Scrambling to file your taxes on time? Avoid missteps in these three areas to save time.

Data entry. If you’ve waited until the last minute to get organized, there’s a good chance you’ll enter things incorrectly when you’re trying to determine your net income. By pacing yourself and entering everything properly, you’ll save time in the end.

Categorizing expenses. If you categorize your expenses incorrectly, you risk having to reexamine all of the year’s transactions. “One thing a lot of people don’t realize is that you need to break up your expenses rather than lumping everything into the business expense category,” Huntington says. “For example, categorize things like entertainment, utilities and home office expenses separately.”

Get outside help. One of the biggest mistakes people make is not being knowledgeable about the filing process, Huntington says. “All you have to do is clean up your paperwork and hand it over to a bookkeeper or CPA, and they’ll make sure everything is done right and on time,” she adds.

Posted by Megan Morris on January 19, 2009 04:26 PM

Four national Solveras/NFIB Small Business Champions honored in 2008

NFIB works tirelessly to represent small business in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals, but the bulk of its strength comes from small business activists in the trenches who fight the everyday battles that keep entrepreneurship thriving in their communities. Each year, NFIB singles out a small business owner in each of the 50 states for the prestigious Small Business Champion of the Year award.

This year’s national winners were honored at the 2008 National Small Business Summit, where NFIB’s president and CEO Todd Stottlemyer and Solveras Payment Center president John Cramp presented their award. This is the first year Solveras Payment Systems has helped sponsor the awards, and the fifth year NFIB has recognized small business owners who go the extra mile for their fellow entrepreneurs.

Read on to learn more about this year’s winners—business owners who have not only given their time and resources to promote small business, but also demonstrate a spirit of service to their communities and a commitment to advancing the cause of free enterprise.

Most Valuable Player
Ohio business owner gives time and talent to represent small business

Bill Thornton, owner of Lebanon, Ohio-based Thornton & Associates, isn’t content to sit on the sidelines. If there is a small business issue at stake—whether it’s workers’ compensation policies, legal reform or taxes—he is more than willing to share his opinion with lawmakers at legislative meetings. If a teacher needs help explaining entrepreneurship to students, Thornton is more than happy to bring his experiences to the classroom.

“Small businesses are vital to our economy and to our communities,” Thornton says. “As business owners, we have an important role to play.”

An NFIB member since 1981, Thornton understands that role well. Through the years, he has been an active participant in the group’s many opportunities for leadership and involvement in small business issues at the state and federal level.

“I appreciate that NFIB has always given us the tools and opportunities we need to make our voices heard," Thornton says.

He has taken advantage of that opportunity, too, serving on the NFIB Board of Directors and as a charter member and chairperson of the Warren/Butler County NFIB Area Action Council, as well as a mentor for NFIB’s Take Time to Teach initiative, which introduces high school students to entrepreneurship.

Thornton has plenty of insight to contribute. Before starting his consulting service, he headed up Thornton Gardens, the area’s largest garden store, nursery and landscaping businesses, where he and his team developed an innovative, new software program to help landscaping businesses keep track of inventory, labor costs and pricing.

Thornton is a tireless advocate for small businesses everywhere, not only in Ohio but also across the country, says Roger R. Geiger, vice president/executive director of NFIB/Ohio.

“He is always ready and willing to go to bat for the cause, whether it means traveling to Columbus to testify before the Legislature, traveling to Washington, D.C., to attend board meetings or working with the local schools to help instill the entrepreneurial spirit in the next generation,” Geiger says. “We couldn’t ask for a more enthusiastic, dedicated and dependable person to help us carry the banner for free enterprise."

Spurring Entrepreneurship
Indiana business owner devotes her expertise to helping other entrepreneurs

Giving back is second nature to Catherine Popp Hoffman, owner of Zionsville, Ind.-based HB Capital. Through the years, Popp Hoffman has devoted her life and legal expertise to helping countless Indiana entrepreneurs grow their businesses.

In 2003, Popp Hoffman started a venture capital businesses dedicated to creating new jobs in Indiana through creative financing and leveraging of the federal New Market Tax Credit program, as well as other state and local tax incentive programs. Joining forces with the Community Bankers Association of Indiana, HB Capital helped secure $19.5 million in tax credits for state employers.

“Throughout her career, Catherine has been a remarkable advocate for the small business community,” says Barbara Quandt, NFIB/Indiana state director and last year’s Small Business Champion for the Midwest region. “She has managed a small business as the head of her own law firm for more than 16 years, and in that time, she has been a tireless promoter for small businesses not only in her community, but across the state of Indiana.”

In four short years, the HB Capital joint venture has facilitated financing for a $6.5 million paper plant manufacturing facility in Marion, Ind.; a $10 million expansion for a 40-year old family-owned advanced gasket technology manufacturing company in Indianapolis; a $6 million office building for a Bloomington, Ind., venture capital company that manufactures and develops advanced technology proton cancer treatment facilities; and a family-owned $20 million water park in French Lick, Ind. As a result of these efforts, 400 new jobs have been created across the state.

Popp Hoffman’s contributions will have a lasting impact on entrepreneurship in Indiana for years to come, Quandt says.

“Catherine is dedicated to supporting fellow entrepreneurs, and her efforts to attract and cultivate new businesses are helping to create jobs and spur development in communities all across our state,” Quandt said.

Giving Back
Florida business owner balances activism with running two businesses

With two companies to run, Bobra Bush has her hands full, but this Boca Raton, Fla., business owner doesn’t let that keep her from standing up for small business wherever she goes.

As a member of Florida’s Leadership Council, Bush often travels to Tallahassee to campaign on the issues. She’s also worked to build and maintain professional relationships with local lawmakers through the years, giving her a reputation as a key voice for small business in the state.

Bush knows the concerns of small business owners well. In 1989, she launched Telecom Corporation, a telecommunications consulting and contingency-based telephone bill auditing firm. By 1993, she had started her second business, Telecare Corporation, a customer retention firm specializing in telephone and mail customer satisfaction surveys.

