http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-index Find information to help grow your online business with business plans, Thomas Register, news articles and more http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114260-m-6-sc-46-market_with_meaning-i When Rob Kaufelt bought Murray’s Cheese in 1991, the Greenwich Village cheese shop was a mom-and-pop hole-in-the-wall known mostly to the ... Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:00:00 -0800 114260 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114243-m-6-sc-46-make_the_most_of_your_advertising_dollars-i These days, most U.S. markets are buyer's markets, meaning that consumers have great leverage to get a lot of value for their dollars. Right now, ... Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114243 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114234-m-6-sc-46-focus_on_core_customers-i In past columns I have written about the opportunities created by our current economic climate. Regardless of where you fit on the spectrum of ... Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114234 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114230-m-6-sc-46-keep_your_regulars_happy-i Some small business owners are so focused on attracting new customers they forget to take care of the ones they already have. And neglected customers ... Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114230 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114224-m-6-sc-46-want_the_sale_offer_a_test_drive-i A very close friend of mine was looking to replace his old flat screen TV, one of the first ever manufactured, for a state-of-the-art plasma TV. ... Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114224 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114206-m-6-sc-46-celebrate_your_customers-i Do you ever give your customers a standing ovation? I mean a real flag waving hoopla?Do you make a fuss over them? Do you go over the top in ... Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114206 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114160-m-6-sc-46-is_every_customer_a_good_customer-i The goal for most people when they start a business is to find and build a solid customer base. Out of eagerness or desperation to build the ... Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114160 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114173-m-6-sc-46-anchor_your_networking_with_strong_relationships-i This summer, our family took a small-ship tour of the Great Barrier Reef near Australia. The first night we were on the ship, we noticed that the ... Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:00:00 -0700 114173 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114095-m-6-sc-46-in_sales_give_em_the_unexpected-i Every sales meeting you go to is really an ambush in disguise. The clients, prospects or customers you're going to see know precisely why ... Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:00:00 -0800 114095 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114023-m-6-sc-46-4_ways_to_kill_a_deal_in_brazil-i When Jason Lomoriello, now 38, first traveled to Brazil right out of college, he was blown away by, well, everything--the towering skyscrapers, the ... Tue, 03 Feb 2009 16:00:00 -0800 114023 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113961-m-6-sc-46-sales_lessons_from_a_fly_fishing_master-i When I was an adolescent, I went fly fishing with my father, a master of the sport. We were wading in a stream in upstate New York, the elegance of a ... Wed, 14 Jan 2009 16:00:00 -0800 113961 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113943-m-6-sc-46-keep_your_eye_on_the_prize_customers-i I speak with dozens of entrepreneurs a week and am regularly struck by the passion with which they talk about both their businesses and their ... Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:00:00 -0800 113943 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113902-m-6-sc-46-the_cost_of_a_price_hike-i Nickels and dimes add up fast, and while consumers might not be aware of the extra charges at first, they're sure to feel it in their pocketbooks ... Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113902 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113867-m-6-sc-46-cultivate_stronger_customer_bonds-i Have you noticed your inboxes are filling up faster lately with promotions from businesses desperate to get your attention? If you're like me and ... Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113867 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113884-m-6-sc-46-start_with_the_top_dog_a_sales_primer-i In uncertain times, it's more important than ever to forge alliances with the right people, but with executive assistants guarding the gateway to ... Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113884 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113857-m-6-sc-46-when_the_selling_gets_tough_the_tough_get_smart-i "How do you sell in an environment where no one is buying anything?" A frustrated and frightened salesman asked me that just the other day. ... Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113857 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113856-m-6-sc-46-marketing_that_takes_flight-i Steve Astephen's legacy is everywhere. It's in the oceans. It's in the mountains. It's on the street. But more than anywhere, ... Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113856 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113813-m-6-sc-46-how_to_make_a_powerful_first_impression-i If it's true that time is money, then it's small wonder business owners find they can never truly clock out. Wherever they go and whomever ... Sun, 16 Nov 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113813 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113791-m-6-sc-46-5_steps_to_customer_loyalty_surveys_that_work-i Let's not sugar-coat it: It's looking pretty darn ugly out there. I'm no economist, so I'm not about to predict the markets or the ... Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:00:00 -0800 113791 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113776-m-6-sc-46-convert_passersby_into_purchasers-i Marketing can be a tricky game for small-business owners who don't have a lot of cash or the expertise to devise grand marketing schemes. ... Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113776 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113798-m-6-sc-46-all_well_and_good-i For John Roberson, motivating his 32 employees to be healthy is often as simple as rewarding them with a pair of cowboy boots. "We define ... Tue, 14 Oct 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113798 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113635-m-6-sc-46-tailormade-i The word new holds the promise of wonderful things in Brazil, India and the United Arab Emirates--but not in Finland, the Netherlands or Slovenia. ... Sun, 31 Aug 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113635 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113587-m-6-sc-46-7_biggest_mistakes_in_setting_prices-i One of the biggest challenges for any business is pricing. This applies not only to a startup, but also to well-established businesses, especially ... Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113587 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113589-m-6-sc-46-do_you_know_what_your_audience_wants-i Defining your target market and converting it into a customer base can be an expensive and time-consuming process. Part of the process involves ... Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113589 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113581-m-6-sc-46-appeal_to_consumers_five_senses-i The key to writing effective copy is crafting compelling descriptions to make consumers think they can't live without the product being ... Wed, 20 Aug 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113581 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113554-m-6-sc-46-3_secrets_to_a_site_that_sells-i So, you've got your site up. Now what? You need to drive traffic, grow your opt-in list, make sales and work on your SEO. The list seems endless. ... Thu, 14 Aug 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113554 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113529-m-6-sc-46-do_the_twostep-i Every business needs leads; they're the lifeblood of your marketing machine. The trick is to set up a marketing system that lets you create a ... Thu, 31 Jul 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113529 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113453-m-6-sc-46-generating_more_referrals-i It is certainly true that larger networking groups can generate more referrals exponentially. True, that is, within each type of referral group. ... Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113453 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113417-m-6-sc-46-what_marketing_is_and_is_not-i Guerrillas know that marketing is just a fancy word for selling. It's more common sense and patience than anything else. It's a process and ... Sun, 06 Jul 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113417 http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-113367-m-6-sc-46-its_always_your_lucky_day-i When I first met Don Levine, creator of G.I. Joe action figures, he was a guest on my New York City radio show. He told me that one of his secrets to ... Mon, 30 Jun 2008 17:00:00 -0700 113367