Better Business Blog

NYCBNG Fall Networking Event

You’re invited to join members of The NYC Business Networking Group (NYCBNG) for our Fall Networking & Expo event. 

Meet business professionals and executives, business owners and entrepreneurs from a diverse group of industries. Network with members and interact with our sponsor companies who will showcase their business-related products and services. 

WHEN:   Wednesday, November 28, 2012, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM

WHERE: Chelsea Manor, 138 West 25th St, Between 6 & 7 Ave

COST:    $10.00 prepaid (only 100 available) or $20 cash/door

RSVP:    http://www.meetup.com/The-NYC-Business-Networking-Group/events/90699582/

We look forward to seeing you at this event!

 

THIS MONTH'S VENDORS INCLUDE:

 

CLEVER CHOICE GROUP

Clever Choice is a multimedia web solution agency located in the fast-paced NYC area. We offer website development and design, marketing services, in-house development, business strategy and consultation and so much more. Our goal is to give the start-up community the resources to succeed in an extremely difficult business market. Our marketing services include SEO, social media and press releases. Our web development team is proficient in HTML 5, Java, J-Query, Flash, Photoshop, Visual Basic and more. Clever Choice specializes in modern development standards such as WordPress and BuddyPress. Visit Clever Choice Group at www.cleverchoicegroup.com/.

 

COFFEE CUP DESIGN STUDIO

Coffee Cup Design Studio creates custom graphic designs and promotional material for business and personal use. Established in 1991, the small NYC shop offers eye-catching graphics, fine typography and quality printing at reasonable rates. Anything-you-need can be designed, printed, delivered to your door. Ads, brochures, invitations, logos, newsletters, catalogs, booklets, annual reports, letterheads, business cards, flyers, postcards, hangtags, tent cards, menus and wide-fomat posters. Need an art department? Visit Coffee Cup Design Studio at www.coffeecupdesign.com/.

 

ORGANO GOLD

Meisa Bonelli, President of Millennial Ventures endorses Organo Gold. We are so proud of the healthy innovation Organo Gold is bringing to the world. Currently in 33 countries, Organo Gold is expanding to Australia, Brazil and Africa in 2013. Poised to gross $375 million this year, Organo Gold is on track to become a $1 billion company in the next 24 months. Meisa is a finance professional, speaker and success coach.  Millennial Ventures is an innovative investment firm for niche Gen-Y projects. We sponsor seminars and workshops to educate entrepreneurs on aligning tax strategies within their business models. The underpinnings of Meisa’s well rounded perspective are her versed background in private equity and tax lien investing. Visit Meisa Bonelli at http://ogshow.organogold.com/

 

VENUE SPONSOR:

Enter Chelsea Manor! Your lounge, restaurant, and event space located in Chelsea, a few steps from the Flatiron area. Chelsea’s newest 3,500 sq ft lounge boasts a vintage Miami vibe with plush white couches, long glass bar, and crystal chandelier. Late nights are perfect for birthdays, bachelor/ette parties and girls’ night out. The venue is open for full dinner, late night partying, sporting events, and private corporate functions. There is a full DJ setup, 12 plasma TVs and an 84-inch projection screen. Definitely check out Chelsea Manor! Visit Chelsea Manor at www.chelseamanor.com. 

NYCBNG Fall Business Networking Mixer

You're invited to join members of The NYC Business Networking Group (NYCBNG) for our Fall Networking & Expo event. 

Meet business professionals and executives, business owners and entrepreneurs from a diverse group of industries. Network with members and interact with our sponsor companies who will showcase their business-related products and services. 

We look forward to seeing you at this event!

VENDOR TABLES AVAILABLE:  
 

BENEFITS INCLUDE:

• Square-top vendor table for your marketing materials (flyers, brochures, etc.)
• Company promotional paragraph (100 words), logo & URL posted on our website
• Company promo sent to over 10,000 NYCBNG members until event date
• Company promoted on Social Media (Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter)
• Promoted on NYCBNG Business Blog

VENDOR TABLE SIZES & COSTS:

• 24 in. x 24 in. Square-top table: $200 + PayPal fees
• 48 in. x 24 in. Two connected square-top table: $350 + PayPal fees
• Booth Section: $400 + PayPal fees

 

Interested in a vendor table at our event? Please fill out the form by clicking here: 

WHEN: Wednesday, November 28, 2012, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM

WHERE: Chelsea Manor, 138 West 25 St, Between 6t& 7 Ave 

COST: $10.00 per person prepaid (only 100 available) / $20 per person cash only at the door

RSVP:  Click Here to RSVP or for more info. 

