March 18, 2010

Ask a creative how they get their clients and most will say, “Through word of mouth.” But word of mouth doesn’t always bring the clients you want. You know, the ones with budgets to afford your services. The alternative to word of mouth is a Marketing Machine: a structured campaign through which you actively pursue the prospects of your choosing with the most effective, and least expensive, marketing tools.

In this Teleclass, you will learn:
* How to research (and where to find) the right prospects
* How to choose the right prospects
* How to reach out to the right prospects

E-3…Engage, Empower, Energize
March 18, 2010, Newark, NJ

A no charge full-day conference for experienced business women seeking to grow their businesses. Breakouts, individual consulting, “Pitch-it” contest, keynotes, etc. This will be at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and will include breakfast and lunch. Sponsored by New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners’ Women’s Business Center.

How to Present Your Business Plan
March 18, 2010, Providence, RI

This interactive presentation will feature two veteran business developers who have worked with companies throughout New England on growth, turnaround, and acquisition strategies. This workshop is part of a series leading up to the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition starting in April 2010.

Astoundingly Simple Secrets to Making Social Media Work for You
March 23, 2010, Webinar

Can you really turn garden-variety online acquaintances into a supportive network who will help you spread a message or build a career? Do social media sites like Facebook and Twitter offer the opportunity to extend your brand and message or are they just a colossal time-suck?

Learn the ins and outs of social media, where it intersects with old-school marketing, and how you can use them in tandem to build your network, strengthen your personal brand, and spread the word about your business to the people who need to hear it. You will learn how to come up with your core marketing message, translate it into the language of social media, and evaluate which social networking sites will work best for you.

The Mobile Office with Ramon Ray: Productivity Anywhere!
March 24, 2010, 10:00AM PT, Webinar

Navigating the technology acronym soup of mobile technology can be daunting these days, not to mention expensive if you don’t make smart decisions around your technology and service choices. You will learn about mobile technology and how to simply safeguard your very important business information.

Social Reputation Management: Protecting and Strengthening Your Brand Across the Social Web
March 24, 2010, New York City

This conference that will share the best case studies on how communicators and marketers listen to conversations, monitor and comprehend what is being said, and engage through the social web. The case studies will be followed by moderated interactive roundtables. Use promo code SBT to receive a discounted rate of $155.

Brooklyn Business Expo 2010
March 24, 2010, Brooklyn, NY

The Brooklyn Business Expo 2010 will bring together the brightest business leaders from the most dynamic companies throughout Brooklyn and the adjoining counties.

The Brooklyn Business Expo 2010 provides an environment for businesses to enhance their relationships, research the market for the leading products and services, and learn about the latest best business practices. This will be the largest biz-to-biz expo in Brooklyn.

The Stimulus Package: Update 2010
March 24, 2010, Brooklyn, NY

This seminar, moderated by CNN contributor and president of Optimum Capital Management, Ryan Mack, is designed to show you how you can still benefit from stimulus funds. Panelists include Ann Kayman, CEO at New York Grant Company; Bruce Niswander, director of the Office of Innovation, Technology Transfer and Entrepreneurship at Polytechnic Institute of NYU; and Michael Williams, dean at the Graduate School of Business at Touro College who will discuss the following:

* The Stimulus Program: What’s the impact on the economy so far?
* How can I still benefit from the Stimulus bill?
* How will the government’s proposed three-year spending freeze effect small business and how can businesses plan now?
* What are smart, “hidden” ways that businesses can save more money in the “new” economy?

MarketingSherpa’s Email Marketing Essentials Workshop Training
Multi-City Tour

Theory works well in a classroom, but how does it translate in the real world? What makes MarketingSherpa’s Email Marketing Essentials Workshop unique is our trusted Case Study approach to learning. Using Case Studies and research as a basis, every tactic discussed during the course has been proven. This one-day workshop is based on MarketingSherpa’s Best Practices in Email Marketing Handbook. You’ll receive a FREE copy ($497 value) to be used as your textbook during the course that you can take back to your office for future reference. Use it as your on-the-job reference guide to build a ‘best in class’ email program that will meet and exceed your marketing goals. Register now to get $100 off regular price of $995.

