Ever heard of “buddy networking?” Basically, it is buddying-up with another business that complements your own and working together to expand both of your networks. Some examples of great buddy businesses would be: a maid service and a lawn service; a photographer and a wedding coordinator; or an accountant and an attorney.

First, determine all of the types of businesses in your area that would complement your own by attracting your ideal clientele. Then, prioritize those businesses and obtain contact information for the manager or owner. Finally, arrange a meeting (in person is best) with the owner to discuss how your businesses could benefit each other. Be sure to take along information about your business and ask for further information on theirs. Three buddy businesses is a nice number to have on your side.

Continue reading : Buddy Networking: A Clever Way to Expand Your Network »

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New Jersey requires all of its gas stations to be full service (as does Oregon) and is the only state in the country where gas prices still average under $3 a gallon. So how in the world is a full service gas station keeping its gas prices lower than everyone else?

According to Doug MacIntyre, senior oil and gasoline analyst with the EIA, cost has little to do with it - it’s all about local supply and demand conditions.

And it doesn’t hurt that New Jersey has four in-state oil refineries that have yet to have any problems like those in the Midwest, which have caused Chicago’s gas prices to average more than San Francisco’s, which is known for some of the highest prices in the nation. Another beneficial factor is that New Jersey is the main port for gasoline imports from Europe.

Continue reading : The Cheapest Gas Prices in the Nation »

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Advertising is the key component to bringing in clientèle. Though word-of-mouth is the most effective, it won’t happen until you get those first few people in the doors, and to do that you must advertise. There are a lot of great ways to market your business to the public, but there are definitely some tactics you should avoid if you want to see the most success.

When brainstorming your advertising campaign, be mindful of the following common advertising mistakes:

Continue reading : Common Advertising Mistakes »

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When you go solo and start your own small business, it can often be hard to save for retirement. Yes, there are options like Roth IRAs, but as your business grows, the maximum contribution of $5,000 doesn’t always seem to be the best option.

Additionally, savings accounts have a meager return on the precious funds you’ve worked so hard to earn. Wouldn’t something like a 401(k) plan that many corporate employees get to take advantage of be nice?

Well, cheer up because the option is out there. In fact, it has been since 2001, but only now are sole proprietors becoming more aware of it’s benefits as the kinks have been ironed out. It’s called a “solo 401(k)” (a/k/a “solo k,” a/k/a “uni-k“). This retirement option is strictly limited to sole proprietors without employees.

Continue reading : Retirement for the Sole-Proprietor »

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It may be time for your business to get some extra security. One option would be to hire security guards to patrol the doors and parking lot, but that means paying someone a substantial hourly wage to stay awake at night and watch your assets, and that may not be in the budget.

A more budget conscious option may be to install a video surveillance system. Though it can be rather expensive, it is a one time expense, rather than providing a regular pay check to a security guard. And most, of course, come with some kind of warranty if anything goes wrong.

Some other benefits to a video surveillance system:

Continue reading : The Benefits of Adding Video Surveillance »

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As I have mentioned before in this blog, I am, among many other things, a legal assistant at a law firm. It’s a small firm, consisting of five attorneys, all men, and six legal assistants, all women. Though it wouldn’t be that strange for a female attorney to join the firm, it would be quite odd to have a male paralegal join the gang.

There are many professions that tend to appeal predominately to one sex or the other. Most nurses are women. Most construction workers are men. Daycare teachers - women. Trash collectors - men. Most of these jobs have always been this way, typically because that particular job fits the strengths of one particular sex better than the other. That doesn’t mean, however, that there isn’t a tough broad out there who couldn’t guide a steel beam into place.

Imagine with me, if you will, the opposite gender “infiltrating” one of these or many other professions that tend to be single-sex oriented. For example, if a female attorney joined our firm, it would probably be of little consequence, since female attorneys aren’t scarce, they’re just not part of our particular firm. However, I can imagine that a woman who gets a job pouring concrete at a construction site would receive her unnecessary share of cat calls and sexist remarks.

Continue reading : Preventing Sexual Discrimination in the Workplace »

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Within the vast array of the MySpace community, you will not only find individuals and music groups, but many businesses have also joined the online social network and the numbers continue to grow. If you’re thinking of using MySpace to plug your business, however, there are some rules you need to abide by in order to be successful.

1) Be a part of the community.
Spend some time as a user, keeping a low profile, and learning the rules and culture of the online community you’ve joined, whether it be MySpace, YouTube or one of the many others available. If you don’t keep to the cultural regulations of that community, you will be branded an outsider immediately and few will respond.

2) Focus on giving, not receiving.
If you join MySpace with the unmoving goal of getting new contacts and creating new business, and make little effort to provide anything to your contacts in exchange, no one is going to want to be your MySpace “friend.” Give people a reason to like you. A good place to start would be providing something of value to those who visit your page, such as downloads (screensavers or video).

Continue reading : Rules for Networking on MySpace »

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The Associated Press published May 4th that the KFC/Taco Bell restaurant in Greenwich Village, New York City that was found to be infested with rats will be closed indefinitely. A spokesman for the chain owner, Yum! Brands, Inc., says there are reviewing their franchises nationwide and are “determined to prevent this incident from happening again.”

My question is, how did it get that bad in the first place? Anyone who owns a restaurant is well aware of the fact that there are strict rules and regulations regarding the operation of the restaurant in order to prevent illness in customers. How unsanitary does a restaurant have to be in order to be infested with rats to that extent? And you can’t tell me that the staff never noticed one. Clearly there was a health inspector also not doing his job properly.

