It’s not an isolated phenomenon. These kinds of “bankable” businesses exist in almost every industry, says Andrew Sobel, co-author along with Jerold Panas of “Power Questions: Build Relationships, Win New Business and Influence Others” (Wiley, 2012).  But business superstars aren’t born, they’re usually self-made. Here are seven keys that can unlock the hidden superstar in any entrepreneur:

1. Deliver something great, over and over. Not easy, sure. But you can’t expect superstardom to occur overnight. You have to build your reputation for delivering results consistently year after year. Entrepreneurs who keep on delivering gain trust and become more “bankable.”
2. Have a high-powered value proposition. It’s vital that you clearly articulate why customers should come to you above everyone else. What unique value do you and your business offer?  Your public value proposition doesn’t have to define everything you do with clients or customers, but it should make clear what you’re best known for. Businesses that don’t have a unique value proposition are just a commodity.
3. Be the one asking the questions. Here’s a good test of where you stand: When you talk to potential clients, are they the ones asking all the questions; grilling you on your credentials?  Or do you also tactfully test them for suitability as one of your clients?  Good news here is that you don’t have to wait until you’re famous to put yourself in this position.  You can do it at any point in the life of your business. When you’re the one asking the thought-provoking, idea-inducing questions in the conversation, people take notice. You quickly move up a notch and take control of the discussion. You no longer are merely a “vendor,” but become a thoughtful advisor who is focused on helping customers achieve their most important goals.
4. Be an industry thought leader. These days, you don’t have to write a bestselling book to be seen as a thought leader. It starts by having deep focus and an abiding curiosity to learn everything there is to know about your industry. Then start passing along that knowledge, by blogging, speaking, consulting, writing articles for industry publications and participating in social media. It’s not a one-and-done proposition. You need to be out their daily.
5. Create a powerful name or brand. In short, you need to become well known. That doesn’t mean worldwide. It might just be in your community or other limited sphere of influence – in your particular niche, marketplace or geographic area. When you are a known name in your specialty, customers think of you when they need something. Name recognition works like a magnet. It’s never too late to start. No matter how known or unknown you are now, plan one activity monthly that will increase your name recognition in some way.
6. Evaluate your scale and select clients carefully. Superstars are scarce and should command the higher fees or prices. Think about how your business model scales.  Can you afford to work for or sell to everyone? Sometimes trying to sell at larger scale only ends up diluting your personal or business brand and your ability to deliver quality goods or services. Business superstars know they can’t – and shouldn’t – spread themselves too thin.
7. Price like a superstar. While you have to achieve at least a semblance of star status before you can charge premium rates, there’s actually more to it. “Research has demonstrated that high prices lead to high perceived value,” says Sobel. “Most people think it’s the other way around – that if you deliver high value, only then can you get high fees.”  Look at it this way. As you become more and more bankable, you enter a virtuous circle of ever-higher perceived value – and fees. Customers know that hiring you lowers their risk, and that’s worth paying for.

 © 2000-2012 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

The first thing to remember about values is that they don’t change.  Values are part of your business DNA.  Ask yourself: Why does my business exist?  And don’t say something lame like “to serve our customers.”  That’s not a value.  Much as a person’s values define who he or she is, a company’s values define what the business stands for (not merely what it does).  And although many smaller businesses don’t consider themselves to have a “culture” in the sense that larger companies use the term, every business has a culture of some kind, knowingly or not.

Values define your business and how you want the people who work there to interact with others.  Well-articulated value statements use words such as integrity, innovation, accuracy, loyalty, accountability and teamwork, among others.  A business defines its values so everyone has a clear understanding of what they are and can contribute to them as they make decisions and set priorities.  Your established values also guide your hiring decisions.  Values should be a constant that keeps your business on track though the many challenges it will face in the future.

Vision is different.  Your vision is future-focused, and while values are a contributor, vision is about developing clarity and purpose around the most lofty, world- or market-changing goals you have.  This is your great aspiration for the business. It’s where you want to get to in, say 10 or 20 years.  But it’s not about growth rates or revenues, it’s more about what you want your business to create or achieve over time.  That vision won’t be easy to realize and may require constant course changes, hard work and many accumulated successes over time. As you define your vision, shoot for clarity and focus.  It’s tempting to talk in fuzzy terms that are difficult for others to interpret, much less follow.  Employees, partners, investors, vendors, customers and others must be able to grasp your vision for it to work (they don’t have to agree with it, just understand it).

