Here is this week’s round-up of technology news small business owners may find informative, useful or entertaining:

• Small Web Businesses Crucial to Economy, Industry Leaders Say - Experts suggest they play a vital role in stimulating the economy of the US
• Small and Midsize Businesses’ IT Security Budgets ‘Recession-Proof’ - The majority of SME owners view IT security as vital and will not cut spending even during a recession
• Using computing and technology to grow your business - Some tips how you could improve productivity by introducing new technology
• The 10 Most Disruptive Technology Combinations - An interesting list of technological combinations that have changed entire industries
• Why Good Data Can Be Hard To Find - This article examines why Web statistics can be inaccurate and hard to collate
• 25 leading-edge IT research projects - These are the technological developments that universities are exploring
• Patent Boss Admits that the Patent Office Keeps Getting Flooded By More & More Bad Patents – The patent system in its current form appears to be fundamentally flawed
• AT&T: Internet to hit full capacity by 2010 - Rich media content estimated to slow the Web unless significant investment made to upgrade capacity
• Ebay considers sale of Skype subsidiary - The auction giant likely to make at least a $1.42 billion loss on re-sale of VOIP company
• PayPal denies plan to block Safari - Earlier reports were false
• Bluetooth surveillance secretly tested in the city of Bath – Up to 10,000 Bath residents had their movements secretly tracked via Bluetooth technology over a six month period as part of a University research project
• Appeals court uphold search of laptop at LAX – The ruling means US airport security are able to search any laptop even without any level of suspicion
• Wi-Fi users to be monitored in Russia – A Russian law will require all devices that can use Wi-Fi to be registered
• Ballmer: Vista a ‘work in progress’ - Microsoft CEO admits a lot is still needed to be done with Vista
• Yahoo rewiring itself from the inside out - Yahoo announced a huge change in direction this week, whilst Microsoft gave the first hint that their potential $44 billion merger may be off
• Live Mesh: First Look at Microsoft’s New Platform – A sneak peek at Microsoft’s new attempt to tie all our data together
• Microsoft plans Office subscription service - A new content subscription service from Microsoft could replace their yearly updated Office suite
• Microsoft quietly offering ad-funded Works - If you purchase a new computer in the UK it may unexpectedly come with a free copy of Microsoft Works funded on advertisements
• How Apple Is Preparing for an iPod Slump – Apple have been working hard on their other products as the iPod reaches market saturation
• iPhone sellers braced for hit on unsold handsets - UK retailers will soon be forced to sell the iPhone cheap to prepare for the new 3G model coming in the Summer
• Spambot cracks Windows Live Hotmail CAPTCHA - This will now require a move to more sophisticated image-based authentication methods of telling humans apart from machines such as this
• Wikipedia to be converted to a book in Germany - The online dictionary is ironically set to be released as a book

I had an interesting conversation about my view that management control over employees is a myth. I have believed for some time now that an office is often a total waste of money and completely unnecessary. Most of the time I’m told it’s OK when you work by yourself, but not if you have employees, as they need to be supervised and somehow “controlled”.

I have now been working for almost ten years from home, and most of my staff works from home too. Apart from being an eco-friendly way to work, it saves people time and frustration to travel in and around London to come to an office, where we all sit in cubicles or offices. In the days of broadband internet, Skype and OnlineOffice, there is no need for an office, even to have meetings.

Offices, like cars are are often nothing else but status symbols - what other reason can there be for a small business to have an office? If that is true then how is the office helping with your business, it’s a big expense. Seriously, if you do not have clients coming thru your office doors several times every day, why have the office. Even if you have, do really all your people need to be in the office every day? I guess not!

We are in an economic downturn, what is more important - your ego or your business - ask yourself that every time you walk into your office. I’m sure there a good reasons for some micro businesses to have offices, even so I currently can’t think of any, but I’m convinced in most cases a healthy bootstrapping and outsourcing mentality would be more beneficial for your business.

Unless the first business goal is to feed your egomania, you need to have a good hard look at your cost structure to survive in these times. — ST.

I recently spoke with one of my readers about his small business, when she all of a sudden declared she felt like a business failure. I was somewhat surprised by her statement as I thought she had established a nice little business, was making enough money and had a good work/life balance. She explained that someone had started in her line of business and his business had grown faster and she felt she could not compete with this business, she still worked form home while this competitor had already opened the third shop in the the state. She almost declared herself a failure. I asked her what her intention had been for her business when she started.

She began to explain, that she wanted to work from home since she wanted to be home for her child and still have an income and not lose touch with the work she loved. It was always clear to her that she could only spend about 10 - 20 hours of work per week, but that would give her the income and the professional life she needed, while getting her work/life balance right.

As she was telling me about her business, she began to lighten up - as she realized she had done exactly what she set out to do - far from a failure she was a success. She had made the same mistake we all make from time to time, she had compared herself to a business that clearly had different goals. Sometimes our ego gets the better of us or in cases like this the worst of us, which is why I believe it important to write your goals down on a piece of paper and look at it each week, to help you to focus and realign your actions with your goals.

