Small Business Management

5 Misplaced Social Networking Fears Networking is changing, so stay ahead of the curve with these tips.

2009-09-17T21:35:00.000-07:00

Web 2.0 /Social Networking--To connect with large groups of people or businesses online to market and grow your business as well as your personal network.

Traditional Networking--To connect with a handful of people or a few businesses at an event or gathering.

With all of the online networks and business building tools available, one begins to wonder why more businesses have not embraced the internet as a networking tool. I am not referring to having a business website; I'm talking about reaching out to hundreds, possibly thousands of potential new customers by joining the conversation online.

The growth of social networking makes me wonder why business owners haven’t embraced the trend. I started several discussions online and informally surveyed businesses owners and marketing directors in person as to why they don't use social networking to expand their business. Here are the top five responses:

Stuck in Traditional Networking Mode. Change is not easy for some businesses, especially if they are firmly set in the habit of attending chamber mixers and industry events. Too often businesses are stuck doing the same thing they have always done or what the industry has always practiced. As the saying goes, if you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten. That doesn’t mean you stop doing the traditional stuff--you just need to add to it.

Tip: Try to incorporate at least one new technique or online marketing outreach into your marketing plan monthly. Set up a LinkedIn profile or a blog on your company website. Try something simple, such as posting a question or answer in a group forum. Give it some time to see if this works before deleting the profile or conversation.
Too Many Choices/Too Overwhelming. This answer was very common among not only small businesses and entrepreneurs but with larger corporations as well. Business owners unfamiliar with social networking find this new tool daunting. Technology changes rapidly, and some entrepreneurs feel lost sifting through it all.

Tip: Do an online search for the top social networking sites specific to your market, region or industry and only focus on those sites. Ignore the others, they don't matter unless they can directly connect you with new contacts in your target market. For example: If you don't target teenagers, music, entertainment or fashion markets, then you don't need a MySpace.
Concerned Social Networking Is Not Effective. Your time is valuable; many business owners question whether social networking is worth the effort. You'll never know if it's a waste of time if you're not willing to try. Let me clarify, try does not mean setting up a Twitter account and letting it sit for four months. Online marketing and social networking are only as effective as you are. If you aren’t efficient with your time and techniques online then you might be disappointed with the results, or lack thereof.

Tip: Posts about how many times your daughter took a nap on a particular day or about your coffee preferences shouldn't be the key communication goals for your business. Though it is important to add a personal touch to your interactions online. Your main focus should be reaching new contacts and connecting with them; This is how you're going to build your brand recognition and exposure. One of the best ways to do this is to blog; just be sure to provide valuable content to your potential customer or client. Make sure to respond to e-mails and comments when they land on your blog or site.
Fear of Doing Something Wrong Online. The potential to misstep, whether networking traditionally or online, is always present. Try to view "mistakes" as opportunities for breakthroughs. I posted something in a group chat room once and was chastised by a few members because it was posted incorrectly. My reply was sincere and catchy, yet professional, and I actually ended up getting a new client.

Tip: If you're worried about making a mistake online, post your concern. Let the group or site know that you're new and ask for support or feedback. For the most part, you'll learn that people online want to help you with your social networking experience. You may also come across people who offer unwanted advice or feedback. The response should be the same as in person; thank them and move on.
Lack of Privacy Online. This is a valid concern, but it shouldn't stop you from engaging in conversations online. There are many privacy settings for the top professional sites. You can decide whom to allow into your network, set up filters and e-mail notifications and even block people with whom you don't want to connect.

Tip: Read the privacy settings thoroughly on social networking sites that you use. Vet invitations carefully; you don't want to shut out potential new clients or customers. This is when you follow your intuition: You can usually tell whether a person is sincere, professional and worth connecting with simply by checking his or her profile. Verify the person's website and references before connecting with someone you don't have a relationship with already. To save time, include a quick note on your profile about the type of connections and invites you want. Again, it's just like meeting someone new in person. As soon as an individual enters your space, if you are turned off by his or her energy, walk away.

How Anyone Can Make A Six Figure Income Working From Home On The Internet

2009-09-16T21:47:00.000-07:00

Dear Friend,

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Office Hours: Tips for promoting your business through social networks

2009-09-16T21:09:00.000-07:00

Are social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn the business tools of the future? Or are they a passing fad that will meet the same fate as disco music?

Time will tell. But if you run a small business circa 2008, ignore them at your own peril. Many of your competitors have already jumped on the bandwagon, and are successfully networking their way to a stronger Web presence, enhanced credibility, and more customers.

Yes, many of these sites are used for socializing by your teenaged sons and daughters. But businesses can benefit too, says Lee Aase, a veteran media relations manager. His employer, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, has put him in charge of articulating the clinic’s message through social networking sites such as Facebook.

"The way that most businesses grow is by word of mouth, by recommendations, and by peers and communities," says Aase, who writes articles and blog posts about marketing through Facebook. "The whole concept of social media is a lot like birds of a feather flocking together" — in other words, people with a common interest or objective interacting online, he says.

Social networking sites (also known as social media sites) enable that interaction, in professional but also fun and interesting ways, Aase says.

While there aren't many strict rules about using social networks, there are dos and don’ts, as well as strategies you can employ to get ahead. Here are tips I’ve compiled from interviews with Aase and other experts in Web marketing.

Experiment with multiple social networking sites, but focus your time on one or two. You could easily invest countless hours posting pictures, taking movie quizzes, and engaging in other fun but trivial pursuits on these sites. But where does that leave your business?
Invest your time wisely on the right sites for your business. MySpace is the largest social networking site, but don’t count on it for great results in trying to reach an over-30 audience. Other sites likewise may not be the right fit for your target customer. Jinger Jarrett, a blogger and Internet marketing consultant based near Atlanta, says she has a presence on eight or more social networking sites for testing purposes. "I recommend being on a number of sites," she says, "but really focusing on one or two" where you receive the most frequent business contacts.

For Aase, the most promising are Facebook and LinkedIn. "LinkedIn is clearly for professional networking; it has positioned itself well for that," he says. "Facebook is much broader than that. I see it as having more utility."
Write profiles that establish your credentials and expertise. Most social networking sites start you with a profile page. Seize this opportunity to position your business and market your skills, as well as providing necessary contact information and a Web site address. If you are an expert on a given topic, brand yourself as such. Make sure your profiles are keyword-rich, Jarrett adds, noting that profiles on many sites are captured by search engines. Also, use pictures that you would want potential customers to see (not you barely standing at a party), and try injecting some flair and personality (for a business audience, of course).
Take advantage of the applications and widgets these sites offer. Facebook, among other things, allows you to build a business page for news about your company, an Events page for business activities, even a "Fan" page. You can also post videos on your pages; create special-interest forums, groups, and private sites for crisis management; and surface your blog posts on your profile page using RSS feeds. Courtesy of Aase, the Mayo Clinic itself has a presence in Facebook, including a Fan page replete with medical news, historical photos, videos, podcasts, and information about tours and events. Research what your chosen site offers.
Join groups and forums and share your expertise. "Get in there and start talking," Jarrett says, but make sure you have something valuable to say. Establishing credibility and trust is as important as making yourself known.
"Commenting on blog posts is one of the best things you can do online," adds Leslie O’Flahavan, a partner in E-WRITE, a Web content training and consulting firm in Silver Spring, MD. Credible comments add to any discussion and can help position you as someone with expertise in a given niche. O’Flahavan suggests these tips for commenting: Keep emotion to a minimum; proof-read your comments; be fresh and interesting; add links to Web pages for details or background, and avoid repeating what’s already been said.
Seek out recognized authorities in your field. Social networking is the online version of good old fashioned person-to-person networking — but in many ways is easier. Seek out experts and people you’d like to meet in your field. Send a Facebook friend request or a LinkedIn networking invitation, accompanied by a message introducing yourself and politely explaining why you’d like to meet this person online. Be confident, but make sure your motives are business-related.
Be selective about your "friends." You want to make friends on Facebook and other social networking sites — but it’s not about how many names you can "collect." Having a small number of friends (or connections) who value your passions and expertise, and who care to network regularly, may be best for your business.
Also, apply some smarts in initiating friend requests or networking invitations. Aase, a married man in his 40s, gets numerous friend requests from his blog posts and approves most. But he says he makes it a personal rule not to initiate requests to anyone under 30, to avoid what some younger users have called "the creepiness factor."
Proactively write recommendations for valued clients. Writing recommendations for past colleagues or people you enjoy doing business with is a smart way to do business online. Don’t wait to be asked to write them, O’Flahavan says. Those written without a request are even more endearing. "For the clients who have written me recommendations that I did not ask for, I feel very motivated to do business with them," she says.
Promote your blog on social networking sites. Blogging is not for everyone, and this is not a pitch to get you started against your will. But if you do blog or are considering blogging, many social networking sites enable you to surface your blog posts through RSS feeds. On Facebook, for example, by setting up a blog on Wordpress.com, your posts can automatically be pushed to your profile page, along with recent comments. In fact, you can syndicate posts from multiple blogs on your Facebook profile page.
Use privacy settings and street smarts to limit identity theft. Unfortunately, social networking sites, like the rest of the Internet, attract scam artists and thugs. Most sites have privacy settings allowing you to dictate how much of your profile is revealed to people inside and outside your network. Adjust these settings to your own comfort level, but in general, be cautious about the personal information you post. For example, never publish your social security number, and list your day of birth, but not the year you were born in, to guard against ID theft, Aase advises.
Avoid aggressive marketing and constant promotion. If you do nothing but promote your new book or new business or product, people in your network will lose interest and likely "un-friend" you. "Doing an announcement can generate excitement," Aase says, "but repeating your news again and again is frowned upon." A better strategy, he says, is to create interesting content that relates to the new book or business, and "earns" the reader’s attention. "It's all about conversation — not about push."

Business Technology Optimization

2009-08-25T12:24:00.000-07:00

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Business Technology Optimization

2009-08-25T10:18:00.000-07:00

Business Technology Optimization (BTO), is an enterprise software product category focused on helping businesses ensure that every dollar invested in information technology, every resource allocated, and every application in development or production meets business goals. BTO is part of an emerging business philosophy to manage IT resources as a business rather than as a service bureau.[citation needed]

Unlike software offerings and methodologies that focus on internal IT processes, BTO optimizes the strategic functions between technology and business. The depth and breadth of BTO software allows technology executives to better manage a wide range of strategic IT functions that directly impact business results. Effective project and portfolio management, testing new SAP deployments, or reducing the mean time to repair custom J2EE applications are just a few examples.

