Many people start a business because they’re tired of a boss ordering them around.

Others have a hobby, skill or idea they want to pursue without considering whether anyone will pay them to do it.  Still others are desperate after being laid off and unable to find another job immediately.

But those motives are insufficient to be successful running your own company over the long term.  Most small-business owners start out with skill in the technical side of their venture. They know how to make something, like crafts, or do something like bookkeeping.

That’s just the beginning.

Consider how you like to work and the types of work you enjoy. A business owner must be a multi-tasker: make the product, create marketing materials, send out invoices and follow up when customers don’t pay, strategize for future growth and find the best financing deals.

 Successful entrepreneurs are thick skinned, independent and able to forego instant gratification.

This quiz will help you examine your abilities and motives for seeking business ownership. You don’t have to show your answers to anyone else, so be honest with yourself.

Start-a-Business Quiz

If most of your answers are “yes” you’re ready emotionally to start your business.

 But a large number of “no” or “maybe” answers don’t disqualify you as master of your own company. You will be able to overcome those weak areas with work, study or help from others with strengths in those areas.

1.  Are you prepared to lose your savings?

2. Do you know what your strengths and weaknesses are?

3. Do you have the drive, persistence, and ambition to achieve and grow? 

4. Are you completely committed and determined to attain your goals? 

5. Do you strive for excellence? 

6. Do you have a high level of self-confidence?

7. Are you a hard worker? 

8. Do you have a tolerance for ambiguity, stress, and uncertainty? 

9. Do you have a low need for status and power? 

10. Do you get along well with others? 

11. Are you good at communicating?

12. Are you trustworthy and reliable? 

13. Are you patient? 

14. Are you well organized?

15. Do you carefully read and understand important documents before signing them? 

16. Do you understand basic math and know how to read financial statements?

17. Are you creative and innovative? 

18. Can you live within a budget?

19. Do you have good health and a high energy?

20. Are you willing to accept complete responsibility for yourself and your business?

Source: smallbusiness.com

Have you jumped into the deep waters of social media? Does your company have a blog? Are you “tweeting?”  Are you part of a Facebook community? Have you heard of Ning? And are you building a network of colleagues on LinkedIn?

There’s no question that social media can help you engage with customers, but did you know that it’s also a low-cost, efficient way to boost response to your traditional media promotions? Creating and cross-promoting a company blog, a social networking community and updating your Twitter account as part of direct marketing campaigns and sales promotion efforts creates new ways for you to reach out ­– and for customers and prospects to respond. It’s also a great lead capture mechanism where you easily incubate and nurture your leads .  As the economic recession comes to an end, one of the critical questions being asked is “when will consumers be ready to buy again?” Engaging with consumers through social media channels ensures that your company will stay connected and be top-of-mind when they’re ready to open their wallets. But before you dive in, you need a strategy. The two most effective social media tools to focus on are blogging and social networking.

A word about blogging and micro-blogging…

Blogs and Twitter accounts are a win-win combo for companies. 

Blogging is the equivalent of keeping an online journal – but for companies it’s more like having a soapbox. Blogs are forum for your company to talk about the issues and needs in your market today. It’s not a place to sell, rather it’s a place for you to let your customers know how you think, so they can see that you understand them. Blogs are also a great way to get customer feedback so you can refine your thinking. To get started, visit www.blogger.com.

Twitter is micro-blogging with each entry limited to 140 characters. It’s a challenge – try it! But Twitter can also be a very effective tool to push out snippets on product news, special offers, events, research and success stories. Used properly, it can drive people to your website and social networking community. To set up a Twitter account, go to www.twitter.com.

Get connected with a social networking community

As with any media option, different social networking communities have different demographics. The trick is finding the one that mirrors your customer base.

Facebook is the place to be if you market direct to the consumer – any consumer.  It’s not just for college students anymore. With a breathtaking 200 million users, Facebook’s older demographics are growing faster than its young ones. In fact, AARP recently discussed the trend in a cover story about Facebook addiction. Read it at www.facebook.com.

MySpace is the online space where the arts and entertainment world hangs out – and it’s typically a younger audience. MySpace allows users to completely customize their homepage, which particularly appeals to creative people. Check it out at www.myspace.com.

