New York SBDC Research Network

When starting a business, it is important to know where to get the best information. The basics of sales, marketing, and advertising are all topics to keep in mind while laying the groundwork. Here's a list of some sites to keep in mind. 1. Score Entrepreneurship These sites cover many topics like financing and marketing. They also have a search box tool for narrowing down information. 2. SBDCMichigan The Michigan SBDC created an online workshop for small business owners. Each class follows topics like Writing a Business Plan,Marketing Your Business, Financial Management, Business Legal Issues, and more. 3. SBA SBA Starting Managing Business The Small Business Administration offers free information in all aspects of starting a business. They also offer a regularly updated "Guide to Starting a Business." 4. Ecorner Lynda Ted Talks Many who are looking to start a business value information from success stories. People find sites like Ted T

Last year, Slate’s Jordan Weissmann observed that the rise of e-payments might be changing the way we tip. At coffee shops where we once might have tossed our change into a jar, services like Square now prompt us to pay much more. This has been a boon for baristas and others who depend on gratuities, since they otherwise might not receive anything from the swipe of a credit card. Now street-level charities like the Salvation Army are getting in on the action, testing the waters of our digital generosity. This experiment comes via DipJar, a New York-based company that makes small canister-like credit card receptacles. When you slide a card into one of them, it automatically charges a set amount—typically a dollar, though merchants can set it to other quantities—to the attached account. The machines produce a satisfying dinging sound as the payment goes through, clearly indicating to all involved that a virtuous act has been performed. Now, as BostInno’s Dylan Matt reports, DipJar has

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced it has reopened the filing period for survivors in all states affected by Superstorm Sandy on December 2, 2015 to apply for low-interest disaster loans.  The new filing deadline for physical damage and economic injury losses is December 1, 2016.    “The additional time for businesses, homeowners and renters to request federal disaster loans will go a long way in continuing to support the rebuilding efforts of the communities affected by Superstorm Sandy,” said SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet.  “I want to thank the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House Small Business Committees for their leadership on this issue.  We look forward to working with them to make sure the needs of small businesses are met.” The recently approved Recovery Improvements for Small Entities (RISE) After Disaster Act of 2015 gives the SBA Administrator the authority to make disaster loans for Superstorm Sandy for a period of one ye

Looking for a deep dive into U.S. patent trends to help inform your next invention? The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) PatentsView tool allows individuals to explore nearly 40 years of data on patenting activity in the United States. Data has been categorized and is easily searchable by patent titles and types, inventors, assignees, patent classes, locations and dates. So whether you're looking for the top inventors of the 1980s or the total amount of patents a company owns, the tool can serve as a source of history and inspiration. Read more at: patentsview

This week, the Office of Advocacy, an independent office within the U.S. Small Business Administration, released an issue brief entitled “Small Businesses Key Players in International Trade.”  The issue brief spotlights the role U.S. small businesses play in international trade, and finds that small businesses are important to consider when assessing U.S. export potential and policy tools such as free trade agreements.”  Find the full Issue Brief  here . International trade makes up 30 percent of the U.S. economy, and U.S. exports of goods and services reached a record $2.3 trillion in 2014.1 While total exports have grown 44 percent since 2009, the pace of export growth has been slowing in recent years.2 U.S. businesses, particularly small businesses (firms with less than 500 employees), face a host of challenges when selling products and services abroad; these may include high tariffs, financial risks, and customs clearance delays. Despite the challenges, international markets o

Employees spend nearly one-fourth of their workday, on average, sorting through their email inbox, a study by McKinsey found. Email is the most used form of communication in the workplace, but it's also easy for the emails you send to be quickly deleted or marked as irrelevant. Salespeople, particularly those who rely on email as their first point of contact with prospects, need to ensure their emails are relevant, appropriate, and able to cut through the noise of a busy inbox. Needless to say, so do marketers. Here are my top tips for crafting an email that will encourage opens, generate interest, and warrant a response. 1. Perfect the subject line A subject line is the gateway into your email. It needs to instantly grab the receiver's attention to ensure your email doesn't end up in the dreaded junk folder. First, keep it short: A recent analysis by MailChimp suggests fewer than 50 characters—but still descriptive. Place the most descriptive words at the beginnin

