Business Week states “Many companies can’t afford Humanix’s approach of lending workers money directly, especially in a slump. Mitch Bolnick, CEO of security company BCD Low Voltage Systems in Phoenix, let several employees borrow from the company in the past for emergencies like car repairs. But with sales slow this year and his staff of 16 already taking pay cuts, Bolnick has held off on new loans. “This year we’ve had to explain to them what the situation is and why, and they understand,” he says. Still, he says assisting employees when possible helps BCD build loyalty among workers: Two have told him they turned down higher-paying offers.”

What does this mean to other small businesses? It doesn’t mean you should start providing private loans or funds for your employees today, but to think about their needs outside the office also because, “a financially unstable worker can cost a business as much as $480 per month in lost productivity and absenteeism.”

Google is the number one search engine in the US with a market share of 65.0%. Yahoo has 19.6% and Microsoft has 8.4% of the market share. Since Yahoo and Microsoft don’t have even 25% of the market share, many advertisers were not willing to work with them. The solution, Microhoo! CNN states, “This deal is really about scale,” said Yahoo Chief Executive Carol Bartz on a conference call. “By combining the … technology of both companies, we can create a real, viable alternative for advertisers.”

What does this mean to small business owners? Additional medium to effectivey advertiser and reach your customers.

Some of the biggest companies were started by partners; Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream (Ben and Jerry), Apple (Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak), and Google (Larry Page and Sergey Brin).

If you’re thinking of starting a new business or already have started a small business but need that extra bit of support why not turn to someone your trust and ask them to be your partner.

USA Today states, “With a partner, you have someone to share the excitement and risks of running a company; someone to bounce ideas off of; to help shoulder the financial and work-load burden. Face it: starting and running a business can be a lot more fun when you’re working with someone you like and respect. It’s important to think through and formally structure your relationship.”

In 2007, before the recession started, Congress signed a legislation that increased the minimum wage to $5.85, followed by another increase in 2008 to $6.55, and now the final hike to $7.25. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis says, “Between 3 million and 5 million people will be affected by the minimum wage rise from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 per hour”

If you are a small business owner, how does this affect you during this recession? According to “Robert Mayfield, who owns five Dairy Queen restaurants in central Texas, ‘don’t expect any increased spending to offset the added salary expenses.’”

To check exactly how much the minimum wage increased in your state, click here.

One of the most important tools available to a small business is Press Release Distribution. Associated Content states 8 reasons why Press Releases are important including, Increases name recognition, Gain free visibility, and You will be viewed as an expert in your field. Websites such as freepressrelease.com, pr.com, and pitchengine.com allowing everyone to submit press releases that can be distributed for free. Not only is this cost effective, this is also one of the most effective Marketing tools!

MSNBC states “CIT Group Inc.’s board approved a deal with major bondholders to keep the company out of bankruptcy with a $3 billion rescue loan, according to published reports. CIT’s failure could pose a major threat to the economy, industry representatives have warned. A collapse of CIT could cut off financing just as businesses need it most during the ongoing recession. Its failure could force thousands of companies to drastically cut costs or shut down — driving up unemployment and dashing hopes for a swift economic recovery”

Now that CIT has secured $3 billion to keep it’s doors open for at least the rest of the year, one question small business owners should ask their state representatives is why the federal government doesn’t see it necessary to bailout CIT when it bailed out all the big corporation from wall street?

More than half the advertising most businesses are participating in do not register with the end consumer. Below are seven reasons why Steve McKee, from BusinessWeek believes this is true:
1. It’s boring. Yep, boring. Why do we watch TV, listen to the radio, read the newspaper, or go online? Three reasons: information, entertainment, and engagement.Ads that fail to offer at least two of these three benefits flop.

2. It’s boorish. You shouldn’t think of your advertising as being about your brand, you should think of it as an extension of your brand (see “A Practical Guide to Branding”). If it’s loud, annoying, insulting, offensive, or self-centered, people will think the same of your products or services (see “The Cocktail Party Test for Advertising”). Remember the first sentence in the best-selling hardback book in U.S. history, The Purpose Driven Life: “It’s not about you.”

3. It’s safe. The first time I saw a Ford Taurus (F), I took note, and I suspect you did as well. So did a lot of other people, and the Taurus went on to become the best-selling car in America.

4. It’s trying to do too much. As the poll results above demonstrated, most people don’t engage with most ads. And even when they do, for how long do they pay attention? Thirty seconds? Ten? Five? The best an ad can do is communicate one single, compelling idea, and in the age of the Internet—when people know they can go online to get all the additional information they need—it’s crazy to ask an ad to do more than that. Just because you have a lot to say doesn’t mean your audience will sit still and pay attention.

5. It hasn’t been given time. You can’t rush bread out of the oven. You can’t hurry a seedling out of the ground. All you can do is prepare the ingredients properly, tend the garden with care, and wait for the loaf to rise and sprouts to appear. The same is true of advertising.

6. You like it. O.K., this one may sting a bit, but you are not the best judge of your own advertising. You can’t be, because you simply know too much about your brand and have too much affection for it to remain objective.

7. It’s not an advertising problem. A common mistake many companies make is trying to use advertising to fix another problem. It may be faulty or outdated product design, an uncompetitive cost structure, customer service letdowns, or any number of other things. It’s not as if they do so intentionally; it’s just that it’s a whole lot easier to put on a new coat of paint than it is to fix the foundation that’s causing the drywall to crack. No company executes flawlessly, but until you can maintain a solid track record of excellence, spend your money on internal improvements rather than advertising. Paint may mask the problem for a short time, but soon new cracks will begin to appear.

Why not take a few minutes today and evaluate your advertising campaign and see where there is room for improvement.

Most people these days have more than one phone they are required to return calls from, for example, home phone, cell phone, business phone, business cell phone, ect. To help with this problem, Google has developed Google Voice. “Google Voice is Google’s attempt to remake how we think of the phone. It lets you use one new phone number to tie together your various numbers: cellphone, home phone, business line. Friends call your Google number, and all the other phones ring — you choose which one to answer. Voice mail flows to all of the phones, along with a free transcription by Google.” states Jeffery Graham of USA Today.

Just like most products Google launches, Google Voice is available by invitation only. Because of the limited number of invitations issued by Google thus far, these invitations are being auctioned for as much as $100! What is an alternative if you are a small business owner? Click here to register for your invitation, and with Google releasing up to 10,000 phone numbers in the coming months you won’t have to wait long.

Have you been hearing how social media is the new face of marketing, but you don’t know how to make it work for your small business? Or have your heard there is a great way to get press at almost no cost? Why not view one of the many FREE webinars that are offered almost everyday but almost everyone! Startup nation is hosting “Strategies to Save Time, Save Money, Win More Customers”. PR Web, the press distribution website is hosting a webinar on a weekly basis related to press releases.

Next time you are at a professional website, search to see if they are offering a webinar. And the best part, you can view and listen to it from the comfort of your own office!

The Wall Street Journal reports, “All sorts of start-ups and small companies are using the Internet to involve customers in decisions on everything from what to sell, how products look and work, how much they cost, and even how the company operates, like what hours a store should be open or how its floor space should be laid out. For business owners who are short on cash and have little margin for error, there are two big advantages to using consumers as advisers: They’re cheaper than the professional consultants that bigger companies routinely employ.”

If you are a small company, considering how to remodel your website, or your store’s display, start by interacting with your customers. Host a live chat session on your website, create a contest for a free giveaway to the customer that has the most direct impact on your end result, or start a forum discussion. At the end of the day, your customers will enjoy your service more because they helped create it!