Only now you can talk about strategy.  The most important thing to know about strategy is that it changes all the time – in small steps or radical revisions.  That’s critical because business conditions, markets, competition, consumer preferences and a wide range of other factors are constantly in flux. If your strategy remains fixed, you are doomed.  Strategy is the roadmap you use to achieve your vision and reach your goals, guided by the GPS of your values.

I agree – it’s not a sexy topic like social media.  But if you ever seek bank financing, angel investors, venture capital or a loan from friends and family, these are things you need to know.

Your balance sheet shows what your business owns and what it owes at a fixed point in time, and provides details about your assets, liabilities and owners’ equity. It does not show money that flows in and out of the accounts during that period (we’ll get to that shortly).

• Assets are things your business owns that have value and could be sold, including tangible assets such as vehicles, equipment, inventory and cash, plus intellectual assets such as trademarks and patents.
• Liabilities are amounts your business owes to others, including loans, rent, vendor accounts, payroll and taxes, as well as obligations to provide goods or services to customers in the future.
• Owners’ (or shareholders’) equity is your capital or net worth. It’s the amount that would be left if the business sold all assets and paid off all liabilities. This leftover money belongs to the owners.

An income statement shows revenues over a specific time period – i.e. a month, quarter or year – and shows what you spent to generate that revenue. The literal “bottom line” of an income statement shows what the business earned or lost over that period.

Think of an income statement as a stairway. You start at the top with total sales, and then go down one step at a time. At each step, you make a deduction for costs or other operating expenses that were necessary to earn the revenue. At the bottom of the stairs, after deducting all of the expenses, you learn how much the business earned or lost.  

A Cash flow statement shows inflows and outflows of cash over a fixed period. This is critical because any business needs cash to cover ongoing costs. While an income statement (above) shows profit or loss, a cash flow statement merely indicates if the business generated cash. You should also know that a cash flow statement shows changes over time, not absolute dollar amounts at a given point. The bottom line of the cash flow statement shows how much it went up or down for the period. Generally, cash flow statements review the cash flow from three key activities: operating, investing (back into the business) and financing.

4 Key Terms and Ratios to Know

Here’s a mini glossary of four key financial statement terms and ratios you’ll also want to know:

• The Debt-to-equity ratio compares total debt to owners’ equity. Both numbers come from your balance sheet. To calculate a debt-to-equity ratio, divide total liabilities by owners’ equity. If a business has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2-to-1, for example, it means that it is taking on debt at twice the rate that its owners are investing in the company.
• Inventory turnover ratio compares a company’s cost of sales on its income statement with its average inventory balance for the period. To calculate this ratio, divide cost of sales by average inventory for the period. A 2-to-1 ratio means the company’s inventory turned over twice in the reporting period.
• Operating margin shows percentage of profit for each dollar of sales. It compares operating income to net revenues. Both numbers come from the income statement. To calculate operating margin, divide income from operations (before interest and income tax expenses) by net revenues. Operating margin is usually expressed as a percentage.
• Working capital is the money leftover if the business paid its current liabilities (debts due within one-year) out of its current assets.

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

“We’re seeing more individuals interested in starting businesses, and I can’t say we’re surprised,” says Christian Conroy, State Director of the Pennsylvania SBDC, a network of 18 college-based centers providing help to new and existing businesses in PA.  On-Site Heavy Equipment Repair in Clarence, PA is one example of a startup that forged ahead despite a dubious economy. Husband and wife team Don and Coleen Reese began their business just after the collapse of Bear Stearns in 2008. Working through the Penn State University SBDC, the couple got help developing a financial model and doing market research that helped them secure startup capital.

SBDCs offer counseling, training and tech help in all areas of business management, including finance, marketing, production, engineering, and feasibility studies. The program is run jointly by private enterprise and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

Despite cuts in funding, SBDCs are seeing a surge of interest in starting a business.  Sharon and Frank Gundy of Hazleton, PA, looked at a new venture as a way to recoup lost income. Frank had been laid off, and Sharon, a real estate agent, was hard-pressed for sales. The couple sought help from the Wilkes University SBDC to launch their novelty gift business and build an online presence.