An NFIB member for more than 13 years, Bush has never been shy about speaking up and rallying support for small business. Since 1996, she has attended every National Small Business Summit, and in 2000, her passion for politics and policy lead her to run for a seat in the Florida House.

Always eager to provide insights on policy and issues, Bush also contributes her time, talent, effort and resources to growing NFIB’s membership, even using her company in a pilot program to introduce prospective members to the organization.

“She really understands why membership in NFIB is so important,” NFIB/Florida Executive Director Bill Herrle says. “She is dedicated to working with us to continuously strengthen our membership and achieve victories for small business.”

Daring to Dream
Idaho business owner fights battles with optimism

For Idaho business owner Billy Knorpp, setbacks are nothing but opportunities in disguise.
After years of working for corporate giant Hewlett Packard, Knorpp saw his career be swept away in an instant during a wave of downsizing, but he didn’t wallow in his misfortune. Instead he poured his energy into building the Boise-based RVP Systems, a 17-employee firm that sales point-of-sale systems, cash registers, and credit card processing.

Since joining the ranks of America’s real engine of the economy, Knorpp has used his optimism and ingenuity to further the cause of small business. He regularly visits the state capital to share his perspective with lawmakers, and his testimonies have been known to sway even the most skeptical legislator to his side.

Knorpp is relentless in his defense of small business and his advocacy for issues such as health care, tax policy, local options taxes and personal property taxes, says Suzanne Budge, NFIB/Idaho state director.

“Thousands of Idaho small business owners who will never meet Billy owe him a debt of gratitude,” she says.

Even in his community, Knorpp is a role model, serving as chairman of the Meridian District of the Ore-Ida Boise Boy Scout Council, a member of the Boise Area Chamber of Commerce, past president of the Networking Professionals, a member of the BYU Management Society, Buy Idaho, RSPA and various other organizations.

This is Knorpp’s second year to be named as a Small Business Champion; he also received the honor in 2006.

For more information, read NFIB's news release about this year's Small Business Champions.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on July 1, 2008 03:09 PM

Thinking about implementing some of our ideas in “The New Frontier” feature in the August/September issue of MyBusiness? Don’t forget to consider your security needs. With better technology comes the need for better security from outside risks (hackers and identity thefts, to name a few). Here are five steps to protecting your sensitive business information as you ramp up the technology in your business.

1. Evaluate your needs: Depending on the type of technology you’re planning to upgrade, your data security needs vary. Thinking about adding a blog to your Web site or installing a news aggregator on your computer? Then your main concern will be viruses, spam and malicious codes in RSS feeds that could wreak havoc on your system. Moving all of your customer data to a shared network server? Make sure your connection is protected from hackers and practice caution when using wireless networks, especially when traveling.

2. Work with an expert: When it comes to the security of your business information and processes, skimping saves you nothing in the long run. An out-of-the-box solution may work, but it pays to have it vetted, installed and monitored professionally. If you don’t have the budget for an in-house IT solution, consider outsourcing your IT needs to a company specializing in IT services for small businesses. They can be called on as needed or can monitor and service your IT infrastructure on a regularly scheduled basis.

3. Have a backup plan: Perform regular backups (every night) and store that information off-site so that if there is a loss of information, there’s less downtime. In addition, having a secondary safeguard ready to go in case the first line of defense against security breaches fails (or blows a fuse).

4. Educate employees: A security solution is only as good as its users. Make sure your employees understand the importance of logging out at night and keeping their inboxes and your network safe from prying eyes over unsecured wireless networks. Then, train them in best practices and send out reminders (or conduct lunch and learns) to keep data security at the top of their minds.

5. Reassess regularly: As you add more technology and move more processes online, make sure your security solution is still a fit. Even if nothing has changed in terms of your needs, it’s worth a look to make sure you have the best solution available. As it goes with technology, a solution that is newer, better (and usually more affordable) launches every day.

For more information, download NFIB's Guide to Data Security.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on July 1, 2008 03:03 PM

In our "Mission Possible" article in Upfront, we explore how small business owners are looking for ways to serve their communities and touch lives while still bringing in a profit and balancing their bottom lines. If you'd like to learn more about running a socially conscious business, check out these two stories of entrepreneurs with unorthodox ideas and a determination to make a difference.

Craving for Community
When Judy Wicks started the White Dog Café 25 years ago, she wasn't sure which direction she wanted to take her small Philadelphia coffee and muffin shop. But as her business grew, so did her social awareness. Wicks wanted to do more volunteer work, but her busy schedule kept her at her café 24-7. "I realized that if I wanted to contribute to the community I needed to do it through my business because otherwise there was no time," she says.

The mission
Wicks began looking for ways to bring her personal values into her business. An environmentalist at heart, she started purchasing humanely raised animal products and seasonal fruits and vegetables from local farmers. With no time to attend civic events, she turned her café into a social forum, inviting speakers to discuss everything from public education to foreign policy during "table talks" with patrons.
She also added cultural dinners to celebrate ethnicities in the area, organized tours locally and abroad, and started a storytelling series to give underrepresented voices in the community a chance to be heard. "Customers come here for more than food," Wicks says. "They are hungry in other ways—for community, a sense of purpose and a desire to be with people who share common values."
Here's how she was able to turn her café into a community establishment:

Know your priorities. At the White Dog, Wicks operates with a triple bottom line, making decisions with employees, customers and the environment in mind, as well as profit. "At the end of the day, we measure success not by how much money we make, but by what affect our business has had on society and nature," Wicks says. Sometimes that means making tough decisions. Though she would like to make her menu completely organic, doing so would cost more and force her to either raise prices on customers or cut back on employees wages—sacrifices she's unwilling to make. "It's always a balance, but it comes down to being true to yourself and your values," she says.

Be practical. Though Wicks is constantly focused on making a difference through her business, she knows how important it is to make money, too. "I had to be financially sustainable in my business before I had anything to offer," she says. When planning "table talks" events at the White Dog, she picked a night when the café wasn't full so she could draw a certain niche of customers and bring in the most sales. For Wicks, such events have social and financial benefits. "I was trying to figure out a way to learn about what was going on in the community," she says. "I thought it would be easier to bring speakers here than go somewhere else to hear them. Plus, it was a good idea to make money."