March 25 , New York City
April 6, Philadelphia, PA
April 20, Washington, DC
May 11, Denver, CO
May 13, Seattle, WA
June 21, Chapel Hill, NC
June 25, Atlanta, GA
July 20, Minneapolis, MN
August 10, San Diego, CA
August 13, Phoenix, AZ

Growing Profits and Revenue with Low Cost Tech Tools
March 30, 2010, 2:00pm ET, Webinar

Email marketing is one of the most cost effective ways for businesses to stay in touch with customers and build long-lasting and profitable relationships.This is great news for small and growing businesses, who need to get their messages directly to targeted audiences.

This webinar will break down a real case study of how one small business slashed their marketing costs and skyrocketed their results, and translate their success into solid steps on how you can do the same. Featuring Melanie Attia, Product Marketing Manager for Campaigner and Elaine Bolle, Chief Marketing Officer for Clinical Research Site Training.

The Technology of Collaboration with John Jantsch
March 31, 2010, 10:00AM PT, Webinar

Small business has become less about building and selling and more about collaborating and engaging. In this session you’ll learn about a growing and changing suite of tools that any small business can tap to work more effectively and efficiently with your entire collaboration universe including:

• Prospects
• Customers
• Suppliers
• Advisors
• Partners
• Competitors

New York Entrepreneur Week
April 12-16, 2010

New York Entrepreneur Week (NYEW) is a non-profit movement formed around a single belief: entrepreneurs change the world. And now is the time for entrepreneurs who have the will and drive to prove they can achieve anything, to stand up and come together in New York State for another groundbreaking NYEW event.

With over 100 speakers from 40 cities, 15 states and 3 continents, NYEW unites the state’s diverse entrepreneurial community; giving you the opportunity to connect with and learn from New York’s best and brightest entrepreneurs who are relentless, driven and dedicated to improving your business and the economy. View the full agenda here.

New York Entrepreneur Week encompasses five days of innovative and hyper-targeted events, including:

* Inspiring keynote speeches from recognized business leaders
* Riveting panels delivering relevant mission-critical advice
* The flagship RELENTLESS business plan competition

10 PAGE BUSINESS PLAN DESIGN WORKSHOP
April 16, 2010, New York City

This workshop enables leaders to prepare Complete, Convincing and Compelling business plans to obtain grants, VC and corporate finance, partners and customers for start ups, spin-outs and expansions. We leverage the ‘10 PAGE BUSINESS PLAN DESIGN FRAMEWORK’™ built on a proven track record of raising over $300 million of financing.

140 Characters Conference
April 20-21, 2010, New York City

The 140 Characters Conference: New York City (#140conf) provides a platform for the worldwide twitter community to: listen, connect, share and engage with each other, while collectively exploring the effects of the emerging real-time internet on business.

The format at the #140conf events is unique. Individual talks are 5 and 10 minutes, keynotes are 15 and 20 minutes and panel discussions are no more than 20 minutes. During the course of the two days more than 140 people will share the stage in about 70 sessions.
“Early Bird” registration of $100 ends on March 5th.

OSDBU Procurement Conference – Procurement Matchmaking
April 21, 2010, Chantilly, VA

The 20th Annual OSDBU Procurement Conference is a national conference fostering business partnerships between the Federal Government, its Prime Contractors, and small, minority, service-disabled veteran-owned, veteran-owned, HUBZone, and women-owned businesses. More info and registration here.

New Marketing Experience 2010
April 13, 2010, San Francisco, CA

Imagine a world where you can take your One Big Idea™ and tap over 100 other participating conference attendee and experts and each of their One Big Ideas. All in a structured, fast-paced and highly interactive one-day program under the direction of Chris Brogan and the team from New Marketing Labs.

Unlike other programs, this event will facilitate you working directly with your peers in a group of 15-20 professionals to explore in detail the topics covered in the program. In addition, each attendee will leave with one book from the conference with all of the big ideas from the attendees as well as the results of the deep dives on the topics discussed.

Michigan Celebrates Small Business
April 29, 2010

Michigan Celebrates Small Business is a premier annual program to recognize entrepreneurs and small business supporters in a variety of categories. The program is a cooperative effort of the U.S. Small Business Administration – Michigan, the Small Business Association of Michigan, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, the Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center and the Edward Lowe Foundation.

The 11th Annual Department of Energy Small Business Conference & Expo
May 10-12, 2010, Atlanta, GA

The Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, is proud to present The 11th Annual DOE Small Business Conference & Expo, at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, GA, May 10-12, 2010.

The event will feature plenaries, educational workshops, an Exhibit Hall with 200+ exhibitors/sponsors, as well as business matchmaking sessions. Over 1,600 attendees will represent all levels of federal, state, and local government agencies, the small business community, large/prime contractors, and many more!

