With the advent of social media, small businesses have an unprecedented ability to promote themselves. Social media savvy business owners can advertise their businesses in novel ways for a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising. Businesses that want to thrive in the new economy must take advantage of the social media tools available today.

• Facebook

Facebook is a great platform for businesses to share information about themselves. They can use the Profile feature to explain their mission statement, their strengths and what makes them different from their competitors. Photos can help introduce the staff or showcase particular products. The business’ Facebook page can store contact information and provide directions to the business. Entries can help explain policies to potential customers or share information about upcoming specials. A Facebook page gives customers a new way to interact with the business, and makes it easy to run mini-contests to increase customer participation. Facebook is a great way for businesses to provide static information without the expense of a dedicated website.

• LinkedIn

By sharing its employees’ LinkedIn profiles, businesses can help customers feel comfortable with the staff. LinkedIn can help highlight the staff’s expertise and grow confidence in the business. LinkedIn may also help a business gain new contacts, leading to new business opportunities.

• Twitter

Twitter is excellent for quickly sharing important information with a large number of people. Businesses can use Twitter to advertise an impromptu sale. Twitter can be used to let customers know about new arrivals. A private Twitter feed might be a good way to help employees keep up to date; one employee can quickly share pertinent information with all of his or her coworkers without having to talk to each and every coworker individually. Twitter also provides customers with an easy way to get an answer to a simple question.

Social media are a powerful tool for modern businesses. With a little bit of work and creativity, businesses can find new ways to reach and interact with their customers and themselves. Social media tools have reinvented how business is done; effective use of these new tools is vital for businesses to succeed.

Did you know that anytime you recommended a service or a product to a friend you have actually engaged in word of mouth advertising? Well, word of mouth advertising simply means spreading the words about a product, service or a site through speech. This kind of advertising is the cheapest, super performing and easiest form of advertising.

Advertisements can be expensive and ineffective; word of mouth among all other product promotion skills remains to be the cheapest and most effective way for any company or business. Here are some of the reasons as to why most companies would go for this method:

• This advertising method does not cost the company lots of money in fact it can be free of charge! Advertising via Television, Magazines, Radio or internet can be quite expensive moreover ineffective.
• The advertising method mostly produces very good results as many people tend to trust word of mouth testimonials. Some people are skeptical of standard advertising and always have the notion that they are being tricked into purchasing a product or view the adverts as too exaggerated.
• Experts who use word of mouth are highly regarded and all they say is taken seriously. One of the major tactics used by most companies is that of giving free/ sample products to their targeted clients who inturn preach the gospel to other people. This method may be expensive to the advertising company but it still remains to be the best way to wining customer loyalty.

Finally all businesses know that publicity is very advantageous. So any kind of recommendations made through mouth about a certain business, even if negative, are laterally important because people will remember the name of the business, and might probably be curios about the business.

Why does word of mouth advertising work?

This advertising is considered as the golden advertising due to its exponential effects. The reason why word of mouth advertising works so well is simply because personal testimonies are very powerful. Research has proven that a great number of people have a tendency to resist the message of commercial advertising and the Radio or TV marketers are faced with the huge challenge of breaking that barrier by making use of eccentricity or humor. The advertisement via mouth is however much more effective as the targeted people are immediately open to the message, they might be in the middle of an intimate conversation with a family member or a friend and therefore the message will encounter no resistance.
Simple word of mouth advertising ideas

You can start your word of mouth campaign by simply:
• Emailing your friends or family about your services or products
• Telling your friends to spread the word about your business
• Passing out business cards at networking events
• Creating a squidoo lens on zujava to market your business
• Becoming active on social networking websites such as Facebook, Myspace, Twitter or Linkedln

You may also encourage other people to talk about your business by offering them exceptional items such as calendars, diaries or customized key holders.

A lot of money goes into operating a company. Some of the biggest company investments are what make the business operate. These expenses can be different for the same type of company or completely different between industries. These investments can be broken down into different categories, but, again, these categories can change dramatically between industries. However, every company has to make large investments these common items.

Every business, whether it is manufacturer, retailer or service company, must invest a large amount of money in equipment. Even home-based businesses have to invest in computers, fax machines, telephones, office supply and Internet services. Out of all the biggest investments a company will make, the largest during the start-up phase of a company is equipment. Without equipment you will not be able to manufacturer your goods, communicate with your customers, keep track of your inventory or a number other things that assist you in operating your business.

