| March 12, 2012 |
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- 7 ways to use humor to step up your marketing efforts
Humor can help to improve your small business' marketing efforts, Anna Sawyer writes. For example, Crowdrise stands out through its use of absurdity -- it devotes part of its website to displaying a picture of a napkin -- and the writers at Threadless use enthusiastic prose to connect with their customers. MarketingProfs
(3/9)      
- 2 ways to encourage creativity
Studying other industries can help to get your creative juices flowing, Jen Groover says. Doing a creativity exercise such as trying to come up with innovative ways to market a pencil can also help, she said.  Entrepreneur online
(3/9)
- When commuting counts as work time
The time your employees spend commuting to work generally doesn't count as hours worked, according to Andrew Chow. But that might change if they have to perform work duties while commuting. They might also be due compensation if they incur extra expenses because of the use of a company vehicle for commuting, he notes. FindLaw/Free Enterprise blog
(3/9)
- 4 tax tips for the self-employed
There are a few tax requirements that self-employed people have to be aware of, Catherine Clifford writes. For example, self-employed individuals have to pay the self-employment tax, and they also must be aware of worker classification rules, she writes. It's also important to understand how you structure your business can affect your tax bill. Entrepreneur online
(3/8)
- Use Google Spreadsheets to manage your marketing efforts
Marketers should take note of some useful features in Google Spreadsheets, Ann Smarty writes. The service can be used to count Facebook "likes" or tweets on Twitter, for example. It can also be used to aggregate RSS feeds. And Google Chrome users can use the Scraper tool for data mining, she notes. MarketingProfs
(3/8)
- How to ship a horse by FedEx
U.S. equestrian riders are making preparations for this year's London Olympics, including booking spots for their steeds on dedicated FedEx flights. The shipping company charges by weight to transport the 1,100-pound-plus horses, but goes out of its way to make the animals comfortable during long flights. Custom stalls are installed in planes' cargo holds, and carrots, hay and Gatorade are provided, along with a mild sedative that is "equivalent to, say, a glass of Champagne or two," horse-transportation specialist Tim Dutta says. NPR.org/The Two-Way Blog
(3/7)
 | Think of the blogosphere as a dinner party: Would you rather sit next to a guest who tells the same old stories, or one who spins tales you've never heard?"
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Recent SmartBrief on Small Business Issues:
- Friday, March 09, 2012
- Thursday, March 08, 2012
- Wednesday, March 07, 2012
- Tuesday, March 06, 2012
- Monday, March 05, 2012
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