Working Capital Executive Breakfast
May 13, 2010, Dallas, TX

The No. 1 concern for businesses in today’s credit crisis is liquidity. Register for our Complimentary Executive Breakfast and find out how you can generate working capital to keep your company viable and grow. During the briefing, you will learn how to:

* Increase liquidity in as little as 24 hours
* Take control of your working capital management
* Lower your cost of capital through a competitive marketplace
* Protect your business from increasing DSOs
* Secure financing that is less restrictive than traditional bank financing

Small Business Social Media Summit
June 4-6, 2010

Social media for small businesses presented by people using social media successfully in their business. Affordable summit JUST for the small business. Go home with a social media plan.

Creative Freelancer Conference
June 5-6, 2010

The Creative Freelancer Conference is the first and only full-scale business conference for self-employed creative professionals. The goal? To help you maximize your freelance income by sharing best business practices and sage advice from seasoned solopreneurs who’ve learned through experience what works, and what doesn’t. The program is geared toward freelance graphic designers, copywriters, illustrators and photographers, as well as solo practitioners of interactive, interior and industrial design. Anyone who makes a living selling creative services on a freelance basis (or would like to) will benefit.

eBay Developers Conference
June 8-10, 2010

At eBay DevCon 2010, the company will provide a myriad of ways for the eBay developer community to learn and interact with one another and with eBay team members and industry experts.
DevCon attendees will learn how to harness the power of eBay, the world’s largest online marketplace, in an exciting, engaging, three-day event that will include panels, technical labs, keynote addresses and “birds of a feather” groups where developers who build similar applications or use similar code can exchange ideas.

eBay DevCon 2010 is the 9th annual event, and allows eBay to listen to developers’ needs and provide the tools they need to create, market and grow their businesses.

To find more small business events, contests and awards, visit our Small Business Events Calendar.

If you are putting on a small business contest, award or competition, and want to get the word out to the community, please submit it through our Events & Contests Submission Form (We do not charge a fee to be included in this listing — it is completely free to list your event.) Only events of interest to small business people, freelancers and entrepreneurs will be considered and included.

From Small Business Trends

Small Business Summits, Webinars, and Conferences

Blog contents are provided by Small Business Trends

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As reported by AP, the proposed package would guarantee all Americans access to a retirement plan through the workplace, increase tax credits to reward retirement savings, and increase regulation of 401(k) plans.

The proposal small-business owners will be most interested in is the “automatic IRA.” The proposed program would require employers who don’t offer a retirement plan to enroll employees in a direct-deposit individual retirement account. (Employees would have the choice to opt out.) Companies that have 10 or fewer employees or have been in business less than two years would be exempt.

Some 78 million workers do not currently have access to a retirement plan through the workplace. According to The Retirement Security Project, automatic enrollment has been shown to strongly increase participation in retirement plans, especially among low- and middle-income workers.

Supporters of the automatic IRA idea point out that it would be fairly simple for most small businesses to implement, and would help small companies compete with bigger ones that offer retirement benefits.

AARP, which supports the plan, notes that automatic IRAs are simplified accounts owned by individuals–not employer-sponsored retirement plans—so they are much less complex. There are no plan-qualification rules or IRS approvals; you don’t have to comply with ERISA; no employer contributions are required; and the employer has no responsibility to choose, hold or manage investments. Employers simply serve as a conduit helping employees put their own money into their own IRAs. Employers who don’t offer direct deposit would send contributions to the IRS along with tax withholdings.

A survey by the National Federation of Independent Business showed that nearly 50 percent of small businesses with 10 to 19 employees use an outside payroll firm. Of those that do payroll in-house, more than 80 percent use software. For companies that use payroll providers or software, automatic IRAs would easily integrate into the systems they already use. To offset administrative costs, employers would get a tax credit of $25 for each employee who chooses to save in an automatic IRA (up to $250) for two years.

Most companies that still do payroll by hand would be exempt from the proposal, although they could participate if they so desire.

Editor’s Note: this article was previously published at OPENForum.com under the title: “What Would Automatic IRAs Mean to Small Business?” It is reprinted here with permission.

From Small Business Trends

Automatic IRAs: What Would They Mean to Small Business?

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Part of me is always on the lookout for words, phrases, or situations I might use in a cartoon.

