Small business owners reveal secrets of survival

Oysters Restaurant owner and operator William Bunch has supplied customers with home-style cooking for 20 years at his Crystal River restaurant.   Mom and pop stores have been in the spotlight the past couple weeks following a comment from Inverness City Manager Frank DiGiovanni that those are the kinds of establishments he wants to see in his city. But how do the owners of these small business establishments compete against their larger chain counterparts? Many already start off behind the eight ball when it comes to competing against the big…

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Featured Connecticut Small Business Directory

From Sunday, April 29th to Saturday, May 5th FOX61 is celebrating National Small Business Week, a nation-wide event to honor entrepreneurs and small businesses each year.  More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and they create about two out of every three new jobs in the U.S.   Below check out some featured Connecticut small businesses provided by Connecticut’s Small Business Development Center (CTSBDC) and suggestions from you! Are you looking to start or grow your business?  Visit CTSBDC.com to learn more about their services which include professional, confidential and no-cost business advising.…

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South Leads the Nation in Small Business Job Creation for the Construction Industry

The South led the nation in small business job creation in the construction industry during the month of March, a recent report says. The region’s Small Business Jobs Index ( 100.24) is just above the break even growth marker of 100. The latest Paychex IHS Markit Small Business Employment Watch reports a 0.12 percent decrease to 99.65 this month nationally, or 1.07 percent year-over-year. Small Business Job Creation in Construction The Index has been below 100 for nine months with the West at 99.29, being the lowest in March. For…

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Etsy Brings Together Small Designers, Big Retailers With “Open Call”

What if you could pitch your products to a dream retailer like Nordstrom? Etsy (NASDAQ: ETSY), known for being an innovative online marketplace for consumers to source handmade and other items from independent designers for their homes, wardrobes and more, is set to help members of its Etsy Whesale community do just that. The company is bringing together small designers and heavy-hitting retailers from across the country via its Open Call program. Now in its second year running, the Etsy Open Call program brings together buyers from top retail stores in the country and fresh…

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How to Use Facebook’s Workplace for Small Business

Facebook’s Workplace has been on the market for a little over a year and has seen rapid adoption by organizations of all sizes around the world. According to Facebook, more than 14,000 companies use Workplace as their internal team collaboration tool. Given people’s familiarity with the social media giant, it’s no surprise that large companies such as the Royal Bank of Scotland and Walmart are using Facebook’s enterprise version with the goal of improving employee communicate and increasing productivity. The questions is, how can small businesses use this tool effectively? How…

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You Can Thank Us Later — 5 Ways Low-Code Tools Help Small Businesses

Small businesses need to use software to stay efficient and increase profits. Now, low-code technology is making it possible to create custom apps without the need for prior coding experience. Low-Code Software Examples Small Business Trends contacted FileMaker, a custom app company, to get some low-code software examples of specific areas where the technology they supply helps small businesses. Productivity Sometimes, people working on the same project are in different locations if your business is creative. For example, a video or television production company might need to bring things together from…

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