Your Small Business In 2009

Posted by Gayle Kesten 12:40 PM ET | Jan 5, 2009

Like my entire family smushed into my parents' spare bedroom this time last week, so, too, can small businesses expect their space to crowd with more startups in the coming year.

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Economy | Hardware | Internet | Marketing | Mobility | Productivity | SmallBizResource | Software

Wednesday's Woman: Resolutions For The New Year

Posted by Gayle Kesten 10:30 PM ET | Dec 31, 2008

I rarely break for lunch. I haven't cleaned out my e-mailbox. I continue to use an old-fashioned calendar to keep my schedule straight. And, yes, Dad, my nails are still short.

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Women in Business

The Stories That SBR Readers Cared About Most

Posted by Gayle Kesten 07:54 AM ET | Dec 30, 2008

Five days a week. Four weeks a month. Twelve months a year. Man, I wrote a lot of blogs in 2008.

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SmallBizResource

Managing 'Comfeartable' Workers

Courtesy of Business Know-How 10:32 AM ET | Dec 29, 2008

Ask any manager. The workplace is full of "comfeartable" employees -- workers who are too comfortable or too fearful to take initiative, trust others, or talk openly and honestly. Worse, when you're a manager, your own success and satisfaction depend on them. The antidote?

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Business Know-How

Much To Admire About Wednesday's Women

Posted by Gayle Kesten 08:06 AM ET | Dec 24, 2008

Working women share many of the same challenges: growing our businesses, supporting ourselves, supporting our families, parenting our children through their many stages of life, finding downtime ... the list goes on.

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Women in Business

Rounding Up The Year-End Roundups

Posted by Gayle Kesten 01:54 PM ET | Dec 23, 2008

Santa's not the only one who's making a list. The Web is overflowing with lists of best-ofs. I continue to be mindful of the ones I present here on Small Biz Resource -- my radar always on the lookout for quality over quantity.

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Economy | Hardware | Marketing | Productivity | SmallBizResource | Software

Lessons From Detroit (Part 2): You Screwed Up -- Now What?

Posted by Gayle Kesten 10:31 AM ET | Dec 22, 2008

I hate being late. In college, I'd sooner skip a class than walk in five minutes after the professor began his lecture. In the work world, blowing off a meeting because you're behind the eight-ball is, of course, an option, but not one I'd suggest. My recommendation involves one tail and two legs.

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SmallBizResource

Lessons From Detroit (Part 1): To Get What You Want, Try Asking

Posted by Gayle Kesten 12:56 PM ET | Dec 19, 2008

Ages ago, I worked with an art director who always had the boss' OK to pay top dollar for whatever she needed to run her department -- freelancers, illustrators, designers, etc. Meantime, my copy desk was one person short, and writers were being handed extra articles already overdue at the time of assignment.

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SmallBizResource

Not-So-Hot Bargains

Posted by Janet Attard, Courtesy of Business Know-How 10:02 AM ET | Dec 18, 2008

If you're in need of furniture, computers, printers, telephones, or office supplies for your business, don't assume you can get the best deal from a Circuit City or Office Depot store that is closing.

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Business Know-How

Wednesday's Woman: Time To Refashion The Hourglass

Posted by Gayle Kesten 11:45 AM ET | Dec 17, 2008

Working women who can pinch an inch, rejoice! A new study published in this month's Current Anthropology lets us off our mental hooks.

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Women in Business

Contest For The Internationally Minded

Posted by Gayle Kesten 03:51 PM ET | Dec 16, 2008

If your start-up aspirations include our friends across the pond, then here's one "wale" of a contest.

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Startups

Ax The Payroll Tax, Temporarily

Posted by Gayle Kesten 09:57 AM ET | Dec 15, 2008

The economic stimulus plan should include a six-month payroll tax break for small businesses, whose sales are at an all-time low, says the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).

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Economy | SmallBizResource

Yellow Pages 2.0

Posted by Gayle Kesten 10:45 AM ET | Dec 12, 2008

When contemplating the best ways to advertise online to your local market, don't let your fingers walk past a tried-and-true resource that has been at your disposal long before you were born.