Most BTO capabilities, however, continue to be marred by the script based testing approach proposed by nearly all test tool vendors.[neutrality disputed] Until the loop has been closed on the software development lifecycle, the question of whether the problem has been solved remains unanswered. While scripting is effective for batch processing or minor jobs such as crons, this approach fails when used to create automated tests. A non-script based automated testing approach is necessary to achieve the goals of BTO.

BTO software addresses key functions recognized by IT executives and industry analysts as requirements for automating the new business/technology lifecycle. These functions include:

* IT governance
* project portfolio management
* change management
* application quality, performance, security and availability
* application management
* systems management
* datacenter management
* business service management
* business service automation
* IT service management
* identity and access management

Many software companies provide BTO products and services. Mercury Interactive Corporation (now owned by HP) is believed to be the first to call itself a "BTO vendor".[who?] However many companies develop and sell BTO software, including:

* Hewlett-Packard
* BMC Software
* Borland
* CA, Inc.
* Compuware
* IBM Software
* Sun Microsystems
* Whittman-Hart

Today most large enterprise IT organizations have implemented some form of BTO software.
source by wikipedia

10 Tips for Successful Business Networking

2009-08-23T21:51:00.000-07:00

Keep in mind that networking is about being genuine and authentic, building trust and relationships, and seeing how you can help others.

Ask yourself what your goals are in participating in networking meetings so that you will pick groups that will help you get what you are looking for. Some meetings are based more on learning, making contacts, and/or volunteering rather than on strictly making business connections.

Visit as many groups as possible that spark your interest. Notice the tone and attitude of the group. Do the people sound supportive of one another? Does the leadership appear competent? Many groups will allow you to visit two times before joining.

Hold volunteer positions in organizations. This is a great way to stay visible and give back to groups that have helped you.

Ask open-ended questions in networking conversations. This means questions that ask who, what, where, when, and how as opposed to those that can be answered with a simple yes or no. This form of questioning opens up the discussion and shows listeners that you are interested in them.

Become known as a powerful resource for others. When you are known as a strong resource, people remember to turn to you for suggestions, ideas, names of other people, etc. This keeps you visible to them.

Have a clear understanding of what you do and why, for whom, and what makes your doing it special or different from others doing the same thing. In order to get referrals, you must first have a clear understanding of what you do that you can easily articulate to others.

Be able to articulate what you are looking for and how others may help you. Too often people in conversations ask, "How may I help you?" and no immediate answer comes to mind.

Follow through quickly and efficiently on referrals you are given. When people give you referrals, your actions are a reflection on them. Respect and honor that and your referrals will grow.

Call those you meet who may benefit from what you do and vice versa. Express that you enjoyed meeting them, and ask if you could get together and share ideas.

source here

Insurance Policy Physical Injury

2009-08-22T14:19:00.000-07:00

It doesn't matter what is the cause you are looking for car insurance, rather it involves the buying of a carrier or it is time to refresh your present policy, the settlement is not the one to be made easily.
With matters as what policy to append, what it is all meaning, what are you concurring to, etc. may frequently seem as if it was designed by some alien planet, and there are reasons for each particular coverage that is offered. Two factors that can't be called insignificant to be thought of when settling on physical damage vehicle insurance coverage are that it could be ordered by law and it maintains you in terms of money.

In simple words, physical injury insurance supplies costs related to injury or death to other individuals because of a car crash in which you get involved. Also, it proffers lawful protection in the case of a legal suit being registered. It is also covering passengers in your car. Anyway, what it doesn't cover is your car or anyone listed in your policy in a capacity of a driver.
Not just covering the cost of the damage itself, physical injury insurance comprises provisions for income loss, suffering and pain as well.

Compulsory in most states, the amount ordered is state mandated as well. While several states do not order the insurance, they do order the capability to supply fiscal liability.
Should you be gotten in an at misdeed accident where damage or death is a consequence, the impossibility to supply financial help may cause a state taxed SR 22. If put on your report, you would be ordered to keep this insurance for three years, and the expense far overbalances any value having the security in the first place would have cost you.

Your insurance provider, who is well experienced in the otherwise foreign language, is your best alternative for defining the coverage value you will need. Significant things to consider are the fiscal consequences if you are underinsured and the capability to tap into your individual finances in the case of a judgment.
While this auto insurance is supplied in increases of $100,000's, there are two dosages to the practical provision. While the prime portion covers the amount per individual, the second covers the utmost returned per accident.

Considering all individual assets, involving real estate, your insurance should be equal to your carrying value. Once again, your insurance provider has guidelines and formulas to help you in defining the amount that best secures you.
The cost related to adding physical damage to your policy considers a lot of factors when appraising the amount you will return every year. With your residence location being a basic factor, age, driving record and marital status is also involved in the calculation. One thing to take in account in having a physical damage support is to consider complete and cheap auto insurance.

While the state panel of insurance could supply data on the demands of the insurance ordered for your state, it is not a best fiscal decision to go without this security.
As legal suits continue to increment where auto accidents are taken into account, having bodily damage coverage on your auto insurance policy just makes real sense.

Online shopping spend in decline

2008-11-30T21:23:00.000-08:00

Will online shopping pick up in time for Christmas?

Online shops are suffering the same fate as the High Street with fewer customers spending money.

US net measurement firm comScore found that online shopping was in decline for the first time since it began measuring it in 2001.

Online shoppers in the US spent $8.2bn (£5.3bn) in November, down 4% on last year's figures.

ComScore forecast flat growth for the upcoming Christmas shopping season and did not rule out further decline

More...

US treasury sells bail-out bonds

2008-11-14T21:11:00.000-08:00

US Treasury says the bonds are needed to manage rising debt levels

The United States government plans to sell bonds worth $55bn (£34bn) next week in an effort to finance its bank rescue programme.

In a first $25bn auction on Monday, the Treasury Department will launch a new type of bond, which will reach maturity after three years.

The rest of the amount will be raised later next week through the sale of traditional 10-year and 30-year bonds.

US bonds earn a fixed rate of interest every six months until maturity.

US treasury sells bail-out bonds

Face-to-face with DR Congo rebel chief

2008-11-14T01:13:00.000-08:00

Laurent Nkunda claims to be protecting his Tutsi community from attacks

High above sea level, nestling on the stunningly beautiful Massisi Plateau of eastern Congo, lies the village of Kerolewe.

The dirt roads leading the way, lined with eucalyptus trees, are cut out of black volcanic earth.

It is a place of soaring hills and verdant green pastureland, often covered in mountain mists.

It is also just a few kilometres from the headquarters of one of the country's most feared rebel leaders, General Laurent Nkunda, whose recent military offensive in the region has displaced a quarter of a million people.

I reached Kerolewe by crossing the front line between government troops and rebels, which in this area lies just outside the town of Sake, 25km (15 miles) west of Goma.

Here, the government forces have a checkpoint just 2km away from the first rebel position.

Face-to-face with DR Congo rebel chief

Pakistani currency dealers held

2008-11-13T21:04:00.000-08:00

Munaf Kalia is at the centre of a nationwide investigation

Two directors of a Pakistani currency company have been remanded in custody over allegations that they illegally transferred millions of dollars abroad.

The two directors of Khanani and Kalia International (KKI), one of the biggest foreign exchange companies, were arrested on Saturday.

Their company's license to trade has also been suspended for a month and its offices have been searched.

Pakistan's economy is in crisis and the IMF is preparing a rescue package.

Pakistani currency dealers held

IMF approves $16.4bn Ukraine loan

2008-11-13T11:06:00.000-08:00

Ukraine's economic outlook has worsened

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a $16.4bn (£10.3bn) loan to Ukraine to bolster its economy, shaken by global financial turmoil.

The financial body said it would make $4.5bn immediately available as part of the two-year package.

The plan includes "monetary and exchange rate policy shifts, banking recapitalisation and fiscal and incomes policy adjustments".

The IMF has agreed loans to several nations to restore their economies.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7712387.stm

Emerging economies want new role

2008-11-12T21:02:00.000-08:00

The G20 says there must be a global solution to current problems

World finance chiefs are looking to increase the role of emerging nations, as part of reforms to tackle the current crisis.

Finance ministers and central bank presidents from the world's 20 major economies have been meeting at a G20 summit in Sao Paulo in Brazil.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick said countries see the need for better coordination towards economic issues.

"All of us know it's a meeting at a time of historic challenge," he said.

" Emerging economies want new role

Stocks surge after China stimulus

2008-11-12T10:54:00.000-08:00

Japan saw one of Monday's biggest early bounces

Asian markets have risen sharply, a day after China announced a huge investment plan to kick-start its slowing economy.

Stocks leapt in Japan, China and Hong Kong, buoyed by China's efforts to sustain its growth rates, on which many Asian economies depend.

About $586bn (£370bn) is to go into housing, infrastructure and post-earthquake reconstruction in China over the next two years.

Correspondents say the package is a response to falling growth and exports.

Stocks surge after China stimulus

Obama meets Bush at White House

2008-11-11T20:31:00.000-08:00

President Bush welcomes Barack Obama to the White House

US President-elect Barack Obama has held his first meeting with incumbent George W Bush since his last week's decisive election victory.

Both sides described the White House talks, which lasted just under two hours, as friendly and productive.

Few details were revealed as to their content but Iraq, the financial crisis and the issue of a smooth transition had all been expected to come up.

Meanwhile, reports suggest Mr Obama is set to tackle the Guantanamo Bay issue.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/us_elections_2008/7720137.stm

Tax cuts can help economy - Brown

2008-11-11T10:36:00.000-08:00

Gordon Brown wants to maintain the initiative on the economy

Gordon Brown has fuelled talk of possible tax cuts by saying they could help to support consumer spending.

In a speech in London, Mr Brown referred to planned tax cuts in the US and Germany, saying countries must "work together" to tackle the downturn.

Earlier, the PM said he was looking "at everything" that could help the economy and would announce details within days.

David Cameron says the Tories will announce "tax changes to encourage businesses to take on workers".

Tax cuts can help economy - Brown

Obama: 'This is our moment'

2008-11-10T20:18:00.000-08:00

President-elect Barack Obama addresses supporters in Chicago after beating John McCain in the race for the White House.

US interest rates slashed to 1%

2008-11-07T21:58:00.000-08:00

The Federal Reserve has cut its key interest rate from 1.5% to 1% in a widely expected move, as it aims to avoid a possible US recession.

Earlier this month the Fed cut rates from 2% to 1.5% in an emergency move, which was co-ordinated with five other central banks.

But the move did not boost US markets, with the Dow and S&P 500 closing down.

Interest rates have been slashed since September 2007, when the federal funds rate stood at 5.25%.

US interest rates slashed to 1%

Alitalia calls for urgent support

2008-11-07T12:00:00.000-08:00

Alitalia is struggling to cope with large debts.

