There are few things more annoying than sitting down to dinner or drinks with friends, only for your phone to ring with an unsolicited sales call. We've all received these calls from time to time (in some cases far more often, in the days before the Do Not Call list getting several calls a day was not unheard of), so we're all familiar with how aggravating it can be to...
Scalability is a term most commonly associated with computer systems, networks and processes and their ability to handle increased usage, or be expanded to handle that growth. The term can also be applied to businesses, and their ability to handle a sudden influx of additional work. I spoke before about expanding out of your home into a proper office to meet your growing needs, but what about your business on...
It should come as no surprise that a majority of the developed world’s workers would prefer to be their own boss. If you’re reading this blog, you’re no doubt interested in the same thing. The reasons are as many and varied as there are people. In Europe, increased profit potential is frequently listed in business polls on the topic; in the United States, personal freedom is usually the number one...
Social media is the fastest growing form of marketing in the world today, and for good reason. Over the past two decades the Internet has spread like wildfire, from the old 14.4k dial-up modem days to today, where high speed Internet access is available to most of the planet via the touch of a button on a cellular phone. And with the spread of the Internet has come more and...
Today marks a bit of a sad day for my team and I, as two of my team members say farewell and step out onto their own paths to independent financial success. Tim, who I wrote about here, and Shane, who has worked as a content provider and has been an excellent source of ideas (and the vast majority of pop culture references) found across this blog, are leaving us...
So you've got what you believe is a genius idea that you think has serious potential to make you a lot of money. Heck, you might think this is such a good idea, it has the potential to change the world. That's fantastic news! Good for you! Kudos to you on your creativity. But hold on a second there, tiger. Before you go any further, I want you to consider...
This should really be a no-brainer. The key to making any business successful is sustainability. Having a successful launch and making a ton of money at the onset is great. But nothing lasts forever, except perhaps diamonds if you ask Sir Ian Fleming, who incidentally was never officially Knighted, a fact I just found out now while researching this article. Anyway, back on track. That initial run of business (and resulting...
Inflation has been in the news regularly lately, a consequence of the ongoing global recession. Inflation is an important metric for central banks and investors to measure, as it gives some insight into the actual value of an given currency. Because inflation impacts wages and prices at the same time, the biggest concern is not the purchasing power for average people on point-of-sale purchases (though that is what is often...
We’ve all heard the news. Europe is sliding back into a recession as its economic elites continue to slash any spending that benefits the average citizen. In America, the Republicans have voted consistently to end Medicare and may gain enough power in the 2012 elections to achieve their aims. And Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party has floated the idea of slashing retirement benefits for future generations (though not, it...
You would think that the demise of one competitor in an industry would leave the remaining companies in a better position – that, for example, Borders’ bankrupty would be good news for Barnes and Noble, or the collapse of Circuit City would strengthen Best Buy. But that’s not what’s happened in these cases – Barnes and Noble continues to struggle to transfer its once-mighty earnings potential to the Nook digital...