Ning gives you free tools to build your own social network for any purpose. Ning is particularly beneficial for smaller companies. Several firms such as Awareness, Jive and Lithium offer privately branded social communities for a stiff price, but Ning provides small and mid-tier companies many of the same features – for free. Find out more at www.ning.com.

LinkedIn is becoming the default community of choice for the business/professional community. Many people don’t have confidence in LinkedIn’s tools, but the service has managed to capture massive market share early. Creating groups on LinkedIn is an effective way to promote a dialogue with business-to-business customers and prospects. It’s also a great place to recruit employees. Learn more at www.linkedin.com.

Social Media + Traditional Media = Customer Engagement

For your social media efforts to be successful and enable you to engage with your customers, you need to make your social community sites easy to find and drive traffic to them. That’s where traditional media can help. Think of your social communities as preferred partner programs. Whenever you connect with customers via traditional media outletsI (in print, via email or at trade shows, etc.) provide information on how to join your social communities. Entice customers and prospects with the benefits of following your blog or joining your communities. Focus on information and resources, but make it clear there will also be special offers and exclusive opportunities only for social community members. Here are 10 ideas to create synergy between your social media and traditional media – and enhance the performance of both:

1. Provide a link to all of your social media on your website. Feature your blog and most recent blog post to entice people to read and respond.
2. Provide a link to your social media on your website with specific links to landing pages that will encourage visitors to register for information with their email address so you can capture them as leads.
3. Email your current blog post to your customers and contacts in your CRM. It’s an easy, low-cost touch-point.
4. Put links to your blog, your Twitter account and all of your social networking communities on your brochures and in your catalogs. 
5. Create “easy URLs” for your social media to make it easy to find you.
6. Include links at the bottom of every email and e-newsletter you send.
7. Don’t forget your “transactional” emails. Every communication is an opportunity to promote your social communities. Include links to your social media sites in your employee email “signature.”
8. Announce a preferred partner program exclusively for members of your social networking community.
9. At trade shows, run a special preferred partner promotion for anyone who joins your community.
10. Use information from your traditional media – case studies, white papers, and research results – to provide content for your blog and communities.

Remember that social communities are a two-way proposition. By including social media options in your direct mail and sales promotions, you invite customers and prospects to engage in a dialogue, so make it clear you want to hear from them.As consumers spend more of their time online, marketers will become increasingly aware that social media is a great place to reach them. Building online followers and community takes time, so start NOW to get ahead and stay ahead.

Join our Acxiom groups and see how we are building our community:

Join Acxiom on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/acxiomcorp

Info Xpress a service of  Acxiom

If you are a small business and a bit intimidated by competing against larger companies in your niche, this article will give you some ideas on how to level the playing field.

 Do you think that because you have a small business you can’t compete against larger companies? If you do then think again. Most small business owners don’t feel that they are in the same arena as larger companies so they don’t even bother to try. This can be a big mistake and one that can cost your company in the long run.

Growing your company takes some competitive moves. Sure, you can continue to operate as you always have but this routine will not get you ahead. There are some tips, however, if you want to expand your business opportunities and compete against the big boys.

Think big. Always have the big picture in mind. Thinking big means picturing what can be more than what already is. The day to day routine can get you in a rut and you can get so hung up on it that you fail to look ahead.

Have passion. Loving what you do can help you get ahead. The passion you have for your business not only helps catapult the company ahead but also helps motivate employees on a daily basis. Passion also translates directly to sales. The passion you feel for your business can be more easily brought to the bottom line when there are fewer employees. Larger companies have to work twice as hard to get the same feelings across to customers.

Think outside the box. This may sound like an old cliché but it really is true. If you can have vision to do things differently you just may get ahead. This is particularly true when it comes to competing with larger companies. Think of ways that your company can provide something better than the large company can.

Think ahead. Instead of thinking about this month’s numbers you should be looking towards the future. Great companies are made by revolutionaries – those who look ahead to the future to see the possibilities. Larger companies may use large telecom services. You can use the same technology on a smaller scale by ordering a T1. This state of the art communication service allows you all the same features and benefits at a much smaller cost.

Find your niche. Once you know what your market is you’ll be much better able to cater to it. Larger companies often lose focus and try to market to too broad a group. Instead use your marketing skills to your advantage. Yes, you have a much lower marketing budget than the larger companies do. But you can use your marketing strategies to your advantage if you know your niche.

