Last Day of Class

Hi all,

I just wanted to thank everyone for all of the great information that they posted on the blog this semester. I really enjoyed all of the articles, videos and websites that people found and suggested. I saved many of them so that I can refer to them in the future.

Best of luck to everyone and have a great summer!

~Angela

Protect your Invention or Product – Patents, Trademarks, and Copyright

This is a great article for small business owners on the important of protecting your product. It outlines the three different types of protection; patents, trademarks, and copyrights, tell you what each of them can do and how you get apply for one or each of them. There is also some information on overseas and international patents and trademarks.

~Angela

http://community2.business.gov/t5/Small-Business-Matters/Protect-your-Invention-or-Product-Patents-Trademarks-and/ba-p/2301;jsessionid=6D8C30D41C195E1149222EBA8CAE3AE5

Antinori: Keeping It All In The Family Family Has Run Wineries For 623 Years, With No Plans To Sell

Families, the poet Philip Larkin wrote, they mess you up. Only he used slightly stronger language. When it comes to family business, he was right on the money.

A recent survey found only 15 percent of family businesses survive past the second generation. If the whims of the market place don't get you, rivalry or old fashioned greed will.

Which makes the Antinori family of Italy all the more remarkable: as 60 Minutes correspondent Morley Safer first reported last fall, they've been in the same line of work for six centuries now.

The Antinoris make wine and the family story reads like a wine review - complex, stylish, sophisticated with a bouquet both elegant and earthy.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/10/10/60minutes/main4514254.shtml

Chapters 20-21 5 points

1. This article is from Edge Business Magazine. I talks about stragies for working with relatives in a family business.
http://edgebusinessmagazine.com/tag/family-business/


2. This article is written by Edward Hess, the founder of The Center For Entrepreneurship and Corporate Growth and the Values Based Leadership Institute. It's about keeping the family business in business.
http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/interests/family/success.html


3. This article is by Henry Posters from the American Society For Quality. It discusses the importance of ethics in business.
http://www.asqsandiego.org/articles/ethics1.htm


4. This is article is from Ezine Articles. It is about unethical behavior in the workplace.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Unethical-Behavior-In-The-Workplace&id=954264


5. This article is from Harvard Business School. It discusses how corporate social responsibility rating can predict corporate social performance.
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5542.html

Chapter 20-21 5 points

family businesses makes strong bonds and drives a businesses performance. investors also look at family business as being more stable and willing to fund them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwUvWQyR9Vc&feature=PlayList&p=7B75392492010106&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=26

Family members need to have meetings about there business and the family itself. having an outsider might be a good idea and will help in the next generation of the business.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dK9N5YvA98

Hiring a senior staff member from outside the business can help the business grow and provide a look on how to do things that hasnt been seen before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nh5CDcfX_cI

Ethical behavior is something that is needed at a business and needs to be enforced among a business.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-nz0kojLv8

this video goes over the business ethics and how to handle these issues.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDPsSyaZNIw

Family:Good or Bad for Business?

This first video is a clip on the infamous Adidas company. This business is a family founded and run company. The video goes on to explain how the family coming together really help their company to be successful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQaSKDZAVAs


The link below provides not only text but also a video. These two resources are in the perspective of Jack Connors telling of the importance of management succession and much more. He relates his opinions to his own personal experiences and talks of the values shared...

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/jan2009/ca20090130_544017.htm


Paul Puckridge explains what succesion management planning is and how to go about it. He goes on to talk about how by having a plan such as this will allow a person/business to be taken more seriously and be given a new level of opportunity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Txed8nYbc4I


Although very long, this video is very informative. Jeffrey Sachs, a professor at Columbia University, discusses the levels of ethical standards in business. The only downfall about this video is it does take him a bit to get to the information because it's basically a lecture he gave recored...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOlmr9hWnTk&feature=PlayList&p=14AFE0B8468ECAD8&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=4


The article is about a person by the name of Pamela Hawley who is a global social entrepreneur. Pamela wants to make a social impact through the Web based marketplaces. Pamela started an organization called UniversalGiving which is a non-profit organization which collects donations and sends it to the project of the donator's choice...

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/dec2008/ca20081224_387821.htm

Chapters 20 & 21 - Five Points of Interest

According to this article, family businesses have the traits to survive during these tough economic times. Since family businesses make up 80% of the worlds businesses, will they be the ones who can pull through in this recession?

http://www.pbn.com/detail/40521.html


Purchasing business insurance can be a confusing and costly experience for a business owner if they do not have the right information. This article does a great job of breaking down the different types of insurance a company may need and tells you what and when you need them.

http://businessinsure.about.com/od/insuringyourbusiness/tp/listtypesins.htm


Business Ethics magazine is a web based magazine that provides readers and business owners information and updates about business and ethics. One section I really liked was their ranking of the 100 Most Corporate Citizens which is a listing of companies and corporations that they deemed to be ethically and socially responsible.

http://www.business-ethics.com/


Many businesses and companies have started to cut back on their Social Corporate Responsibility because of the downturn in the economy, but according to this video that is a poor decision.

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=businesses%20and%20social%20responsibilty&rls=com.microsoft:*&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv#q=businesses+and+social+responsibilty&rls=com.microsoft:*&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv&start=20


Sexual Harassment is something that is still thriving in workplaces and companies all across the nation and the world. This website provides support to victims of sexual harassment in the workplace. It gives good information on what sexual harassment is, statistics about sexual harassment, liability information and tell the reader what to do if they have been sexually harassed.

http://www.sexualharassmentsupport.org/SHworkplace.html

~Angela

Five Links on Chapters 20 and 21

Here are five online articles and videos that I found interesting:

Family Business: Separate the Personal from the Professional
This video provides some insight into the importance of keeping a family business humming smoothly by keeping personal issues apart from the work of running the enterprise.

