New York SBDC Research Network

From the Federal Trade Commission Attacks can be especially devastating to small businesses; Agency provides information on how they can protect themselves At the direction of Acting Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen, the Federal Trade Commission has launched a new website –  ftc.gov/SmallBusiness  – with articles, videos, and other information aimed at helping small business owners avoid scams and protect their computers and networks from cyberattacks and other threats. “Small businesses are critical to our economic strength, building America's future, and helping the United States compete in today's global marketplace,” Acting Chairman Ohlhausen said. “This innovative new website is a one-stop shop where small businesses can find information to protect themselves from scammers and hackers, as well as resources they can use if they are hit with a cyberattack.” According to the  U.S.Small Business Administration (SBA) , there are more than 28 million small businesses nationwide,

The New York Small Business Development Center is pleased to recognize the boldest, brightest, and best small companies and enterprising individuals in New York State.  Eight small business owners were honored at the 2017 Client Awards ceremony on April 24, 2017.  Read all their stories here.  Gloria Lovece is President of Infrastructure Unlimited Inc., the construction company she started with her two brothers. The company specializes in the installation and remediation of public infrastructure - notably bridges, railroads and power lines. Her company is a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) in NY and NJ with certification pending in Ohio. In a male dominated industry, she has worked hard to overcome many obstacles. As a startup, Infrastructure Unlimited was awarded its first contract, sealing 28 bridge decks on interstate highways with heavy traffic and finished the project ahead of schedule. Gloria worked with the SBDC to find additional capital to fund

From MarketingProfs : Hillary Clinton wasn't the only loser in last year's elections. Facebook and the media were put on the defensive about their role in what has become known as "fake news," which has spread in a "post-truth" political climate. It looks like facts may have been the biggest casualty of the elections. And that has implications for brands that produce content: With the rise of fake news, content marketers eager to maintain their reputations must focus on making sure that their content is truthful. It's too easy to get duped by a false "news" story, which can have an adverse impact on your credibility in your industry and possibly even your site's rankings. Fortunately, you can ensure the accuracy of your content: Incorporating fact-checking into your editorial process will help you build confidence in the quality and authority of your brand-produced content. Here's what you need to know.

The New York Small Business Development Center is pleased to recognize the boldest, brightest, and best small companies and enterprising individuals in New York State.  Eight small business owners were honored at the 2017 Client Awards ceremony on April 24, 2017.  Read all their stories here.  At Cueva Interior Innovations they believe that space matters. Laura Cueva and her staff help businesses, educational facilities and medical facilities enhance employee productivity through creative space planning and cost-effective furniture solutions designed to promote employee well-being in the workplace. Laura first consulted the SBDC for assistance in starting her business, and later worked with SBDC to complete the paperwork required for MWBE certification and as approved in 2014. Most recently, Laura consulted with Roxanne Mutchler about marketing and procurement issues. With SBDC assistance, Laura submitted an application to the NYS MWBE Bridge-to-Success Loan Program to

The New York Small Business Development Center is pleased to recognize the boldest, brightest, and best small companies and enterprising individuals in New York State.  Eight small business owners were honored at the 2017 Client Awards ceremony on Apri l 24, 2017.  Read all their stories here.  Hartman Enterprises Incorporated is a precision machine parts manufacturer located in Oneida that employs more than 45 people. The business’ facility consists of over 25,000 square feet of manufacturing space. Since taking over the family business, CEO Jaime Sweet has achieved her father’s dream of making the business woman-owned and certified. She worked closely with the Mohawk Valley SBDC to achieve this goal and to navigate the various federal and state certification programs. The company is now HUBZone and WOSB certified, and their MWBE certification application is pending review by New York State. Jaime has also worked tirelessly to garner the company various awards, grants, up

From ImpactBnd The regulations against net neutrality have been moved back into the spotlight. On April 26th, Ajit Pai, FCC Chairman, gave a speech in Washington where he announced his move to undo an Obama-era FCC regulation against broadband internet providers. His proposal looks to undo the 2015 rules that implemented net neutrality with a Title II classification. But people on each side of the debate have varying concerns about altering the regulation and how it not only affects the big companies but the little guys as well. With an initial vote coming up on May 18th, many are looking to better understanding of net neutrality, review the proposed changes, and weigh the benefits and worries the changes may create. So, what do you need to know? In this article, we’ve outlined the key details about the current and proposed legislation, how it may affect small businesses and operations, and what the future may hold if it’s passed. *What is net neutrality anyways?* Net

From:  Impact Over the past several weeks, I've been really thinking about  balancing work and life . As one of IMPACT's Marketing Strategists, I'm often juggling 100 different things for clients any given week -- and as a mom of three under the age of 10, I'm juggling  a million  personal objectives and tasks on top of that. Balancing work and life, with or without kids, is probably the most challenging thing to figure out for anyone. Whether you are in marketing, a CEO, or heading off to college for the first time, we all deal with it daily, and honestly, I still don't know how the heck I do it.   But, the point of any blog from IMPACT is to provide value and help. Despite knowing I will spend the rest of my career fine-tuning my work/life balance, I'll let you know what works for me and for others I have spoken to over the last several weeks, and hopefully you'll be inspired to find your perfect work/life balance too. 

