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SBDCs Reaching More Customers, Faster Checkout Times, and How One Expert Defines Hustle. What’s Hot California SBDCs set record year California Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) have announced a record year for helping their clients secure capital, noting that they helped their clients secure half a billion dollars in new loans and investments. What’s more is that SBDC clients credited the California SBDCs with “the creation and retention of 8,462 jobs last year, [and] the launch of 1,039 new businesses.”… Read More

In the previous post, we talked about collateral, personal guarantee and the legal procedures when you default on a loan. But how do lenders actually collect? This article explains the steps most lenders take when a loan becomes delinquent. When you stop making your monthly payments, the lenders usually take the following steps to try to collect the payments: Make friendly phone calls asking for payment. Send friendly letters asking for payment, but with interest and penalties tacked on. Make… Read More

Last week we published an article, Is Your Website Appealing to the Right Crowd?, aimed to help you focus your website to target your ideal customers. Now it's time to focus on getting your customers to see all the great content you’ve generated to appeal to them. One great thing about getting customers to your website is that you can use both online and offline mechanisms to attract website visitors. Here are a few great practices for getting potential customers… Read More

As a business owner, it's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the day and forget about the things for which you're thankful. Gratitude might not be something that's on a business owner's list of things to think about daily, but it should be! It's a good way to keep you grounded and in positive spirits about the direction of your business. I encourage you to think about what you're thankful for by writing it down… Read More

Guest post by Tim Berry, founder of Palo Alto Software, entrepreneur, blogger, and business planner. Follow Tim on Twitter @Timberry. This post came from a question on Quora that was likely geared towards a tech startup. These same principles, however, apply to all small businesses that are considering taking investments from friends or family, an equity crowdfunder, or other investment resources in addition to considering bank loans. Borrowing vs. Opening Up for Investment: What's the Right Path? Of course there's… Read More

Howard Schultz is the Chairman and CEO of Starbucks. Schultz began his career at Starbucks as Director of Marketing in 1982. Shortly after joining the company, he took a trip to Italy where he was inspired by the integration of coffee cafes into the Italian culture. Upon his return, he convinced the Starbucks management to serve espresso in addition to the coffee and tea traditionally offered, and open a Starbucks retail shop. The first Starbucks cafe was successful, however the… Read More