Set an example. For years, Wicks focused on running a model business—but that wasn't enough. After learning about the inhumane way that pigs and chickens were raised in industrial systems, she wanted to share her insight with others. Wicks began offering a "cruelty-free menu," but she wanted to do more than just fill a market niche. "I realized if I wanted to have an impact, I would have to teach my competitors what I had learned," she says. So she added a nonprofit branch to her business and began putting 10 percent of her profits into it. Today, White Dog Enterprises educates other businesses about humane and environmentally friendly purchasing practices in the food-service industry.

Connect. Being socially responsible is about more than giving away money, Wicks says; it's about taking action. The best way to give back, she adds, is connecting your philanthropy with your passion and getting involved with the people you want to help. "It's much more rewarding to find what you care about, what's exciting to you and what you think is important and look for ways to contribute," she says.

A Priceless Experiment
Google programmer Ervin Peretez was sitting in a Saigon bar engaged in a philosophical debate with a colleague when the idea for his business, the Kirkland, Wash.-based Terra Bite Lounge, was born. Arguing that people are inherently honest and will do the right thing when encouraged by their environment, Peretez decided to prove his point by opening a coffee shop with no prices.

The mission
His goal wasn't to make a profit or offer charity—he simply wanted to tap into the generosity of customers and give them a chance to contribute. Terra Bite Lounge has no menu, cash register or tip jar, and employees are not even allowed to suggest a price. Customers are trusted to pay whatever and whenever they want and drop it into a locked box on the counter.
Though it might seem like an impossible setup, the coffee shop has been successful so far. Here's how Peretez made it work:

Know your demographics. Peretez doesn't know how much each patron pays, but "the average is typically lower than what a regular café would make. So, to succeed, we need large numbers of customers, with a high ratio of upscale, paying customers." For his first location, Peretez chose a relatively "safe" neighborhood in an affluent Seattle suburb. "I had some anecdotal evidence, as well as an actual study, which suggested that people in our area were very honest," Peretez says.

Create the right circumstances. The cost-free setup benefits everyone. "Eliminating the cash register moves the line much faster and allows a single barista to serve a large number of customers," Peretez says. This keeps overhead low for him and the experience more satisfying for customers, who can choose to pay once a week instead of every day. Contributions from generous patrons cover the tabs of those who pay less than what's fair. And those who can't pay don't have the stigma that comes with accepting charity.

Be willing to adjust. Everyone warned Peretez that he would be swamped with the homeless, but the biggest challenge was unsupervised groups of kids who vandalized and abused baristas, customers and the system. So Peretez kicked them out. "It was an easy decision—we're not here for them," he says.

Stay humble. You don't need to spend money advertising your good deeds. The publicity will come to you if you leave it to customers to spread the word about your efforts. Businesses should "aim to be ‘remarkable,' in the sense that people are driven to ‘remark' about them," Peretez says.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on May 1, 2008 03:21 PM

Promoting a healthy lifestyle among your employees benefits your business on several different levels, says Brian Passon, director of Marlborough, Conn.-based Corporate Fitness & Health, which specializes in creating wellness programs for small businesses.

“Healthier employees are generally more productive, less sick and have fewer medical claims,” which can lead to lower premiums over time, he says.

Here are three tips from Passon on starting a wellness program at your small business.

1. Tailor the program: Passon says wellness programs aren’t one-size-fits all. So find out from employees what’s most important to them and then tailor the program as much as possible to their needs. Also, include employees in the planning process, giving them a say on what to call the program. Gestures as small as this can make the program more effective.

2. Practice what you preach: Let your employees know how excited you are about the wellness program--and actually participate in it--to get maximum buy-in, says Passon. “When you’re on board, it’ll be much easier to get your workers involved.”

3. Evaluate: Is the wellness program achieving what you want? Lower premiums, fewer sick days? Develop a way to measure its success and reevaluate it regularly. If it’s not doing what you want it to, switch things up. For tips on new ideas to incorporate into you wellness program, visit the Small Business Wellness Initiative’s Web site.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on November 1, 2007 03:29 PM

By Chris Stakutis, CTO and Inventor, CDP for Files, IBM

Only a few years ago, the average office worker was assigned a space on a server that was automatically backed up daily. Crucial documents like accounting charts and quarterly statements lived on file servers, and workers were able to simply access these documents from their computers.

Today's computers are far more mobile and have vastly larger disks--acting as sponges for volumes of data--holding both critical business documents, as well as personal files like mp3s, movies and photo libraries. The massive increase in available data space is intoxicating, especially to the mobile user.

With the available disk data space in computers continuing to grow exponentially, the business user has become more independent from the company's IT department and, therefore, more at risk for data loss.

Big and small organizations include a large percentage of mobile workers, equipped with laptops that can connect wirelessly, but are frequently disconnected from the network. In fact, Gartner predicts that, in 2007, there will be more than 60 million people teleworking worldwide. Mobile workers add complexity to business IT administration because, unlike PCs tethered to a network, mobile workers are often disconnected from the network and their connectivity cannot be controlled or planned. Gartner predicts that nearly 80 percent of small business' critical data now resides, not on the company's internal network, but on employee laptops.

It's impractical to back up daily or hourly changes to a CD, and a mobile employee's IT department can't capture data changes to a server if a computer is disconnected from the network. The most important time to protect a file is during the time of active creation or alteration. Mobile employees edit, add and manipulate so many different files and documents in a single day that is nearly impossible to back up every change while on the road. This unique problem requires a solution that is inexpensive and easy to use.

Luckily, a new style of data protection and backup has emerged. Continuous data protection software solutions provide real-time data backup and constant protection of information from computer viruses, file corruption, accidental deletion or theft of a laptop. This new type of software captures and saves changes to documents continuously to a computer hard drive and sends a copy of the information to a remote server, flash drive, external hard drive or online storage service for double protection--all within milliseconds. If information on the hard drive is compromised, mobile workers can restore information that otherwise would be lost, with just a few clicks of the mouse.

