New York SBDC Research Network

Today’s franchise buyers are faced with thousands of choices; not only do they have to figure what type of franchise businesses to look into, they have to figure out which one is the “best in show.” Read more .

by Alicia H. Munnell Since working longer is the key to a secure retirement for the vast majority of older Americans, it is useful to take a look at labor force trends for those under and over age 65 for the last century.

Small Businesses Should Take Steps to Be Prepared Now - Tips It’s often difficult for small business owners – some of the busiest people in America – to look beyond the most pressing, immediate business concerns. But an “ounce of prevention” today could mean the difference in whether a business is able to survive a disaster and quickly return to regular operations. Read MORE .

Social Media Makes Lousy Customer Service a Very Costly Proposition

By Doug Caverly Complaints about contracts, customer service common There may be a handful of businesses out there that rely on solar power, possess their own water wells, and don't need phone lines or Internet. We applaud their independent spirit. But everybody else is stuck dealing with utility companies, and a new report from the Forum of Private Business indicates that the experience is less than pleasant for many firms. The FPB said in a statement, "A third (33%) of business owners surveyed by the Forum describe standards of customer service as 'poor' or 'very poor.' Many cite contractual issues - including the practice of rolling businesses over on to often more expensive contracts with little warning." Then the statement continued, "Just 11% believe utilities contracts are easy to understand, 35% think it is difficult to switch suppliers and 40% feel that contractual terms and conditions are 'poor' or 'very poor.' Al

What they all share in common is that they directly benefited from SBA help at a critical moment in their growth. Some received great advice from our staff or our counselors. Many got SBA loans. Others won federal contracts. Still others used unique programs like Small Business Investment Companies or the Small Business Innovation Research program.

From Small Business Newz : There’s a long-standing debate in business circles about the difference between the use of the term entrepreneur vs. small business owner. The issue centers on the notion that if you’re an entrepreneur you care about high growth and if you’re a small business owner you’re somehow destined to struggle to make ends meet while working your fingers to the bone.

From the Department of Agriculture - Economic Research Service Annual estimates of U.S. exports by State and commodity group based on each State's share of U.S. agricultural production.

SBA is teaming up with Visa to ask small business owners: “Where will your next customer come from?” To recognize successful small exporters and increase awareness toward federal assistance for exporters, SBA is sponsoring its Export Video Contest. The contest, presented in partnership with the National Export Initiative and Export.gov, will award monetary prizes to five successful small business exporters representing a variety of industries. American small businesses looking to expand are going global. There are a number of advantages to exporting: reaching new customers, increasing sales and profits, and becoming less dependent on domestic demand, to name several. In fact, over two-thirds of the world’s purchasing power is based outside the U.S., where the vast majority of consumers reside. The U.S. government stands ready to help your small business get started in exporting, with an array of programs, tools and resources. More HERE .

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics [PDF] Manufacturing sector multifactor productivity declined at a 5.7 percent annual rate in 2009, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. This was the largest annual decline in multifactor productivity since the series started in 1987. The multifactor productivity decline in 2009 reflected a 12.5 percent decrease in output and a 7.2 percent decrease in combined inputs.

The Small Business Quarterly Bulletin [PDF] from Advocacy's Office of Economic Research is a brochure-style publication that contains commentary and analysis on the current employment and financing trends of small businesses.

What is the best way for a business to obtain a barcode for a product? I would start HERE .

This one of those gooey, somewhat religious pieces. But it also has a basic business application, which is that good signage matters. The Blind Boy's Sign .