Complete Guide to Ethics Management: An Ethics Toolkit for Managers
I found this guide worthwhile, as it provides both a nice overview of business management ethics and some practical advice on how to implement an ethics component into the actual operation of the business.

Green Business Practices Make Good Business Sense
This .pdf link talks in-depth about a point regarding Green initiatives that I think is critical to keep in mind: Going Green can be beneficial for business, and heavy-handed government regulation may not be the best way to balance the need for sustainability with keeping the economy functioning soundly (particularly important at this point in time).

Exit Strategies for Your Business
This article provided some thoughtful advice on how to best 'exit' a business, including some excellent pros and cons related to whether or not to sell a business to family or to an outside party.

Strategic Risk Management
This interesting editoral makes the case for the important of implementing Strategic Risk Managment for businesses -- a relatively new approach to business planning and insurance coverage -- especially during these uncertain economic times.

Five Points of Interest!

For those of you that work in a family business, pick up the latest issue of “Family Business Magazine”.

http://www.familybusinessmagazine.com/

Family Business and money woes

http://www.bizjournals.com/extraedge/consultants/at_your_service/2009/05/04/column69.html?market=portland

How important is an exit strategy for the entrepreneur.

http://www.entrepreneurship.org/Resources/Detail/Default.aspx?id=10672

A wonderful source with videos covering the different type of small business insurance.

http://www.myownbusiness.org/s5/

Business Weeks article on business ethics and AIG

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/mar2009/ca20090319_591214.htm

Successor for Warren Buffett?

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE54127T20090502
Investment behemoth Berkshire Hathaway is looking for a successor. But you may not need to apply, since they have several internal candidates in mind. With $25B in cash, acquistions (outright purchases) of $6.1B in 2008, plus many more billions invested into large companies, they want someone with a lot of experience and the likelihood of great success like Warren Buffett. The board has one clear CEO successor in mind, with 2 backups, plus several external candidates they would likely tap for managing investments. In every case, the candidate has not only an established track record for financial results, but has also proved his committment to Berkshire's principles. "They all wish to work for Berkshire for reasons that go beyond compensation" says the company's annual report.
Keith

5 Sites to Help You

1) Here is a list of some of the oldest family businesses still around. Also, there are some tips to continue a family business.
http://www.familybusinessmagazine.com/oldestcos.html
2) Current tips to write a Succession Plan
http://www.evancarmichael.com/Human-Resources/770/Succession-Planning--Whats-the-Latest.html
3) 150 Types of Insurance Policies for Your Business
http://www.ampminsure.org/all.html
4) Business Ethic Cartoons
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/e/ethic.asp
5) Tips for a Business When Choosing a Charity
http://www.staples.com/sbd/content/article/a-b/businessdonations.html

A Lasting Green Economy

From the Philadelphia Inquirer, May 3, page D1, also in www.philly.com the article highlights the work of Leanne Krueger-Banesky as director of Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia. Targeting 4 key areas of policy, employer commitment, job training and funding, she has set forth a plan to take Philly to the top of the Green Cities list, creating a sustainable and measurable plan. The best thing about the plan is that it includes a clear effort to create jobs within the green sector, solving economic and environmental issues simultaneously.

Controlling insurance costs

Personally, I shop around to at least 4 companies and bundle all of my policies together. It proves to give a better rate and also I raise my deductibles. You can see big savings for higher deductibles . Every now and then say once a year pull out your deck pages and shop you coverage around. You just might find a cheaper rate. Its really easy, fax your deck pages and they do all the number crunching...

Grim number

70% of all first generation businesses fail to survive into the second generation.

Small business managers and ethics

what do you guys think are some ways to maintain high ethical standards in your company??

More than 80% of all businesses are family owned

they generate 64% of the US gross domestic product! they account for 62% of employment and 65% of all wages..

Is working with family members harder?

Does anyone here work with family members and if so how do you like it??

Think Green...

These two Business Week articles reflect our responsibility to the environment.
http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/apr2009/pi20090422_843804.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/jul2008/bw2008073_004179.htm

Business Ethics...

Found these cool articles in Business Week talking about Business Ethics. Related well to chapter 21 in the textbook.
http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/dec2008/sb20081230_999118.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/jun2007/db20070622_221291.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/oct2007/bs20071025_096141.htm

Cleaning up Tyco's Mess

After former CEO Dennis Kozlowski had destroyed Tyco's corporate reputation by spending outrageous amounts for collectible art, birthday celebrations and extravagant personal items, all for personal benefit, new CEO Ed Breen brought in Eric Pillmore into a newly created position of Sr. VP of Corporate Ethics. Doylestown resident Pillmore was charged with the enormous task of elevating Tyco's name from the outhouse of corporate ethics all the way to the penthouse. As noted in Ethisphere at http://wp.corpedia.com/eric-pillmores/, Pillmore "managed a model corporate-culture turnaround from one of the most iconic examples of corporate malfeasance into a strong role model in the business ethics world." Pillmore's triumph has been noted in such publications as Harvard Business Review and many others; he now consults with Deloite and Touche, speaking and consulting worldwide on ethics in business. Kozlowski is now prisoner 05A4820 in the NY prison system, serving up to 8-25 years for misappropriating more than $400 million, including his infamous purchase of $6,000 shower curtain. He earns $1/day for mopping floors and serving food in the prison cafeteria.