The philosophy behind continuous data protection is something like this: When a document changes, it makes an immediate local copy to a nearby network file server. If the laptop is not connected to the server at the time of change the information automatically backs up locally to the computer's hard drive until the next connection is established. Continuous data protection automates the “save” process that employees should have been doing manually for years, but seldom did. The combination of a rolling hard-drive backup along with an additional network, flash or disk backup, safeguards against machine failures, viruses and theft.

Already businesses and individual consumers are beginning to embrace this new method of backup. New continuous data protection software solutions on the market are extremely affordable, available through online retailers, and the investment pays for itself the moment a computer crashes. These solutions are usually simple to set up and employees don't have to spend countless hours trying to configure the software. The value of continuous data protection software is low cost and high return, allowing businesses to protect all critical data, even their employees' mp3 files and family photos.

From corporate executives to mobile salesforce and even consumers, the value of the data on personal computers has soared. Failure to invest in a continuous data backup solutions is the equivalent of not using anti-virus software; it's a risk too high not to take.

About the author
Chris Stakutis is IBM's CTO for emerging storage software and inventor of IBM's Continuous Data Protection for Files software. Chris is a prominent data storage industry technologist and visionary with more than 20 years of experience and over a dozen patents in data storage management. Chris is also a published author of two data- and storage-related books.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on May 1, 2007 01:48 PM

4 facts to remember when targeting these consumers

Women in the baby-boomer generation are fast becoming the most powerful consumers in America, influencing as much as 80 percent of the $2.1 trillion that boomers spend on consumer goods and services, according to a Boom: Marketing to the Ultimate Power Consumer--the Baby Boomer Woman (American Management Association, 2006). At the peak of their careers, these women have more discretionary income than ever and make most of the purchasing decisions for their household. How do you get their attention? Before revamping your marketing materials, Authors Mary Brown and Carol Orsborn recommend considering these facts about the boomer woman.

1. She is loyal to companies, not brands.
One of the biggest misconceptions out there is that women grow more brand loyal with age. While a woman in her 40s, 50s or 60s might continue to purchase a product or service from the same place, most likely she's attached to the company, not the brand. Unlike men who show habitual buying patterns as they age, sticking with the same brand because it's easier, boomer women are choosey about finding the best quality, service and deals. They also pay attention to a company's reputation, especially in terms of community involvement and social responsibility. They care not only about how respectful a company has been to them in the past but also how accurately it understands their needs. As Orsborn says, "she wants a relationship with the company--and she wants it to be sincere."

2. She is technologically savvy.
Don't assume that just because a woman is older that she doesn't use the Internet. Studies show that boomer women are as likely to consult Web sites before making purchases as Gen-Xers, Orsborn says. In 2004, women age 35 to 54 represented the highest proportion of Web surfers. Direct catalog marketers even calculate that 70 percent of all online purchases are made by women, many of whom are baby boomers. "This generation of women is on the run, and they're much more high-tech oriented than you would guess," Orsborn says.

3. She still feels young.
Most boomer women see themselves as a decade younger than they are, Orsborn says. That means they don't want to be referred to as "golden," "mature," "seniors" or even "middle aged." While they don't want to see clothes modeled by an airbrushed beauty with perfect proportions, they don't want look at a close-up of a wrinkled hand on a jewelry ad either. They like to see themselves represented in a vital way. "Reading glasses are a perfect example," Orsborn says. "They used to be fuddy-duddy and unfashionable. Now they are hip items that you can buy in different colors at bookstores."

4. She wants to be empowered.
Age doesn't define life stage for a boomer woman, who may be an empty-nester, a doting grandmother, a small-business entrepreneur and a dating single--all at the same time. Boomer women are looking for products and services that appeal to their sense of adventure, curiosity, renegade energy and continuous development. "You have to tune into how she wants to be talked to--and that's in a way that's respectful of her growth process," Orsborn says.

Posted by Emily McMackin on March 10, 2007 02:00 PM

An article in today's New York Times is a great follow-up to an "uncommon enterprise" we featured last year in MyBusiness magazine, Tumbleweed Tiny House Company. I'll admit, I was a bit skeptical when the idea came up in an editorial planning session: A 70-square-foot house? However -- as the article in today's Times displays -- there's a growing interest in Jay Shafer's plans, books and consultation on building houses from 70 to 500 square feet.

Posted by Rex Hammock on February 16, 2007 12:40 PM

Simple and low-cost ways to recharge

The Feb./March 2007 MyBusiness cover story focused on how to beat the burnout that all business owners face at some point in their careers. Are you bored with your business, but can't afford to hire a board of directors right now or take time off to rejuvenate? Is your business still in the start-up phase with a skeleton staff, making you reluctant to hand off responsibilities just yet? Here are some other ways to recharge.

Change the scenery. Altering the physical environment of your business can be an easy way to lift your spirits around the workplace. Pick a look that suits the personality of your business. When Blue Marlin moved its headquarters from a warehouse to a century-old brick building with natural light, "it made a big difference in our daily outlook," owner Eric Steube says. If you can't afford to move or remodel, try cleaning house. When Marley Majcher, owner of The Party Goddess, gets restless, she organizes shelves and goes through inventory to regain a sense of satisfaction. "Sometimes, I think there is joy in motion," she says.

Seek support. Making friends with other entrepreneurs and meeting up with them regularly can be a great source of encouragement because you understand each other. Not only can talking with them give you fresh ideas and perspective, it can provide you with a safe place to vent your frustration. Every business owner struggles with self-doubt; having someone to empathize with you can keep it from overtaking you. Majcher calls her entrepreneur friends when she needs a boost. "We remind each other that we really love what we do," she says.