The next largest investment a company will make is employees. Companies require salaries and this can add up quickly. As your company grows, you will begin investing in more help to keep up with the demand. Without employees, even if it is yourself, the company cannot operate.

After investing in equipment and employees, one of the largest investments a company will make is insurance. Every business with at least one employee must maintain worker’s compensation insurance. The company also has to carry liability insurance in case there is an accident. Most companies carry business insurance, fire insurance or some form of damage insurance to protect the company from loss of supplies or machinery. As the company grows, a business will begin to invest in health care insurance for their workers and even life insurance on the business owners.

One other investment that takes a lot of money when a company is growing concerns expansion. As the business starts generating revenue, the need to make more money to keep up with all the expenses will require expansion. This could mean more building space, integrating work scheduler, more equipment, more employees and, of course, more insurance.

No matter how a company looks at investments and what is required to operate the business, these big investment must be made. That is why you need a lot of start-up capital to begin a business and why a lot of companies keep capital on hand in case of any unforeseen investment requirements.

There are many businesses that have been around for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. As of 2009 there were 21,666 companies that have existed for over 100 years and 3,146 firms founded over 200 years ago in Japan, 837 in Germany, 222 in the Netherlands and 196 in France. There are also 7 companies in Japan that have been around for over 1,000 years. The majority, more than 80 percent, of companies that have been around for 100 years or more are businesses that employ less than 300 people.

The oldest business, and hotel, in the world is the Nisiyama Onsen Keiunkan. It is a hot spring hotel located in Hayakawa, Japan. The hotel was found in 705 and is featured in the Guinness World Records.

The second, third and fourth oldest businesses are also located in Japan, two of them are hotels as well and one makes paper bags. They have all been around since the 700s as well. Several other Japanese hotels make the list as well.

Austria’s first entry on the list, coming in at number five, is Stiftskeller St. Peter, a restaurant located within the monastery walls of St. Peter’s Archabbey, Salzburg. Stiftskeller St. Peter was founded in 803 and is known for being the oldest continuously operating restaurant and inn on the Earth.

The Royal Mint is the oldest operation in the UK. The Royal Mint, which was founded in 886, mints and exports coins to a variety of other countries, and produces military medals, commemorative medals and other items for governments, schools and businesses.

The Château de Goulaine is a winery of the Loire Valley located near Nantes, France. It has been in operation since the year 1000 and is the oldest known wine business still in existence.

Italy’s oldest business, also founded in 1000, is Pontificia Fonderia Marinelli. It is a bell foundry and also produces bronze portals, bas-reliefs, church artifacts, and bell restorations.

The oldest brewery still in operation in the world is the Weihenstephan Abbey located in Freising district of Bavaria, Germany. This brewery was founded in 1040. Before becoming a brewery the location served as a monastery and later a school.

Owning your own website is probably the most cost effective marketing tool to have in your arsenal. It allows people to turn to the internet to search for products and services day or night. Customers also choose the internet to learn more about a company, before they invest their hard earned cash into a business. The following are some important reasons why every business should have its own website:

Availability is the first key to owning your own website. It allows you to be available to your customers 24/7. A consumer can search your website when it’s convenient for them. All the product information is at their fingertips and at the click of a button. You can be on vacation and your customers will still be able to learn more about your business. Consumers also like to compare pricing and services. They can compare what your company has to offer with other businesses in the area.

A website is the least expensive marketing tool to promote your services. Television, radio and newspaper advertising can cost a fortune. Even advertising in the yellow pages can be a waste of money since over 60 percent of people search the internet for local businesses.

Another great benefit in owning a website is to be able to provide updated information to your clients. A business card or flyer can become obsolete in a matter of time. A website allows you to keep up with the constant growth, updates and changes your business goes through. It’s also a handy way of relaying the latest information to your consumers.

The internet will also allow you to track the number of hits your website is generating just by installing KISS metrics.  Having analytics on your site will help you  analyze and make changes to the effectiveness of your information posted on your website. You can then have your promotions linked back to your own website and see how a specific advertising campaign is working. You may be getting over a hundred hits, but no calls. Without a website, you can’t install any tracking tool to help monitor this.

In the end, a website can increase your profit and help you to stay in touch with your customers. It’s a powerful marketing force and gives you the most for so little money.