Info on ESOP's

http://www.nceo.org/library/esops.html

This link to the National Center for Employee Ownership contains some good info about ESOP's, how and why they're used. Did you know that over 11,000 US corporations use ESOP's in some form, usually to arrange for departing owners and/or to reward employees? It also includes links to much more detailed on-line articles, books, and so forth.

More info on Kongo Gumi

I was intrigued to read about the 40-generation (!!!) survival of Kongo Gumi construction of Japan. Found an article at http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/apr2007/sb20070416_589621.htm?campaign_id=rss_topEmailedStories which goes into more detail on their success and ultimate failure. The 40th CEO was recently interviewd, where he cited the company's flexibility in selecting leaders as a key factor in its longevity. Rather than simply picking the eldest son (the default method), the firm chose one who best exhibited the required characteristics for the job. Furthermore, it wasn't always a son. The 38th Kongo to lead the company was Masakazu's grandmother. That was quite a step for tradition-steeped Asian company!!
Keith

The Top Ten Leadership Qualities

http://www.hrworld.com/features/top-10-leadership-qualities-031908/

I found that this article really simplifies the qualities that make a good leader. As you read through you will realize that all of the traits mentioned make for a good human being also.

Heather

Safety meeting and safety committees

http://www.lni.wa.gov/wisha/rules/corerules/HTML/296-800-130.htm
Here are some ideas for establishing safety meetings and committees and some of the items that should be included.
Some of the tasks of a safey committee include reviewing accident reports, investigating accidents, identifying and correcting hazards, and reviewing workplace accident and illness policies.

Risk Management Through Disaster Planning

http://www.lama-online.org/chris.html
When I worked in Health Care, disaster planning was a huge part of our risk management and also a key element in our licensure process. I like this article because it gives a good overview of the plans a business should make and I think our book glossed over such planning (the safety issues were covered in three paragraphs) and focused more on insurance.

Family Succession Planning

http://www.family-business-experts.com/family-succession-plan.html
This article points out the importance of a family succession plan that includes the goals of the family members who are involved in the business. It talks about defining whether the company is a family- first business or a business-first family- a decision that should guide the family in forming the plan.
One thing that I thought was especially important was making the plan before the family leader dies. Some family leaders don't share plans, instead surprising the other family members at the reading of the will.

A Socially Responisble Business

http://www.tomsofmaine.com/business-practices/values-beliefs.aspx
Visit this web page and learn about the socially responsible practices of "Toms of Maine". This company includes much of what is outlined in our text. Toms of Maine has a mission statement called "Reason for Being" and a "Stewardship Model". Both of these guide their practices, decisions, and operations. They set a standard for themselves that is clear, responsible, and ethical.

Corruption in business

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/30/8391852/index.htm?postversion=2006102309

I was impressed by the man featured in this article, Anwar Ibrahim. He stood up for his values event though it resulted being imprisoned for six years by corrupt leaders. He now teaches at Georgetown. I think the students there are lucky to have an inspiring leader that stuck to his morals and beliefs about accountability.

Location and Supply Chain - Wawa

A recent article in the Philly Inquirer (April 16, Page A1, "How Success Came to Wawa") recounts the history of the Wawa chain since their launch 45 years ago. Starting as a milk delivey service, Wawa then decided to initiate grocery sales inside brick-and-mortar locations. Key to their success was learning to select prime locations with heavy commuter traffic and to cater to customer's specific needs. Even coffee - now their signature product - was an evolutionary offering after a customer requested a cup from the clerk's personal percolator. Since Wawa had only offered simple groceries and no prepared foods at that point, they had to develop a whole new line in their supply chain, including the ground coffee , percolators, cups, serving bars, and so on.

Don't know if Wawa was to first to offer freshly brewed coffee from a convenience store, but they've sure been successful at it.

Keith

Quote about leadership

“Leaders do not avoid, repress, or deny conflict, but rather see it as an opportunity.”

~Warren Bennis (1925 – )American scholar, writer

When employee theft or shoplifting occurs it is robbing a business owner of their profit. Not only is employee theft ans shoplifting unethical, but it is also illegal. Specialty Retail Report is an online and published magazine that specializes in reaching the retail industry. They are dedicated to the promotion, growth and success of the specialty retail industry. I have attached a good article that I found on their website that discusses what step and precautionary measures a business owner can take to reduce or eliminate theft be it by employees or by customers.

~Angela

http://www.specialtyretail.com/2008/fall/running_a_cart_kiosk/strategies_to_prevent_shoplifting_and_retail_theft

The Layout in Your Small Retail Business is Critically Important

As I mentioned in the tidbit posting I found the information in Chapter 16 about retail layout to be really interesting. The article found on this website gives some more insight as to why it is critically important for a business owner to really examine their small and use it to the best of their advantage.

~Angela

http://www.allgreatloans.com/layout-your-small-retail-business-critically-important-a-243.html

Managing Inventory

http://bizcovering.com/management/managing-inventory-obsolescence-for-improved-performance/
This is an article that details some step-by-step guidelines for managing inventory. I like the idea of establishing an "Inventory Management Review Team" that together reviews the inventory and makes decisons regarding what to do with inventory. The guidelines also include defining "obsolete", allowing better decision making regarding what items should or should not be in inventory. The article lists concrete steps and action plans to help business owners manage invnetory.