Lose the ego. Focusing on your commitment to the people you work with and work for is a sure weapon against apathy. "For me, it comes back to the obligation to people––that is always something you can get excited about," Steube says. Not taking yourself too seriously is another way to keep indifference at bay. "If I don't have something in a day that I get kind of bent out of shape about, then I know I haven't been at work," Majcher laughs.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on January 10, 2007 02:31 PM

The small-business owners featured in the cover story of Dec./Jan. 2007 issue of MyBusiness all have one thing in common--they credit their childhoods to shaping them into the successful entrepreneurs they are today. But unfortunately, says Bill Wagoner, author of The Entrepreneur Next Door (Entrepreneur Press, 2006), learning the right lessons in your youth doesn't mean starting a business venture should be the next logical step. It also takes the right personality, he says.

In this excerpt (252 KB, PDF) from his interactive book, learn about the different personality types and which ones match up well to small-business ownership. The book features personality tests that can help you identify your strengths and tips on turning those strengths into small-business success.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on October 31, 2006 02:08 PM

The tech column in our Oct./Nov. 2006 issue focused on how small businesses are using wikis in their everyday work. Here's a sampling of some of the wiki resources and ideas you can start using in your business.

Learn by doing:
Sites that offer easy-to-use and (in some cases) free wiki tools
PB Wiki
WetPaint
BackPack
Wiki.com

Wiki "communities":
The folks behind Wikipedia are offering a new service to those who want to create a wiki-style resource on any topic
Wikia

Wikis for the "Enterprise":
These companies offer wiki-software solutions used in corporate environments for functions such as customer support or knowledge management systems
Atlassian
Customer Vision
iUpload
Social Text

Posted by Megan Goodchild on September 14, 2006 12:45 PM

Don't have lots of time to devote to emergency planning? Don't worry. Author Kathryn McKee gives tips on how to make the planning process quick, easy and still effective. In this excerpt (101 KB, PDF) from her book, Leading People Through Disasters: An Action Guide (Berrett-Koehler, 2006), McKee explains how a few minutes can make all the difference.

Reprinted with permission. Leading People Through Disasters: An Action Guide by Kathryn McKee, SPHR, and Liz Guthridge (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, paperback, $19.95, Pub Date: July 2006, www.bkconnection.com or www.leadingpeoplethroughdisasters.com).

Posted by Megan Goodchild on September 14, 2006 12:43 PM

In the cover story of our Oct./Nov. 2006 issue of MyBusiness, we examined what it takes to survive a century. Whether your business is six-months or 60-years-old, take this quiz to see what kind of staying power you have.

1. I started my business because
A. I was tired of working for others and wanted to take control of my own destiny.
B. I wanted to make more money.
C. I inherited it from the generation before me. I really didn't have a choice when it came to what I wanted to do with my life.

2. When I notice a new trend in my industry, I
A. Ignore it. I have too much else to worry about.
B. Read up on it through my trade association publication. It's always good to know what's going on.
C. Actively explore whether it's a good direction for my business, too.

3. When (and if) I retire, I hope my business
A. Will continue to prosper without me, though if I structure the sale correctly, it really won't make that big of a difference to me.
B. Is a distant afterthought that I occasionally think about as I'm playing golf every morning.
C. Will continue to grow and thrive, which is why I'm already thinking about my succession plan.

4. The marketing materials for my business
A. Include a brief history of the business to make customers feel good about our experience.
B. Are designed to sell to today's customer. The past is just that—the past.
C. Include a detailed timeline and photos of all 53 years of our family business' history.

5. If an employee suggests new way of doing a procedure we've done for years, I
A. Thank the employee for his efforts, but remind him that he hasn't been in the business as long as I have. I know what's best for my company.
B. Seriously consider the new alternative.
C. Ask the employee to go ahead and implement his new idea on a scaled-back level so we can determine how well it works.

6. Our company motto might as well be
A. If it ain't broke don't fix it.
B. The customer comes first.
C. We don't have time to create a motto, we just work!

7. Since its founding, my business has
A. Evolved several times to meet the needs of a changing marketplace.
B. Continued to offer the same services we offered on day one.
C. Changed so much that the original owner wouldn't recognize it today.

Key
1. a=3, b=2, c=1
2. a=1, b=2, c=3
3. a=2, b=1, c=3
4. a=3, b=1, c=2
5. a=1, b=2, c=3
6. a=1, b=3, c=2
7. a=3, b=1, c=3

How did you score?

16-21: Old as dirt. Congratulations, you're on track to build a business that will outlast you. By thinking about your future today and constantly evolving to meet customers' needs, you're laying a foundation (or maintaining an existing one) that will be around for years to come.

11-15: On the cusp. Sounds like you want to grow a business that can sustain you and your employees for years to come. You're on the right track, you just need to keep a few things in mind: the customer is king, change is necessary in business and employees are your most valuable resources—listen to them!

7-10: No strings attached. Longevity probably isn't the ultimate goal for your business. Many people start a business in hopes of selling it and moving it on. Still, even if you're hoping to cash in and get out, you have to present a viable business to potential buyers. By changing your focus just a little, you can cultivate a business that will be around for years—with or without you.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on September 14, 2006 12:38 PM

In the Oct./Nov. issue of MyBusiness, we talked to entrepreneurs who have a knack for taking one big idea and turning it into long-term success. They gave advice on how to keep from becoming a flash in the pan. Here James Fergason, the inventor of liquid crystal displays, talks about how he found last success.

Every time you glance at a digital watch or peer into a flat panel television or computer monitor, you are seeing one of James Fergason's ideas come to life. Fergason, the inventor of liquid crystal displays, has found lasting success developing the technology he helped advance into products that have revolutionized the consumer, medical and industrial market. At his small Menlo, Calif.-based business, Ferguson Patent Properties, the 72-year-old inventor is still inventing and licensing out his portfolio of products, which at one time boasted hundreds of patents.

"You have to look for the market and try to find a product that answers some need––a need that more than one group of people have," Fergason says.

Fergason was a Westinghouse researcher when he discovered the potential of temperature and color-sensitive liquid crystals, a discovery that paved the way for forehead thermometers and mood rings. When he realized that naturally twisted liquid crystals could be untwisted with electric fields to produce unusually sharp images, inspiring the idea for LCD displays, Fergason left his job as a research director in academia to commercialize the innovation. But not everyone embraced it at first.