Use the Internet to your advantage. The web has brought large and small companies to an even playing field. Make sure that you use the Internet to boost your business. Always have a web site presence. Don’t skimp when it comes to your website. You don’t need lots of pages but you do need a professional look. Be sure to put your website address on all your brochures and business cards.

Provide what the big companies can’t or don’t. Look for weaknesses in your competition and use those to build your business. For example, one place where many larger companies fail is in providing good customer service. Small businesses can give better service because they care about each customer. Be sure to use that to help you win business over the larger competition.

Teamwork is more than a method or a model. It is a culture based upon the concept of Human Resource. The chemistry or dynamics between the team members is generated by the line of thinking of the members.

 In recent history, an excellent example of Teamwork is the Apollo Project (NASA) culminating with the landing on the moon. It is possible for a company to have a number of interrelated projects with different Teams or the whole company.

 Some of the most important points to have a successful Team are:

 · Motivation of all the players towards the same goal.

· Effective communication channels between all the members.

· Integral hierarchy system, meaning “not because I am the brain I’m more important that the arm”.

· The correct implementation of “Constructive Criticism”; the problem is analyzed objectively by the Team and corrected using suggestions and recommendations that strengthen the efforts and motivation of the part that produced the problem or error thereby improving the methods, accelerating the processes, motivating and capitalizing on the problem itself.

· Culture deep-seated in the unification of the Team by a close interpersonal relation.

· A strong compromise by all the Team members to achieve the goal in “Real Time”.

· The psychological and intellectual capacity of the Team members of facing obstacles and difficulties objectively without the use of negative criticism or arguments.

 

The above mentioned 7 points are vital to achieve a goal utilizing the culture of Teamwork.

 Teamwork applies to the small and medium business, the corporate world, government and society in general. The competiveness of any company is based on its organizational platform which determines its productivity. In today’s competitive markets successful companies do not have “Fat”, they operate in a lean and proactive environment looking to the future and the opportunities it will bring.

Teamwork is without a doubt an instrument that improves productivity, product and service quality, reduces time waste and ultimately turns into competiveness.

Defense policy bill has major implications for contractors

The 1,500-page fiscal 2010 Defense authorization bill approved by a congressional conference committee on Wednesday will have major repercussions for contractors and the government’s acquisition workforce.  Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said the legislation “supports the [Pentagon's] plan to increase the size of the civilian acquisition workforce; reduces the Department of Defense’s reliance on contractors for critical acquisition functions; and eliminates waste, fraud and abuse through better contract oversight.”

The House approved the conference version of the bill on Thursday 281-146. The Senate is not expected to vote on it until Friday or early next week.  As expected, the legislation once again suspends the Defense Department’s authority to hold public-private competitions for government jobs under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 until Defense conducts a review of its procedures, including issues related to cost, oversight and data integrity. The Government Accountability Office will assess the quality of the Defense review.
If the ban is lifted, then there would be a two-year time limit for conducting public-private competitions. The legislation provides the secretary of Defense some flexibility to extend a competition based on its complexity.

The bill includes several other provisions that would affect the contractor community.  The legislation provides Defense Department officials with the authority to deny award or incentive fees to a contractor when the “gross negligence” or “reckless disregard” of one of its employees leads to the death or severe bodily injury of a service member or civilian employee. The types of incidents the provision covers include criminal convictions and civil or administrative findings of fault that result in a fine of more than $5,000 or damages in excess of $100,000.

In response to reports of faulty wiring and electrical hazards that have wounded or killed U.S. personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan, the legislation requires Defense to establish appropriate safety standards for expeditionary facilities that military or civilian personnel use.   The bill also includes a number of provisions designed to enhance the size and training of the acquisition workforce. Lawmakers expanded and extended the department’s expedited hiring authority, allowed additional funding for the Acquisition Development Workforce Fund and eliminated limits on the number of civilian personnel who can be hired for Defense acquisition work.

