Archive for small business

The Ambiguity of Small Business Definition

admin / June 29, 2011 / No comments

When different people are using the phrase ‘small business’, do they refer to a common set of definitions? Like, how many employees are listed in the payroll? Or, the number of years it’s operative? A literature review of 23 papers, which have been published from 1958 to 2002, tries to shed light on this issue. The review revealed an inconsistency regarding both characterization and definition of small business. The variety of definition used in these papers unable to set an agreeable format for small business definition. Mayer and Goldstein (1961) define small business as an employer of less then 200 employees. Potts (1977) set the barrier on 20 employees in addition to a minimum eight years that the business is operative. Robinson (1982) define firm as small if the number of employees is less then 50, the annual sales is under three million dollars and it’s operate as sole ownership. Covin and Slevin (1989) define small business according to number of employees – more then five or less then 500, as well as a minimum of five years that the business is operative. Rue and Ibrahim (1998) define small firm as an employer of more then 15 employees. Perry (2001) set an upper limit of 500 employees as a sole identifier for business to be regard as small. The review clarify that the ambiguity is stable over time. The lack of uniform definition in the sixtieth continued throughout the decades into the millennium. The industries targeted by the different scholars do have one common base; the focus was on industries with low to average economic growth such as manufacturing, trade (retail, wholesale) and service.

Scholars have addressed the problematicalness regarding the inconsistency of small business definition for quite time, Golde (1964) which examine small manufacturing employers with less then 500 employees, argue that it’s an arbitrarily definition which can adequately feet non manufacturing firms. Welsh and White (1981) claims that small business tend to group in certain industries, such as – wholesalers, retailers, service and manufacturing. Peterson et al., (1986) note that the most common definition is the one that used by the Small Business Administration (SBA), in part, that definition state that small business can be define as one if both its ownership and operation conducted independently, and it’s not dominant at the industry which is operate in. D’amboise and Muldowney (1988) write about the complexity of small business definition, which can be a result of the variety and different types of firms this phrase try to encompass. Pickle and Abrahamson (1990) address the question, what is a small business? There answer is that some will regard small business as such if it’s employ certain number of employees, others will claim that small business is one that limits his operation to local market, and part will classify business as small according to it’s nature (e.g., local pharmacy, clothing store, jewelry store).

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Expanding Your Small Business

admin / June 24, 2011 / No comments

If you own a business, chances are you’ve already considered expansion in some respect – whether in terms of product and service offerings, marketing operations, or the number of staff you employ. What’s more, the size of your business has likely had great influence on your ideas of expansion. For instance, small businesses often start with a base set of products or services, limited marketing, and a modest number of staff – ultimately working towards expansion in all of these areas.

There are a number of ways to expand your small business, and countless tools that can help you do it. And interestingly enough, one prominent business expansion tool also happens to be one of the world’s most widely used resources: the Internet. The Internet holds a wealth of information, resources, contacts and more to help you expand your small business in a way that’s right for you.

For example, if you’re looking to expand your business in terms of product or service offerings, you’re likely to need an additional base of suppliers. And what better place to source those suppliers than through the Internet? The Internet can return countless results via a search for specialised suppliers, enabling you to sort through your options and choose the most suitable suppliers based on your business goals.

Alternatively, you might want to expand your small business with regard to product and service promotion – something which can be achieved via online videos, blogs, news articles, or email updates to your clients. The online world happens to be one of the most powerful promotional tools available to business owners, quite simply because it’s so widely used the world over.

However, what if you simply want to increase your number of staff? Once again, the Internet can be one of the most useful resources available for staff recruitment. It’s a fact: countless people search for jobs online, everyday. So if you place job postings online, you’ll get the most exposure – and the highest number of applicants – for your post. The higher the number of applicants, the higher the chances you’ll find the staff you’re looking for.

However, in utilising the Internet for your business expansion operations, it’s worth remembering that certain types of Internet services adhere better to businesses. For instance, you can find specialised business broadband deals which offer higher – and often unlimited – broadband usage, increased speeds, mobile broadband services and more, ultimately giving you better access to the tools you need to help you operate and expand your business.

Therefore, it could prove worthwhile to enquire about business broadband in your area, and discover what this dedicated service can do for your business.

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Finding grants for small business in Canada becomes easy with some tips

admin / June 22, 2011 / No comments

To establish a small business in Canada the first thing you need to find out is some small business grants for funding your business. It is not an easy task although to locate the best available grants in Canada. Most of the small business grants Canada government offers are restricted to some specific types of business at specific locations. And to avail those, you have to abide by certain terms and conditions and invest some amount of personal money as well.

Though there are quite a few subsidies for funding small business, to find out a small business grant you have to search really hard. You have to know where to look for to get a grant which would not have too many terms and conditions and will be easy to avail. As there is no readymade list available for the small business grants Canada government has, to follow some guidelines would always be helpful to make the search less difficult.

If you log on to the websites of Canada government, you will rarely find the term “small business grants”. This is because the government offers very limited grants for small business. Instead of searching for small business grants Canada, you can look for contributions, subsidies, rebates, tax rebates, shared costs, or non-repayable loans. This can be helpful because through these searches you can find out some non-repayable funding for your small business, which can actually serve the purpose of a small business grant.

Businesses which fulfill the criteria of availing grants from Canada government or those located in areas which are specified for government grants, can obtain the small business grants Canada easily. But for other businesses, obtaining funds may be slightly difficult. In Canada, retail businesses receive the least funding from government grants. And businesses located at a particular area get more grants than those of other areas. So, you must plan to locate your small business accordingly to get the best possible grants.

The core sites of the Canadian government are helpful in providing the lists of small business grants Canada government assists with. The Industry Canada Website will give you information about the available government grants in your region. Another such helpful core site is Canada Business Network. And you can also visit the regional Business Service Centre websites, some of which will have helpful information on small business grants.

To make your search more specific, you can look for grants which are available for the particular type of small business that you want to start. Searching on the Canada Business Website by Business Sector can be helpful. Searching through search engine may also useful if you know where to look for.

If your business will be involved in exporting, research and development, or improvement of the environment, chances of getting a small business grant for your small business will be much higher. Special emphasis are now given on developing alternative energy sources and green energy options.

Though the small business grants Canada government offers are few in number, by putting yourself at the right position, you can easily avail the grants for funding your small business.

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