Entrepreneurs are the lifeline of any economy, and high-growth start-ups in particular are responsible for the great majority of new job creation. It’s worrying, then, that according to several reports the number of new businesses being created in the U.S. has been stalled since the end of the recession. As a mentor to many start-up entrepreneurs, I find this slow-down concerning, and I see one reason that’s rarely spoken about and needs a closer look: what I call spreadsheet asphyxiation. I repeatedly hear from young entrepreneurs that, as fund managers come in, they introduce too many controls for cash flows, income projections, budgeting, risk analysis, financial modeling – the list is endless. Start-ups can’t be assessed using conventional business metrics. Yes, they require diligent oversight. But in my experience, this can be achieved without an excessive emphasis on controls if a start-up entrepreneur has clarity at all times on four simple questions. First, what specific pro

1. We do everything by ourselves. As an entrepreneur, time management needs to be a huge part of your life. "When scheduling in meetings, you must decide who and what companies are aligned with your business or organization, have your best interest, market your brand and believe in your mission and vision.” — Tayrin Tapia of Dear Tayrin The best part about being an entrepreneur is you don’t have a boss. However, the worst part about being an entrepreneur is you don’t have a boss. This means you have to manage your time by creating your own schedule. You have to accomplish goals by setting them yourself. You have to build a brand by handling customer service, marketing and PR on your own (at least until you build a company big enough to hire employees). 2. We think about solving problems all the time. “Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than trying to solve them.” — Henry Ford Entrepreneurs possess a “figure it out” mentally. We’re strategists

1) Video stores are about investment The enemy of video stores was convenience. The victim of convenience is conscious choice. Why streaming will never live up to home video We watch Netflix like we used to watch television on a slow Sunday night, everything blending together as we flip aimlessly through the channels. At first the choice is overwhelming: all of these options and nothing but the questionable "You Might Like" cue to guide us — we stare at the screen like idiots, paralyzed. But then when we make a choice, if we make a choice, it feels unimportant. Another option is only a click away. If you're actually in a video store, the stakes are different. You're engaged. You're on a mission to find a movie — the right movie. You had to get out of bed, get dressed, and go to a store. You had to think about what you want, why this movie looks good and not that one, perhaps even seeking guidance or advice. Whether it's from nostalgia, advertising, packagi

At the Federal Trade Commission’s request, a  federal court has banned Robert Ray Law and his company, CPU Service Incorporated (CPU)  from sending unsolicited direct mail to advertise or promote goods or services, imposed a judgment of almost $400,000, and required them to immediately pay $45,000. In July 2014, the FTC charged Law and Your Yellow Book Inc. (YYB)  with using bogus invoices to trick small businesses, doctors’ offices, retirement homes, and religious schools into paying for unordered online business directory listings.  In December 2014, a final order banned them from the directory business  and prohibited them from misrepresenting that consumers owe money for a good or service. According to FTC, Law created CPU to run a virtually identical scam, faxing fake invoices to nearly 150,000 small businesses across the country seeking payment for online computer support and consulting. As a result, in August 2015, the FTC asked the court to hold Law and CPU in contempt

New bill approved by Congress Monday could make it easier for small businesses hurt by Hurricane Sandy to apply for federal assistance. Authored by Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), the bill allows many small firms in New York and throughout the country to seek emergency loans from the Small Business Association. Given the SBA’s slow response following Sandy in 2012, the assistance is long overdue, Velázquez said. “The fact is the SBA was caught flatfooted when Sandy came ashore and small businesses seeking relief suffered because of the agency's slow response," Velázquez said. "This new law will mean entrepreneurs in New York and up and down the East Coast will get another chance to apply and be made whole through the SBA's loan process." According to a study done by Velázquez’s office, Sandy businessowners waited on average 46 days for SBA applications to be processed — three times as long as it took SBA to process applications for prior storms. Velázquez’s

Solving problems is a central issue in business ownership. In fact, you might say that business itself is a series of problems waiting to be solved. But, when it comes to finding the ideal approach, or the perfect process for solving any of the dozens of problems faced by the modern business, things get complicated.There are three methods for problem solving that have proven track records in the world of commerce. These are big ideas that have inspired countless companies both large and small. Read more at: Bplans

The Muppets have a series of American Express ads in support of Small Business Saturday, November 28 . If you have to shop this coming weekend, support small businesses!

