If you've been looking for a catalyst--something to make you really ratchet up the volume on your business success, or start a brand-new business--maybe a contest could provide that spark. Here's three going on right now that offer not just recognition but money and services that could help your business grow.

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As sales dropped, many small businesses piled up debt over the past two years. Many businesses were kept on life support using charge cards--creditcards.com reports they're now the most common form of business debt, with 44 percent of owners using them in the past year--up from 16 percent in 1993.

I spoke recently with business-tax expert Linda Keith about concrete steps small businesses can take in 2010 to reduce their debt. Her advice: read more...

By Feb. 1, half of all New Year's resolutions are already over. So Staples is trying to help business owners stick with their resolutions by declaring it Motivation Monday -- a day for owners to review and renew their commitment to their business goals for 2010.

How are you doing with your business resolutions? Did you perhaps vow to rev up your marketing, do more in-person networking, have a company retreat, make a key hire? If your priorities for improving your business have slipped onto the back burner, now's the time to rev them up again. read more...

Small-business owners had to be happy to see President Barack Obama devote much of the front half of his State of the Union Address last night to jobs and the concerns of entrepreneurs. But will it translate into action? And are the proposals enough?

The International Franchise Association fired off a press release about it this morning that may sum up much of the reaction from small-business owners: It was titled "President's Job Proposals are a Good Start, But More is Needed." IFA applauded Obama's request to Congress for new, targeted tax relief for small businesses, especially incentives for hiring new workers or giving existing employees raises. Thumbs-up also to the proposal to make investment in small-business tax-free.

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While some small-business owners continue to groan over the slowness of federal movement to aid them, many states are stepping up with their own assistance programs. Some of the aid is trickling down from the federal stimulus bill, some comes from state and local agencies, while some funds seem to be flowing from nonprofits and other organizations.

If you're looking for financial assistance for your business, it's time to investigate the options closer to home--you may be surprised at how much help is out there.

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There hasn't been a zanier year in recent memory to try to do some tax planning for business owners. But there are a few basic strategies that are sure to work, no matter what Congress does in 2010.

For those who don't closely follow the tax scene, there are a heck of a lot of provisions up in the air, awaiting Congressional review. For instance, this is supposed to be the year the estate tax falls to zero for just one year. But don't bet on it, as President Barack Obama has indicated he's not in favor of this single-year tax break and wants 2010 estate taxes set to a level similar to other recent years. At the same time, expect activist business groups such as the American Family Business Institute to campaign for a permanent repeal of this "death tax."

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A couple of recent articles have spotlighted one often-overlooked way to build your business: Listen to customer complaints and change your business in response to what customers say they need.

In one recent article, specialty frozen dog-food company owner Marie Moody frankly describes how she tuned out customer complaints at first because "my gut told me I knew what was best for the company." Sales were small. 

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No issue has polarized the small-business community in recent years like healthcare reform. With Congress back in session, all eyes will be on the lawmakers tackling the daunting task of reconciling the House and Senate versions of the healthcare reform bill. read more...

The new year is a great time to take in new ideas for growing your business. Here's several intriguing books that recently hit my shelf--in some cases, my virtual shelf.

Here's an upcoming book, due out next month, that sounds really useful for today's economy: Flip the Funnel: How to Use Existing Customers to Gain New Ones by Joseph Jaffe. Retaining customers is the new customer acquisition, Jaffe says. The marketer and author of the Jaffe Juice blog offers his tips for how to keep existing customers and grow your relationships with them.

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We all know that banks aren't lending like they used to, and the outlook for 2010 doesn't seem to offer much hope. One southern business journal recently called the small-business lending climate "dire."  While SBA-backed loan volume accelerated in the third quarter last year, so did default rates. The Wall Street Journal called the outlook "bleak." 

But there's been less talk about why lending continues to flounder, despite President Barack Obama's December appeal to banks to up their small-business lending and call for more legislation to assist the sector. In talking with many bankers myself over the past few months for articles I'm writing, I've heard one reason stated repeatedly for turning down loan applications.

It's sales. They suck.

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