Want to Get Ahead in Business?
If so, you need an edge. We are here to help you gain that edge.
Starting and maintaining a small business can be a daunting task. Those
entrepreneurs who choose to accept this challenge exhibit no small measure
of courage. But to be successful — to stay in business
— you need more than courage. You need a combination of hard work,
perseverance, business savvy, and access to relevant information and
resources whenever the need arises.
Our Business Center provides tools for small business proprietors and
entrepreneurs seeking to start a small business. We have amassed a
collection of resources and services that should be included in any
entrepreneur’s arsenal. Here you will find resources to help
start your business, finance it, make it grow, manage your own
resources and maintain a safe environment for your employees. It is
an ongoing project. This means that each time you visit our site, you can
expect to find more resources that meet your needs.
The Business Center is broken into categories, each described below,
to reduce the time you spend searching. When you’re in a hurry,
use the Local SiteMap button above to go directly to our
Business Center SiteMap.
The heart of Capitalism comprises two basic principles: Supply
and Demand and Contractual Agreement. A business transaction occurs
when Contractual Agreement is successfully employed to address a
Supply and Demand issue; legal tender is a mechanism
utilized to expedite a business transaction. An implicit business contract
may be as simple as money and goods changing hands — such as a
purchase performed at a local shop or department store — an explicit
business contract may be as simple as a handshake on an agreement for one
individual to perform a service in exchange for compensation by another.
Ah, but were the world always so simple! Business Law has evolved
because 1) things are not always simple, 2) a transaction is not always
successful, i.e., disagreements arise, 3) not everyone is honest, 4)
circumstances external to a business transaction may create “no
fault” scenarios that demand resolution and 5) the terms “fair
practice” and “fair value” have different meanings to
different people, making it necessary to formulate rules of conduct.
“The Law” is a set of rules and codes of conduct
governing societal behavior; Business Law is the subset of
these rules and codes that apply to business transactions.
Our Business Law section identifies areas of business requiring legal
expertise and provides resources you can use both to become better informed
and to accomplish those legal transactions necessary for the operational
success of your business. Business Law listings in other sections
of the Business Center such as Starting a Business and
Business Performance Management reference the Business Law
section.
Business Opportunities
This section provides insight into some of the many business opportunities
that abound today, with emphasis on those available on the worldwide
web such as
Affiliate
Programs. It provides recommendations for where to look, what to
look for — and look out for — when contemplating startup of a
new business, and how to prepare yourself for the leap into the business
world.
Starting a Business
This section is packed with tools to help you get going once your
entrepreneurial juices have begun to flow. Startup is the most
difficult aspect of building a business; there are many tasks to be
performed, often few resources with which to accomplish them, and the
entrepreneur does not yet have the benefit of being business
savvy. We’ve endeavored to make this process easier for you
by providing a raft of resources you can use as you embark on your new
career as a business proprietor.
Business Financing
Business Performance Management
It is our view that, second only to Startup, Business Performance Management
is the most difficult task confronting a small business owner. This is
where a thriving business can suddenly find itself crushed under the weight
of too much success. Customer support and customer relations
can suffer when proper care is not given to the every day aspects of
running your business and fine-tuning business operations. We provide
an extensive resource base for your conduct of day-to-day business
operations and business performance management.
Growing Your Business
You’ve gotten your business going; now how do you get it
growing? Here we provide tips, hints, techniques and resources that
will help make your business profitable and help you maintain that
competitive edge.
For many people, the first foray into the business world begins at home.
A very low-risk way for you to begin a home based business is as
a part-time job while you continue to work as a paid employee at
your regular job. This is important, as a study by the
Direct Selling Association suggests that as many as eight out of ten home
based businesses fail. By utilizing the small business resources Ten
Spider Enterprises puts at your disposal, you can greatly improve your
odds of creating a successful home based business.
Doing business on the internet has its own set of advantages. Your
overhead is low, you don’t need a storefront; in fact, all
you need is a computer, right? Well ... not quite. And don’t
forget, you’re competing against all those other entrepreneurs out
there who have the same idea about the ease of doing internet business,
as well as large companies with high-powered advertising agencies.
Suddenly not looking so great, huh? You’ve discovered that
internet business also has some disadvantages. But don’t
be discouraged! Let us help. Ours is predominantly an internet
business; we will help you negotiate the obstacles encountered while
motoring on the information superhighway.
While the Business Center is primarily devoted to Small Business
and Home Based Business, we endeavor to provide resources and
information to those who choose to think large and may wish to
engage in larger-scale business to business operations. At the same time,
larger companies may choose to utilize our site as a quick and
convenient vehicle for locating resources required right away or in
relatively small quantities. The latter can most likely be found by
visiting our Business Performance Management section. Our
Business
Trends page includes links to news articles and other
information we consider to be of interest to the business community
at large.
We are part of a global community. Tremendous opportunity exists for
international trade. Even small business owners can now participate in
this arena. If you are just starting out, you can do this easily
through some of our
Affiliate
Programs. However, if you have a product you would like to market
overseas, or if you see opportunity in a business such as import/export,
you will need to obtain more in-depth knowledge about international trade.
Minority Business
There are distinct advantages to owning a minority business, not the
least of which is being able to gain access to Federal grants and
preferential contract bidding.
Non-Profit Organizations
Running a non-profit organization is very different from running a
for-profit business. The rules and regulations for U.S.
non-profits are strict, both at the state and Federal levels. You must
be aware of the laws governing non-profit, not-for-profit and tax-exempt
charities before embarking on such an undertaking. Furthermore,
since non-profit organizations typically depend on donations for
operating expenses, management and staffing issues are often quite
different than in a for-profit business.
Authored by Kenneth L. Anderson.
Original article published prior to 13 April 2003, updated
23 January 2006.
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