Dashboard

A weekly roundup of small-business developments.

What’s inspiring me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.

The Budget: SkyNotFall

The confiscation takes effect, and according to Keith Hennessy, a impact is: “skynotfall.” Stephen Colbert offers a artistic solution, and things are so bad that one ex-con is indicted of sneaking back into jail. Some economists trust a sequestration doesn’t cut spending during all, though $92 million is whacked from a Small Business Administration’s budget, and Kelly Phillips Erb says some tiny businesses are already taking a hit. A small-business spin table discusses a debt. These are 4 things to know about a next large bill battle, and do we also know who is one of a many influential people in a arrangement of a White House economics team?

Small Business Statistics: The Bright Side

The latest practice numbers move “great news.” Despite a Dow Jones industrial average’s record close, small businesses are still struggling and nonetheless a liberation is lifting profits, many analysts interpretation it’s still not adding jobs. A consult shows solid job gains in Feb and Intuit’s small-business employment index edged up. Moderate expansion continued in a Philadelphia region. But small-business hiring was down in Pennsylvania and small-business closings increasing in Missouri. Lending to tiny companies weakened in January, and Destiny Bennett explains the genuine reason small-business owners are not removing loans. A consult finds some-more baby boomer owners are selling their businesses. On a splendid side: now is a good time to be in a taxation business!

The Economy: Surpassing Saudi Arabia

The United States was a world’s largest petroleum producer in November, leading Saudi Arabia for a initial time in 10 years — though an oil cost researcher is doubtful about a intensity of American oil production. Lance Roberts believes an asset bubble is indeed growing. Ezra Klein offers a few reasons to be optimistic. Economic activity in a nonmanufacturing section increasing for a 38th uninterrupted month, and activity in a manufacturing section increasing for a third uninterrupted month. Home prices inhabitant increased on a year-over-year basis by 9.7 percent. Lumber prices approached an eight-year high. And these 100 contribution about a economy will blow your mind.

Management: Don’t Quit a Day Job (Yet)

Forbes publishes a annual list of billionaires. GoDaddy’s owners warns opposite quitting your day pursuit too soon. Mikey Rox lists 25 ways to raise your creativity, including: slick by a magazine. In this video, a blogger says Groupon and a former arch executive, Andrew Mason, should be ashamed. Marc Andreessen and B. Horowitz take a crack during annotating Mr. Mason’s goodbye memo. Jeff Cornwall tells a story of how he knew it was time to fire a customer. Patricia Lotich lists her tip 10 small-business resources. These are 5 potentially disastrous financial mistakes each businessman should know about. An online grocery store uses a customer-purchase histories to envision when equipment will run out. A receivables government organisation offers an “A to Z of receivables management.”

Your People: The Cool Kids

Yahoo reins in telecommuters, and Best Buy copies it. A investigate reveals that some-more than 600,000 commuters travel more than 90 mins to work each day. A new inhabitant consult finds more than a third of American workers knowledge ongoing work stress, with low salaries, miss of event for enrichment and complicated workloads commanding a list of contributing factors. Kirsten Chiala takes a demeanour during how companies and employees are benefiting from “telework.” Richard Juman suggests 3 ways to inspire a healthy corporate culture. Chucky terrorizes drive-thru employees. A association offers an alternative to a tyro loan by joining impending employees with intensity backers who are peaceful to deposit in their career goals. Data crunchers are now the cold kids on campus and these are a tip 50 apps employees sneak into work. This is one of a craziest buzzer beaters you’ll ever see.

Start-Up: Blowing It

After offered her start-up for $70 million during age 25, a founder blows by her fortune and heads to prison. These are a stairs to follow to set adult a home-based tiny business, and these are a funniest home Wi-Fi names. A new contest challenges we to explain what your start-up does and because anyone should caring in 6 seconds. A crowdfunding site is started to expostulate a “new American dream.” But a start-up guru doubts that crowdfunding will happen.

Around a Country: A Start-Up Video Store?

These are a 10 American companies with the best reputations. And here are 13 stores we will never emporium during again (but this ardent owners of a video-rental store in Pennsylvania doesn’t care). A “Grey’s Anatomy” star tries to spin around a failing coffee business in Seattle. Texas leads a country in business relocations and expansions. The 2013 Startup Law Summit is scheduled this week in Chicago (a city that needs a “start-up expansion anchor” according to Microsoft’s C.E.O.). San Francisco’s Bay Bridge lights up. Social entrepreneurship programs during Yale and Stanford Universities are scheduled for high propagandize students this summer. Here are 4 underrated tech hubs to watch, and here are a 10 cities with a top taxation rates.