WASHINGTON – A major disaster has devastated your community, and landlines are down. Will you be able to use Facebook or Twitter to keep your employees, customers and vendors aware of your status? How will you distinguish good information on post-disaster social media channels from the scams? Business and civic leaders in Joplin, Mo., had a crash course in leveraging social media following the May 22 tornado that tore through the city, killing 160 people and damaging or destroying about 8,000 homes and businesses. Kirstie Smith, communications director of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, and Mark Kinsley, creator of the Rebuild Joplin Facebook page, will join the U.S. Small Business Administration and Agility Recovery Solutions during a free webinar August 16 to talk about how they used social media tools to exchange critical information with local businesses. Social media consultant John Orlando will share practical tips for business owners to use to map out a business contin

The Cost of Government Regulation & How Business Strategy Can Be Used to Mitigate Its Impact ...with all things in life and business, there are issues, such as government regulation (and taxes), that we cannot control, only react to. So we can use business strategy to mitigate the cost of government regulation by first understanding its aspects, and then developing a strategy or strategies for dealing with it, always with the focus of moving ahead, pushing forward and growing.

A NYS SBDC client seeking financing, and has been unsuccessful at local banks, inquired about a company called Lendio who says they make small business loans using an online matching platform. They require an upfront fee of $30 to start the processing. A SBDC counselor discovered this article from Forbes magazine about a small Michigan business ended up being hookwinked by Lendio's predecessor, Funding Universe. The website even made it appear that the the company was somehow affiliated with the Small Business Administration.

Compensation for civilian workers rose 0.7%, wages and salaries rose 0.4%, and benefit costs rose 1.3%, seasonally adjusted, from March to June 2011. Over the year, compensation rose 2.2%, wages and salaries 1.6%, and benefits 3.6%

Annual report on businesses without paid employees in nearly 300 industries for the nation, states, counties and metropolitan areas. Most who own such businesses are self-employed and operate very small businesses (for example, real estate agents or beauticians) that may or may not be their primary source of income. The number of nonemployer businesses...declined by more than 260,000 between 2008 and 2009 across the United States, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau...In 2009, there were 21.1 million nonemployer firms, a decrease of about 1.2 percent from 2008. This continues a decline first noted in 2008 — following the beginning of the recession at the end of 2007 — when the total number fell by more than 350,000 from a peak of 21.7 million firms in 2007. “Nonemployer firms generate a small percentage of total U.S. business receipts, but they constitute the majority of U.S. businesses...”

Someone asked me about finding an online seminar about a particular topic, and I found a couple that I had used before. But then I came across www.finervista.com ; "Find best online seminars and webcasts by industry experts." A useful site for a variety of topics.

From the state tax department: Many businesses and tax practitioners used Sales Tax Web File for the first time in June 2011, in response to the recent mandate to web file quarterly returns. Close to 70% of the sales tax returns due on June 20 were filed electronically, a significant increase over 20% one year ago. Some sales tax vendors and practitioners experienced difficulties filing or reaching a representative to assist them with the new web filing requirements. The tax folks apologize for the inconvenience. They are training additional staff to make sure that your calls are answered promptly in the future. Although they'd prefer that all taxpayers use Sales Tax Web File, they know that some can't. Taxpayers who prepare their own returns without computers or who don't have broadband access aren't required to file online.

Don McMillan with a few pointers on how not to use PowerPoint: Life After Death PowerPoint from EMT Media on Vimeo .

Virginia Heffernan writes about the growing incidence of misspellings and errors in publishing. She supposes that the editorial process has sped up in recent years and involves more computers and fewer humans which explains why this may be. It is very annoying and distracting to be enjoying a book and finding the wrong form of a word used or to find spelling errors. Heffernan's article suggests that perhaps poor spellers think differently and should not be judged harshly. It also points out that poor spelling can actually hurt business beyond making a bad impression. While the idea that sloppy spelling can sink whole businesses seems far-fetched, even casual bloggers recognize the imperative to spell well online. This is because search engines look for strings of characters in sequence, and if your site has misspellings, Google is less likely to list it at the top of search results. With misspellings, according to the tech site Geekosystem, “You aren’t going to get nearly as many h

Thanks to a comment in a previous post, I've discovered that the IRS is offering transitional relief for small revoked NFP groups. As the letter writer notes, "If you can honestly say there is still a need for your non-profit, and you feel you can muster the human and other resources needed to sustain it, don't pass up this opportunity to regain your tax exempt status." Fill out a new exemption application and pay an IRS User Fee. But for organizations with annual gross receipts normally less than $50,000, the User Fee will be reduced to only $100 and reinstatement will be retroactive. The offer is only good through December 31, 2012. You can find the details here [PDF] .

