When contributing writer Carol Tice wrote about the ROI of networking online, comments from readers revealed their uncertainty over the value of sites like Twitter and Facebook. So when LinkedIn--a site specifically designed for networking purposes--changed its user policy to limit the number of connections a person could have to 30,000, Entrepreneur.com investigated its potential effect on small-business owners and entrepreneurs.

Can LinkedIn's recent cap hurt entrepreneurs? Pick a side.
read more...

Last night was the network television premiere of "Shark Tank," a new reality series featuring desperate entrepreneurs trying to sell their business ideas to a panel of five millionaire investors. If judges like what they see, they'll negotiate (or attack each other) for a piece of the venture. More often than not, though, contestants just get chewed up. But hey, with credit markets the way they are, what else can business owners do?

Entrepreneur.com had a chance to speak with each of the "sharks" about the show and their personal successes, so over the next five weeks, we'll be sharing these interviews on the Daily Dose. Stay tuned. read more...

In the shadow of Michael Jackson's public memorial in Los Angeles, the value of Jackson's legacy seems to be growing.

Already, t-shirt and memorabilia entrepreneurs are on the move outside the venue where the memorial is taking place. Jimmy Jam of Jimmy's Jam T-Shirts in South Los Angeles says he's received orders from across the country for custom silkscreen designs in the king of pop's honor. Most of the customers want to turn around and sell the tops, he says. read more...

Global wealth indicators may have plummeted to record lows this year, but the "real-life superhero" movement is on the upswing. According to a CNN piece earlier this month, the number of people who are taking on superhero identities (and donning outfits to match) has risen more than 25 percent since last summer. People disillusioned by a downtrodden economy, the article suggests, are finding renewed purpose by assuming superhuman alter egos as they "perform community service, help the homeless and even fight crime."

That may seem odd, but the link between superheroes and periods of economic uncertainty is hardly new. Many of the most famous--Superman and Batman chief among them--debuted as comic book stars around the time of the Great Depression and WWII.

read more...

For entrepreneurs, "Rumplestiltskin" probably ranks low on the list of required reading, but one lesson should come through loud and clear: names are serious business. In fact, coming up with the right name is probably the single-most important branding concern for a business, says Jay Jurisich, creative director of San Francisco-based naming and branding agency Igor. He is also the founder of WordLab, a website that offers free naming resources and discussion forums.

According to Jurisich, a good name demonstrates your brand and your values. A bad name forces you to resort to explaining and advertising. In the Igor Naming Guide, Jurisich breaks down naming pros and cons in four broad categories, showing why some are powerful and others are just plain yawn-inducing. read more...

The adult entertainment industry isn't the only one feeling snubbed by Congress: Travel and tourism also wants a break, at least as far as travel-bashing is concerned.  

That's because business travel (and all travel, really) is way, way down. Some of that is because companies are trying to save money; but another reason stems from policymakers' response to allegedly over-the-top junkets by firms like AIG, whose mismanagement of bailout money (after receiving billions, the company sent execs to a plush resort in California, where they reportedly spent more than $440,000) fueled cries against further "despicable" behavior. In this case, the criticisms may have been deserved, but companies preferring to err on the side of caution have made an unwitting victim of an entire sector of the economy.

read more...

"Join the entrepreneur movement. Stimulate the economy. Spread the word."

That's the description for a sleekly designed video released by the newly re-branded Grasshopper (formerly gotvmail), a company that provides advanced business phone solutions for entrepreneurs.

read more...

Moms are getting a raw deal during this recession. They were early to give up their own material wants during Christmas, but where their children are concerned, it's not exactly a two-way street.

The National Retail Federation and industry research firm IBISWorld have unveiled some depressing projections for Mother's Day, coming up Sunday. NRF's 2009 Mother's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey places total spending at $14.1 billion (just above $12.73 billion in 2009 Easter spending), noting that Americans will spend an average of $123.89 per person, down from $138.63 last year. IBISWorld expects gift giving to drop a steep 14.7 percent, to a mere $12.9 billion (just 1.6 percent of the amount the government will spend on the stimulus).
read more...

Consider Salary.com's 2008 Wasting Time at Work survey, which concluded that a "record number" of people waste time at work, up nearly 16 percent from 2007. That doesn't bode well for employers, you might think--and before Wednesday, I would have thought so, too.

I would also have considered computer games a form of "personal internet use," a category that tops the survey's list of popular time-wasting activities. Again, as I discovered, maybe not. read more...

As an entrepreneur, the internet is arguably your best friend--you thrive on its endless supply of free marketing, e-business and communications tools. But it can also be your worst enemy--a web of timewasters that can be tough to escape from. In fact, the very online tools you depend on to run your business can distract you from running it.

If you're a Mac user, there's hope--no, not from your tragic hipness, but at least from losing time online. It's called Freedom, and, despite what the Second-Amendment crowd might tell you, it is, in fact, free. read more...