As the co-founder of SalesBrain, a neuromarketing agency, Patrick Renvoise has spent years helping global companies like Boeing, BMW and even NASA sell more and do more, by understanding the science of attention. We caught up with him in advance of his keynote at eMarketer Attention! 2015. eMarketer: What's one of the most fascinating things you’ve learned about the human brain and how we pay attention? Patrick Renvoise: That it’s all about the reptilian brain! Many years ago I read in a neuroscience book that the reptilian brain was the center of attention and that it played a key role in our perception and ultimate decisions. It then took me several years to understand the implications for sales and marketing, but one day I had a big “aha” moment. Since we all know that we need to sell to the decision-maker then we should be able to relate every sales and marketing activities to our reptilian brain. Raed more at: businessusa

What's in the Business Startup Checklist? Every one of the tasks in our business startup checklist belongs to one of the following overarching objectives: Free Business Startup ChecklistFind a good business idea Test your business idea and do market research Write a formal business plan (if you're seeking funding) Brand your business Make it legal Get funded (only if you need it) Set up shop Market and launch your business See? That's a list you can complete. Don't forget: we're here to help! Ask us questions, or check out more of our member downloads for other great, free resources. Read more at: Bplans

Program Purpose New York State has allocated $1 million in the 2015-2016 state budget for the second round of the New York State New Farmers Grant Fund. Its purpose is to provide grants to support beginning farmers who have chosen farming as a career and who materially and substantially participate in the production of an agricultural product on their farm. These grants will help farmers improve profitability resulting in the growth of agribusiness and the concomitant tax revenues within the state. Program Highlights The New York State New Farmers Grant Fund will help farmers improve farm profitability through one or more of the following goals: Expanding agricultural production, diversifying agricultural production and/or extending the agricultural season; Advancing innovative agricultural techniques that increase sustainable practices such as organic farming, food safety, reduction of farm waste and/or water use; Creating or expanding partnerships with other entities su

Syracuse, N.Y. — The companies approved for the Start-Up NY tax break program in Central New York are working on an impressive array of technological innovations. The firms are tinkering with DNA testing on brewing yeast, wood products that could replace iron and steel in skyscraper construction and new ways to detect sports concussions. But three of the five companies were well under way in the region long before Start-Up NY came along, even though Gov. Andrew Cuomo pitched the program as a way to help draw new businesses to the state. That's allowed. Existing companies can participate if they're expanding. Read more at: StartUpNY

The old adage says “you can’t please everyone.” However, when it comes to customer complaints, this is often one time you should try to set things right. Not only that, but a customer complaint can be an excellent way to make your product or service better next time. While the truth is that the customer may not always be right, a customer issue is almost always a chance to improve your business. What can you learn from an unhappy customer, and how should you handle the situation? What can you do when a customer complains about your product or service? Assess the “weight” of the complaint From the very beginning, try to weigh the severity of the issue. While it is important to listen to all customer complaints, acknowledge that some customers will never truly be satisfied. Bplans

Fire can have a devastating impact on small businesses and home-based-businesses. A fire can race through a structure/business in a matter of minutes, giving the employer and employees little time to escape. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ data for Texas for 2008,there were 23 work-related fatalities and 60 nonfatal cases requiring days away from work reported as a result of fires or explosions. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910.39 requires an employer with 10 or more employees to have a fire prevention plan. A fire prevention plan must be: • in writing; • kept in the workplace; and • available for employees to review. Read more at: Tditexas

Agility Recovery, a business disaster recovery firm, offers some good suggestions on preparing your small business to close during the holidays (or any time, really.)  They include notifying clients and staff of all closures, changing out of office messages, making a list of all equipment that needs to be turned off, and reviewing deadlines.  Read the whole post here .

Why are we as consumers so captivated by stories of great customer service? Perhaps it is because they serve as a much needed reminder that there are companies (and amazing support reps) who still care about their customers. Every company says that their customers are their #1 priority, but stories show us that many businesses are ready, willing, and able to go the extra mile for each and every one of their customers. As Benjamin Franklin would put it: “Well done is better than well said.” Read more at: Entrepreneur

There’s something gutsy about starting an app or creating a product to solve a problem you wish could be solved for you personally. Not only are you seeking out a solution to your problem, you are inventing the solution itself. With the creation of the MomCo app, Jillian Darlington did just that. MomCo brings mothers together for playdates and friendship, connects them with local businesses, gives them access to forums, and keeps them in the loop on local events. Learn more at: Bplans