Having never considered buying a franchise, I suddenly find myself a partner in one. This comes as a bit of a surprise to me. Elsewhere on this website I’ve endorsed the benefit of buying a franchise as a startup. But … Continue reading
Mike Armour
For over a year I’ve seen an increasing trend in my business for very large companies to delay their invoice payments much longer than in the past. While my terms have always been net 15 or net 30 days for … Continue reading
Today’s print edition of USA Today highlights the growing community of encore entrepreneurs —or what they call "silver entrepreneurs." The article cites a variety of reasons why last year nearly one-in-four of all business startups were by men and women … Continue reading
For cash-strapped startups, virtual assistants are often an economical way to have staff support that you could not otherwise afford. They are called "virtual assistants" because they carry out responsibilities that employees have traditionally fulfilled. But virtual assistants take advantage … Continue reading
In setting up a website for a new business, one of the most difficult tasks is finding a good name for the site. Untold millions of people have bought domain names ahead of you. There is a great likelihood, therefore, … Continue reading
We all have strong feelings about certain issues. Whenever these issues come up in conversation, we snap to attention. We tune in more intently. We become fully engaged with what is being said. Marketers call these emotionally-laden topics "hot button … Continue reading
I once started a business which exceeded its first year revenue projections by tens of thousands of dollars. How? Largely by securing a high margin account within weeks of startup. Then, eighteen months into the engagement, the client was forced … Continue reading
If you asked me to isolate a single compelling reason for business startups to keep good records from the beginning, I would offer the following. A recent survey by the National Small Business Association confirmed that the IRS is not … Continue reading
A few years ago, while launching a startup, I was struggling to find a good name for the business. When I took my struggle to a respected friend and mentor, he surprised me with his first piece of counsel. "Choose … Continue reading
Have you ever noticed how many successful book titles have a number in them? For instance, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team. The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. Concrete, specific numbers always seems to … Continue reading