After experimenting with an idea to import and sell Mexican jewelry abroad, Nicolas Tranchant started Vivalatina and committed to the idea full-time in 2012. The business now makes 100% of its jewelry on-site.

In order to create an effective marketing plan, Adryan Corcione outlines factors entrepreneurs need to consider. Among other things, Corcione stresses the need to identify competitors, gather insights about why customers use your business and audit your results.

Founders who pay attention to customer feedback can improve their sales skills and confidence while enhancing their pitch, writes Maynard Webb, former CEO of LiveOps. "Not only are they selling to customers in the beginning, but they are selling their vision when attracting new hires, motivating employees, and captivating journalists," Webb writes.

Business leaders may be able to improve their results by identifying self-limiting beliefs and focusing on the well-being of the senior management team, according to ThroughConversation's Jean-Paul Gravel.

The next round of Paycheck Protection Program loans could provide help for businesses that need assistance to stay open. Andrew Weaver discusses eligibility requirements and the amount of money that is available.

The coronavirus has accelerated trends that are now disrupting the office market. Some companies are opting for shorter leases, and, going forward, businesses may offer options that allow workers to stay closer to home.

Matt Casey, co-founder of people management software platform DoThings, uses what he calls "lazy management," which puts the onus on the worker, not manager, to determine their raise, track time off and present a case for a promotion. Employees responded positively and appreciated having more control over their career, he says.

Courts handed down a record number of decisions in class actions against employers amid the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, and businesses are seeing such litigation "expand and morph as they restart operations," according to a report by law firm Seyfarth Shaw. Meanwhile, the incoming presidential administration likely will implement and enforce heightened regulations that could have a "cascading impact" on class actions, the report says.

President-elect Joe Biden signaled he will take action on further economic relief after Democrats were declared the winners of both Georgia Senate races, giving the party control of both houses of Congress.