Choosing a business location

http://www.allbusiness.com/operations/facilities-real-estate-office-leasing/11153-1.html
This article is about factors to consider when choosing a location for a new business. Factors include knowing your business, finding customers, getting a "flavor" for the community, checking out the competition, evaluating traffic in the area, assessing the building, and balancing cost with other factors.
I think the tips would be helpful for any business owners and also liked how the tips went along with the information we read about business planning. It seems that everything goes back to our initial chapters.

The Pros of Planting Startups in Smaller Cities

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/mar2009/sb20090327_385972.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_getting+started

This is a cool aticle about the best locations to do start-ups and even tells you the best place in each state.

The best place in PA; Radnor

Small Business Capital

All start up business require capital and sometimes this means taking a loan. This article gives the low down on financing options for starting up a small business to get the capital one needs.

~Angela

http://sbinformation.about.com/od/creditloans/a/ucbusinessloan.htm

E-Commerce

This website is for the E-Commerce Times, an online "newspaper" that offers blogs, services, articles and podcasts on a variety of topics including e-commerce, business, technology anf current hot topics. A good resource for anyone involved in e-commerce or looking to get into e-commerce.

~Angela

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/

A new Trend

Hey Everyone,
Kelly asked me if I would be willing to share with the class about a a new business my family has just bought into. It fits in nicely with the way a number of small businesses are coming up with new creative trends that are very economical and will attract people.

Our new teardrop trailer business was started because of a growing trend for people looking for an economical way to go on vacation and be part of the "green" trend.These trailers are light to tow-only affecting your m.p.g. by no more than 2 m.p.g. or less. With some vehicles, they have actually increased their m.p.g. due to the streamlined design! Their teardropshape has caught alot of people's attention and that is obvious by the heavy traffic we are getting on them with our new dealership of them. We have already placed 4 orders for customers and we haven't officially opened the doors yet! We get so many phonecalls that we haven't wanted to turn away potential customers even though our showroom is not all ready. A new design for a Little Guy Teardrop trailer is in the works to install flexible solar panels on the roof of the teardrop camper and to incorporate a substantial battery array into the design of the trailer, providing a significant source of additional power for the electric or hybrid tow vehicle. They also plan to include a biodiesiel generator that runs on vegetable oil or french fry oil. The solar panels can recharge the batteries while the vehicle is in tow, and the generator can replenish battery charge whenever the vehicle is stopped. They hope to extend the range of a hybrid tow vehicle by a factor of two. This would enable a Toyota Prius, for example, to drive from Akron, Ohio to Disney World on one tank of gas plus the initial charge of the battery array and the small biodiesiel reservoir." They are one of the first in their industry to do this and others will soon follow this trend.

Basic Guide to E-Commerce

http://managementhelp.org/infomgnt/e_cmmrce/e_cmmrce.htm

This website offers the very basics of how to get started. I found that it really covered everything from assessing if your company is ready, to getting started to the legal issues involved with web business. This site even discussed the facts and myths discussed in this chapter. I found the site offered a lot of information.

Heather

Pizza idea...

Small Biz- Going green

nice link to an article on webcommerce

http://ezinearticles.com/?What-is-e-Commerce---Advantages-and-Drawbacks!&id=241542

Why This Web Site Looks Healthy

taken from Business Week print edition, March 30, page 73.

The article focuses on everydayhealth.com, a source of health information for consumers. After acquiring RevolutionHealth.com last fall, they raced to the head of the pack in providing web-based health info, ahead of WebMD, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft. This site is essentially a network to link a wide variety of popluar brands, including South Beach diet, guru Dr. Andrew Weil, pregnancy books and many others.

In addition to publishing many online "magazines" with popular help, Everydayhealth may have another boom coming in online patient information - President Obama has earmarked $19B to create digital health records. Major investor Steve Case, the founder of AOL, sees a lot of interest in this sector and therefore a lot of revenue potential.

1 million tweets

http://www.1milliontweets.com/
This website combines what we talked about regardingthe new popularity of twittering with Alex's idea of selling pixels. This site is acvertising tweets for $1.00. They want fo "make Twitter history" by sending 1 million tweets through a single Twitter account. Tweets are available to anyone that wants to promote a web site, advertise a business or just to "get noticed". Once they sell 1 million tweets, they are also going to publish a book of the tweets. Some of the proceeds will go to charity but I don't know who the owners of the site are.
I do think this is another good idea of how to profit from a simple idea.

In chapter 11 it discusses the benefits and costs of a small business accepting credit cards for payments. In this article it outlines the necessary steps a business must take to set up credit cars processing and some good information on how transactions work, what banks expect from merchants, how to get the best rates, what business are considered high risk, and information on equipment and credit card policy. There is some great info in here for small businesses.

~Angela


http://www.toolkit.com/small_business_guide/sbg.aspx?nid=P06_2500

nice article on pricing.

http://www.gaebler.com/Pricing-Methods.htm

another WEB2.0 tool...GOOGLE DOCS..I use this all the time!

Twitter in Plain English

Internet marketers can profit from superdomain opportunities

http://www.marketingtrends.org/january-2009-marketing-trends-archives/0138-jan-13-2009-marketing-trends-archives.html

This article is about the sale of new domain names. For a fee ($185,000), businesses can buy a domain with an suffix that no one else can ever have. A business may choose a suffix that goes with the type of business (i.e. .hotel, .gym, .cafe) or brand (i.e. .sony, .panasonic) or whatever the business chooses. The main idea is that the suffix will be globally exclusive to the person that bought it. Names will be for sale on a first come, first serve basis.