From: The Census Bureau MARCH 6, 2017  — This  report  provides national estimates of total annual sales, e-commerce sales, end-of-year inventories, purchases, total operating expenses, inventories held outside the United States, gross margins, and end-of-year accounts receivable for retail businesses and annual sales, total operating expenses, and e-commerce sales for accommodation and food service firms located in the United States.   The  Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS)  sample covers employer businesses classified in retail trade sector and accommodation & food services sector located in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The ARTS excludes data for businesses located in the U.S. territories. The data are published on a  North American Industry Classification System   basis and the estimates are used to benchmark the monthly retail sales and inventories estimates each spring. 

From MarketingProfs : By now, we've all seen the shocking viral videos. The rage-inducing photos. The fire-and-brimstone calls for a boycott, firings, and someone's head on a platter—preferably Oscar Munoz's, if George R.R. Martin has his way (you know it's bad when the guy that dreamed up with the world's most twisted wedding is outraged by your behavior). Oh, United. First, there was Leggingsgate. Then came the now-infamous denied-boarding fiasco. That was followed by scorpions on a plane, Grandmagate, and an Animal Farm-style story of a passenger downgrade, proving that, truly, "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." And speaking of animals, let's not forget the bizarre death—and subsequent unsanctioned cremation—of the giant rabbit Simon. Oh, and if that weren't enough, it appears United has something against weddings and honeymoons, too. United, it seems, can't stop from shooting itself in its proverbi

Every year since 1963, the President of the United States has issued a proclamation announcing National Small Business Week, which recognizes the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners. More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and they create about two out of every three new jobs in the U.S. each year. Below are just some of the SBDC events occuring across New York State in recognition of Small Business Week: Pace University SBDC: Government Procurement Strategies Fri, May 5, 2017 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT Pace University 1 Pace Plaza Rm W512 New York, NY 10038 The Pace University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is partnering with the US Small Business Administration (SBA) to help entrepreneurs identify and respond to government contract opportunities, as well as deliver on those contracts for which they are selected. The workshop will highlight contracting resources available for small busin

From:  IBISWorld Canadian business uncertainty is high following the recent US election due to the Trump administration’s goal to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The Canadian economy has relied on US markets for decades  with exports to the United States consistently comprising more than 70.0% of  Canada’s total over the past 10 years. Amid potential NAFTA renegotiations, Canada has pursued closer trade relationships with other regions including Europe and Asia, which will present both opportunities and challenges for the country.

From iMPACT : A brand is more than just a logo. It’s a tone of voice, a feeling, a set of expectations that arise when people hear your name. It’s the values and emotions that the thought of your business evokes. A logo or color palette are simply reflections of these larger ideas - but that doesn’t make them any less important. In fact, it actually makes them even more important. Regardless of what your business is, you should establish a brand and branding. Having a well-thought out, consistent brand creates a sense of professionalism and reliability and instills confidence in both prospective and existing customers . For owners of small businesses, this concept can be intimidating and seem expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. In the handy infographic below, Cooper House, an Oklahoma-based branding and design studio outlines a number of essential tips to help small-business owners establish and maintain a brand and as well as tactics for creating recognition.

From:  BLS Reports In 2016, 79.9 million workers age 16 and older in the United States were paid at hourly rates, representing 58.7 percent of all wage and salary workers. Among those paid by the hour, 701,000 workers earned exactly the prevailing federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. About 1.5 million had wages below the federal minimum. Together, these 2.2 million workers with wages at or below the federal minimum made up 2.7 percent of all hourly paid workers. The percentage of hourly paid workers earning the prevailing federal minimum wage or less declined from 3.3 percent in 2015 to 2.7 percent in 2016. This remains well below the percentage of 13.4 recorded in 1979, when data were first collected on a regular basis.  This report presents highlights and statistical tables describing workers who earned at or below the federal minimum wage in 2016. The data are obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a national monthly survey of approximately 60,000 households

