While it’s still early to project the financial consequences of health care reform on small business, a few emerging themes make it possible for business owners to head off some costs and taxes, says Rick Kahler, a certified financial planner who heads the Kahler Financial Group in South Dakota.
Here are five ways health reform could impact your finances, and what you can do about it: Read the full entry
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Amex is absolutely intent on being much more to small business than a credit card 
company. And to prove it the company just launched SearchManager, the latest in its fast-growing suite of both free and fee-based small business tools that already includes online invoicing(AcceptPay), insurance shopping(InsuranceEdge) and international money transfer(FX International Payments). SearchManager is an online tool that lets you manage your entire search marketing (paid search) effort in one place, thus taking a complex task spread among multiple websites and putting it all in one simple place.
Amex has aligned the new offerings as part of something the company has dubbed “Booming,” which it defines as “using a system of cards and digital tools from American Express OPEN to help your business realize its full potential.”
Search engines are an increasingly influential resource for customers looking for products and services, and small businesses are spending more every year to advertise online. According to the latest Forrester Research Interactive Marketing Forecast, search advertising leads the pack among interactive marketing tactics and will grow 15 percent annually. Read the full entry
Roadside billboards are expensive and impractical for many small businesses. But you can turn any business or personal vehicle into a rolling billboard – seen by 
thousands of people daily – with attractive and affordable vehicle magnets. Think of it as a way to “go mobile” with your marketing that doesn’t involve smart phones or other pricey technology.
For what amounts to pennies a day, low-cost, highly flexible magnetic signs will give you more bang for your advertising buck than just about anything else out there. Vehicle ads are great for all kinds of small businesses, from contractors, realtors and pet groomers, to computer repair services, catering companies, landscapers and painters, among hundreds more. Read the full entry
I love my MiFi device. In a few minutes it solved several sticky web connection problems that have been bugging me, and will save me money at the same time. For one thing, I’ll never pay a hotel, airport or coffee chain for internet access again. This cool little device, launched in 2009, is the world’s smallest mobile WiFi hotspot; weighing just 2 ounces, and about the thickness of six credit cards.
MiFi, which is made by Novatel Wireless, is a personal WiFi hotspot you carry in your pocket. It’s fast, easy, simple to set up and provides high-speed data access for up to five devices simultaneously, including laptops, netbooks, iPads, cameras or any other device you need to get online. It is, without a doubt, the fastest, easiest way to get online, on-the-go for multiple users. Share it with clients, co-workers, business partners or family and friends. All they have to do is logon with the password printed on the back of your MiFi unit. It’s ideal for the mobile professional and creates a virtual office wherever you go. Read the full entry
In this age of mobile devices – a fast-expanding array of smart phones, 
tablet computers and iPads, among others – traditional printing methods that require both a PC and printer no longer work very well for many small businesses.
And the printers themselves haven’t been all that smart. Most are not web-enabled. And those that are can’t communicate with web-based applications. HP hopes to change all that. The tech giant is introducing a new category of web-enabled printing solutions that may change how you think about creating hard-copy documents of all kinds, or even what you choose to print. Basically, HP is launching a whole new “ePrint” platform that includes that will let you: Read the full entry
Most small business owners have only a vague idea of what their businesses would really be worth if they wanted to sell. And most of the ones who think they know what the business is worth are probably wrong. Professional appraisers who regularly conduct business valuations say that owners err on both ends of the spectrum. Some fail to include intangible assets in their estimate and tend to undervalue what they’ve built over time. Others think their businesses are worth much more than the market would dictate.
Business owners often bring in an appraiser to prepare for a purchase, a merger or an employee stock ownership plan. Or a valuation might be needed for estate and gift tax returns, buy-sell agreements, litigation, tax challenges, divorce or many other purposes.
But even if there’s nothing on the immediate horizon, every business owner should have a current valuation in his or her desk drawer as a tool for helping make informed decisions about the company’s direction. An objective and independent valuation gives you a much clearer picture of where you’re going. Here are four more reasons to perform a business valuation and where you can find help: Read the full entry
