Sorry small businesses. No love from B.C. budget
- Written by Globe and Mail
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One might have hoped the B.C. budget, revealed Feb. 21, would have had more small-business initiatives.
According to the provincial government’s own reports, there were more than 391,700 small businesses in British Columbia in 2010, accounting for 98 per cent of all companies and employing approximately a million people. That would represent 57 per cent of all private sector jobs in the province.
Just to make the point even stronger, in 2010, approximately 30 per cent of B.C.’s GDP was generated by small business, above the national average of 27 per cent. And small business was the source of 33 per cent of all wages paid to workers, which was the highest share of any province.
So what were the highlights? Not much for small business, I’m afraid. ... Read more
How Your Business Can Get on Siri's Radar
- Written by Entrepreneur
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Three days after the October 2011 launch of the iPhone 4S, Apple announced that customers had snatched up more than 4 million units. Those smartphones introduced millions to Siri, a function that provides answers and recommendations based on users' verbal requests. In the months since, the question many small businesses have been asking is, "How can I make sure Siri picks me as the answer?" While Apple has been largely mum on the subject, experts who have studied Siri's preferences have some suggestions.
Get Local Listings
A listing on Google Places simply won't cut it. "We don't know all of Apple's partners in the local listings process, but we do know that their core listing data comes from Localeze.com," says Mike Blumenthal, author of the blog Understanding Google Maps and Local Search. Apple appears to overlay the core data with review data from sites like Yelp and Yahoo, he says, so it's important to enhance your listings on a variety of local directories, in addition to Google. ... Read more
Test your financial savvy
- Written by Financial Post
- Hits: 2405
By Mark Miller
OK, folks — it’s time for a Personal Finance 101 quiz. Please answer the following three questions:
1. Suppose you had $100 in a savings account and the interest rate was 2% per year. After five years, how much do you think you would have in the account if you left the money to grow (more, less or the same)?
2. Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account was 1% per year and inflation was 2% per year. After one year, how much would you be able to buy with the money in this account (more, or less)?
3. Is this statement true or false: Buying a single company’s stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund. ... Read more
How to Make the Move From Big-Business Employee to Small-Business Owner
- Written by Entrepreneur
- Hits: 2294
BY Jane Porter
Within just three months, Avi Yashchin went from helping manage a $42 billion Lehman Brothers portfolio to working out of a makeshift office wedged between two of his four roommates' beds. After the Lehman Brothers collapse left him jobless in 2008, Yashchin started CleanEdison, a New York-based job-training company that focuses on the green-building industry. It was a move that forced him to revamp his approach to business. "You always have someone else to do things for you in a big corporation," he says. "The pendulum really quickly [swung] the other way."
To avoid running into his roommate's girlfriend in her towel, Yashchin interviewed potential hires at the Starbucks across the street from his apartment. He became a pro at assembling furniture and replaced the legal counsel he'd had at his beck and call at Lehman with a $200 database of legal documents. "We did everything on a shoestring," he says. But over three years, Yashchin grew his revenue to more than $3.5 million last year and hired 22 full-time employees.
To make the move from corporate employee to entrepreneur, you need to develop a new mindset. Here are six steps to help ease the transition: ... Read more
Common Bookkeeping Mistakes That Weigh Down On Business Profits
- Written by 2009 Tax
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Bookkeeping serves as a foundation for sound financial decision making and planning and therefore it is essential that financial records are kept up-to-date. Some businesses procrastinate the mundane process of maintaining financial records because it involves a lot of time and effort. When this happens, it is better to find a bookkeeper so that you can get more time to concentrate on core business activities. Some common bookkeeping mistakes that can be avoided by paying more attention are as follows:
Inaccurate Record Keeping
Business managers can lose important receipts or ignore small expenses that seem insignificant to them and this can hinder proper maintenance of records. When its time to file tax returns or close accounts at the end of the financial year, it results in a loss of both time and money. In case of an IRS audit, you will not have the necessary documentation required for proper tax measures and this can result in fines and other expenditures when dealing with the auditor. ... Read more