<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665</id><updated>2011-07-08T04:32:52.761-07:00</updated><title type='text'>iSearchBusiness</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>26</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-5104346066189581579</id><published>2009-06-25T10:50:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-25T10:50:02.005-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Shipping &amp; Mailing</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/9.htm"&gt;Shipping &amp;amp; Mailing&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The United States Postal Service recently launched its Commercial Plus service, which offers volume discounts for businesses that do a lot of shipping. We mean A LOT. If you ship 6,000 or more pieces of Express Mail per year, you can get a volume discount of 14.5%. If you ship 100,000 or more pieces of priority mail, you’re eligible for a 7% discount. To qualify, businesses must use a USPS-approved postage system.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a class="commentsLink" href="http://www.blogger.com/"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-5104346066189581579?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/5104346066189581579/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-shipping-mailing.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5104346066189581579'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5104346066189581579'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-shipping-mailing.html' title='Help Your Business: Shipping &amp; Mailing'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-4209889112118946448</id><published>2009-06-24T10:47:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-24T10:47:00.357-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Car Rentals</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/8.htm"&gt;Car Rentals&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To get the best rate on cars, try &lt;a href="http://www.kayak.com/"&gt;Kayak.com &lt;/a&gt;and &lt;a href="http://www.hotwire.com/"&gt;Hotwire.com&lt;/a&gt;, which scour dozens of sources to find the best local rates. &lt;a href="http://www.zipcar.com/"&gt;Zipcar &lt;/a&gt;and &lt;a href="http://www.hertz.com/"&gt;Hertz&lt;/a&gt; offer car shares. For airport parking, &lt;a href="http://www.longtermparking.com/"&gt;LongTermParking.com &lt;/a&gt;is a national database of coupons for discounts at parking lots close to airports.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-4209889112118946448?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/4209889112118946448/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-car-rentals.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4209889112118946448'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4209889112118946448'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-car-rentals.html' title='Help Your Business: Car Rentals'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-5214213545891947289</id><published>2009-06-23T10:45:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-23T10:45:00.234-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Professional Services</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/7.htm"&gt;Professional Services&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Cash may be king, but 2009 may see the resurgence of bartering. That’s how dog trainer Cassera got "free" accounting and legal work done. "The economy is bad, but so are dogs," Cassera says. Luckily for Cassera, both his lawyer and his accountant had unruly pooches. In return for getting the pets to behave, Cassera received advice on branding and logos and help on his estimated taxes. If a more formal agreement appeals to you, U-Exchange and ITEX are just two of many barter sites that help businesses find suitable bartering partners in any state. Remember: You’ll usually need to pay taxes on the fair-market value of the goods and services exchanged via barter.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For good rates on legal basics, such as incorporating or developing a trademark, you might try LegalZoom.com. To form a limited partnership, for instance, you answer a series of questions online about you, your partners, and the business. LegalZoom’s staff then creates the necessary forms and files them. The economy package for a limited partnership costs $150. For the true DIYer, Nolo offers free templates of documents you need to create trusts, wills, and business partnerships. It also offers upgraded services, where attorneys help file your paperwork once you submit it online.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-5214213545891947289?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/5214213545891947289/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-professional.html#comment-form' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5214213545891947289'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5214213545891947289'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-professional.html' title='Help Your Business: Professional Services'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-5230709463484671112</id><published>2009-06-22T10:45:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-22T12:00:01.532-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Helping Your Business: Utilities</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/6.htm"&gt;Utilities&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;About half of states have deregulated their electricity markets, which means you may be able to get a better deal by comparing providers. Some utilities also offer level payment plans, letting you sign up for fixed monthly payments based on an estimate of your year’s consumption. In some cases the company continues to record your usage each month. If you use less than the forecast, you’ll get a refund at the end of the year. Another option: time-of-use plans. These divide the day into peak, mid-peak, and off-peak hours. The more you can shift your energy use to mid- and off-peak hours, the more you’ll save. Pacific Gas &amp; Electric, in California, offers savings of nearly 70% for shifting use to off-peak hours.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-5230709463484671112?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/5230709463484671112/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/helping-your-business-utilities.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5230709463484671112'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5230709463484671112'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/helping-your-business-utilities.html' title='Helping Your Business: Utilities'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-3287451211091837593</id><published>2009-06-20T10:44:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-22T11:59:53.579-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Phone Servie</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/5.htm"&gt;Phone Service&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paying big bucks to talk on the phone is so 1990s. Instead, piggyback on your Internet connection and make most of your phone calls using the Internet. Skype lets you make unlimited free international calls; magicJack takes care of the local ones. It’s free to connect with other callers within the Skype network. You can use SkypeOut to make unlimited domestic or international calls to those who don’t use Skype for $24 and $120 annually, respectively. Basic Skype requires a special headset with a microphone that plugs into your computer. MagicJack lets you make free domestic calls on traditional phone lines, but you need to buy the $39.95 jack, which plugs into your computer. After a year, renewal costs $19.95. Your computer needs to be on for you to make calls.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-3287451211091837593?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/3287451211091837593/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-phone-servie.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3287451211091837593'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3287451211091837593'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-phone-servie.html' title='Help Your Business: Phone Servie'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-6342890693818622026</id><published>2009-06-19T10:43:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-22T11:59:48.418-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Labor</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/4.htm"&gt;Labor&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Think interns. Start by visiting the job placement office of your local college. Nelson approached professors at Georgia Institute of Technology in 2003 to find students who would design an online coupon database for her. They did it for free. "Software development is very expensive, but I was at a point where I could not grow without it," Nelson says. Once her business turned a profit, she set up a $25,000 endowment at the school.