WASHINGTON – Find out what business owners learned after nearly losing their companies to small scale disasters like a sprinkler system malfunction or catastrophic events like widespread flooding during a free webinar on July 19 hosted by Agility Recovery Solutions and the U.S. Small Business Administration. Agility Recovery CEO Bob Boyd will share real stories of entrepreneurs whose business continuity strategies emerged while recovering from major disasters. He’ll also outline some practical applications of disaster preparedness tips, focusing on the concept of not only putting a plan together, but testing it periodically. SBA has partnered with Agility to offer business continuity strategies for entrepreneurs via their “PrepareMyBusiness” website. Visit www.preparemybusiness.org to access previous webinars and for more preparedness tips. Since 1953, the SBA has provided more than $48 billion in disaster recovery funds to 1.9 million homeowners, renters and businesses of all s

From SBA Office of Advocacy[PDF] . "The annual cost of federal regulations in the United States increased to more than $1.75 trillion in 2008. Had every U.S. household paid an equal share of the federal regulatory burden, each would have owed $15,586 in 2008." Check especially the chart on PDF page 60.

From NYS sales tax guidance This memorandum describes the procedures that sellers should follow to properly disclose to customers that certain discounts received through store loyalty cards are manufacturer's discounts. Many businesses use store loyalty cards to offer their customers incentives to shop frequently at their stores. These incentives often include discounts that are activated by scanning the customer's loyalty card at the cash register. When these loyalty card discounts are given and the discounted item is subject to sales tax, the amount subject to sales tax generally depends on whether the discount reflects a manufacturer's discount or a store discount. If the store is reimbursed for the amount of the discount by the manufacturer, distributor or other third party, it is a manufacturer's discount. If the store receives no reimbursement from a third party for the amount of the discount given, it is a store discount. Generally, when a customer purch

The U.S. Census Bureau conducts demographic and economic studies and strengthens statistical development around the world through technical assistance, training, and software products. For over 60 years, the Census Bureau has assisted in the collection, processing, analysis, dissemination, and use of statistics with counterpart governments in over 100 countries.

A recent library inquiry about programs available to assist employers who want to hire former convicts got me to call Elaine Kost from the state Department of Labor. She noted two programs that she described as underutilized: "The Federal Bonding Program (FBP) was created as a job placement tool to assist at-risk job seekers. The purpose of the program is to provide fidelity bonding at no cost to a business for the first six months of employment for hard-to-place job applicants." The term "hard to place is not limited to ex-cons. Sometimes, an employer will perform a credit check on a potential employee and will balk because of a low score; the FBP could be used for this purpose as well. "The The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is designed to promote the hiring of individuals who qualify as a member of a target group; individuals with barriers to employment. Federal tax credits are available for hiring the following groups under WOTC: A. Qualified recip

From the Census Bureau In 2009, businesses with paid employees numbered 7.4 million, a decline of 168,000 establishments from 2008, marking the second consecutive year of decline, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Further, between 2008 and 2009, employment dropped 5.3 percent, a decrease of more than 6 million employees, for a total of 114,509,626. In 2008, the number of establishments decreased by about 104,000, although the number of employees increased by almost 300,000. These findings are from County Business Patterns: 2009 , which provides the only detailed annual information on the number of establishments, employees, and first-quarter and annual payroll for most of the 1,100 industries covered at the national, state and county levels. The statistics are broken down according to employment-size classes (for example, number of establishments with one to four employees) and legal form of organization (for example, corporations and partnerships).

