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You are here: Home / Archives for How to Start

How to Run a Successful Food Truck Business

August 14, 2017 By Melinda Emerson 1 Comment

No matter where you live, you’ve likely seen or eaten at a food truck. There are some great reasons why savvy entrepreneurs are opening restaurants on wheels: the overhead is low, and they can go where their customers are. Operating a food truck is also a great way to test out a restaurant concept or […]

Filed Under: Branding & Marketing, How to Start Tagged With: food service, food truck

How the SBA Can Help Your Small Business

May 1, 2017 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

It’s once again my favorite time of year, National Small Business Week! For the entire week, there are a ton of free resources, webinars, and events both on the web and in your town. I’ll be celebrating National Small Business Week with #Smallbizchat LIVE from New York. It’s a video broadcast, on Facebook Live sponsored […]

Filed Under: Grow Your Business, How to Start, Starting A Small Business Tagged With: national small business week, Small Business Administration

What I’ve learned after 18 years in business

March 13, 2017 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

To my true amazement, this week marks my 18th year in business, and I must say it’s been a wild ride. In 1999, I was scared to death, I had a laptop, a fax machine and a dream and set up shop in the basement of my house. My neighbor, who was a contractor, came […]

Filed Under: Business Inspiration, Grow Your Business, How to Start Tagged With: advice from smallbizlady, business advice, business freedom

17 Steps to Launching a Freelance Business

January 9, 2017 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

If starting a freelance business is on your 2017 New Year’s Goals list, you’ll need to get a few things in place. In this post, I will walk you through the steps you need to take to launch a successful freelance business this year. By the way, I wrote the book Become Your Own Boss […]

Filed Under: Grow Your Business, How to Start, Starting A Small Business

New Year, New Resolve

January 2, 2017 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

I hope you didn’t spend too much time making resolutions that you probably won’t keep over the holidays. Let’s resolve to do something different in 2017. If you are fearful about launching a business. Swallow the fear and deal with facts. Create a plan and then work your plan. You can do it. Just make […]

Filed Under: Grow Your Business, How to Start Tagged With: become your own boss, business planning, planning

How Can Direct Mail Help Your New Product Launch?

December 15, 2015 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

Direct mail has been the chosen marketing technique for millions of companies across the globe for several decades. With businesses over using email, direct mail offers a means of clear communication with a target audience that can help your business stand out. Direct mail campaigns can also be cost effective, especially if you know your […]

Filed Under: Guest Articles, How to Start Tagged With: direct mail

How to Develop Your Business Idea

January 12, 2016 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

It’s clear that there’s no great business without an idea. Still, without proper development, any idea will remain just an idea and will never become a successful business. If you think you’ve just stumbled upon an idea that could possibly lead to a launch of a business, here are a few tips to help you […]

Filed Under: Guest Articles, How to Start Tagged With: business idea

How to Write a Business Plan Part IV

November 30, 2015 By Melinda Emerson Leave a Comment

This is the final post in my four-part series on how to write a business plan. We have walked through Part I: How to develop a Business Model, Part II: Your Marketing Plan and Part III: Operations and Cash Flow Projections. Part IV will focus on developing your executive summary and is the last step […]

Filed Under: How to Start, Starting A Small Business

Creating Business Plans that Actually Get Financed

June 25, 2015 By Melinda Emerson 4 Comments

Every week as SmallBizLady, I conduct interviews with experts on my Twitter talk show #SmallBizChat. The show takes place every Wednesday on Twitter from 8-9 pm ET. This is excerpted from my interview with @bizplangirl. Cheree Warrick writes business plans for companies seeking funding from banks and angel investors. Her book, “Creating Business Plans that […]

Filed Under: Grow Your Business, How to Start, Q & A Interview Tagged With: @bizplangirl, business plan, Cheree Warrick, crowdfunding, Shark Tank

What Kind of Business Should I Start?

February 16, 2015 By Melinda Emerson 1 Comment

You have the drive, energy, and passion to make it as an entrepreneur. You may have examined your habits and abilities and discovered some of the key qualities that successful small business owners share. You’ve already worked out your life plan, and one of your clearest goals is to be an independent businessperson. Now it’s […]

Filed Under: How to Start Tagged With: entrepreneur, start a business

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Latest #SmallBizChat

The SmallBizChat Podcast: Hit It and Quit It with Mitch Axelrod, Dr. Dan Young, and Rich Trotter

In this episode, Melinda Emerson introduces an engaging discussion with guests Rich Trotter, Mitch Axelrod, and Dr. Dan Young. The conversation kicks off with each guest sharing their favorite business podcast and app, revealing unique tools that aid their entrepreneurial journey. They then delve into timeless marketing strategies, discussing classic tips that still hold relevance […]

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