Small Business Optimism from Small Business Success Index
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The Small Business Success Index was conducted in December 2008 and January 2009; a total of 1,000 small business owners were interviewed by phone. It was commissioned by Network Solutions, LLC and the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. It found terrific optimism:
Small businesses are succeeding despite the economic downturn.
* 69% of small businesses made a profit in 2008
* 7% of small businesses report that they broke even
* The majority (69%) of those who showed a profit in 2008 said it was equal to or better than the previous year
* 70% of small businesses expect their firms to still be operating in five years as opposed to being closed, sold or transferred, and of these, 66% expect to be bigger in size
Small businesses are optimistic, regardless of the current gloomy economic situation.
* 23% of small businesses believe the economy will improve in 2009
* 26% of small businesses believe it will remain unchanged in 2009
* 48% of small businesses expect a decline in 2009
Small businesses are still investing in their companies, in spite of the 48% of small business owners expecting the economy to be in decline in 2009.
* 25% plan to increase their overall business spending
* 42% plan to spend the same
* 31% plan to decrease their spend
* 23% plan to increase spending on professional development of employees
* 26% plan to increase their internet marketing budgets, including online advertising and website development
More information can be obtained from:
Reporter & Analyst Relations Contact
Susan Wade, Director of Public Relations
703.668.5057 or swade@networksolutions.com
Sponsors include:
About Network Solutions, LLC
As the leading provider of Web solutions and the pioneer of the domain name registration service, Network Solutions offers a full range of Web-related services that includes Web hosting, Web design, e-commerce software, search engine marketing, SSL certificates, e-mail services, and domain name registration. Network Solutions draws on 30 years of experience to make it simple and affordable for customers to build and manage an online presence through a one-stop Web solutions provider.
About the Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 13 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and part-time MBA, executive MBA, MS in business, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations on three continents — North America, Europe and Asia.
About Rockbridge Associates Inc.
The SBSI survey was conducted by Rockbridge Associates Inc., a leading market research firm based in Great Falls, Va. Clients include Fortune 500 ® companies, government agencies and associations. Rockbridge conducts primary research and consulting to help with product design, positioning, pricing, and customer satisfaction. www.rockresearch.com
Where To Find Small Business Financing Today
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Several online resources generate direct lending to small business making use of social lending where individuals make loans directly to borrowers using the Internet to create secure connections bypassing traditional banking, not doing much these days.
American business now has a few new alternatives. UNCRUNCH AMERICA™, provides new resources to businesses (and consumers) in need of funding. Its goal is to help resolve the credit crunch and rebuild the economy by delivering secure, trustworthy tools to obtain financing.
Participants include: Virgin Money, part of Richard Branson’s worldwide group of companies, offers unique financial services and a customer experience that most banks cannot match. Having originated over $370M in social loan volume, Virgin Money is the leader in managing loans between friends and family, and a pioneer in the emerging social finance sector. Whether looking to finance your friend’s start-up, or expand your own business, use Virgin Money to manage your loan. They provide documents and support.
On Deck Capital On Deck loan system focuses on the strength of your business rather than personal credit. By allowing you to leverage the cash flow of your business to access financing, On Deck lets you get back to the business of running your business.
Thanks Microsoft for Public Service Training Initiative
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Microsoft Corp. today announced a new initiative, Elevate America, which will provide up to 2 million people over the next three years with the technology training needed to succeed in the 21st-century economy.
Microsoft has worked for years with other businesses and community-based partners to broaden access to job opportunities through information technology education and training. Elevate America expands these efforts and provides immediate support in response to the current economic crisis in partnership with others in the public and private sector.
Elevate America has two main offerings, one available immediately and one that will be provided in partnership with state governments including those of Florida, New York and Washington.
Elevate America helps individuals understand what types of technical skills they need for the jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities of today and tomorrow, and resources to help acquire these skills. The Web site provides access to several Microsoft online training programs, including how to use the Internet, send e-mail and create a résumé, as well as more advanced programs on using specific Microsoft applications.
