Trends
Latest news and trends in the small business economy
6 Mobile Apps for Keeping Time Cards or Tracking Billable Hours
Ever feel like you don’t have a good handle on time — when you ought to be tracking employee working hours or your own billable hours for clients? You can …
How to Homeschool Your Kids while Running a Business
Homeschooling is becoming an increasingly viable alternative to public schooling. Between 1999 and 2007 (the most recent year for which data is available), the number of homeschooled children nearly doubled, …
5 Relaxation Exercises You Can Do at Your Desk
There’s simply no way around it: You must sit at your desk to get work done. So, what do you do when all that chair time causes pain to erupt …
6 Keyboard Replacement Apps for Android Devices
The standard virtual keyboard that’s built into Android phones is free and functional, but it’s as basic as basic can be: It’s pretty much just an onscreen representation of a …
5 Tips for Teachers on Starting a Side Business
With the school year winding down, summer can be a great time for teachers to launch a side business — either to make some extra money over the break or …
25 Essential Kindle Fire Apps for Small Businesses – 2012 Edition
The $199 Amazon Kindle Fire has been burning up the Android tablet sales charts and, at less than half the price of an iPad, it’s easy to understand why. Although …
Why the Cloud Makes Sense for Small Business
“Your customers demand that you be in the cloud,” says Doug Sleeter, a nationally recognized expert in accounting-software consulting. “The latest innovations in cloud, mobile, and connected solutions are changing everything …
50 Essential iPad Apps for Small Business – 2012 Edition
The Apple iPad is a game-changing device for small-businesses owners who either want to manage operations more effectively on-the-go or use the device to expand and enhance their customer and …
Do Superhero Blockbusters Supercharge Comic Store Sales? [INFOGRAPHIC]
Ah, summer. The barbecue, the pool, and nights spent in the air-conditioned movie theater. With superhero blockbusters like The Avengers currently raking in box office cash and long-anticipated installments like …
5 Big Mobile Trends to Watch — Plus 2 You Can Ignore
More small businesses are picking up mobile technology than ever. By the end of 2012, nearly half of companies with fewer than 500 employees will use a smartphone, notebook, or …
Stay on Schedule with These 7 Mobile Calendar Apps
Some professionals still swear by paper organizers, but lately more of us are turning to smartphones to serve as digital personal assistants — in which case, a calendar app is …
5 E-Commerce Trends to Watch — and 1 You Can Ignore
Online retail sales topped $200 billion in 2011, and most industry forecasts point higher. Market-watcher Forrester Research, for one, predicts that e-commerce will account for 9 percent of overall retail sales …
Spark & Hustle’s Tory Johnson on Her Entrepreneurial Success
Tory Johnson’s career trajectory should provide ample inspiration for anyone with an entrepreneurial dream. After being fired unexpectedly from a steady job 14 years ago, Johnson had next-to-nothing going for …
Using ‘Getting Things Done’ to Make Your Business More Efficient
Looking to give your small business — and yourself — a productivity makeover? You may want to consider using David Allen’s Getting Things Done, a popular time- and task-management system. …
5 Ways to Simplify Your Business
No one likes to waste time, and for small-business owners, wasted time almost always means wasted money. Consider these sobering statistics compiled by the International Association of Business Organizing: The …
