Recent Updates

Entrepreneurship isn't for the faint-hearted and each new venture brings fresh challenges even for experienced founders. Although statistics vary from one survey to another, the consensus is that the majority of start-ups fail within the first two to five years. And the failure rate is especially high among tech start-ups. Nevertheless, being aware of the most common hurdles and how to overcome them can significantly improve your chances of success. With that in mind, Chris Maguire shares here s...

Increasing global competition, ubiquitous access to a plethora of choices, personalized marketing and new consumer buying habits are making customer loyalty more critical and difficult for all organizations. The key to loyalty is delivering value to customers – in their eyes. Similar to Maslov theory of how people live in society the Elements of Value show how people make purchase decisions. It is not based on product but quality or price but recognizing and delivering an offering that addresses...

One of the top priorities for any business is to keep operating costs as low as possible without sacrificing quality. Taking steps to run your business more efficiently can lead to significant cost savings. And a more effective use of resources helps boost profitability without having to rely on pricing to remain competitive. Cutting costs doesn't always mean having to make dramatic changes. Even small adjustments can often make a big difference. To help you identify where you may be spendi...

If you dread the thought of going back to work after a break, it may be a good time to reflect on what's really important to you and how well your current job fits with your career, life and personal goals. This is when many people dream of quitting their job, running their own business, and working on their own terms. Entrepreneurship isn't a good fit for everyone however. So, before planning your escape to 'live the dream,' make sure you have the right skills and attributes to thrive an entrep...

Did you know that job seekers rank social media networks as the most useful resource for jobs when compared to job boards and ads, recruiting agencies, employee referrals, and recruiting events? This is worth noting because the recruiting process has changed for many companies over the last several years. Like many things, social media has solidified its place as somewhere your business needs to be. When you use social media to attract candidates, you are easily able to narrow your target market...

Staying ahead of the competition means constantly seeking ways to improve your effectiveness of your marketing strategy. And while there's always plenty to learn from marketing experts, looking beyond marketing literature and experience gives you a broader perspective and fresh insights from other disciplines that you can apply to marketing problems. According to strategist Shaun O'Leary, "investing is the sector that unknowingly has the most to say about marketing." With that in mind, he shares...

Entrepreneurship is inherently risky and having a great idea for a new business, product or service, isn't a guarantee of success. It's widely reported that most startups fail within the first two years and that running out of cash is one of the most common causes of startup failure. No matter how well prepared you are, there are always going to be unforeseen challenges that create unexpected costs. That's why every entrepreneur needs some form of safety net. To help you choose the best fit for ...

There are plenty of entrepreneurs who experience multiple—and sometimes spectacular—failures before accomplishing their dreams. And very few startups achieve success without experiencing at least some failure along the way. This is where entrepreneurial resilience comes in. Your ability to bounce back depends on how you respond to failure. And your future success depends on what you learn from failure that you can take forward to your next venture. Here, John Boitnott shares "a simple and effect...

Creating and distributing valuable, relevant content is one of the best ways to increase your visibility, grow your audience, build trust and convert leads into customers. And video is one of the most engaging forms of content. While videos can generate more shares, drive more web traffic and create more qualified leads than text and images, prioritizing quality over quantity is crucial to establishing your credibility and building a strong relationship with your audience. Here, content mar...

Despite being a powerful tool for building a brand, the role of PR is often misunderstood and undervalued. Some business owners think of PR as damage control when a company's reputation is at stake, while others confuse PR with marketing. Unlike marketing, which aims to boost sales by speaking directly to consumers, PR aims to build positive relationships through media coverage. To help you understand how PR can help your business, William Comcowich shares here some top tips for from PR speciali...

Launching a new business is often filled with equal parts of excitement and trepidation. It can even be overwhelming at times. Because there are so many details involved, especially when it comes to startup taxes, you want to be extra careful. Sales tax and your compliance with federal and state income tax laws creates extra challenges for most startup owners, and you want to avoid mistakes at all costs. Below are six common tax mistakes startups make that you need to be aware of. #1: Tax deduct...

Webinars offer one of the best ways to reach, engage, and share valuable content with a wide audience. Short for 'web-based seminar', a webinar can be any presentation, lecture, workshop or seminar transmitted online. And while a key feature is being able to host a live event with interactive elements such as live chat, you can also publish a recording later to reach an even wider audience. Running a successful webinar requires considerable planning and careful execution. Here, Kristen...

