If you’re running a business, you likely already realize the importance of choosing and registering a unique business name. Your chosen name should be memorable to your customer base. But, it also should be available online. If your business name is already in use, customers will be confused. Even worse, you may find yourself on...

Nobody likes to waste money, even if they have more than they could ever need. For businesses, every dollar wasted is a dollar that could be put toward reaching additional customers or improving your products. One of the biggest problems is that too many companies spend too much toward unnecessary expenses. They often do this...

The economic recovery hasn’t been as strong in every part of the U.S. as it has in Silicon Valley. With companies sending factories overseas and older people relocating to more sunny regions, many cities in the northern US are experiencing slow economic growth. Cleveland is one of them. Listed as second highest on the Distressed Community...

If a company’s goal is to increase profits, the answer isn’t always “increase revenue.” Instead, maybe your expenses are the real barrier between you and greater profitability. Often, business owners think, “If I could just make more money, then I could cover all the costs and finally increase my profit margin.” In reality, you might...

Doing business in the state of California isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s one of the biggest economies in the world, and attracts many of the most talented people in every industry. To maintain a viable business you need all the help you can get. That’s where the California Chamber of Commerce, or CalChamber,...

If you own a small business in California, you’re not alone. The U.S. Business Administration Office of Advocacy reports there are now 3.9 million small businesses in California. They employ approximately seven million people. Your network of small business owners in the golden state shares similar goals and values. Beyond that circle, you can tap...

Negativity seemingly always bombards us in the news and in our social media timelines these days. If you want to combat this, one surefire method is to adopt a social good strategy for your business. For many years now, companies both large and small have sought to improve the world through corporate social responsibility by implementing practices...

Recent research shows that 75 percent of all startups ultimately fail, many of those within the first year of their existence. Nobody likes failure, obviously, even as we recognize that there are many lessons to be learned when you start a business. Still, when we’re talking about a failed startup, the cost of failure can be pretty steep — sunk...

When you look around these days, it’s easy to feel a little alarmed by the state of interpersonal relations. Whether at work or in our personal lives, it’s just not easy to get along with everyone. Whatever the cause, it seems many of us are having an increasingly difficult time communicating well with each other, and it often...

“Do as I say, not as I do” might once have worked for both parents and stern bosses, but these days leadership by demand is no longer sufficient. Modern employees want to see you in action, leading by example. When your actions actively work against the things you say (whether in direct conversation or through the creation or enforcement of...