This concept will enable a company to generate a global identity that is unique to the business. Business may be able to generate huge brand identity and a presence with their marketing strategies.

I think this ideas has exciting possibilities for any business owner. However, like anything else, those with the money to spend will profit the most. I definitely think that if an entrepreneur can come up with the $185,000 cash, it would definitely be something worthwhile to do to lock down a unique name that will be forever identified with the business. I think the creative possibilities are great too - come up with a name that tells people not just your business but maybe also something about your company or its vision.

Nyt article on twitter

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/technology/personaltech/12pogue.html

Great Site for the Sole Proprietor

Great site for those who own a soleproprietor business. Information ranging from advertising to getting loans is avaible on the site. Also, you can get your info through videos and articles. Loaded with a ton of information!

Twittering - the Philly Enquirer

Right on cue - all of our discussions this week about marketing avenues and twittering, and the Inquirer runs a front-page article on twittering and its rampant poplularity. You know that something has hit the mainstream when the Inquirer covers it . . . See http://www.philly.com/inquirer/home_top_stories/20090305_All_a-Twitter__The_Tweet_smell_of_success.html

While the focus on the article is on the rising popluarity of twittering by stars, athletes and politicians (think Ashton Kutcher, Lance Armstrong, Jon Stewart and Obama), Twitter is increasingly an opportunity to find and dissemenate information. And as Angela points out, it's becoming a useful source for small business as well.

Keith

Great Twitter List for Small Businesses

In chapter 10 we talk about Twitter and while searching for some information about it I came across this great list of Twitter contacts for small businesses on the Small Business Trends Web Site. If you have subscribed to Twitter try checking some of these out and if you find more you can always have them added to the list as a bunch of people already have in the comments section at the bottom.

The second link is a great guerillia marketing video for the Twitter website.

~Angela

http://smallbiztrends.com/2009/01/the-ultimate-small-business-twitter-list.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddO9idmax0o

Guerrilla marketing campaign for Google Video in Germany

Check out this video about the Guerrilla marketing campaign used for Google Video in Germany. I think it was super clever and really enjoyable.

~Angela

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94UozdncbH0

California Tortilla's guerrilla marketing

I follow a company named California Tortilla, an east coast restaurant chain. I got onto their e-newsletter list and receive an e-mail every week or two from (possibly even a fictitious) lady who calls herself "Pam, aka the lady on the cup." Of the many e-newsletters I get, I probably enjoy this one the most, primarily due to its lighthearted attitude and slightly twisted humor. There's nothing much cheaper than an e-newsletter to get the word out, and I have a very strong positive impression (goodwill) toward them because of this e-letter. I consider it a form of effective guerrilla marketing. Check them out, sign up for the newsletter and get a free taco at www.californiatortilla.com
Keith

Guerilla Marketing in the entertainment industry

I linked two websites here. The first is an article interviewing the creator of the movie, the second is the movies website. While I understand that marketing a movie is different than marketing a product, there are similarities. When this web site concept was introduced, it flipped the industry upside down. It is an absolute perfect example of thinking outside the box, using the web to create buzz and creating a new approach.

http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Movies/9907/27/blair.witch/

http://www.blairwitch.com/

The Corporate Huddle and Open Book Management...

I'm wondering if open book management is good or bad thing nowadays??? How will employees react to negative news? Will it affect their work performance? How so?

The King of all Guerrilla Marketing Websites

After reading Chapter 9 about building a Guerrilla Marketing plan I immediate went to the internet to see what other information I could find out. When I googled the topic a website immediately popped up. I posted the link below. The website is all about Guerrilla Marketing. It features live talks about it, articles, books and even a blog all about the topic. They even offer a Guerrilla Marketing Business University that one can attend that is taught by Jay Conrad Levinson, who they call the Father of Guerrilla Marketing. If you get a chance to check it out there is a lot of free information for small business owners that can help them with their marketing and if the free info is not enough there is tons of other info fee based info available as well.

~Angela

http://www.gmarketing.com/index.phtml

Business Plan Pitfalls

We have all been exposed to many pieces of information on business plan writing. All have been consistent on the advice of using the template as your jumping off point. To me this article seemed to offer some of the most common mistakes made when using the template without vision and thought behind filling in the blanks.

http://www.growthink.com/content/nine-business-plan-pitfalls

Starting a New Buisness During Tough Times

This article tells the stories of a few companies that started their buisnesses during economic downfalls. It is encouraging to know that it is possible to start up a company during tough times. http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2009/tc20090221_571602.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_top+stories

SCORE some quality assistance

Check out http://www.score.org for some tips, consulting and on-line workshops regarding many different aspects of small business. The one I focused on this week was at http://www.tsbc.com/sbo/score/viewLesson.aspx?Lid=204 which is their form of a step-by-step creation of a business plan. They call it a "quick start business plan" and it's not really intended to replace the longer, more thorough method described in our text. But it employs text-entry boxes, downloads and tips to guide you through the process of starting your business plan.

Though I wouldn't take this result to a group of well-heeled financiers, it certainly can help frame out the necessary steps in creating a full business plan, and may help weed out a couple of potential businesses before jumping in with too little information.

Hey...check out this blog..

http://www.smallbizsurvival.com/

Cash Flow Forecasting for Small Business

Since we are headed to the chapter on CASH FLOW...

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_72/s0812058716133.htm
This very practical article mentions some strategies to help ease cash flow problem. Bartering and renegotiating with vendors are a few of the suggestions mentioned.

