<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[SmallBusinessNotes.com Recent Articles: Small Business Information]]></title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-information/</link><description></description></channel>
<item><title>First Quarter 2010: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2010-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real gross domestic product increased at an annualized 3.2 percent in the first quarter of 2010, its third quarter of positive growth and a sign of continued economic recovery. Overall output was buoyed by higher expenditures across the board, as consumers and businesses began to spend again. Real gross private fixed investment was up 14.8 percent on an annual basis, while real personal consumption and real exports...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2009 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2009-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The 2009 edition of the Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories published by the Small Business Administration provides a portrait of the economic condition and activities of how small businesses performed in their respective states and how they are important their local economies and that of the United States. This annual profile contains sections on the following topics: the number of firms, industry composition, small business income, banking, business ownership, and employment. Detailed historical data may be found in the Small Business Economic Indicators and the Small Business Economy reports. Listed below are the state profiles for...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Fourth Quarter 2009: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/fourth-quarter-2009-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy rebounded in the fourth quarter; real GDP grew by an annualized 5.7 percent. Much of this growth stemmed from inventory replacement. Other contributing factors were growth in real personal consumption (2 percent) and real exports (18.1 percent) and slowing growth of imports (10.5 percent, all at annualized rates). Both the Federal Reserve’s industrial production index and the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing composite index...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Third Quarter 2009: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/third-quarter-2009-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economic recovery began in the third quarter of 2009 as real gross domestic product grew an annualized 3.5 percent. Public expenditures buoyed growth, particularly the first-time homebuyers’ credit and the “cash for clunkers” auto rebates. Real consumption rose at a 3.4 percent annual rate, reversing recent declines. Likewise, there was strong growth in real private fixed investment, real exports, and real imports, due to strengthening...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Second Quarter 2009: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/second-quarter-2009-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real gross domestic product fell an annualized 1 percent in the second quarter of 2009. While this was the fourth consecutive quarter of declining output, the decline was significantly less than the previous quarter’s 6.4 percent drop, and it may be one of a handful of signs that the worst of the recession may be past. Real consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of real GDP,...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>First Quarter 2009: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2009-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The economic recession deepened in the first quarter of 2009; real gross domestic product fell by an annualized 6.1 percent. One bright spot in the first quarter was positive growth in consumer spending. Other GDP components were down. Real gross private fixed investment fell 38 percent to $1.44 trillion, mostly from a drop in nonresidential construction. Exports, imports, and industrial production also declined sharply. The unemployment rate...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2008</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2008.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In the 2009 edition of The Small Business Economy, the Office of Advocacy reviews the overall economic environment for small businesses in the year 2008, including brief subsections on small business challenges such as job creation and innovation, globalization, and competing for federal procurement dollars. The second chapter looks at the financial marketplace for small firms as the crisis in financial markets deepened in late 2008. Appendices provide additional data and a summary of new research in 2008 from the Office of Advocacy. Highlights The Small Business Economy in 2008 Small businesses, like the rest of the economy in...]]></description><pubDate>December  7, 2010  4:07 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Importance of Angel Investing in Financing the Growth of Entrepreneurial Ventures</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-importance-of-angel-investing-in-financing-the-growth-of-entrepreneurial-ventures.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Many observers consider angel investments to be one of the key drivers behind the startup and the growth of new businesses, despite a paucity of information to confirm whether or not this is true. Unlike venture capital investments, angel investments are made by individual investors who do not make up a known population. Therefore, much of what is reported about angel investing comes from anecdotes and surveys of convenience samples, which are prone to biases and inaccuracies. Moreover, research on angel investment is plagued by definitional confusion, in which different investigators confound informal investors, friends and family who invest...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The economic condition of small businesses in the United States, each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories is illustrated in Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories. Each state profile contains sections on the following topics: the number of firms, industry composition, small business income, banking, women and minority business ownership, and employment. View the state profiles by: Year State Profiles for 2009 State Profiles for 2008 State Profiles for 2007 State Profiles for 2006 State Profiles for 2005 State Profiles for 2004 State Profiles for 2003 State Profiles for 2002 State...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Australia Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/australia-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Australian Government's Business Entry Point An interface to government services for businesses in Australia. It aims to make it easier for business to find government information, to complete compliance processes and to identify suitable support or assistance programs. The site covers resources from Commonwealth, State and Territory government agencies and a number of local governments and industry associations. Australia Business Incubation Business incubators located in Australia. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Japan Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/japan-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Doing Business With Japan How to handle some of cultural differences of communication. Japan Business Incubation Business incubators in Japan. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>United Kingdom Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/united-kingdom-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Business Incubators Business incubators in the United Kingdom. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Canada Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/canada-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Business Start-up Assistant Comprehensive information on starting a business in Canada. Canada Business Incubation Business incubators located in Canada. Explore North Chambers of Commerce, funding progams, directories and more. Guides to Canadian Industry Links to information on companies, industry contacts, financing, exporting, trade shows and more, organized by industry sectors. SEDI: Self Employment Development Initiative Canadian incubation program for unemployed individuals. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Small Business Economy in the United States</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-small-business-economy-in-the-united-states.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In The Small Business Economy, the Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy reviews the economic environment for small businesses each year. The reports provide an overview of the financial and federal procurement marketplaces. New research focuses on minority- and veteran-owned businesses, social entrepreneurship, and pre-venture planning. Advocacy's annual report on implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act and the results of Advocacy's initiative to carry regulatory flexibility successes to the state level are summarized. Appendices provide data on small business and regulatory flexibility documents. Below are links to summaries of the reports since the year 2000. The Small Business Economy...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Facts</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-facts.html</link><description><![CDATA[ America's small businesses - some 20 million strong - are the strength of our nation's economy. They account for 39 percent of the country's gross national product, create two out of every three new jobs and produce two and one half times as many innovations per employee as do large firms. Looking for information about Small Business in the United States? Here are more facts about small business and its role in the economy: What is a small business? How important are small businesses to the U.S. economy? How many small businesses are there? How do regulations affect small...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Quarterly Indicators: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/quarterly-indicators-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Small Business Administration regularly publishes both quarterly and annual reports presenting data and trends on the small business economy. The Quarterly Indicators, published since 2004, provide recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. The Annual Reports, published through 2003, contain current data on small business activity (new firms, employment, income and terminations) by state, and serves as a quick reference guide. Tables listing indicators for about the last ten years by state are included. The Small Business Administration also...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Germany Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/germany-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce Good access points for all chambers of industry. The site is in German, but has excellent links. Business Incubation Business incubators in Germany. Deutsche Venture Capital Gesellshaft mbH An independent venture capital firm focusing on investments in early stages of companies with high potential for success in global markets. Site can be entered in English or German. Doing Business in Germany International business practices in Germany. Resources for Small Business in Germany Information and news for small business or entrepreneurs wishing to start up, operate and expand in Germany. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  9, 2010  7:41 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting from the United States</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-from-the-united-states.html</link><description><![CDATA[ There are several ways to evaluate the export potential of your products and services in overseas markets. The most common approach is to examine the success of your products domestically. If your company succeeds at selling in the U.S. market, there is a good chance that it will also be successful in markets abroad, at least those where similar needs and conditions exist. Another means to assess your company's potential in exporting is by examining the unique or important features of your product. If those features are hard to duplicate abroad, then it is likely that you will be...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Protests</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-protests.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Within 90 days after the date of liquidation or other decision, an importer or consignee may protest the decision and receive an administrative review. The protest is filed with the port director whose decision is being protested. At the time the initial protest is filed, the importer or consignee must make a request for further review if one is desired. Review of the port director's decision by the Customs Service Center or Headquarters is then automatic. Notice of the denial of all or part of the protest will be mailed to the person filing the protest or to his...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Restricted Merchandise</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-restricted-merchandise.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Because customs officers are stationed at all ports of arrival in the United States, including Puerto Rico, they are called upon to enforce laws and regulations of other government agencies. A license or permit from the responsible agency may be necessary to import: alcoholic beverages animal and animal products certain drugs firearms and ammunition fruits, nuts meat and meat products milk, dairy, and cheese products plants and plant products poultry and poultry products petroleum and petroleum products vegetables There are also restrictions on the importation of certain trademarked and copyrighted articles. (For further information see Customs Publication No. 549...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Determining Admissibility / Customs Examination of Goods</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-determining-admissibility-customs-examination-of-goods.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In simple cases involving small shipments or certain classes of goods such as bulk shipments, examination may be made on the docks, at container stations, cargo terminals, or the importer's premises. The goods are then released to the importer. In other shipments, sample packages of the merchandise may be retained by Customs for appraisal or classification purposes and the remainder of the shipment released. These sample packages will also be released to the importer after examination. Examination of goods is necessary to determine: The value of the goods for Customs purposes and their dutiable status. Whether the goods are...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Classification</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-classification.html</link><description><![CDATA[ All goods that enter the United States are categorized according to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The act of placing goods into the correct category is called classification. Classification determines how much duty will be collected. Classification is more than simply looking up an item in an index. It is a very complicated process requiring the application of the General Rules of Interpretation; the section, chapter and subheading notes; and the Explanatory Notes. The importer is responsible for properly classifying his merchandise before entry. If he is not sure how to properly classify an item, he can submit a request,...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Import Requirements</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-import-requirements.html</link><description><![CDATA[ An individual may make his/her own Customs clearance of goods imported for personal use or business. All merchandise coming into the United States must clear Customs and is subject to a Customs duty unless specifically exempted by law. Clearance involves a number of steps: entry, inspection, appraisement, classification and liquidation. The U.S. Customs Service does not require an importer to have a license or permit. Other agencies may require a permit, license, or other certification, depending on what is being imported. Customs entry forms do ask for your importer number. This is either your IRS business registration number, or...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Foreign Assets Control</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-foreign-assets-control.html</link><description><![CDATA[ U.S. trade sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) generally prohibit the importation into the United States (including U.S. territories), either directly or indirectly, of most goods, technology, or services (except information and informational materials) from, or which originated from Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Serbia, or Sudan; from foreign persons designated by the Secretary of State as having promoted the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; named Foreign Terrorist Organizations; designated terrorists and narcotics traffickers; the Taliban, and areas of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban. Vessels and aircraft under the registry, ownership, or control...