SEARCH SITE Advanced Search

December 02, 2006

SmallBiz

Small Business News, Advice, and Resources

• Florida sets special session on insurance

• 1 in 5 parents say kids online too much

• Alaska beekeepers work to preserve hives

• 'Drive-by lawsuits' seen as shakedowns

• Report: Few stores warn of fish mercury

MORE BREAKING NEWS FROM AP >

Podcast: Business Performance

How entrepreneurs can keep track of the 10 fundamentals necessary to stay afloat 11/28

What Entrepreneurs Need to Know

What investors look for in early-stage ventures, safeguarding intellectual property, the best blogger tools, and more 11/27

Video: How to Own a Franchise

Whether your interest lies in tanning, printing, fast food, or ice cream, there is a franchise opportunity out there for you 11/28

Podcast: Customer Service

Putting a stop to customer-service faux pas 11/22

Bringing the Workforce Home

Thinking about filling a virtual call center with home-based workers? Here are some steps for getting started 11/14

Prototyping Gives Inventions a Boost

An inventor's one-stop shop could get your product into stores and on to Web sites. Next step: fame and fortune 11/13
Slide Show: Prototypes: The First Step for Your Invention

The B!g Idea

Entrepreneurs reveal their eureka moments -- and how they turned a burst of inspiration into a business 10/10
Slide Show: Eight Entrepreneurs' Big Ideas

Retail's Next Wave: The Niche

Former Staples CEO and VC expert Tom Stemberg talks about why big chains are facing increasing competition from well-funded concept retailers 11/29

Podcast: Selling to Giants

How to crack open and sell to large accounts 11/27

Video: Direct Selling

If you think direct selling is just about Tupperware and the Avon Lady, think again. This growing $30 billion a year industry has more Americans starting their own businesses 11/27

Sales Incentive Plans: 10 Essentials

How to create a plan that works for both sellers interested in earning more and business owners and managers pushing for profits 11/16

Small Company, Big Brand

How small outfits build their brands into household names 8/28
Slide Show: Getting Noticed

Build Your Own Biodiesel Plant

For $2 million, you can buy the franchise for your own alternative fuel factory. Xenerga supplies everything you need to start making money 11/28

Turkey Farmers Build a Better Bird

Demand for heritage, organic, and free-range turkeys has grown recently due to health-conscious consumers who trust small, family farms 11/21
Plus: The Turkey Diaries
Slide Show: Small Farmers Talk Turkey

Video: Ethnic Food

Ethnic food is ringing up $75 billion in annual sales. We look at what’s driving this business 11/22

Where Entrepreneurs Find Inspiration

Who do Richard Branson, Hugh Hefner, and other marquee-name entrepreneurs and innovators look to for wisdom? Read on to find out 11/20
Slide Show: Entrepreneurs' Heroes

The Winners: Best Entrepreneurs Under 25

Meet the entrepreneurs behind this year's five winning U.S. businesses, as selected by BusinessWeek.com readers 11/15
Slide Show: The Winners

A Real Power Negotiator

Jim Headlee got fired as a natural gas salesman. Now he helps clients win the best energy prices 11/13

Upward Mobility

Ultrafast networks and whizzy features are about to turn your cellphone into—well, your right arm 11/27

Building a Business on a Mashup

These combos of disparate programs or Web applications are in the hobbyist phase, but entrepreneurs are seeking to turn them into moneymakers 11/13

Intel: Wooing Business Via the Web

The investment arm of the chip giant is gathering some of the smartest innovators from Web 2.0 to create a suite of publishing, posting, and newsgathering programs 11/9

Resolving Family Business Conflicts

Leaders of family businesses often ignore problems that cause strife in the workplace. Our family biz columnist has a simple solution 11/29
Tip Sheet: Curbing Infractions

Your Audience Will Thank You

Eight dos and don'ts to keep in mind when preparing your next presentation 11/21

Coping With the Talent Crunch

Skilled employees are in increasingly short supply. Yet companies have eroded non-pay reasons for staying. Here's how to hang on to your talent 11/14

Podcast: Firing 101

What is the best way to fire someone? 11/15

Where Opportunity Is Knocking For Small Business

Washington's proposed network upgrade could be a windfall 11/27

A Raw-Milk Raid Leads to a Special Thanksgiving

After a Kentucky raw-milk farmer gets busted in Ohio, his shareholders decide to help run the farm and its distribution business 11/27

Taking Tiny Loans To The Next Level

Muhammad Yunus’ Nobel Peace Prize put a global spotlight on microfinance. Now the titans of technology aim to add scale, efficiency—and a lot more capital 11/17

The IRS Sets Its Sights on Small-Biz

The taxmen have stepped up their audits on small businesses, and that has many entrepreneurs crying foul 11/14
Plus: Tip Sheet: Winning Your Tax Audit

Slide Show: A Ferrari Anyone Can Own

The venerable Italian sports car maker is ramping up a retail push, putting its name on clothes and gadgets 11/30

For Small-Biz Owners, It's Tough to Let Go

Expert advice for entrepreneurs contemplating a new life 7/14

Assess your needs, know your preferences, and then compare options, so you can avoid coverage surprises down the road...

READ MORE >

Smart Answers

Karen E. Klein leads a weekly discussion with experts and newsmakers on small-business issues and trends.

Savvy Selling

How do you sell more? Michelle Nichols interviews leading sellers to get their answers to this age-old question every week.

Mashups

Corporations from IBM to Google to E*Trade are jumping onboard the trend of mixing and matching software from different sources

  FEATURED SPECIAL REPORT >>

Best Entrepreneurs Under 25

Slide Shows America's Best Young Entrepreneurs Last Year's Winners Now Podcast What Motivates Young Entrepreneurs Young, Fearless, and Smart More and more young people are looking for startup success across the U.S. They've got their feet on the ground and some great ideas Help for Young Entrepreneurs There are a slew of resources available regardless of whether businesspeople are just getting started or launching their umpteenth venture Is There a Gene for Business? BusinessWeek.com recently asked a cross-section of experts if entrepreneurs are made or born. We want you to weigh in, too Where Are Last Year's Winners Now? Dealing with Stumbling Blocks Tip Sheet: Resources for Young Entrepreneurs READER COMMENTS > MORE SPECIAL REPORTS >

Instructor-led classes on the latest topics for registered BusinessWeek users.
Sign up now

• Recruiting and Retaining Staff for Your Small Business - Sponsored by Yahoo! HotJobs

  This course will show you how to reach out to potential employees, make sure they're right for your company, and deliver an employment package that will bring them into your company and keep them there.

• Graphic Design for Non-Designers - Sponsored by HP

  Learn to create well-designed documents, open your mind, and let your creativity out to play.

• High-Impact, Low-Cost Marketing - Sponsored by HP

  Learn some cost-effective and successful marketing techniques to promote your business or service.

• Start-Up Basics for the First-Time Entrepreneur - Sponsored by Open from American Express

  If you're starting up a business for the first time, this four-lesson course will provide a helpful overview of what to expect, what you should know, and what to watch out for as your entrepreneurial adventure begins.

  RESEARCH PEOPLE AND COMPANIES

ZoomInfo's free search gives you concise summaries on companies and business contacts or you can enhance your own visibility by creating a profile.

Find out more...