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Another option is Elance, an online marketplace where you can hire contract workers for specific tasks. You post a description of your project, and providers write back with proposals and pricing. You vet the contractors, with help from an eBay-like ratings system, and choose the best—and/or cheapest—one.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-6342890693818622026?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/6342890693818622026/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-labor.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/6342890693818622026'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/6342890693818622026'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-labor.html' title='Help Your Business: Labor'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-3498587589787360169</id><published>2009-06-18T10:41:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-22T11:59:39.938-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Office Equipment</title><content type='html'>Office Equipment&lt;br /&gt;Printers, desks, telephones, and monitors are the lifeblood of your business, and they can be costly. For big-ticket items, head to the "free" section on &lt;a href="http://www.craigslist.com"&gt;craigslist&lt;/a&gt; or freecycle listings. If you’re willing to pick through offers for floral love seats, Star Wars figurines, and ’70s-era shag rugs, you’ll also likely stumble on Epson printers, Ikea desks, file cabinets, and shelving, and they won’t cost you a penny. You can list your needs there as well. Gary Cassera, owner of Balanced Dog, a Marlton (N.J.) dog walking and training business with about $100,000 in sales, says he found three free kennel cages by posting on craigslist. “Most times these things just sit in people’s garages,” Cassera explains.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Then there are yard sales, the Salvation Army, Goodwill, and your local thrift store. Companies going out of business often donate what they can’t otherwise get rid of, says Jeff Yeager, author of The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches. "A week does not go by when I don’t go to a thrift store," he says&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-3498587589787360169?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/3498587589787360169/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-office-equipment.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3498587589787360169'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3498587589787360169'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-office-equipment.html' title='Help Your Business: Office Equipment'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-1074951236040656966</id><published>2009-06-17T10:38:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-16T10:41:13.455-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Helping Your Busines: Meals &amp; Entertainment</title><content type='html'>Nothing says cheap—or tacky—like whipping out a coupon to pay for a business meal or drinks. Register your credit card at &lt;a href="http://www.rewardsnetwork.com/"&gt;rewardsnetwork.com &lt;/a&gt;and you’ll get discounts of up to 15% at about 10,000 bars, restaurants, and clubs nationally. The discount applies automatically and shows up as a deduction from the total cost of the bill on your statement. It’s free to join and you can register up to five cards. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/1.htm"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By Jeremy Quittner&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-1074951236040656966?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/1074951236040656966/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/helping-your-busines-meals.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1074951236040656966'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1074951236040656966'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/helping-your-busines-meals.html' title='Helping Your Busines: Meals &amp; Entertainment'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-2661608316625821715</id><published>2009-06-16T10:36:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-16T10:38:21.325-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Help Your Business: Cut Costs</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0605_running_business_cheap/1.htm"&gt;A great article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By Jeremy Quittner&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Pinch Every Penny&lt;br /&gt;Stephanie Nelson has a passion for a good deal. That’s fitting: Her two-person Atlanta company, CouponMom.com, runs an online coupon site. "I have a $3 business phone, a $4 lamp from my neighbor’s garage sale, and I use stationery I rescued from my husband’s office when they moved," Nelson says. (She blocks out the incorrect return address with free address labels.) For office equipment, she scours the newspaper for sales, gathers up rebate coupons, and heads right back to the store if prices drop after she buys. Her Hewlett-&amp;shy;Packard (&lt;a href="http://stockmarket.businessweek.com/www/search.html?q=HPQ"&gt;HPQ&lt;/a&gt;) color laser printer—retail price $500—cost her $190. She meets clients over coffee, not dinner. She almost never travels for business, preferring conference calls. She does make those calls from a lovely $1,800 desk, though. How? Her husband bought it for her.Not every entrepreneur will be inspired to match Nelson’s thriftiness. But for those who want to channel their inner cheapskate, a little cash and a lot of tenacity can go a long way.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a class="commentsLink" href="http://www.blogger.com/"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a class="commentsLink" href="http://www.blogger.com/"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-2661608316625821715?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/2661608316625821715/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-cut-costs.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/2661608316625821715'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/2661608316625821715'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-your-business-cut-costs.html' title='Help Your Business: Cut Costs'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-1360751594930876464</id><published>2009-06-11T14:12:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-11T14:12:00.936-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Check out the BusinessWeeks Blogs</title><content type='html'>A great way to stay up on current events is reading business blogs.  Here's a link to BusinessWeek's &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/blogs/"&gt;Blogs&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-1360751594930876464?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/1360751594930876464/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/check-out-businessweeks-blogs.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1360751594930876464'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1360751594930876464'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/check-out-businessweeks-blogs.html' title='Check out the BusinessWeeks Blogs'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-8807835447656822248</id><published>2009-06-10T14:23:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-10T14:23:00.909-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Small Business Loans</title><content type='html'>&lt;div id="storyBody"&gt;         &lt;h1&gt;Small Business Loan Demand Rising at Community Lenders&lt;/h1&gt; &lt;p class="postedBy"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/running_small_business/archives/2009/06/small_business_8.html"&gt;click here for original article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="postedBy"&gt;Posted by: John Tozzi on June 05&lt;/p&gt;        &lt;p&gt;I had an interesting chat today with Mark Pinsky, CEO of &lt;a href="http://www.opportunityfinance.net/"&gt;Opportunity Finance Network&lt;/a&gt;, which is an organization of financial institutions that focus on low-income and low-wealth communities. These mostly non-profit Community Development Financial Institutions include banks, credit unions, venture funds, and other lenders.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;As an industry, CDFIs have committed about $30 billion in capital to financing. CDFIs focus on lending to people, businesses, and nonprofits in areas that banks don’t normally serve, or don’t serve adequately. Pinksy pointed out a trend worth noting: Since last fall, CDFIs have seen a big jump in loan requests from companies that wouldn’t normally seek them out.