The Source

The year may be winding down, but small-business headlines are buzzing with news of increased small-business optimism, changes in federal regulations, and reports of improved holiday sales over last year's receipts. Here's our roundup of...

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"The customer is always right" became a motto of American commerce more than a century ago. Ever since, it's been a reminder to business owners that customer needs and wants come first, regardless of any...

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Leave Black Friday to the big box stores. Your next big sales day is Small Business Saturday. Last year, consumers bought more than $17 billion in goods and services on SBS, according to American Express....

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Holiday shopping is on the upswing, and expected to continue that trend: End-of-year sales in 2023 rose 3.8 percent over 2022 receipts to $964.4 billion, according to U.S. Census Bureau data compiled by the National...

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Warren Buffett once said, "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it." When you take the speed and global range of the internet into account, his assertion rings truer...

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While Marcy is shopping for flowerpots at her local big-box store, an email comes in on her phone: "Congrats! You now have 300 points to spend in your Happy Valley Nursery Loyal Customer account!" So...

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What are some of the most important metrics of success? Here's a surprise: The number of happy customer reviews you have is probably not one of them — though they certainly help. You need to...

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Starting a business and creating a business plan is a great example of that old saying: The more you know, the more you know you don't know. With that in mind, what are some of...

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The Small Business Administration (SBA) received more than 500 applications for financial assistance after Baltimore's Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed in March. Other recent disaster headlines are reminders that a natural or man-made disaster can...

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