Health inspections are a crucial element in keeping restaurants safe to eat in. And, most of the time, your business will be severely fined and given a deadline to make changes if it does not pass inspection. If those changes aren’t made, the restaurant could, and should, be closed.

If you are a restaurant owner, or are looking into joining a restaurant chain franchise, there are a number of things you need to be aware of in order to make sure that your restaurant will not only pass a health inspection, but will be safe for your customers.

Continue reading : Preparing for a Health Inspection »

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As business owners, there are many, many times when we really need to be two places at once. Especially when it comes to trying to find time to meet with clients all over the country, and still keep an eye on business operations.

Fortunately there is a much simpler alternative to making a clone of ourselves: an online meeting.

I know it may sound a bit intimidating, especially for the not so tech savvy. And it certainly doesn’t have the same professional and comforting feel a client gets when meeting with you face-to-face, so it’s not something you want to replace all of your personal meetings with.

Consider the fact that an online meeting could include all the clients (or even investors) you intended to meet with individually regarding a new product/service at the same time, which would significantly reduce the time required of you to get the word out.

Continue reading : Online Meetings, The Board Room Alternative »

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Working at home requires a strong ability to separate personal and business lives. A home office contains a lot of distractions, whether your family distracts you from your work or your work distractions you from spending time with your family.

But, if you work from home and are considering moving your business to a commercial location there is much more to take into consideration than whether you are too distracted. If you simply pack everything up and move without looking at every aspect of going commercial, you could negatively affect the future of your business.

Consider these three factors when deciding to move:

Continue reading : Moving from a Home Office to a Commercial Space »

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In 1847 the first U.S. postage stamps were released, the five cent Ben Franklin and the ten cent George Washington. And, in just a week, the rate for postage stamps will increase to 41 cents - more than eight times that of the Ben Franklin.

You may be asking yourself, why the increase, since we just did this a little over a year ago? The stamp increase is to help cover operational expenses. Last year’s increase was mandated by Congress to fund an escrow account.

While the stamp increase won’t severely effect most business owners, the U.S. Post Office is also changing the postage rates for packages and this may cause a bit of a strain. But don’t worry, there are some ways to work around the added expense.

Continue reading : Tips for Adapting to the Postage Rate Increase »

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When I bring up the subject of money with regard to expanding your business to the global market, I’m not necessarily referring to your profit margin. More specifically, I’m referring to the actual paper or coin used as payment for the product your provide.

Upon initial movement toward an overseas expansion, you may think that it would be obvious that you accept foreign currencies. However, you are better off not to. The conversions rates for foreign currencies fluctuate so frequently, which means you would probably lose money if you accepted foreign currency from all of your foreign customers.

If you must deal in foreign currencies, there are some options:

1. Forward Contracts - Locks in the conversion rate for when transaction/sale is finalized.
2. Options - Allows for the opportunity to convert funds, but it is not a requirement.
3. Bank in that Country - Open a bank account in the country where you do the most business so that you can deal in currency for both income and expenses there.

Most countries will gladly accept American businesses into their market, providing “special pools of tax-funded R&D money” even real estate specifically set aside for to attract foreign investment. You may even get special tax breaks in those countries as a foreign business.

The U.S. Commercial Service can help you find those countries who would welcome you with open arms. For $680-$800 per day, the Commercial Service’s Gold Key Program will set up appointments for you to meet with potential overseas partners and provide translators. Find a U.S. Commercial Service specialist in your area.

Be sure to hire a lawyer in any country you do business in that specializes in foreign businesses. You will need to have someone who is familiar with your position and that country’s laws so that he can watch your back and make sure you are aware of any changes in tax law, etc.

If you are, in fact, looking to expand your business overseas, I highly recommend that you not only check out the other parts of this post series, but also examine the resources provided at the end of each post before making that transition. Prepare yourself for every aspect of business in any country you select before making that final leap into the well spring of new consumers.

Pt. 1: Why and Why Not Expand Overseas?
Pt. 2: Labor Laws
Pt. 3: Protecting Your Product

Source:
• Inc.com: How to Get Started

Currency Resources:
• Oanda Currency Conversion Calculator
• Bank for International Settlements
• Federal Reserve Bank of New York

Other Resources:
• U.S. Advocacy Center

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When starting a business in America, one of the most crucial elements is to get your product or business practices patented or copyrighted. Unfortunately, when it comes to expanding your business to the global market, a U.S. patent won’t protect your money-maker, as they are not enforceable overseas. There are some things you can do, however, to guard yourself from idea theft.

What you should probably do first is file with the Patent Cooperation Treaty under the United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). According to John Lanza, a Boston attorney, at a cost of $3,000 to $6,000, a PCT filing can preserve your right to patent your product in most major nations for up to 30 months. That way you can test the waters in a number of markets in order to find your niche.

Once you’ve determined where your product will be most successful, you should file a patent in that particular country. If you don’t, them moment you begin to offer your product copy-cats will begin producing competition with their knockoffs. Obviously the process for filing a patent differs with each location. For more assistance, The U.S. government provides a “tool kit” on international patents at StopFakes.gov.

International patents have classifications, in order to streamline the application process. After all, there has to be a way to determine if someone already has a patent for a particular product in a particular country. For more information of this classification process, visit the WIPO’s International Classifications page.

Danger - be aware of the fact that China is one of the leading countries when it comes to intellectual property theft. Ted C. Fishman, author of China, Inc. recommends that, in order to help protect yourself you should establish a licensing agreement with a Chinese business partner that requires him to provide a substantial