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;“We are just seeing so many businesses who are not our usual customers, who are in effect up-market from us, who’ve been banked for 5 or 10 or 15 years, and have just seen credit dry up,” Pinksy says.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The evidence is anecdotal but strong. I heard the same thing last October, early in the financial crisis, from Laura Kozien of microlender &lt;a href="http://www.accionusa.org/"&gt;ACCION USA&lt;/a&gt; (a member of Opportunity Finance Network). At the time, she said she was seeing &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/running_small_business/archives/2008/10/microfinance.html"&gt;more demand from business owners with good credit&lt;/a&gt; (FICO 650 or higher) who would normally qualify at banks. In February, Louise Lee &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_62/s0902018039571.htm"&gt;delved deeper&lt;/a&gt; into the trend.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;It’s interesting that demand for small business loans is up at microlenders and CDFIs — because it’s down at banks. At least according to the Fed’s quarterly lending survey, demand for commercial and industrial loans is falling, and credit standards are tightening. (&lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/running_small_business/archives/2009/05/banks_credit_ti.html"&gt;Prior coverage here&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/SnLoanSurvey/200905/"&gt;Fed report here&lt;/a&gt;.)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you’ve sought funding from a community lender after being turned down from a bank — or if you work in a CDFI and have spotted this trend — let us know in comments or &lt;a href="http://twitter.com/newentrepreneur"&gt;on Twitter&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;On a related note, we just published a &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/special_reports/20090605inner_city_100.htm"&gt;special report&lt;/a&gt; on the fastest growing companies in low-income and low-wealth communities — the same areas that CDFIs serve. &lt;/p&gt;                    &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-8807835447656822248?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/8807835447656822248/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/small-business-loans.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8807835447656822248'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8807835447656822248'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/small-business-loans.html' title='Small Business Loans'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-2443062963840682406</id><published>2009-06-09T21:27:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-09T21:32:45.306-07:00</updated><title type='text'>New Site For Businesses!</title><content type='html'>List your business for only $10/ Month.&lt;br /&gt;Most companies have hidden costs for a website link and e-mail.&lt;br /&gt;At &lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com/"&gt;www.iSearchBusiness.com&lt;/a&gt; you get your whole business listed for one low fee.&lt;br /&gt;Check it out!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-2443062963840682406?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/2443062963840682406/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-site-for-businesses.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/2443062963840682406'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/2443062963840682406'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-site-for-businesses.html' title='New Site For Businesses!'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-1254752247693361312</id><published>2009-06-09T14:07:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-09T14:10:14.230-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Facebook Will Upend Advertising</title><content type='html'>&lt;h1&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a style="font-weight: normal;" href="http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/may2009/tc20090527_635562.htm"&gt;Click to view Original Article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/h1&gt;&lt;h1&gt;How Facebook Will Upend Advertising&lt;/h1&gt; &lt;!--/HEADLINE--&gt; &lt;h2&gt; &lt;!--DECK--&gt; With social networks like Facebook transforming the way companies communicate with consumers, it's time for the ad industry to get its head out of the sand &lt;!--/DECK--&gt; &lt;/h2&gt; &lt;p class="byline"&gt;By &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/bios/Jonathan_L._Yarmis.htm"&gt;Jonathan L. Yarmis&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;  &lt;!--STORY--&gt; &lt;p&gt; The guessing games over Facebook's worth are back on again. They were reignited by the news on May 26 that &lt;a href="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=20765463"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt; has accepted &lt;a href="http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/may2009/tc20090526_070168.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index+-+temp_technology"&gt;a $200 million investment&lt;/a&gt; that values the company at $10 billion. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Much of the discussion centers on the ability, or lack thereof, of Facebook and other social networks to sell advertising and deliver advertising results. People get on Facebook to socialize, not hunt for products—or so the argument runs. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;But that argument misses the point. The question isn't how advertising will work on Facebook but rather how Facebook and social networks like News Corp.'s (&lt;a href="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=NWS"&gt;NWS&lt;/a&gt;) MySpace are changing advertising. I'm loath to affix the 2.0 moniker to yet another phrase, but if ever an industry needed to be 2.0-ized, it's advertising. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Almost a century ago, retailer John Wannamaker is reported to have said: "Half of all advertising works, I just don't know which half." Today the percentage may be far lower. On the Internet, click-through rates have fallen precipitously as clutter has replaced clarity. These days an ad has performed exceptionally well if at least 1 in 10 people who see it click on it. Much of the time click-through rates that once approached 3% are more like 0.3%. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;h3&gt;The Holy Grail of ads: word of mouth&lt;/h3&gt; &lt;p&gt;The good news is that we're on the verge of a major rethinking of advertising's fundamental premises. One of the biggest challenges facing advertisers is ad credibility. Consumers typically rate advertising as their least credible information channel. However, businesses have continued to invest in advertising because they could compensate for the lack of credibility through broad distribution and high-impact messaging. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Today that trade-off is being turned on its head. Word of mouth—peer opinion—has consistently been rated the most credible source of information. But traditionally there's been a limit as to how widely you could distribute a friend's point of view. Readers of a certain age will remember the Fabergé Organics commercial from the 1970s depicting a shampoo user who "told two friends," who in turn "told two friends, and so on, and so on." Three decades ago, telling a lot of friends wasn't nearly as easy as it is now. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Credibility now has a channel for mass distribution. It's called the Web and it particularly thrives in social networks. Such distribution will have profound implications for how we "advertise." &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Obviously, we can use social networks to reach friends. But social tools woven into various sites can deliver the opinions and reviews of a group—"people like me"—whose views may be just as credible as those of my friends. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Say I'm a chief information officer. I may find the opinions of fellow CIOs I've never met every bit as credible as the ones I know—perhaps even more so, in that I'm less willing to denigrate the opinions of people I don't know. After all, I know the biases and shortcomings of the people in my friendship circle. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;h3&gt;deploying social maps&lt;/h3&gt; &lt;p&gt;These tools are showing up in a variety of online destinations. Facebook's Connect and other similar technologies let people bring their social map with them as they traverse the Internet. Businesses have to be thinking about how they might incorporate the social map into the way they deal with customers and prospects. This is going to be huge—and the opportunities are immediate. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; I'm a big fan of &lt;a href="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=30566374"&gt;Loomia&lt;/a&gt;'s SeenThis application. While it was designed for Facebook, I actually "use" it elsewhere. You're probably familiar with the boxes on such newspapers sites as &lt;cite&gt;The Wall Street Journal&lt;/cite&gt; that show what stories other readers have read. This "most read" designation rarely interests me. However, the Loomia tool gives me an additional box that shows me what stories my Facebook friends and groups have read. Generally I end up clicking through on most or all of those articles. The "recommendation" from my peer group is much more interesting and relevant to me than those of the general WSJ readership or editorial board. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;In sum, social networks and related tools are transforming the way companies communicate with consumers and potential consumers in profoundly interesting ways. In this light, questions of Facebook's valuation are at best mildly amusing to me. If, as I suspect, Facebook is at the vanguard of transforming how companies reach consumers, $10 billion will some day seem laughably small. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Now it's up to the advertising industry to get its collective head out of the sand and exploit this transformation to its advantage. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;!--/STORY--&gt; &lt;p class="tagline"&gt; Jonathan Yarmis is founder and principal analyst with the Yarmis Group, an independent analyst group. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-1254752247693361312?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/1254752247693361312/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/facebook-will-upend-advertising.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1254752247693361312'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1254752247693361312'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/facebook-will-upend-advertising.html' title='Facebook Will Upend Advertising'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-4681723103627400120</id><published>2009-06-05T14:57:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-05T15:00:55.990-07:00</updated><title type='text'>SBA Sees Improved Business Outlook</title><content type='html'>&lt;h1 class="epi-fontLg bwtextaligncenter"&gt;       &lt;a href="http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&amp;amp;newsId=20090605005619&amp;amp;newsLang=en"&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Improved Business Outlook&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/a&gt;     &lt;/h1&gt;                                 &lt;div id="story_subheadline"&gt;                      &lt;/div&gt;              &lt;!-- start story body --&gt;            &lt;p&gt;LAS VEGAS--(&lt;a href="http://www.businesswire.com/"&gt;BUSINESS WIRE&lt;/a&gt;)--One hundred days after President Obama signed the American Recovery and        Reinvestment Act (ARRA) into law on February 17, 2009, the U.S. Small        Business Administration is seeing signs of improved small business        lending.     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       Nationally, loan volume has increased more than 25 percent compared to        the weeks just prior to passage of the ARRA legislation. As of May 29,        SBA had approved $3.15 billion in Recovery loans, and supported nearly        $4.3 billion in lending to small businesses. Also, from February 17 to        May 15, 423 lenders that had not made a loan since October 2008 made        7(a) working capital loans. Of those, 188 had not made a loan since at        least 2007.     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       In Nevada, the economic recovery being experienced in many other parts        of the country has remained just over the horizon. “We remain hopeful        Nevada’s economic recovery will be evident soon,” says John Scott, SBA’s        Nevada District Director. “Experts say our unemployment and real estate        indicators should start to improve in the coming months. That would        signal the recovery is beginning to take hold here in Nevada.”     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       On March 16, SBA implemented temporary fee elimination for borrowers on        its 7(a) loans and for both borrowers and lenders on its 504 loans. The        agency also increased loan guarantee levels up to 90 percent for 7(a)        loans. The two loans are the agency’s largest loan programs.     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       One Nevada-based company taking full advantage of this new development        is Tectonics Design Group in Reno, a civil and industrial engineering        and design company. The federal economic stimulus package reduced        origination fees for the SBA 504 program by nearly two percent of the        loan amount, saving the company nearly $6,500 in fees. “It sweetened the        deal and gave us confidence,” says company president Jeffrey Turnipseed.        “And it allows us to keep some cash reserves in place to ride out these        rough times.”     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       Beginning June 15, SBA’s new ARC (America’s Recovery Capital) program        will provide loans of up to $35,000 to viable, but struggling small        businesses to help them make debt payments. The no-interest, deferred        repayment loan will provide a “bridge” for many small businesses through        these tough economic times.     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       SBA Administrator Karen Mills is confident the tide is turning. “At SBA,        we are using all the tools in our toolbox to help small businesses lead        our nation’s economic recovery,” she said. “Small businesses are getting        the dollars they need, not only to keep the doors open and employees        working, but also to grow and create jobs.”     &lt;/p&gt;     &lt;p&gt;       Interested parties can get current information on SBA’s Recovery efforts        and program updates through &lt;a target="_blank" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sba.gov%2Frecovery&amp;amp;esheet=5981297&amp;amp;lan=en_US&amp;amp;anchor=www.sba.gov%2Frecovery&amp;amp;index=1" shape="rect"&gt;www.sba.gov/recovery&lt;/a&gt;.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-4681723103627400120?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/4681723103627400120/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/sba-sees-improved-business-outlook.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4681723103627400120'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4681723103627400120'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/sba-sees-improved-business-outlook.html' title='SBA Sees Improved Business Outlook'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-7316221625664122937</id><published>2009-06-04T15:02:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-05T15:03:39.593-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Good News for Las Vegans</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class="first"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/coin-bucket/2009/jun/04/wolfgang-puck-takes-25-percent-locals/"&gt;25 percent off for locals&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;    &lt;div class="entry"&gt;          &lt;p class="byline"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;               By &lt;a href="http://www.lasvegassun.com/staff/amanda-finnegan/" title="Amanda  Finnegan staff page"&gt;&lt;cite&gt;Amanda  Finnegan&lt;/cite&gt;&lt;/a&gt;                 · June 4, 2009  · 5:29 PM&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;              &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Editor's note:&lt;/strong&gt; Vegas is all about glitz and glamour, the velvet ropes and the VIPs. In this space, we couldn't care less about any of that. On The Coin Bucket, we'll cover the deals Vegas has to offer, all in the name of value. No steak special will be spared. Penny slots will be embraced. If you spot a deal, let us know in the comments area below.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;   &lt;p&gt;Tourists will come and go, but locals will always be here.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;So, to express his thanks for locals’ business and recommendations to out-of-towners, Wolfgang Puck has started a “Summer Locals’ Appreciation” special at five of his Las Vegas restaurants.