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Internet | Marketing | SmallBizResource

Watch Out For Holiday Shoplifters

Courtesy of Business Know-How 11:59 AM ET | Dec 11, 2008

The holiday season should be one of joy and happiness -- even with a suffering economy. Unfortunately, this time of year also brings out the thieves, robbers and crooks.

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Business Know-How | Retail | Security | SmallBizResource

Wednesday's Woman: Hard Times, Creative Measures

Posted by Gayle Kesten 12:32 PM ET | Dec 10, 2008

When the going gets tough, resilient working women get going. They think out of the box. Meet four females who fit the bill.

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Women in Business

Koobface Virus Still Stalking Facebook

Posted by Gayle Kesten 03:07 PM ET | Dec 9, 2008

A slimy worm is leaving its gooey trail across Facebook, posing as members' friends to ultimately hijack their machines via bogus e-mail that's delivered via the social network's messaging system.

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Internet | Marketing | Security | SmallBizResource

Easy Ways To Secure Your iPhone

Posted by Gayle Kesten 12:18 PM ET | Dec 8, 2008

Q3 sales for smartphones may have gone in the same direction as the rest of the economy, but let's not overlook the one bright spot that's as shiny as the screen on a brand-new iPhone.

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Mobility | Security | SmallBizResource | Software

Go Ahead And Have Your Office Holiday Party

Posted by Gayle Kesten 02:07 PM ET | Dec 5, 2008

A day after widespread layoffs, my former company went ahead with its preplanned summer BBQ. Biting into my burger that hot day several years ago, I couldn't help but wonder if cancelling the event could have saved someone's job.

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Economy

12 Ways to Build Your E-Mail List

Posted by Janet Attard, Courtesy of Business Know-How 01:23 PM ET | Dec 4, 2008

Building an e-mail mailing list -- and mailing to it regularly -- is one of the most effective strategies for boosting Web site traffic and sales.

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Business Know-How | Internet | Marketing | Startups

Wednesday's Woman: Identity Theft Assistance Center's Anne Wallace

Posted by Gayle Kesten 12:54 PM ET | Dec 3, 2008

Imagine applying for credit and being told the only piece missing from your paperwork is a man's signature. Fortunately, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, enacted in 1974, changed that -- but not without the help of Anne Wallace, who today has turned her attention to helping identity-theft victims get back on their feet.

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Security | SmallBizResource | Women in Business

Recession Aside, You Still Need To Advertise

Posted by Gayle Kesten 03:16 PM ET | Dec 2, 2008

Gimme an R… Gimme an E… Hey, have you heard? We're officially in a recession -- and have been for, oh, about a year now.

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Marketing | SmallBizResource

Reform Regulations That Affect Your Small Business

Posted by Gayle Kesten 11:50 AM ET | Dec 1, 2008

Times change. Rules that made sense when they were enacted become outdated as years pass. Here's your chance to determine 10 federal laws to go under the microscope in the new year.

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Government | SmallBizResource

Wednesday's Woman: Four Female Ex-Dell Execs Sue For Discrimination

Posted by Gayle Kesten 11:17 AM ET | Nov 26, 2008

A quartet of senior-level women who were among a significant layoff at Dell are singing anything but the computer maker's praises, instead filing a class-action lawsuit claiming gender and age discrimination.

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Women in Business

MoxieChat: An Easy Way To Add Chat Functionality To Your Web Site

Posted by Gayle Kesten 03:15 PM ET | Nov 25, 2008

Last week I touched on the notion of abandoned e-carts. This week I present one way to figure out what's behind that issue (among other uses).

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SmallBizResource

Last-Minute Considerations As We Slide Into Cyber Monday

Posted by Gayle Kesten 11:23 AM ET | Nov 24, 2008

No-brainer, the economic downturn is going to put a measurable damper on holiday spending -- particularly for specialty retailers -- but as long as Rufolph's nose still glows, consumers will still buy gifts.

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Marketing