Monthly Archives: May 2011

3 Reasons Why Small Biz Owners Deserve Summer Vacations

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It’s that time of the year: long weekend time! A time to wrap up all projects at work for the weekend, keep your Outlook unopened, and hopefully your iPhone or Blackberry will also be closed for business. Who wants to be plugged in when there are barbecue grills to fire up, pools to splash in, and road trips (insert mandatory exclamation point here:!) to hit the road with?

Surprisingly for small business owners, that answer is less than half. According to BusinessNewsDaily,about 46% of small business owners will go on a summer vacation this year. This is compared to the 67% that took vacations in 2006. Granted, it was a different time in ’06, both for the economy and gas prices. But we here at MyCorp are betting to guess that those who don’t take the time off for summer vacations might not be taking this Memorial Day weekend off either. Finding the line between career and personal life for many individuals is beginning to blur, as the digital age mandates that we stay completely plugged in, logged in, and sending auto-replies at all times.

For the next three days as well as for the summer, summer, summertime, we think you can take a break. Here’s why you deserve it:

1) “Don’t wait until you’ve hit red to recharge yourself.”

Truer words were never spoken than by global marketer Alicia Kan. You probably remember the days of being a student, when you would cram all night for a test while ingesting Cheetos and too much coffee. You might have repeated this habit for the next couple of days, particularly during finals week. At the very end of the week you’d be in desperate need of a long winter’s nap and some Vitamin C. Did you feel terrible? Yes. But everything got done and to the best of your knowledge, well, which made it all worth it. Right?

Small business owners and entrepreneurs are taking on so many more responsibilities these days than ever before. Much of the constant need to be on top of your game and producing fresh content is spurred by social media networks. Twitter never sleeps and spits out new information every couple of minutes. Keeping up with the Jones’ is beginning to become an overwhelming task-and might end up running you into the ground.

Don’t wait until your diet is Cheetos and coffee to recharge. Listen to your physical and mental needs. Feeling a bit out of shape? Schedule in a time in the morning before or after work to exercise. Overwhelmed with responsibilities at work? Take on each task at a time and work at a pace you feel most comfortable at. If possible, talk to your boss about how you feel. Most of the time, they can tell if you need help and are willing to work with you to create a schedule that keeps you busy but not to the point where you feel pressured to complete every project perfectly. Skip surfing the web at home for an extra hour of sleep if you feel particularly sleepy- nothing is worse than being caught yawning by your boss during a conference meeting the next day!

2) Refuel Your Creativity

In addition to caring for your physical and mental well-being, taking a few days to work creatively on your own on a non-business related project is great brain food. Make a dent in a book you’ve had on your summer reading list or dust off the easel and paint set. Your five senses will thank you and the change of routine will do you good.

3) Step Outside of Your Box

Many of you know your box well. It might be a cubicle, a corner office with a view, or your laptop on your desk at home. The fact remains that at the end of the day, you might leave your box temporarily, but you’ll be returning to it tomorrow. And the day after. And the day after that.

If you’re going somewhere this Memorial Day weekend or during the summer, make it somewhere you haven’t been to. Always wanted to visit New York or Orlando? Book a reservation! Understandably, the want to visit a place you haven’t been to might lose in favor of not having enough money to make the journey. In that case, explore a part of the city or state you haven’t been to yet. Keep it local by going to a museum or art gallery you’ve always wanted to visit that you never quite got around to. This also adds to our number 2 listed above and provides you and your family with a memorable experience as well as brain food for thought.

If at all possible, do try to leave your laptop behind at home. This ensures that the device stays safe and also keeps the temptation of attempting to log into your Facebook account at bay.

Unless you have an iPhone. Then you might want to have someone keep that out of your reach…

Happy Memorial Day everyone!

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Awesome Affiliates: Company.com

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MyCorporation has so many Awesome companies that we are Affiliated with. In our field of company assistance, we have the pleasure of watching all of our affiliates blossom into the companies we know they can be. In this segment of Awesome Affiliates, Company.com (a new social networking site) managed by Kevin Sasser, will be highlighted.

Sum up the function of Company.com.

Company.com is a commercial networking site designed specifically to enable businesses to promote their products and services, find new customers, and build a professional network. In short, Company.com is a platform that enables small to mid-sized businesses make money, save money, and find money.

What sets this social network apart from Linkedin and what does it have to offer that LinkedIn does not?

Our business profile enables our subscribers to build a base of followers, create and distribute deals, and partner with other businesses and engage cross-promotional activities within the system, all for free. While we admire LinkedIn, you will find that they are more focused on the needs of the individual, particularly around recruitment and finding jobs.

Explain how offering deals in the marketplace works and how businesses can spread the word of their deals to other members of Company.com, including people they may not be friends with.