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Locals will receive 25 percent off their check with the presentation of a local ID at &lt;a href="http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3801"&gt;CUT&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/9044"&gt;Spago&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3821"&gt;Postrio&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3678"&gt;Chinois&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href="http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3860"&gt;Trattoria del Lupo&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;For residents who are new to town and haven’t ventured to the DMV for a local ID, here is an incentive. The deal runs until Sept. 30.&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-7316221625664122937?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/7316221625664122937/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/good-news-for-las-vegans.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/7316221625664122937'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/7316221625664122937'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/good-news-for-las-vegans.html' title='Good News for Las Vegans'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-3869552917333244514</id><published>2009-06-02T14:50:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-02T14:50:53.480-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Utah’s High-Tech and Life Science Companies Faring Better Than Most</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class="storytitle"&gt;&lt;a href="http://in.sys-con.com/node/987038"&gt;Utah’s High-Tech and Life Science Companies Faring Better Than Most&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="writtenby"&gt;By: &lt;a href="http://businesswire.sys-con.com/"&gt;Business Wire&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;div class="storydatetime"&gt;Jun. 2, 2009 02:01 PM&lt;/div&gt; &lt;div style="padding-top: 0.25em;"&gt; &lt;script type="text/javascript"&gt;addthis_pub  = 'syscon';&lt;/script&gt; &lt;a href="http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php" onmouseover="return addthis_open(this, '', '[URL]', '[TITLE]')" onmouseout="addthis_close()" onclick="return addthis_sendto()"&gt;&lt;img src="http://s9.addthis.com/button1-addthis.gif" alt="" border="0" width="125" height="16" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;script type="text/javascript" src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/152/addthis_widget.js"&gt;&lt;/script&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;div class="toolbar"&gt; &lt;table width="100%"&gt;   &lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;     &lt;td&gt;&lt;a title="" onmouseover="window.status='';return true" href="http://in.sys-con.com/node/987038"&gt;       &lt;img src="http://gemsres.com/section/1/read.gif" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;     &lt;td&gt;&lt;a title="print this story" onmouseover="window.status='';return true" href="http://in.sys-con.com/node/987038##" onclick="windowPopup('Print Story','/node/987038/print'); return false;"&gt;       &lt;img src="http://gemsres.com/section/1/print.gif" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;     &lt;td&gt;&lt;a title="alert someone to this story" onmouseover="window.status='';return true" href="http://in.sys-con.com/node/987038##" onclick="windowPopup('Email this Story','/node/987038/email'); return false;"&gt;       &lt;img src="http://gemsres.com/section/1/email.gif" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;     &lt;td align="right"&gt;&lt;a title="blog/write about this story" onmouseover="window.status='';return true" href="http://in.sys-con.com/node/987038##" onclick="windowPopup('Blog about this Story','/node/987038/blog'); return false;"&gt;       &lt;img src="http://gemsres.com/section/1/blog%281%29.gif" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;   &lt;/tr&gt; &lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;img src="http://gemsres.com/author/7450/Business_Wire_Logo.jpg" style="border: 1px solid black;" align="left" vspace="5" hspace="5" /&gt; &lt;style type="text/css"&gt; &lt;!--  .bwtextaligncenter {text-align: center} --&gt; &lt;/style&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       The &lt;a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.utahtechcouncil.org%2F&amp;amp;esheet=5976187&amp;amp;lan=en_US&amp;amp;anchor=Utah+Technology+Council&amp;amp;index=1"&gt;Utah        Technology Council&lt;/a&gt; (UTC) has issued its annual report of technology        and life science industry growth, based on its own survey and results of        North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) reports from        September 2007 to September 2008. Although the U.S. continues to suffer        from the current recession, Utah’s high-tech and life sciences        industries continue to grow. Indicators such as business climate, stable        revenues and economic outlook show that during the current economic        downturn, Utah’s technology companies are faring better than most.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       “While the nation’s economic challenges create difficulties on every        front, Utah’s data for year over year performance of our technology and        life science companies continues to show reason for optimism,” said        Richard R. Nelson, President and CEO of the UTC. “From September 2007 to        September 2008, Utah’s tech industries showed a combined rate of 2.6        percent growth. Certain sectors in technology, such as information        services and marketing consulting, showed surprisingly high growth of        41.2 and 19.5 percent. The challenges we face are still daunting, but        compared to other states, Utah’s technology climate is solid and        continuing to grow.”     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       The UTC recently conducted an informal poll of 52 CEOs from leading        technology companies in Utah regarding the current state of their        growth. Of these 52 respondents, 1 is thriving, 31 (59 percent) are        growing, 14 (27 percent) are holding steady, and only 6 (12 percent)        report a decline.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       “While this growth is less than companies reported in a similar survey        last year, the level of growth and resilience our technology industries        are showing is giving Utah entrepreneurs and employees plenty of reasons        to continue to be positive,” said Alan Hall, UTC Chairman.     &lt;/p&gt;  &lt;!--portletbreak--&gt;  &lt;p&gt;       Utah continues to win national accolades as well. Forbes Magazine ranks        Salt Lake City #1 as the Best City for Jobs and Utah #2 as the “Best        State for Business.” The ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitive Index        ranks Utah #1 in Economic Outlook.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       In addition to its own survey, the UTC uses the North American Industry        Classification System (NAICS) to annually track Utah’s technology        industry. NAICS is the standard used by the federal statistics agencies        in classifying business establishments for the collection, analysis and        publication of statistical data related to the business economy in the        U.S. It also uses data gathered by the Utah Department of Workforce        Services and the Bureau of Labor Statistics to verify and produce        information under the NAICS system.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       &lt;b&gt;About Utah Technology Council&lt;/b&gt;     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;       Utah’s premier professional association, the Utah Technology Council,        has become the essential business resource for life science and        high-tech companies seeking to achieve greater success. At its core, UTC        exists to foster the &lt;b&gt;Growth&lt;/b&gt; of the state’s more than 5,000        technology companies, ensure Utah develops the highest &lt;b&gt;Quality        Workforce&lt;/b&gt; in the nation, and attract an ever-increasing array of &lt;b&gt;Funding&lt;/b&gt;.        Members join UTC to share insights with industry peers, counsel with        government and academic leaders, and receive help from professional        service providers and funding resources. To become a member of this        “must join” organization, visit &lt;a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.utahtechcouncil.org&amp;amp;esheet=5976187&amp;amp;lan=en_US&amp;amp;anchor=www.utahtechcouncil.org&amp;amp;index=2"&gt;www.utahtechcouncil.org&lt;/a&gt;        or call 801-568-3500 today.     &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-3869552917333244514?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/3869552917333244514/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/utahs-high-tech-and-life-science.