85 Free Online Business Courses from SmallBizBee.com
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Mind boggling small business entrepreneur resource for free online classes compliments of SmallBizBee.com, the creation of business owner and entrepreneur Matthew Ringer.
Subjects include General Small Business, Strategy, Business Plans, Marketing, Financing, Communication, Leadership, Special Interest Business, Business Technology, Business and Social Media and Other.
This invaluable resource can be found at 85 Absolutely Free Online Business Classes
Free Online Software Training for Insomniac Entrepreneurs
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W3Schools is the largest FREE WEB DEVELOPERS SITE on the Internet with 80 million pages displayed every month. Basic training topics include: WWW – The World Wide Web; HTML – The Language of the Web; CSS – Cascading Style Sheets; JavaScript – Client Side Scripting; XML – Extensible Markup Language; Server Side Scripting; Managing Web Data with SQL.
WARNING: Only for the technically inclined small business entrepreneur with lots of time to invest.
Other topics include:
Web Building
Web Design
Web Users
Web Standards
Web Validation
Web W3C
Web Security
Web Glossary
Web Search
Web Awards
Past Recessions Created More Entrepreneurs & New Businesses? And Now?
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Chad Moutray, Chief Small Business Administration Economist Anticipates Growth in Entrepreneurs & New Small Business Startups
The numbers for our serious economic recession bear this out. The United States lost 2.6 million jobs in 2008, its greatest decline in annual non-farm payroll since 1945. The unemployment rate rose to 7.2 percent and going higher by all indicators.
The SBA chief economist, Chad Moutray, expects more entrepreneurship as a result, much out of necessity. Here is why: the talent pool of the newly unemployed has never been better. Now they will now be able to sell their talents as their own boss. Many, according to the Moutray, have considered self-employment for some time, but were risk averse UNTIL THEY HAD NO CHOICE. NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP.
Getting and keeping customers requires a few elements: Understand customer needs. Tailor services wrapped around the new entrepreneurs skill sets married to the customers needs. Target prospects who need what you are selling.
So what can a new entrepreneur do to increase his odds of success. An employee who is no longer one but has with strong technical skills needs the ability to go out and sell his expertise (his lemonade). That means every day, all the time not just job interviews. Motivation may not be lacking in today’s economy to get up each morning with a plan to consistently articulate those needs to prospects.
The time is now. If the young entrepreneurs in the above image can sell their lemonade what’s stopping you from selling yours? In past recessions, small business recovered sooner than big business according to Chad Moutray.
26.8 Million Small Businesses from SBA – Look in the Mirror
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The small business BIG PICTURE from the SBA Office of Advocacy’s 2009 Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia includes national-level data and limited data on U.S. territories.
2009 Small Business Profiles data includes: the number of firms, demographics of business ownership, small business income, banking, business turnover, industry composition, and employment gains and losses by size of business. Detailed historical data may be found in the Small Business Economic Indicators and the Small Business Economy reports.
Get your copy of SBA report right here
Flattered and Honored at Semmy Best 2009 Local Search Article Nomination
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In their own words: “The SEMMYS are an annual awards event honoring the great content produced across the search and online marketing industry. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) has grown to include a variety of disciplines, including blogging, social media, reputation management, and much more. The SEMMYS attempt to include all these elements into one awards event. I hope the SEMMYS serve as a complement to the excellent existing awards which honor blogs and bloggers.”
My article published on Search Engine Journal was nominated as one of the five best 2009 articles on Local Search: How to Optimize Local Business Profiles for Free Local Directories
Thanks. The other four nominees have written excellent articles and there should be five awards. All the articles plus the right to vote can be found at Semmy nominated Best Local Search articles for 2009
2,000 FREE Legal Forms – Nothing Sexier Than Saving Legal Fees
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I hate to pay attorneys when they generate a templated legal form, then send a $2,000 bill, especially during a recession.
I am happy to pay any professional, even a lawyer if there is some real service rendered
I do not consider boiler-plate forms to be a value-added service so…..in the spirit of recession economics and just good sense AllAboutLaw.com offers more than 2,000 FREE legal forms
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