After so many years it’s not even a conscious thing anymore. It’s just always there below the surface, and occasionally something trips my cartoon radar and I jot it down.

I remember hearing a business story on the radio and the phrase “costs are skyrocketing” popped out at me. It’s so common that you generally ignore it, but “skyrocketing,” when examined more closely, opens up a lot of opportunities, like the cartoon above.

From Small Business Trends

Costs Are Skyrocketing

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Marketing

What’s the buzz, tell me what’s happening? Here are some important guidelines for anyone interested in using Google Buzz in your marketing arsenal. Marketing Professor

Don’t fail to plan when it comes to marketing. Four simple steps can save you oodles of time and plenty of wrong turns. Bloggertone

Social Media

Talkin’ trash? Small Business Trends’ own Anita Campbell talks about freedom of speech in the new social media…and the responsibility that comes with it. Open Forum Innovation

Stories and conversations that position your brand. Tips for guerilla marketing in the world of social media. Closing Bigger

Finance

Why new credit card laws don’t apply to you. And why that may not be such a bad thing after all. Small Business Trends

Getting ready for a micro-audit. Even the smallest businesses aren’t below the radar of the IRS. Be sure yours is prepared. NASE

Operations

Home alone? When the only employee is you and your office is the couch or the kitchen table, consider these important productivity measures. Small Business CEO

How referrals can grow your business. And we’re not talking about the ones you get, either. Sales Tip a Day

Self-Development

Handling life’s little interruptions. When trying to run a business, things always get in the way. Stepcase Lifehack

Startup

How is building a business like having a child? Fresh from becoming a new father, Polish entrepreneur Karol Zielinski has some interesting insights. Karol Zielinski blog

Five reasons not to share equity. Why entrepreneurs may not want to offer their first employees a piece of the pie. Startup Nation

Tech

How is your small business using mobile technology? A recent report shows texting as the top form of mobile content usage. Is text marketing in your small business plan? comScore

Map out your favorite online small business tools. Check out a cool new interactive map tracking the growing list of tools you can use to promote your small business online and then suggests your picks. The Small BizNest

Policy

Is the economic recovery really a myth? Why government projections of an economy bouncing back may not have real validity. Reason.com

Thirty-six percent of Americans pay no federal income tax? This includes many families making over $50,000 a year but how does it compare with small businesses that are among the most likely to face audits. TaxProf Blog

From Small Business Trends

Small Business News March 11, 2010

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According to the New York Times, the analytics features have been available in alpha for a small number of businesses for a week now. The selected businesses are able to see, in real time, who has checked in to their businesses (on a daily, weekly, 30/60/90-day or all-time basis), when they arrived, the male-to-female ratio, what times are most active for certain customers, and they get the ability to offer instant promotions. FourSquare will also offer a Staff page so that employees can interact directly with customers using the site.  It makes things significantly more interactive for business owners, which may increase a Twitter-esque adoption.

Early shots of the dashboard look like this:

And that’s just the beginning.

According to FourSquare’s Tristan Walker, the social site plans to up the information they’ll be providing. Things slated to be added include correlations between check-ins and weather to help merchants offer better rainy day incentives and the ability to tie purchase information to check-ins.

What FourSquare is really doing is taking everything up a notch. Over the past year, SMB owners have learned to use Twitter as a medium to reach out and connect with customers. We’ve used it to have real conversations, to find people talking about our brands and to encourage them to come visit our store or Web site. However, with the new analytics from FourSquare, we actually have an ability to track users and tie them to specific actions. It’s a much more interesting conversation when you can identify a former “regular”, and look at their behavior to see they haven’t been in the store for weeks.  Knowing this means you can use the Staff pages to then interact with that specific customer and give them an incentive to come back in.  It’s as much about retaining customers as it is attracting them with new deals.

And whether you’re a FourSquare user or not, yesterday’s announcement is something you should be aware of because it signals that location wars are very much upon us.

On the heels of FourSquare’s launch Twitter announced it will be turning on geolocation for tweets and Facebook will also allow users to share their location. With everyone going in the same direction, it’s probably a sign you should be paying attention. We understand social media, now what can you do to make it more locally-focused and to connect with your current customers. FourSquare is giving SMB owners a great way to look into the habits and actions of people who frequent them, and so are many of the other social networking sites. The more data you can use, the smarter decisions you can make.  Start figuring out how you can use it.