Many businesses need ways to communicate through their business whether it be inside the store or out. Small business and even large corporations need ways to communicate with their employees and customers. They can range from multiple lines ranging from small systems to large branches. A business telephone can have multiple lines and can been accessed through other phones in that business. Business phone services can be defined in three categories: key systems, hybrid systems and private branch exchange.

Key systems were originally designed by the private branch exchange. It allowed the operator to access the calls manually that light up beside the number in the order the call came through. These are much like the private branch exchange system as they use a more direct calling system from a central office where the caller has to dial the number and is routed to the right operator.

Hybrid systems has a screen that shows the number and has different buttons that allows the operator to access the call and even transfer the caller by extentions. They are common in the financial businesses that usually require a central office for voicemail.

Private Branch Exchange was designed for bigger businesses that have a lot of calls. They differ of that of key systems because the operator is automatically chosen. The private branch exchange was chosen because of the savings as it reduced the cost of phone calls in and out and also its efficiency. Throughout the years this system has changed and is the most used through the country. They have designed this system to do four main things: make a connection between the telephones of the operator and caller, keep the connection as long as the operator and caller communicate, disconnect the connections when the users decide to hang up and also provide access to the accounts that the caller has with the business.

The business world has grown a lot throughout the years and continues to grow today.

When you own a business, reducing costs is very important. As all business owners know, costs to keep it up and running can get very expensive fairly quickly. Luckily, there are ways to cut costs very quickly and efficiently. Businesses waste money on so many unnecessary items. Here are some ways that businesses can reduce costs.

1. Go paperless
Going paperless can save a ton of money per year. Only printing when necessary is a great thing to do. Businesses should make the transition to payroll software programs, digital invoices and filing paperwork electronically. This reduces recurring costs.

2. Get rid of your landline
Using a landline is unnecessary and can become very expensive. Choosing to use a cell phone, virtual phone line or VoIP is a great way to save money.

3. Take advantage of online marketing
Online marketing is easy, affordable and can reach millions of potential customers. Starting a blog focused on your business or marketing via social media, can range can produce impressive results and can be very beneficial.

4. Take advantage of technology
Almost anything can be done with technology. Anything from apps, software and teleconferencing services, or even making a work schedule can reduce business costs.

5. Stick with your business budget
A business budget is crucial. Having documentation of the budget and staying within the budget is the only way a business is going to be successful. Being aware of the money that is being earned and the expenses that have to be covered can save a business tons of money. Staying within a budget can produce a higher business profit.

Overall learning how to reduce business costs is easy. All you have to do is go over what you are spending money on and find a cheaper or no cost alternative. Saving money is important for any business. Keeping a business up and running is very costly reducing costs is extremely beneficial.

It’s a cold, cruel fact that most new businesses go out of business within the first five years of their founding. This is usually because of one reason – they lack cash flow.

Take that a step further. When most businesses fail – regardless of how long they have been in business – it is because of lack of cash flow.

It is very important, therefore, that business profits be used wisely.

Half of any profit made during the first five years of business should therefore be put into a money-market checking account – some place where it will earn a modicum of interest but be able to be withdrawn should the business suddenly need an influx of cash. You may hate to see money sitting relatively idle like that, but unexpected emergencies happen all the time – cars might need thousands of dollars in repairs, air conditioners or heaters might give out…or a business that has been running smoothly for several years might hit a rough patch and need enough money to tide it over until customers resume their normal purchase routine.

The other half of any profit made during the first five years of business should be invested back into the business – in a wise manner. Depending on what kind of business it is, nicer furniture for customers or workers always helps. More sophisticated computer systems can cut work time in half. Training programs for workers are essential – and too often ignored or done haphazardly.

Investing in one’s customer base is extremely important. Repeat customers are the lifeline of any business – it takes more money to find new customers than to keep old ones, so old, regular customers must be treated with respect and rewarded for their loyalty. For example, if you run a sporting center, it may be wise to replace your synthetic grass once in awhile. Many businesses give their customers small gifts at the end of the year – an engraved calendar, shot glasses, things of that nature that can be purchased in bulk with the company’s logo on it, so that it serves a dual purpose.

Any owner of a business pays himself – or herself – a salary, and that must always be looked upon as separate from the business. Investing in stocks or bonds should really be done with that money, rather than from money from the profit of the business. (If the business is making an excellent profit, the owner can always be given a raise. That discretionary money can then be taken and invested in the stock market or in other types of investment opportunities, and if it is lost, it will not harm the business.)