"One of the challenges has been convincing people that the market I saw was really out there," he says.

Fergason found success selling LCD instruments and calculators, but it wasn't until digital LED (light emitting diode) watches––which made their debut in a 1971 James Bond movie––became popular that he hit the jackpot. He knew that LED watches took up too much power because they required consumers to push a button to get the time––and realized that he could make a more efficient digital watch with LCDs.

"You have to have the right product when the desire comes along," he says.

Since then, Fergason has continued to pioneer practical ways to use liquid crystal technology, developing eye protection devices, welding helmets, privacy windows that turn opaque with a switch and head-mounted displays used in surgical imaging, flight training and 3-D viewing systems. Though he has turned many of his ideas into moneymaking ventures, his failures have taught him one important lesson.

"If you have a good idea that isn't marketable, you've got to recognize that and not fall in love with it," he says. "Ideas are like children; it's hard to turn your back on a them––but sometimes you have to."

Posted by Megan Goodchild on September 14, 2006 12:30 PM

One of the most common reasons for failure in a small business is the lack of an effective marketing program, according to the Small Business Administration. If you're looking for affordable ways to spread the word about your business, check out Kim Gordon's new book, Maximum Marketing, Minimum Dollars (Kaplan, 2006). In this excerpt from Gordon's book, learn 10 ways to score word-of-mouth referrals.

Ten Low-Cost Ways to Obtain Referrals
If this growth strategy is important to you, here are ten more low-cost ways you can win referrals for your business:

1. Ask the right people. Your current customers or clients can't send you referrals if they don't know you're looking for them. It may sound simplistic, but it's essential to directly communicate with your customer or client base that you are open to referrals. It's also important to let them know the kinds of referrals you're looking for. After all, some may not be fully aware of the scope of your company's abilities or services.

You can ask verbally or put your referral request in writing. Suppose you were a consultant working with a division of a major corporation. You could ask your client if there are other divisions in his company that might be able to use your services and, furthermore, to make the introductions to key executives. Your client could set up three-way phone conversations to introduce you or simply call and lay the groundwork. Or suppose you were a remodeling contractor. At the completion of each project, you might supply the homeowners with a satisfaction survey and, at the end, ask for names of other homeowners who might be interested in remodeling. You could also ask select homeowners to write testimonial letters.

2. Create interpersonal relationships. For many small-business owners, referrals hinge on creating relationships with influencers. The bottom line is people refer business to others they know and trust, and this is an instance in which it's necessary to combine sales with marketing tactics to produce the results you need. The first step is to make a list of inf luencers and contact them by phone to set up appointments to get acquainted. You can invite them to lunch or simply coffee, so long as you schedule an opportunity to sit down in a professional context and learn about each other's companies. It's important to discover under what circumstances they would be open to sharing referrals, and to determine how you can help them meet the needs of their customers or clients. Once you have initiated a relationship, keep in touch and be patient--it may take a while to instill the confidence necessary to generate business.

3. Send handwritten notes. So many entrepreneurs swear by this tactic that it's impossible to ignore. Emily Sanders, president of Sanders Financial Management, Inc., in Norcross, Ga., is a highly successful networker who says she and her colleagues often send handwritten notes to contacts and associates. Though her time for marketing is limited, Sanders has built a thriving business that grows 25 percent a year and believes this tactic is well worth the effort.

You can send notes as thank-yous, to acknowledge someone else's achievements, or to simply follow up with someone you've recently met. The key is to make the note personal and solely about the recipient. It's not an opportunity to write about your business or its services, though you should always tuck in a business card. Use attractive stationery, and be sure to hand address the envelope and apply a real stamp (instead of using a postage meter). This will be consistent with the personal tone of your note and help ensure it gets past screeners.

4. Track referral sources. It's vital to show your appreciation to referral sources, but that's impossible to do if you don't know precisely where your referrals are coming from. That's why it's essential to train everyone who answers incoming calls to ask prospects where they heard about your company. Then you can track this information in your marketing database. When you receive a referral from a known source, promptly send a thank-you letter or handwritten note to express your appreciation. Referral sources who send you significant business warrant additional attention and thanks, such as a special luncheon or gift (where appropriate).

Tracking the sources of your referrals will also give you important information concerning the types of businesses or individuals that are more likely to send work your way. You can use this information to refine your referral marketing program to target additional influencers who fit the same profile.

5. Use public relations. Referrals, like trust, are earned over time, so it's necessary to establish your company's credibility with potential referral sources. One of the best ways to accomplish this is through public relations. Place stories in key media both online and off-line that your referral prospects look to for quality industry or professional information. Once you do get PR coverage, send copies to the referral prospects in your database. If you're using postal mail, attach a brief, handwritten note. And if you're sending a copy of your coverage by e-mail, avoid a hard-sell approach by leading in with a simple note introducing the piece (pasted below and not sent as an attachment) as an item of special interest.

Another option is to create a company newsletter with case histories. This soft-sell approach should demonstrate to your targeted referral prospects that you are solving problems for your customers or clients competently and professionally.

6. Expand your Web site. Your Web site is often the first place people look when they want to learn more about your company and what it offers. That's why it's important to modify the site to meet the needs of either influentials or influencers. If you sell a product whose sales can be affected by what key influentials say, then give them lots to talk about. You can supply expert or customer-driven product reviews, or follow the example of BikeFriday.com and feature customers' stories, and add a blog or a discussion group.

To motivate influencers to send referrals your way, consider adding a separate section of your Web site just for them. They shouldn't have to wade through lots of content that's directed to the end user (customers or clients). Add a link from your main toolbar to pages that directly answer their questions, and let them know how to contact you.

7. Provide specialized tools. Do your principal influencers meet or work directly with your best prospects? If so, it's a smart idea to supply them with marketing tools they can use one-on-one with your targeted prospects. Anything from brochures, handy guides, and "tips" sheets that will be given away to your prospects should be imprinted with your company name and logo. This will position your business as a valuable resource and ensure your company name or message reaches your ideal prospects.