Other acquisition-related provisions would:
Extend the Commission on Wartime Contracting for an additional year and enhance the support available to the group from federal agencies;
Mandate that the Panel on Contracting Integrity, a body established in the 2007 Defense authorization act, review revolving door policies surrounding officials who leave the Pentagon to work in the defense industry;
Clarify that suspension and debarment rules apply to subcontracts;
Require the Defense Department to justify sole-source contract awards in excess of $20 million;
Force the Pentagon to notify the public before making any decision to bundle multiple contracts into a single large contract prior to issuing a solicitation;
Direct the Defense Science Board to conduct an independent assessment of improvements in the procurement and oversight of contract services;
Require GAO to study Defense’s use of categories other than cost or price as the predominant factor in evaluating competitive proposals, and to examine how prime contractors award and manage subcontracts on major weapons systems.
(C) 2009 BY NATIONAL JOURNAL GROUP, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Government Executive.com

 

When I wrote my book, Customer Pillars, I did not start out with the idea of generating nine pillars or key laws of marketing. They just happened to show up that way. I set out to be comprehensive and thorough, but I did not have a set number in mind. In fact, nine is actually a less “marketable” number than five, six, or seven. But when I asked the question, nine pillars emerged.

After the fact, however, I looked back at the pillars and saw that three stuck out. In fact, I saw a “system within a system” emerge. But let me warn you, before I divulge them, I do not think these three pillars (or laws as I have also referred to them), are more important than the other six. And, I will also say, that looking at these three pillars, without the others, is not as complete. (Looking at the whole list builds substance underneath all of them.)  These three pillars did appear to group together and did appear to present a simplified marketing development system. Those three pillars are…

· Sharpen Your Competitive Edge
· Connect Powerfully with Customers
· Manage Expectations Brilliantly

Each powerful (and challenging) in their own right, but when combined, this 1-2-3 punch, is the perfect marketing trifecta. Let’s look at how they work together:

“Sharpen your competitive edge” suggests a company must understand the competitive environment where they operate. It recognizes that other firms, in fact, other talented firms, are vying for the same business, for the same customers you are. To win, you must be able to articulate (directly or indirectly), why the customer should choose you over all the other options. In a crowded marketplace, why should the customer choose you?

Once you know this, it becomes important to “connect powerfully with the market,” or the second pillar highlighted in this “mini” system. (In the full Customer Pillars program, this is actually the sixth pillar.) While developing messages to share with customers does extend beyond just the “competitive edge,” this should be an important part of the message you aim to share with customers. Simply, once you know why customers should choose you over other options, you need to tell your customers and prospective customers about it. This is the customer communications aspect.

If you know why you are advantageous to competition, AND you clearly explain it to your customers (to the extent that they really understand it!), they should be willing to give your business a try. When accomplished, these first two steps should get customers “in the door.”  But the game is not completely won yet. Companies must “manage expectations brilliantly” to close the deal. In this third step of our mini system (the 7th pillar in the whole system), you make good on the promise.

When you communicate your competitive edge (steps 1 and 2), you make a promise to the customer. You essentially tell them why they should buy from you. To get them to try, you have to tell the customer your option is better than others; there’s a little bit of persuasion going on here! After they buy, they will see if what you delivered met or exceeded that commitment. And they will judge you.  If what you deliver exceeds what you promised, customers will be satisfied with the transaction. They will likely want to buy from you again. If they’re really happy, they may even tell others about your firm. On the other hand, if you fail to make good on your promises, they will not be pleased, may not buy from you again, and may tell others you are not a good company to work with. (That’s called momentum! Make it work in your favor as opposed to against you!)

So that’s it. Do those three things really well, and by improving them, you have done a great deal to implement a winning marketing strategy. (Now remember, it doesn’t mean those other six pillars are not important!!!) But the following three pillars do make a great “mini” system: sharpen your competitive edge, connect powerfully with customers, and manage expectations brilliantly.

Three simple steps to excellence in marketing!

(OK, if you believe that, you are too gullible! Marketing is not ever easy, but this system is extremely simple to understand, and if you make progress on those 3 steps, your are definitely working on GREAT marketing concepts!!!!)Curt Clinkinbeard, is the Director of The FAMEE Foundation, not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping entrepreneurs “advance marketing excellence” and build profitable revenue streams. More information on their free small business marketing programs can be found at http://www.famee.org.