Debt-laden Italian airline Alitalia has warned it needs an urgent injection of capital on top of a recent government loan in order to survive.

It was recently saved from collapse by a 300m-euro ($473m; £238.8m) government loan, which is under scrutiny to see if it breaches European state aid rules.

The collapse of a proposed takeover by Air France-KLM had left it in an "uncertain" situation, the firm said.

The carrier also unveiled a net loss of 495m euros for 2007.

Alitalia calls for urgent support

Alitalia rescue deadline extended

2008-11-06T21:52:00.000-08:00

Alitalia is technically insolvent

The Italian government has given Alitalia unions one more day to agree a rescue plan with investors group CAI.

The newly commissioned administrator of the airline had previously said that if a deal could not be reached then it would liquidate all its assets.

Despite round the clock discussions, talks broke down overnight and there are no plans for them to start again.

Government said it was committed to avoid "irreversible acts" and extended the deadline to the end of Friday.

World credit loss '£1.8 trillion'

2008-11-05T01:50:00.000-08:00

Mervyn King has called for "more boredom" in UK banking

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has warned action is needed to prevent the current financial malaise spreading.

Mr Brown said the first priority was "to stop the contagion to other countries, including in eastern Europe" where there were "problems emerging".

He added the IMF would have to create a new fund to help struggling nations.

It comes as the Bank of England said the world's financial firms had now lost £1.8 trillion ($2.8 trillion) as a result of the continuing credit crisis.

Alitalia running out of money

2008-11-04T21:47:00.000-08:00

Alitalia's administrator has urged the unions to accept a restructuring plan or risk the troubled Italian airline's certain failure.

Frances Kennedy reports from Rome.

Oil falls despite production cuts

2008-11-03T21:43:00.000-08:00

President of Opec, Chakib Khelil on why the decision was made to cut oil production

World oil prices have continued to fall, undermining oil cartel Opec's efforts to steady prices by cutting output by 1.5 million barrels a day.

The decision to cut about 5% of the cartel's total daily output came after an emergency Opec meeting in Vienna.

The move did not halt the sliding oil price with US sweet, light crude down $3.69 at $64.15 after wild swings saw greater falls in earlier trade.

Recession fears have pulled oil down from a high of $147 a barrel in July.

Opec head urges production cuts

2008-11-02T22:41:00.000-08:00

Mr Khelil says Opec must implement production cuts for prices to stabilise

Opec countries must implement agreed production cuts if they want stable oil prices, the cartel's head has warned.

Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, would be key to the success of any cutbacks, said Chakib Khelil.

Mr Khelil said markets were waiting for Opec countries to cut output, as agreed in Vienna last month.

Meanwhile Russia has said it will cut its oil export duties, in order to help the country's oil producers cope with declining prices.

Opec head urges production cuts

EU rules warning on Alitalia deal

2008-11-02T21:38:00.000-08:00

\Attempts to rescue Alitalia have been going on for two years >

The rescue deal for the Italian airline Alitalia must not breach European Union competition rules, the carrier's bankruptcy administrator has warned.

An investment group, the Cai, made an offer of 1bn euros ($1.27bn; £789m) for Alitalia on Friday, despite the lack of agreement with some unions.

About 3,000 workers will lose their jobs under the rescue plan.

The Cai hopes to link Alitalia with a major European airline, but a decision is not expected for several weeks.

EU rules warning on Alitalia deal

iTunes 'biggest US music seller'

2008-10-27T18:26:00.000-07:00

iTunes has sold four billion songs since its 2003 launch

Apple's iTunes has overtaken supermarket group Wal-Mart to become the largest music retailer in the US, an independent study has said.

Market research firm NPD said iTunes surpassed Wal-Mart in January and February if 12 downloads are considered equal to the sale of one CD album.

Steve Knopper, a reporter for Rolling Stone magazine, said the news showed the big change in music retailing.

iTunes has sold more than four billion songs since its launch in 2003.

iTunes 'biggest US music seller'

Big names sign up to iTunes rival

2008-10-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

Gbox will offer tracks not covered by copy protection technology
Some of the world's biggest record labels including Universal and SonyBMG have begun selling music through a new download service, challenging Apple.

Customers can buy tunes through Gbox at the same price charged by market leader iTunes - 99 cents (50 pence) a track.

Music fans can download tracks direct from Gbox or from the online retailer Amazon. However, only US customers can currently make use of the service.

Gbox will also benefit from a special advertising deal with Google.

Big names sign up to iTunes rival

Wi-fi buses drive rural web use

2008-10-26T10:32:00.000-07:00

The vehicles can effectively send and receive emails from villagers
Buses equipped with wi-fi are being used to deliver web content to remote rural villages in the developing world.

In rural India and parts of Rwanda, Cambodia and Paraguay, the vehicles offer web content to computers with no internet connection.

The buses and a fleet of motorcycles update their pages in cities before visiting the hard-to-reach communities.

As well as offering popular pages, the United Villages project also allows users to request specific information.

Wi-fi buses drive rural web use

BT to pump £1.5bn into broadband

2008-10-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

BT plans to plug some homes straight into the fibre-optic network

BT is to invest £1.5bn in fibre optic cables, giving up to 10 million UK households access to faster broadband.

The plans would bring 40% of homes in reach of an ultra-fast service by 2012.
BT is also planning to put fibre-optic cable into about 1 million homes, making the service even faster for those customers.

However, the communications group has made clear it will only make the move if regulator Ofcom allows it to get a
decent return on that investment.

BT to pump £1.5bn into broadband

Further banks may fail, says IMF

2008-10-25T01:38:00.000-07:00

More European banks could fail before the financial crisis ends

More European banks "may fail" as doubts persist about the viability of their business models, the International Monetary Fund has warned.

Private funding is "virtually unavailable" and banks will have to rely on public intervention, asset sales and consolidation, it said.

The six-monthly study also warns that eurozone economic growth will almost grind to a halt next year.

Growth in the 15 euro countries will fall to just 0.2% in 2009, it forecast.

Further banks may fail, says IMF

Gloomy forecasts for UK economy

2008-10-24T20:36:00.000-07:00

King: 'It now seems likely the UK economy is entering a recession'

The Bank of England governor and an influential think tank have predicted that the UK economy is likely to sink into recession in 2009.

Mervyn King told business leaders in Leeds he was concerned about rising unemployment and falling house prices.

Meanwhile, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research said the UK was on the brink of its first full year of recession since 1991.

Economic fears sent the pound plunging to a five-year low against the dollar.

Gloomy forecasts for UK economy

Sarkozy wants top EU economy team

2008-10-24T11:40:00.000-07:00

Mr Sarkozy is steering the EU presidency until January

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for a European "economic government" to ensure a more united EU response to financial turmoil.

The leaders of the 15-nation eurozone should co-ordinate their actions with the European Central Bank, he said.

Meanwhile the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Europe should weather the worst of the turmoil thanks to the EU's "crisis management" measures.

Sarkozy wants top EU economy team

'Race question mark' over US town

2008-10-23T23:01:00.000-07:00

Fayette County residents on the race issue

"I'm not voting for Obama, he's black."

Charles is a registered Democrat in Uniontown, Pennsylvania.

"If it wasn't for Obama I would vote Democrat. Blacks just cause trouble, that's the taste I've got in my mouth."

Race is the question mark hanging over this election.

Barack Obama is ahead in the polls. There's a widespread feeling now that the election is his to lose.

But there is something that is worrying Democrats. How accurate are the polls? How many voters are saying they will vote for Mr Obama because they do not want to be perceived as racist?

Once they enter the polling booth will it be an entirely different story?

Simply put, how many people out there think like Charles but are not admitting it?

'Race question mark' over US town

'Fart gas' link to blood pressure

2008-10-23T21:59:00.000-07:00

Hydrogen sulphide is behind the smell of rotten eggs

The gas best known for being used in many stink bombs may also control blood pressure, say US researchers.

Small amounts of hydrogen sulphide - a toxic gas generated by bacteria living in the human gut - are responsible for the foul odour of flatulence.

But it seems the gas is also produced by an enzyme in blood vessels where it relaxes them and lowers blood pressure.

The findings in mice may lead to new treatments for high blood pressure, the Science journal reported.

'Fart gas' link to blood pressure

Shares volatile on recession fear

2008-10-23T21:34:00.000-07:00

Investor sentiment continues to take a battering

Investors have seen another volatile trading day after a slew of weak corporate earnings stoked fears on Wall Street of a United States recession.

The main Dow Jones index fell as low as 8,251 points before closing the day up 172 points or 2% at 8,691.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq in contrast lost 0.73% to close at 1,603.9 points.

London's FTSE 100 index closed 1.16% higher at 4087.8, while in Germany the Dax index ended up 1.12% and France's Cac 40 index was 0.38% higher.

Shares volatile on recession fear

Japan sees further market losses

2008-10-23T21:33:00.000-07:00

The Nikkei has had a hard week

Japan's Nikkei stock index continues to suffer, losing almost 7% of its value.

News that electronics giant Sony had halved its full-year profit forecast spread gloom over the market.

Meanwhile, South Korea says growth in its economy, which has been battered by the current financial crisis, is at a four-year low.

Its Kospi benchmark share index fell 7.5% on Thursday to hit a three-year dip, and its currency, the won, has lost a third of its value this year.

Japan sees further market losses

Financial crisis 'like a tsunami'

2008-10-23T21:29:00.000-07:00

Alan Greenspan says financial crisis is 'like a tsunami'

Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan has called the recent turmoil in the global financial markets a "once in a century credit tsunami".

Speaking before Congress, Mr Greenspan, who stood down as Fed chairman in 2006, said the crisis had left him "in a state of shocked disbelief".

He added that recovery in the US housing market was "many months" away.

However critics said Mr Greenspan could have boosted regulation of the markets to help prevent the crisis.

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business

Key finance firms 'probed by FBI'

2008-09-24T22:33:00.000-07:00

The US government has stepped in to rescue some struggling institutions

The FBI has begun an investigation into four major US financial institutions caught up in the current financial crisis, US media say.

Investigators are reportedly examining possible fraud by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the failed bank Lehman Brothers and insurer AIG.

Top managers at those firms are also being investigated, the reports say.

In the past year, as the US housing market slumped, the FBI began a broad inquiry across the financial sector.

It was prompted by concerns over the way high-risk, "sub-prime" mortgages were being sold.

The FBI has been looking at lenders who sold home loans to buyers on low or unpredictable incomes and also the investment banks that packaged these loans and sold them on.

Bankruptcy

Investigations into the four companies were at an early stage, officials told the Associated Press news agency.

ABC News, citing unidentified sources, said the probes were assessing whether company officials systematically misled investors about the financial strength of their institutions.

