by Courtney Ramirez on December 19, 2011
Building and maintaining a strong credit profile for your small business can help you get access to funding, therefore important resources. Just like personal credit, your business credit rating is affected by a number of different factors. Understanding these factors and taking the time to monitor and build your credit can help your business grow.
Making Your Business Legitimate
- One of the key components of good business credit is your business structure. If you’ve been working as a sole proprietor or are missing a few key important pieces of paperwork, you need to take steps to appear more “real” and stable. Check to be sure that you have the occupational licenses that you need. Get your phone number listed with directory assistance under your businesses name. This is also a good time to incorporate if you haven’t yet already.
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by Courtney Ramirez on November 15, 2011
In any business, conflicts will arise. Whether these are personal conflicts or other conflicts (supplier issues, etc.), knowing how to deal with them can be difficult, and sometimes, as a way of reaction, entrepreneurs will just brush problems under the rug and ignore them. However, this is probably one of the worst ways you can react. Refusing to deal with a problem doesn’t make it go away.
If you’re dealing with a technical issue – like the aforementioned supplier one – there is likely a solution that you just haven’t seen yet. Have a brainstorming session with others in your shared office space to find solutions. No idea is too crazy! Remove the pressure for people to come up with the perfect idea immediately, as often in brainstorming sessions, one person will suggest something that wouldn’t work – but it might spark an idea in someone else that turns out to be the solution. Be sure to take notes so that you can refer back to your ideas and possible solutions.
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by Courtney Ramirez on November 7, 2011
A company’s culture is often what attracts potential employees and keeps them there. If the culture is positive, it’s easier to retain the employees you need. There are several steps you can take to keep management and employees working as a positive and productive unit and foster a strong company culture – even if you’re working out of a shared office space.
- Let employees know what your company stands for. Having a mission statement that lets everyone know what the company’s core values are lets your employees know what values management holds in high esteem. The mission statement gives employees something to get behind, and that adds significantly to the culture that binds everyone together. For some companies, the core values are environmental, ethical or even spiritual. For others, they center on the services that the company provides or customer goals. Continue Reading
by Tracy Wilson on October 26, 2011
- Serviced Workspaces offer
more than just a mailbox.
Typically, someone looking for a mailbox to rent is an entrepreneur or small business owner simply looking for a way to keep their home address (where they actually work) hidden from their clients, and to separate business communication from home bills and catalogs. For many, picking up the mail is simply a chore – get in and get out as quickly as possible. The US Postal Service provides a variety of sized mailboxes to rent at very reasonable prices; and a P.O. Box, while not ideal, is an acceptable option for legitimate business. Also, it is common for a variety of package service companies and copy franchises (think The UPS Store & FedEx Office) to locate next to Post Office locations to provide convenient access for additional business services.
However, many small business owners do not realize that a Serviced Workspace Business (AKA Executive Suites or Office Business Centers) can also provide a monthly mailbox rental, but the myriad of additional advantages these locations provide may mean less chore and more business opportunity.
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by Courtney Ramirez on October 21, 2011
The recent government cutbacks on all levels – city, state, and federal – would be enough to make any entrepreneur nervous, but they don’t have to make you nervous. As long as you’re willing to stay flexible (which is a given when you use a serviced office or virtual office) and on your toes, you needn’t worry excessively about your business being impacted by government cutbacks. In fact, you can even see this as an opportunity to grow your business.
For example, state employees who lose their job are now available to be hired by private businesses. You won’t have to worry about your business vying to get the attention of talent that may have been enticed by better benefits that many government positions offer. You can hire excellent employees that may not have otherwise been on the market for hiring.
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by Courtney Ramirez on October 20, 2011
Like a handful of other social networking sites, Twitter has become one of the most useful sites for creating a following for your business. It’s free, it’s easy to use, and there is no limit to how far your marketing message can go. With the help of these tools, you can attract thousands of followers to your business, who then sign up to “follow” your messages and read what you have to say about your product or service. It’s the perfect complement for marketing your business right from your home or serviced office.
- Tweetdeck: One of the most popular Twitter apps, this one combines a number of different social networking sites into one useful application. This allows you to spend less time networking, without losing out on any opportunities for marketing your business. The app allows for the organization of topics, groups and other aspects of your social marketing campaign.
- Hootsuite: Sending out Tweets, 140-character messages, is how you make your virtual mark on Twitter. Tweeting consistently is important for grabbing and reaching an audience. However, it isn’t always convenient for business owners to Tweet as often as they’d like.
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