Affiliate Links On Pinterest, This Time Via PinDollars |  |
- Affiliate Links On Pinterest, This Time Via PinDollars
- Say What You Need To Say And Do What You Have To Do
- Hire More Employees or Contract Out?
- 5 Drivers of Business Innovation
- The Great Recession’s Effect on Small Loans to Business
- Small Business Haters and Other Challenges
| Affiliate Links On Pinterest, This Time Via PinDollars Posted: 23 Apr 2012 08:23 PM PDT
The image-based social site has had its share of controversy, though. In February it was criticized for briefly dabbling with Skimlinks, a service which substituted affiliate links for the pinned image links users had submitted. Part of the reason for such outcry is that Pinterest itself was substituting affiliate links. Now another service, called PinDollars, aims to help Pinterest users make money off their pins directly. PinDollars lets you pin items to your Pinterest boards as you normally do, but if you use the PinDollars button it inserts an affiliate link. The site says:
However, PinDollars may have a short lifespan. Before you get too excited over PinDollars, consider the following:
AllThingsD points out that ironically, PinDollars uses the very same Skimlinks affiliate-link-substitution service that Pinterest tried. From Small Business Trends |
| Say What You Need To Say And Do What You Have To Do Posted: 23 Apr 2012 01:30 PM PDT It's not enough. Conversation, or lip-service (as my dad calls it), is not enough. It's true, we need all the inspiration and encouragement that we can find, but action has to follow all that self talk.
According to Susan L. Reid in “Why Positive Affirmations Can Be a Business Liability,”
You Have To Get Your Hands Dirty: Do The WorkWishing just doesn't build businesses. Susan gives 3 tips to help you move beyond the affirmation. And once you're ready for action why not start with a little marketing strategy. After the personal pep talk, it's time to get moving. In “Match Your Marketing Style to a Killer Marketing Strategy” Ivana Taylor helps you promote your business online according to your communication/marketing style. Are you an introvert or an extrovert? Ivana gives a quick plan for each. And if you're like me, you walk that middle road personality test after personality test, then take tips from both sides. The point is to get unstuck by playing to your natural communication style. Grab what works and implement one at least one this week. And here's one last thing to consider. Take action, But Don’t Hurt YourselfIn “Are Big Companies Better Innovators Than Small Ones?” Anita Campbell says,
I understand that small business obsession to save money, and while it's true that resources don't run as deep inside small companies as they do in corporations, what we can "afford" — on some level — is governed by perception. Ultimately, we can "afford" whatever we have to. It's just a matter of understanding the benefits for expenses like legal fees, the cost of marketing, staff training and better customer service. Once you get the value, you can always find a way to make it work. Say what you need to say to keep yourself inspired, but do what you have to do to keep yourself moving forward.
From Small Business Trends |
| Hire More Employees or Contract Out? Posted: 23 Apr 2012 11:20 AM PDT The economy is starting to turn around, and if things continue in a positive vein as I think they will, your company may soon be growing. A growing company has many decisions to make, including: do we hire full-time staff as employees, or do we add independent contractors? The benefits of hiring independent contractors can include lower overhead in the form of health insurance and benefits. But does lower overhead outweigh the returns on investing in dedicated employees who may be loyal to the company, grow in ability with it, and eventually be more self-sufficient and reliable? After all, that independent contractor may be spending more mindshare and effort building his or her own business, versus your business — on your dime! And is overhead really such a large issue today when tasks can be seamlessly outsourced to professional employer organizations? Aside from that, there are some complex issues. No matter what you call him or her, is the person really an employee and not an independent contractor, in the eyes of the government? A small business owner must fully understand worker classification and compliance, and many do not – one in three U.S. businesses fail a worker classification audit. This Thursday a complimentary webinar will answer these questions and many more, including your questions:
This webinar features a panel of experts, including a representative from the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. It is free – just be sure to register your spot in advance so you don’t miss out. What you learn could save your company on costly penalties: Time: 2 pm ET/11 am PT Save your company from serious penalties – register now. From Small Business Trends |
| 5 Drivers of Business Innovation Posted: 23 Apr 2012 08:01 AM PDT Innovation is critical not only to business success, but to its very survival. Why is innovation so important? Fresh approaches, new ways of delivering ideas, visual and content changes all keep people interested and coming back. Innovation is NOT exclusive to big brands, but is, in fact, essential for ALL brands.
