ADP: Overall Hiring Picks Up in March, but Small Business Growth Slows
According to the ADP National Employment Report, private businesses added 191,000 jobs in March, with small businesses creating 72,000 new positions.
Why Ben Horowitz Says Elevator Pitches Don’t Work
Ben Horowitz, partner at Andreessen Horowitz and author of ‘The Hard Thing About Hard Things,’ says big ideas rarely come in perfect pitches.
How to Become the Next Big Thing in Innovation
Disruptions are happening across industries overnight—which is good and bad news for those who want in on the action. Larry Downes, co-author of the new book Big Bang Disruption: Strategy in the Age of Devastating Innovation, offers his four stages of disruption for innovators and entrepreneurs alike.
Jake’s Wayback EVP: The More Americana, the Better
Jake’s Wayback Burgers is taking its nostalgic American theme overseas, with deals in 30 different countries inked for the next year alone. Executive Vice President Bill Chemero talks growth strategy and how his experience creating the Edible Arrangement concept has helped him grow as an entrepreneur.
HireVue Offering up Job Interviews on Demand
HireVue is giving employers back their time, and job applicants the opportunity to stand out in a sea of paper applications with its Talent Interaction Platform. The startup has raised $48 million in funding and hopes to double its growth in the next year.
‘Scaling Up’ Lessons from Google and Facebook
Even today’s business titans hit bumps along the road, and Robert Sutton has documented them in his new book, ‘Scaling Up Excellence,’ so that businesses of all sizes won’t make the same mistakes.
DigitalOcean Expanding at the Speed of the Cloud to Tune of $37.2M
DigitalOcean is expanding rapidly with 1,000 new users per day, and a new $37.2 million round of Series A funding from Andreessen-Horowitz. Here’s what’s ahead for the 'Goliath' poised to take on big-name cloud competitors like Rackspace and Amazon.
Taco Bell Looks to Breakfast to Grow its Market Share
Tacos for breakfast seems counterintuitive, but Taco Bell President Brian Niccol is confident the move will be a hit with millennials.
Five Mistakes in Social Media Branding
Tips for branding businesses online.
Keeping Your Business Safe During the Holiday Shopping Season
Small businesses have a lot more at risk than lost productivity this holiday season, as employees browsing and shopping online can open a business up to scams and security breaches.
Small Business Urges Lawmakers to Get to Work
The National Small Business Association (NSBA) congratulates President Barack Obama and the returning and newly elected Members of Congress. NSBA also applauds the overall tone offered by President Obama and Governor Mitt Romney, as well as myriad other lawmakers, who called for the nation to come together, and for lawmakers to seek bipartisan consensus to address the many challenges ahead.
Business Owners Feeling More Optimistic About Growth, Warming to Tech
According to a recent survey from j2 Global, 76% of small business owners are feeling optimistic about their prospects for growth in 2012. Seventeen percent said they are feeling uncertain ahead of the November election, and less than 7% said they are not optimistic.
Small Business Owners to Vote with Money on Their Minds
Small business owners, an increasingly disgruntled sector of the electorate, will be casting their votes with pocketbook issues at top of mind in this fall's presidential election. They believe the economy is the No. 1 issue facing the nation today and that the Republican Party has the edge at positioning itself as the party most supportive of small business interests, a national survey shows.
Four Steps for Protecting Customer Data
Accepting credit and debit cards is a no-brainer for many small businesses. However, if you fail to safeguard the consumer information received with these transactions, you may end up facing major fines and losses.
Protecting Your Work Phone
Thankfully it won’t cost a small business owner much to protect their mobile phones and the ones employees are using.
When Employees Vent Online
There are no hard-and-fast rules when it comes to employees’ Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ use, but experts say small businesses would be remiss if they didn’t tell employees up front what their policies are on the use of such platforms, and what the ramifications may be if employees use their social networks to complain about their company, boss, or - worse - divulge insider company information. In fact, social expectations could even be integrated into employee training on issues such as sexual harassment.
Doing What You Love and Selling it
We’re highlighting small businesses from around the country as nominated by you, our readers. If your favorite small business is using Twitter to communicate with customers, let us know about it @fbsmallbiz with the hashtag #mysbc, and it may be featured as an upcoming Small Business of the Day.
Why Your Online Reputation Matters, and How to Protect it
In the age of Twitter, Facebook, Yelp and a ton of other user-generated Web sites, now more than ever small businesses have to protect their online reputation.
How to Convert Unhappy Customers on the Internet
One of the major challenges of company-consumer relations is dealing with tough feedback. And with so many brands becoming increasingly engaged on social media channels, the chances of discovering nothing but positive comments about your business are slim.
Don't Get Sued By Your No. 1 Employee
In the age of iPhones, tablets and ever-present technology, overtime is becoming harder to regulate. However, workers who are putting in extra time are increasingly taking their employers to court seeking payment for their longer hours and more demanding jobs.



