From Small Business Trends

FourSquare Adds Analytics, Real Business Value

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But that lifeline could be about to snap. The Congressional Oversight Panel, which monitors the financial bailout, just released a report on the state of commercial real estate lending—and the news is not good.

“There’s been an enormous bubble in commercial real estate, and it has to come down,” panel chair Elizabeth Warren told the Washington Post. “A mortgage crisis like the one that has devastated homeowners is enveloping the nation’s office and retail buildings,” the Post reports. The fallout will hit community banks hard.

In general, large, community banks haven’t been hurt by the residential real estate crisis. But community banks issued higher proportions of commercial mortgages than did the big banks. Some 3,000 community banks have disproportionate amounts of commercial loans relative to their assets, according to the oversight panel’s report. And, as Warren says, “Every dollar [community banks] lose in commercial real estate is a dollar they can’t use for small businesses.”

Commercial real estate mortgages have shorter terms than standard residential mortgages; according to the report, some $1.4 trillion in commercial real estate debt will come due in the next three years. And Warren says, half of all commercial real estate mortgages will be underwater by 2011.

Areas most at risk? South Florida, metropolitan New York and Washington, DC, lead the nation in the per capita value of commercial real estate currently in foreclosure, default or delinquency, according to research group Real Capital Analytics.

Responding to the problems many borrowers are already having refinancing commercial mortgages. President Obama has proposed expanding the SBA’s 504 loan program to temporarily support refinancing for owner-occupied commercial real estate loans. Currently, these loans cannot be used to refinance maturing debt.

The full report from the Congressional Oversight Panel is interesting reading.

From Small Business Trends

Looming Commercial Real Estate Crisis Threatens Small Businesses

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Marketing

Is the idea of viral marketing a bit too contagious? Viral marketing may not be good for every business so keep in mind it’s a means not an end. Right Ideas/Bright Ideas

Getting personal with your marketing strategy. With all the buzz words out there in the marketing world, sometimes the best advice comes down to a very simple idea. Five Forces Group

It’s not just about the clicks. A look at how to improve sales through more focused online marketing campaigns. Web.com

Operations

Why should your customers trust you? The answer may have to do with how you operate your business everyday. Flying Pig Communications

Forbes puts small business owners on the couch. Another report looks at the mental outlook of the small business community. morebusiness.com

How to get more business. Some thoughts on bringing the new customers you need to you. Unique Insights

Startup

Date your business before you marry it. How can you be sure the business you’re planning is the right one for you? Open Forum Innovation

Is your business making Google nervous? How to create a startup that sells to the big boys for millions. The Huffington Post

You don’t need to go to heaven to meet an angel. How to find these special investors and what they can do to help your business. Youngentrepreneur.com

Policy

For solopreneurs, health care may be getting even more expensive. Health care reform may shift a disproportionately large burden onto the shoulders of the already struggling self-employed. National Association for the Self-Employed

Can risk really be managed? The recent meltdown contains lessons about economic uncertainty, but what can it teach business leaders for the future? The Economist

Why bigger is not always better. Finally government reformers may discover what small business owners and their customers have always known. Huffington Post

Tech

New tools allow a more customized approach to sales. Wouldn’t it be great if visitors could buy from you even after they’ve left your site? smallbiztechnology.com

How to make cool side-by-side interviews for your Website. A warning to PC users: This tutorial is for Mac’s. The Rise to The Top

Contests

Sugartone Sweet Business Blogging Contest. Two of the Net’s fastest growing small business communities join forces to promote great business blogging online with some really cool prizes. Bloggertone

From Small Business Trends

Small Business News March 9, 2010

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In fact, technology has increased our appetite to watch to entertain ourselves since we can now watch not only on television, but computers and smartphones.

There’s no reason to feel guilty about watching a movie, thinking you should be working instead.

Relax! You can actually learn about business by watching movies!

I asked a few small business leaders what were their favorite movie quotes of all time and then I thought about what I learned from that movie. Grab your popcorn and take a look at what they shared:

NO EXCUSES!

Movie:  Goodfellas. “Business is bad? F-you, pay me.  Oh, you had a fire? F-you, pay me.  Place got hit by lightning, huh?  F-you, pay me.” (From Bob London)

• Lesson: If you are part of the organization, there are no excuses for results. It is also an incentive to keep your company overhead low so you have cash to pay for what you really need.

FOCUS FIRST, GROW LATER!

