New York SBDC Research Network

Branding your business is tricky. You have to make sure it comes across as appealing, a ‘must have’ brand that’s not too pretentious. Over time, your company will change leading to a need to refine your brand image, but even the smallest of changes can affect your target market and their perception of your brand. Clive Rohald has written an interesting article in The Drum about how to give your brand identity a makeover without alienating your customers. Here are some of his thoughts. Every company, at one time or another, will feel the need for a brand refresh. The question is, how can that be achieved without it turning into a disaster. 1. Why is there a need for change? More from SmallBusinessNewz .

Why do people buy from you? It boils down to two things: they found you, and they picked you. Let's talk about "they found you." To get people to find you, you've got to tell them about yourself or someone else has to tell other people about you. If you're the only grocery store in your town, you don't have a problem with people finding you. You stick a sign outside and reach 100% of your target market. Most of us, however, spend a lot of brain cycles trying to figure out how to tell the world about our thing. We use ads, content, social media, and so on to try to spread the word. Moreover, getting someone's attention is becoming increasingly difficult. The amount of stuff being created today—such as photos, tweets, blog posts, Facebook posts, YouTube videos, and emails—is making it hard for our message to squeeze its way into people's limited attention span. Read more from MarketingProfs

In theory, entrepreneurship sounds awesome. You’re your own boss so you can set your own hours, work from home in your PJs and do work that really matters to you. But as any entrepreneur will tell you, starting your own business is not nearly as glamorous. In fact, it can often be pretty scary and lonely. Entrepreneurs take a great financial risk to get their ventures off the ground, often using their own savings and quitting steady jobs to pursue their dreams. Yes, entrepreneurs make their own hours, but they put in many more of them than the average employee (often 12 a day or more) and, still, they face a high failure rate. Entrepreneur values those who choose to create their own path, and we’re not alone. Empact, a Princeton, N.J.-based company that provides education and networking opportunities to young entrepreneurs, today released its annual list of 100 startups led by entrepreneurs under 35 that should be on everyone’s radar. Those chosen for the Empact100 stood out amon

#1 The fake freight forwarder company scam. The fraudulent forwarders pose as legitimate companies with spare cargo capacity. Their truck arrives on-time to collect the freight and then disappears, never again to be seen. The Scoop: Here is how it works: Once a signed and sealed agency agreement is in place between both parties and business starts, all appears to be normal. This is until the cargo arrives at the port and no-one has received the original bill of lading from the forwarder in China. When contacted, the forwarder demands a large ransom for the release of the original bill of lading. Companies which refuse to pay find themselves on an expensive rollercoaster ride of meetings with customers, lawyers, insurers and shipping lines in order to obtain the original bill of lading so the cargo can be released. By spreading shipments around a number of shipping lines, fraudulent forwarders can make this recovery process even more onerous. These forwarders may be real companies w

Nearly one-third (31%) of online retailers in the United States with annual marketing budgets exceeding $1 million do not personalize their websites in any way, according to a recent report from Retention Science. Moreover, of the 69% of companies that do personalize their sites, just 21% offer personalized offers to visitors. A similar percentage (33%) of online retailers with annual marketing budgets under $1 million also do not personalize their websites; of the 67% that do, only 16% present personalized offers. The most popular form of website personalization for large and small companies is product recommendations. Other common site personalization tactics include shopping cart reminders, displaying a customer's name, and social integrations. Read more from MarketingPros

The Office of Advocacy has released its Small Business Quarterly Bulletin for Second Quarter 2014.  This two-page publication includes figures and tables of economic indicators to show the status of small business.  This latest quarterly bulletin shows promising signs for small businesses.  The bulletin includes data about proprietors' income, establishment births and deaths and various small business employment variables. The Small Business Quarterly Bulletin for Second Quarter 2014 is available online at http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/sb_qi_2014q2_FIN_0.pdf.

When it comes to New York, bagels are serious business. And they may also be taxable business -- if a knife comes out. New York, like many other states, exempts groceries from its sales tax. Walk into a bagel place, order a dozen, buy some name brand cream cheese, and go on your way -- that feels like you're grabbing some groceries, and should be left untaxed. New York agrees. You pay the posted price and the state goes empty handed. But what about one of those bagels, cut in a half, toasted, with some store-made scallion cream cheese, some lox, lettuce, and tomato, with some iced coffee to go with it? More from Now I Know .

