Filed under Small Business by admin on February 24, 2010 at 11:39 am
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I missed the BENNY Awards, but I grabbed this article about the winners over at commercialappeal.com.
The Black Business Associationof Memphis has announced winners of the 24th annual Black Entrepreneurship Networking Needs You awards, including accountant Charles Whitsy as outstanding business professional and Taylor Brown Apothecary as business of the year.
The awards were presented Saturday evening during a ceremony held at the Holiday Inn at the University of Memphis. Best-selling author and business speaker Don Hutson delivered the keynote address.
“We had an outstanding list of nominees and an excellent selection of winners,” said Roby Williams, BBA president. “These people and organizations promote the best entrepreneurial efforts in our city while creating new jobs and a stronger tax base.”
Other BENNY recipients are:
Hardy Bottling, outstanding woman-owned business.
FedEx, outstanding corporate involvement.
McDonald Plumbing, outstanding service provider.
Memphis Light Gas & Water Division, outstanding business development.
Methodist Healthcare, outstanding business purchasing.
Pete Mitchell and Associates, outstanding professional services.
The New Olivet Baptist Church, outstanding community involvement.
Renaissance Business Center, outstanding business facility.
Total Control Logistics, outstanding new business.
The BENNY Awards are sponsored by the BBA, which was founded in 1974 and is supported by the Memphis Department of Housing and Community Development.
The awards recognize business accomplishments by minority and women-owned businesses and honor supportive corporations
Congratulations to the winners as well as the nominees.
Filed under Small Business by admin on February 23, 2010 at 7:46 am
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Author: claire hibbert
Look at more cost effective ways to market your business.
E-marketing is a very powerful and cost effective way to market your business. It enables you to send out newsletters, mailshots, special offers and loyalty schemes directly to your customers via their email address at no extra cost, you save on postage and/or printing costs too. It also encourages them back to your website to see what other services you offer. The only investment is the time needed to design your promotional e-mail material it is so simple!
Invest in an on-line business management tool to help you save time and money .
Using a business management system that offers an ‘on-line diary feature’ to enable your customer’s access to book their appointments direct is a great way to reduce down the volume of calls and work generated for reception cover. Business tools to analyse the productivity of your staff against work load and business demand is invaluable to ensure that your business is running efficiently and recruitment of staff is being spent wisely.
Ensure that your business software is not costing you in the long run in hidden costs.
Check that you are not tied into lengthy maintenance & costly technical support contracts for your business software. There are a few companies now that offer business software on-line, saving you in set up fees, annual subscriptions, free maintenance and technical backup as well as data protection. You automatically get free upgrades to keep your software up to date and switching over could not be simpler. You just register and pay on line and you will be up a running within hours not days. You also have technical support via email or phone so help is at hand as and when you might need it..
Reduce your staff overheads with a virtual pa/receptionist.
Staff overheads are one of the first things that get cut in a recession. An excellent way to compensate staff cuts but not lose on quality of service is to look at the virtual pa/receptionist option. To ensure that you get adequate phone cover for your clinic without having to overstretch your existing resources, you can opt for a pay as you go virtual receptionist that will represent your company. She will answer calls, take messages, book appointments and send out marketing material for mail shots, create and send out invoices, update account spreadsheets etc. She is totally reliable and does not require holiday, sick or lunchtime cover, you simply use her as and when you need to – costing as little as £75 a month! A fraction of the cost of a full-time pa/receptionist
Save on the cost of telephone calls
Look at reducing your phone bills every quarter by installing VoIP technology. VoIP allows you make your phone calls over the internet at the fraction of the cost of a normal phone call saving you hundreds of pounds on your annual business phone. It is really easy to set up and run don’t be put off by telecom technology.
Increase customer retention through improved customer care
Ask yourself not what your customer can do for you but rather what you can do for your customer. Customers are driven by both emotional and practical needs – make sure you are satisfying both of these. Look after them by offering customer loyalty cards – stop your clients using your competitors, and reward customers with referral schemes. Most important listen to what they have to say about your products and services as well as your staff, ask them to complete questionnaires – there opinion is vital to your success long term. They may even give you new ideas that you may not have considered.
Reduce your operating costs.
Look to see where you can save money on basic essentials i.e. stationery, raw materials etc source suppliers on-line and save money or go direct to the manufacturer and cut out the middle man. A little time spent on researching on the internet will reduce down your material and equipment costs. You can search via brand and model number and then go to price comparison sites to get the best deal.
Understand your customers needs better.
Keep up to date with your customers, a good customer database is an invaluable investment to your business. It allows you to share information amongst your team improving knowledge and communication as well as customer confidence in the way you implement it. A database can identify customers needs – their likes and dislikes and will provide vital clues in helping you to cross sell other products and services you offer to increase customer spend.
Reassess your products and services.
