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Few businesses do well without a multi-tiered marketing and advertising plan, and one good tool for your small business arsenal that combines elements of both is direct mail.

This tried-and-true technique, in which a business owner sends a message or an offer directly to a customer or prospective client via mail, can help boost sales or move a product. Read More

You've decided to take the plunge and open a franchise. You've done your due diligence, secured your financing and have your opening date in sight but the hard work is far from finished. Now come the tasks of hiring, scheduling, managing, attracting and retaining customers while sticking to your franchisor's proven business model. Read More

For B2Bs, mobile's arrival means their marketing must also change if they want to maintain a presence in the media where their audiences have already migrated. On that imperative, here are five reasons why mobile marketing is prime for B2Bs, along with five key questions that B2B marketers should be asking themselves. Read More

If you are supervising or managing employees and you want to know if they are sure about how to complete their latest assignment. How do you go about finding out? When we want to get our message through, how do we talk to our employees? Are we doing a good job at communicating with each other? Here are some suggestions on effective employee communication: Read More

If you have passion working hard will not be a hardship because you know that every effort you put in should and will reap rewards – from which you will benefit. Read More

From About.com' Small Business Canada, a pdf version of the Royal Bank's complete guide to buying a franchise. It's 16 pages and reviews points including why a small business person might choose franchising, how franchising works and a guide to buying and financing your new franchise business. Like many other huge decisions in life, 16 pages alone will probably not provide all of the information Read More

Business owners often don't think about legal issues until they get hit with a lawsuit or decide to sue someone. Unfortunately, once they arise, costly court actions can destroy companies. Smart Answers asked several attorneys who work with small companies what they considered the top legal pitfalls for 2010 and how they can avoided. Read More

When times are hard and money is tight, I hear this often. The belt-tightening process seems to automatically result in ditching the creative. It’s ironic, because when anyone starts a new business, it surely springs from a creative inspiration. So, why is it that the very thing that inspired the whole thing is seen as expendable? Read More

Gadget patents can change the world, as everyone from Alexander Graham Bell to Steve Jobs has proved. Some of our favorite gadget-related patents, however, are for technologies and products that haven't changed much of anything--at least not yet. Here are ten intriguing examples, including ones from both famously inventive companies and lone geniuses. Read More

Renewable energy businesses have taken a unique approach to employee benefits consistent with their product. These companies are paying for employees' time away from work while volunteering for earth-friendly causes, granting free energy audits, handing out free compact flourecent bulbs and even giving them hybrid company cars. It's an inspiration to think outside the box when it comes to employe Read More