TGIF! Before you think about retiring for the weekend, take a look at the following articles (and a short video) that will help your small business run better.

Guest post from Shirley Chun in California, small business marketing manager for Verizon.  To get news specific to California, follow @VZCABiz (www.twitter.com/vzcabiz).

To continue our work to assist small businesses in southern California, my local team sponsored the Verizon Small Business Makeover contest earlier this year. Small business owners entered for a chance to win a $5,000 technology makeover. 

I’m happy to announce that Raquel and John Anthony from Temecula, CA are the grand prize winners! Read about their business and how my team will help get their store the technology they need to run their business more efficiently and productively.

Your business may be running smoothly, but do you have the right security measures in place to prevent cyber-criminals from stealing your customers’ information or diverting your hard earned cash to their offshore bank account?

According to Verizon’s fifth annual Data Breach Investigation Report (DBIR) many hacking attacks are directed against small companies.  The good news is that most of these attacks can be prevented with a few small and relatively easy steps.  Click here to read more about the DBIR.

The Verizon Small Business Center presents another free webinar, this time a discussion with three security industry experts who will offer additional insights from the DBIR as well as offer low cost tips to protect your business from cyber-hacks.

Our guests feature Quinton Jones, SMB Solutions Architect with McAfee, the world’s largest dedicated security technology company; Robby Gulri, Vice President of products with Echoworx, offering managed encryption services; and Marc Spitler, Senior Analyst with Verizon’s Research Investigations Solutions Knowledge (RISK) team.

It’s Friday – and that means we have some great articles to help you run your business better.

Guest post by Albe Zakes, goblal vice president of public relations for Terracycle, the world’s leading recycling and ‘upcycling’ company, which turns waste materials into eco-friendly, affordable products available at big box retailers nationwide.  

Money is a concern for small businesses whether they’re just starting out, trying to stay afloat, or ‘swimming in the black’. There’s no way around it: money makes the world go ‘round, especially for small businesses. It makes sense when executives or owners try to cut the budget or keep it under control, but the question of what is best to cut remains.

Marketing and advertising are key components of a company’s outreach and growth because without them, it is difficult for potential customers to learn about a company’s service and offerings. Still, it’s hard for small businesses to compete with the marketing spend of larger corporations and brands. This is where creativity comes in as a key asset in building and maintaining a small business.

Each week, the Verizon Small Business team may select a small business “fan” to feature on our Facebook page.  This means your business can be prominently displayed on the Verizon Small Biz Facebook page: www.facebook.com/VerizonSmallBiz.

If you would like an opportunity to have your small business featured, just post a photo and share some information about your business on our Facebook wall.  If you are not already a fan, please be sure to “like” us! 

Don’t forget to include the best method for others to contact your business: address, telephone, email and/or the URL to your company’s website.  Just be sure to post a clear photo of your business’s logo or of you working with your business.  For more information about Verizon’s small business “Fan of the Week” please click here.

We can’t wait to highlight small businesses across the country by promoting your business on our Facebook page.

TGIF! We found the following articles to help run your business better.

Guest post by Mario Acosta-Velez, director, State Government Affairs for Verizon.   Mario manages external relations with key stakeholders, business organizations, and diverse communities in the Mid-Atlantic region. 

Last month, while attending the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s 3^rd Annual Hispanic Business Expo at the Washington, DC Convention Center, I talked with many small business owners who visited Verizon’s exhibit to learn about the latest communications technology for small businesses, such as 4G and FiOS.  Some of the common questions asked by small business owners were: 

-          how do I develop an effective communications and marketing strategy?

-          does my business have the right communications tools in place to maximize its potential?

-          how can I effectively use voice and internet services to better reach customers? 

-          how can I ensure my business comes up first in a Google search? 

Think about these three key topics below and ask if you have addressed these within your business:

This post is from members of Verizon’s small business team.

Facebook is an incredibly useful tool that allows small businesses to reach new customers and build strong relationships with the customers you already have. Recently, Facebook introduced a new format called Timeline that will change the way your page looks and some of the ways you use it to interact with customers.

As we just changed the Verizon Small Biz Facebook page, we share the following overview of the changes you need to know about to make sure your Facebook page is the best possible representation of your business.

Guest post from Brad McCarty, a music and tech junkie, managing editor of The Next Web, one of the world’s largest online publications that delivers an international perspective on the latest news about Internet technology, business and culture.

For the past few years, businesses have been hearing all about Facebook when it comes to having an online presence where they can meet their customers. But a few months ago, Google came into the picture with Google+ and there's plenty of evidence to suggest that perhaps it's the better way to go for companies looking to establish themselves online.

I took a closer look at the numerous aspects of Google+ for small business in my free webinar, presented by the Verizon Small Business Center. I spent about an hour discussing them and took questions throughout the webinar. So watch this webinar when you have some time to learn what Google+ can do for small businesses.  Click here to watch the replay or go to http://www.brighttalk.com/r/rxD. 

It’s Friday, and we found the following interesting articles to help you run your business better.

This guest post is provided on behalf of the faculty and staff of the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza School of Business Executive Online Education.  Notre Dame Online provides professional courses and masters certificates in the areas of Negotiations, Business Administration, Leadership & Management and Advanced Intercultural Management for the current and aspiring business professional. “

In part 1 of this series, we covered several items that small business owners can negotiate as they are starting up a new business. We want to continue now by discussing negotiations to consider after the grand opening.  Items one through five covered a number of overhead items that can be more helpful if they are considered prior to opening, but steps six through ten are also applicable to owners who are currently in the midst of their success stories. To really succeed in business, it is important to regularly take a break from your daily work and take a look around for business opportunities to capitalize on in your community.