More useful videos and links for business plans

http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/plan/writeabusinessplan/index.html

you can follow the links and actually get free examples of industry specific business plans. The one I was looking at is exactly what I need to do so it is coming in handy. They have alot of them so check them out..

Keeping it Real

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/running_small_business/archives/2009/02/a_small_busines.html?chan=top+news_top+news+index+-+temp_small+business
This article is about a recent seminar that was held in New Jersy in a Sam's Club (not at a ritzy hotel that costs a lot of money as so many seminars are). I think the points about small businesses being key in turning around the economy are right on track. I think big businesses could learn a lot fromt these small businesses that instead of spending frivously, kept their costs reasonable to keep their business safe, profitable, and realistic.

Keeping the cash flowing

KEEPING THE CASE FLOWING

A small guide with helpful links on the basics to intermediate steps of keeping your cash intake flowing. Some quick tips in this article involve taking full advantage of invoices, by targeting the key time to send them out to get the money the fastest. Other tips include weeding out "no-pays" customers, invoice management, and of course the golden egg of money management, "make more by spending less"

Hidden Tips for Taxes

Title: Hidden Tax Tips for Entrepreneurs
Site: BusinessWeek
url: https://learning.dcollege.net/webct/urw/lc443721749021.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct

This article goes over how business are over looking tax deductions and not small ones. A business can deduct cars trucks and machinery right away from there taxes. This article is useful if you have a business and are trying to find some extra deductions that you missed or never would have thought of in the first place. Just remember receipts and other records are needed or the IRS will be knocking on your door...

Some Quick Tips - Protect Your Personal Assets!

So while reading some articles for the assignments last week, I found one to be very interesting. I figured if anyone in the class is really thinking about becoming a business owner of some sort, you may find these tips helpful!!! Hope you all find them as interesting as I did.

This is the site: http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/feb2009/sb20090212_214790.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_top+small+business+stories

WSJ Small Biz for Sale

WSJ runs a site at http://online.wsj.com/fragment/small_business_businessforsale.html?frame_src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bizbuysell.com%2Fcgi-bin%
2Fadsearch&ir=1&J=W&tab=eb&countyselresulttxtfieldname=init&s=PA&i=XX&submit=SEARCH to search for small businesses for sale by category, geography, etc. I typed in a couple of topics of interest to me (Bucks County, Doylestown, etc.) and found several things of note. Not only were many local businesses for sale (it's not always obvious which specific business it it, but you can narrow it down), but there's some useful info about the cash flow, available inventory and other financials. To get a rough P/E, I divided asking price/cash flow; several are in the familiar area around 4.0, but many are much less than that, even less than 2. This is probably an indicator of a rough economic period with tight credit, but may offer some attraction to buyers who have moderate financing of $100k-200k available and who believe that the market for traditional ventures (nails, fast food, cleaning) is resilient and will make a good comeback.

hers a link for an article on small bus. tax relief

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/business/yourtaxes/08entre.html?ref=smallbusiness

we can use every penny!

Cuttin Start Up Costs

http://www.businessweek.com/print/smallbiz/content/feb2009/sb20090210_652973.htm
This article brings up some good points to keep in mind when starting a business. First, it points out that you need to consider both start up and operating expenses. It suggests some ways to decrease start up costs such as bartering for equipment, partnering with others, and using interns. I think all of these are great ideas because they create situations in which a new owner is developing mutually satisfying relationships with other people and in effect, the two parties are entering a partnership that benefits both. A new owner may be able to provide a service for another business in exchange for use of equipment or maybe two people that are both starting a business could share some expenses. There are many ways to carry out this idea with some creativity.

Another idea mentioned in the article was to carefully evaluate the costs. Maybe some things are not really necessary in the beginning and could be put off until later. The owner should identify what items are must haves such as advertising and which can be phased in. Next, the owner can then estimate what is needed to pay for the necessary costs, allowing room for error. If the owner uses all of this information, he or she can decide whether the business plan is really feasible, whether the plan needs to be adjusted, or whether the business should really be started on a part-time basis (an idea that seems more feasible given today’s economy).

because the economy is so tough right now iwas reading how alot of big companys hhave been cutting back on advertising. i thought this was neat cause the superbowl just happened ,and people like gm, that been buying time for the superbowl for awhile, cut back and dident spend the extra money.

The Tuna with a Heart !

My fellow Americans. I am Howard Humphrey, President of Schooner Tuna. All of us here at Schooner Tuna sympathize will all of you hit so hard by these trying economic times. In order to help you we are reducing the price of Schooner Tuna by 50 cents a can. When this crisis is over, we will go back to our regular prices. Until then, remember, we’re all in this together. Schooner Tuna. The tuna with a heart.

This may be a private joke.
Unless you have seen the Michael Keaton movie Mr. Mom... this makes no sense to you. But there is a very interesting lesson here.
For those of us who have... we can share a laugh.

THE GROCERY BAGGER

Watch this inspiring flick...
Click Here To View The Movie!

DISGRUNTLED FRANCHISEES.....

“Earlier in this decade, Cold Stone Creamery was one of the hottest franchises around. The super-premium ice-cream stores attracted scores of franchisees hungry for a piece of the "Ultimate Ice Cream Experience."
Now many franchisees are selling their stores, overwhelmed by soaring bills and shrinking profits. Some have lost their homes, broken their retirement nest eggs or filed for bankruptcy.
What happened?”
“A number of franchisees also contend the company misled them, giving them promises of profit potential that proved unrealistic or inaccurate revenue numbers from existing stores. And some say that they got little help from the company as their stores went under.”

