End your year & start your new year with a plan

Do not put this task off another day! You need a disaster preparedness plan.

clipped from www.sba.gov Getting back to business after a disaster depends on preparedness planning done today. Small business owners invest a tremendous amount of time, money and resources to make their ventures successful, and yet, while the importance of emergency planning may seem self-evident, it may get put on the back-burner in the face of more immediate concerns. For small business owners, being prepared can mean staying in business following a disaster. An estimated 25 percent of businesses do not reopen following a major disaster, according to the Institute for Business and Home Safety.

77%

And when are we going to stop putting up with this?

clipped from www.washingtonpost.com Taking on the Economics of Gender Inequity The report also said that among all full-time faculty, women make 77 percent of what their male counterparts are paid.

Maximize your LinkedIn

This interview with Konstantin Guericke offers the background of LinkedIn and some useful tips for maximizing your use of LinkedIN.

clipped from www.infotoday.com Online Social Networking for Business: An Interview with Konstantin Guericke, Marketing VP, LinkedIn Very specifically, how would independent consultants effectively use LinkedIn? Since the only people who can find you on LinkedIn are people who are within four degrees of separation from you, it's beneficial to have the largest number of connections possible. So you should ask some of your professional contacts to write endorsements for your profile. You want to list everything you've done professionally, all your specialties, and all your colleges.

Interesting Information

fascinating

clipped from www.washingtonpost.com An Administrative Assistant Finds Life Is Much Better as Her Own Boss Kim launched her business at the beginning of 2003. She works on a retainer of at least 10 hours a month per client and charges from $40 to $70 an hour. She currently has three clients -- a local writer, a career and executive coach in the District and a business consultant in Boston. Attracting clients is the toughest part of the job, says Kim, who finds them by networking or through the Prince William chamber of commerce and the Assist U employer registry. Kim's practice -- named Harmony Virtual Assistance, in reference to the smooth functioning she wants for her clients -- now brings in about $25,000 a year, compared with the $58,000 Kim made at the hospital. But her start-up costs were minimal, as are her expenses, she says, and she plans to add more clients. She hopes to eventually earn at least $60,000 a year.

Think before you act

If you are considering building a web site or you are in the process of updating your web site, make sure every word has meaning. Do not just throw words or content on there for sake of having words or content on there.

clipped from www.bnet.com Following the Guiding Principles of Content Management Justify the Publication of All Content Too often, organizations think of content as a low-level commodity that merely needs to be stored. But content is a critical resource, and its value lies in being sought and read. There is no point in having a great technical document if nobody knows it exists. Nor is there is any point in storing that great technical document on a Web site if nobody knows the Web site exists and never visits it. To make content management work, you really need to (1) understand who needs your content, and (2) ask potential readers what content they need. And always remember that content is consumed by busy people.

Researching the use of databases

I am just now considering using a database. I happened upon this article. This is a good starting place.

clipped from www.bnet.com Using Your Marketing Database Effectively What type of database do I need? Your database should provide information for planning and controlling sales and marketing activities. Data can come from a variety of internal and external sources and can be constantly updated, expanded. and refined to provide a precise, up-to-date view of markets and individual customers. Software tools are available to analyze the data and provide information in a way that improves decision-making and response to business opportunities.

Customer Appreciation - A little goes a long way

I think about all the places where I am a customer. In the "everything automated" world of today, it is nice to receive a little recognition for choosing to spend my hard earned dollar at your business. If I receive a thank you later in the year from the time I made the purchase, you can bet I will be a customer who returns and refers more business your way. If you think customer appreciation is low on the task list - think again.

clipped from thecustomerscorner.typepad.com Customer Service Week – 5 Ways to Celebrate Your Customers Success What can you do to show Customer Appreciation? Share a FREE report. This can be a report that can help them learn, or they can offer it as a bonus to their contacts. Send them a Thank You Card. A simple card that shows them they are in your thoughts and you appreciate the time they take to be your customer. Send them articles that are relevant to their business. This shows your customers you care about their success and have product knowledge about their business. Call them via phone; skype or instant message them. Ask them if there is anything they need; answer any questions they may have; work on building a connection and on your relationship with them. (If your database is too big to contact each customer, which by the way is not a bad problem to have, then send them a personalized email. You can do this efficiently and simply through a contact management system).