The slump in the US housing market has resulted in billions of dollars of losses for these banks and turmoil in world credit markets.

Last week FBI director Robert Mueller said more than 20 large financial firms were already under investigation.

Bail-out

Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and AIG are all being bailed out by the US government.

And the government recently announced a $700bn bail-out plan that would enable banks to offload their bad debt.

But both Democrat and Republican politicians have voiced concerns that taxpayers could be paying a high price for the risks initially undertaken by banks.

Democrats want help for individuals who stand to lose their homes, as well as limits on pay for the bosses at the firms in question.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business

US bail-out plan provokes doubts

2008-09-24T22:27:00.000-07:00

Markets have seen huge volatility recently

Doubts over the speed at which the US financial bail-out plan can be introduced have emerged from both Democrats and Republicans.

Contentious issues include limiting compensation for bosses of rescued firms and wider help for Americans who could lose their homes.

Lawmakers from both sides say they need more time for debate, but a leading Democrat said progress was being made.

The White House says Congress must back the plan to prevent more economic harm.
President George W Bush said the world was watching to see if "we can act quickly to shore up our markets".

Details of the $700bn (£382bn) package are still being worked out.

Meetings took place over the weekend between Federal Reserve head Ben Bernanke, US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and members of Congress to try to seek consensus on the plan.

However uncertainty over how the programme will work caused the Dow Jones share index to fall by more than 370 points, or 3.27%, wiping out the gains made during Friday's rally.

'Unreasonable' expectation

Lawmakers from both sides have raised a number of concerns with the bail-out plan.

Democratic Congressman Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said Democrats would want certain changes, such as guaranteeing that the pay for bosses of the firms being bailed out was limited.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business

Hewlett fired up by laptop sales

2008-09-23T22:46:00.000-07:00

Hewlett-Packard expects revenue of more than $100bn in 2007

Booming sales of laptops, printers and servers helped Hewlett Packard (HP) beat Wall Street profit forecasts for the three months to 30 April.

The world's biggest maker of PCs earned $1.78bn (£900m) - or 65 cents per share - slightly down from $1.9bn at the same time last year.

However, the company put the dip down to a big tax gain which was recorded in the same period last year.

Looking ahead, HP expects to rack up a record $100bn in sales this year.

Sales in the quarter rose 13% to $25.53bn as demand for personal computers, including laptops and servers soared.

In its lucrative imaging and printing group, revenues also rose 6% to $7.2bn.

'Amazing turnaround'

The results would have surprised analysts had the California-based company not been forced to lift its earnings forecasts last week after financial details were inadvertently leaked through an email from an employee.

"These guys have put together an amazing turnaround of a company that was pretty screwed up and is now moving in the right direction," said Daniel Renouard, senior research analyst for Robert W Baird & Co.

Last year, HP overtook Dell to become the biggest seller of personal computers.

The company has also sailed past IBM as the world's largest technology outfit by sales.

The sharp cost-cutting measures introduced in 2005 will continue, said HP chief executive Mark Hurd.

"We will get this cost out, while we continue to focus on growth," he said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business

Laptop sales give Hewlett respite

2008-09-23T22:43:00.000-07:00

Strong laptop sales have buoyed HP profits

Under-fire Hewlett Packard (HP) was given a break from controversy surrounding the firm, after strong laptop sales boosted its profits.

It made a $1.7bn (£900m) net profit in the three months to the end of October, taking its full financial year profits to $6.2bn on sales of $158bn.
HP is embroiled in a corporate spying scandal which has embarrassed the firm.
The affair has seen its former chairwoman and ethics officer both facing criminal charges.

Ex-chairman Patricia Dunn resigned when it was revealed she had started an internal campaign to find the source of a boardroom leak.
It emerged that private investigators had been employed - obtained the phone records and other data of journalists and HP employees without their permission.

Lucrative

Earlier this year HP overtook Dell to become the biggest seller of personal computers.

And it said that sales in its lucrative printing and imaging business had grown 7% in the last quarter.
Its profits in the three months to October compares with $400m in the same period a year ago - when it faced a one-off $1bn cost linked to job cuts.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business

HP set to cut workforce by 24,600

2008-09-23T22:33:00.000-07:00

HP's hopes its takeover of EDS will help it compete with IBM>

Hewlett-Packard (HP), the world's largest computer company, says it plans to cut 24,600 jobs, almost 8% of its workforce, to streamline its business.
The cuts will take place over the next three years as it combines operations with Electronic Data Systems, the technology company it recently bought.
EDS employees are expected to bear the brunt of the cuts.
HP hopes the acquisition will allow it to take on rival IBM and win more lucrative, long-term contracts.

Half of the jobs cuts will be in the US, with finance, human resources and legal departments expected to be affected.
The company said that it eventually planned to add about half the positions back as different jobs in different departments within the company.
HP's $13.9bn takeover of EDS is the firm's biggest acquisition since 2002 when it bought Compaq for $19bn.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7618068.stm

Social Networks for Social Good

2008-09-23T19:45:00.000-07:00

There are more and more instances of this popping up all over the interwebs, and mainstream media is starting to shine the spotlight on the good that social networks can have in people’s lives. This is from MSNBC. Hat tip to Jim Long for pointing it out.

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The Future of Internet Dating?

2008-09-23T19:42:00.000-07:00

We all know the internet has changed the dating scene, but is this taking things too far? (hat tip Amanda Gravel)

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Add Buzz Networker - Social Networking to Google Reader

2008-09-23T19:32:00.000-07:00

The idea of behaviour targeting advertising is amazingly intriguing to me. I’ve been looking at lots and lots of different online ad systems recently because of a lovely little project I’ve got going on at the moment.

The Numerati, a new book by Stephen Baker of Business Week, is about data mining mathematicians.

The publisher (Houghton Miffin) is doing a behavioural advertising campaign for the book with Platform-A, a division of AOL. So, the idea is that we’re using the tools and methods of the Numerati to promote the book. [source]

The idea that you can be advertised to, using the information gathered as you wander about the interweb, fascinates me. I’ve requested a review copy of the Numerati because I want to find out what this is all about, and at this point, I’m off to find out more about Platform-A.

This might actually be a turn in the way advertising has traditionally worked. Stay tuned…

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There's some things I love about Google Chrome

2008-09-23T19:25:00.000-07:00

Annnnnd, there’s some things i really don’t love.

I love that it’s super fast. Amazingly speedy. Starts up like a fiend. Love it.

I love the start page and the fact that there are screenshots of my most recently visited pages.

The dragging of tabs is pretty damn cool, even though the first time I inadvertently did it, I was completely freaked out. What the HELL did I just do?? Once I figured it out, I thought it was pretty damn cool.

What I don’t like? the fact that when you close the window, you close all the tabs. Without warning. That’s an issue, and I think Google needs to work that out.

The thing is, that’s really the only thing that I don’t like. So far at least. I’ve been using Chrome as my primary browser, and so far, I’m sorta in love. (screenshot of my browser window, courtesy me)

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Third Tuesday: Social Media & PR

2008-09-23T18:17:00.000-07:00

Hanging out at the Network Hub listening to David Jones, one of the VPs at Hill & Knowlton tonight. And yes, we know it’s Monday. David is in town throwing Beer 2.0 tomorrow night so we threw Third Tuesday on Third Monday.

One of the things that cracked me up right away was “give PR people access to social media and they will f*ck it up.” I’ve been on both sides, and I can attest to the fact that this can be very true.

I have to say, David is a very engaging speaker – funny and honest. Just my kinda guy! We bantered about how we both think the social media press release is kinda useless – he’s meh about it than I am, but we both agree that it’s simply not necessary. (image source Rebecca Bollwitt)

There was a great discussion about what Hill & Knowlton does for their clients using the MAIL acronym: Monitor the space; Analyze your findings; Interact with the communities; Lead and start creating your own content.

It wasn’t until David started talking about the blog dashboard that he created and put on his on blog that I finally connected the dots and realized that he’s DoctorJones on Twitter. You know, someone I actually talk to, regularly. Yep. Quick on the uptake. That’s me!!

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How to Shop a Thrift Store

2008-09-21T23:29:00.000-07:00

This is a video of a thrift store where I shop. It is gigantic! 5,000 items are added to the sales floor every day. The place is so huge, I usually ran out of time before I ran out of store. I’ve found so many goodies here - Burberry, Dansko Clogs, cashmere sweaters, Fire King mugs, the list goes on and on. Look for an America’s Thrift Store in your area.

Read more about selling thrift store items on eBay for profit.

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4-Part Series on Small Business Branding

2008-09-21T23:13:00.003-07:00

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — If you’re an entrepreneur, you know that your brand plays a critical role in your business success. Every decision you make should be in line wiht your brand. But here’s the thing: If you don’t have a clearly defined brand, it’s hard to know whether you’re making good business decisions.

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High-Paid Women Are Changing the Business Landscape in America

2008-09-21T23:13:00.001-07:00

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — Although may believe that there’s still a glass ceiling in corporate America, others are others are breaking through barriers — both real and perceived — day after day.

Last week, Forbes released its list of highest-paid women in corporate America, whose income ranged from a little over $3 million (Karen O. Cottle, SVP, General Counsel for Adobe Systems) to $120.4 million (Meg Whitman, formerly of eBay). Interestingly, there was about an $80-million gap between the #1 and #2 slots ($120.4 million compared with $45.7 million).

Complete list of America’s highest-paid women

The Highest Paid Women in Corporate America (article)

In Pictures: The Highest-Paid Women In Corporate America (slideshow)

Video: The Highest-Paid Women in Corporate America (video)

Are these high-paid women role models for you? Why or why not?

(image: SXC.hu)

Tags: womens business blog, forbes, highest paid women in america, corporate america, meg whitman, karen cottle, adobe, ebay, kristen king, biz chicks rule

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How Women Can Fix Their Credit Before Applying for a Job: Part 2 — Debt and Budgeting

2008-09-21T23:12:00.001-07:00

a guest post by Michelle Dunn

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — Earlier today, we talked about credit reports and credit scores. Now, let’s talk about managing your money.

How can I increase my income to pay more on my debts?

When I was getting divorced I ran into a bad situation and turned to a credit counseling service that was a scam and I spent money I didn’t have that never went towards any of my debt. Be very careful of credit counseling services, make sure they are non-profit and check all of their references, including the better business bureau. Talk to some of their customers and make sure they are legitimate.

You may not be able to increase your income (unless you get a second job), but you can increase your available resources by cutting back on what you’re spending. Some of the things I did to increase my resources were to cancel many things I had but that weren’t necessities. For example, cancel cable television, cancel cell phones if you won’t be charged an early termination fee, or cut back on all the bells and whistles such as call waiting, call forwarding, caller ID or anything you can live without, and we can all live without a lot more than we think.