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Arrival of Goods</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-arrival-of-goods.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Imported goods may not legally enter U.S. commerce until the shipment has arrived within the port of entry and Customs has authorized delivery of the merchandise. This is normally accomplished by filing the appropriate documents, either by the importer or by the importer's agent. To expedite this process, Customs entry papers may be presented before the merchandise arrives, but entry will not take place until the merchandise arrives within the port limits. The Customs Service does not notify the importer of the arrival of the shipment. The carrier of the goods usually makes notification of arrival. Arrangements should be...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Formal vs. Informal Entry</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-formal-vs-informal-entry.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Informal entries cover personal shipments, commercial shipments and mail shipments that are being entered for consumption, i.e. for use or sale. In most cases informal entry can be used if the merchandise is valued at $2000 or less. There are some exceptions such as textiles, certain types of footwear and other goods subject to quota/visa restrictions. Personal shipments valued over $2000 will also require a formal entry. The difference between an informal entry and a formal entry is the bond requirement and the liquidation process. Liquidation is the final computation of duties or drawback accruing to an entry and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Draft Transmittal Letter</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-draft-transmittal-letter.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 12 - Sample Draft Transmittal Letter 1. U.S. Dollars - Enter the entire amount to be collected; if not in U.S. dollars, specify currency. 2. Date - Enter the date the Draft is issued. 3. of This First Exchange (Second Unpaid) - Enter the terms of payment (also called the Tenor of the draft): at 45 Days, at Sight, At 30 days B/L, etc. &amp;quot;Second Unpaid&amp;quot; refers to the duplicate copy of the draft (of This Second Exchange, First Unpaid); once payment has been made against either copy, the other becomes void. 4. Pay to the Order of...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing: Mail Shipments</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-mail-shipments.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Shipments by mail which do not exceed $2000 in value, whether commercial or noncommercial importations (except for commercial shipments of textiles from all countries and made-to-measure suits from Hong Kong, regardless of value), are entered under a mail entry prepared by a Customs officer after the Postal Service submits the package for Customs examination. The parcel is delivered to the addressee by the Postal Service and is released upon the payment of duty, which is shown on the mail entry accompanying the package. A postal handling fee will also be collected from the addressee at the time the package...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Cost-Plus Calculation of Product Cost</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-cost-plus-calculation-of-product-cost.html</link><description><![CDATA[ &amp;amp;nbsp; Table 4 - Sample Cost-Plus Calculation of Product Cost &amp;amp;nbsp; Domestic Sale Export Sale Factory price $7.50 $7.50 Domestic freight .70 .70 subtotal 8.20 8.20 Export documentation &amp;amp;nbsp; .50 subtotal &amp;amp;nbsp; 8.70 Ocean freight and insurance &amp;amp;nbsp; 1.20 subtotal &amp;amp;nbsp; 9.90 Import duty (12 percent of landed cost) &amp;amp;nbsp; 1.19 subtotal &amp;amp;nbsp; 11.09 Wholesaler markup (15 percent) 1.23 &amp;amp;nbsp; subtotal 9.43 &amp;amp;nbsp; Importer/distributor markup &amp;amp;nbsp; 2.44 subtotal &amp;amp;nbsp; 13.53 Retail markup (50 percent) 4.72 6.77 Final consumer price $14.15 $20.30 Back to Pricing, Quotations, and Terms More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Service Exports</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-service-exports.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The United States leads the world as the premier producer and exporter of services. As the largest component of the U.S. economy, the services sector includes all economic activity other than agriculture, mining and manufacturing. The service sector accounts for about 80 percent of GDP and private nonfarm employment (over 81 million jobs). Looking into the future, the service sector looms ever larger in the U.S. economy. This services-driven business expansion is overwhelmingly led by small, entrepreneurial firms, those firms employing fewer than 500 employees. Small services companies account for more than 41 million jobs. Although small services firms...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Making Contacts</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-making-contacts.html</link><description><![CDATA[ A company may sell directly to a customer or use the assistance of an in-country representative (agents or distributors) to eventually reach the end user. Here are some possible sources of assistance in locating buyers, evaluating trade shows and missions, and conducting other programs designed to make contacts. Department of Commerce, Business Contact Programs Department of Commerce, Trade Event Programs Other Department of Commerce Programs Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service Agency for International Development U.S. Trade and Development Agency State and Local Government Assistance Business and Service Organization Contacts Promotion in Publications and Other Media Related Information Back...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Developing a Market Plan</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-developing-a-market-plan.html</link><description><![CDATA[ As you can imagine, many foreign markets differ greatly from the United States. Some differences include climatic and environmental factors, social and cultural factors, local availability of raw materials or product alternatives, lower wage costs, varying amounts of purchasing power, the availability of foreign exchange, and government import controls. Once you have decided that your company is able and committed to exporting, the next step is to develop a marketing plan. A clearly written marketing strategy offers six immediate benefits: Because written plans display strengths and weaknesses more readily, they are a great help in formulating and polishing an...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Shipper's Export Declaration</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-shippers-export-declaration.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 5 - Sample Shipper's Export Declaration 1. Exporter: The name and address of the principal party responsible for effecting export from the United States. The exporter as named on the Export License. Report only the first five digits of the ZIP code. 2. Exporter Identification Number: The exporter's Internal Revenue Service Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Social Security Number (SSN) if no EIN has been assigned. 3. Related Party Transaction: One between the U.S. exporter and the foreign consignee, that is, an export from a U.S. person or business enterprise to a foreign business enterprise or from a...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Preparing Your Product for Export</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-preparing-your-product-for-export.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Selecting and preparing your product for export requires not only product knowledge but also knowledge of the unique characteristics of each market being targeted. Market research conducted (see Developing a Market Plan) and foreign representatives contacts (see Business Travel Abroad) should give the U.S. company an idea of what products can be sold and where. However, before the sale can occur, the company may need to modify a particular product to satisfy buyer tastes or needs in foreign markets. The extent to which the company will modify products sold in export markets is a key policy issue to be...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Other Payment Mechanisms</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-other-payment-mechanisms.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Consignment sales International consignment sales follow the same basic procedures as in the United States. The goods are shipped to a foreign distributor who sells them on behalf of the exporter. The exporter retains title to the goods until they are sold, at which point payment is sent to the exporter. The exporter has the greatest risk and least control over the goods with this method. Additionally, receiving payment may take quite a while. It is wise to consider risk insurance with international consignment sales. The contract should clarify who is responsible for property risk insurance that will cover...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-technology-licensing-joint-ventures.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Two alternative ways to obtain foreign trade income include technology licensing and joint ventures. While not necessarily the most profitable form of exporting, they do offer certain advantages, particularly for small and medium sized businesses. Technology Licensing Joint Ventures Related Information Technology Licensing Technology licensing is a contractual arrangement in which the licensor's patents, trademarks, service marks, copyrights, trade secrets, or other intellectual property may be sold or made available to a licensee for compensation that is negotiated in advance between the parties. This compensation, or royalties, may be a lump sum royalty, a running royalty (royalty that is...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Shipping Your Product</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-shipping-your-product.html</link><description><![CDATA[ When shipping a product overseas, the exporter must be aware of packing, labeling, documentation, and insurance requirements. It is important that exporters ensure that the merchandise is: Packed correctly so that it arrives in good condition; Labeled correctly to ensure that the goods are handled properly and arrive on time at the right place; Documented correctly to meet U.S. and foreign government requirements, as well as proper collection standards; and Insured against damage, loss, pilferage and delay. Most exporters rely on an international freight forwarder to perform these services because of the multitude of considerations involved in physically exporting...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Liner Bill of Lading</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-liner-bill-of-lading.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 8 - Sample Liner Bill of Lading Back to Shipping More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources for Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Developing an Export Plan</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-developing-an-export-plan.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Once you have decided to sell your products abroad, it is time to develop an export plan. A crucial first step in planning is to develop broad consensus among key management on the company's goals, objectives, capabilities, and constraints. (Answering the questions listed inTable 1 is one way to start.) In addition, all aspects of an export plan should be agreed upon by the personnel involved in the exporting process, as they will ultimately execute the export plan. The purposes of the export plan are (a) to assemble facts, constraints, and goals and (b) to create an action statement...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: General Information Sources for Market Research</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-general-information-sources-for-market-research.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Business America. This monthly publication of the Department of Commerce contains country-by-country marketing reports, incisive economic analyses, worldwide trade leads, advance notice of planned exhibitions of U.S. products worldwide, and success stories of export marketing. (GPO:703-011-00000-4). Contact Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402; telephone 202-512-1800. Commerce Business Daily (CBD). CBD is published daily, Monday through Friday (except holidays), by the Department of Commerce. It lists government procurement invitations over $25,000, contract awards, subcontracting leads, sales of surplus property, and foreign business opportunities, as well as certain foreign government procurements. It is available by subscription and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Financing Export Transactions</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-financing-export-transactions.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Export financing is often a key factor in a successful sale. Contract negotiation and closure are important, but at the end of the day, your company must get paid. Exporters naturally want to get paid as quickly as possible, while importers usually prefer to delay payment until they have received or resold the goods. Because of the intense competition for export markets, being able to offer attractive payment terms customary in the trade is often necessary to make a sale. Exporters should be aware of the many financing options open to them so that they choose the most acceptable...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Management Issues Involved in the Export Decision</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-management-issues-involved-in-the-export-decision.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Table 1 - Management Issues Involved in the Export Decision Management Objectives What are the company's reasons for pursuing export markets? Are they solid objectives (e.g., increasing sales volume or developing a broader, more stable customer base) or are they frivolous (e.g., the owner wants an excuse to travel)? How committed is top management to an export effort? Is exporting viewed as a quick fix for a slump in domestic sales? Will the company neglect its export customers if domestic sales pick up? What are management's expectations for the export effort? How quickly does management expect export operations to...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Packing List</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-packing-list.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 7 - Sample Packing List Back to Shipping More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources for Small Business Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Methods of Payment</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-methods-of-payment.html</link><description><![CDATA[ An experienced exporting firm extends credit cautiously. It evaluates new customers with care and continuously monitors older accounts. Such a firm may wisely decide to decline a customer's request for open account credit if the risk is too great and propose instead payment on delivery terms through a documentary sight draft or irrevocable confirmed letter of credit or even payment in advance. On the other hand, for a fully creditworthy customer, the experienced exporter may decide to allow a month or two to pay, perhaps even on open account. Other good credit practices include being aware of any unfavorable...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Outline for an Export Plan</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-outline-for-an-export-plan.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Table 2 - Sample Outline for an Export Plan Table of Contents Executive Summary (one or two pages maximum) Introduction: Why This Company Should Export Part I - Export Policy Commitment Statement Part II - Situation/Background Analysis Product or Service Operations Personnel and Export Organization Resources of the Firm Industry Structure, Competition, and Demand Part III - Marketing Component Identifying, Evaluating, and Selecting Target Markets Product Selection and Pricing Distribution Methods Terms and Conditions Internal Organization and Procedures Sales Goals: Profit and Loss Forecasts Part IV - Tactics: Action Steps Primary Target Countries Secondary Target Countries Indirect Marketing Efforts...