Volume 30, Number 6 [PDF} The July issue of The Small Business Advocate features Advocacy’s regional roundtables on women’s business ownership, the chief counsel’s listening tour of West Coast businesses plus regulatory updates and other regional news In This Issue Message from the Chief Counsel • West Coast Businesses Tell Washington: Let Us Innovate! Regional Update • Regional Roundtables Explore Women’s Business Ownership • Alabama and Florida Coasts Bounce Back from Oil Spill Research Notes • Request for New Research Forthcoming Regulatory News • Gainful Employment Rule Finalized • Ongoing SBREFA Panels

From D&B: Business bankruptcies and failures continued to decline this year ; however, the pace was slower than in Q4 2011. Overall, business bankruptcies and failures are lower this year in the U.S. and around the world. This is a confidence booster for many businesses and the growth in the small business segment - firms with fewer than 500 employees - is another driver of confidence for the U.S. economy.

Here's a numerical listing by publication number of documents addressing particular topics of interest to taxpayers From that list, A Guide to Sales Tax in New York State (PDF) Also, sales tax for specific industries .

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration is urging disaster victims seeking federal aid to be alert to scam artists posing as federal officials and to be cautious about any solicitations for fees to perform services that are available from federal agency staff for free. In the wake of widespread flooding, wildfires and tornados in many areas across the country over the past few months, the SBA is particularly concerned about flyers that have appeared in tornado-damaged areas asking for non-refundable fees of up to $450 to help disaster victims fill out their loan applications and as much as $1,000 to verify losses and file loan applications. Federal agencies involved in disaster recovery will never ask for a fee or payment to file an application for financial assistance or to inspect damaged property. “Historically, natural disasters bring out the very best in people, and there are countless stories of the selfless acts of helpful neighbors and volunteers,” said SBA A

From BNET . Are you your business’s worst enemy? Let’s make sure that’s not the case.

From Step by Step Marketing : Unless you are the owner of a small business technology or communications company, the idea of creating and managing a blog, on top of the need to manage a website just to stay “in the game,” can be a little daunting. And of course, there are lots of kinds of businesses that don’t need to produce a blog at all. But even if you are one of those, read on, there’s some other good advice in here for helping you affordably manage your web presence, whatever that may be.

26 Shockingly Offensive Vintage Ads That Would Never Fly Today from Business Insider.com

Business Employment Dynamics Entrepreneurship plays a vital role in the growth of the U.S. economy. As the primary source for information on the nation’s labor market, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) collects data on new businesses and job creation. The following highlights from data series produced by BLS Business Employment Dynamics (BED) program provide some insights on the contribution of new and small businesses to the number of businesses and jobs in the economy.

The IRS has published the first Automatic Revocation of Exemption List . It indicates approximately 275,000 nonprofits whose tax-exempt status has been revoked because they failed to file a Form 990, 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990-PF for three consecutive years; the list is available for downloading in both Excel and PDF form. Here's the PDF of the New York State list . As GuideStar notes , if an organization appears on the list, it must now must file a federal income tax return and pay federal income taxes. If it previously could accept tax-deductible contributions, it no longer can do so. "If your organization is not on the list, technically you don't have to do anything. This a good time, however, to reach out to your donors, funders, and other constituents and assure them that you are in good standing with the IRS. You may also wish to suggest that your supporters consult the list to ensure that the other nonprofits they give to are still exempt."

The Top Nine Challenges of Growing an Entrepreneurial Business and How to Tackle Them .

The Business Expenses Survey has information of various types of expenditures, such as materials and fuels, for ALL businesses. There is also some info available for specific industries. You can find the 2007 data HERE .

These books are ubiquitous in the corporate world, but the truth is--they're no that useful. Read More from BNET .

One of our fine advisors came across a website that outlines the various documents required when exporting , and wanted to share it with you.

