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10 Things Every Small Business Website Requires

Friday, November 12th, 2010

Posted By: Andy Willoughby

This is Entrepreneur.com’s top 10 list of small business website accessories.  Stay focused, simple and make sure you search engine optimize.

1. A clear description of who you are
Someone who stumbles upon your website shouldn’t have to do investigative work to figure out what, exactly, it is that you do. That means clearly stating your name and summing up your products or services right on the homepage, says John Zhuang, of Web-design and SEO-optimization firm Winning Interactive.

social media people 300x200 10 Things Every Small Business Website Requires

2. A simple, sensible Web address
Don’t make things complicated.

“Your domain name is like your brand. It should be easy for a user to type it into a Web browser or an e-mail address,” says Ron Wright, the founder of business Web design and online marketing firm Accentix.

3. An easily-navigated site map
Clear links to the most important pages, and a site map, are crucial for guiding visitors to the information they’re looking for.

“Be sure your navigation is clearly laid out. I always recommend using drop downs in the navigation menu so the visitor can see the content under every heading from virtually any page. You want to make it very easy for your visitors to find what they are looking for, or what you want them to know,” Wright suggests.

4. Easy-to-find contact information
You wouldn’t want to lose a customer to a competitor just because you made it difficult for them to get in touch with you.

“Not every online visitor has the patience to click through every page on your website to find the contact information,” says Zhuang

5. Customer testimonials
Honest words from others help make your products or services more tangible to customers who are visiting you online.

“They help your potential customers to build trust in you, especially if you are new,” Zhuang says. “[And they] help shoppers to confirm whether the product [or] services meet their needs.”

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59 Business Networking Commandments by SmallBizTrends.com

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

Posted by: Andy Willoughby, entrepreneur and founder of the 3 Step Plan, home-based business system

Here are a few business networking strategies that Dian Helbig reviewed on smallbiztrends.com.

networking11 300x270 59 Business Networking Commandments by SmallBizTrends.com


1. Identify where you should go. All venues are not right for all people. You owe it to yourself to do your research and find the venues that make sense for your business.

2. Make a decision about which organizations you should join and which you don’t have to join in order to gain value from their events. For example, does it make sense to join a local chamber of commerce, or just go to the events that sound interesting and will most likely include people you should meet?

3. Register for the event and schedule it like a business meeting. Many people either don’t sign up for events or sign up for them and then forget to go.

4. Determine how often you should be networking in a given week, month or quarter. This will help you narrow down where you should be going.

5. Develop open-ended questions you can use to ignite a conversation. Try to find unique questions; don’t ask the same old “So, what do you do?” if you can help it.

6. Attend events with a plan to learn something new. This will keep you from talking too much about yourself and your business.

7.Prepare yourself physically and mentally for the event.

  • Dress appropriately.
  • Bring business cards.
  • Turn your phone off or set it to vibrate.

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U.S. Department of Labor Predicts No. 1 Employer By End of 2010 Will Be Self-Employment

Monday, October 18th, 2010

The U.S. Department of is Labor predicting that the No. 1 employer by the end of this year will be self-employment. Approximately 10.5 million workers were self-employed in 2007, and that number is expected to jump markedly, according to the DOL. Inflation is still at an all time low, slowing down the growth of our economy and most importantly slowing down the growth of new jobs being created. Entrepreneurship is not as hard as most may think and finding something that you’repassionate about and turning it into a business, is the right step.  Controlling your own schedule, planning your own meetings and identifying your own clients are all benefits of becoming an entrepreneur.

In a recent article on MinuteManNewsCenter.com, self-owned businesses now make up about 80 percent of the GDP. Some experts contend that the success of small business owners will play a critical part in leading the country out of this economic crisis. A Merrill Lynch New Retirement Survey conducted in 2005, revealed that Baby Boomers would reinvent retirement and start news businesses in their later years.

entrepreneur 000 300x199 U.S. Department of Labor Predicts No. 1 Employer By End of 2010 Will Be Self Employment

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10 Networking Questions That Work

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

Posted By: Andy Willoughby

In a recent post by Ivan Miser on Entrepreneur.com, Miser highlights 10 networking questions from his friend, Bob Burg. He encourages everyone to use these tips when networking with others.

shaking hands 300x198 10 Networking Questions That Work

Bob Burg’s 10 Networking Questions That Work Every Time

1.  How did you get started in the (______) business?

2.  What do you enjoy most about your profession?

3.  What separates you and your company from the competition?

4.  What advice would you give someone just starting out in the (______) business?

5.  What one thing would you do with your business if you knew you could not fail?

6. What do you see as the coming trends in the (______) business?

7.  What significant changes have you seen take place in your profession through the years?

8.  Describe the strangest or funniest incident you’ve experienced in your business?

9.  What ways have you found to be the most effective for promoting your business?

10.  What one sentence would you like people to use in describing the way you do business?


Seattle Entrepreneur Introduces Innovative Hotel

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

Posted by: Andy Willoughby

I would like to share an article published by Jennifer Wang of Entrepreneur Magazine which reflects on creative new age techniques that one entrepreneur has used to get his business noticed. Alex Calderwood has created a new style of urban hotel which is pitched not as a place to stay while on vacation or business trips, but as a lifestyle.

Picture 541 232x300 Seattle Entrepreneur Introduces Innovative Hotel

Calderwood’s visionary ideas, to name a few, incorporate the option for guests to purchase a hotel room that comes with a Brita water filter and a pair of special edition Converse sneakers.  ”Ace Hotels reflect Calderwood’s individualistic spirit. Seattle’s Ace–the chain’s first–is like nowhere you’ve stayed before. Located in a bustling downtown bar district, the hotel has unobtrusive double glass doors that open onto a flight of stairs leading up to the front desk and narrow hallways that resemble a modern art installation.

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Four Steps to get Entrepreneurs on the Road to Success

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

Posted by: Andy Willoughby

The road to becoming successful has always been hard, but here are four steps to ensure entrepreneur success by Entrepreneur.com author Kim Kiyosaki titled “The Four Keys to Raising Capitol”.  ”The key to raising money, whether it’s to start or expand your business or to purchase and operate a rental property, comes down to four factors:”

The Project

The Partners

The Financing

The Management

Picture 53 212x300 Four Steps to get Entrepreneurs on the Road to Success

“If you can show a prospective lender or investor that you have command over these four pieces of the puzzle, then selling will not be an issue, and you will attract more money than you thought possible.”

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