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Industry and Country-Specific Information Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-industry-and-country-specific-information-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ U.S. Government Product and Industry Resources Industry Sector Analyses (ISAs). Prepared by the commercial sections of the U.S. embassies, ISAs provide a basis for quickly evaluating a particular commercial or industrial market in a particular country. ISAs present market demand, market size, competitive analysis, end-user analysis, and market access criteria, as well as industry contacts and marketing opportunities. Available through the NTDB or the NTIS, which may be contacted at 1-800-553-NTIS or 703-487-4053 for TDD (hearing impaired). International Market Insights (IMIs). IMIs are prepared on an ad hoc basis by the economic and commercial sections of U.S. embassies and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: A Step-by-Step Approach to Market Research</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-a-step-by-step-approach-to-market-research.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Your company may find the following approach useful. It involves screening potential markets, assessing the targeted markets, and drawing conclusions. Screen Potential Markets Step 1. Obtain export statistics that indicate product exports to various countries. Published export statistics provide a reliable indicator of where U.S. exports are currently being shipped. The U.S. Census Bureau provides these statistics in a published format. Trade statistics also can be obtained using the National Trade Data Bank (NTDB). Step 2. Identify five to ten large and fast-growing markets for the firm's product. Look at them over the past three to five years. Has...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Documentary Letters of Credit and Documentary Drafts</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-documentary-letters-of-credit-and-documentary-drafts.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Documentary letters of credit or documentary drafts are often used to protect the interests of both buyer and seller. These two methods require that payment be made based on the presentation of documents conveying the title and that specific steps have been taken. Letters of credit and drafts can be paid immediately or at a later date. Drafts that are paid upon presentation are called sight drafts. Drafts that are to be paid at a later date, often after the buyer receives the goods, are called time drafts or date drafts. Since payment by these two methods is made...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: General Industry and Agriculture Information</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-general-industry-and-agriculture-information.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Industry Information U.S. Industry and Trade Outlook '98. Successor to the U.S. Industrial Outlook, published from 1957 to 1994, this expanded-coverage 600-page edition includes economic forecasts for 350 manufacturing and service sectors, including telecommunications, financial services, aerospace, and utilities. Issued by the International Trade Commission in conjunction with the McGraw-Hill Companies. Available at bookstores ($69.95) or through the National Technical Information Service, 5835 Port Royal Road, Springfield, VA 22161; telephone 1-800-553-8847. Export Information System Data Reports (XIS). Produced by the Small Business Administration (SBA), each data report covers approximately 2,700 product categories. XIS helps small businesses determine which export...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Insurance Certificate</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-insurance-certificate.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 9 - Sample Insurance Certificate Back to Shipping More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources for Small Business Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Methods / Channels</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/methods-channels.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The most common methods of exporting are indirect selling and direct selling. In indirect selling, an export intermediary such as an export management company (EMC) or an export trading company (ETC) normally assumes responsibility for finding overseas buyers, shipping products, and getting paid. In direct selling, the U.S. producer deals directly with a foreign buyer. The paramount consideration in determining whether to market indirectly or directly is the level of resources a company is willing to devote to its international marketing effort. Other factors to consider when deciding whether to market indirectly or directly include: The size of your...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Shipper's Letter of Instruction</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-shippers-letter-of-instruction.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 6 - Sample Shipper's Letter of Instruction The Shipper's Letter of Instruction is just that - a &amp;quot;letter&amp;quot; from the Shipper instructing the Freight Forwarder how and where to send the export shipment. In preparing this form, the Shipper also fills in most of the information required on the Shipper's Export Declaration, form 7525V (the Freight Forwarder will complete the rest). After the Shipper completes the form, he or she retains the blue shipper's ply and forwards the rest of the form with the shipment to the Freight Forwarder. 1. Exporter: the name and address of the principal...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Factors to Consider When Choosing a Foreign Representative or Distributor</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-factors-to-consider-when-choosing-a-foreign-representative-or-distributor.html</link><description><![CDATA[ &amp;amp;nbsp; Table 3 - Factors to Consider When Choosing a Foreign Representative or Distributor The following checklist should be tailored by each company to its own needs. Key factors vary significantly with the products and countries involved. Size of Sales Force How many field salespeople does the representative or distributor have? &amp;amp;nbsp; What are the short- and long-range expansion plans, if any? &amp;amp;nbsp; Would it need to expand to accommodate your account properly? If so, would it be willing to do so? &amp;amp;nbsp; Sales Record Has its sales growth been consistent? If not, why not? Try to determine its...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Open Account</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-open-account.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In a foreign transaction, an open account can be a convenient method of payment if the buyer is well established, has a long and favorable payment record, or has been thoroughly checked for creditworthiness. With an open account, the exporter simply bills the customer, who is expected to pay under agreed terms at a future date. Some of the largest firms abroad make purchases only on open account. However, there are risks to open account sales. The absence of documents and banking channels might make it difficult to pursue the legal enforcement of claims. The exporter might also have...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Export Quotation Worksheet</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-export-quotation-worksheet.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 10 - Sample Export Quotation Worksheet Back to Pricing, Quotations, and Terms More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: After-sales Service</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-after-sales-service.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Quality, price, and service are three factors are critical to the success of any export sales effort. Service should be an integral part of any company's export strategy from the start. Properly handled, service can be a foundation for growth. Ignored or left to chance, it can cause an export effort to fail. Service is the prompt delivery of the product. It is courteous sales personnel. It is a user or service manual manual modified to meet your customer's needs. It is ready access to a service facility. It is knowledgeable, cost-effective maintenance, repair, or replacement. Service is location....]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Pricing, Quotations, and Terms</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-pricing-quotations-and-terms.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Proper pricing, complete and accurate quotations, choosing the terms of the sale, and selecting the payment method are four critical elements in selling a product or service overseas. Of the four, pricing can be the most problematic, even for an experienced exporter. (Methods of payment are covered in Methods of Payment.) Pricing Considerations Quotations and Pro Forma Invoices Terms of Sale Related Information Back to Top Pricing Considerations The price considerations listed below will help an exporter determine the best price for the product overseas. At what price should the firm sell its product in the foreign market? What...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Selling Overseas</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-selling-overseas.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Many successful exporters first started selling internationally by responding to an inquiry from a foreign firm. Thousands of U.S. firms receive such requests annually, but most firms do not become successful exporters. Generally, successful firms: properly respond to inquiries; conduct research on foreign customers; differentiate between domestic and international sales; build positive relationships with partners. Responding to Inquiries Learning about Potential Clients Business Practices in International Selling Building a Working Relationship Related Information Responding to Inquiries Most but not all, foreign letters of inquiry are in English. A firm may look to certain service providers (such as banks or...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sources of Market Research</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sources-of-market-research.html</link><description><![CDATA[ There are many domestic, foreign, and international sources of information concerning foreign markets. Several of these sources are given here and others may be found in the bibliography to this publication. This information ranges from simple trade statistics to in-depth market surveys. Trade statistics indicate total exports or imports by country and by product. They allow an exporter to compare the size of the market for a product in various countries. Some statistics also reflect the U.S. share of the total country market in order to gauge the overall competitiveness of U.S. producers. By looking at statistics over several...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Cash in Advance</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-cash-in-advance.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Receiving payment by cash in advance of the shipment might seem ideal. In this situation, the exporter is relieved of collection problems and has immediate use of the money. A wire transfer is commonly used and has the advantage of being almost immediate. Payment by check, may result in a collection delay of up to six weeks. Therefore, this method may defeat the original intention of receiving payment before shipment. Many exporters accept credit cards in payment for exports of consumer and other products, generally of a low follar value, sold directly to the end user. Domestic and international...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Pro Forma Invoice</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-pro-forma-invoice.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 11 - Sample Pro Forma Invoice Back to Pricing, Quotations, and Terms More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: International Legal Considerations</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-international-legal-considerations.html</link><description><![CDATA[ There are a wide range of regulations, procedures, and practices: regulations that exporters must follow to comply with U.S. law; procedures that exporters should follow to ensure a successful export transaction; and programs and certain tax procedures that open new markets or provide financial benefits to exporters. Export Regulations Antidiversion, Antiboycott, and Antitrust Requirements Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Food and Drug Administration and Environmental Protection Agency Restrictions Import Regulations of Foreign Governments Customs Benefits for Exporters Effect of North American Free Trade Agreement U.S. Customs Bonded Warehouses How to Establish a Customs Bonded Warehouse Foreign Sales Corporations Intellectual Property...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Export Advice</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-export-advice.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Advice and assistance are available to your company at little or no cost. Here is a brief overview of assistance available through federal, state, and local government agencies, as well as in the private sector. You may feel overwhelmed at first by the number of sources of advice available. Although it is not necessary to use all of these resources, it is valuable to know at least a little about each of them. Each organization contacted can contribute different perspectives based on different experience and skills. Assistance Sources Department of Commerce Small Business Administration Department of Agriculture National Institute...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Irrevocable Letter of Credit</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-irrevocable-letter-of-credit.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 13 - Sample Irrevocable Letter of Credit Back to Methods of Payment More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling Overseas After-sales Service &amp;amp;nbsp; Basic Guide to Exporting Building an Import/Export Business Export/Import Procedures and Documentation Exporting, Importing, and Beyond: How to &amp;quot;Go Global&amp;quot; With Your Small Business More About Exporting International Business Books about Operating an International Business Legal Resources...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Commercial Invoice</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-commercial-invoice.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 2 - Sample Commercial Invoice 1. Exporter: The name and address of the principal party responsible for effecting export from the United States. The exporter as named on the Export License. 2. Consignee: The name and address of the person/company to whom the goods are shipped for the designated end use, or the party so designated on the Export License. 3. Intermediate Consignee: The name and address of the party who effects delivery of the merchandise to the ultimate consignee, or the party so named on the Export License. 4. Forwarding Agent:The name and address of the duly...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample Air Waybill</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-air-waybill.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 1 - Sample Air Waybill &amp;amp;nbsp; Carbon copies attached: Blue: Original 1 - For Shipper Green: Original 1 - For Issuing Carrier White: Invoice White: Remittance Copy Pink: Original 2 - For Consignee Goldenrod: Delivery Receipt White: For Destination Agent's Copy White: Extra Copy White: Extra Copy White: Extra Copy Back to Shipping More about Exporting: Introduction Developing an Export Plan Developing a Market Plan Export Advice Methods/Channels Making Contacts Technology Licensing /Joint Ventures Preparing Your Product for Export Service Exports International Legal Considerations Shipping Your Product Pricing, Quotations, and Terms Methods of Payment Financing Export Transactions Selling...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample  Short Form Straight Bill of Lading</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-short-form-straight-bill-of-lading.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 3 - Sample Short Form Straight Bill of Lading 1. Shipper (From): Enter the company name and address of the shipper (Consignor). 2. Point of Origin (At): Enter the city and state of the actual shipping point. 3. Date of Shipment: Enter the date of the shipment; that is, the date the Carrier took control of the merchandise. 4. Truck/Freight: Check the truck block if the shipment is to move by truck, or the Freight block if the shipment is to move by rail. 5. Shipper's Number: Enter a unique control number to reference the shipment with the...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Methods of Market Research</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-methods-of-market-research.