Any business is only a failure when it is literately failing, like running out of money failing, if that is not the case you are a successful business. Looking at the competition is all about seeing what is happening in the market and learning from the comparison how to achieve your vision and goals, not to limit yourself to what your competition is doing.

The vision for your business should go beyond comparing yourself to your competition, comparing yourself will often limit your vision. — ST.

Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from the United Kingdom and Ireland:

• Key Management Skills Hold Back UK SMEs: Government agency the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA)has blamed ‘business conditions’ in the UK and the unwillingness to invest in ‘key management training’ as the stumbling blocks for small businesses attempting to turn their enterprise into world leaders such as Microsoft and Google.
• SMEs In Queens Awards For Enterprise 2008: 4fx Healthcare, a Nottinghamshire business employing just three people, has been recognised alongside 150 businesses earning this years Queens Award for Enterprise.
• Barroso to propose small firms law: The European Commission President is to bring forward a small business act in June to reduce legal and administrative red tape.
• FPB calls for procurement of government contractors to be made more accessible to smaller businesses: The FPB is calling for the process of bidding for public contracts to be made more accessible to small businesses, following an investigation which concluded that many big construction companies have colluded over the pricing of tenders.
• ISME calls for wage freeze: The independent business organisation, ISME, has called for a wage freeze for the next 12 months, to provide what they call a “breathing space” for many labour intensive small businesses who are experiencing a negative impact of a slowing economy.
• Business groups back reservists: The leaders of three small business organisations visit Afghanistan to highlight the need for firms to help reservists.
• $6bn fund to cover bad debts at Bank of America: US homeowners with second mortgages, housebuilders and small business owners are among those now defaulting on loans in increasing numbers, the nation’s largest retail bank warned yesterday.
• Online presence Important to small firms: An online presence can be a very important part of raising the profile of a small business, an expert has asserted.

As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.

It can be difficult to keep track of all the local events that are taking place, often because the information is spread across numerous sources such as local newspapers or even the local news on television. A community event website would be a smart way of using technology to make it more convenient for people to get access to this information all in one place. This is unlikely to become a major business, but it could generate some additional income for you via paid advertising and sponsorship.  

Skills needed: You will need to have basic computing skills in order to maintain the website. If you have programming knowledge you will be able to build your own database and website, otherwise you will have to pay someone else to develop these for you. A background in marketing would be useful as you will need to generate high levels of traffic.  

Business environment and set-up cost:  There is little international potential (except for tourists looking to find out about your local area) unless you become very successful and expand into some kind of portal for community events over a larger area. This could be a cheap business to set up if you have your own computer equipment and are competent enough to build a website. You will need to invest in both online and offline marketing in order to generate traffic. The overall cost will vary from £1,000 to £5,000.  

Marketing Techniques:  

• Participate in the pay-per-click schemes of the popular search engines
• Become mutually linked with as many local websites as possible
• Allow people to sign up to be informed via e-mail when an event is listed in a category that interests them
• Use a viral ‘Tell a Friend’ campaign to get people to forward event details to people they know
• Work together with event organisers to offer coupons and discounts and set up an opt-in mailing list to distribute them
• Use banner advertising on websites that local people are sure to frequent (e.g. the website of the local free paper)
• Use OnlineOffice to set up web-site, blog and online shop to promote your business online

Complimentary business ideas: Arrange with event organisers to sell tickets through your website on their behalf and take a small percentage or cover charge as commission.  

Notes: Your information must be reliable and constantly updated. If you choose to sell tickets you must have a delivery system in place.  

Online examples & resources:  

• Leicestershire What’s On – A basic guide provided by the council
• Bracknell Forest Borough Council – Another example of an event site run by the council
• Where Can We Go – A what’s on guide for the United Kingdom

Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from India:

• Tax sop for SMEs may extend: Minister for information technology and communications A Raja has said that the govt may extend the income tax holiday to small and marginal information technology (IT) companies beyond 2009.
• Infotech focuses on SMEs: HP has now launched 25 new printing solutions in the Asia Pacific market. These include SME optimised colour printers that will help SMEs design their marketing material in-house.
• Small IT cos may get tax holiday beyond 2009: Government may extend income tax holidays to small and marginal IT companies beyond 2009.
• Focus on small and marginal farmers: In a state like Jammu and Kashmir, it is the rural society and agriculture, which play an important role in transforming the economy. One of the major concerns hampering the smooth growth has been the unexplored potential of the state’s agriculture sector. We have seen that the agricultural productivity has remained low for several decades and investment in agriculture sector has been stagnant. The growth of agriculture is nowhere matching to its potential. The small and marginal farmers who
• Short selling to start on April 21: India’s equity markets are all set to gain some more depth. Come April 21 and life will be different for many retail and institutional investors as
• Indian Chinese businessmen game for M&As: A positive attitude exists among private business owners in emerging economies toward mergers and acquisitions.

As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.