Check this article out...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121321718319265569-search.html?KEYWORDS=cold+stone+creamery&COLLECTION=wsjie/6month

Small Buisness vs McMansion Development

Do you think it is fair for a buisness that has been operating for 15 years in the same location should move becasue someone decieded to build a house next to it and can't deal with the noise or do you think the homeowner should leave the buisness alone and move somewhere else?http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/the_intelligencer/the_intelligencer_news_details/article/27/2009/february/05/noisy-business-bugging-residents.html?tx_ttnews%5Bpointer%5D=2&cHash=012094000fc93b8b4413c145652f7428

People = Saps???

-Reading
-Writing
-How to tie my shoes
-How to drive
-Colors and Numbers

Above is just a small listing of things I was lucky enough to be taught while growing up. Yes taught, like most of the things in our lives they were taught to me. I was not born knowing how to do them. I was lucky enough to grow up in a middle class town and went to one of the best public schools in the area. I was taught about finances and money and I was fortunate enough to purchase a house at the age of 25. But is everyone as lucky as I am? Are those who are not born with the innate ability to figure out finances SAPS?

According to a survey conducted by the credit card VISA:

-Only 5% of adults who were survey learned about the vital life skill of money management in elementary or high school.

So where did everyone else learn it? Well according to the article below - they didn't. There is a growing issue in this country referred to as Financial Illiteracy.

A 2007 study of K-12 teachers by the Networks Financial Institute at Indiana State University revealed:

-According to teachers, financial literacy skills are lacking among young people in the U.S., and many say that their students need to be exposed to the basic financial skills they will need to function in society.

The government has named April as Financial Literacy Month. Obviously this is a growing problem in our society. So because a person was not provided with the tools for learning finances and maybe because of their situation was unable to obtain the tools in another way, does that make them a foolish gullible person (i.E. a SAP) or does it make them a regular American? Does the school system and the government have a a responsibility to society to provide them with these tools? Because they are not taught these things, does it make it right for them to be taken advantage of by banks, mortgage companies and credit card companies?

~Angela


http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10958702

Do you love Ice Cream....

Wanna buy a business?

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=cold+stone+creamery+franchise+for+sale&as_qdr=m

Top 10 Franchises for 2009

This is a cool site just to look around at. I found it very interesting Subway is number one. I always thought as McDonalds as the leading guys.


http://www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500/index.html

Here's a good spot to look for advice and help.

http://www.score.org/index.html

There is some great advice and links to other helpful information. I just came accross it. Seems to have alot of information to help start a small business. It has a local office in Fairless Hills and you can go in and talk with one of their members...

Cobblers...doing ok!

Think about why and suggest what other businesses might also do well in this economy.... Please COMMENT!

CHECK OUT THE WEB LINKS ON THE RIGHT SIDE!

Check out the websites on the RIGHT side of this blog. You can use them to find interesting articles, pictures, videos etc.

SHORT CLIP

I find these sort clips that you keep posting very interesting. Where are you getting them from and how do you post them to the blog? I want to be more involved but I just don't know how. If anyone can help this would be great.
Thanks,
Rob

Ben and Jerry's Workplace Practices

http://www.benjerry.com/our_company/about_us/social_mission/social_audits/2006_sear/sear06_7.1.cfm?mid=menu7
I love this Ben and Jerry's website. It does a great job of conveying their business mission and values and you can see how their values are carried out throughout their business.
I pasted the link regarding "employee compensation". Part of it says this: "At Ben & Jerry’s we believe the Company’s financial success should be shared by all stakeholders rather than concentrated at the top of our management structure. Part of the Company’s Economic Mission is to create career opportunities and financial rewards for our employees, a commitment in line with our Social Mission."

Poor Economy, Striving a Business

http://www.smartbiz.com/article/articleview/2505/1/3

This article talks about 5 ways to make a business successful in a economy that is down and money is low. The five steps go over how to keep a business productive, such things as not over extending the business by keeping what you have as far as items and products. Next think of how you can get the sales and keep customers coming back to shop at your business. Also, knowing ones competition keeps your business strong and finally, good strong employees that are skilled and know what they are doing will provide a good productive business.

The Amish Flock From Farms to Small Businesses

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/business/smallbusiness/08sbiz.html?_r=1&ref=smallbusiness

I thought it was interesting that the failure rate for Amish businesses is much lower than other businesses.

Five new busineeses in the time that it takes to complete this course - you be the judge!

Tim Berry and Sabrina Parsons believe that you can start a business in just three weeks. You read right - three weeks! That means that in the time it takes to complete this course you theoretically could start five new businesses. There are three articles posted below each outlining a week of the plan. After reading them, do you think that a 3 week business start up is a pipedream or something that could be completely feasible?

~Angela


Week 1
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/personal-finance/on-topic/small-business/weeks-startup-week/

Week 2
http://upandrunning.entrepreneur.com/2009/01/19/3-weeks-to-startup-week-2/

Week 3
http://upandrunning.entrepreneur.com/2009/01/27/3-weeks-to-startup-week-3/

What defines an Entrepreneur? "guts" "freedom" "a legacy" "a great idea that is executed" What's missing?

http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/small-business-entrepreneurs/2008/07/17/starting-a-small-business-in-a-bad-economy.html

This article was in U.S. News and World Report last summer but offers some great advice on how small businesses can taking advantage of hard economic times...