Fast Company lists the Top 50 Most Innovative Companies, those firms that transform and impact their industry time and again. There are 5 drivers of innovation:
These 50 made the list because they all demonstrate these drivers and ultimately offer up fresh, fun and fab. The Fast Company’s list is a mix of Icons – Amazon, UPS, NFL, HBO – and New-cons, like Solar City, Kiva Systems, Pinterest and Square. These companies are full of new ideas and untapped niches from everything like monitoring the oceans deep to solving customers pet peeves to becoming a dairy superstar. Others simply take a new twist on a tried and true concept, like Starbucks who is recognized for its ability to infuse a steady stream of new ideas in order to revive its business, and the NFL, an organization that is able to create year-round demand for professional football. Let’s look at some of these inspiring, innovative companies in some key categories: Finance Web and Internet Music Mobile Media Social Media Retail All of these examples show how trends, demographics and psycho-graphics impact the consumer and lifestyle world. Innovation is vital to keeping up with how we are all aging, changing and consuming. BusinessLink walks you through the creative process toward innovation. Seth Godin talks about making a rukus in your industry by “bringing forward a new idea or technology that disrupts and demands a response, or redefining a service as a product.” Most innovation is inspired by simply emulating what the best are doing, as demonstated by the Top 50 above. We redecorate, rebrand our businesses, and makeover our look and wardrobe. This is inspired by innovation and relevance, important partners. So, how can you innovate and inspire your business clients, social followers, friends and raging fans?
From Small Business Trends |
| The Great Recession’s Effect on Small Loans to Business Posted: 23 Apr 2012 05:30 AM PDT Small loans to businesses continue to shrink, falling to $613 billion dollars at the end of 2011, the Small Business Administration (SBA) reports. The dollar value of small loans is down substantially since the start of the financial crisis and Great Recession. SBA data reveals that the inflation-adjusted value of business loans of less than $1 million shrank by 19 percent between 2007 and 2011. As the figure below shows, we have yet to see any recovery in the real value of small loans to business.
The amount lent has declined in large part because banks are making fewer loans. While the average value of loans shrank 6.7 percent since 2007, the number of loans fell 13 percent, from 24.5 million to 21.3 million. The SBA data doesn't tell us whether all small businesses now have fewer loans or fewer small companies are borrowing, but other data suggests that the latter is true. Much of the drop in loan volume comes from a decline in real estate lending. As probably would surprise few people, the number of commercial real estate loans dropped 39 percent between 2007 and 2011, a much larger decline than the 10 percent reduction in the number of commercial and industrial small business loans. However, the large decline in the number of commercial real estate loans was not reflected in a decline in the value of the loans. The real dollar value of small commercial real estate loans fell only 17 percent between 2007 and 2011, less than the 20 percent drop in the value of real value of commercial and industrial small business loans. From Small Business Trends |
| Small Business Haters and Other Challenges Posted: 23 Apr 2012 02:30 AM PDT Yes, there are challenges in being a small business owner, and especially when your business is online. Take the online hater, for example. But don’t worry! We’ve got some tips for you and some ideas on handling other small business challenges online and off up ahead in our Small Business Trends roundup. Dealing with Cyber BulliesNine ways to deal with online haters. Anonymous cyber bullies are no fun to deal with. That’s for sure. But consider these simple solutions to get your favorite online hater off your back for good. Business On Main Join our tips for dealing with online haters #Contest. Here’s your turn to get involved. If you have some suggestions, either ones you’ve used in the past (or ones you’ve wanted to!) now’s the time to share. The best suggestion wins a $100 gift card from Amazon. BizSugar Blog Reaching Your CustomersTips for getting your product out there. It doesn’t matter what your business sells, getting your product into the hands of customers is job one. And sometimes, as author Scott Sigler knows, that’s even if you need to give it away for free. Yahoo! News Breaking down a big dream. Entrepreneurs are renowned for having really big dreams. But execution is another matter all together. How can you break down your big idea into little ideas that can be accomplished easily before moving on to the next? Create Hype Social Media & VAsHow to master social media. Social media is much more than simply a tool. It’s a skill set that small business owners today, particularly those running online businesses, must master if they intend to take their businesses to the next level. Site Prebuilder The right virtual assistance for 2012. Whether you will need virtual assistance or would like to find a way to offer it, here are some skill sets that rank highly in the field to date. They are either skills you might seek to procure or provide depending upon your business. The Work At Home Woman Business Model & CultureIn search of a business model? Some businesses are missing that all important point. They have a great product or service, but can’t figure out how to make a profit from it. This is a business model problem. Startup Professionals Musings Creating the right business culture. It’s not as easy as you might think to create the kind of company people will actually want to work for. A couple of lunch sessions like the one suggested here may get you on your way though. Get Busy Media More Business TipsCustomer service is key. Customer service is hugely important for your small business, both starting out and in the long run. Realize that customer service will create the impression others have of your business over time, and tend to it accordingly. Small Business Bonfire Promoting that seasonal business. There are businesses that are only open for part of the year or have certain times of the year where they are busiest. So, what about your seasonal business? Do you remember to let customers know it’s that time again. Bloomberg Businessweek From Small Business Trends |
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