Let’s face it, human beings are really lazy creatures. Compared to the assiduous caveman we barely have to lift a finger. Can you imagine if you had to wake up each morning, pick up a spear, and chase down a deer; not because it ate the lily you worked so hard to cultivate over spring, but because you have to feed your family!

These days, all it takes is a telephone and a bit of patience and – Voila! – your meal is at the door. These habits exist in the start-up and small business world. We, as entrepreneurs, often seek the easy way out when trying to grow and expose our businesses.

There are some things simple enough we can do ourselves rather than pay an expert to do. No matter how cliche this may sound, a dollar saved really is a dollar earned.

1. Your Blog

A tool used to share your thoughts, ideas, products and services with your customers. A simple essential marketing tool that is very simple to create.

Last year, I learned a seven hundred dollar lesson about blogs after paying a web-designer to create one for me. When I needed changes and updates done to the blog he was nowhere to be found. I suddenly found myself at the admin page of my blog feeling like a complete idiot. I felt like I was playing three dimensional chess underwater with a gun to my head. As soon as I started playing around I figured the whole thing out. What I thought was rocket science suddenly turned to elementary science. Even web hosting companies make it extremely easy for us to host blogs on our domain names with their new ‘one-click installation.’

So the next time someone asks you to pay them to start a blog for you, say no and blog about it.

2. SEO

Search Engine Optimization: this term has been put on a pedestal by internet marketers and web hosting companies, and they seem to be convincing us that if at some point we donʼt get it done our businesses will be banished to the bottomless pit of the internet plagued with the lack of supercharged traffic and hits like Barry Bonds before physical enhancements.

Do our businesses really need this SEO thing anyway? Well, the truth is that it does help, but we shouldn’t pay hosting companies seventy dollars monthly for it, especially at the start-up stage. Rather, you should perform simple SEO practices like submitting your sites to major search engines, the frequent use of tags/meta tags and the consistent use of keywords.

3. Social Media

We all know social media has basically taken over the world: allowing us to reconnect with old friends, promote businesses, and market goods and services. We can do it all in this new adopted realm of existence we seem to now prefer to the real world. The same idea applies to others mentioned above: We can do it ourselves.

Many social networking sites provide a “how-to” tutorial on the basics of how the site works. You can even use social network to learn about social networking, ask questions, and watch what other people do. Once you digest that, the slightly complicated will “follow.”

Keep in mind, everything mentioned above is based on start-up businesses that have little means. Of course, if you have deeper pockets, or youʼre a major corporation, go ahead, hire people please be sure you hire one for me, too.

Image by icekitty37

It will probably come as no surprise to some of you that men and women differ in some important respects. Whether it is the simple task of asking for directions, or different preferences in entertainment, it is obvious that women and men often approach the world from different perspectives. These differences have important ramifications on the negotiating table.

To this effect, studies have found that women set lower goals than men prior to negotiations, are more passive than men…

Read more »

If you think about it, not having your company’s name or logo trademarked is similar to not protecting yourself from identity theft.  Both can bring financial burden upon you and could tarnish your reputation.

Internet marketing is becoming a must these days, and with more and more companies utilizing Pay Per Click (PPC) campaigns your company needs to take similar precautions to stay safe. You don’t want to have to enroll in a debt management program because you…

Read more »

In business, the “we need money to make money” statement holds true to most of us. But for us bootstrapper, zero down is THE strategy for business funding.

Finding investors for your business start-up is challenging. To make matter worse, today’s economic turmoil limits our access to business funding. Some lucky start-ups could rake millions of dollar from investors. Some select few can even secure funding from angels. Unfortunately, for the rest of us, getting money to get your…

Read more »

While following what’s happening today from my personal Twitter account, I stumbled on (and later retweeted) a tweet that led me to an interesting article about website form design that can converts better.

The article, written by Luke Wroblewski, the Chief Design Architect at Yahoo! Inc. who also runs LukeW, an internationally recognized digital product designer, is about a “Mad Libs”-style of form that successfully increases conversion by 25-40%.…

Read more »

Back in 1985 I was working for (a Texas based Technology company ). We were bidding on a very large multi-million dollar computer based project for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Part of the bidding process involved all us potential vendors travelling via buses throughout the Los Angeles area viewing a dozen of the 700+ schools that would potentially buy and use our systems. While driving thru the various areas of LA I had seen white…

Read more »

This stage of buying a business begins once you have made your offer and the seller has accepted.

A contractual agreement has been entered into between the buyer and seller outlining the price and terms of the sale. The contract is contingent upon the business passing “inspection,” which is the due diligence period allotted to the buyer.

Since it is the buyer’s responsibility to uncover any potential problem areas of the business, it is important to be prepared. This…

Read more »

If you’re a new business, you’ve probably struggled or are currently struggling with finances.

Lack of start-up capital can significantly impact a business in a whole host of ways and can often mean the difference between a runaway success and a dismal failure.  It’s critical to have experienced, professional personnel, a strategically located business location, and the equipment you need to make yourself a success.

But so often financing is the major stumbling…

Read more »

When your enterprise is in its critical initial phases, pursuing claims against deadbeat vendors and two-timing salespeople may seem to make sense, but pursuing litigation at this stage may not always be the best course. Time is money, and lawsuits frequently take a lot of both.

First and foremost, litigation can be very expensive. The costs of litigation can be surprising even to seasoned businesspersons and can be crippling to fledgeling companies. Second, a lawsuit can be very…

Read more »

Small Business Owners – here are what you’ve missed by not having any web presence for your business: opportunity and competitive advantage. Learn why you MUST go online for the sake of your business.

Placing web presence on highest priority in your business plan is no longer a smart move. It’s a mandatory move.

No matter what you’ve planned for your small business: search engine marketing, social media marketing, or simply setting up your first business website –…

Read more »

Business is all about team work. Whether you own a one-person business or a multi-staffed business, surrounding you and your business with the right people is very important. Why?

I enjoy reading Robert Kiyosaki’s books (the Rich Dad Poor Dad series.) One of many concepts he taught in his book that I (and nobody) can’t deny the truth is all about your personal and business environment: Your success is determined by whom you surround your personal life and business…

Read more »