Once upon a time, geography and the surrounding community limited the customer base for small businesses. Today, our connected world offers an unprecedented opportunity for small businesses everywhere because we can live anywhere and work with clients on a global scale. But what have we sacrificed? Sometimes we long for the days when an owner … Read more
Even with all the gadgets I have and time I spend on the computer, I still look forward to reading the print edition of my local newspaper every morning. Recently, I saw an ad in the paper from a hypermarket (combination of grocery and department stores) that I’ll call CubeMart. Normally, I don’t pay attention … Read more
“It bothers me to watch the hordes at the farmer’s market, swooping in to each booth, grabbing a sample and walking away,” writes Seth Godin. In his post, he explains that it bugs him to see farmers giving away free samples at a farmer’s market. Instead of offering samples, they need to focus on building … Read more
Ask anyone between the ages of 13 and 30 who knew my dad to share something they remember about him. Most will reply with “talking like Donald Duck.” Walk in to the office in my mother’s house and Donald Duck greets you from every direction beginning with the large bright yellow latch-hook picture of Donald … Read more
A 2011 MerchantCircle.com survey of over 8,000 US local business owners found email marketing cited by 35.8% as a “Top three most effective marketing or advertising method.” Likewise, the 9th Annual Merchant Survey (2010) conducted by The E-tailing Group asked merchants to list which initiatives they would be using to improve website performance. The top … Read more
After a successful four-city tour, Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs returned for three-city encore tour. The Dallas Museum of Art was one of those stops. I received an email from my cousins in Austins who planned to come to town for the exhibition. We set it up, reserved the tickets and had … Read more
Guest post by Lior Levin. Reference this post for the what and why have a platform. In business and in life, what you say only means something to those who hear it. You can shout all you want, but if no one is listening, then what you say doesn’t matter much. A platform is the … Read more
How do you get most of your business? For me, it’s referrals. For fellow freelance writer Thursday Bram, it’s her address book. This guest post from Thursday shows how to make connections and make them work for your freelancing business.
In 2005, the fair organizers came up with the bright marketing idea to take its food theme to another level when it started the Big Tex Choice Awards. The fried food games began. Eventually, the organizers added the slogan of “Fried Food Capital of Texas” and now people associate the fair with fried food. How does the fried food awards help a writer?
As my family prepared to move in our first home, like most people — we had lots to do in the house. To do it all would mean taking shortcuts and buying low-priced items. The result would be less than flattering. The job called for prioritizing to ensure we bought decent quality items. First up: … Read more