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Because of the expense of primary market research, most firms rely on secondary data sources. The three following recommendations will help you obtain useful secondary information: Keep abreast of world events that influence the international marketplace, watch for announcements of specific projects, or simply visiting likely markets. For example, a thawing of political hostilities often leads to the opening of economic channels between countries. Analyze trade and economic statistics. Trade statistics are generally compiled by product category and by country. These statistics provide the U.S. firm with information concerning shipments of products over specified periods of time. Demographic and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2004 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2004-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state and territory profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Maine State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/maine-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Maine prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Maine, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Maine State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Kentucky State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/kentucky-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Kentucky prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Kentucky, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Kentucky State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>South Dakota State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/south-dakota-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for South Dakota prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in South Dakota, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States South Dakota State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Nevada State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/nevada-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Nevada prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Nevada, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Nevada State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Exporting: Sample  Certificate of Origin</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/exporting-sample-certificate-of-origin.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Figure 4 - Sample Certificate of Origin 1. The Undersigned: Name of the individual completing and signing the certificate (see Block 13); may be the Exporter or Agent of the Exporter. 2. For: The Company name and address of the Exporter (Distributor or Manufacturer) effecting the shipment of merchandise. 3. Shipped On: Name of the vessel, aircraft, rail, or trucking company. May also include vessel number and flag, flight number and flag, rail car number, and truck Pro number. 4. Date: The date the carrier left the port/terminal for the destination. 5. Consigned To: The Consignee, as it appears...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Best Places to Operate a Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-best-places-to-operate-a-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Politicians pontificate about how they support small business and studies have shown how important small business is to the economy, but is our government really supporting small business by providing taxes and regulations conducive to starting and running a new venture? The Small Business Survival Committee (SBSC) looks at just that annually. Each year they measure and rank the 50 states and the District of Columbia on the governmental costs imposed on investment, entrepreneurship and business. The SBSC has identified the following factors as being important to the economic survival of entrepreneurial ventures: Personal Income Tax Capital Gains Tax...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Washington State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/washington-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Washington prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Washington, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Washington State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Entrepreneurs Add Vitality to the Economy</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/entrepreneurs-add-vitality-to-the-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ A 10-country study conducted by researchers from Babson College, London School of Business, and the Kauffman Foundation found a wide and potentially growing disparity in entrepreneurial business activity within several of the world's developed countries is contributing to a significant gap in economic growth. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) study, while entrepreneurship is rising to the top of the public policy agenda in many countries around the world, the difference in the level of activity in new firm start-ups within the 10 countries analyzed in the report are vast, ranging from more than one in every 12...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2002 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2002-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Recession and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/recession-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The r-word - recession - what does it mean small businesses? Unsurprisingly, economists are divided in their opinions on this topic. This disparity could be likened to the chicken and the egg conundrum. Does small business suffering contribute to a recession or does a recession cause suffering to small businesses? There is a clear relationship between small business and the economy in general, especially in the in United States because much of economic growth is fueled by startup business. In spite of the hype about the internet startups, new companies come from every sector of the economy and every...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Dynamics of Minority-Owned Employer Establishments, 1997-2001</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/dynamics-of-minority-owned-employer-establishments-1997-2001.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This report tracks the dynamics of minority-owned employer establishments that were in operation in 1997 over the period 1997-2001. The data used here track business closure, expansion, and contraction by the business owners' race or ethnicity and by their state and industry. To provide context for the discussion of business dynamics, the report also gives a summary of minority population and business growth between 1982 and 2002. Overall Findings Minority-owned employer establishments had lower survival rates than non-minority-owned employer establishments. At the same time, minority-owned establishments had higher expansion rates and lower contraction rates than non-minority-owned establishments. While there...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Global Business 101: Six &amp;quot;Basics&amp;quot; You Need to Know to Be a Serious Player in Today's Business Market</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/global-business-101-six-basics-you-need-to-know-to-be-a-serious-player-in-todays-business-market.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Operating a global business in a post-9/11 society presents a huge list of challenges. Global trade expert Tom Travis's &amp;quot;Tenets of Global Trade&amp;quot; can help any international entrepreneur meet those challenges on a global scale. We have all heard that the world is flat. And while that may be true, the world is also very large and populated by divergent peoples. Boundaries are becoming blurred as world governments and multinational companies seek to further their economic reach. And as business becomes increasingly global, entrepreneurs must organize, plan, operate, and execute in new ways. &amp;quot;Sometimes, the complexities of doing business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Rhode Island State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/rhode-island-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Rhode Island prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Rhode Island, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Rhode Island State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Michigan State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/michigan-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Michigan prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Michigan, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Michigan State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Mississippi State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/mississippi-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Mississippi prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Mississippi, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Mississippi State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Guam State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/guam-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Guam prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2003 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Guam, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business Resources About Small Business Books on Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>New Jersey State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/new-jersey-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for New Jersey prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in New Jersey, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States New Jersey State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Utah State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/utah-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Utah prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Utah, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Utah State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Women in Business: A Demographic Review of Women's Business Ownership</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/women-in-business-a-demographic-review-of-womens-business-ownership.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Focusing on the special characteristics of women-owned businesses and women's economic wellbeing, this report provides newly released information on women in the work force and women-owned businesses, including women's population statistics, their labor force participation, age, education, occupation, work schedules, average personal and household income, business ownership, and business dynamics. Highlights Women constituted more than 51 percent of the American population and nearly 47 percent of the labor force in 2004. Of women in the United States, 14.5 percent were in poverty in 2004. The poverty rate among unemployed women was more than double the rate among women overall,...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Idaho State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/idaho-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Idaho prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Idaho, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Idaho State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>American Samoa State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/american-samoa-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for American Samoa prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2003 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in American Samoa, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business Resources About Small Business Books...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Montana State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/montana-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Montana prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Montana, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Montana State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>North Carolina State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/north-carolina-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for North Carolina prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in North Carolina, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States North Carolina State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Kansas State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/kansas-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Kansas prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Kansas, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Kansas State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Wyoming State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/wyoming-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Wyoming prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Wyoming, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Wyoming State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Alabama State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/alabama-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Alabama prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Alabama, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Alabama State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>U.S. Virgin Islands State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/us-virgin-islands-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for U.S. Virgin Islands prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2003 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in U.S. Virgin Islands, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Iowa State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/iowa-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Iowa prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Iowa, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Iowa State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Oregon State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/oregon-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Oregon prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Oregon, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Oregon State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Arizona State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/arizona-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Arizona prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Arizona, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Arizona State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Texas State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/texas-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Texas prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Texas, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Texas State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Connecticut State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/connecticut-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Connecticut prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Connecticut, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Connecticut State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Georgia State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/georgia-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Georgia prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Georgia, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Georgia State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Hawaii State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/hawaii-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Hawaii prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Hawaii, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Hawaii State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Vermont State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/vermont-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Vermont prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Vermont, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Vermont State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Maryland State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/maryland-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Maryland prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Maryland, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Maryland State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Puerto Rico State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/puerto-rico-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Puerto Rico prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2003 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Puerto Rico, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business Resources About Small Business Books...