From:  MarketingProfs Mobile advertising is dominated by two giants, Facebook and Google. In fact,  85% of mobile advertising spend  goes to those two channels, and they both now identify mobile as a primary area of importance for future growth. Facebook's mobile revenue is projected to grow by more than 50% year over year, with Google's growing at a healthy 20%. How did Facebook and Google come to dominate the top of the mobile ad food chain? For starters, each boasts a network of more than a billion daily users. This enables both companies to offer high-quality targeting at a massive scale that most other channels can't replicate. Facebook predicted early on that highly targeted app installs would be popular with advertisers. It guessed correctly, and now Facebook's mobile ad practice fuels  more than 80%  of its $5.2 billion annual advertising revenue stream. Meanwhile, Google has long been the dominant player in search advertising, which makes up the bulk

From:  eMarketer Video streaming quality issues  continue to be a big problem  for the advertising and media industries. Whether they’re caused by problems with slow internet connections, or  high demand for streaming video content  during peak periods, the continued troubles are turning off viewers and causing headaches for media executives. Finding evidence of video viewers’ distaste for bad-quality video isn’t difficult. The latest example comes from a Q1 2017 study released by video performance and analytics firm  Mux . According to the company’s investigation of US digital video viewers who stopped watching videos due to various streaming issues, about 85% said they gave up because the load time took too long, while a nearly identical percentage said stalling and the dreaded problem of “rebuffering” caused them to end their viewing session.

From  Bplans Starting a business  from scratch isn’t easy under any circumstances. But for members of the millennial generation, many of whom still sit atop a mountain of student loan debt, it can seem virtually impossible. Student debt has risen dramatically in recent years to become the largest single debt source among those under 40. In fact, the average class of 2016 graduate  will be saddled with $37,172 in student loan debt —enough to crush the entrepreneurial spirit of any would-be business owner. Even so, if you have a business idea you believe in, there’s no reason to put those dreams on hold. With some  careful planning  and financial management—and a bit of luck—you can overcome your debt burdens and turn that killer idea into a reality.

From:  SBA National Small Business Week 2017 kicks off at the end of this month with an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. where  national award winners  including the naming of this year’s national  Small Business Person of the Year  will be recognized and awarded for their achievements. National Small Business Week is being held from April 30-May 6 and is an annual event hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration to recognize the nation’s top small businesses, entrepreneurs, small business advocates and champions. In addition to the awards ceremony April 30 – May 1 in Washington, D.C. with  SBA Administrator Linda McMahon , a roadshow will take place in cities around the country, and several online events. Events throughout National Small Business Week are made possible thanks in part to the support of leading companies and organizers who serve as cosponsors.

From The Outline Google’s Featured Snippets are not only often wrong, they’re also damaging to small businesses that depend on search traffic. CelebrityNetWorth.com launched in 2008 because Brian Warner, a former finance major working at a digital media company, wondered what Larry David was worth. "Honestly, I wanted to know how much money Larry David had," Warner said. "I think Curb Your Enthusiasm had just come back, and I was like, 'God, he must have made so much money from Seinfeld.' I Googled something like 'Larry David net worth' and the results were garbage." According to CelebrityNetWorth.com, Larry David is now worth $400 million. Warner acknowledges that it’s an inexact science, but he and his employees don’t simply conjure their numbers. They look at real estate transactions, news reports of large purchases and salaries, and sometimes even correspond with the celebrity or their reps. Floyd Mayweather, whose net worth Warner estima

From  eMarketer.Retail A survey of retail executives, the vast majority of them from primarily brick-and-mortar chains, found widespread concern about enhancing the value of their physical stores. The polling from  RIS News  and  Gartner  found that more than one-third of respondents said optimizing stores and upgrading store-level bandwidth and infrastructure would be a top challenge in the coming years. Worry about physical stores fits the industry narrative of the moment, with chain after chain announcing new or expanded efforts to shutter brick-and-mortar locations. A  recent study  estimated that efforts to close stores actually need to be accelerated if the industry as a whole is to address a glut of retail space. 

From  Bureau Of Labor Statistics This Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) Annual Report presents integrated data from the 2015 Diary and Interview portions of the CE, including data tables. The tables show average expenditures, income, and characteristics for consumer units 1  classified by the following characteristics: quintiles and deciles of income, before-tax income class, age of the reference person, size of the consumer unit, composition of the consumer unit, number of earners, housing tenure and type of area (urban or rural), region of residence, occupation, highest education level of any consumer-unit member, race, and Hispanic or Latino origin. This report highlights spending patterns for 2015 from the CE, including a brief discussion of expenditure changes for the year, and provides a description of the CE survey. Consumer spending increased 4.6 percent in 2015, according to annual data from the CE. This follows an increase of 4.7 percent in 2014, previously recorded b