And Kelly Schick joined the entrepreneur ranks after being laid off from her job at Osram-Sylvania, the giant lighting manufacturer. The Gannon University SBDC helped Schick take over a former sports bar in downtown Warren, PA, after navigating her through the loan process. “I might have given up without help and encouragement from the SBDC,” says Schick, now the proud owner of Kelly’s Pub.

Free help from an SBDC is available to anyone interested in starting a small business for the first time or simply improving and expanding an existing small business, and who cannot afford the services of a private consultant. To locate a  Small Business Development Center near you:

• Visit the SBA Office of Small Business Development Centers; or
• The Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC).

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

These easy-to-use applications offer dozens of ways to leverage the web to work efficiently and get ahead of the competition.  Here are 10 ways that small business owners are using Google Apps for key tasks every day using Google’s template galleries for such tasks as invoicing, conducting customer surveys, managing employees, building a budget, writing a business plan or creating a website.

The first six tasks use the Google Docs template gallery; the other four use website templates from Google Sites.

1. Design your business letterhead:  Create a professional looking template for your outgoing letters and share it with others in the company. Print letters directly from your browser.
2. Build a business budget: Easily build budgeting spreadsheet that you can edit from anywhere throughout the year – no matter where your spending takes you.
3. Create professional looking invoices: Save time by creating invoices in a spreadsheet – totals are automatically calculated, and you can share them with co-workers to ensure accuracy and speedy payments.
4. Survey your customers: Get feedback from customers and visitors about your product or service with a form. Easily analyze and graph the data.
5. Write a business plan: Put your vision down in a doc. Share it with family, investors, banks, and others to get input and spread your ideas.
6. Manage your projects:  Give others in your company insight into key milestones, completion dates, and other project details.
7. Build your own company intranet: Build an internal website (intranet) where employees can access company news, employee training information, company policies, holiday schedules, and more.
8. Track all of your projects: Centralize project information in one place. Display a team profile and key dates, and embed project docs and spreadsheets directly in the site.
9. Take your team online: Build a team site with team rosters, schedule team meetings, and track progress of action items all in one place.
10. Create an in-house community:  Build a community by creating employee profile pages where your employees can post their goals, internal resume, and internal blog.

Also check out some of Google’s new resources, including product videos and other templates at www.google.com/apps/smb.

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

BizDeals calls itself a “social eCommerce” site offering deals on products and services that help small business owners generate brand awareness and drive growth. Its weekly deals deliver savings on products and services in the categories of Business Essentials, Business Growth, and Rewards & Recognition.  From marketing services and computer products, to travel deals and entertainment, these categories include key areas where savings can do business owners the most good.  One example:  PR Newswire, a BizDeals launch sponsor, offers discounts on its enhanced PR Toolkit, an online public relations resource tailored to small business and entrepreneurs. 

Chicago-based Bizy helps small business owners buy a wide array of products and services at deep discounts, including office equipment and supplies, IT network equipment, software and hardware, mobile communications devices, shipping, payroll services, legal and accounting services, travel, car rental, banking, credit cards, insurance and more. It works like this:

1. Sign up to receive an email when there is a new and interesting Bizy deal, or look for invites from friends, colleagues, ads or the website.
2. When you see an offer you like, you can click the big “buy now” button.
3. Some deals only work if a minimum number of businesses buy.
4. Within 24 hours you’ll receive a purchase confirmation.  Print it and take it with you to the supplier or quote the reference number featured in the email to redeem your offer.

BizSaves bargains on behalf of business owners for deals on products and services that small companies and startups need most, with discounts reaching 50% or more. Sign up at the website to receive email notices of new deals weekly.

Meanwhile, MarketSharing hopes to position itself as a “premium B2B deals provider for exceptional business products and services.”  Initial deals are in New York only, but the site plans to expand to other major U.S. cities quickly.  Their first three daily deals include discounts on SeamlessWeb food delivery, BlogWorld and New Media Expo passes and TeamWorx team building events.

MarketSharing aims to offer businesses high quality, deeply discounted (50-80%) daily group deals on a wide range of products and. With an emphasis on brick and mortar to support local businesses, MarketSharing focuses on curating the best local products and service deals for businesses.  ”Our vision is to provide deals that foster the discovery of new experiences for businesses, creating a happier, healthier, and more well rounded work environment,” says John Amato, MarketSharing’s CEO.

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

The way in will be through a free Startup America membership (via application) that isn’t yet available, but will be soon.  So sign up now to be notified by email when details on the membership application process are released.    

