Business Strategies Articles For Entrepreneurs & Small Business Owners

Outsourcing to a Marketing Company vs Employing In-House

So, you’re thinking about outsourcing your marketing. You invite two or three potential suppliers into see you, all of which provide you with a quote… and then at some point you start asking yourself whether you should employ someone in-house instead. When you’re faced with this dilemma, it can sometimes be helpful to breakdown the […]

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Smart Strategies to Select a Successor for Your Family Business

Admit it or not, family-run businesses constitute the majority of the enterprise pie. Most of these businesses start small and has expanded dramatically over the years. Now the problem is, the heads of the companies, be it the patriarch or similar to that does not live forever. Sooner or later, they are bound to choose […]

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How Businesses Can Take Advantage of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing has successfully changed the way businesses are run today. It has drastically reduced the overall cost of running a business (for those that know how to take advantage of it though). This article will be taking a look at how businesses that are yet to tap into this revolution, can take advantage of […]

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5 Things about Best Practices that Every Entrepreneur Should Know

Your business idea and even your business model are only part of what it takes to get a company off the ground. Many a great idea has failed to take off, or the business build around that idea failed, because an entrepreneur didn’t develop the best practices that build efficiency and help a company to […]

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Questions To Ask When Forming Business Partnerships

George Labovitiz and Victor Rosanksy in their Smart Blog on Leadership discuss the advantages of partnering that is beneficial to mutual customers.  They cite as an example Wal-Mart and Procter & Gamble, a key Wal-Mart supplier.  People from both companies were brought together to find means of serving the needs of their shared customers better.  […]

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How Lean Six Sigma Can Improve The Success Of M&As? Beyond The Financials

Did your last merger or acquisition (M&A) result in something less than what you had hoped or expected?  The financial statements and business valuations do not reveal every opportunity and potential problems that you will be faced with when you conduct your merger or acquisition.  In fact 70 percent of mergers fails to achieve its […]

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How to Improve Loan Origination Revenues with Champion / Challenger Testing

Credit scoring models have already become an essential part of loan origination systems. A growing number of lenders turn to Big Data technologies to set up a robust lending mechanism. John Thiel, Head of the Private Banking and Investment Group at Merril Lynch, says in his Forbes interview: “Big data is the ability to spot […]

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How To Identify Business Opportunities

Are you a business owner looking to increase revenue? Want to learn how to identify business opportunities for your company? Whether you own a small mom and pop shop or a multi-million dollar international corporation, identifying new business opportunities is a cyclical process that needs to repeatedly happen in your business’ lifetime if you are […]

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Create Blog Engagement With Contests

Engagement on your website is important for your page ranking in Google. The more your fans engage with your blog, the better your page looks in the eyes of the search engines. One of the most generic but effective business blog tips is to find ways to generate new traffic and keep the repeat traffic […]

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Marketing Millionaires: How These Coupon Moguls Made Money by Saving Consumers Cash

Most consumers know what a coupon is and the benefits associated with it. Traditionally, this is a document that allows a you to get a specified discount when you purchase a product or service from an outlet or a network of outlets. But that’s the concept of traditional coupons. Enter online coupons and big money […]

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Exit Planning in the 2012 Deal Market: Value Added Commitment

“It’s not whether you get knocked down … it’s whether you get up”  Vince Lombardi on Commitment  We know it’s been a rough and tough market to get deals done:   Values are down Buyers are interested, but worried Deal terms and conditions are different in today’s “new normal” Financing remains uncertain, though improving Yet, […]

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Where to Get Business Grants

If you need funds to start or develop a small business, do not look far.  This Bangor Daily News (Maine) article present some tips on where to look for business grants.  You have to be patient and persistent.  Look for these in industry publications and the local paper.  There are development agencies that offer grants […]

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Exit Planning for Privately Owned Businesses … The Beat Goes On (and On and On)

We admit we’ve been writing about exit and estate planning issues a lot recently.  But we’re passionate about it and one of our goals is to keep this topic in front of you.  Here’s why:  Based on a recent IRS study of estate tax returns that were filed (meaning that at the time of death […]

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How Long Does It Take To Sell Your Business?

Gary T. Brooks of ExitPlanPros.com and John Warrillow of BuiltToSell.com estimate the length of time to sell a business at six months to a year on the average.  Selling a business starts when you create a saleable business with predictable revenue. Planning your exit starts years before you actually decide to  put your company on […]

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Accountable? Yes, But to Whom?

Healthcare, or rather its costs, is an ongoing and hotly debated topic likely to dominate much of this season’s Presidential debates.  And, it is an important concern as Medicare’s bank account becomes increasingly strained under rising healthcare costs coupled with an aging population. Washington’s latest answer to solve this burgeoning spending crisis:   Accountable Care Organizations […]

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When Should You Raise Rates?

As your business grows, your time becomes increasingly valuable. The rates you set a few years ago for your products or services may have been appropriate at that time, but chances are your expenses have increased since then. It’s quite common for businesses– whether a freelance individual or a large corporation- to be so busy […]

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Gift and Estate Tax Changes – Are You Ready?

Recall the conversation between Robert Hayes and Leslie Nielsen in the movie Airplane?                                 Robert Hayes … “Surely, you can’t be serious?”                                  Leslie Nielsen … “I am serious….and don’t call me Shirley.” That pretty much sets the stage for this month’s newsletter about exit planning:   The “Are you serious?” state of confusion regarding gift […]

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Strengthen Your Internet Acceptable Use Policy through Internet Monitoring Software

The Internet has become the communications backbone of nearly every business. Its significance can’t de denied at any stage of the business development process. Every company provides Internet access to its employees to assist them in accomplishing their tasks. Although the Internet is a valuable research tool, it must be used appropriately. Many employees tend […]

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Selling A Business Is Madness … March Madness That Is

By Ed Davis, CPA, CVA, Partner It’s March … the nation turns its attention to March Madness and the tournament of tournaments (full disclosure, die hard Terps fan and will watch the tournament without them this year; just wait til next year). So it’s in the spirit of the game that we write this month’s […]

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Private Equity Groups – Potential Buyers for Your Business?

It’s February – the month of groundhogs, love and presidents.  If you’re a business owner, you’ve probably got more on your mind, especially if you are a business owner who’s thinking about selling their business. Recently, we’ve discussed the different types of buyers we work with and how the buyer market has changed during the […]

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