It's likely that these tools and materials are already being supplied by your principal competitors, so take time to evaluate how you can make yours the most effective and useful. You don't want to produce a lot of materials that will end up unused. Discuss with your influencers exactly what kinds of tools and materials they would like to receive and tailor your tools to meet their specific needs.

8. Offer incentives. I offer this tip with a major caveat attached. In some industries it may be appropriate to provide financial rewards for referrals. If this is the norm in your industry (and is legal and proper), you may wish to consider offering financial incentives. Just take care that you don't trumpet rewards for referrals in the same space in which you ask customers or clients for their business. This can actually backfire by weakening your company's credibility and the effectiveness of your marketing campaign. In short, it can just plain turn off your end users.

9. Communicate frequently. Staying top-of-mind is just as important when communicating with referral audiences as it is with your prospective customers and clients. "Touch" your referral prospects at least once every four to six weeks using a combination of sales and marketing tactics. For example, you might start by communicating with a telephone call, follow that with a meeting, a handwritten note, e-mail your company newsletter, make contact by phone, send an article or other materials by postal mail with a brief note, arrange a visit to your referral prospect's office, and so on. Get the idea? By alternating sales with marketing and by sending only materials that you know will be of special interest to your referral prospects, you'll create an effective program that builds referrals over time.

10. Instill trust. The real title for this tip should be "Don't blow it." Customers or clients who come to you by referral must be treated with the utmost care. In most instances, they're highly qualified and motivated. Chances are, they're already thinking about purchasing the types of products or services your company offers, and the only thing left to do is to convince them to buy from you. Also, every action you take from the time a referred prospect contacts your company through long after the sale is closed will be judged as "pass or fail" by the person who made the referral. After all, the way you handle the referral will reflect positively or negatively on the referrer. One of the cardinal rules of successful referral relationships is to always keep those who send you referrals up-to-date on the outcome. If you do a terrific job with the referrals you receive, you're bound to earn more.

(c) 2006 Kaplan Publishing. Quantity discounts available. For more information call (800) 621-9621 ext. 44.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on July 10, 2006 09:36 AM

The cover story of our Aug./Sept. 2006 issue focused on one small business that celebrates being small. As Jason Fried of 37signals says, "I don’t have anything against big business. It’s just not for me." Read an excerpt from Fried’s online book, Getting Real, a real-world approach to running a small business that reminds us: Less is more.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on July 10, 2006 09:33 AM

Many employees are leaving corporate America in disillusionment, leaving smaller companies with the chance to snag the best and brightest hires. Does your small business stand out to star employees looking to make the leap from Wall Street to Main Street? Take this quiz to see how you stack up to corporate employees looking to make a change.

1. When you hire employees to work for positions in your company, you expect them to:
A. Stay within the boundaries outlined their job description.
B. Regularly ask how they can contribute more.
C. Take the initiative to tackle new roles and responsibilities.

2. When employees bring an issue to your attention or make suggestions for areas of improvement, you:
A. Tell them to mind their own business and get back to work.
B. Request that they put their ideas in writing, then file the document away for future reference.
C. Take time listen, ask questions and use their help to draft a plan of action.

3. You are planning to add a new product or service to your business. Before you unveil it to the public, you:
A. Alert the media and launch a mass marketing campaign.
B. Give your employees talking points to make sure they know all the details.
C. Ask your employees for recommendations on how to make the venture even more successful.

4. When it is time to discuss your business strategy for the coming year and revisit the goals you have for your company, you:
A. Lay out your vision in a mandatory meeting.
B. Meet with a few senior-level employees, then distribute memos to brief everyone else on the discussion.
C. Conduct a round-table discussion with all employees. Explain your ideas, then ask for their opinions.

5. When employees go above and beyond the call of duty, you:
A. Thank them for their hard work.
B. Praise them in a staff meeting.
C. Applaud them in front of colleagues and privately offer a token expressing your appreciation.

6. If employees need to take an afternoon off from work to tend to a family or personal matter, you:
A. Make them promise that it won't happen again.
B. Let them make up the hours the next day or during the weekend.
C. Give them the time they need and trust that they will find a way to get their work done and fulfill their responsibilities.

7. When employees celebrate accomplishments or special occasions in their lives, you make an effort to:
A. Recognize them.
B. Gather the staff around the room to congratulate them.
C. Throw them a party.

8. You get to know your employees and their families by:
A. Asking questions about their personal lives every once and a while.
B. Hosting a company picnic each year.
C. Planning social events occasionally that give employees and their spouses and children a chance to mingle.

9. Every time your company snags a big project, you:
A. Put only your most experienced employees on the job.
B. Ask around to see who wants to participate.
C. Give everyone a chance to try something big.

10. Your company is growing. You need to add some new policies and procedures and decide to get input from employees by:
A. Giving them a draft of your new handbook and time to dispute it.
B. Meeting with them individually to hear their views.
C. Forming committees and giving them the authority to draft a section of the handbook, provided it has your approval.

Score Yourself
A=1
B=2
C=3

1-10: Attracting corporate hires will be difficult for you because you run your business too much like a corporation. You don't have to be big to be bureaucratic. To attract the best and the brightest, you need to loosen up and give employees a reason to care about your company and do their best. No one wants to feel like a cog in the machine. Once your employees feel a sense of ownership in your company, they will repay you with their efforts.

10-20: You still have a way to go before corporate employees are going to look twice at your company. Your intentions are good. You care about what employees think, and how they feel––and you want their input. But you aren't ready to relinquish control and trust them as much as you should, which makes you no different from the glass ceiling they face in corporations. The more freedom you give them to do their jobs and balance their work and life, the more grateful they will be.

20-30: Congratulations! You are a corporate magnet. Employees frustrated with the bureaucracy of big business can find most everything they are missing at your company. You give them the challenges they need, the teamwork they crave, and the respect they deserve. What's more, you take time to acknowledge their sacrifices and recognize that they have a life outside of the office. They will love you for it!