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Tennessee State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/tennessee-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Tennessee prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Tennessee, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Tennessee State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Arkansas State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/arkansas-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Arkansas prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Arkansas, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Arkansas State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Oklahoma State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/oklahoma-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Oklahoma prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Oklahoma, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Oklahoma State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Florida State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/florida-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Florida prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Florida, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Florida State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>South Carolina State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/south-carolina-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for South Carolina prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in South Carolina, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States South Carolina State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>District of Columbia State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/district-of-columbia-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for District of Columbia prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in District of Columbia, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Pennsylvania State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/pennsylvania-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Pennsylvania prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Pennsylvania, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Pennsylvania State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Nebraska State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/nebraska-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Nebraska prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Nebraska, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Nebraska State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Northern Mariana Islands State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/northern-mariana-islands-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Northern Mariana Islands prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2003 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Northern Mariana Islands, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>New Mexico State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/new-mexico-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for New Mexico prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in New Mexico, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States New Mexico State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Virginia State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/virginia-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Virginia prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Virginia, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Virginia State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>West Virginia State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/west-virginia-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for West Virginia prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in West Virginia, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States West Virginia State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>New Hampshire State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/new-hampshire-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for New Hampshire prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in New Hampshire, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States New Hampshire State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>California State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/california-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for California prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in California, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States California State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Indiana State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/indiana-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Indiana prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Indiana, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Indiana State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2008 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2008-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The 2008 edition of the Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories published by the Small Business Administration provides a portrait of the economic condition and activities of how small businesses performed in their respective states and how they are important their local economies and that of the United States. This annual profile contains sections on the following topics: the number of firms, industry composition, small business income, banking, business ownership, and employment. Detailed historical data may be found in the Small Business Economic Indicators and the Small Business Economy reports. Listed below are the state profiles for...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Ohio State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/ohio-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Ohio prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Ohio, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Ohio State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Massachusetts State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/massachusetts-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Massachusetts prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Massachusetts, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Massachusetts State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Small Business Share of GDP, 1998-2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-small-business-share-of-gdp-1998-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This study extends work previously sponsored by the Office of Advocacy to examine small businesses' contribution to GDP. It incorporates an additional level of detail made possible by the availability of data classified according to the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS). The most recent report on the topic was published in 2002.1 Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of goods and services generated by labor and property located in the United States. This report considers each component of private nonfarm GDP and estimates the proportion of it attributable to small businesses and the proportion of it...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>New York State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/new-york-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for New York prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in New York, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States New York State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2006 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2006-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state and territory profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Development of Business Data: Tracking Firm Counts, Growth, and Turnover by Size of Firms</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/development-of-business-data-tracking-firm-counts-growth-and-turnover-by-size-of-firms.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Just over a few decades ago, data on U.S. industries were mainly focused on agriculture and manufacturing; thus, comprehensive data on small business were not available. Tremendous efforts were undertaken by individuals and organizations to obtain the extremely valuable data by firm size that are taken for granted today. Documentation was needed to chronicle the creation of these data sources so that users could understand the strengths and weaknesses of the data and so that later efforts to produce new data sources could benefit from the previous experience. Overall Findings Creating firm size data on the dynamic U.S. economy...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Minnesota State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/minnesota-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Minnesota prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Minnesota, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Minnesota State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Delaware State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/delaware-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Delaware prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Delaware, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Delaware State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Louisiana State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/louisiana-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Louisiana prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Louisiana, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Louisiana State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Missouri State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/missouri-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Missouri prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Missouri, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Missouri State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Colorado State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/colorado-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Colorado prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Colorado, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Colorado State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Illinois State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/illinois-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Illinois prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Illinois, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Illinois State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>North Dakota State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/north-dakota-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for North Dakota prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in North Dakota, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States North Dakota State Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Wisconsin State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/wisconsin-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Wisconsin prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Wisconsin, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Wisconsin State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Alaska State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/alaska-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for Alaska prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in Alaska, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The state profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 State Profile 2007 State Profile 2006 State Profile 2005 State Profile 2004 State Profile 2003 State Profile 2002 State Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States Alaska State Business Resources About Small...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>United States State Small Business Profile</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/united-states-state-small-business-profile.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are United States profiles prepared by the Small Business Administration from 2002 to the present. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in United States, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. The profiles are in Adobe PDF format. 2008 United States Profile 2007 United States Profile 2006 United States Profile 2005 United States Profile 2004 United States Profile 2003 United States Profile 2002 United States Profile For information other states, see State Small Business Profiles. &amp;amp;nbsp; Small Business Economy in the United States...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Many Businesses Open and Close Each Year?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-many-businesses-open-and-close-each-year.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Estimates for businesses with employees indicate there were 580,900 new firms and 576,200 closures (both about 10 percent of the total) in 2004. Starts and Closures of Employer Firms, 2000-2004 Category 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 New Firms 574,300 585,140 569,750 553,500e 580,900e Firm Closures 542,831 553,291 586,890 572,300e 576,200e Bankruptcies 35,472 40,099 38,540 35,037 34,317 e = Estimate. For more information, see Business Estimates from the Office of Advocacy: A Discussion of Methodology (pdf), a working paper by Brian Headd, June 2005 (Research Summary #258). Sources: U.S. Bureau of the Census; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts; U.S....]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Role Do Women Entrepreneurs Play in the Economy?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-role-do-women-entrepreneurs-play-in-the-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Women owned 6.5 million businesses that generated $950.6 billion in revenues, employed 7.2 million workers, and had $179.6 billion in payroll in 2002. In addition, another 2.7 million firms are owned equally by both women and men; these firms add another $731.1 billion in revenues and employ another 5.7 million workers. Sources: Preliminary data from the 2002 Survey of Business Owners from the U.S. Census Bureau; Advocacy-funded research by Robert Fairlie (Research Summary #243); Advocacy-funded research by Waldman Associates (Research Summary #242). &amp;amp;nbsp; Information courtesy of the Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy. &amp;amp;nbsp; 21st Century Complete Guide to...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Many New Jobs Do Small Firms Create?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-many-new-jobs-do-small-firms-create.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Over the past decade, small business net job creation fluctuated between 60 and 80 percent. For a more complete look at employment dynamics by firm size from 1989 to 2002, see www.sba.gov/advo/research/data.html#us. Here is a sample of the data for 2001-2002. Employer Firm Births and Deaths by Employment Size of Firm, 2001-2002 &amp;amp;nbsp; Size Class as Percent of Total Industry Total &amp;amp;lt; 20 &amp;amp;lt; 500 Firm Births 3,369,930 51.9 90.0 Firm Deaths 3,660,161 48.0 90.0 Existing Firm Expansions 15,385,726 20.5 49.3 Existing Firm Contractions 17,756,053 12.9 43.9 Net Change (2,660,558) &amp;amp;nbsp; &amp;amp;nbsp; Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. &amp;amp;nbsp;...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Is Small Business Share of the NAICS Industries?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-is-small-business-share-of-the-naics-industries.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is relatively new. Estimates of small business shares in each classification were made based on firm-size shares for 1998 and the approximations to NAICS-based GPO data for 1998. Small Business Share of the NAICS Industries NAICS-Based Industry Sector Total SB Share Mining and Manufacturing 30 Utilities 22 Construction 90 Trade 64 Transportation and Warehousing 40 Information 25 Finance and Insurance 29 Real Estate, Rental and Leasing 74 Professional &amp;amp;amp; Technical, Administrative, Support &amp;amp;amp; Waste Management 65 Educational Services 45 Health and Social Services 57 Arts, Entertainment and Recreation Services 76 accommodation and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Role Do Veteran Entrepreneurs Play in the Economy?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-role-do-veteran-entrepreneurs-play-in-the-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Male veterans' self-employment rates were higher than those of nonveterans from 1979 to 2003. The rate was 13.7 percent in 2003. According to a study on veteran business ownership, about 22 percent of veterans in the U.S. household population were either purchasing or starting a new business or considering purchasing or starting one, and almost 72 percent of these new veteran entrepreneurs planned to employ at least one person at the outset of their new venture. Sources: Preliminary data from the 2002 Survey of Business Owners from the U.S. Census Bureau; Advocacy-funded research by Robert Fairlie (Research Summary #243);...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Are Small Businesses Financed?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-are-small-businesses-financed.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Commercial banks are the most important suppliers of debt capital to small firms, supplying more than 80 percent of lending in the credit line market and more than 50 percent in other markets, such as commercial mortgages and vehicle, equipment, and other loans. In June 2004, small business loans outstanding owed to commercial banks amounted to $522 billion, but small firms are not just receiving loans from smaller, relationship-driven banks. Very large banks with assets of at least $10 billion are making a significant percentage of small loans of less than $100,000. Shares of the Number and Amount of...