Here are some legal requirements to bear in mind when starting your own business:  

• Health and Safety – Legislation such as the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 means that you have a responsibility to protect the ‘health, safety and welfare’ of your employees
• Data Privacy – In the UK there are strict rules governing how personal data is managed, these were set out in the 1998 Data Protection Act
• Insurance – There is a minimum level of insurance required by law, but it would be prudent to insure everything because the risks of not doing so are great (e.g. damage to stock)
• Minimum Wage – In 90% of countries there is a minimum wage required by law that workers cannot be paid less than
• Recruitment – There are strict guidelines about what can be done during the recruitment process in regards to advertising for employees and deciding who to select, in order to guard against discrimination of any form (age, race, sex, disability etc.)
• Industry specific requirements – Depending on which industry you are entering there may be specific legal requirements (e.g. opening a nursery would require an inspection of premises and employees would need a criminal record check)
• Import / Export – There are country specific rules regarding import and export of products and these should be researched if you plan on doing this
• Copyrights – Make sure you are not infringing copyright as part of your advertising or with the products you sell
• Taxation – You must follow stringent guidelines relating to value-added tax and corporate taxation

For advice on any of these issues, it is advisable to consult a legal professional  

Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from Australia and New Zealand:

• Get a Jump on the web: CASH-strapped small businesses know a website will open them up to the world - but too often they skimp on marketing and it fails.
• Going green without going into the red: Small businesses are looking at waysto be more green without breaking the bank. Sustainability was the focus of eight seminars at Auckland’s Small Business Expo at the ASB Showgrounds yesterday. Owners and staff of small businesses…
• Owner plans to take expo overseas: The owner of the Small Business Expo brand is aiming to franchise the event overseas. The three-day expo, running at Auckland’s ASB Showgrounds this week, is in its fourth year and expanded to Wellington and Christchurch last year….
• Chasing a sure bet: WITH one small business successfully up and running, Brooke Pendlebury has now embarked on her second enterprise.
• Angels to the rescue: WITH small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) providing half the nation’s jobs, and 75 per cent of job growth, keeping the sector sustainable is a priority.

As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.

Although the price of computing equipment has fallen steadily in recent years, there is still a large market of people who cannot afford the cost of purchasing a new system. Selling used computers online cuts out the huge expenditure of having a shop, so if you have good computing knowledge this could be an excellent part-time opportunity for you on the side.  

You will mainly be selling refurbished computers and parts, but you may wish to generate extra income by allowing people to place classified ads on your site. It will be necessary for you to keep a good inventory in stock at all times, although the scale of the business can vary depending on how much time you wish to dedicate to it.  

Skills needed: You will need to know about computer assembly in order to repair the systems you are selling.  

Business environment and set-up cost:  It is definitely possible that this business will have international potential. However, there are some barriers like shipping costs, tax and exchange rates that may make dealing with certain countries unprofitable. The cost of starting up this business will vary from £5,000 to £25,000 based on how much equipment you already own and the amount of inventory you wish to keep in stock.  

Marketing Techniques:  

• Participate in the pay-per-click schemes of the popular search engines
• Become mutually linked with computer related websites and link directories
• Become involved in computing newsgroups and forums and include your website link in a catchy signature
• Develop a mailing list for visitors to your website to sign up to and make sure you add regular content (such as computer tips) that will remind them to visit
• Have a ‘Monthly Specials’ section on your website highlighting your good deals and allow visitors to register to get informed when you update it
• Use OnlineOffice to set up web-site, blog and online shop to promote your business online

Complimentary business ideas: You could sell software packages in addition to the systems or form an alliance with software companies to provide referrals  

Notes: It will be vital for you to check parts and systems thoroughly, because if there are faults then it will reflect very badly on your company. Another thing to remember is that your products will have to be very securely packaged for shipping purposes because if they are damaged in transit you will be held responsible.  

Online examples & resources:  

• PartsPlease – A search engine to help you find the parts you need
• Comprenew – An environmentally friendly approach to disposing of old computer equipment

Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from Canada:

• Web Marketing all about focus, says expert: Many small businesses will spend thousands of dollars on websites, yet won’t market them properly, says David Cree, an Internet marketing consultant.
• Zagros left off Iraq list: A small Calgary company exploring for oil in Kurdistan is in limbo after it was left off a list of eligible companies to work in Iraq.
• Court recognizes law firms as council for small - investor holders of ABCP: Juroviesky and Ricci LLP and Shibley Righton LLP get the nod from Ontario Superior Court to act as co-counsel in fight over frozen paper
• Mobius in talks for Iraq private equity investment: “There are smaller companies in manufacturing, the services and food industries that are keen for investment.”
• Bell Canada adds Hosted VoIP service for Small and Medium Business: Bell Canada today announced the launch of Business IP Voice, an exciting new addition to its portfolio of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) products designed for Canadian small and medium businesses (SMB). Business IP Voice offers choice for customers that want to leverage Internet-based voice services that are affordable, easy-to- use, and drive business opportunities

As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.