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Read This Post, or I’ll Make You Walk the Plank

2008-09-21T23:09:00.000-07:00

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — Ahoy, if you’re in business for yourself, you may need t’ make some tough decisions as time goes on. Maybe tis’ time t’ keelhaul at noon a client or customer. Maybe you need t’ raise your rates.

Or maybe you just need t’ talk like a pirate. It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day. Go t’ it.

Share your best piratespeak in the comments, matey. Gar, where can I find a bottle o’rum?

(image: SXC.hu)

Tags: womens business blog, women, woman, business, talk like a pirate day, talk like a pirate translator, biz chicks rule, kristen king

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What to Sell on eBay - Yankee Candles

2008-09-19T22:23:00.000-07:00

Don’t you just love Yankee Candles? The scents are intoxicatingly delicious. Sometimes at the mall, I wander into the Yankee Candle store just to smell the candles. A few years ago I became addicted to the scent Storm Watch. Just my luck, it was soon discontinued.

Then, last year I was in a Hallmark store and saw all of the Storm Watch candles in the clearance section. Wow, what a find! I stocked up for myself, then realized that eBay could work for any retired scent. Since then, my antennas have been up for sales on Yankee Candle retired scents.

You can make a good profit on eBay selling rare or retired Yankee candles. Look for these at garage sales and thrift stores, in any size or style. Also check Hallmark stores that are closing or going out of business. (I’ve seen this quite a bit lately as small businesses are drying up from the slow economy.) All of the merchandise will be reduced for quick sale.

Collectors want these candles. Even if they have been burned. The scents are just addicting. I have some that were given to me as gifts, and honestly, I don’t care for many of the strong perfumy scents. I am waiting for those to be retired so that they will increase in value and then I will list them on eBay.

Some of the retired scents that I have seen on eBay in the past are Rainforest, Song of Angels, Cherry Lemonade, Green Grass, and Lavender Sage. Watch your Hallmark store for sales on Yankee Candles and stock up. I’ve seen the 22 oz jar candles sell for up to $80 on eBay.

(By the way, Storm Watch is back! Apparently I was not the only unhappy customer that emailed Yankee Candle about discontinuing my favorite scent. If Yankee discontinues a scent that you like, contact them and voice your disappointment. It may be reinsated!)

[Image Source: Flickr]

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Free Resource for eBay Sellers - eBay Radio

2008-09-19T22:18:00.000-07:00

Are you listening to eBay Radio’s Griff as you type up your listings or prepare your packages for shipping? Griff hosts eBays’ official talk show and covers all sorts of topics from eBay changes, news directly from eBay, buyer and seller complaints about eBay, experts in various categories, advice on running your store, listener call-ins, and much more. You can find Griff at WS Radio.com, and you can listen live or listen to archived shows.

Check out Griff interviewing April, who runs the eBay store, The Toy Bakery.

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What About Using Goin’ Postal for Shipping eBay Items?

2008-09-19T22:17:00.000-07:00

I received this question from a reader, and felt like others may benefit from my answer. Jennifer asked, “You talk about shipping and getting shipping materials for low cost. Why can’t you take the item to one of those shipping companies (like Goin’ Postal) that ships things and packages them? They have all the packaging stuff, etc. It seems so much easier than doing it yourself. What am I missing?”

Well, Jennifer, you are missing the cost and time factor. If you are shipping 10 items a day, it is not time efficient to carry all that merchandise up to another location to let them pack it. (Consider gas prices, having to get out in bad weather, or carrying small children with you, if you have them.) You will be standing there waiting for at least an hour - an hour you could spend doing something more productive.

The boxes, packing materials, and packing services at those stores are expensive and not cost effective for a small home business. By the time you pay the shipping store for the boxes, packing materials, and their services to pack the item, you have dipped into the profit on your eBay sale, or more likely, it has cost you money to sell the item. Unless you have an unusually large, bulky, or fragile item, you should just ship it yourself. Shipping is a huge part of running an eBay store, and unless you are a huge seller with negotiated rates with a major carrier, you are better off just doing it yourself. For most home eBay sellers, packing and shipping takes up about 50% of the time they spend working on their stores, so if you plan to sell on eBay, be prepared to spend a good portion of your time shipping.

The packing and shipping process is much faster if you do it at home yourself and schedule a daily USPS pickup by your mail carrier. (If you only have a few items, you can just put them in your mailbox wihout having to schedule a pick up.)

When running any business, you have to look at costs. Shipping costs are a big one for eBay sellers which is why we try to find low cost or free supplies and use the most cost efficient carrier for the type of item we are selling.

(I personally have nothing against the postal stores and have used them for shipping personal items or other reasons. But as a daily part of your eBay business, they are not cost effective)

[Image Source: Flickr]

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eBay Selling for Alzheimer’s Caregivers

2008-09-19T22:16:00.001-07:00

eBay selling as a home business can work in many situations: for stay at home moms, retirees, college students, young couples saving for a home, and even Alzheimer’s caregivers. Not that a caregiver of any kind needs more to do, that certainly is not the case. But, part of Caregiver Syndrome is stress, anger, depression, boredom, resentment, and loss of interest in life.

eBay is as a hobby or income-producing home business has become popular for the “sandwich” generation who are looking for other ways to bring extra income into the home. This income may be to supplement retirement or to care for a parent or spouse.

eBay can be a viable option for caregivers or the homebound because sellers it offers a link to the outside world, an interesting hobby, and a fun pastime. Sellers interact with customers on a daily basis, can participate in groups and forums and communicate with other sellers, and all of this helps with the isolation factor experienced by caregivers. Furthermore, eBay gives the caregiver another focus outside of their caregiving responsibilities, and many caregivers are able to manage both.

[Image Source: Flickr]

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How to Sell Grocery Coupons on eBay for Extra Cash

2008-09-19T22:15:00.002-07:00

Did you know that you sell grocery coupons on eBay? Some sellers’ entire stores are nothing but grocery, food, and drug store coupons. These sellers obtain multiple Sunday newspapers for the sole purpose of clipping the coupons to offer them on eBay. Actually, coupon clipping is a fun family activity since everyone can get involved. Plus, it is something you can do from home to earn extra money.( If you are especially frugal, you can ask friends, neighbors, and coworkers to save the coupon inserts for you and you won’t even have to buy any Sunday papers.)

There are several ways to sell coupons on eBay. You can organize them into lots based on exact product, product type, or just a miscellaneous group. The biggest obstacle with selling coupons is managing your listings and purging the listings once the coupons have expired.

Selling grocery coupons on eBay won’t make you rich. But, you can make a few extra dollars a month without having to buy any inventory to sell. Check out this step by step guide, “How to Make Money on eBay Selling Grocery Coupons.” It is easier than you think.

(Disclaimer, according to eBay – you are not actually selling the coupons, you are collecting compensation for your time to cut, sort, and mail them.)

[Image Source: Flickr]

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Wordless Wednesday - eBay Collectibles

2008-09-19T22:15:00.001-07:00

Vintage Fire King Burger King Mug.

[Image Source: Flickr]

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eCommerce, Entrepreneur, Mom Success Story

2008-09-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

I recently met Miriam on a site called The Mom Bloggers Club. She has found a unique niche selling her handcrafted jewelry online. A mom of 7 who has a love for crocheting, Miriam turned her hobby into a thriving online ecommerce business. She and her husband live on their boat for 6 months out of the year, and Miriam has figured out how to take her business with her. From her site, “A Daily Decision,” Miriam tells her story.

“About 30 years ago I began teaching myself to knit and crochet. It was something I did to relax myself, a time to slow down from my busy day. My husband and I have 7 children, so my days could get real busy, and by the end of each day I needed time for myself, and this was my form of relaxation. I guess after 30 years I have crocheted or knitted almost everything that could be done. Well, low and behold I was in for a shock. I found information about crocheting with wire and making jewelry with beads, pearls and semi-precious stones.

Well away I went, this was a whole new idea for me. I fell in love with crocheted wire jewelry. It is delicate and so unique in its look that I always get people to stare at what I am wearing. Now, I am at the stage that I have more necklaces than I could ever wear. So I now offer them for sale.”

Miriam has demonstrated how a creative thinker can turn a hobby into a fun business, and take it around the world with her. My hat is off to you, Miriam! Visit Miriam’s site for a look at her beautiful handcrafted jewelry.

[Image Source: A Daily Decision. Permission granted by Miriam Grafer]

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eBay Spelling Errors and Typos – Other Sellers’ Mistakes Save You Money!

2008-09-19T22:11:00.000-07:00

Spelling words incorrectly on eBay can be the kiss of death. Goodbye to your sale and your profits if buyers cannot find your auction due to a spelling error. Many listings simply expire without any bidders because the items do not show on searches.

As an eBay buyer, you can find bargains and save big money on purchases by making a beeline directly for the misspelled titles. But how do you find them? By using these websites:

Fat Fingers

Auction Bloopers

Typo Hound

Auction Speller

For example, go to Fat Fingers and do a search for Ralph Lauren. You will see hundreds of listings with the words spelled incorrectly, either because of typos or because the seller just spelled the word wrong. (And some of the spellings are pretty bad.) Use these tools to pick up bargains – the holiday season is coming!

[Image Source: Flickr]

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Quotable Quotes: he who thinks acts

2008-09-18T23:16:00.000-07:00

A great barometer with which to evaluate your company’s culture and your boss’ skill is to get conscious about just how much you’re encouraged to think. That’s right, think.

Most employees say that they’re encouraged to take the initiative, but not necessarily to think.

Hello, how do you do the former if you haven’t done the latter?

“A company will get nowhere if all of the thinking is left to management.” – Akio Morita (And it’s good to practice before you’re promoted.)

“You can’t always wait for the guys at the top. Every manager at every level in the organization has an opportunity, big or small, to do something. Every manager’s got some sphere of autonomy. Don’t pass the buck up the line.” – Bob Anderson, GE’s former CEO (Don’t pass it down, either; whatever your position be the place that it stops.)

“Solve it. Solve it quickly, solve it right or wrong. If you solve it wrong, it will come back and slap you in the face, and then you can solve it right. Lying dead in the water and doing nothing is a comfortable alternative because it is without risk, but it is an absolutely fatal way to manage a business.” –Thomas J. Watson, Jr. (Or as Nike says, “Just do it!”)

How often do you think?

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Does experience matter when hiring?

2008-09-18T23:15:00.001-07:00

Last week our channel editor sent a reminder that today was theme day (when participating Biz Channel bloggers all write on the same subject) and the subject was “Does Experience Matter?”

A day later I read a fascinating article based on Wharton management professor Nancy Rothbard’s co-authored paper titled Unpacking Prior Experience: How Career History Affects Job Performance about the dangers in hiring dominantly based on experience.