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Research Is There on the Cost of Health Insurance?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-research-is-there-on-the-cost-of-health-insurance.html</link><description><![CDATA[ According to a National Federation of Independent Business membership survey, the number one small business issue is the cost and availability of insurance. Aspects of insurance that may drive small business concern are premium increases and administrative costs. Advocacy research shows that the prices that small and large firms paid for health insurance and the value of the products purchased are more similar than expected. However, insurers of small health plans have higher administrative expenses than those who insure larger companies. Sales, underwriting, and operating expenses are all higher for small health plans. Considering these expenses, it is unclear...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2005</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2005.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In this fifth edition of The Small Business Economy, the Office of Advocacy reviews the economic environment for small businesses in the year 2005, including the financial and federal procurement marketplaces in chapters 1-3. New research on women in business, education and entrepreneurship, and the approach to local and state economic development known as &amp;quot;economic gardening&amp;quot; are featured in chapters 4-6. Advocacy's annual report on implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) and the results of Advocacy's initiative to carry regulatory flexibility successes to the state level are summarized in chapter 7. Appendices provide data on small businesses, as...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2007</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2007.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In the latest edition of The Small Business Economy, the Office of Advocacy reviews the economic environment for small businesses in the year 2007, including the financial and federal procurement marketplaces. New research focuses on small businesses in international trade, training of workers in small businesses, tax policy, and business creation activities. Advocacy's annual report on implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act and the results of Advocacy's initiative to carry regulatory flexibility successes to the state level are summarized. Appendices provide data on small business. Highlights The Small Business Economy in 2007 Small businesses, like the rest of the...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2006</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2006.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In this edition of The Small Business Economy, the Office of Advocacy reviews the economic environment for small businesses in the year 2006, including the financial and federal procurement marketplaces. New research focuses on minority- and veteran-owned businesses, social entrepreneurship, and pre-venture planning. Advocacy's annual report on implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act and the results of Advocacy's initiative to carry regulatory flexibility successes to the state level are summarized. Appendices provide data on small business and regulatory flexibility documents. Highlights The Small Business Economy in 2006 Small businesses continued to be at the core of the economic expansion...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Small Business Economy 2001-2002</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-small-business-economy-2001-2002.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This report looks at small business economic data for the years 2001 and 2002. Small businesses have important roles in the economy, responding to demand for new products and services, employing half of private sector workers, and creating most of the net new jobs. In the economic life cycle, small businesses are often the beginnings of large businesses. Small and large businesses often work together, taking risks and building on each other's innovations to generate economic growth. Small firms change market structure, and when market demand fluctuates, they also act as shock absorbers by using flexible production techniques. The...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Office of Advocacy's authorizing legislation, Public Law 96-302, requires the Office of Advocacy to &amp;quot;examine the role of small business in the American economy and the contribution which small business can make in improving competition, encouraging economic and social mobility for all citizens, restraining inflation, spurring production, expanding employment opportunities, increasing productiity, promoting exports, stimulating innovation and entrepreneurship, and providing an avenue through which new and untested products and services can be brought to the marketplace.&amp;quot; As part of this requirement, the Office of Advocacy has conducted research on the small business economy for the past 30 years...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Important Are Small Businesses to the U.S. Economy?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-important-are-small-businesses-to-the-us-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Small firms: Represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms. Employ half of all private sector employees. Pay 45 percent of total U.S. private payroll. Have generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs annually over the last decade. Create more than 50 percent of nonfarm private gross domestic product (GDP). Supplied more than 23 percent of the total value of federal prime contracts in FY 2004. Produce 13 to 14 times more patents per employee than large patenting firms. These patents are twice as likely as large firm patents to be among the one percent most cited. Are...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2003</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2003.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In this third edition of The Small Business Economy, the Office of Advocacy reviews the economic environment for small businesses in the year 2003, including the financial and federal procurement marketplaces in Chapter 1. New research on the regulatory environment for home-based business and on government policies to encourage technology transfer are the subjects of Chapters 2 and 3. Advocacy's annual report on implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act and the results of Advocacy's initiative to carry regulatory flexibility successes to the state level are summarized in Chapters 4 and 5. Appendices provide data on small businesses and research...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Evaluating Veteran Business Owner Data</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/evaluating-veteran-business-owner-data.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Veteran business owners as a group have received increasing attention in recent years, particularly since enactment of the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999, P.L. 106- 50. This legislation included provisions calling for the development of more information about businesses owned by veterans and by service-disabled veterans and about the role they play in the Nation's economy. Unfortunately, data available for these groups of entrepreneurs are limited. The last authoritative Census Bureau data on veteran-owned firms dates from 1992. Currently, there are some lists of businesses that include veteran status; however, their information is thought to...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2007 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2007-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state and territory profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economy - 2000</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economy-2000.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The year 2000 witnessed strong growth in inflation-adjusted aggregate output, corporate profits, and employment. Between 1999 and 2000, real gross domestic product rose by 5 percent, corporate profits rose by 10.5 percent, and the U.S. economy added some 2.4 million new jobs as the unemployment rate fell to just 4.0 percent. The federal budget posted its third consecutive annual surplus in 2000, rising by nearly 90 percent between 1999 and 2000 alone. The year also showed some signs of increases in the average price level, as indicated by a 3.4 percent increase in the consumer price index (CPI). This,...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Is the Survival Rate for New Firms?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-is-the-survival-rate-for-new-firms.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Two-thirds of new employer establishments survive at least two years, and 44 percent survive at least four years, according to a new study. These results were similar for different industries. Firms that began in the second quarter of 1998 were tracked for the next 16 quarters to determine their survival rate. Despite conventional wisdom that restaurants fail much more frequently than firms in other industries, leisure and hospitality establishments, which would include restaurants, survived at rates only slightly below the average. Earlier research has explored the reasons for a new business's survivability. Major factors in a firm's remaining open...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Entrepreneurism Spurs Economic Growth</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/entrepreneurism-spurs-economic-growth.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Levels of entrepreneurship vary sharply between major countries and account for significant differences in economic growth, according to a new global study on entrepreneurship. Among the industrialized G-7 countries (the G-7 are the group of most heavily industrialized countries, currently comprised of the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Great Britain, and Canada), in particular, there is a very strong relationship between the level of entrepreneurial activity and annual economic growth, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2000 (GEM), a 21-country study of entrepreneurship and economic growth conducted by Babson College, the London Business School, the Kauffman Center for...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Is a Small Business?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-is-a-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Office of Advocacy defines a small business for research purposes as an independent business having fewer than 500 employees. Firms wishing to be designated small businesses for government programs such as contracting must meet size standards specified by the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Size Standards. These standards vary by industry; see Small Business Size Regulations. &amp;amp;nbsp; Information courtesy of the Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy. 21st Century Complete Guide to Small Business Policy and Oversight Big Government and Affirmative Action The Company The Economics of Small Business The E-Myth Revisited A History of Small Business...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Self-Employed Business Ownership Rates in the United States: 1979-2003</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/self-employed-business-ownership-rates-in-the-united-states-1979-2003.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Published figures from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) tell only part of the story of the self-employed. The figures exclude the incorporated self-employed, an increasingly popular tax status, and generally do not include owner demographics. Fortunately, microdata are available for users to generate customized figures. Microdata are used here to produce more complete self-employment figures and to follow trends in self-employed business owner demographics. Overall Findings Self-employment numbers have grown slowly and steadily since the late 1970s, and self-employment rates have been relatively stable. In recent years, both the counts and rates of male,...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Is Small Firms' Share of Employment?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-is-small-firms-share-of-employment.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The small business share of employment remains around 50 percent. Although small firms generally create 60 to 80 percent of the net new jobs, some firms will become large firms as the new jobs are created. Of 112.4 million nonfarm private sector workers in 2002, small firms with fewer than 500 workers employed 56.4 million and large firms, 56.0 million. Smaller firms with fewer than 100 employees employed 40.5 million. Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. &amp;amp;nbsp; Information courtesy of the Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy. &amp;amp;nbsp; 21st Century Complete Guide to Small Business Policy and Oversight Big...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Many Small Businesses Are There?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-many-small-businesses-are-there.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In 2004, there were approximately 24.7 million businesses in the United States, according to Office of Advocacy estimates. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimates there were 29.3 million nonfarm business tax returns in 2004; however, this number may overestimate the number of firms, as one business can operate more than one taxable entity. Census data show there were 5.7 million firms with employees and 17.6 million without employees in 2002 (and 18.6 million without employees in 2003). Applying the sole proprietorship growth rates to the nonemployer figures and similar Department of Labor growth rates to the employer figures produces...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Second Quarter 2006: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/second-quarter-2006-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The American economy moderated its growth in the second quarter of 2006, growing 2.5 percent, down from 5.6 percent in the first quarter. Slower growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) mirrored similar slow-downs in real personal consumption and real gross private fixed investment. Real exports grew faster than real imports, though both figures were lower than in the first quarter. The second quarter of 2006 was...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Economy and Small Business - Second Quarter 2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-economy-and-small-business-second-quarter-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The overall economy continued to recover. Real gross domestic product increased at an annualized rate of 2.8 percent in the second quarter, and although that number was lower than previous quarters, it did mark the eleventh consecutive quarter of positive real output growth since the recession in 2001. Industrial production was also higher. Moreover, consumers and businesses remained confident. For instance, the National Federation of Independent Business's...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Costs of Developing a Foreign Market for a Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/costs-of-developing-a-foreign-market-for-a-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In response to the globalization of businesses, there has been a proliferation of international market searching and penetration by small business owners. In 2001, 230,736 small and medium-sized firms with fewer than 500 workers exported goods. Small and medium-sized companies account for 97 percent of all U.S. exporters; their exports were valued at $182 billion, or 29.2 percent of all U.S. goods exported. Small business decisions to export are influenced by many factors, the most crucial of which is the cost of developing a foreign market. This research uses case studies to investigate the costs and difficulties small firms...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Fourth Quarter 2007: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/fourth-quarter-2007-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy was weaker in the fourth quarter of 2007, with real GDP ending the year at a 0.6 percent annualized growth rate. The weaker dollar helped boost real exports, which increased at an annualized 3.9 percent, while real imports were constant. Consumer spending increased by an annualized 2.0 percent. Investment remained weak, particularly in the residential sector where the nation has seen steady declines. In...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>First Quarter 2006: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2006-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy began 2006 with a strong showing: real gross domestic product (GDP) rose at an annual rate of 4.8 percent, up from 1.