Within Company.com, new subscribers typically start to find and use deals either via a search for “business incorporation” for example or by perusing our Vendor Marketplace. As subscribers discover companies with whom they are affiliated, such as MyCorporation, they can choose to “Follow” them and receive news, updates, and deals. When a subscriber follows a business, their contacts are notified via a status update such as “Kevin is now following MyCorporation.”
As a follower, Kevin will automatically receive any deals that MyCorporation chooses to distribute. This includes any deals from MyCorporation’s partners as well. For example, if MyCorporation partnered with an accounting solution provider, as a benefit of following MyCorporation, Kevin would receive a deal on an accounting solution. The followers of MyCorporation also become the “currency” for
MyCorporation to establish recommendation partnerships within the community.

We have also engaged with marketing partners that market the marketplace services to their customers as an added value of the relationship that already exists between their company and their end user commercial customer. These channel partners also promote, “find new customers in Company.com” through their self enrollment to sell their services in our ecosystem as well as through partnerships.

Do you have plans to start up a blog for company.com?

Today, we have a content area named “Business Advice” that serves double duty as our blog. Very soon, we have a new design that blends our Q&A forum and Advice that will enable our subscribers to have the ability to post their own content and start discussions around that content.

How does “the grid” work? If you update your profile, you will have to pay a bit more for it. What do you offer as incentives for members who decide to get a profile for a price?

For those who want to market their services to the entire Company.com community, subscribers have the option to upgrade their profile to national status which gives them premium placement in search results and access to the product grids in the Vendor Marketplace. The grids are like other traditional internet marketing channels in that the subscriber can control their position and longevity in the grid by adjusting their bid price for clicks and monthly budget. Participation for vendors is self promoted.

What is your long-term plan for company.com? What features in the future do you plan to unveil for the site?

When determining our feature set, we ask “What problems can we solve for our subscribers?” Recently the biggest problem facing small business is access to capital. We addressed that with the Company.com Financial Exchange, which matches businesses with the most productive source of capital. Moving forward our feature set will be intended to enhance the ability of a small business to cost-effectively promote themselves to a target audience, to make better purchasing decisions, and to help members find partners that recommend the services of each other to help grow their businesses.

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Now Launching Corporation.com!

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Business in a Box As Offered By Corporation.com

Today, a former professional QB and lawyer-turned-corporation-owner joined forces to present the ultimate in one-stop shops for small businesses looking to begin their business or entrepreneurs looking to begin a start-up- Corporation.com. Created by Deborah Sweeney, CEO of MyCorporation and Pro Football Hall of Famer turned entrepreneur Fran Tarkenton of OneMoreCustomer, Corporation.com is the destination of choice if you are looking to incorporate or form an LLC, build a website, obtain business consultation services or even just perfect your business plan.

Best of all, you don’t even have to pick and choose which of the above you will purchase. Everything listed above comes as part of the tried and true “business in a box” made so famous by MyCorporation. For the low price of $297 you can invest in one of the best deals available online, the perfect balance between a lawyer and DIY!

Have any questions or curious on whether to form an incorporation or LLC? Visit the Learning Center for all of your biggest queries answered. Need to know some of the partners with Corporation.com? They can be found here. And yes, we still link up our blog and contact information via the new site.

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FREE Public Roundtable Session From One Million By One Million

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Are you an entrepreneur with a pitch you want to share with professionals in your field? Do you have questions about beginning a start-up that haven’t been answered just yet? All of your questions can be answered by signing up for a free public roundtable webinar session from One Million by One Million.

Don’t let the phrase “roundtable” scare you away- the legendary King Arthur and his knights popularized the act of sitting around a roundtable to share thoughts and ideas at. Founder of One Million By One Million, Sramana Mitra, is offering entrepreneurs the chance to publicly discuss issues pertaining to startups, with topics that include positioning, financing, and much more. So why would the phrase “roundtable” scare you? Registration for these live sessions has space accommodating up to 1,000 people. Of the 1,000, only 5 people may register to pitch their ideas before the immense roundtable.

Gulp.

Live chat or not, it’s still a lot of ears listening to what you have to say. And plenty of feedback as well, with all participants allowed to join in to contribute their thoughts.

If you plan on registering to deliver a pitch a) do it quickly! and b) be sure to follow these rules and include in your pitches:

1) A validated customer value proposition
2) Detailed segmentation analysis and target customer definition at a fairly granular level
3) A pragmatic customer acquisition strategy
4) A summary of whatever customer validation work you have done

Be sure that your pitch does not last beyond three minutes and that it consists of four slides modeled after the ones above.

The mission of One Million by One Million is to nurture a million entrepreneurs to reach a goal of a million dollars each by 2020. Founder Sramana Mitra offers entrepreneurs an excellent resource in One Million By One Million’s online educational program and strategy consulting available from private and public online roundtables (private ones for members only, but public ones are free for anyone to register for.)

Get ready to share your business ideas with a great audience by registering for next public roundtable!

Thursday, May 26, 2011, 8 a.m. PDT/11 a.m. EDT/8:30 p.m. IST, Register Here.
Thursday, June 2, 2011, 8 a.m. PDT/11 a.m. EDT/8:30 p.m. IST, Register Here.

For more information on One Million By One Million and how to become a member, be sure to visit their official website here.

