Small Business Brief

I am just getting into stumbleupon and a few of the other sites. I appreciated your comments on how to use it. They get a little overwhelming at first.

Your article on SEO was excellent - all good information that I am learning about currently. I will have to follow up with your other tips.

I have a small business http://www.kidsdesk.net that was featured in the Small Business Brief Newsletter and we use Konnects as a small business resource, a great way to find new business contacts and stay connected.

Great information. Nobody in the space has clearly defined the area that Konnects has discovered.

In regards to the post by Fetch, and Livops lawsuit-many companies try to get around 'employees' by 1099ing them to make them independent contractors. An independent contractor/subcontractor sets their own hours, isn't exclusive to one company, uses his/her own equipment. If they were to be employees, Livops would have to set the hours they work and they couldn't work for anyone else. If the independent contractor/subcontractor is not insured, the the "general contractor" is to be responsible for that sub, insurance wise. That incls worker's comp & general liability insurance. Yes - I am an insurance agent & deal with this on a daily basis w/general contractors & subs in the construction industry. The same would apply here.

Erica makes a great point: "I guarantee you that every single small business that is in revenue and profitable has some problem or pain point that they would pay $500/month to get rid of. What are those pain points, and how can you make a replicable product or service that you can sell to 100 of them? If you take 10 lawyers or 10 accountants or 10 startup company CEOs out to lunch, they’ll tell you. Then build your company around that."

Okay, so technically they aren't "tags" but there's some good advice in here about how to use the alt attribute for both accessibility and SEO.

It's always interesting to learn when Jen is up to. Terrific interview.

This is so true, and so important -- and beyond that, so easy for even a small business on a limited budget to implement. Unfortunately, so few small businesses seem to consider the need for proactive reputation management online. Could this be the next frontier for small business consulting?

I often find myself watching infomercials to listen to copywriting... most of them are good. That's why their on TV, right? I also watch the preachers to help with public speaking, they are very good.

This is classic... I wonder if they could make a go of this in New York!

Hat tip to BlueFur.com where I found the link to this article.

Handy... we are beginning to outsource design and these sites look like a great place to go shopping!

A great way to save money is discounts! A small business organization that I am a part of offers over 100 member discounts (among many other things) that has allowed me to save a ton of money on gas and office supplies plus and website maintenance. If you are just starting out and looking to grow your business you should definitely check them out: http://www.americasbestcompanies.com

Do you know if you have similar organizations as BBB in other countries?

Yeah, totally agree. This idea of succeding in a bussines using your ex-employers confidential info, is really pathetic.

In other words, if at first you don't succeed, try again! :)

It's really amazing how so many marketers and business owners still don't get the concept of effective social marketing - it's social (meaning conversations and give/take), not sales and constantly pushing your products and services.

hey, this is really good stuff on PPC. I really appreciate this. Thanks buddy

Extensive list of examples. Great read.

ooh, I almost submitted this but you beat me to it :)

You lost all credibility with me right off the bat with reason #1. All the cable news show are talking about how many times McCain has flip-flopped in recent months. It's a joke. Your other reasons are just as baseless, and just as ridiculous. If you're going to write an opinion piece, it should at least have some degree of credibility and accuracy.

Inspiring story!

I've been noticing these "Free public wi-fi" networks when I travel. Now I'm glad I haven't connected to them -- they just seemed too good to be true. Guess they were....

The key to overcoming sales objections is being prepared for these objections. Before you jump on a call, brainstorm every possible objection a prospect may have. This may change industry to industry and individual to individual. Here is a good library for resources on tips like these. Look at the excerpts... http://www.smallbusinessbrief.com/index.php