"But depending on your kind of business and location, you could find reductions in costs. Suppliers may cut better deals, rents could be lower, and workers may be more willing to sign on for less. "When times are tough, people don't hold out for higher salaries," says Scott Shane, a professor at Case Western Reserve University and author of The Illusions of Entrepreneurship: The Costly Myths That Entrepreneurs, Investors, and Policy Makers Live By. "You could probably hire better people more cheaply starting out now than you could when things were booming."

Philly Mag Article

Found this article in this months issue of Philly Mag, this issue has a bunch of articles regarding the economy. A perodical like the WS Journal or Business week def. has more insightful articles on the economic climate, but I like reading these kind of articles too, a little more light, but can still be very helpful.

http://www.phillymag.com/articles/the_new_good_life_68_awesome_ways_to_spend_less_and_still_be_happy/?hpm

Front page of Wall Street Journal Feb. 2, 2009 has an article entitled "In a Sole Revival, the Recession Give Beleaguered Cobblers New Traction." The gist of the article is that while the downturn has created pain for most businesses, certain small businesses have benefitted greatly. The list includes cobblers, auto repair, resume writers and lawyers.

As aspiring entrepreneurs, what need can we satisfy which has been created or amplified by this tough economy?

Recession Not Such A Bad Thing For Entrepreneurs

This is just a short article in the latest issue of Entrepreneur Magazine stating how recessions are a breeding ground for innovation. I can tell you personally from experience that this is the truth. These types of times, like we are in now, lead to unconventional, and often, successful ways of finding and retaining new business. Although this may be a bad time for the economy and jobs, it can bring out the best in us!!

http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2009/february/199724.html

Small Business loans...

Great article in BusinessWeek talking about how small community banks are stepping up and offering loans and lines of credit. Even though big banks are struggling opportunities still exist for small businesses to acquire loans to get started.

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/jan2009/sb20090127_581741.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_top+small+business+stories

Reaction to Bailout

I found this article from Business Week talking about the reaction of small business owners on the bailout that was passed by the Senate in Oct. of 2008. It is interesting reading the reactions of different owners on how they think it will effect the economy.

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/oct2008/sb2008103_938929.htm

Nice link from teeh SBA

In relation to chapters 1 and 2, here is a link from the SBA on starting your own business.
http://sbinformation.about.com/od/bizopportunities/a/startup101.htm

It gives you some basic start up knowledge and has many links to follow up on.

Kazoo & Company

I thought this would be a good blog, it is about a woman who owns a toy store and how she is staying in business over these tough times. Here is the link because I couldnt get it to load on our blog
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-video-a-112772-kazoo_and_company-i

Diana Nelson
Kazoo & Company
This toy company is thriving thanks to smart planning, cooperation with like-minded business owners, a sharp focus on customer service — and a keen sense of fun. Owner Diana Nelson explains her strategies for success.

SAD VIDEOS

The two short videos were very sad because this is happening all over the country and the world. You work at a company for years and its all gone in a matter of weeks. Some older people never get what they lost back.

...and she works for them??

...they might have to sell equity in their business

The Flipside

Hi everyone,
I found this article online and found it to be a very interesting take on small business start up in this economy. The author points out some very good positives that most of us forget. I think we are always concentrating and preparing for the negatives that we forget about what we could take advantage of during a "recession".

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/oct2008/sb2008106_319606.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_getting+started

Success of Small Business Decreases?

Hey,

During the power point of chapter 1 there was a slide that showed the success of a small business over the course of ten years. I was amazed to see that over time the success decreased. I found this information to be very interesting. Does this imply that most small business will fail eventually? Also, does anyone have any ideas why the success rate decreases every year?

Paige

Entrepreneurs Forecast for 2009

Hi Everyone,

Guess there are two Robs in the class, but I should show up as 'Rob Levin' hopefully.

I read this article on what's ahead in 2009 for small businesspeople on money.cnn.com, and thought it was worthwhile. Most of what they reported was stuff I already had read about, but I thought it was a nice overview.

Yea, I'm with you Rob. I am not much of a blogger.

I'M NEW

Hello everyone,

This bloging thing is new to me and I never blogged before this message so please excuse me. Hopefully I catch on quick.

Rob

Video Web SIte Address

Sorry everyone - the link didn't appear on my posting. Here it is again.

http://www.just212.com/video/?utm_source=just212.com&utm_medium=etf&utm_content=text_watch-the-video&utm_campaign=just212_just212


~Angela

Fahrenheit 212 - The temperature at which water boils

I found this video on a website and I thought that it was really interesting. It talks about how it takes just one more step or action to make something happen. As a entrepreneur or small business owner what action or steps would you take to make the "water boil"?



~Angela

Cartoons by Andertoons

"a dream is not enough...you have to be DRIVEN"

This video story is very inspiring...http://www.smallbusinessschool.org/video.cfm?clip=1271

Do you agree with the video posted below? That is, his outline of the 3 transformations? Post your comments here.

Thanks!
KElly

Welcome!

Dear Small Business Management Students,
Welcome to your Spring 2009 class and welcome to YOUR blog... We will be updating/contributing to this blog throughout the semester. To become a contributor all you have to do is send me an e-mail address. I will invite you to be a contributor. You will have to join with a username and password and then you'll be set to go!!
We will POST and COMMENT throughout the semester in attempt to keep up with current events as they relate to small business. Your contributions will be invaluable! You can post TEXT, VIDEOS, IMAGES etc. and your classmates can comment on your POSTS.
If you have yet to contribute to a blog...we'll teach you along the way.

Have fun!
Kelly