The group’s mission is mighty:  To inspire and accelerate high-growth entrepreneurship in the U.S. with services, product discounts, special access, resources, connections and “insider information” from a start-studded lineup of business power hitters.   It’s not a loan or grant program, do ditch that thought. Because Startup America is still starting up itself, most of what’s coming is still in development.  But here’s a sampling of what’s coming:   

• Google will provide up to $100 million worth of online advertising to Startup America Partnership member companies to over the next year.
• Intuit will offer special discounts on its flagship products and services, including QuickBooks Online, Intuit Payroll Services, QuickBooks Merchant Services and Intuit Websites. Value: $37 million
• Angel Capital Association (ACA) and Angel Resource Institute (ARI) will double the number of high caliber investors in angel groups across the country, increasing annual investment by $1 billion.  Qualifying Startup America Partnership member companies will be matched with angel investor mentors to build their success in starting and growing their businesses.
• Salesforce.com will provide products and technology to power Startup America Partnership member companies. This includes CRM, a collaboration platform, a resource catalog built on Force.com, and a workflow engine to connect entrepreneurs with resources from private-sector partners.    
• The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) will create the NVCA / Startup America Partnership Network, providing access to its 400 venture capital firms, 4,000 investors and thousands of venture-backed company CEOs via events around the country; and will provide access to StartUpHire.com, a free online jobs board for member companies.
• American Express OPEN will provide special access and advantaged pricing for products and services to help businesses attract and retain customers and improve cash flow. Estimated value: $125 million
• Cisco will provide training (through intermediaries trained and supported by Cisco) to approximately 6,000 entrepreneurs within 50 cities by January 2014.  Estimated value: $3 million.
• Ernst & Young (EY) will provide access to EY professionals and the firm’s Entrepreneur Of The Year (EOY) network as advisors and mentors, plus on-line resources and other analytical tools.  Estimated value: $7.5 million.
• First Data, a major electronic commerce and payment processing firm, will offer discounts on processing services including credit and debit acceptance as well as point-of-sale terminals to Startup America Partnership member companies.
• HP will offer discounts on laptops, desktops, workstations, Palm smart phones, tablets, printers, wireless routers, servers and more to Partnership members.  Estimated savings for startups will be $100 million over three years.   
• IndieGoGo, a platform for raising money online via “crowd sourcing,” will offer a 50% discount on campaign fees on the site and feature members on the company’s website.
• LinkedIn will provide a special platform for Startup America members to build an identity and grow a network. LinkedIn will also contribute training, services, and products to members.
• Microsoft will offer its BizSpark program to all qualified software startups.  BizSpark provides access to Microsoft software free for three years including support, training and access to Windows Azure, Microsoft’s Cloud Services Platform.  Participants are also connected to a global network of 700,000 mentors, partners and investors. 

AOL co-founder Steve Case chairs the partnership and the Kauffman and Case Foundations are founding partners, providing initial funding and strategic guidance.  

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

After all, when half of local businesses say they’ll spend less than $2,500 on marketing this year, the lure of social media is strong with its relative ease, low cost and low entry barriers.  And while Facebook is king, Twitter has seen tremendous growth from local business owners and professionals who aim to build awareness for their products and services – as well as themselves.

If you’re giving tweets a try, here are some vital tips and strategies to keep you from stubbing your Twitter toe:

1. To start off right choose a good Twitter name or “handle.”  This could be your own name or your business name, a variation or abbreviation of your name or business name, or a combination.  You should make it easy for others to recognize who you are, and connect you to your business, product or service.  Put your Twitter handle (looks like “@name”) on your website, email signature, business cards, name badge, letterhead and anywhere else potential followers will see it.  Avoid cutesy, random or made-up names that have nothing to do with you or your business.   
2. Set specific business goals for being on Twitter, and pursue them.  For example, you can use Twitter to help position your name or brand, communicate with customers and prospects, announce events, point to articles, videos or other content on your website.
3. Hone your profile.  A Twitter account lets you create a brief but highly visible profile, so don’t blow it.  I’ve seen many lame profiles that include mundane personal traits or meaningless information. Worse yet, no profile at all.  Others look like random stacks of keywords.  And many lack a link to a website or blog. Don’t make these mistakes.  Include your company, position, fields of interest, and what you have to offer. Consider it your elevator pitch to attract followers.
4. Avoid pointless tweets.  Concentrate on providing useful information. Promote things you have on your own website, or point to someone else’s content as a useful or interesting resource.   You will only gain followers if people believe they will enjoy, be informed by or otherwise find value in what you tweet.  Concentrate on specialized knowledge your business has and can share with others.
5. Search the site.  A great way to get ideas for tweets and find potential followers or folks to follow is to use Twitter Search.   This is a highly effective, but under-used Twitter feature that’s both helpful and free.  Also search for tweets that have mentioned your company or brand.  And btw, while you can be choosy about who you follow on a personal account, when using Twitter for business, be sure to follow back anyone who follows your business.
6. Make Twitter part of your regular networking.  The old days of simply collecting business cards are over.  Today when you attend meetings, trade shows, lunches or other events, make a point to collect Twitter handles and hand out your own.  Many people now display them on name badges, signage or other prominent places.  To go directly to someone’s Twitter page, just add the name (handle) to the end of the Twitter URL, like this:  www.twitter.com/danielkehrer.  
7. Hop onto hashtags.  Hashtags are used to organize tweets around categories, themes or topics by adding the pound sign (#) before a word or phrase, like #smallbusiness, #entrepreneurs or #startups.  When you use a hashtag in a tweet, it is automatically posted to that category in addition to your basic tweet stream.
8. Point people to your website.  Tweets are a great way to get people to visit your website.  Perhaps you have a whitepaper available for download, some interesting photos, a new video or some other type of content.  Don’t be shy. Tweet about it with a link back to your site.  But use a URL shortener to avoid filling your entire tweet with a long link.  Two popular services where you can do this in seconds for free are http://bit.ly and http://ow.ly.

Take it from someone with a perfect TwitterGrader score of 100:  If you do it right, Twitter can pack a powerful marketing punch for almost any business.

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

But why start from scratch if you don’t have to. By using a sample business plan, business plan template or helpful business plan software, creating a buttoned-down business plan that does what you want it to will be a lot easier.  No matter what your business idea, there’s a free sample business plan or template that you can adapt to your own circumstances and needs.   

Even if you plan to work from samples or templates, you should consider using business plan software to put the pieces together.  While there are many business plan software choices available, Business Plan Pro (Palo Alto Software) is a “BizBest ShortList” selection and has been the #1 bestseller for a reason:  It’s simply the best.  At $99 for the standard edition ($159 for premier), it’s something no entrepreneur should be without. 

And here’s a big plus: Business Plan Pro comes with over 500 sample business plans.  Inspire yourself and your cohorts by looking at other successful plans.  You can even start with a sample plan or template and merely edit and change what’s already there to be assured you start off on the right track.

Another key benefit of using business plan software is that it can bullet-proof your numbers.  Nothing frustrates potential investors or venture capitalists like numbers that don’t add up.  Because business plan software comes with built-in formulas and linked tables, you’ll be alerted to any missing numbers, and the software automatically puts data where it needs to go.  Business Plan Pro also comes with data on over 9,000 industries, so you have numbers to back up your projections.

If you’re too cheap or stretched to spring for the $99, check out Bplans (also from Palo Alto Software) which offers hundreds of free sample business plans in popular business categories such as a restaurant, cafe, bakery, retail store, online or eBay store, beauty salon, day spa and service businesses such as accountant, insurance agent, self storage business and cleaning service.  Other categories include consulting, real estate, fitness center, construction and engineering, hotel, bar, medical and health care, pet services and many others.

Free business plan templates are also available from SCORE .  And coming from SCORE, rest assured they are well done and high quality. Free downloads include a business plan for a startup, as well as an established business.  There are also business planning tools for nonprofits.  Other helpful templates you can get for free from SCORE on the same page include: competitive analysis, startup expenses, opening day balance sheet, financial projections, breakeven analysis, bank loan request, cash flow statement, profit and loss projection, and sales forecast.

In the business plan templates for purchase category, Business Plan Success (Version 5.0; $49) is a good choice. It’s a quick and easy way to get your plan into a professional format (and nice looking, too!) that will get serious attention.  The template includes integrated, fill-in-the-blank financials, is fully customizable and comes with lots of extras, including a directory of investor resources, and guide to SBA small business loans.

You’ll also find a large selection of business plan templates and sample business plans – both free and for purchase – at DocStoc.