The National Academies — National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council—are committed to distributing their reports to as wide an audience as possible. Since 1994 they haveoffered “Read for Free” options for almost all of their titles. In addition, they have been offering free downloads of most of their titles to everyone and of all titles to readers in the developing world. Effective June 2nd, PDFs of reports that are currently for sale on the National Academies Press (NAP) Website and PDFs associated with future reports will be offered free of charge to all Web visitors. For more than 140 years, the NAS, NAE, IOM, and NRC have been advising the nation on issues of science, technology, and medicine. Like no other collection of organizations, the Academies enlist the nation’s foremost scientists, engineers, health professionals, and other experts to address the scientific and technical aspects of society’s most p

Thursday, June 16, 2011, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., ET WASHINGTON – The SBA’s Web Chat will feature 2011 Rhode Island Small Business Person of the Year Kathleen Devlin, owner of All About Home Care LLC in Middletown, R.I. Devlin started her business in 2003 as the sole employee working out of a small home office. Today the company has a staff of 68. SBA’s National Small Business Week (SBW) events were held May 16-20, 2011, in Washington, D.C., where more than 100 outstanding small business owners from across the country were honored. Full videos of SBW events and the business forums held can be viewed online at . WHO: Small business owner Kathleen Devlin will host SBA’s June Web chat on “Entrepreneur’s Spotlight: Maintaining Business Success,” to share her story of achievement and endurance with other entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners, and provide helpful insights on the successes and challenges of entrepreneurship. WHAT: SBA’s web chat series provides small b

In 2007, minority-owned firms numbered 5.8 million, up from 4.0 million in 2002, an increase of 45.5 percent, more than double the 17.9 percent increase for all U.S. businesses, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2007 Survey of Business Owners. Receipts of minority-owned firms increased 55.0 percent to $1.0 trillion over the five-year period, compared with the 32.9 percent increase for all businesses nationwide. In 2007, more than one-fifth (21.3 percent) of the nation’s 27.1 million firms were minority-owned. Of the 5.8 million minority-owned firms, 766,533 had paid employees, an increase of 21.7 percent from 2002. These firms employed 5.8 million people, a 24.4 percent increase from 2002, and their payrolls totaled $164.1 billion, an increase of 42.2 percent. Receipts of minority-owned employer firms totaled $860.5 billion, an increase of 54.3 percent from 2002. In 2007, minority firms with no paid employees (nonemployers) numbered 5.0 million, an increase of 50.0 percen

WASHINGTON – Small businesses interested in starting or expanding sales of their goods and services overseas have access to a new, free online tool that will gauge their readiness to export and help them develop an export business plan. The Export Business Planner, developed by the U.S. Small Business Administration, offers a ready-made, customizable and easily accessible document that can be updated and referenced continuously as the business grows. The Planner, located at www.sba.gov/exportbusinessplanner , allows users to: • Determine their export readiness • Learn about training and counseling opportunities • Complete worksheets for global market research • Obtain financing information and options • Customize export marketing plans, and • Access resources for exporters “Creating jobs through exporting is one of the nation’s top economic priorities, as the President indicated when he launched the National Export Initiative,” said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. “Giving exporters t

Dumbo Gets Free Wi-Fi; Manhattan's Paid Version to Follow - New York News - Runnin' Scared : "Dumbo Gets Free Wi-Fi; Manhattan's Paid Version to Follow" Now, this is change I'd love to see happening. I wonder if it will happen elsewhere. It seems like it's inevitable. It could be like street lights. Just another utility that we all use.

Interesting ten minute film on YouTube . Warning--for print lovers only.

"Americans work almost 200 more hours every year than we did in 1970 — that's about an extra month," Psychology Today explains. And while putting in long hours isn't necessarily problematic, "it's only when the daily grind eclipses other areas of your life that it's time to stop and rethink your schedule." More HERE .

Advocacy's Small Business Quarterly Bulletin , a brochure-style publication that contains commentary and analysis on the current employment and financing trends of small businesses, shows a positive first quarter of 2011 for small business. Small business employment and financing were turning the corner and trending up, thus joining GDP, which has been growing for seven quarters.