Military veterans already have many of the leadership and organization skills needed for small business ownership. An recently the Small Business Administration recognized this fact with the observance of Veterans Small Business Week. Read more about the what the federal administration has on offer for veteran entrepreneurs plus learn about a new feature from ecommerce platform Shopify and other important small business news in this week’s roundup.
Top Stories
Veterans Small Business Week Celebrates Economic Contribution of Service Members
Military veterans put their lives on the line to protect their country. And when they retire from active duty, many U.S. vets decide to take another big risk. They go into business for themselves. In fact, there are 2.5 million veteran-owned small businesses across the country. This week, from Oct. 30 until Nov. 3, the U.S.
Shopify Wants to Help Small Business with Showrooming on Their Ecommerce Sites
Ecommerce company Shopify (NYSE:SHOP) is launching a new ‘Buy Online for Shopify POS’ feature, enabling consumers to save an in-person purchase. This new feature allows retailers using Shopify POS to give in-person shoppers the ability to buy a product online later after they’ve tried it out in your store.
Employment
Good People Edge Out Good Pay as Top Way to Retain Top Talent
As a small business owner, paying big salaries to retain talent may not always be an option for you. Luckily, it’s not the only means by which you can ensure high performers stick around for longer.
Small Business Job and Wage Growth Slow, Says Employment Watch Report
The Paychex | IHS Markit Small Business Employment Watch reported a slowdown with a job growth index of 99.89 for October. Wage growth has also slowed down slightly with national hourly earnings at $26.07. Still, the last three months have been the most stable in the Small Business Jobs Index’s history.
Marketing Tips
What Your Small Business Can Learn From the 50 Most Engaged Brands
Amazon is the company that’s most engaged with customers, according to a recent report. And small businesses can potentially learn some important lessons from the retail giant and other big names that focus on customer engagement. Forbes Insights partnered with Pega to compile the list of the 50 most engaged companies, which also includes Google’s parent Alphabet Inc.
The Trend of One Stop Shops in Influencer Marketing
Managing influencer marketing campaigns doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, a new trend of one stop shops for influencer marketing could make the process a whole lot easier for brands. Small Business Trends spoke with Neil Henderson and Marco Pimentel of Assembly at the recent Influencer Marketing Days conference in New York City’s Times Square.
The Power of Influencer Marketing in Ecommerce
If you have an ecommerce business, you might want to consider utilizing influencer marketing to increase brand awareness and advocacy. In fact, experts believe that influencer marketing is the next big trend within the ecommerce marketing space.
The Key to Influencer Marketing Success is Targeting the Right Audience
So you’ve created an influencer marketing campaign. You found an influencer with tons of followers. You crafted the perfect message. You gained lots of impressions. But you didn’t notice any real results for your brand. So what went wrong? In many cases, the answer is that the brand didn’t target the right audience.
The Importance of Relationships Between Influencers and Brands
Brands that overlook the human element of influencer marketing are missing the point. It’s not about simple product placement. It’s about real relationships. Small Business Trends had the opportunity to speak with Joe Gagliese of Viral Nation at the recent Influencer Marketing Days conference in New York City’s Times Square.
Infusionsoft Targets Small Businesses with New Landing Pages
Infusionsoft has launched a new product designed to allow users to create striking and mobile-responsive landing pages quickly and efficiently. Infusionsoft says its new Landing Pages are attractive and can be custom built to help businesses capture new leads. The pages comes with a gallery of easy-to-use templates and are free to use, the company says.
Small Biz Spotlight
Spotlight: Bonusly Offers a New Way for Businesses to Reward Employees
Rewarding employees can be a great way to keep your whole team engaged and happy at work. But what if there was a better way to actually hand out those rewards? That’s exactly what Bonusly aims to provide. The company has created a system to allow team members to recognize great work from their co-workers.
Small Business Operations
5 Things Your Small Business Should Do Now to Prepare for a Winter Disaster
As the well-known catch phrase from the popular HBO series “Game of Thrones” warns, “Winter is coming.” The first snow has already fallen in the Midwest and forecasts suggest a more severe winter storms than usual this year in parts of the country.
Week Before Thanksgiving a Travel Nightmare for Business Flights
If you’ve got to squeeze in a last-minute flight for your small business, you’ll want to avoid the week before Thanksgiving. In new research from Concur, the busiest days for business travel this year will be Wednesday, November 15, and Thursday, November 16.
Social Media
Facebook Marketplace Enhancements Can Benefit Used Car Dealers
Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) Marketplace has been making it easier for people to discover, buy and sell a variety of items locally — from household items, to electronics and apparel — since October of last year. Now Facebook is adding more options specifically for used car dealers in the U.S. to connect with local shoppers.
Business Users, Twitter May be Miscalculating Your Reach
Twitter released its third quarter results report Thursday and revealed that it miscalculated the amount of users it had by millions. Its second quarter monthly active user total, for example, was actually around 326 million, not 328 million as originally reported.
Taxes
40 Percent of Small Business Owners Believe Lower Taxes Should be Top Priority
When Republicans in the House of Representatives release their version of a tax cut or tax reform bill today, small business owners across the country will be watching closely. According to new data from Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX), 41 percent of all the small business owners recently surveyed say tax reform should be the top priority of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Technology Trends
Burner App and Nomorobo Block Robocalls that Target Small Businesses
How many of the 2.4 billion robocalls made in in the US every month do you get throughout the day? If you are busy running your small business, a single call is one too many. But of course there is a more sinister side to robocalls threatening small businesses.
ADP Introduces Instant TIPS to Manage Small Business Gratuities
ADP (NASDAQ:ADP) and Gratuity Solutions just announced a new payment platform for service businesses that need an easier way to manage tips. The solution, called Instant TIPS, combines the capabilities of ADP’s existing paycard offering with Gratuity Solutions’ integrations of leading Point of Sale systems.
Samsung’s New Galaxy Tab A Tablet Gives Small Businesses Functionality and Portability
Samsung Electronics (KRX:005930) this week introduced its newest Android tablet, the Galaxy Tab A, which appears to take on Amazon’s low-cost tablets like Amazon Fire. If you are looking for a budget tablet that delivers enhanced performance and everyday usability, the Galaxy Tab A could be it.
The ZTE Axon M Gives Small Business Owners a Mobile Option — with Dual Screens
For small businesses looking to get more done outside of the office, the new ZTE Axon M could be a critical innovation. It comes with two 5.2 inch displays. When fully open, the device actually turns into a small tablet. This phone can remove the strain of working on a small screen by taking advantage of both displays.
AOC Portable 16-Inch Monitor Offers Options to Small Business Owners on the Go
If you are looking for a very slim, lightweight, and easy to use portable external monitor that is also affordable, the new AOC i1601fwux ticks all of those boxes. With people working outside of the office just as much as they do in it, portability is an important quality, even for an external monitor.
Veteran to Small Business Owner image via Shutterstock