Brands have been focused on engaging female consumers for some time now, and with good reason. Women have truly impressive purchasing prowess—$5 trillion to $15 trillion annually, according to consumer research by Nielsen. What many brand leaders are missing, however, is that even though women have been controlling the purse strings, men are shopping more. That means branding and design of packaging, seasonal retail themes, product attributes, etc. don't merely have to engage women: They need to do it without losing the men. Branding for women can be people-inclusive. Here are the five characteristics that can make it so. Read more from MarketingProfs .

Small Business Administration : Way too often, you can add up the percent of ownership in the heads of the partners and discover between them they think they own 200% of the company. That’s because one thinks the idea was worth 50% or more of the ownership, the other thinks the day-to-day work was worth 50% or more of the ownership, and another thinks having written checks and invested was worth 50% or more of the ownership. What I particularly hate in this context is when people spend the time and do the work and develop the business without spelling these things out, and then, when it’s way too late, discover that they had radically different ideas about who owns what. This is a great use of the business plan. If there’s awkwardness about who owns what when friends and family are involved, you solve that with the need to spell it all out for the plan. Don’t wait. Don’t wonder. Talk it out. The business plan is a built-in natural format that all of you can understand. The key

Kevin Jones just did what he felt was right, but you might think of him as a hero once you hear his story. When Jones was hassled by debt collectors to pay a bill he didn’t owe, he did more than tell them to get lost. He sued — and got $1,000 and a whole lot of satisfaction. Here’s how. Jones, 53, provided to Credit.com an amazingly detailed record of events related to his lawsuit, which was filed in a Cook County, Illinois federal court. The first troublesome phone call came in 2007, but the formula he used to exact sweet revenge on the debt collection firm would work equally well today. The call came on a Thursday night in November, said Jones, who lives in Evanston, Ill. It was an automated call; he didn’t answer, but he did call back. More from Credit.com .

Warm weather facilitates family vacations, outdoor activities and cold refreshment sales, providing several industries with an opportunity to generate enough revenue to sail through the rest of the year. These seasonal industries struggle to remain lucrative throughout the winter months, as frigid temperatures and annual changes in consumer behavior challenge profitability. While many seasonal industry operators anticipate May’s arrival, when demand increases as the sun also rises, these six industries are determined to make a splash year-round, come rain or shine. Amusement Parks More from IBISworld .

From the Small Business Administration : Summer is nearly over, signaling the start of school for students and teachers and the end of the fiscal year for the federal government and businesses throughout the country. This change of seasons is also a good opportunity to take a break from the frantic day-to-day grind and find new ways to reboot your small business. Let’s call it a bit of spring-cleaning for fall. Here are just a few ways you can tidy up your business and improve operations: *Glance back at your new year’s goals.

All telemarketers calling consumers in the United States are required to download the numbers on the Do Not Call Registry to ensure they do not call those who have registered their phone numbers. The first five area codes are free, and organizations that are exempt from the Do Not Call rules, such as some charitable organizations, may obtain the entire list for free. Telemarketers must subscribe each year for access to the Registry numbers. The access fees for the Registry are being increased as required by the Do‑Not‑Call Registry Fee Extension Act of 2007. Under the Act’s provisions, in fiscal year 2015 (from  October 1, 2014  to September 30, 2015 ), telemarketers will pay $60, an increase of $1, for access to Registry phone numbers in a single area code, up to a maximum charge of $16,482 for all area codes nationwide, an increase from the previous maximum of $16,228. Telemarketers will pay the same as last year for numbers they subscribe to receive during the second half of th

From the Small Business Administration . New taxpayers, such as recent graduates who’ve just entered the job market, probably have a clean tax slate. But seasoned taxpayers have a history that can impact their taxes going forward. Due to limitations and restrictions, some tax breaks cannot be fully used in the year in which they are generated but can be carried over and used in other years. Failing to know what these are and keep track of them wastes valuable tax breaks that can cost you money. Tax breaks subject to carryovers Dollar limits and other restrictions curtail write-offs for your current and past outlays. Here are some to note:

The IRS broadcasts webinars on a variety of subjects aimed at educating tax professionals on issues affecting them and their clients. The webinars are free. NATIONAL WEBINARS Business Use of Your Home  - September 10, 2014 2014 Affordable Care Act Provisions for Individuals, Families and Small Businesses   - September 17, 2014