Theft of confidential information and trade secrets can be just as damaging to your business as embezzlement or other employee fraud. Help protect your competitive advantage with these tips.

Buy paper shredders… and use them
Be careful when you are throwing out copies of sensitive or confidential documents. These include: financial statements, proposals, customer information, reports, receipts, bills, invoices, etc. Don’t just toss these in the trash. Shred them first. Putting them in the garbage unshredded opens up a range of security issues. If your trash is not disposed of properly, these documents could easily end up in the wrong hands… or blowing down the street past your competitors. In addition, industrial spies have been known to go through garbage looking for confidential data. Make shredding a company-wide practice — insist that your employees dispose of all papers this way.

Have a plan for terminated employees
Don’t let a disgruntled ex-employee become a security threat. Have a plan in place to keep a person from leaving your company with confidential documents. Some steps to follow include:

• Have the person leave the company immediately upon termination. Letting an employee hang around a few days to get his or her affairs in order only invites this person to make off with papers and other information that might be valuable to your firm. Have a supervisor stand by while the employee removes personal possessions from his or her desk.
• Make arrangements for immediate return of any confidential company information such as client lists, price lists, etc. Make the timely return of these documents a condition of receiving severance pay.
• Insist the person turns in keys, both for the business premises and for his or her desk and file cabinet. If he or she doesn’t return them, change your locks.
• Remove the person’s password from your computer network immediately. This is especially important if the person can dial in to your network from home, and then simply log in and download important information.

Use computer passwords
Require your employees to use passwords to access your computers or your network. This will serve to keep unauthorized people away from important files. Don’t let employees get lazy with their passwords — make them change them on a monthly basis. Dissuade people from using features that “remember” passwords — this can make it easy for an unauthorized person to gain access to your system. Insist that users log off your network whenever they’re away from their desks, so unauthorized users can’t jump in from their workstations.

Have all employees sign non-disclosure agreements
Make sure employees understand that theft of intellectual property is as serious to your business as theft of physical property. Use a non-disclosure agreement, or a non-disclosure clause in an employment contract, to spell out employees’ responsibilities regarding confidential or trade secret information. Be sure you define what your company considers to be confidential. This is critical, since it clearly differentiates which information belongs to your company and which belongs to the ex-employee. The agreement also should outline steps the employee must take to maintain confidentiality, such as using computer passwords, not removing sales lists from the premises, not copying documents to disk, etc.

Keep tabs on your documents
Set and enforce strict procedures for access to confidential or trade secret information. Create a hierarchy of access among your employees for sensitive information — allow only those who need certain information to see it. For example, a sales rep may need customer contact information for his or her territory. But the rep does not need your entire client list, and does not need access to billing data. Label key electronic documents (such as your customer database) as “read only” so they can not be altered or written to disk.

Don’t tempt prying eyes
Don’t make it easy for people who aren’t supposed to see confidential documents to snoop. Encourage everyone at your business to take certain basic precautions. Never leave documents lying around. File things away when you’re done with them or when you’re away from your desk. Lock your filing cabinet and your desk when you’re away. Close computer files when they are not being used and never leave a file on your screen when you go away from your desk.

