Facebook Strong: College-Aged Still Love It

A few days ago, I had a discussion with a colleague who has an 8-year-old daughter -- just a few years away from being a tween. We were talking about what age groups like Facebook, and which still like MySpace. Yesterday, this study popped up in my email box (how does that happen?!?).

Facebook Only Social Network That Matters Among College Students
(may load slow, but worth the 20-second wait)

Dr. NAICS and Your Classification

I get asked all the time by entrepreneurs who need help determining their NAICS classification. Without doubt, it can be hard to figure out how to classify your new business. What is NAICS, you ask (if you already know this, skip the definition)?

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS, pronounced Nakes) was developed as the standard for use by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the collection, analysis, and publication of statistical data related to the business economy of the U.S. NAICS was developed under the auspices of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and adopted in 1997 to replace the old Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system. It was also developed in cooperation with the statistical agencies of Canada and Mexico to establish a 3-country standard that allows for a high level of comparability in business statistics among the three countries. -- official Census Bureau NAICS website

Why should you care? Because if you know how your business is classified, you can use the classification to find other same-classified businesses through a source like ReferenceUSA, and compare your business to others. You'll remember this from our class.

If you have trouble figuring out your NAICS classification, and you've really, really tried, then send an email to Dr. NAICS at naics@census.gov. They ask you to please include your telephone number in your email message in case they need to call you for more information.

Pricing: Oh The Woes

Little scares entrepreneurs as much as pricing. We all know that if a prospect eagerly becomes a new client with little questions that we may have just given away the farm. When a prospect doesn't call back after being told the price - and this not on the first or second meeting - we've probably charged too much.

I just read an amusing and informative article on Fast Company about pricing. The article is geared to big business, but there are always lessons even if you're a one-person shop.

Another blog post over on Fast Company by Alison Yama talks about pricing in a depression, and her approach is very relevant to small businesses. In fact, I shared her article in my class on pricing and distribution for entrepreneurs at the Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center.

I found this nifty tool that will calculate your gross profit margin at Bankrate.com

Enjoy!

SBA Report: Women-Led Businesses Contributing $3.6 trillion

While this is a self-serving press release from Aetna, the information is pulled from data from the U.S. Small Business Association. Go entrepreneurs!!

Here's the text from the Aetna press release ----

Women Led Businesses Continue To Fuel Growth In A Tough Economy

Aetna unveils new resource to help women entrepreneurs manage the health of their business, well-being of their employees

October 06, 2009 — According to the Small Business Administration, there are 9.1 million women owned businesses in the U.S., employing 27.5 million people and contributing $3.6 trillion to the economy. Aetna a leading provider of health care solutions to small businesses, understands the unique needs of this growing business segment and in response has developed a robust resource to help women business owners manage the health of their business, the well-being of their employees and their personal life. The website, www.aetnawomenatwork.com, features pertinent information, videos, events, education courses, and more, to help women balance their often dual roles as business and family caregivers and decision-makers.

“Female leadership of companies is changing how businesses are organized, managed and insured,” said Mary Claire Bonner, head of Local and Regional Business, a combined organization that includes Aetna Small and Middle Market Business. “Our work with women-led companies has taught us that the idea of communities – places where different people come together to share interests, goals, and values – is central to their success. This is how we have developed the benefit plans and tools needed to serve the health and well-being of companies led by women.”

The site content is built around three core areas: Healthy Business, Healthy Family, Healthy Life – three themes that resonate with women business leaders regardless of their industry.

Healthy Business
This section is designed to help women business leaders manage the health of their business and the well-being of the people who help make it succeed with links to:

* Aetna’s Small Group portfolio
* Online tools and resources such as Aetna Navigator®, Aetna’s easy-to-use, self-service member website
* Wellness information for the workplace

Healthy Family
When families share the value of health, the benefits are experienced by everyone—parents, children, colleagues, and employers. This section of the site is designed to help people get engaged in their health with the tools and information they need to make smart, healthy decisions, including:

* How health benefits can help save money
* Screening tests every family should consider
* Creating Personal Health Records for everyone in your family

Healthy Life
Aetna promotes health at every phase and stage of life —from guiding people through using their health plans, to promoting healthy eating tips and finding time for fitness. This area of the site offers information intended to improve the lives of women business owners, the lives of their employees, and their families, including:

* How to find doctors in your area
* How to get more from your insurance coverage
* How to plan for retirement

“We understand the unique challenges facing women led businesses, and small businesses in general,” said Bonner. “Aetnawomenatwork.com is another tangible example of our commitment to developing health and wellness solutions that deliver real value to this business segment.”

Source: Aetna

The Worldwide World

Are you a small business making a difference in the world as part of the way you do business? On eBay, lots of sellers donate a portion of their proceeds to a local or international cause. If you are a business that does something like this, no matter how small or large, I'd like to hear from you.

In the meantime, why not take this Global IQ Test, from President Bill Clinton's foundation?

Pricing and Positioning: Starbucks Introduces Instant Coffee

One issue that new(ish) entrepreneurs face is how to position their products based on price. Starbucks, long known for bringing America upscale coffee prices is today introducing Via, an instant coffee. A 3-pack is $2.95 or $9.95 for a 12-pack - that is 98 cents a cup or 83 cents a cup. Read the article or watch what consumers have to say about their first taste or watch (video below) CEO Howard Schultz talk about Starbuck's down-market move. Will this move by Starbucks be successful? As a very small business, could an entrepreneur have the same success with this sort of mixed message? How would you go about discovering whether your customers want a less expensive product?

International Houseware Association Tradeshow

Entrepreneurs who have taken one of my marketing classes know that I am a big believer in going to tradeshows. You don't need to have a booth to gather invaluable market research.

The International Houseware Association runs the International Home + Housewares Show in the Spring. If you cannot make these tradeshows, sometimes you'll get lucky: an attendee, like a Gourmet Retailer journalist, will write about the trends she/he discovered. In March 2009, Gourmet Retailer published an article that identified the following trends: Living in Our Kitchens, The Wellness Kitchen & Cooking for Fun, Living Within Our Means, and The Green Kitchen. If you're in the food business, these trends are worth checking out.

If you know your industry tradeshow is taking place, be extra-vigilant in visiting related websites, and searching for press releases.

Competition for Business Capital

Entrepreneurs know: capital is tight right now, and banks have made it tough to get credit.

Have you thought about capital competitions?

Take advantage of this upcoming opportunity to pitch your business idea at The Perfect Pitch Entrepreneur & Investor Conference. Heavy-hitting venture capitalists will be in the audience, headlined by Sir Richard Branson (Virgin founder and overall cool dude). Submissions are due September 8th. Someone's going to get the money; why not you?

In addition to pitching for money, The Perfect Pitch is a day-long conference for entrepreneurs taking place October 26th in Marina Del Rey, CA.

Market Research for Designers: Color Palettes

If you make clothing, handbags, or other accessories, you know you've got to keep up with the hot new colors. You can download a PDF swatchbook from Pantone, called Pantone Fashion Color Report Fall 2009. It's late to be looking at colors for 2009, but it's also free, and if you're still building your line or accessories, it's perfect.

Pantone also publishes the PANTONE VIEW Colour Planner, which is $750. But take a look at their press release: they don't include swatches, but it does discuss the eight palettes for use in women’s wear, menswear, and active wear. palettes

Who's Using Twitter?

Want to do a little market research on who's using twitter? A nifty new tool to use is Buzzom, which makes it easy to find people by by searching the bios of twitterers. You can then decide who you want to follow, and you can do that right from Buzzom too. You need to have a twitter account, so sign up first, then go flit around.