Remember these keys to good business plan:

• It should be simple — which means easy to understand.
• It should be detailed and specific. Your goals, objective, benchmarks, competitive analysis, market overview and other key items should be concrete and measurable.
• Be specific about what actions the business will take, with specific completion dates, who is responsible, and budgets.
• Your business plan should be realistic, including your sales goals, expense estimates, market size projections and milestone dates. Unrealistic plans fall apart quickly.
• And be sure to read BizBest’s Five Steps to Business Plan Perfection.

Visit the BizBest StartupSmarts section for more helpful ideas and resources for starting a business.  

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.

“30-Second Solutions” – a BizBest exclusive – spotlights the best new and undiscovered profit- and productivity-boosting products and services for small business, explainable in 30 seconds or less.  Here’s our latest half dozen: 

1. Daily Discount Deals for Biz Owners:  BizyDeal is a new site offering business owners deep discounts on products and services such as computer networking equipment, software, mobile devices, shipping, payroll, legal and accounting services, travel, car rental, banking, credit cards, insurance and more. It’s free to register and be notified when a new deal arrives.
2. Your Own Custom Visa Loyalty Cards:  Want to turn heads with a custom designed and branded Visa loyalty, gift or incentive cards featuring your own logo or product images?  It’s easy for any small business to do with a new service from Incentive CardLab.  Arizona-based Woolaver Orthodontics uses the cards to thank patients for referrals.  For any referral that begins treatment, the referring patient receives a $100 Visa Incentive Card with Woolaver branding.  Law firm Balch & Bingham uses the cards to reward employees for years of service.
3. Boot camp for Startups:  Startup Weekend has a simple premise: “No Talk, All Action.  Launch a Startup in 54 hours.”  So if you have startup on your mind, this is for you.  Startup Weekends are 54-hour events where developers, designers, marketers, product managers and startup enthusiasts share ideas, form teams, build products and launch startups. Events held at locations nationwide offer hands-on experiences where aspiring entrepreneurs can develop and test their startup ideas. 
4. Quick and Easy Tax Filings:  Got employees?  If so, you must file quarterly IRS Form 941 reports to process tax payments and reconcile tax withholding.  FileTaxes.com – a BizBest ShortList selection – is an easy-to-use, low-cost way to file your forms online.  I’ve used this web-based tax filing service myself for years to process 1099s, W-2s and other tax forms, and it’s been a terrific time-saver.  No more tripping on filing rules.  The FileTaxes service ensures compliance and provides copies for your records that you can print or store and access anytime online. Just enter your summarized payroll data online.  Cost is just $4.95 for each Form 941.
5. Free IBM Software Suite:  One cornerstone of starting and operating an efficient, profitable business is having the right tech tools and software. But software costs can quickly eat into capital. Lotus Symphony 3, IBM’s office productivity suite, is free and has more features than the typical fee-based office suites bundled with a new Mac or PC. With IBM Symphony, you can customize and arrange toolbars, create one-click PDFs and work in either a tabbed view or dedicated window views for applications (documents, presentations and spreadsheets).  Make no mistake: Symphony is packed with power and easy to use, and is every bit the equal (or more) of its costly counterparts. So why not break out of the costly upgrade cycle of Microsoft Office?  A unique click-to-cloud feature lets you connect directly to the internet from within the application and store or share your documents.  Symphony already has over 12 million users worldwide, and online support is easily available.  Download here: http://symphony.lotus.com.  
6. More Gov Contracts for Women-Owned Biz:  Under a new program now underway, women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) have more opportunities than ever to snag lucrative federal government contracts.  The first contract awards are expected near the end of 2011.  The Program allows contracting officers, for the first time, to set aside specific contracts for certified WOSBs and EDWOSBs and will help federal agencies achieve the existing statutory goal of five percent of federal contracting dollars being awarded to WOSBs.  The WOSB Federal Contract Program will provide greater access to federal contracting opportunities for WOSBs and economically-disadvantaged women-owned small businesses (EDWOSBs). The Program allows contracting officers, for the first time, to set aside specific contracts for certified WOSBs and EDWOSBs and will help federal agencies achieve the existing statutory goal of five percent of federal contracting dollars being awarded to WOSBsGo here: www.sba.gov/wosb.

Copyright © 2000-2011 BizBest® Media Corp.  All Rights Reserved.