Has it ever occurred to you how much you are saying to people even when you are not speaking? Unless you are a master of disguise, you are constantly sending messages about your true thoughts and feelings whether you are using words or not.  Studies show that your words account for only 7% of the messages you convey. The remaining 93% is non-verbal. 55% of communication is based on what people see and the other 38% is transmitted through tone of voice. So think about it. In the business setting, people can see what you are not saying. If your body language doesn’t match your words, you are wasting your time. Eye contact is the most obvious way you communicate. When you are looking at the other person, you show interest. When you fail to make eye contact, you give the impression that the other person is of no importance. Maintain eye contact about 60% of the time in order to look interested, but not aggressive. Facial expression is another form of non-verbal communication. A smile sends a positive message and is appropriate in all but a life and death situation. Smiling adds warmth and an aura of confidence. Others will be more receptive if you remember to check your expression. Your mouth gives clues, too, and not just when you are speaking. Mouth movements, such as pursing your lips or twisting them to one side, can indicate that you are thinking about what you are hearing or that you are holding something back. The position of your head speaks to people. Keeping your head straight, which is not the same as keeping your head on straight, will make you appear self-assured and authoritative. People will take you seriously. Tilt your head to one side if you want to come across as friendly and open. How receptive you are is suggested by where you place your arms. Arms crossed or folded over your chest say that you have shut other people out and have no interest in them or what they are saying. This position can also say, “I don’t agree with you.” You might just be cold, but unless you shiver at the same time, the person in front of you may get the wrong message. How you use your arms can help or hurt your image as well. Waving them about may show enthusiasm to some, but others see this gesture as one of uncertainty and immaturity. The best place for your arms is by your side. You will look confident and relaxed. If this is hard for you, do what you always do when you want to get better at something – practice. After a while, it will feel natural. The angle of your body gives an indication to others about what’s going through your head. Leaning in says, “Tell me more.” Leaning away signals you’ve heard enough. Adding a nod of your head is another way to affirm that you are listening. Posture is just as important as your grandmother always said it was. Sit or stand erect if you want to be seen as alert and enthusiastic. When you slump in your chair or lean on the wall, you look tired. No one wants to do business with someone who has no energy. Control your hands by paying attention to where they are. In the business world, particularly when you deal with people from other cultures, your hands need to be seen. That would mean you should keep them out of your pockets and you should resist the urge to put them under the table or behind your back. Having your hands anywhere above the neck, fidgeting with your hair or rubbing your face, is unprofessional. Legs talk, too. A lot of movement indicates nervousness. How and where you cross them tells others how you feel. The preferred positions for the polished professional are feet flat on the floor or legs crossed at the ankles. The least professional and most offensive position is resting one leg or ankle on top of your other knee. Some people call this the “Figure Four.” It can make you look arrogant. The distance you keep from others is crucial if you want to establish good rapport. Standing too close or “in someone’s face” will mark you as pushy. Positioning yourself too far away will make you seem standoffish. Neither is what you want so find the happy medium. Most importantly, do what makes the other person feel comfortable. If the person with whom you are speaking keeps backing away from you, stop. Either that person needs space or you need a breath mint.  You may not be aware of what you are saying with your body, but others will get the message. Make sure it’s the one you want to send. (c) 2006, Lydia Ramsey. All rights in all media reserved. Reprint rights granted so long as the article and by-line are published intact with all links made live.

Author Resource:- Lydia Ramsey is a business etiquette expert, professional speaker, corporate trainer and author of MANNERS THAT SELL – ADDING THE POLISH THAT BUILDS PROFITS. She has been quoted or featured in The New York Times, Investors’ Business Daily, Entrepreneur, Inc., Real Simple and Woman’s Day. For more information about her programs, products and services, e-mail her at lydia@mannersthatsell.com or visit her web site http://www.mannersthatsell.com

Social networks have been around for a while. Recently, there has been a mild explosion of these social sites. Take a look at the below list and decide if there is one that will meet your business marketing needs.

Top Social Networking Sites – General Interest

• MySpace: Started in 2003, MySpace was a driving force in popularizing social networking and still maintains a large userbase. Over 263,920,102 registered users
• Facebook: Founded by Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook was designed as a social networking site for Harvard students. After spreading from Harvard through the university ranks and down into high school, Facebook was opened to the public in 2006. Over 250,000,000 registered users
• Hi5: A fast-growing social network with a strong base in Central America, Hi5 has over fifty million users worldwide.
• Ning: A social network for creating social networks, Ning takes the idea of groups to a whole new level.

Top Social Networking Sites – Niche Sites

• Flixster: With a tagline of “stop watching bad movies,” Flixster combines social networking with movie reviews.
• Last.fm: Billing itself as a social music site, Last.fm allows members to create their own radio station that learns what the person likes and suggests new music based on those interests. In addition to this, you can listen to the radio stations of friends and other Last.fm members.
• LinkedIn: A business-oriented social network, members invite people to be “connections” instead of “friends.” Linkedin is a contact management system as well as a social network, and has a question-and-answer section similar to Yahoo! Answers.
• Xanga: A social blogging site that combines social networking elements with blogging. Members earn credits for participating in the site and can spend credits on various things such as buying mini-pictures to post in the comments of a friend’s blog.