Obviously a post match made in heaven.

Experience is good, right? Not always.

I remember 30 years ago arguing with managers who wanted to fill their position with a person doing the same job at their competitor—and I’m still arguing.

It’s a mindset best described by the catch-phrase “buy IBM”—meaning making a decision that your boss couldn’t argue with. This was/is especially true in hiring.

The smartest engineering vp I ever worked with had a different attitude. He said “Find me someone who fits our culture and already knows at least two [software] languages and I’ll hire her. If s/he’s learned two s/he can learn more.” He never worried if the experience was directly applicable.

Few managers would move to an identical job at a competitor, yet they look for candidates to do that same thing.

Experience in general has enormous value, but by holding out for direct or exact experience you can shoot yourself in the foot.

“A senior human resource manager told the research team, “We tried to hire from our competitors and paid a premium for the experience — but those hires were the least successful.” Another manager quoted in the paper said: “People are weighed down by the baggage they bring in.”"

So the next time you’re hiring look first at the candidate’s MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy™), then at talents, then skills, then experience—the experience that shows that the person knows how to learn and enjoys the challenge.

What do you look for when hiring?

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Getting to sustainable, controllable, disruptive innovation

2008-09-18T23:12:00.000-07:00

Post from Leadership Turn Image credit: Flo_Evans CC license

By Wes Ball. Wes is a strategic innovation consultant and author of The Alpha Factor – a revolutionary new look at what really creates market dominance and self-sustaining success (Westlyn Publishing, 2008) and writes for Leadership turn every Tuesday. See all his posts here. Wes can be reached at www.theballgroup.com.

Why can’t every innovation be “disruptive?” Why can’t more companies come up with disruptive innovations? And why is it that many innovations that are disruptive only lay the groundwork for another competitor to take control and become the leading innovator?

I believe the answer is in the focus we place upon innovation.

All useful innovation starts with an idea that addresses an unmet functional need. Without that initiative, the idea will have little value to customers. ”Good” innovations also create future growth potential by pointing the way to a “thread” of future innovations — a logical progression of innovations that build upon and improve the original innovation. Those that change the way much of an industry works are considered to be “disruptive.” But the most desirable innovations also allow the original innovator to maintain control over the innovation “thread,” rather than just creating opportunities for many other competitors, who may take control and become the leading future innovator. Maintaining control ensures the innovation thread will be sustainable for the original innovator.

Harley-Davidson was able to achieve this—until recently, no other competitor was able to overcome the hold H-D had on customer aspirations.

Apple may have with its iPod and iPhone. In fact, Apple seems to be making its innovation thread expand to encompass its entire product line with new products like the MacBook Air that share many of the characteristics of both the iPhone and the iPod.

BMW and Mercedes have been able to do this, as well.

In fact, most companies I refer to as Alpha companies do this to some extent, although most could do it even better.

We are talking about much more than functional innovation or branding or advertising or new distribution models or any of the typical things innovators might think to use to expand attractiveness and build loyalty and longevity to their innovation threads. We are talking about things that go beyond the traditional factors addressed in innovation, yet create significant and dramatic shifts in loyalty, aspiration to purchase, and willingness to pay more to own.

Almost any smart group of people can come up with a potentially disruptive idea that addresses unmet functional needs. Customers are certainly under-satisfied in most categories. The key is in understanding how to make that innovation yours, and not something others can improve upon, taking the lad away from you.

Here’s the problem: innovation is almost always too focused upon functionality, price, and delivery of benefits rather than the real core factors that create long-term, sustainable success.

What if Apple had decided to introduce the iPod in a traditional way, using functional performance as the sole innovation criteria? It still would have been new. It still would have made getting and listening to music easier and more “personal.” It still would have had iTunes. It still would have been a breakthrough that changed the way people buy and listen to music. It still would have made Apple the initial leader, but almost any competitor could have come out with a cheaper and perhaps better performing product that would have put Apple on the defensive. And isn’t that what we see happening to too many “good” ideas?

Luckily, Apple did not stop there. It also made its product with visual and tactile appeal — a seemingly superfluous addition, but the key to generating ego-satisfaction: the real key to sustainability. With those ego-satisfaction factors, it has been able to hold off numerous attacks and charge significantly more.

The “intelligent” cell phone is another great example. Blackberry was really the disruptive leader. Apple, however, “improved” upon it with ego-satisfaction factors that gave them the real leading position. They now have the opportunity to control the innovation thread from this point forward, IF they protect what got them there. The iPhone’s functionality was different, but not really “better” than that of the Blackberry. It just appealed to the ego-satisfaction side better and more fully that RIMM’s Blackberry product did. Now Blackberry, the original innovation leader, is on the defensive.

Alpha learning shows that disruptive innovation is only of value to the originating innovator, if ego-satisfaction becomes part of what is “proven” by the functionality of the disruptive innovation.

Every human needs three sets of things: physical minimums (safety/security), a sense of being cared for and valued (affection), and a purpose for being. For purposes of innovation, the Alpha model breaks them into Function, Self-satisfaction, and Personal significance. The reality of life is that humans cannot fulfill the satisfaction and significance elements easily, because they are typically based upon how they feel about their interactions with other people.

By understanding and focusing upon fulfillment of emotional satisfaction and personal significance, however, once functional performance has reached at least the minimum level required, the Alpha innovator dramatically magnifies the impact and value of innovation.

The result? Control and dominance over the future thread of innovation. After all, what good would be a disruptive innovation that just gets taken over by a competitor?

Don’t misunderstand: this is not suggesting that functional innovation is a waste of investment. You cannot create sustainable innovation by only addressing ego-satisfaction. It is just the way you dramatically enhance whatever innovation you create. It is also the way to filter ideas to make sure they will be sustainable, whether they are truly disruptive or not.

Almost all of the disruptive innovations we can think of are most obviously functional innovations. But the innovations that will really make your company’s future (and do it at the lowest initial and on-going investment) will come from adding the ego-satisfaction element to them. Such innovation is truly disruptive, because it changes everything in your favor, while competitors wonder what happened. In fact, in most cases, competitors are caught flat-footed for months, because they can’t understand what you even did to create such successful change. They are looking at the functionality but miss the ego-satisfaction elements as the really critical ones.

It also doesn’t just create a new functional solution that everyone can copy or improve upon. It creates a highly-defensible platform from which you can control much or all of your category, while competitors scramble to even come in second.

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The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Unlocking the Creativity and Innovation in You and

2008-09-17T21:34:00.005-07:00

"No modern business leader should be unaware of these insights," Brian Mcbride, VP Northern Europe, Dell "Rocket fuel for the business brain," Bill Penn, CEO, Sparx Group In this lively, energetic guide to leadership, highly acclaimed author, trainer and presenter Paul Sloane shares dynamic techniques that are sure to unleash creative energy and lateral thinking.

Packed with real-life examples, practical methods and lateral thinking exercises, the book encourages you to question your assumptions and develop new ideas with a variety of techniques. Lateral thinking puzzles at the end of each chapter illustrate the importance of thinking outside the box.

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Uniting the Virtual Workforce: Transforming Leadership and Innovation in the Globally Integrated Enterprise (Microsoft Executive Leadership Series)

2008-09-17T21:34:00.004-07:00

Praise for Uniting the Virtual Workforce

"Uniting the Virtual Workforce offers much-needed guidance on how to navigate the largely unmapped territory of virtual work environments in the global economy. The authors do an outstanding job of presenting how organizations should address the challenges of virtual workforces so as to reap the huge potential benefits of increased growth, productivity, and innovation."
-C. Warren Axelrod, PhD, Chief Privacy Officer and Business Information Security Officer, U.S. Trust, and author of Outsourcing Information Security

"Lojeski and Reilly bring us something that readers of business books so rarely get-no nonsense practical guidance on how to manage distance, especially where it most often serves as an impediment to working effectively.Ê If you interface with widely dispersed team members who rarely see one another and communicate by virtue of impersonal electronics, you may expect to find this book provocative, counterintuitive, and above all, exciting. It gives all of us who have to struggle, while working with talent stretched across distance, hope, that maybe there are ways to do this right!"
-Patrick J. McKenna, author of First Among EqualsÊ

"A must-read for global corporate executives who manage geographically dispersed job sharing teams. Practical strategies for preventing productivity loss and optimizing innovation. The authors pull no punches in showing the real downsides to the virtual work phenomenon; they have done a great service for us all."
-Jeff Saperstein, author of Creating Regional Wealth in the Innovation Economy

"Uniting the Virtual Workforce charts the course for competing in the twenty-first century by tapping into the powers of virtual work. Any manager who ignores the virtual workforce is underperforming, and any company or organization that does not appreciate virtual work is already at a competitive disadvantage. Karen and Dick have tapped into a key ingredient in the recipe for global growth."
-Jerry MacArthur Hultin, President, Polytechnic University, and former Under Secretary of the Navy

"Authors Sobel Lojeski and Reilly have provided a useful primer for the harried executive striving for productivity improvements while seeing the workload expand and the workforce disperse. Using conceptual definitions of Physical, Operational, and Affinity Distance to describe the multifaceted dimensions of building teams of people to work effectively together, the authors construct a very powerful set of metrics for a manager to improve the capability of his or her workgroup, no matter where it resides or how it is composed. The book is rich in anecdotes and specific studies that illustrate the concepts in an engaging, pertinent, and easy-to-understand manner. In an age of outsourcing, offshoring, and decentralizing groups of people who have to get things done together, reading this small book will repay itself many times over."
-Charles House, Director, Media X Lab at Stanford University, and former Director of the Societal Impact of Technology, Intel Corporation

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Building Your Team's Morale, Pride, And Spirit

2008-09-17T21:34:00.003-07:00

To build morale, pride, and spirit, a leader needs to possess certain characteristics and skills. This book will help you determine your current level of readiness in these areas. It describes two key factors: time spent together in shared experiences and communication among team members. When morale, pride, and spirit are enhanced, there is a positive response of cooperation and loyalty from team members toward the leader, the team, and the organization. Productivity and efficiency are enhanced, and there are tangible economic and relational outcomes. The leader is the key to the success of the entire process.

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Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Powerful Problem-Solving Techniques to Ignite Your Team's Potential (Leaders Guide)

2008-09-17T21:34:00.002-07:00

The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Powerful Problem-Solving Techniques to Ignite Your Team's Potential (Leaders Guide)

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Maintaining Team Performance

2008-09-17T21:34:00.000-07:00

Between the time a team is launched and the time it delivers results, managers need to know that the team is on course. Whether they have launched a team to achieve a business objective or have inherited a team, they need to monitor effectiveness on an ongoing basis and make course corrections that keep small problems from becoming major disasters.

