Business Blogs: Trends, tips, and real-life anecdotes from industry experts.

Reprinted from tensionbreaker.com: How the Recession Affects Sesame Street

After its expenses come under increased government oversight, the number 4 pulls its sponsorship.
Cookie Monster being replaced by his cousin, Ramen Noodle Monster.
Elmo’s World downsized to Elmo’s Corner.
Bob finally forced into retirement.
Zoe replaced with an orange sock from the Dollar Store.
Grover teaches Abby Cadabby about last and [...]

As yet another way for StartupNation to look out for your best interests in improving the performance of your business, we’ve decided to leverage our awesome PR firm for your benefit. We’ve teamed up with them to provide you a free service whereby we find great publicity opportunities for you.
StartupNation’s PR team is currently looking [...]

If you are on a bootstrap marketing budget and looking for do-it-yourself publicity, you need to be on “GARD” for media opportunities that can catapult your brand to the next level.
In this video, I explain the “do it yourself” system that has helped me garner media features from such outlets as USA Today, E! TV, [...]

What are you doing right now to get new customers to your site? If you are just waiting for things to happen, it’s time to take action.
Here are three quick things you can do:
1. Send out SEO press releases.
Add search-engine optimization keywords to your press releases. This way, it will be easier for people searching for [...]

This week’s featured invention is “Skissors”, invented by husband and wife Dawn and Bob Kenny. The Kenny team works with our invention commercialization partner, Invention Home, to help them find marketing/licensing opportunities for their invention. They created, developed, and patented their unique product to assist children with the task of learning how to use and properly hold scissors.
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Skissors integrate finger covers over the holes in the handles of [...]

The rise of social media is undoubtedly one of the biggest changes to happen to marketing since the birth of the internet.  According to a Universal McCann 2008 study, 272 million people are using social media.  Of those 272 million, 77% are reading blogs and approximately 34% of them are posting opinions about companies [...]

This idea gives “green business” a whole new meaning…
Anti-Theft Lunch Bags will deter the most glib of lunchroom swappers. Slip your sandwich into one of the green-splotched decoys before placing it in the office refrigerator and even the most brazen thief will think twice before running off with your “mildewed” PB&J. ($10 for two packs [...]

This example is why newspapers and TV must reinvent themselves, or die.
Obama is Lincoln v2.0
Taking a page out of Lincoln’s Handbook on How To Be A Good President, Obama is everywhere in the community: at dinner, on The Tonight Show, at the soup kitchens, in meetings, on The Hill. He’s like the “Where’s Waldo?” of Presidents. He’s [...]

The systems insight arrived because I was under enormous mental and physical pressure. Until that late-night revelation, my strategy was to approach life with a bulldog, damn-the-torpedoes, pound-the moles, I’m-so-damn-clever persona. It was a toxic brew of arrogance and ignorance—perhaps the most noxious combination of negative human traits. The seething chaos had reared up and [...]

I sign up for a lot of newsletters because I like to know what’s going on, what people I used to work with are up to, and it helps spark the Idea Mill.
I worked with Jerry Shereshewsky back in ‘97 at Yoyodyne and (among other interesting andecdotes) I remember then he mentioned a desire to [...]