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New Year, New Beginnings and New Businesses

January 11, 2016
By Nancy Jeng

Google-New-Years-2016-blogEach new year brings the dream of new beginnings and, for many, that includes the dream of starting a new business. In fact, Google Trends data shows us that interest in “starting a business” peaks every January. To support the millions of businesses that are created each year, we’re sharing some of the ways you can use the web (and Google) to launch your new business:

Use Google Trends to size up your market opportunity. Before you launch a business, you want to make sure there is a viable market for your product or service. You can use Google Trends to help gauge your market potential. For example, if you’re looking to open a pet store, see when searches for ‘pet supplies’ peak or which geographic regions clocks in the most searches for pet supplies.

Find a domain, create a site and get custom email. Picking out the right domain name is often the starting point to building a successful online presence. With new domain endings like .pizza and .photography, there are now more options to choose that fit your new business. Google Domains helps you get started with registering a domain, building a site with trusted partners and setting up custom email.  (more…)

Preparing to Buy a Business: Part 1 of 2

January 6, 2016

Business ownership is a multi-part path of challenges and seeking the right support at appropriate times. But what about the complexity of the business buying process? Knowing if your clients are prepared to take on the task of running a business is one part of the equation, but there are many nuances of the business acquisition process that, if adequately prepared for, may help your clients set realistic expectations for what’s ahead.

These steps will detail questions to ask, and client characteristics to be aware of, as you help facilitate the preparation to buy a business.

Why Buy an Existing Business?

Buying an established business is a paved path to entrepreneurship, which provides a track record and a set of operations to follow or improve. With so many for sale in the market at any given time, finding one that meets the buyer’s professional goals should be within reach.

Namely, buying a business versus starting one will allow for further refinement and evolution of the operation. Here is a quick recap to show the benefits and characteristics that accompany the purchase of an existing business.  (more…)

Dashboards to Stay on Top of Your Business

January 4, 2016

If you’re running a business online, chances are you’re using a lot of different vendors to handle your email marketing, payments, web hosting, etc. When you’re using so many vendors, checking up on the health of your business can become a huge burden on your time because you have to log in to a lot of different sites to get the reports you need.

Luckily, there are companies that provide great online dashboards that bring together the data from many of the most commonly used vendors. Here is my review of two of these services: Cyfe and Leftronic.

Probably the biggest deciding factor when choosing a dashboard is whether it offers an integration with the services you need to monitor. The number of integrations are increasing all the time, but to give you an example of what’s possible, here are some of the things I monitor using Cyfe’s dashboards:

• Google Analytics to see how many visitors my site has and how many conversions I got
• SEOMoz to see how my site’s SEO is doing
• Twitter to see how many followers I have and who’s engaging with my tweets
• YouTube to see how many people are watching the videos I’ve posted
• Bit.ly to see how actively people are sharing links I’ve posted on social media
• AdWords to see how much I’m spending on search ads
• Google Webmaster Tools to get notifications about issues with my site

Here are some highlights of these services.  (more…)

3 Things You Need to Know To Run A Successful Local Deal

December 28, 2015

If you own a small business, there’s a good chance you still have some questions about deals. Don’t worry — you’re not alone. While deals (or daily deals, as they are sometimes known) have been around for a while now, there are plenty of business owners who still have big questions about whether or not running a deal is right for their business.

That is natural when you hear stories of small business owners losing money from deals due to unexpected spikes in demand that can’t be met. Meanwhile, consumers are frustrated as they’re stuck waiting in long lines or have a drawer full of un-redeemed offers.

It’s these types of stories that taint the image of the daily deal, and rightfully so. But when done well, daily deals can be great for merchants and consumers. The key is running a deal that’s right for your business, and using a service provider that allows the small business owner to be in control. (more…)

5 Common Small Business Cyber Security Myths

December 21, 2015
computerBy Hanna Burmeister, Michigan SBDC 

It’d be difficult to find a business today that doesn’t use at least one computer-based or online system.  With online cloud-based services available for anything from accounting to file sharing, it’s no wonder that small businesses are adopting (and inventing) these new technologies.  However, as technology gets smarter, so do hackers.

Though cyber attacks on large companies like Target or Home Depot may make headlines, hackers are increasingly targeting small businesses.  Unfortunately, most small businesses are unaware of cyber security threats, leaving them especially vulnerable.

In order to better understand small business cyber security, let’s start by investigating five common cyber security myths:

1. Hackers only target large companies.
Unfortunately, small businesses make excellent targets for hackers. Most small businesses don’t have the resources to invest in heavy-duty security measures, but still possess valuable information.  Additionally, many small businesses are simply unaware of cyber security risks and how to mitigate them. Hackers are a real threat to small businesses, and developing a cyber security strategy is incredibly important no matter a business’ size.  (more…)