Monitoring and maintaining team performance is a key element of leading a team. You can provide that leadership by paying attention to four important dimensions: team member effort, team member knowledge and skills, team tactics, and group dynamics. By focusing on those four areas, you can assess your team’s performance, zero in on areas of weakness, and take the corrective measures necessary to ensure peak performance and to deliver expected results.

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Leadership and Business Ethics (Issues in Business Ethics)

2008-09-16T21:34:00.000-07:00

This book seeks to contribute to a more adequate coalescence of ethics and business with innovative models for such coalescence, for the mutual benefit of business ethicists, professors teaching in the undergraduate and MBA classroom, corporate executives, and businesspeople. While each of the contributions in this collection is distinct, each invites us to examine our own mind sets about corporate responsibility and the future of free enterprise as Western multinational corporations expand into a global economy.
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The world has become a ‘village’ and what were once thought of as externalities can no longer be dismissed as not part of the decision equation in business ventures. The alleged separation of business from ethics can no longer be a viable approach, if it ever was, as companies move into alien cultures and affect, both positively and sometimes questionably, traditional, non-western and nonindustrial mores of local communities. Globalization has challenged our parochial management thinking. This collection of essays helps to refocus our conceptual work about commerce and business practices in this new century of global enterprise.

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Leadership and Business Ethics (Issues in Business Ethics)

2008-09-16T21:28:00.000-07:00

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Online Business All-in-one for Dummies

2008-09-16T18:15:00.000-07:00

Online Business All-in-one for Dummies
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The Business Idea: The Early Stages of Entrepreneurship

2008-09-16T18:14:00.001-07:00

Successful business ideas are not so much about talent as about a systematic approach. The Business Idea encourages new ways of thinking when it comes to entrepreneurship and innovation. Too many ventures originate in the solutions the entrepreneur has to offer and not in the problem the customer needs solved. Business plans done this way can often lead to disappointment.

The Business Idea leaves behind this product orientated logic. The book presents new, applicable entrepreneurship methods for developing creative market insight, for identifying windows of opportunity, creating business concepts and entrepreneurial strategies for successful market entry. Entrepreneurship is a complex and risky process compared to almost everything else in business life, so it richly deserves to have its own theoretical and methodological toolbox. The Business Idea provides the tools making it of interest to anyone who works with getting an enterprise off the ground or studies entrepreneurship.

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Entrepreneurship: Determinants and Policy in a European-U.S. Comparison

2008-09-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

The purpose of this book is to provide such an analytical compass for directing how public policy can shape and promote entrepreneurship. We do this in two ways. The first is to provide a framework for policymakers and scholars to understand what determines entrepreneurship. The second is to apply this framework to a series of cases, or country studies. In particular, this book seeks to answer three questions about entrepreneurship: What has happened over time? Why did it happen? And, what has been the role of government policy?

The cornerstone of the book is the proposed Eclectic Theory of Entrepreneurship. The goal of the Eclectic Theory is to provide a unified framework for understanding and analyzing the determinants of entrepreneurship. The Eclectic Theory of entrepreneurship integrates the different strands from relevant fields into a unifying, coherent framework. At the heart of the Eclectic Theory is the integration of factors shaping the demand for entrepreneurship on the one hand, with those influencing the supply of entrepreneurs on the other hand. The key to understanding the role of public policy is through identifying those channels shifting either the demand for or the supply of entrepreneurship by policy instruments.

The findings in this book show that, by utilizing the framework provided by the Eclectic Theory of Entrepreneurship, it is within the grasp of policymakers to identify the determinants of entrepreneurship in a particular country setting at a particular point in time. This will be essential in formulating new public policies to promote entrepreneurship and, ultimately, economic growth, job creation and international competitiveness.

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The Man Behind the Microchip: Robert Noyce and the Invention of Silicon Valley

2008-09-16T18:10:00.000-07:00

Hailed as the Thomas Edison and Henry Ford of Silicon Valley, Robert Noyce was a brilliant inventor, a leading entrepreneur, and a daring risk taker who piloted his own jets and skied mountains accessible only by helicopter. Now, in The Man Behind the Microchip, Leslie Berlin captures not only this colorful individual but also the vibrant interplay of technology, business, money, politics, and culture that defines Silicon Valley. Here is the life of a giant of the high-tech industry, the co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel who co-invented the integrated circuit, the electronic heart of every modern computer, automobile, cellular telephone, advanced weapon, and video game.

With access to never-before-seen documents, Berlin paints a fascinating portrait of Noyce: he was an ambitious and intensely competitive multimillionaire who exuded a "just folks" sort of charm, a Midwestern preacher's son who rejected organized religion but would counsel his employees to "go off and do something wonderful," a man who never looked back and sometimes paid a price for it. In addition, this vivid narrative sheds light on Noyce's friends and associates, including some of the best-known managers, venture capitalists, and creative minds in Silicon Valley. Berlin draws upon interviews with dozens of key players in modern American business--including Andy Grove, Steve Jobs, Gordon Moore, and Warren Buffett; their recollections of Noyce give readers a privileged, first-hand look inside the dynamic world of high-tech entrepreneurship.

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A modern American success story, The Man Behind the Microchip illuminates the triumphs and setbacks of one of the most important inventors and entrepreneurs of our time.

Entrepreneurship and Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy

2008-09-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

Entrepreneurship has long been seen as a major vehicle for economic development and growth and it has attracted researchers from a variety of disciplines with very diverse analytical approaches. The vast amount of research that has been conducted so far has raised certain pertinent questions which remain unanswered; questions such as: which model to apply in practical policy work? are other models equally viable? What are the implications of the different models? and how can and should they be used to guide the formulation and implementation of entrepreneurship policies?

Entrepreneurship and Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy highlights the role of individual economic agents with endowments of new knowledge or new combinations of old knowledge as entrepreneurs, and thus identifies them as dynamic factors in the knowledge economy. The book also examines the role of clusters and agglomerations for these entrepreneurs in the knowledge economy.

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The Student Success Manifesto

2008-09-16T18:06:00.000-07:00

Discover how to: (1) Make massive amounts of money and enjoy doing it (2) Find or make your dream job (3) Make yourself irresistible for prestigious scholarships & awards (4) Get into your first choice school and make the most out of it (5) Meet and learn from mega role models (6) Start NOW without paying dues.

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The Entrepreneur's Guide to Hiring and Building the Team (The Entrepreneur's Guide)

2008-09-16T18:01:00.000-07:00

There are few absolutes in business, but here is one: Thriving businesses employ a superior team. No matter how great the idea, how strong the entrepreneur's finances, how excellent the location, or how magnetic the advertising, the success or failure of the business rides on the quality of the workforce. And here's another absolute: Long-term financial success depends on keeping effective employees from jumping ship. In this book, business veteran Ken Tanner guides entrepreneurs through the three critical components of staffing a business--recruiting, teambuilding, and retention. As he shows time and again through advice, anecdote, and example, solving these challenges is like adding rocket fuel to the entrepreneurial business.

Yet new business owners tend to take a lax view of personnel issues. They hire the first person who walks through the door or interview using a canned sheet of questions snagged from the Internet. "Teambuilding" consists of showing the new employee where to sit and who to go to for answers. And retention? What's that? The Entrepreneur's Guide to Hiring and Building the Team begins by helping entrepreneurs understand why staffing is so important. Then it guides them through the entire process of recruiting to attract top-notch talent to the budding organization. But that's only the start, Tanner maintains. It's critical to get these talented people to work together to drive the business, and it's equally critical to keep each employee challenged, motivated, and satisfied--the keys to retention. Tanner shows how to: *Identify holes in the workforce before hiring.
*Cast a wide net to find the best potential hires.
*Interview well to uncover stellar candidates.
*Create a purpose for the team.
*Understand human dynamics and handle conflicts.
*Lead the team.
*Understand employee needs to better motivate them.
*Push the right buttons to retain employees for the long term.

The ultimate success of the business depends on doing these things well, something every entrepreneur will grasp after reading this book.
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Private Voluntary Health Insurance in Development: Friend or Foe? (Health, Nutrition and Population Series)

2008-09-15T19:20:00.000-07:00

Private Voluntary Health Insurance in Development: Friend or Foe? (Health, Nutrition and Population Series)

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MD5: 14298751e3f8af595179fa4f87edc7ad
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Sell and Sell Short (Wiley Trading)

2008-09-15T19:17:00.000-07:00

Written by bestselling author, Alexander Elder, the Study Guide for Sell and Sell Short provides traders with 115 questions and answers, including chart studies, to help traders master the material in Dr. Elder’s important new book, Sell and Sell Short. Each question challenges readers to focus on essential aspects of successful trading and the detailed explanations will help readers to understand the right and wrong way to trade.

The study guide focuses on three major areas:

* How to Buy, Manager Money, and Keep Records
* How to Sell
* How to Sell Short

Each part includes a rating scale, which will enable readers to measure their level of competence and identify any gaps in their knowledge before risking money in the market. Together with Sell and Sell Short, the Study Guide for Sell and Sell Short will give traders the tools they need to capitalize on the markets ups and downs, preserve capital, and generate superior returns.

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Selling IT Training

2008-09-15T19:14:00.000-07:00

Selling is a skill. Selling in the ever-changing world of IT training is an art. Martin Bean is a uniquely gifted master of this art form. Now he shares his wisdom, his experience, and his insider’s perspective on the challenges and the opportunities of the IT training marketplace. Learn how you can develop the skills and strengths that will lead you to your goals. If you ’re serious about succeeding as an IT training sales professional, then let "Selling IT Training" be the reference tool and motivator that leads you to that success!

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Sales Blazers: 8 Goal-Shattering Strategies from the World's Top Sales Leaders

2008-09-15T19:13:00.000-07:00

The challenge: achieve high-level growth on an annual basis.
Every sales professional faces it. Mark Cook, a growth leadership consultant for leading performance improvement company O.C. Tanner, called on top sales earners at leading organizations worldwide to discover their secrets for sales success. The results revealed trailblazing strategies for dramatic growth--which can be repeated by salespeople at any level and used to lead sales and support teams in any industry.