Look at all the products and services that you offer in relation to how much you sell and how profitable they are. At times it is necessary to eliminate treatments that are simply costing too much to operate i.e look at materials and labour costs in relation to net profit. The products and services that are the high profit earners are the ones that you and your staff should be pushing make sure you all understand this. Or look at your existing products and services and ways to save money on materials and time but not compromising quality of service.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-ideas-articles/top-tips-for-small-business-owners-to-succeed-in-an-economic-recession-1871962.html
About the Author“I ran my own company for seven years so I know what small businesses really need – and what just gets in the way. I want to create tools that actually help people to grow their businesses.”
Claire left a career in the video games industry to launch her own beauty salon in the late nineties. It was while managing her small business that she had the “eureka moment” that would lead to icomplete.com, and the concept of a fully integrated, complete business management solution. She co-launched icomplete.com with her husband, Stuart, in May 2007
Filed under Small Business by admin on February 22, 2010 at 8:29 am
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When: Monday, Mar 15, 2010
Where: Renaissance Business Center, 555 Beale Stree, Memphis (map)
Description: This workshop will provide important information concerning how to effectively finance a new or existing business. Learn step-by-step how to apply for a SBA Patriot or Community Express Loan. Community Express loans are available in these amounts: $5,000, $7,500, $10,000, $12,500, $15,000, $20,000 and $25,000. This is not a credit card loan. These are SBA-guaranteed loans, payable over 10 years. Full or part time businesses are eligible. Bring the following if you wish to apply for a loan: driver’s license or official ID, social security number, evidence of LPRA status if not a citizen, federal tax ID number and your business checkbook. All partners, principals or co-owners of the business must apply together. Those with a criminal history or anyone who has defaulted on a government loan including student loans are not eligible. Non-profit business are not eligible. Times are 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. There is no charge for this workshop and there is no registration required. If you have any questions, please call 526-9300 which is the Renaissance Business Center.
Filed under Business Ideas, Start A Biz by admin on February 22, 2010 at 7:37 am
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Author: Joe Sumpter
As the US continues to struggle with it’s economy, it has become tougher and tougher for people to find full and/or part time jobs. This is a quick article describing basic part time technology businesses you can start and potentially profit from. These opportunities have a low start-up cost for under $1000 and therefore can be started by just about anyone.
iPhone Application Developer
With over 90,000 applications and counting, iPhone usage and development is on the rise. As an iPhone application developer, you can create applications based on your ideas or for small businesses who are looking to gain exposure.
Tools needed:
Mac Mini ($600) – This has enough power to develop on and is relatively inexpensive for a Mac.
iTouch ($200) – Can’t afford an iPhone and the expensive data plan? Just get an iTouch! The main features that are lacking are the phone (of course), and the camera. Also you will need to use WiFi to download and use applications that require Internet connectivity. The applications you develop however can run just fine.
iPhone Developer license ($99) – Apple charges a fee for developers to join their program. The is an approval process as well but usually it is relatively quick.
Income Potential:
The income potential is unlimited since there are multiple ways to make money from an iPhone application. You can charge a fee for your application or make money off of advertisements using add-ons like AdWhirl in your application.
E-Book writer
Want to become a writer but can’t get published? Why not publish yourself online! You can submit articles and write small books and sell online for profit. Start small, dream big and find a niche that you can focus on.
Tools needed:
Laptop ($500) – First f all, yes you can find a laptop for this price. Discount stores like MicroCenter, and NewEgg offer great deals on laptops. I definitely recommend a laptop because it will allow you to write anywhere. This is especially important if you have a lot of distractions around you.
Open Office (Free) – If you can’t afford Microsoft Office and your new laptop does not come with it installed, Open Office is a great alternative for your writing needs.
Web Hosting ($100) – Web hosting prices continue to drop. Take advantage of this and get your domain name and website hosting for a low yearly price.
Joomla with DocMan (Free) – When signing up for your web hosting, make sure that it comes with Joomla installed. Joomla is a content management system that will allow you to get your site online quickly. Docman is a free Joomla plugin that will allow you to post and sell articles and books on your website. Website Design ($400) – This price won’t get you much but it should get you a basic template and style for your website. You can then build the site up over time when you start generating some income.
Income Potential:
Again the potential for income is unlimited. Especially if you find a good niche. Keep your prices low and make it easy for people to buy your book with various purchasing options. Next time I will discuss how you can stat and online university and a screencaster business for under $1000!
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-ideas-articles/two-inexpensive-parttime-technology-businesses-you-can-start-for-under-1000-today-1869254.html
About the Author Joe Sumpter is an accomplished software developer, internet marketer, and businessman. He is owner and founder of Blue Crystal Web Design, an Internet marketing and software development company in Roswell GA. Contact him at 770-828-7903
Filed under Small Business, Uncategorized by admin on February 19, 2010 at 4:11 pm
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HOW TO: Make Your Small Business Geolocation-Ready
This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.
Small businesses stand to increase their local audience and further their market reach through geolocation platforms, which attach real-world locations to mobile phones. Here are a few ways companies can become part of the location tagging world of social media.
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