Movie: Jerry Maguire: Remember the Mission Statement? “We are losing our battle with all that is personal and real about our business. Every day I can look at a list of phone calls only partially returned. Driving home, I think of what was not accomplished, instead of what was accomplished.”

• Lesson: Fewer clients, more personal attention makes for a better business. Growth for growth’s sake is a bad business strategy.

STAND UP FOR YOUR BUSINESS!

Movie: Road House: “Be nice.  Be nice until it is time to not be nice.”  (From Prasann Thakrar)

• Lesson: Being nice in business does not always get the results you want. Many times, we need to press our point.

RISE TO THE OCCASION

Movie: Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium: “Your life is an occasion. Rise to it.” (From by Phillip Zannini – @PhillyMac)

• Lesson: We need to remember that we are responsible for our own success. Never look for that one magic bullet in business or for someone to save you because no one is coming. The magic comes from the hard work you give to your business.

EVERYONE NEEDS TO BE ABLE TO SELL

Movie: Glengarry Glen Ross “Good leads are for closers”.  (From Vicki Donlan)

• Lesson: You need to know what to do with a lead if you are going to close a sale. There is no substitution for being able to sell. We all need to learn and have skilled sales people on our team.

GET TOUGH — DON’T COMPLAIN!

Movie: A League of Their Own: “There is no crying in Baseball”.  (From Scratch at Boston Baby Dolls).

• Lesson: No matter how bad it gets, long term, crying does not help us in business.

From the same movie “Of course this is ‘hard’:

• Lesson: People always tell me that their business is especially hard. Guess what, every business is hard.

RELATIONSHIPS ARE POWERFUL

Movie: Hustle & Flow – You’re in charge of your business and the power of marketing relationships.  (From Elizabeth W. Wilson)

• Lesson: No matter where you come from, you can become successful.

DON’T LET ANYONE TELL YOU WHAT YOU CAN’T DO

Movie: Legally Blonde: Elle uses what she has to achieve her goals. (Submitted by Phillip Zannini)

• Lesson: We all need to make it work from where we are right now

LEAD BY EXAMPLE

Movie: It’s a Wonderful Life:  The movie shows the principles of leadership. George Bailey puts his customers, employee and family interests first by taking responsibility.  (From Stephen Antisdel of Precept Partners)

• Lesson: If more financial institutions has operated this way maybe the “Great Recession” would have been avoided.

LOVE YOUR LIFE

My favorite movie quotes are from the movie, Jerry Maguire, as said by Jerry’s mentor, Dickie Fox:

”Hey, I don’t have all the answers. In life, to be honest, I failed as much as I have succeeded. But I love my wife. I love my life. And I wish you my kind of success.”

Want more? Check out Kevin Coupe and Michael Sansolo, the co-author of The Big Picture: Essential Business Lessons from the Movies interview on my radio show.

What are your favorite quotes or business lessons from movies?  Share them below.

From Small Business Trends

Small Business Lessons We Can Learn from Watching Movies

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Because these indices get reported and discussed in the media, it’s important to recognize their strengths and weaknesses. First, the overall numbers sometimes mask big differences between groups of entrepreneurs because the surveys are given to very different business owners. Some are male, and some female; some sell products and others provide services; and some serve consumers and others serve businesses. The respondents vary in age, income, number of employees, and years in business.

If the optimism and pessimism of all of these business owners moved in lock step over time, the tendency to focus on the average of all of them wouldn’t be a big deal. Whether optimism was high or low would pretty much be the same for everyone. But when the levels of optimism of different groups don’t all move in the same way over time (they aren’t that highly correlated), then knowing the average but not what’s happening with the different groups hides important information.

I don’t have data on the Optimism Index for different groups of respondents to the NFIB survey, but I do have it for the DSBW from December 2006 through January 2010. So I can talk about those correlations.

While the optimism levels of all of groups are positively correlated, the correlations aren’t super high. For instance, the correlation between the optimism levels of the owners businesses that are one to two years old and those that are six to ten years old is only 0.44 over this time period.

Similarly, the optimism levels of business owners 18 to 29 only correlate 0.64 with those of business owners 65 and older, and optimism levels of owners making under $20,000 per year only correlate 0.66 with those making between $75,000 and $100,000. Thus something common affects the optimism of owners of different ages, those running different aged businesses, and those making different amounts of money, but different factors also drive their levels of optimism.

