What do Oprah Winfrey, Jessica Alba, Bill Rancic and me have in common? We’re all entrepreneurs and we’ll be speaking at Quickbooks Connect, a three-day gathering of thousands of small business owners, accountants and software developers November 2-4 in San Jose, California. While Quickbooks Connect is an educational and networking event covering all aspects of …
3 Ways to Successfully Pivot
You’ve just launched your startup or small business. You’ve got a great idea. But then, you find customers aren’t really interested. Do you throw in the towel? No, you pivot. You’ve been running your small business successfully for years. But then, your industry changes. Do you look for a job? No, you pivot. You’re smart …
The World Needs Entrepreneurs
How do you reduce poverty? Create jobs? Develop innovative new products and industries? One of the most important ways is to support entrepreneurs, start-ups and small businesses. If you think that small companies and startups can change the world, you’re not alone. In September, the United Nations adopted a set of “Sustainable Development Goals,” priorities …
The Absolute Best Way to Raise Money
You’re excited about starting your new small business. You’ve got a can’t-miss idea, developed a business plan, created a prototype. You’ve even found a group of talented people to work with. There’s only one problem—you need money to make it all a reality. Money! You can’t start or run a business without it. Sure, it …
8 Can’t Lose Sales Strategies
If you own a small business, you may think of yourself as a baker, graphic designer, technologist, or whatever industry you’re in. But if you hope to succeed, there’s one title you better add: salesperson. Every small business owner and entrepreneur needs to get out there and make sales. Of course, many small business owners …
My Canon MAXIFY Contest Finalist Picks
A few months ago, Canon launched its “MAXIFY Mentors” campaign to help small businesses overcome some of the biggest hurdles of starting up. They unleashed the expertise of five small business authorities—I’m fortunate to be one of them—to engage with small business owners through social media. But as a MAXIFY Mentor, I also have the …
7 Small Business Marketing Tricks for Busy People
As a small business owner you have a lot on your plate — creating your product or delivering your service, managing your money, motivating your employees, ensuring operations run smoothly. Phew! How do you find time to actually attract customers? For an overwhelmed small business owner, how do you manage to take care of one …
Small Business Depends on Silicon Valley
What’s Silicon Valley cooking up now to help small businesses? I had a chance to find out when I arranged an “Insider’s Tour of Silicon Valley” to celebrate the 35th anniversary of America’s Small Business Development Center network (ASBDC). On Sept 9, I took approximately 70 small business consultants on a tour of three companies dramatically affecting …
5 Benefits of a Great Company Culture
Recently, I had lunch with a friend, I’ll call him Ryan, who’s launched a high-tech start-up. Most of us would envy Ryan’s success. He easily raised nearly two million dollars in funding. He’s attracted a small team of outstanding employees. He’s landed a couple of major customers. But he confided to me that his biggest …
