The 30-Minute Exercise That Reveals How Your Company Is Really Doing | Inc.com

January 20, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Recently, I had a chance to visit a company owned by an entrepreneur who had come to me for advice almost 20 years ago. Her name is Anisa Telwar Kaicker, and she is a designer, packager, and marketer of cosmetics accessories–such as brushes and bags–that she sells to beauty brands, department stores, and high-end specialty retailers. When I first met her, she had been in business for roughly five years and was doing about $1.5 million in sales, but she was having trouble paying her bills.

The problem, she thought, was that she didn’t have enough sales. The real problem, however, was that she didn’t know how to gather the information she needed to understand what was actually happening in her business.

Selling Your Startup to a Large Corporation: Dilemma or Opportunity? | AllBusiness.com

January 19, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Craft beer is a trendy industry right now, and with good reason. As the boom of craft breweries continues, it’s bringing triumphs and challenges for these startups, and we’re seeing an emerging wave of acquisitions. But the most common question we hear from founders is: “Is selling really just selling out?” These founders are passionate about what they do, often having started up not in pursuit of a big cash out, but rather a love of the perfect pint.

The question of “selling out” resonates beyond just the craft beer world. It makes us wonder: Is selling a startup to a larger corporation a dilemma or an opportunity?

Benefits of Using a Content Platform for Your Business | The Startup Magazine

January 19, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

In the business world, today, there are varieties of marketing strategies used in boosting an online presence of a brand and increasing the exposure of business websites. Social media and blogs are the most prominent of the many channels that work. But still, it may seem strange that even after trying these strategies and paying a lot for the recognition of your brand and business, competitors might still stay ahead, while your business lags behind. But nowadays, there are some effective tactics that businesses are using to promote their content in order to reach new potential customers and increase their brand awareness. Brands are now sharing their content on several platforms including content discovery platform to help their audience achieve their goals.

Microsoft to Businesses: Upgrade to Windows 10 or Face Serious Security Risks | Business News Daily

January 18, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Attention all businesses: Upgrade from Windows 7 or risk serious security consequences. That’s the message Microsoft is sending this week with the news that extended support for the 8-year-old operating system is set to end in 2020.

In other words, the Windows 7 operating system will stop receiving security patches altogether on Jan. 13, 2020. Companies that haven’t updated to Windows 10 will leave themselves vulnerable to malware attacks that the newer operating system can easily fend off. In fact, Microsoft recently published a report showing that Windows 10 Anniversary Update — the most current iteration of the OS — could neutralize two zero-day security exploits, even without the patches that have been needed to protect Windows 7 and other, earlier versions of Windows.

6 Must Haves For A Home-Based Business | Getentrepreneurial.com

January 17, 2017January 17, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Every 12 seconds, another American launches a new home-based business. These men and women start out with a dream, but it takes more than that vision to help their companies thrive. To build a successful home-based business, you’ll need the following essentials.

A Quiet, Separate Workspace

Establishing a quiet workspace in a low-traffic area is crucial for the success of any home-based business. You’ll find you’re better able to focus on your tasks when you’re far from the sounds of playing kids and blaring TVs. A separate workspace also gives any clients who visit you the privacy they deserve. When your home office is distinct from the areas you use for relaxing with your family, you’ll find it’s easier to achieve the work-life balance you need. Once you finish for the day, simply shut the door to switch gears to family time.

High-Speed Traders Are Taking Over Bitcoin | Bloomberg

January 16, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Zhou Shuoji is not a bitcoin believer. He says the cryptocurrency will never replace its traditional forebears, and he calls most of its proponents fanatics.

But for Zhou, a 35-year-old high-speed trader in Beijing, bitcoin is also too good to resist. His computers trade it 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Using lightning quick orders, they profit from tiny price discrepancies on the myriad venues where it changes hands.

“It’s the golden age to be in the bitcoin market, because it’s imperfect,” said Zhou, a former IBM technology consultant whose firm, Fintech Blockchain Group, runs a bitcoin hedge fund and venture capital fund.

The First-Timer’s Guide To Choosing A Standing Desk You Won’t End Up Hating | Fast Company

January 16, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

I’d been thinking about getting a standing desk for a long time, but I couldn’t quite take the plunge.

It wasn’t for lack of interest. I spend a lot of time at my desk, so I was anxious to figure out a new setup that didn’t leave me seated for eight hours a day. What finally pushed me to commit was when one of my time-coaching clients told me her standing desk was helping her to be more productive. When I first started to research desk models, I imagined myself ending up with two separate workstations.

But soon after I finally started to research them in earnest, I found myself a little overwhelmed with all the options on the market. Here’s how I managed to comb through everything before finally settling on a standing desk I love.

If Your Phone Keeps You Up At Night | marketingforhippies.com

January 16, 2017January 16, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Like most of us in this modern age, my phone has kept me up late more nights than I can count.

I put it down to go to sleep only to find it, mysteriously, back in my hands, lighting the room with it’s strange, modern glow.

Of course, it’s terrible for our brains and our capacity to sleep.

The first thing I did was to get an alarm clock that wasn’t my phone. And that helped. But the phone kept finding its way back into my bedroom. And then, somehow, turning on and cycling me through Facebook, email, Huffington Post and you name it.

Why Your Website Needs a Storyteller Instead of a Designer | Duct Tape Marketing

January 13, 2017 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Your website is the hub of your online presence – period. (Well, maybe that’s not exactly true from you right now, but it must be!)

As such, it has to do some heavy lifting and that heavy lifting must extend far beyond the interactive brochure still built today by many business owners.

Your website must tell a story. A story must be engaging and there must be a hero, a problem, a quest, a call to arms, and a promise of a happy ending.

The trouble with most sites, however, stems to some degree from how the web design industry is viewed.

A business creates a great product or service, develops the processes for marketing said product or service and then turns to a designer to create a gorgeous set of web pages to showcase it.

At some point, they determine they are going to need lots of pretty words to go with that awesome design, and then eventually they will need someone to “SEO it all.”

Of course, today the path described above is a recipe for disaster and waste.