Second, the responses of the business owners to different questions on the surveys don’t all correlate highly. For instance, there is essentially no relationship (correlation of -0.02) between the share of business owners who say the economy is getting better and the percentage that say they have experienced temporary cash flow problems that caused them to hold off on paying some bills over the past 90 days. And the percentage of small business owners who say that the economy is getting better and the percentage that plan to increase spending on business development correlate only 0.36, while the percentage of owners who say the economy is getting better and the percentage that plan to hire correlates only 0.30 over the August 2006 through January 2010 time period.

What about the question everyone wants to know about right now: are businesses going to hire? Over the August 2006 through January 2010 time period, the share of owners planning to increase spending on business development is a better predictor than the percentage who say that overall economic conditions are improving (a correlation of 0.73 versus 0.36).

But here’s a piece of evidence that shows what a lot of people in Washington are worried about. If the data are split into two time periods – from August 2006 to June 2008 and from July 2008 through January 2010 – the correlation between the share of small business owners planning to spend more on business development and the percentage planning to hire is greater for the first period than for the second. That pattern suggests that the factors driving the spending and hiring plans are more different now than they were in the pre-financial crisis period.

What about the two optimism indices themselves? They’re pretty highly correlated. From December 2006 through January 2010, the NFIB and DSBW optimism indices correlate 0.85. Because the NFIB surveys its members (who tend to run larger businesses than the respondents to the DSBW), that level of correlation suggests that both indices are picking up general trends rather than factors affecting larger versus smaller small businesses or NFIB members versus nonmembers.

The overall measures correlate more highly than specific items. For instance, the NFIB’s measure of the percentage of small business owners who answer “better” minus the percentage that answer “worse” to the question: “About the economy in general, do you think that six months from now general business conditions will be better than they are now, about the same, or worse?” correlates only 0.40 with the percentage of respondents to the DSBW survey who answer “better” minus the percentage who answer “worse” to the question: “Generally speaking, are the economic conditions for your business getting better or worse in the next 6 months?” Unfortunately, we can’t tell whether this low correlation results from the types of businesses surveyed by the two groups or the difference between the NFIB’s focus on general conditions and the DSBW’s focus on the respondent’s business.

None of this says that there is anything wrong with these surveys. They provide us with useful information about what’s going with small business owners’ thinking on an up-to-date basis. We just need to be cautious about how we use them. We can’t assume that the patterns over time are going to be the same for both surveys, between questions on each survey, or between different groups of respondents to the surveys.

From Small Business Trends

Assessing Small Business Owners’ Optimism

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Step 1:  Have A Great Product, Service or Business

Most small businesses think that what they sell is great. 

The Key:  To get publicity, you need to provide what the media thinks is great.

Here are some examples of what makes products interesting to the media:

• A truly new product (just launched in the last few months or about to be launched)
• Unique, breakthrough product
• Works well, tastes great, etc. (In most cases the media will test out your product if they are interested in featuring it in a story)
• Colorful packaging / visually appealing – especially important for visual media
• Product ties into trends – organic/green, political, etc.
• Priced right – less than key price points ($100, $50, $25, $10) or priced high if truly a luxury item

Here are some examples of what makes services and businesses interesting to the media:

• New service, company or book (just launched in the last few months or about to be launched)
• Unique, breakthrough service, concept or business
• Provides ways to save money
• Offers something for free
• High rate of revenue and employee growth
• Ties into trends

Step 2:  Approach The Right Media Contact With A Great Pitch

You should only approach media that cover your type of product or business.  This means that you’ll need to read, listen to or view these media outlets prior to pitching them.

Once you determine that your business or product is a good fit for their editorial coverage, you need to find the right contact.  You can do this in several ways:

• Call up the media outlet and ask who the person is who covers your area
• Look at the print masthead or producer credits
• Search online 
• Buy a list – you can find these online

Then you need to pitch the contact. Include why your product or service is a great fit for that media outlet, as well as a product or service description.  Don’t forget to include your contact information.

You can pitch via phone or email.  Here, you can see a sample pitch for a product or service business.

Step 3: Follow Up

This is the part that trips up most do-it-yourself publicists and even P.R. folks.  Once the media has expressed interest in your product or service, you must be persistent in contacting them. 

Often you’ll need to follow-up with them several times, via the phone or email, until you have gotten media coverage.

By following these steps, your chances of getting publicity are greatly increased.  And once you get publicity, you’ll see more buzz, more sales and more credibility for your business.

From Small Business Trends

3 Steps to Free Publicity for Your Business

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