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2005. The strong increase reflected healthy growth in the annual rates of real personal consumption expenditures (5.5 percent) and real gross private fixed investment (6.5 percent). A large increase in real exports (12.1 percent annual growth)...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>How Do Regulations Affect Small Firms?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/how-do-regulations-affect-small-firms.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Very small firms with fewer than 20 employees spend 45 percent more per employee than larger firms to comply with federal regulations. These very small firms spend 4 times as much per employee to comply with environmental regulations and 67 percent more per employee on tax compliance than their larger counterparts. For data broken down by industry, see Cost of Federal Regulations by Firm Size, All Business Sectors (Dollars). Highlights of that report follow. Highlights of Cost of Federal Regulations by Firm Size, All Business Sectors (Dollars) Report This report details the distribution of regulatory costs for five major...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>What Role Do Minority Entrepreneurs Play in the Economy?</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/what-role-do-minority-entrepreneurs-play-in-the-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Of the 23 million firms in 2002: 6.9 percent were owned by Hispanic Americans, 5.2 percent by African Americans, 4.8 percent by Asian Americans, 0.9 percent by American Indians and Alaskan Natives, and 0.14 percent by Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders. In 2002, minorities owned 4.1 million firms that generated $694.1 billion in revenues and employed 4.8 million workers. Sources: Preliminary data from the 2002 Survey of Business Owners from the U.S. Census Bureau; Advocacy-funded research by Robert Fairlie (Research Summary #243); Advocacy-funded research by Waldman Associates (Research Summary #242). &amp;amp;nbsp; Information courtesy of the Small Business Administration,...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Economy and Small Business - Fourth Quarter 2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-economy-and-small-business-fourth-quarter-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy was significantly stronger in 2004 than in recent years. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 4.4 percent for the year - its highest jump since 1999. The 3.1 percent increase in the fourth quarter marked the thirteenth consecutive quarter of positive growth. Moreover, between the fourth quarters of 2003 and 2004, real personal consumption expenditures, real gross private fixed investment, and real exports rose...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economic Indicators for 2001</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economic-indicators-for-2001.html</link><description><![CDATA[ U.S. economic growth slowed down in 2001 from the blistering pace of prior years. Real GDP increased 0.3 percent during 2001, a substantial decline from the 3.8 percent increase of 2000. Inflation remained tame. The most telling guide to the economy's impact on small business and vice versa was the large rise in business bankruptcies and the labor market's ups and downs. Business Bankruptcies The number of business bankruptcies climbed 12.8 percent from the 2000 level, reaching 39,719. Although this was a rather sharp percentage increase, the total number of business bankruptcies was only half of what it was...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Fourth Quarter 2006: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/fourth-quarter-2006-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real output grew at an annual rate of 3.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2006, an increase over the previous two quarters. The economy grew as a result of higher real personal consumption and increased net exports. Real gross private fixed investment fell, a casualty of continued weakness in the housing sector. For the year, real gross domestic product grew 3.4 percent. Industrial production rose during...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Third Quarter 2006: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/third-quarter-2006-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy grew 1.6 percent in the third quarter of 2006, down from 5.6 percent in the first quarter and 2.6 percent in the second. The slower growth reflects lower business investment, especially in residential housing. Real personal consumption grew an annualized 3.1 percent during the quarter, up from 2.6 percent the previous quarter. Real imports grew at a faster annualized rate—7.8 percent—than real exports at...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Second Quarter 2007: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/second-quarter-2007-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The economy grew at an annualized 3.4 percent in the second quarter. Much of this growth is owed to increases in net exports and private investment (especially non-residential construction, which rose an annualized 8.1 percent). Real personal consumption grew more slowly than in previous quarters. Industrial production and the purchasing managers' index for manufacturing were also up. New housing starts continued to fall, with a 6.3 percent...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economic Indicators for 2000</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economic-indicators-for-2000.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The year 2000 was a good one for many sectors of the U.S. economy. Real gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.0 percent and employment grew 2.2 percent, while inflation (measured by the Consumer Price Index) increased by a historically mild 3.4 percent. The increase in real GDP was the largest yearly gain since 1984. However, most of the gain was in the beginning of the year, with a leveling out during the second half of 2000. Also, while the inflation increase of 3.4 percent was low, it was a gain over the previous year and the highest rate since...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>First Quarter 2008: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2008-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Reflecting ongoing weakness, the U.S. economy grew 0.6 percent in first quarter 2008, mirroring the previous quarter. Consumer spending rose 1 percent on an annual basis, the slowest rate since second quarter 2001. Residential investment declines helped cause a drop of 4.6 percent in real gross private fixed investment. Nonresidential investment also declined. Industrial production fell; the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing composite index, which remained below...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Third Quarter 2007: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/third-quarter-2007-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real gross domestic product grew 3.9 percent in the third quarter of 2007, much faster than anticipated and comparable to second quarter growth. Strong growth in exports (assisted by a weak dollar) and solid gains in consumer spending helped fuel the rise in output. Real investment grew at an annualized rate of 0.9 percent. Its tepid growth is due to weakness in the housing market, which saw...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>First Quarter 2007: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2007-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Overall economic growth slowed in the first quarter of 2007. Real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 1.3 percent, down from 2.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2006. Industrial production also grew slowly. Weakness in the housing sector is the primary reason for the slower growth. Housing starts averaged 2.1 million in 2005 but fell to an annualized 1.5 million in March 2007....]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Second Quarter 2005: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/second-quarter-2005-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The overall economy continued to expand and create new jobs in the second quarter of 2005. Real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 3.4 percent - the ninth consecutive quarter of real GDP growth over three percent. The components of GDP, though, showed mixed results from the first to the second quarter of this year. Real personal consumption and real exports were higher, but...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Homebased Business: the Hidden Economy</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/homebased-business-the-hidden-economy.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Prior to this study, there had been very little in-depth information on the characteristics and economic contributions of firms operated from the home. For example, basic information on home-based businesses (HBBs) -- such as the major types of business activities conducted in the home; the amount of funds typically needed for a business startup; the ability of home-based firms to survive, grow, and find capital; and the net profits of these firms -- has been entirely lacking or based on small samples or anecdotal evidence. Using detailed data collected by the Bureau of the Census in 1996 and 1997...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Fourth Quarter 2008: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/fourth-quarter-2008-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends In the fourth quarter of 2008, the U.S. economy suffered its worst decline since 1982; real GDP fell by an annualized 3.8 percent. Real exports, which had been a bright spot in previous quarters, declined nearly 20 percent (annualized) as the global recession weakened demand for U.S. products. Real imports fell 15.7 percent. Individual and business spending fell too. In annualized terms, real consumption declined 3.5 percent...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economic Indicators for 2003</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economic-indicators-for-2003.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This annual report presents the status of small firms in 2003 and makes the data on small firms more accessible to the public, decision-makers and researchers. It lists the number of businesses, new employer firms, business terminations, bankruptcies, and lending terms and standards. The data cover 2003 and years prior. Most of the data is at the national level, but state-by-state data is given in several categories: number of employer firms and selfemployed, firm formation and termination rates, business bankruptcies, and financial information. A note about 2003 data on nonfarm private employment by industry is in order. Previous editions...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Third Quarter 2008: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/third-quarter-2008-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy experienced weaknesses in the third quarter, as real gross domestic product fell 0.3 percent. Consumers, who helped lift GDP in the second quarter with their economic stimulus checks, reduced their spending by an annualized 3.1 percent in the third quarter, and real gross private domestic investment continued to fall, with an annualized 1.9 percent decline. Real exports remained strong, growing an annualized 5.9 percent;...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Economy and Small Business - Third Quarter 2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-economy-and-small-business-third-quarter-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Overall economic trends were positive in the third quarter of 2004, continuing a pattern that has persisted since the third quarter of 2003. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annualized 3.7 percent in the third quarter. This was higher than the previous quarter and marked the twelfth consecutive quarter of positive real GDP growth. Between the third quarters of 2003 and 2004, industrial production, real...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Quarterly Indicators: The Economy and Small Business - First Quarter 2004</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/quarterly-indicators-the-economy-and-small-business-first-quarter-2004.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real economic output has been rising, especially since third quarter 2003. Production increased in manufacturing, an industry hard hit during and after the recession. Real gross private investment is also improving, a sign that capital spending is recovering. The economy is experiencing positive employment signs, including the creation of nearly 600,000 new nonfarm jobs in the first three months of 2004. Nearly all sectors saw positive gains...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2003 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2003-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state and territory profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Third Quarter 2005: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/third-quarter-2005-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends U.S. economic growth slowed in the fourth quarter of 2005. Growth of real gross domestic product (GDP) slowed to an annualized rate of 1.1 percent during the quarter. For the year, real GDP grew 3.5 percent. This drop-off mirrored a reduction in real personal consumption expenditures, which grew an annualized 1.1 percent during the fourth quarter, down from 4.1 percent in the third quarter. Net exports also...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>First Quarter 2005: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/first-quarter-2005-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends Real GDP increased 3.1 percent, somewhat less than in previous quarters. Higher energy costs had an impact. Two components of GDP explain part of the picture. Real personal consumption expenditures and real gross private fixed investment (capital spending) had annualized growth rates of 3.5 and 5.0 percent, down from 4.2 and 10.5 percent, respectively. The trade sectors continue to see brisk growth, with real exports and imports...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Small Business Economic Indicators for 2002</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/small-business-economic-indicators-for-2002.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The U.S. economy began to revive in 2002 after struggling in 2001. Real GDP increased 2.4 percent with inflation under control. These encouraging signs were dampened by a slower fourth quarter GDP increase (an annual rate of 1.4 percent) and private sector employment losses. While the economy began to expand again, concerns about stagnant growth remained. The small business sector also showed signs of awakening after a lackluster 2001. A weak labor market often leads to rising selfemployment, a situation that occurred in 2002. In addition, the number of business bankruptcies declined slightly from the previous year, indicating that...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Second Quarter 2008: The Economy and Small Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/second-quarter-2008-the-economy-and-small-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The Quarterly Indicators report provides recent monthly and quarterly data from a wide variety of sources relevant to small businesses. Economic activity of small firms is examined at the national level. Trends The U.S. economy grew an annualized 1.9 percent in the second quarter of 2008, which was stronger than both of the previous two quarters. (The fourth quarter of 2007 was revised to reflect a decline in real GDP.) Two factors led to the increase in output in the second quarter - higher consumption (up an annualized 1.5 percent), perhaps assisted by economic stimulus checks, and a dramatic...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Minorities in Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/minorities-in-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This report provides information on minorities in the work force and minority-owned businesses, including statistics about the minority population, their labor force participation, age, education, occupation, work schedules, average personal and household income, business ownership, and business dynamics. It is an update of previous studies on minority-owned businesses and primarily uses data from the 2002 Survey of Business Owners (SBO), the latest available data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The SBO defines minority-owned businesses as entities in which minorities own 51 percent or more of the stock or equity. There were six general demographic groups classified in the SBO:...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Women Entrepreneurs Are Key to Long-term Economic Growth</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/women-entrepreneurs-are-key-to-long-term-economic-growth.