SmallBusinessNewz

FPB Lays Out Barriers To Developing Businesses

It's not great that businesses have been saddled with another problem; credit restrictions are liable to act more like a brick than a straw on the figurative camel's back.  Still, a new report from the Forum of Private Business at least indicates that the restrictions may be less harmful than we thought.

Make Sure Your Site's Ready for Holiday Traffic

New data released from Hitwise indicates that online retail traffic has begun to slow and suggests that it will continue to do so into the holiday season. "These declines are the only drops in retail traffic that have occurred this year and reflect the reaction of consumers that have pulled back on spending in the current economic climate," says Heather Dougherty on the Hitwise blog.

Text Ads May Get More Clicks, But...

A recent study shows some noteworthy stats about consumer preference when it comes to different forms of online advertising. Hightlights include:

NFIB Measures Another Uptick In Small Business Optimism

We might, just maybe, be climbing out of a figurative pit of pessimism, folks.  The NFIB's newest report indicates that the Index of Small Business Optimism rose in September, giving us a good two-month streak of improvements.

Gauging Your Bank's Health

Imagine showing up at your bank one day only to find an "out of business" sign barring the front door.  Now, we're not saying that's going to happen, but there are a few things you can do in order to research your bank's general condition.

Viral Video - An Economically Appealing Marketing Strategy

It's no secret that online video is truly coming into its own in terms of viewership. There's no reason why your business can't capitalize on this. Video is one of the top forms of viral marketing on the web, and viral marketing is one of the most effective forms of marketing period.

Hulu Shows How to Market with a Blog

I wrote about this for WebProNews, but the more I think about it, this is something that small business owners might find useful so I thought talking about it here too would be appropriate. I was visiting the blog for popular online video service Hulu, when I discovered a guest post from filmmaker Kevin Smith (commonly known as "Silent Bob").

PNC Survey Finds Lots Of Pessimism

PNC started conducting its semiannual survey in 2003, so when an all-time record is set, it doesn't necessarily mean that a comparison to the Great Depression is in order.  That said, depression of a sort is at stake, as the latest PNC report puts business owners' pessimism at an all-time high.

Comparing Shopping Cart Solutions

eCommerce is an evergrowing industry, and the need for a website is as important as ever. Arnie Kuenn offered his top five in an article here at SmallBusinessNewz before, but Sean P. Aune at Mashable has put together a nice list of over 35 shopping cart solutions for you to choose from.

FSB, FPB Happy About Interest Rate Cuts

It seems like every economic development these days has a couple of results that most people understand, more that most people don't, and an untold number that nobody knows about.  Yet two small business organizations have announced their approval of the recent interest rate cuts.