Business Social Networks

CompanyLoop is a business social network aimed at workers in the same company. By restricting access to only co-workers, CompanyLoop allows you to connect with your fellow employees and share knowledge specific to your business. Not only can you stay up to date with your co-workers, you can find the people you need to get your tasks done faster.

DoMyStufff is a social network designed to connect people who want stuff done to people who will do it. DoMyStuff allows everything from household chores to business tasks to be outsourced to thousands of assistants bidding on the jobs. An alternative to hiring a temp agency to fill short-term needs, DoMyStuff is also a good site for people looking to do odd jobs.

DOOSTANG is a business social network marketing itself as an exclusive career community for top young professionals. To become a member, you must either be at a company that is hiring or have an invite from a current member. While the idea is to raise the level of talent in the job seeker pool, whether this is actually true is open for debate.

Fast Pitch connects enterprising professionals to other professionals and is a great way for job seekers to become involved with potentially their next boss. It also provides tools for businesses to market themselves and helps drive traffic to the business website. In this way, it is a great business social network for entrepreneurs.

Konnects is a business social network aimed at the young professional who wants to start building a network of contacts. It is also geared toward the new business looking to start their own community and offers the tools needed to promote the business.

LinkedIn is the most popular business social network and one of the most recognizable social networks in the world. Focused on helping professionals maintain their list of connections, LinkedIn also provides invaluable information on companies and is a great resource for job seekers and for filling job vacancies.

PairUp takes a step away from the standard business social network by focusing on the frequent business travel. Providing the tools to share travel plans and alert colleagues that you are arriving in town, PairUp is a great resource to cope with changing itineraries.

Ryze  Founded in late 2001, Ryze was one of the first social networking websites. With the ability to set up company networks, Ryze is a great destination for businesses wanting to get more done on the web. It is also great for professionals who want to create their own business networks and connect with other professionals.

Spoke is a business social network that specializes on the recruiting aspects of social networks. Unlike many other social networks for professionals, Spoke is an open-ended network that allows businesses to search through the database and tailor their recruiting efforts to a specialized audience.

XING is one of the oldest business-oriented social networks. With over six million professionals using the service every day and conducting business in 16 different languages, XING is a world leader in business networking. An excellent site for keeping track of your business contacts, XING can also help employers fill job vacancies and help young professionals land their fist big job.  The list of the social sites could fill a book. The above list represents only a few.

These lists were part of an article by A List of Business Social Networks for Professionals by Daniel Nations, About.com

If you are a small business owner, whether you hire people as independent contractors or as employees will impact how much taxes you pay and the amount of taxes you withhold from their paychecks. Additionally, it will affect how much additional cost your business must bear, what documents and information they must provide to you, and what tax documents you must give to them. Here are the top ten things every business owner should know about hiring people as independent contractors versus hiring them as employees.

1. Three characteristics are used by the IRS to determine the relationship between businesses and workers: Behavioral Control, Financial Control, and the Type of Relationship. 

2. Behavioral Control covers facts that show whether the business has a right to direct or control how the work is done through instructions, training or other means. 

3. Financial Control covers facts that show whether the business has a right to direct or control the financial and business aspects of the worker’s job. 

4. The Type of Relationship factor relates to how the workers and the business owner perceive their relationship.

5. If you have the right to control or direct not only what is to be done, but also how it is to be done, then your workers are most likely employees.

6. If you can direct or control only the result of the work done — and not the means and methods of accomplishing the result — then your workers are probably independent contractors. 

7. Employers who misclassify workers as independent contractors can end up with substantial tax bills. Additionally, they can face penalties for failing to pay employment taxes and for failing to file required tax forms. 

8. Workers can avoid higher tax bills and lost benefits if they know their proper status.

9. Both employers and workers can ask the IRS to make a determination on whether a specific individual is an independent contractor or an employee by filing a Form SS-8 – Determination of Worker Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding – with the IRS.

10. You can learn more about the critical determination of a worker’s status as an Independent Contractor or Employee at IRS.gov by selecting the Small Business link.  Additional resources include IRS Publication 15-A, Employer’s Supplemental Tax Guide, Publication 1779, Independent Contractor or Employee, and Publication 1976, Do You Qualify for Relief under Section 530? These publications and Form SS-8 are available on the IRS Web site or by calling the IRS at 800-829-3676 (800-TAX-FORM).