Around a World: Singapore Is No. 1

Singapore ranks as a top Tier 1 economy given 1980. German car sales thrust as Europe’s automobile predicament deepens, and some trust a fourth euro predicament cycle of panic has strictly begun. But private business activity in a euro section in Feb was not as bad as feared. Some trust that Spain still has a prolonged way to fall. Since 2008, Somali pirates handling in a Gulf of Aden have cost a shipping courtesy $900 million to $3.3 billion per year. A plague of locusts descends on Egypt. Swiss electorate approve limits on executive pay. This is because Auntie Anne’s Pretzels unsuccessful in China. Tim Fernholz claims that America is terrible during globalization. iYogi creates a big small-business bet in India.

Social Media: Pronto!

Facebook redesigns a news feed. Twitter kills TweetDeck. Mark Veverka warns that if your association or business does not have a social media strategy, it improved get one pronto! A coming webinar facilities a amicable media consultant who will explain how to use Facebook and LinkedIn for lead generation. Nick Bilton writes that it “seems as if Facebook is not usually promoting my links on news feeds when we compensate for them, though also presumably suppressing a ones we do not compensate for.” Hospitals with a many Facebook likes have reduce genocide rates. Jeff Bullas explains how to use Pinterest’s organisation boards to get some-more bearing for your business. These are the basis of amicable media selling for business-to-business companies. Here are 9 amusing transport hacks, and a Raiders’ Desmond Bryant is a aim of a waggish meme. An ungainly British man invites Mila Kunis out drinking.

SXSW: Ten Austin Start-Ups

Here are a 10 Austin start-ups we need to meet during South By Southwest this week. Pizza Hut skeleton to reason 140-second job interviews there. You can get a giveaway ride in a SXSW TechCab by admissing your sins. An Austin businessman shares his SXSW tips. Andrea Swensson explains because she’s not going this year.

Marketing: Too Watery?

Kelley Robertson says this is how not to use a referral. Derrick Daye shares 7 ways to generate ideas from customers. Allison Carter warns we not to start calm selling if we are not peaceful to wait during slightest 6 months before saying results. Online consult tools might be a many effective approach to rivet existent customers. Chris Robinson explains how business owners can boost site traffic by video. Here’s the usually way to marketplace with SnapChat. Wal-Mart introduces a module ancillary businesses owned by women worldwide. This is how Budweiser responded to accusations that a drink was too watery.

Cool Ideas: Forgive Us

A association offers digitized magazine subscriptions for watchful rooms. A new form of silicone exhibits both gelatinous and effervescent properties. A stretchable battery stretches 300 percent. This video explains how 3-D copy will change a world, though this infographic shows how prolonged a 3-D copy series will take. Apple is pronounced to be formulation an iWatch and a fingerprint-sensing iPhone, and it now seems that the latest fashion is wearable computers. An businessman auctions off his name to a top bidder. To predict trends before they happen, G.B. Oliver recommends gripping an eye on cocktail culture. A association regrets copy Bible quotations on toilet paper.

Technology: Google Glass for Guys

Evernote is hacked. Jon Xavier lists 7 Apple products whose reality didn’t live up to a hype. Adriana Gardella wants to know how we handle laid-back record vendors. These are 4 apps for getting rid of paperwork. A new box helps we get a improved Wi-Fi signal on your iPhone. A programming error costs Microsoft 561 million euros. A consult shows that tiny businesses have complicated bearing to data breaches. A new backup tool will assistance conduct your overstuffed Gmail account. And here’s how guys will be using Google Glass in a future.

Tweet of a Week

‏@alexia – “You going to SXSW(i)?” — Everyone even vaguely associated to tech, right now.

The Week’s Best

Bob Phibbs wants to know if you are too weak to turn stronger: “It isn’t so most what we confirm to strech out for, though it is that impulse of decision. Going from a debility of I’m overwhelmed, we don’t need anyone else, it won’t work, etc. to one of strength — this will concede me to work smarter, concentration my attention, make my business competitive. That’s because we compensate for my Web designers to lift out my vision. That’s because we paid for a one-day coaching with one of a smartest marketers around. That’s because we do a lot of things. And we know a lot of we do too.”

This Week’s Question: Why aren’t we going to SXSW this year?

Gene Marks owns a Marks Group, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa., consulting organisation that helps clients with patron attribute management. You can follow him on Twitter.