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3869552917333244514'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3869552917333244514'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/06/utahs-high-tech-and-life-science.html' title='Utah’s High-Tech and Life Science Companies Faring Better Than Most'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-8903945452945199537</id><published>2009-05-29T12:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-29T12:19:33.222-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Find more clients through every email you send</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://www.krishnade.com/blog/2006/find-more-clients-through-every-email-you-send/"&gt;Original Post&lt;/a&gt;: by  Krishna De&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div class="title"&gt;       &lt;span class="header"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.krishnade.com/blog/2006/find-more-clients-through-every-email-you-send/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to Find more clients through every email you send"&gt;Find more clients through every email you send&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;    &lt;div class="postdata"&gt;February 15th, 2006  by Krishna De  /  &lt;a href="http://www.krishnade.com/blog/2006/find-more-clients-through-every-email-you-send/print/" title="Print This Article" rel="nofollow"&gt;Print This Article&lt;/a&gt;  / &lt;a href="http://www.krishnade.com/blog/2006/find-more-clients-through-every-email-you-send/email/" title="Email This Article" rel="nofollow"&gt;Email This Article&lt;/a&gt;  / &lt;!-- Begin TwitThis (http://twitthis.com/) --&gt; &lt;script type="text/javascript" src="http://s3.chuug.com/chuug.twitthis.scripts/twitthis.js"&gt;&lt;/script&gt; &lt;script type="text/javascript"&gt; &lt;!-- document.write('&lt;a href="javascript:;" onclick="TwitThis.pop();"&gt;Twit This&lt;/a&gt;'); //--&gt; &lt;/script&gt;&lt;a href="javascript:;" onclick="TwitThis.pop();"&gt;Twit This&lt;/a&gt; &lt;!-- /End --&gt;&lt;/div&gt;      &lt;/div&gt;            &lt;p&gt;How many emails do you get in your in-box a day?  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;How many of them are remarkable and get your to take action?&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;And how many do you forward on to your colleagues and friends?&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Well the chances are that your own emails, if they have compelling, relevant and interesting content in them are forwarded to others.  If you send 50 emails a day and just 5 of them are forwarded to other people by the person receiving your mail you have the opportunity to be in front of 25 potential new clients a week.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;So are you leveraging the power of your email as a low cost - may be even no-cost marketing engine to power up your business?&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;span id="more-97"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;One of the most under utilised strategies for connecting to more clients and prospects is the use of your email signature.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Recently one of the actions we took with a group of my clients was to review their email signatures.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Here is a summary of the 12 key actions I encouraged them to take: &lt;/p&gt; &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Ensure that your email signature has a clear call to action &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Have your contact details available - be that your web address, your phone number, your fax number and your mobile number - don’t make it difficult for people to get in contact with you &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;If you work internationally make sure that you have the international dialling code in your contact information and you may want to add your time zone &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Have a compelling call to action - don’t just list a strong of web sites - why would I want to click on www….. - what am I going to find there or in any other of the web sites.  What’s the promise you hold for me? &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Avoid Tiny url’s - it’s not branding you well.  It makes me think it’s an affiliate link.  Purchase a domain name to map it to or even simpler create your email signature with words and then have the web domain as a hyperlink behind the word - see mine that you will have received in emails as an example &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Don’t list your appointment diary in the email signature - if it is easy to find in one of the web sites then that would be fine - it’s OK to add it in an email where you think people may want to book time but can look like you are ‘desperate’ for clients &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Create several email signatures with different call to actions or create a master email signature with several calls to action and then delete some as they are not applicable in the email to who I am sending it to - it takes a second to delete them and I think is worth the effort - in other words customise what you want people to see and do depending on the content of your email &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;If you are going to add colour to your email signature then use the same colour as you corporate identity so that it connects and everything you do is ”onbrand" &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Rather than just listing www….. have the web domain as a hyperlink behind the call to action &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Consider your email signature as part of your marketing collateral - a very inexpensive one - and don’t be frightened to adjust it as the months go on so that it remains relevant &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Have a different tip or call to action each day or each week in their email and people like to watch out for what they have to say each time - I change my email address each week to reflect where my next live speaking gig is and the details of my next &lt;a href="http://www.bizgrowthlive.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Biz Growth Live&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;strong&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;call &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;And my number 1 rule - get yourself an email signature that reflects your business name even if you don’t have a web site yet - why build yahoo, msn or eircom’s brand at the expense of your own - not only that, it looks like you are not serious about your business and are operating it from your kitchen table if you have a unbranded email address.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt; &lt;p&gt;So why not take a look at the email signatures of people you receive emails from in the next 24 hours and see if they are leveraging their reach through this low cost marketing tool.  you might also glean some great ideas for how to enhance your email signature too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-8903945452945199537?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/8903945452945199537/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/find-more-clients-through-every-email.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8903945452945199537'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8903945452945199537'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/find-more-clients-through-every-email.html' title='Find more clients through every email you send'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-4611066445072441197</id><published>2009-05-28T12:21:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-29T12:23:51.615-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Tips on Finding more Clients in this Economy</title><content type='html'>&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;I found a great blog: &lt;a href="http://www.lifebeyondcode.com/"&gt;LifeBeyondCode &lt;/a&gt;and here's a &lt;a href="http://www.lifebeyondcode.com/2009/01/14/more-clients-in-this-economy/"&gt;post &lt;/a&gt;that I thought had some priceless advice:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;First&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;, remember that more people NEED help in this economy. They need “good” help. They are looking for it.So there is a bigger opportunity find clients in this economy.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;Second&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;, You have to be there where they are looking for “good” help. Visibility is key. If there is no awareness in the marketplace about who you are, it gets tough. This is where the Personal Branding (&lt;a href="http://www.rajeshsetty.com/resources/books/personal-branding-for-technology-professionals/"&gt;free eBook&lt;/a&gt;) comes into play.