Great Ideas for your Small Business: Know What Not to Ask Job Applicants When 100 small business owners were asked if they had ever asked a job applicant any of the following questions during an interview, all of them said “yes.” Have you ever filed a workers’ compensation claim? Do you have any physical problems … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Write Clear Job Descriptions In the interest of clarity and good communication, it’s a great idea to outline specific job responsibilities for everyone on your staff. This helps avoid confusion and boosts productivity. It also helps cross-train workers to cover for each other. Be sure to update your job … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Cast a Wide Net to Attract Good Employees One of the greatest challenges for small business owners is to recruit, train, and retain good workers. It’s very tough for a small company, especially in the bootstrapping start-up phase, to compete with bigger companies when it comes to offering competitive … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Open Your Store in a Farmer’s Market Americans have loved shopping in markets since before there was America. The first farmer’s market opened in Alexandria, Virginia, in the 1750s. Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports there are about 35,000 farmer’s markets across the country. In addition, thousands of … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Find a Need and Fill It When nellie may sutton was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 1985, her son Joseph began searching for a place where she could live safely and comfortably. After checking out nursing homes and elder care services, Sutton decided to rent a ranch-style house and … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Become an Exclusive Importer Sometimes being the first to introduce a product to the United States is the best way to establish a successful small business. This was the case for Mara Seibert and Lenore Rice, two former high-powered Wall Street players who traded in their briefcases for a … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Borrow Funds from Your Family Like most good parents, gene and sandee Nabat did everything they could to give their three kids a comfortable upbringing. They lived in West Bloomfield, a suburb of Detroit, and sent the children to good schools. But the Nabats never planned to invest $500,000 … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Publicize Your Food Business The power of the press is greater than ever when it comes to driving sales of offbeat specialty foods. Positive publicity sends foodies to the phones to feed their passion for unique food and condiments. With Americans buying an estimated $400 million worth of specialty … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Attend Charity Events to Make Contacts Dust off your tuxedo or evening gown – it’s time to socialize with the leaders of your business community. One great way to meet the “who’s who” of your town is to buy a ticket to a local charity event where you can … Read more
Great Ideas for your Small Business: Make Your 800 Line Ring An 800 line is a great way to boost sales, especially if you serve customers in a wide area. If you can’t get an 800 number, try 888 or 877, which are also toll-free for callers. Here are five tips to generate more calls: … Read more