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Increasing the number of women entrepreneurs involved in starting new businesses is critical for a country's long-term economic growth, according to the GEM global study on entrepreneurship. In a previous look at this study, &amp;quot;Entrepreneurism Spurs Economic Growth,&amp;quot; we saw how entrepreneurism as a whole is good for a country's economy. Looking at what specific factors in entrepreneurism are important to economic growth uncovered some interesting results. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2000 (GEM), a 21-country study of entrepreneurship and economic growth, found that most firms are still started and operated by men, with peak entrepreneurial activity among those aged...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>2005 State Small Business Profiles</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/2005-state-small-business-profiles.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Here are state profiles for each state prepared by the Small Business Administration. The profiles provide basic information on the small business economy in each state, including small business income, industry composition, number of firms, women and minority-owned firms, job creation and banking information. There is also a profile for the United States as a whole. The state and territory profiles are in Adobe PDF format. Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Taxes and Entrepreneurial Activity</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/taxes-and-entrepreneurial-activity.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The decision to start a business or engage in entrepreneurship depends in part on tax incentives. The U.S. income tax is a graduated tax, designed so that people pay an increasing percentage rate as their income rises through various tax brackets. The rate of tax paid on the highest dollars of income is the marginal tax rate. Currently, the tax code is largely blind to the source of income when one files a personal income tax statement. Historically, however, income from wages and salaries and income from entrepreneurial activities - running a business - were taxed differentially. This study...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Entrepreneurship Beyond 2000</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/entrepreneurship-beyond-2000.html</link><description><![CDATA[ The 20th century brought the dawn of a new vitality in the economy in the form of entrepreneurship. Certainly entrepreneurs have existed throughout history, but the field has flourished and become a major force in the economy over the past few decades. In 1969, there were only 274,00 new corporations started per year; in 1995, the annual number had reached 770,000. What does the future hold? Is this an upward trend or a passing fad? If my mail is any indication, not only is the trend upward, but outward internationally. What was once an American phenomenon has become global...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:16 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>William R. Hewlett</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/william-r-hewlett.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Bill Hewlett, co-founder with David Packard of Hewlett-Packard, died January 12, 2001. As one of the preeminent entrepreneurs of the past century, it seems fitting to add his story to our &amp;quot;Entrepreneurs of Note&amp;quot; in honor of his accomplishments. William Redington Hewlett was born May 20, 1913, in Ann Arbor, Mich. He moved to California at age 3, when his father, a physician, joined the faculty at Stanford Medical School. As a boy, Hewlett showed a keen interest in science, conducting many physics and chemistry experiments and demonstrations. In 1930, he enrolled at Stanford University. Hewlett became friends with...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Robotic Entrepreneurs</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/robotic-entrepreneurs.html</link><description><![CDATA[ As homemade metallic robots battle it out and sharp metal spikes and saws provide obstacles to their goal of ultimately immobilizing the competition, non-stop action and entertainment abound. BattleBots, a robot combat event started by Trey Roski and Greg Munson in 1999, became a series on Comedy Central in the summer of 2000. The popularity of this new TV show mirrors the worldwide rise in popularity of robotic sports as an entertainment alternative to wrestling, hockey and boxing. Taped in June in front of a wildly cheering live audience, contestants competed against each other as they operated their homemade...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Corporate Stories</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/corporate-stories.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Entrepreneurism in business history is a fascinating field and one that we can turn to again and again for creative ideas. It is intriguing to see the beginnings of some of the large companies like Walmart and learn what their initial plans were in comparison to what they have become today. Even the relatively short history of newer companies like Cafe Press have many lessons for us in what it takes to start up and keep a company running. Amazon Amazon.com strives to be Earth's most customer-centric company where people can find and discover virtually anything they want to...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>A Junk Idea</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/a-junk-idea.html</link><description><![CDATA[ In 1989, university student Brian Scudamore encountered a tight summer job market in Vancouver, British Columbia. With $700 and a beat-up old pickup truck he started &amp;quot;The Rubbish Boys&amp;quot;, a junk removal service with the slogan &amp;quot;We'll Stash Your Trash in a Flash!&amp;quot;. After three increasingly successful summers, Brian knew it was time to take his business to the next level. With a vision of creating the 'FedEx' of junk removal, he dropped out of University with just a year left to become a fulltime junkman. His father, a liver transplant surgeon, was not impressed -- although he is...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Changing the Game in Auto Repairs</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/changing-the-game-in-auto-repairs.html</link><description><![CDATA[ A USA Today poll ranked auto repair as the most frustrating task Americans have to deal with - worse than tax returns. Seizing the entrepreneurial opportunity presented by this frustration, Houston-based JoeAuto completely re-engineered the auto repair process to provide consumers with an entirely new service option. Armed with a vision of an improved automotive repair experience, they are setting out to &amp;quot;Change the Game&amp;quot; in the auto service industry. JoeAuto, an internet auto repair business, is bringing the benefits of big box retailing and information technology efficiencies to an industry that has changed little since the 1950's: the...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Business Incubation as a Profit Making Venture</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/business-incubation-as-a-profit-making-venture.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Dick Rubin, Managing Partner of Entrepot, has started, profitably operated, and successfully sold several businesses. He and his wife operate a business incubator that has had as many as 20 businesses co-located with them at one time. During a five-year period they saw roughly 70 businesses startup in the incubator. Some of those businesses are now over 10 years old. Only five of the original businesses failed. Several of the ventures have been purchased by much larger firms. Some of the ventures merged and continue to prosper. Dick agreed to be interviewed by me about what it takes to...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Planning as a Business</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/planning-as-a-business.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Tim Berry, president of Palo Alto Software brings a diverse background to his venture. For most of the 1970s he worked in Latin America as a correspondent with United Press International, Business Week, and other publications. Berry returned to the United States in 1979 to enter Stanford's graduate business program and to work as a consultant with Creative Strategies International. After completing his MBA in 1981, he became a vice president at Creative Strategies, where he started a group to focus on market analysis of the personal computer software market. In 1983 Berry met Philippe Kahn, who had arrived...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:13 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Francis Bacon Quotations</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/francis-bacon-quotations.html</link><description><![CDATA[ English Essayists, Nobleman, Philosopher, Politician and Scientists (January-22, 1561 - April 9, 1626) &amp;amp;nbsp; &amp;quot;Believe not much them that seem to despise riches, for they despise them that despair of them.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;By far the best proof is experience.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Choose the life that is most useful, and habit will make it the most agreeable.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts; but if he will be content to begin with doubts he shall end in certainties.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;In charity there is no excess.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Knowledge is power.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;A man must make his opportunity, as oft as find...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Fran&amp;amp;#231;ois de La Rochefoucauld Quotations</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/fran231ois-de-la-rochefoucauld-quotations.html</link><description><![CDATA[ French authors and Nobleman (September-15, 1613 - March 17, 1680) &amp;amp;nbsp; &amp;quot;Absence diminishes mediocre passions and increases great ones, as the wind extinguishes candles and fans fires.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;As one grows older, one becomes wiser and more foolish. &amp;quot; &amp;quot;Good advice is something a man gives when he is too old to set a bad example.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Gracefulness is to the body what understanding is to the mind.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Hope, deceiving as it is, serves at least to lead us to the end of our lives by an agreeable route.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;However rare true love may be, it is less so than true...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Lao Tzu Quotations</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/lao-tzu-quotations.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Chinese Spiritual Leader and Philosopher (Lived in approximately the 6th Century BC) &amp;amp;nbsp; &amp;quot;Avoid putting yourself before others, and you can become a leader among men.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Conquering others takes force, conquering yourself is true strength.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt. Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench. Care about other people's approval and you will be their prisoner. Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity. &amp;quot; &amp;quot;From caring comes courage.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;A good manager is best when people barely...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Ray Kroc Quotations</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/ray-kroc-quotations.html</link><description><![CDATA[ American Businessman (October 5, 1902 - January 14, 1984) &amp;amp;nbsp; &amp;quot;All money means to me is a pride in accomplishment.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Creativity is a highfalutin' word for the work I have to do between now and Tuesday.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;Free enterprise will work if you will.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;If you believe in it, and you believe in it hard, it is impossible to fail.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;If you do it first class, you never have to do it over again.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;If you're not a risk taker, you should get the hell out of business.&amp;quot; &amp;quot;It's easy to have principles when you're rich. The important thing is...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>History of Small Business in the United States</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/history-of-small-business-in-the-united-states.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Small Business issues have been a concern in the United States since early in the 20th century. The Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), created by President Herbert Hoover in 1932 to alleviate the financial crisis of the Great Depression, was basically a federal lending program for all businesses hurt by the Depression, large and small. It was adopted as the personal project of Hoover's successor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and was staffed by some of Roosevelt's most capable and dedicated workers. Concern for small business intensified during World War II, when large industries beefed up production to accommodate wartime defense...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Stories of Small Business Ventures</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/stories-of-small-business-ventures.html</link><description><![CDATA[ One of the most striking aspects of entrepreneurial literature is that so much of it is comprised of stories. One finds only a limited amount of basic research, partly because so much of what we do is a seat-of-your pants, discover-as-you-go-along venture. There is no right path for any individual in any venture. Instead, entrepreneurism is more a culture where stories are handed down, passing on wisdom from generation to generation. And these stories can serve as a guideposts as well as being an inspiration. Entrepreneurs have been breaking new ground for many centuries. From the earliest inventors and...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>Importing to the United States</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/importing-to-the-united-states.html</link><description><![CDATA[ This is a general explanation of import requirements for a person interested in establishing an importing business. Continual review of methods and procedures and the enactment of new laws create constant change. Therefore, we encourage you to obtain more specific import information from a Customs officer at the port nearest your residence. To speed customs clearance, the import community and the Customs Service have created the Customs Automated Commercial System (ACS), which electronically receives and processes entry documentation and provides cargo disposition information. Cargo carriers, customs brokers, and importers may use the system, which reduces clearance time from days...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>India Business Resources</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/india-business-resources.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Banking, Financial Institutions, and Insurance Institutions Links to the major banking and insurance institutions. The Business Standard Online newspaper covering all aspects of business in India. Department of Commerce Responsible for the country's external trade and all matters connected with it, such as commercial relations with other countries, state trading, export promotional measures and the development and regulation of certain export oriented industries and commodities. They also formulate policies in the sphere of foreign trade, in particular, the import and export policy of the country. Doing Business in India Overview of investing in India by the Consul Commerce, Consulate...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item><item><title>The Tenets in Action: Ten Tips for Achieving Success in a Tough Global Market</title><link>http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/small-business-resources/the-tenets-in-action-ten-tips-for-achieving-success-in-a-tough-global-market.html</link><description><![CDATA[ Excerpted with permission from Doing Business Anywhere: The Essential Guide to Going Global by Tom Travis Make &amp;quot;transparency&amp;quot; one of your top corporate goals. Never forget that transparency equals success. Post-9/11 global companies have an ever-present need to know what threats they are facing. One dishonest business partner, a breach in the supply chain, or a human rights violation is all it takes to bring down a company. That's why it is so important to build a company - based on Tom Travis's Tenets of Global Trade - that can withstand scrutiny at all levels. Transparent companies have no...]]></description><pubDate>November  1, 2010  5:12 PM</pubDate></item></rss>