There are many aspiring entrepreneurs who dream of quitting their regular 9-5 job to start their own business and work on their own terms. Yet it remains just a dream for most, because abandoning the financial security of a regular salary is a risk they can't afford to take. However, there is an alternative to taking the leap without a safety net—and that's to start building your business while still working at your job. To help you succeed in turning a side hustle into a thriving business, Shan...

You're ready to launch your startup, and you know you need employees. Does the task seem overwhelming? Recruiting, hiring and training employees is an intimidating task for even the most seasoned businesses. What's more, you may not have the finances you need in the beginning to provide a salary, benefits and even office space and equipment for an entire team. This is where outsourcing comes in. Outsourcing is a terrific way for startups to take care of essential functions when your budget is sm...

When it comes to growing your business, figuring out ways to be more organised, efficient and cost-effective is the best place to start. By saving time, effort and expense on the day-to-day running of the business, you'll free up valuable resources that you can invest in further growth. Based on "real-life ideas from successful businesses," Elizabeth Walker and Ken Burgin share here some top tips for growing your business that you can put into action "right away, without having to research, test...

​Expanding your network can open doors to new opportunities for business, career advancement or personal growth. And since the aim of networking is to build authentic, long-lasting, and mutually beneficial relationships, you should be prepared to pay it forward by offering to share your own knowledge, skills and experience before asking others for help or advice. A great way to establish your credibility while providing value to others is to organise your own networking event. To help you make i...

Understanding employee engagement, what drives it and how it can be nurtured to boost productivity, performance, and loyalty, is an essential part of your job as a leader. Employees who involved in, enthusiastic about, and committed to their work are happy and productive employees who seek to achieve successful outcomes for themselves, their team, and the company. While there are numerous factors involved in keeping employees happy, engaged and motivated, it's up to leaders to create a positive ...

Most people who are working a 9-5 job every day of the week get tired of it at some point. Even if you love your job it can be hard to feel satisfied with doing the same thing over and over again each day. However, if you are feeling a bit burnt out and you are looking to explore something new, there are a number of things that you can do to make money that are not boring and tiresome. 1. Become a care worker If you want to find a way to give back to the community that gives you a little bit of ...

​To leverage the power of social media to grow your business, you need to know how much impact it's having on your website traffic, conversions, and sales. With social media reports you can find out where your website visitors are coming from, what actions they're taking, and which pieces of content are driving the most engagement. And if you're investing in paid ads, you can find out how effective they are. In this blog post, marketer Boni Satani shares some top tips on using Google Analyt...

The most effective way to ensure your product offers the best possible user experience is to involve users in the design process. Getting initial feedback in the early stages allows you to make changes while they're relatively easy to incorporate and ensure the design is heading in the right direction. Usability testing can be carried out in a variety of ways and prototypes can be used in any of them, writes Naomi Francis. Here, she outlines how to use prototypes early on in the design process t...

While some companies struggle to come up with a single idea that has great potential for success, others may find it hard to choose just one from a number of promising ideas. The problem, say researchers Dirk Deichmann, Violetta Rodopoulou and Inga Hoever, is that "there is no widely shared notion of what constitutes a good idea." Rather than focusing on the usual criteria of "novelty, feasibility and market potential," they propose selecting an idea based on efficiency. Here, they share ho...

Starting a new business in a foreign country can be fraught with challenges, from cultural differences and language barriers to strict immigration policies and work permit regulations. Despite the obstacles, the U.S. is still considered the land of opportunity by many European entrepreneurs. Although the failure rate among all startups is high, immigrant entrepreneurs have managed to shape the odds their favor and build a successful business abroad. Victoria Zavyalova shares here some of th...

Colors affect people's perception of your brand and influence their buying decisions, yet a single color can have different connotations depending on various factors, such as personal preferences, experiences, gender and cultural differences. And even different shades, tints and tones of the same color can elicit different emotional responses. Although the psychology of color is complex and nuanced, a basic understanding of how colors affect consumer behaviour will help you choose the right colo...

​ For many employees, just hearing the words, "team building" and "ice breaker," are enough to send them on an extended vacation. While they understand your intentions, traditional team building activities can be a source of stress for some of your employees. Yet, team building activities are good for your staff and your company, so how do you encourage happy participation? Let's look at five team building activities for startups that are exciting, fun, and less emotionally painful for your team...

The key to successful networking is to build genuine relationships that are mutually beneficial and the best way to achieve this is by offering to share your knowledge and experience before seeking other people's help. And when it's your turn to ask for someone else's advice, you need to ask for it in a way that doesn't risk damaging the relationship and leaving you no wiser about the problem you need to solve. Here, Gary Burnison shares some top tips on the best way to ask for advice according ...