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Awesome Affiliates: Lily. B

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MyCorporation is always proud of our entrepreneurs and start-ups as they find their way to success in the big, bad business world. One of our particularly Awesome Affiliates, Lily. B, is now getting the opportunity to feature their products in Costco! They grow-up so fast.

In honor of Lily. B’s big business move, we wanted to do a feature spotlight on the company to show our support.

Lily B. Skincare was founded by Liz Bishop, an adament member of the comsmetic community from birth…literally, her father (also in the industry) named her after one of the pioneers in the industry. She has accumulated over 20 years of personal experince working in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. Basically, she knows her stuff.

With Lily. B Skincare, Liz focuses on women in their 20s and 30s, at that awkward age between acne treatment and heavy wrinkle management. The skincare focused at these women is specific to managing hormonal changes, sleep pattern changes, and the pesky skin effects that are always conveniently paired with stress and diet. Lily. B does this with facial washes, various moisturizers, sunscreen, and eye cream.

Currently, Lily. B is holding a contest in honor of the much anticipated summer season. To enter, visit their Facebook page to find out how you can win your favorite non-profit organization free sunscreen for the summer. What better way is there to give back to those good hearts in your favorite non-proft? They deserve to lie by the pool and munch on some bbq’d corn-on-the-cob while being protected from ultra violet rays and maintaing a fabulous complexion!

Lily. B is featured at apothica, SkinCareByAlona, Ariva Skin Care & Day Spa, Bloom Beautiful Spa, and the newest addition…COSTCO.

Keep up the beautiful work, Lily. B!

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iLike MyCorporation

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Summer, summer, summertime is approaching quickly. What better way to bring in the season with a brand-new iPad? We’re giving away a FREE iPad here at MyCorp to one lucky “liker” on Facebook.

All you have to do is:
1) Visit our Facebook fan page

2) Click “like”

3) Fill out the quick form included.

4) Done!

If you already “like” us on Facebook:

1) Visit our fan page

2) Click “sweepstakes” on the left hand side

3) Click on “enter now” and enter your info for a chance to win!

Have any questions? Visit our Twitter feed and drop us a line! We’re really good about getting back to our messages there.

Refer your friends- it only takes a minute and you could win one of the hottest accessories of the summer for FREE!

iLike MyCorporation. I win a FREE Apple iPad. Simple as pie.

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The 5 Members of the Entrepreneurial Family Tree

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The entrepreneurial family tree is much more diverse than you think. Like most family trees, the branches are wide and the extended family on the entrepreneur side includes many variations off of the main patriarch in question. Much of this tree keeps growing and new terminology is added consistently. Yet the root of the tree is much like the ideal 1950′s family prototype- containing the parents (entrepreneur and mompreneur) and 2.5 kids (solopreneur, intrapreneur, and kidpreneur, respectively). Here are the 5 popular terms cropping up in entrepreneurial family trees all over and what their roles do to enhance and expand the family name.

1) The Entrepreneur

The patriarch and the head honcho of the tree, the entrepreneur is quite simply the one who created and assumes full working responsibility for a business venture. Much like a marriage, entrepreneurs are in it with their business for better or for worse. They create the business plans, handle the operations behind the scenes of the business, and continue to contribute new ideas and methods to make the business run smoother and better.

Entrepreneurs have many relatives on the family tree, all variations on entrepreneurs. Some of these include:

the idealist- the most creative who enjoys pursuing projects that are different and meaningful to their lives. They tend to be artistic and offer a unique perspective.

the optimizer- is most happy just being a business owner. They’re pretty mellow, but still in tune with the needs of the customer and giving their clients what they need.

the hard workers- live up to their name by investing hours to establish a business that will become a multi-million dollar success. They are the workaholics of the tree and are constantly looking for ways to make a business go from good to great.

the jugglers- have their hands in a million projects at once and know how to handle a heavy work load. They thrive on this and can’t imagine being without responsibilities in the business.

2) The Mompreneur

The matriarch of the tree, both a mother and an entrepreneur, she runs the home and the business and has found the fine balance in between. Mompreneurs prove it is possible to shun the corporate traditional workplace in favor of working and having it all without sacrificing anything.

3) The Solopreneur

Defined as the independent professional, solopreneurs are the independent family members that create a business that is simply consisting of a one-man operation. Entrepreneurs build companies with brands that are meant to stand the test of time, with or without them present. Solopreneurs have a limited shelf life on their company and build a brand that is much more personal. They’re perfectly fine being without locations worldwide or millions, so long as they are content.

4) The Intrapreneur

Intrapreneurs may look as though they’re rebelling against the family tree by working for big corporate offices, but look again. Intrapreneurs think and act as entrepreneurs within the corporate environment. They will even go so far as to develop their own product or assume the role of manager within the company.

5) The Kidpreneur

The baby of the family, a kid with all of the same characteristics as an entrepreneur. They’ve got a dream, and they’re going to make it come true. They might have to wait on their dreams a little bit while growing up and going to school, but these kidpreneurs know what they want early on in life and aim to make that want turn into a business.

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