Posted by Emily McMackin on May 14, 2006 11:10 AM

by Emily McMackin

An article in the June/July issue of MyBusiness, "The Lure of Small," explored why employees are leaving corporate America to work for small businesses. According to a recent study from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Center for Leadership, many women who have taken time off from the corporate world and want to return to work are finding more opportunity at small businesses.

The study, titled "Back in the Game," surveyed 100 female employees in senior management positions who took at least two years off from their corporate jobs and have or are trying to return to the workforce. More than half of the women surveyed accepted jobs at smaller companies the second time around.

"Small business is more inviting to women who want to come back," says Monica McGrath, co-author of the study and an adjunct professor of management at Wharton. The main reasons for this? Small businesses offer:

A family-friendly working environment. Many of the women surveyed left the corporate world to raise children or tend to families and returned to the workforce to find their values more in sync with a small-business environment, McGrath says. Small businesses offered them a better work-life balance. Though the corporations they came from had job sharing and flex-time policies in place, executives rarely enforced them, and the women "didn't feel like the policies were consistent with their experiences."

"The implication was that if they couldn't be there for all the meetings, they weren't serious enough about their career," McGrath says.

An open door. Women trying to reenter the corporate world often had trouble getting rehired into their old positions. Interviews with human resource executives revealed that corporations "were reluctant to hire them because if they stepped out once, they would do it again," and retraining and retaining them would cost too much. At smaller companies, "women felt they could get to the decisionmaker and show their capacity and competency to the organization," McGrath says.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on May 6, 2006 01:31 PM

By increasing the use of generic drugs, small-business owners find relief from the rising costs of health care

by Edmond S. Weisbart, M.D.

The June/July 2006 MyBusiness Manual focused on small-business insurance. It's no secret that health insurance is one of the top concerns of business owners. This Web Extra article offers one solution to lower costs: generic drugs.

While the cost of health care in the United States has been rapidly increasing, there is relief available. Small-business owners can achieve significant savings for their businesses and their employees by offering pharmacy-benefit designs that encourage the use of generic alternatives to the more costly brand drugs.

Why does increasing generic utilization save employers and employees money? Because, on average, a generic drug costs $60 less than a brand name drug. Generic medications contain the same active ingredients as their branded counterparts while offering the same clinical value.

Pharmacy-benefit manager Express Scripts conducted a study showing that at least $20 billion could have been saved nationally in 2004 by utilizing generic drugs in clinically appropriate settings. This number actually underestimates the opportunity; the study only examined six major drug classes.

This historic savings can be achieved without shifting costs to employees by simply substituting generic alternatives for more costly brand drugs. For every 1 percent increase in the generic fill rate there is a corresponding 1 percent decease in pharmacy spending, which means significant resources can be freed up to use for other pressing needs.

The savings opportunity from generic drugs has never been greater. In 2006, generic alternatives will become available for at least 15 commonly used prescription drugs, representing $11 billion in sales nationally.

By the time a brand-named drug loses patent protection and is approved as a generic medication, it has already been on the market for many years and often been used by millions of people. As a result, there is a large amount of data about the drug available and the side effects and potential complications are generally already realized and well understood. While new brand medications clearly have an important role in health care, benefit designs that encourage the use of generic medications may also be providing a safety advantage to patients. The use of new brand medications should be targeted at those situations where there is clear evidence that their proven advantages outweigh their unknown risks.

Small-business owners can reduce pharmacy benefit costs by following these five recommendations:

1. Educate employees on generic alternatives using effective communication tools. When more employees feel empowered to ask their physicians if there is a less expensive generic alternative and ask their pharmacists--with their doctor’s approval--to dispense the generic version of a drug, we can all start to reap the benefits of the generic opportunities, without impacting quality of care.

2. Implement an active formulary approach, which is a plan that includes many but not all drugs. In developing a formulary, the primary considerations are safety, efficacy and clinical appropriateness. When coupled with effective benefit tools, the formulary helps guide the ways that physicians prescribe and the ways that members use their benefits. Over time, formulary decisions have a tremendous impact on a plan's long-term cost.

3. Adopt a three-tier benefit design. The three-tier design has three different copay levels depending on the medication dispensed. The levels typically are: generic, preferred brand and non-preferred brand. Research points to copay differentials as a key driver for increasing generic fill rates.

4. Implement step-therapy programs yearly. Step therapy promotes the appropriate use of generic medications and some less-expensive brand drugs before stepping up to more-costly brand drugs. These programs are carefully designed with medical exception recommendations to ensure that they never compromise health outcomes. Employers can save 10 percent or more on overall drug spend when implementing all of the step-therapy programs.

5. Encourage employees to use home delivery. With a high level of automation, home delivery is the safest and most effective way to get medications to your patients. The 24/7 service is convenient, confidential, and customer-friendly.

At a time when it's increasingly difficult to preserve employee benefits, it's good to know that there are several proven tools to improve the affordability of the pharmacy benefit without compromising health outcomes.

A copy of the Express Scripts study is available from their Web site (256 KB, PDF).

Dr. Weisbart is chief medical officer of Express Scripts, Inc., a pharmacy-benefit manager in Maryland Heights, Mo.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on May 6, 2006 01:01 PM

The New York Times' (registration required) Tuesday edition reports a potential uncomfortable option for travelers: Airlines are looking at new standing-room-only seat designs to maximize profits. Mobissimo has the details on its travel blog.

Incidentally, the competition between travel search engines Mobissimo.com, SideStep.com and Kayak.com is heating up, resulting in even better bargains for business and leisure travelers. Before you book your next trip, check out the travel short in the February/March issue of MyBusiness and in the Web Extras section.

Posted by Jamie Roberts on April 26, 2006 12:28 PM

In the April/May issue of MyBusiness, we told readers that the Denver International Airport had been named the best airport in North America for business travelers by Business Traveler magazine. Even though it's a hike from downtown Denver, the airport is so customer friendly that most business travelers don't mind the extra miles. Find out what else made the list as far as best rental car company, hotel Web site and credit card rewards program.

Posted by Megan Goodchild on April 12, 2006 02:26 PM