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;Third&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;, You have to create an assessment in these clients that YOU can provide that “good” help. There are so many people looking for the same clients so this is where the relationships you have built (&lt;a href="http://www.rajeshsetty.com/resources/books/lasting-relationships/"&gt;free eBook&lt;/a&gt;) will come into play.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;Fourth&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;, You should have “accumulated” lots of proof to back up your claim that you can “provide” that good help. Your past accomplishments will provide a shortcut to establish the proof.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"&gt;Fifth&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;, If you do get a project, you should provide a service that “will blow them away” so that they go out and tell others to come and “find” you.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-4611066445072441197?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/4611066445072441197/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/tips-on-finding-more-clients-in-this.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4611066445072441197'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4611066445072441197'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/tips-on-finding-more-clients-in-this.html' title='Tips on Finding more Clients in this Economy'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-7288748877336210045</id><published>2009-05-27T13:11:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-27T13:22:28.292-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Utah execs more upbeat about state's economy</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 style="font-weight: normal;"&gt;Great news... at least people are upbeat! Check out this article I found today...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;h2 style="font-weight: normal;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_12453279"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;original post&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span id="slt_site"&gt;&lt;span id="slt_article"&gt;&lt;p&gt; After two years of growing pessimism about the economy, some Utah business leaders are saying that the worst of the recession may be over. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; Optimism among executives about the futures of their companies increased in the opening three months of 2009 for the first time since the fourth quarter 2006, according to the bank's latest quarterly forecast of the economy, released Tuesday. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "It's the first time I've seen attitudes look more upbeat, to see hope for the future, rather than a steady decline," said Julie Olsen, an analyst for Dan Jones and Associates, the Salt Lake City market research firm that constructed the forecast for Zions. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; Olsen said it's too soon to call the upswing the start of a recovery from the worst recession gripping Utah since the 1930s. But "at least during this quarter we are willing to say that the executives in this survey see [the economy] improving." &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; The level of optimism hardly compares to when Zions established its quarterly report in the second quarter 2006, when Utah's economy was booming. Back then 90 percent of the executives who took part were bullish on their businesses, compared with 65 percent today. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; In hindsight, second quarter 2006 turned out to be the survey's high point. Except for small increases in the fourth quarters of 2006 and 2007, optimism fell steadily until the first quarter 2009, and business leaders hope the turnaround sticks. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "We have seen an uptick in demand, which is &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style="width: 336px;" class="articleEmbeddedAdBox"&gt;&lt;hr class="articleAdRule"&gt;&lt;div class="articleAdHeader"&gt;Advertisement&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="adElement" id="adPosBox" align="center"&gt;&lt;script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript"&gt;                 yld_mgr.place_ad_here("adPosBox");                &lt;/script&gt;&lt;span id="flash-span"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div id="ad_16275551"&gt;&lt;embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/mediastore/5862c4ee-20c7-4a01-9c7a-715b32b1c902" style="" id="yad" name="yad" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="opaque" loop="false" quality="high" flashvars="clickTAG=http%3A//us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG%3D161sk25b3/M%3D600138217.600151988.402564466.402564466/D%3Dncbz/S%3D2022775705%3ALREC/Y%3DPARTNER_US/L%3Dc9eff5e4-4afa-11de-b69d-4f6bfa052e56/B%3D01M0A0wNiYw-/J%3D1243455185797686/K%3DpWHCJOSzPx6sQl7T2zY2Ng/EXP%3D1243462385/A%3D1729001216401836577/R%3D1/X%3D2/id%3Dflash/SIG%3D10vrdrpsm/*http%3A//www.cu-one.com%3Fref%3Dmou" width="300" height="250"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;script&gt;var flashAd_config = {ad_config: {ad_type: 'apt_ad',target: '_top',div: "ad_16275551",flashver: '8',swf: 'http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/mediastore/5862c4ee-20c7-4a01-9c7a-715b32b1c902',altURL: 'http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=161sk25b3/M=600138217.600151988.402564466.402564466/D=ncbz/S=2022775705:LREC/Y=PARTNER_US/L=c9eff5e4-4afa-11de-b69d-4f6bfa052e56/B=01M0A0wNiYw-/J=1243455185797686/K=pWHCJOSzPx6sQl7T2zY2Ng/EXP=1243462385/A=1729001216401836577/R=0/X=2/id=altimg/SIG=10vrdrpsm/*http://www.cu-one.com?ref=mou',altimg: 'http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/mediastore/3f7d295e-d5c7-476f-afce-1a6720f0f4c6',width: 300,height: 250,flash_vars: ['clickTAG', 'http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=161sk25b3/M=600138217.600151988.402564466.402564466/D=ncbz/S=2022775705:LREC/Y=PARTNER_US/L=c9eff5e4-4afa-11de-b69d-4f6bfa052e56/B=01M0A0wNiYw-/J=1243455185797686/K=pWHCJOSzPx6sQl7T2zY2Ng/EXP=1243462385/A=1729001216401836577/R=1/X=2/id=flash/SIG=10vrdrpsm/*http://www.cu-one.com?ref=mou']}};&lt;/script&gt;&lt;script src="http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/template/swfobject.js"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;&lt;script src="http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/template/a_030209.js"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;&lt;noscript&gt;&lt;a href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=161sk25b3/M=600138217.600151988.402564466.402564466/D=ncbz/S=2022775705:LREC/Y=PARTNER_US/L=c9eff5e4-4afa-11de-b69d-4f6bfa052e56/B=01M0A0wNiYw-/J=1243455185797686/K=pWHCJOSzPx6sQl7T2zY2Ng/EXP=1243462385/A=1729001216401836577/R=2/X=2/id=noscript/SIG=10vrdrpsm/*http://www.cu-one.com?ref=mou" target="_top"&gt;&lt;img src="http://l.yieldmanager.net/apex/mediastore/3f7d295e-d5c7-476f-afce-1a6720f0f4c6" width="300" height="250" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/noscript&gt;&lt;img style="display: none;" alt="" src="http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=c9eff5e4-4afa-11de-b69d-4f6bfa052e56&amp;amp;T=19cjl2slg%2fX%3d1243455185%2fE%3d2022775705%2fR%3dncbz%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d8.1%2fW%3d0%2fY%3dPARTNER_US%2fF%3d1550751725%2fH%3dYWx0c3BpZD0iOTY3MjgzMDA0IiBzZXJ2ZUlkPSJjOWVmZjVlNC00YWZhLTExZGUtYjY5ZC00ZjZiZmEwNTJlNTYiIHNpdGVJZD0iODU3NTUxIiB0U3RtcD0iMTI0MzQ1NTE4NTc5MTQ1NSIgdGFyZ2V0PSJfYmxhbmsiIA--%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d27558862&amp;amp;U=13ue2fifp%2fN%3d01M0A0wNiYw-%2fC%3d600138217.600151988.402564466.402564466%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d1729001216401836577%2fV%3d2" width="0" height="0" /&gt;&lt;!--flv has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--rTg has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--cCat has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--rTg has invalid value--&gt;&lt;!--MME--&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;hr class="articleAdRule"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;very good," said Dan England, chairman of Salt Lake City-based trucking giant C.R. England Inc. "We are not going to be too aggressive on our predictions, but we are hoping and thinking that things may be improving a little bit."  &lt;p&gt; The Zions forecast is based on a survey of 337 executives from April 2 through April 30. Olsen said a "notable" number of executives believe their companies' "health" will improve in the second quarter ending June 30. Forty-four percent sense better times ahead, compared with just 22 percent in the last three months of 2008. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; Similarly, more executives expect their companies to maintain or boost spending on capital projects and add employees during the quarter, she said. Fifty-seven percent of executives in the statewide survey anticipate spending as much or more on capital expenditures, compared with 41 percent in the fourth quarter. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; The executives showed more inclination to hire additional workers in the second quarter. Twenty-six percent said their work forces would increase somewhat or greatly, up from 17 percent who in the first quarter said their payrolls probably would increase. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "What you have is some optimism that there are parameters to the recession," said Mark Knold senior economist at the state Department of Workforce Services. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "Before, it just felt like it was in a free fall, like nobody knew where it was going to go [or] what it would take to get their hands around it. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "What's changed now is there is a feeling that a bottom is somewhere close, and some of the indicators may have seen their deepest day," he said. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; Knold doesn't think Utah is out of the woods, though. Initial claims for unemployment benefits are still hovering around 3,000 per week, three times greater than normal levels. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; "I'd like to see them trending below 2,000" before calling a bottom to the labor market, he said. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-7288748877336210045?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/7288748877336210045/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/utah-execs-more-upbeat-about-states.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/7288748877336210045'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/7288748877336210045'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/utah-execs-more-upbeat-about-states.html' title='Utah execs more upbeat about state&apos;s economy'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-4755735380805586456</id><published>2009-03-29T12:25:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-29T12:26:20.905-07:00</updated><title type='text'>iSearchBusiness</title><content type='html'>Great way to get more customers: &lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com/"&gt;iSearchBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-4755735380805586456?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/4755735380805586456/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/isearchbusiness.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4755735380805586456'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4755735380805586456'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/isearchbusiness.html' title='iSearchBusiness'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-4225000034262484665</id><published>2009-02-24T12:24:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-05-29T12:25:14.699-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Best Business Blogs Link</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article1923706.ece"&gt;Best Business Blogs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-4225000034262484665?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/4225000034262484665/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/02/best-business-blogs-link.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4225000034262484665'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/4225000034262484665'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/02/best-business-blogs-link.html' title='Best Business Blogs Link'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-3575430921450160645</id><published>2009-01-27T13:10:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-05-27T13:11:12.172-07:00</updated><title type='text'>What every business needs!</title><content type='html'>More exposure.  Get listed on a local directory so people can find you!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com"&gt;iSearchBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-3575430921450160645?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/3575430921450160645/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/01/what-every-business-needs.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3575430921450160645'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/3575430921450160645'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/01/what-every-business-needs.html' title='What every business needs!'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-5016418117099607341</id><published>2009-01-09T14:11:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-06-09T14:12:20.437-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Get more customers!</title><content type='html'>list your business to get more business on&lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com"&gt; iSearchbusiness.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-5016418117099607341?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/5016418117099607341/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/01/get-more-customers.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5016418117099607341'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/5016418117099607341'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/01/get-more-customers.html' title='Get more customers!'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-8187255876977603387</id><published>2008-08-27T13:09:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-27T13:10:02.397-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Need more marketing bang for your buck?</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com/"&gt;iSearchBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-8187255876977603387?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/8187255876977603387/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2008/08/need-more-marketing-bang-for-your-buck.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8187255876977603387'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/8187255876977603387'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2008/08/need-more-marketing-bang-for-your-buck.html' title='Need more marketing bang for your buck?'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-6171497666136809177</id><published>2008-06-09T14:10:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-06-09T14:11:30.286-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Need a good way to advertise?</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com"&gt;iSearchBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-6171497666136809177?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/6171497666136809177/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2008/06/need-good-way-to-advertise.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/6171497666136809177'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/6171497666136809177'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2008/06/need-good-way-to-advertise.html' title='Need a good way to advertise?'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042401206533669665.post-1272789269340412049</id><published>2008-05-27T11:16:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-05-27T13:03:26.867-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Need to Advertise your business?</title><content type='html'>Need a great way to advertise your business?  Get Listed: &lt;a href="http://www.isearchbusiness.com/"&gt;iSearchBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6042401206533669665-1272789269340412049?l=isearchbusiness.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/feeds/1272789269340412049/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/blog-post.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1272789269340412049'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6042401206533669665/posts/default/1272789269340412049'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://isearchbusiness.blogspot.com/2009/05/blog-post.html' title='Need to Advertise your business?'/><author><name>Jill</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/06000696895010393819</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='21' height='32' src='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_8lX0diNmDIQ/SaNHNuPuKEI/AAAAAAAAACs/_Y7zmBwu83w/S220/jill+pics+0606+Personal+portrait+003.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>
