Okay so you are a small business person and you now have your own blog. Of course, now you have also noticed that your major competition, a big corporation, also has a communication blog. You worry because it is slick, trendy and obviously professionally done. Thus, you are wondering how can you compete with that? Well, the Internet levels the playing field in this case. How so you ask?
Well, it is the customer who chooses which content they wish to read on the Internet, the consumer is king, they know it and no corporation or anyone else for that matter is going to tell them what to read, how to think or what to say in the information age. Indeed, power to the people is a very good statement right about now in the blogosphere.
Guess what? You have a serious advantage on your blog, because your business is local and you can cater to the local area, whereas your corporate communication blog competitor cannot! You can write posts about your small business and how you interface with the community locally; you can discuss nonprofit groups, schools, parks and all things local.
Folks are concerned about the things that affect themselves and their families personally. So, capitalize on this fact. Make a list of potential things that you hear your customers talking about and ask them for advice on what to post on your blog. Many of your customers will have opinions on such things. You see, you can compete against the Big Boys Blogs without any problem, so don't let their communication blogs psyche you out.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Small Business Health Care Mandates in US - Will it Cause Offshore Outsourcing?
Government policy always affects businesses and thus, our economic condition in the United States. It seems that government wishes to mandate that all small businesses have health care benefits for all their employees, but is this a wise choice? In the 2008 Presidential Debates we have the candidates arguing if Health Care is a right or a responsibility.
One candidate calls it a right, because we are a Wealthy Nation and therefore can afford to provide health care to our people. The other candidate calls this one more move towards socialism and calls health care insurance and responsibility.
So, those looking at the economic impact of all small businesses providing health care due to government mandates have set off alarm bells. They question the government's right to mandate such things and ask if this will be the death nail of small business.
You see, many small business owners do not have health care, those that have it, never use it, as they are too busy trying to make ends meet in their company and really have no time to go to a doctor. Further, they say that many of their employees are young and do not want health care insurance, but would be glad to take a bonus or have a beer.
One wise group of thinkers asks; "If the US Government mandates that all small businesses provide health care, then it will cause large businesses to check to see if they do and are
compliant, if not they will no longer outsource work to them, thus, they are more likely to outsource offshore. This effectively kills small businesses in our country and sends more US dollars overseas."
This is an interesting side discussion, but quite relevant because it shows the extreme problem with government controls and the laws of unintended consequences. The health care system is broken, health care insurance is too high, so is medical costs, so rather than fixing the health care system, the government wishes to mandate small business to participate in it and continue growing the façade.
It is definitely time to expand the discussion and allow everyone to see all the issues on the table before we continue such a dialogue on the issue of Universal Health Care or mandatory health care insurance for all employees.
One candidate calls it a right, because we are a Wealthy Nation and therefore can afford to provide health care to our people. The other candidate calls this one more move towards socialism and calls health care insurance and responsibility.
So, those looking at the economic impact of all small businesses providing health care due to government mandates have set off alarm bells. They question the government's right to mandate such things and ask if this will be the death nail of small business.
You see, many small business owners do not have health care, those that have it, never use it, as they are too busy trying to make ends meet in their company and really have no time to go to a doctor. Further, they say that many of their employees are young and do not want health care insurance, but would be glad to take a bonus or have a beer.
One wise group of thinkers asks; "If the US Government mandates that all small businesses provide health care, then it will cause large businesses to check to see if they do and are
compliant, if not they will no longer outsource work to them, thus, they are more likely to outsource offshore. This effectively kills small businesses in our country and sends more US dollars overseas."
This is an interesting side discussion, but quite relevant because it shows the extreme problem with government controls and the laws of unintended consequences. The health care system is broken, health care insurance is too high, so is medical costs, so rather than fixing the health care system, the government wishes to mandate small business to participate in it and continue growing the façade.
It is definitely time to expand the discussion and allow everyone to see all the issues on the table before we continue such a dialogue on the issue of Universal Health Care or mandatory health care insurance for all employees.
Monday, March 2, 2009
8 Bookkeeping Mistakes Made by Small Business Owners - Mistakes That You Need to Avoid
In this article, we will discuss some of the most common bookkeeping mistakes made by small business owners that you absolutely need to avoid if you want grow your business:
1. Handle all bookkeeping work by yourself. Especially for a small business, it is very common for the owner to have a self-employed mindset. The owner will try to do it all by himself because of budget constraints. Although it does not seems like there are a lot of bookkeeping to be done at the beginning, you must develop a habit to record your book frequently so as to make your job easier in the future.
2. Do not tally your book with your business bank account. It is very important to make sure that what is on the bank statement is the same as your books. As long as the numbers tallied, you can be assured that there is no bank payment or receipt that have been missed out by you.
3. Forget to update your books. Sometimes, it is very easy to forget updating your book if you buy goods or services with cash or your company credit card. This will create trouble in the future as the numbers on your book will not tally with the numbers on the bank statement.
4. Not using the right bookkeeping software. Bookkeeping software can help reduce your workload and make your recordings more accurate. You should invest on the right software for your industry and train your staff to use it.
5. Forget to backup your data. You should backup all the data in your computer in case of any emergency. It only takes you very little time so there is no excuse for you not to do it.
6. Not organizing your information properly. You need to organize your information into the right category for easy reference. This will keep your recording simple and consistent for anyone who takes over your bookkeeping work.
7. Not registering for taxable sales. If your company's total sales reaches a certain amount (depending on your country of residence), you need to file for registration. Failure to do so may result in fines.
8. Do not have a separate business bank account. Even though you are a self-employed, it is a good practice to open a separate bank account solely for business transactions. This will make your bookkeeping job easier and makes everything much clearer.
These are 8 common bookkeeping mistakes made by many small business owners. Hope that with this article, you can avoid making the same costly mistakes.
1. Handle all bookkeeping work by yourself. Especially for a small business, it is very common for the owner to have a self-employed mindset. The owner will try to do it all by himself because of budget constraints. Although it does not seems like there are a lot of bookkeeping to be done at the beginning, you must develop a habit to record your book frequently so as to make your job easier in the future.
2. Do not tally your book with your business bank account. It is very important to make sure that what is on the bank statement is the same as your books. As long as the numbers tallied, you can be assured that there is no bank payment or receipt that have been missed out by you.
3. Forget to update your books. Sometimes, it is very easy to forget updating your book if you buy goods or services with cash or your company credit card. This will create trouble in the future as the numbers on your book will not tally with the numbers on the bank statement.
4. Not using the right bookkeeping software. Bookkeeping software can help reduce your workload and make your recordings more accurate. You should invest on the right software for your industry and train your staff to use it.
5. Forget to backup your data. You should backup all the data in your computer in case of any emergency. It only takes you very little time so there is no excuse for you not to do it.
6. Not organizing your information properly. You need to organize your information into the right category for easy reference. This will keep your recording simple and consistent for anyone who takes over your bookkeeping work.
7. Not registering for taxable sales. If your company's total sales reaches a certain amount (depending on your country of residence), you need to file for registration. Failure to do so may result in fines.
8. Do not have a separate business bank account. Even though you are a self-employed, it is a good practice to open a separate bank account solely for business transactions. This will make your bookkeeping job easier and makes everything much clearer.
These are 8 common bookkeeping mistakes made by many small business owners. Hope that with this article, you can avoid making the same costly mistakes.
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