Sales Blazers explores these eight advanced strategies that Cook observed in “Sales Blazers” across the board at Fortune 500 and Inc. 500 companies. Pulling from his experience as a sales leader in the trenches, Cook reveals how these sales leaders use each breakthrough strategy to consistently outperform trends and their competition—creating extraordinary growth. He outlines the “Sales Blazer Method,” which encompasses the eight strategies common to all top earners. You’ll see how effective sales leaders:

He also outlines the “Sales Blazer Method,” which encompasses the eight strategies common to all top earners. You'll see how effective sales leaders:

1. Start with a clean bill of health to increase selling time
2. Spark a performance pursuit to influence and motivate
3. Get the Express Pass to accelerate relationships and beat the competition
4. Play your depth chart to align strengths and engage broader talent
5. Activate expectations to reach this quarter's goals
6. Coach like a professional to strengthen your advisory role
7. Offer RSVP feedback to achieve better results
8. Heighten reward potency to increase momentum

Used in concert, these strategies help you prepare more effectively, and improve your ability to lead and achieve goal-shattering results year after year.
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Study Guide for Sell and Sell Short (Wiley Trading)

2008-09-15T19:11:00.000-07:00

Marketing Planning & Strategy

2008-09-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

Written for the capstone course in Marketing or Marketing Strategy. Marketing Planning and Strategy will help students develop strategic marketing skills essential for todayUs global competition. This text focuses on marketing stratgey from the viewpoint of the business unit and clearly distinguishes marketing strategy from marketing management.

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Capital Adequacy beyond Basel: Banking, Securities, and Insurance

2008-09-15T19:08:00.001-07:00

Oil tankers are not the only vessels that have caused oil pollution at sea. Numerous spills in the past have been of heavy fuel oil from non-tankers. However, the international liability and compensation regime covered only oil pollution damage caused by oil tankers.

There was thus a need to bring the law on marine oil pollution responsive to oil pollution damage caused by non-tankers. In March 2001, the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage was adopted following a diplomatic conference at the International Maritime Organization. Though this convention has not yet come into force, its various aspects should already be considered as they will surely affect the maritime industry as a whole and the non-tanker sector, in particular. This book provides a timely and comprehensive study on the concept of compulsory insurance, its main purpose of ensuring compensation and its interrelations with other features such as the rule of strict liability and the limitation of liability under the convention.

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When Insurers Go Bust: An Economic Analysis of the Role and Design of Prudential Regulation

2008-09-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

In the 1990s, large insurance companies failed in virtually every major market, prompting a fierce and ongoing debate about how to better protect policyholders.

Drawing lessons from the failures of four insurance companies, When Insurers Go Bust dramatically advances this debate by arguing that the current approach to insurance regulation should be replaced with mechanisms that replicate the governance of non-financial firms.

Rather than immediately addressing the minutiae of supervision, Guillaume Plantin and Jean-Charles Rochet first identify a fundamental economic rationale for supervising the solvency of insurance companies: policyholders are the "bankers" of insurance companies. But because policyholders are too dispersed to effectively monitor insurers, it might be efficient to delegate monitoring to an institution--a prudential authority. Applying recent developments in corporate finance theory and the economic theory of organizations, the authors describe in practical terms how such authorities could be created and given the incentives to behave exactly like bankers behave toward borrowers, as "tough" claimholders.

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In the Name of Entrepreneurship? The Logic and Effects of Special Regulatory Treatment for Small Business

2008-09-15T18:07:00.001-07:00

What are the differential effects of regulation and policy on small businesses? What is the impact of special regulatory treatment for small businesses? This book sheds light on these issues through analysis of the regulatory and public policy environment with regard to small businesses, including focused studies in four key areas: health insurance, workplace safety, corporate governance, and business organization.

There has been ongoing concern that some regulations, rules, and government policies place a disproportionate burden on small businesses and entrepreneurs. For this reason, small businesses often receive special regulatory treatment, such as exemptions from legislation or extended deadlines for compliance. However, the desire to support small businesses can come into conflict with the interest in addressing the concerns that led to the regulation or policy in the first place. Moreover, it is often unclear whether special regulatory treatment for small businesses is having the intended effect.

This book sheds light on these issues through analysis of the regulatory and public policy environment with regard to small businesses, including focused studies in four key areas: health insurance, workplace safety, corporate governance, and business organization. The authors offer support for the idea that the regulatory environment has a different effect on the behavior of small businesses than it has on that of large ones. However, they also demonstrate that policies designed specifically to help small businesses do not always have the intended effect.

The lack of a consistent definition of small business confounds our understanding of these issues. The book suggests possible directions for future policy that achieves a better balance between the interest in restricting firm behavior through regulation and the desire to encourage small businesses and entrepreneurs.

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In the Name of Entrepreneurship? The Logic and Effects of Special Regulatory Treatment for Small Business

2008-09-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

A Guide To The Project Management Body Of Knowledge (PMBOK Guides) 3rd edition

2008-09-14T22:45:00.000-07:00

A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide)—2000 Edition is now available in eight additional languages to help project managers around the world.

Each of PMI's official translations includes a bilingual glossary of newly translated and standardized project management terminology. This allows candidates to study the guide in the same language in which they plan to take the Project Management Professional (PMP®) certification exam.

PMI undertook a rigorous, year-long process to ensure the maximum effectiveness of each official translation. Each translation team included qualified bilingual PMPs as well as professional translators and editors.

Official translations: Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Korean, German and Italian.

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Business Process Management Systems: Strategy and Implementation

2008-09-14T22:42:00.000-07:00

With a focus on strategy and implementation, James Chang discusses business management practices and the technology that enables them. He analyzes the history of process management practices and demonstrates that BPM practices are a synthesis of radical change and continuous change practices. The book is relevant to both business and IT professionals who are presented with an integrated view on how various management practices merge into BPM. This volume describes the many technologies that converge to form a Business Process Management System (BPMS), illustrating its standards and service-oriented architecture.

About the Author

James Chang is the founder and president of Ivy Consultants, Inc. He has extensive experience implementing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)–enabled business solutions and process-centric integration solutions for Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Chang has written several articles on BPM and EAI. He graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in operations research and industrial engineering from Cornell University.

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IS Management Handbook, 8th Edition

2008-09-14T22:20:00.000-07:00

IT management and staff are called upon to perform the almost-impossible tasks of evaluating, purchasing, integrating, and maintaining complex IT systems, and directing these systems to meet the ever-changing goals of an organization. Add to that the spending restraints of a down economy, and IT managers find themselves in need of a thoughtful, real-world guide that can maximize resources and bring efficiency to often chaotic environments.

IS Management Handbook, Eighth Edition details how IT professionals can align people, information, and technology with the strategic goals of an organization. The handbook offers technical and business insight from dozens of leading names from the technology sector, with a major focus on maximizing the performance of existing resources during tough economic times. The handbook provides the information that allows IT managers to effectively organize people and processes, and efficiently integrate and maintain infrastructure, applications, support systems, e-business tools, and databases.

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Business Process Management Systems: Strategy and Implementation

2008-09-13T22:42:00.000-07:00

Tax-Aware Investment Management: The Essential Guide

2008-09-13T22:30:00.000-07:00

Effective management of taxable accounts and portfolios rarely gets the attention it deserves from investment managers and advisers, often leaving investors with a larger-than-necessary tax bite. Tax-Aware Investment Management details new research, new analytic tools, and new thinking that can change that.

This book punctures received wisdom and dispels misconceptions about how to account for tax effects; how to allocate assets; how and when to buy, sell, and rebalance; and how to communicate with clients and with other professionals involved in managing their assets. Douglas Rogers, widely considered the authority in this growing field, details the trading strategies and fund evaluation criteria essential to the task and presents critical considerations for investment managers. He also covers the expanding area of separate accounts.

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Small Business Management

5 Misplaced Social Networking Fears Networking is changing, so stay ahead of the curve with these tips.

How Anyone Can Make A Six Figure Income Working From Home On The Internet

Office Hours: Tips for promoting your business through social networks

Business Technology Optimization

Business Technology Optimization

10 Tips for Successful Business Networking

Insurance Policy Physical Injury

Online shopping spend in decline

US treasury sells bail-out bonds

Face-to-face with DR Congo rebel chief

Pakistani currency dealers held

IMF approves $16.4bn Ukraine loan

Emerging economies want new role

Stocks surge after China stimulus

Obama meets Bush at White House

Tax cuts can help economy - Brown

Obama: 'This is our moment'

SEE ALSO

US interest rates slashed to 1%

Alitalia calls for urgent support

Alitalia rescue deadline extended

World credit loss '£1.8 trillion'

Alitalia running out of money

Oil falls despite production cuts

Opec head urges production cuts

EU rules warning on Alitalia deal

iTunes 'biggest US music seller'

Big names sign up to iTunes rival

Wi-fi buses drive rural web use

BT to pump £1.5bn into broadband

Further banks may fail, says IMF

Gloomy forecasts for UK economy

Sarkozy wants top EU economy team

'Race question mark' over US town

'Fart gas' link to blood pressure

Shares volatile on recession fear

Japan sees further market losses

Financial crisis 'like a tsunami'

Key finance firms 'probed by FBI'

US bail-out plan provokes doubts

Hewlett fired up by laptop sales

Laptop sales give Hewlett respite

HP set to cut workforce by 24,600

Social Networks for Social Good

The Future of Internet Dating?

Add Buzz Networker - Social Networking to Google Reader

There's some things I love about Google Chrome

Third Tuesday: Social Media & PR

How to Shop a Thrift Store

4-Part Series on Small Business Branding

High-Paid Women Are Changing the Business Landscape in America

How Women Can Fix Their Credit Before Applying for a Job: Part 2 — Debt and Budgeting

Read This Post, or I’ll Make You Walk the Plank

What to Sell on eBay - Yankee Candles

Free Resource for eBay Sellers - eBay Radio

What About Using Goin’ Postal for Shipping eBay Items?

eBay Selling for Alzheimer’s Caregivers

How to Sell Grocery Coupons on eBay for Extra Cash

Wordless Wednesday - eBay Collectibles

eCommerce, Entrepreneur, Mom Success Story

eBay Spelling Errors and Typos – Other Sellers’ Mistakes Save You Money!

Quotable Quotes: he who thinks acts

Does experience matter when hiring?

Getting to sustainable, controllable, disruptive innovation

The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Unlocking the Creativity and Innovation in You and

Uniting the Virtual Workforce: Transforming Leadership and Innovation in the Globally Integrated Enterprise (Microsoft Executive Leadership Series)

Building Your Team's Morale, Pride, And Spirit

Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Powerful Problem-Solving Techniques to Ignite Your Team's Potential (Leaders Guide)

Maintaining Team Performance

Leadership and Business Ethics (Issues in Business Ethics)

Leadership and Business Ethics (Issues in Business Ethics)

Online Business All-in-one for Dummies

The Business Idea: The Early Stages of Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship: Determinants and Policy in a European-U.S. Comparison

The Man Behind the Microchip: Robert Noyce and the Invention of Silicon Valley

Entrepreneurship and Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy

The Student Success Manifesto

The Entrepreneur's Guide to Hiring and Building the Team (The Entrepreneur's Guide)

Private Voluntary Health Insurance in Development: Friend or Foe? (Health, Nutrition and Population Series)