 

THIS MONTH'S VENDORS INCLUDE: 

CLEVER CHOICE GROUP

Clever Choice is a multimedia web solution agency located in the fast-paced NYC area. We offer website development and design, marketing services, in-house development, business strategy and consultation and so much more. Our goal is to give the start-up community the resources to succeed in an extremely difficult business market. Our marketing services include SEO, social media and press releases. Our web development team is proficient in HTML 5, Java, J-Query, Flash, Photoshop, Visual Basic and more. Clever Choice specializes in modern development standards such as WordPress and BuddyPress.  Visit Clever Choice Group Website:

 

COFFEE CUP DESIGN STUDIO

Coffee Cup Design Studio creates custom graphic designs and promotional material for business and personal use. Established in 1991, the small NYC shop offers eye-catching graphics, fine typography and quality printing at reasonable rates. Anything-you-need can be designed, printed, delivered to your door. Ads, brochures, invitations, logos, newsletters, catalogs, booklets, annual reports, letterheads, business cards, flyers, postcards, hangtags, tent cards, menus and wide-fomat posters. Need an art department? Visit Coffee Cup Design Studio:

 

ORGANO GOLD

Meisa Bonelli, President of Millennial Ventures endorses Organo Gold. We are so proud of the healthy innovation Organo Gold is bringing to the world. Currently in 33 countries, Organo Gold is expanding to Australia, Brazil and Africa in 2013. Poised to gross $375 million this year, Organo Gold is on track to become a $1 billion company in the next 24 months. Meisa is a finance professional, speaker and success coach.  Millennial Ventures is an innovative investment firm for niche Gen-Y projects. We sponsor seminars and workshops to educate entrepreneurs on aligning tax strategies within their business models. The underpinnings of Meisa’s well rounded perspective are her versed background in private equity and tax lien investing. Visit the Website:

 

VENUE SPONSOR:

Enter Chelsea Manor! Your lounge, restaurant, and event space located in Chelsea, a few steps from the Flatiron area. Chelsea’s newest 3,500 sq ft lounge boasts a vintage Miami vibe with plush white couches, long glass bar, and crystal chandelier. Late nights are perfect for birthdays, bachelor/ette parties and girls’ night out. The venue is open for full dinner, late night partying, sporting events, and private corporate functions. There is a full DJ setup, 12 plasma TVs and an 84-inch projection screen. Definitely check out Chelsea Manor! Visit Chelsea Manor Website. 

Please Visit Our New Blog

Hi Business Peeps.

We are beta testing our new website. We are now publishing our articles on our new blog. Please visit us at B3 Global by clicking here.

We'd love to see your feedback and suggestions on our new website so keep us posted.

 

Cheers, ilana

The NYC Business Networking Group
B3 Global

 

The NYC Business Networking Expo & Mixer

You're invited to join members of The NYC Business Networking Group (NYCBNG) for our Summer Networking & Expo event.

Meet business professionals and executives, business owners and entrepreneurs from a diverse group of industries. Network with members and interact with our sponsor companies who will showcase their business-related products and services. We look forward to seeing you at this event!

WHEN: Wednesday, August 22, 2012, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM 

WHERE: Chelsea Manor, 138 West 25th Street, (btwn 6 & 7)

COST: $10.00 prepaid [ONLY 100 AVAILABLE] or $20 cash/door

RSVP: http://bit.ly/NbddNQ

 

VENDOR TABLE BENEFITS INCLUDE:

• Square-top vendor table for your marketing materials (flyers, brochures, etc.)
• Company promotional paragraph (100 words), logo & URL posted on our website
• Company promo sent to over 10,000 NYCBNG members until event date
• Company promoted on Social Media (Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter = 25K)
• Promoted on NYCBNG Business Blog

VENDOR TABLE SIZES & COSTS:

• 24 in. x 24 in. Square-top table: $200 + PayPal fees
• 48 in. x 24 in. Two square-top tableS: $350 + PayPal fees
• Booth Section: $400 + PayPal fees

Interested in a vendor table at our event? Fill out the form and we’ll get right back to you. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dE5qcEJSeXFNam1SS3ZPR3Y1dTJrSlE6MQ

THIS MONTH'S VENDORS INCLUDE:
(More Vendors to Come)

CLEVER CHOICE GROUP
Clever Choice is a multimedia web solution agency located in the fast-paced NYC area. We offer website development and design, marketing services, in-house development, business strategy and consultation and so much more. Our goal is to give the start-up community the resources to succeed in an extremely difficult business market. Our marketing services include SEO, social media and press releases. Our web development team is proficient in HTML 5, Java, J-Query, Flash, Photoshop, Visual Basic and more. Clever Choice specializes in modern development standards such as WordPress and BuddyPress. Visit The Website.

COFFEE CUP DESIGN STUDIO

Coffee Cup Design Studio creates custom graphic designs and promotional material for business and personal use. Established in 1991, the small NYC shop offers eye-catching graphics, fine typography and quality printing at reasonable rates. Anything-you-need can be designed, printed, delivered to your door. Ads, brochures, invitations, logos, newsletters, catalogs, booklets, annual reports, letterheads, business cards, flyers, postcards, hangtags, tent cards, menus and wide-fomat posters. Need an art department? Visit The Website.

ATLANTIC METRO COMMUNICATIONS
Atlantic Metro is an award winning, full-service IaaS provider with solutions for businesses that make technology simple, manageable, and affordable. The company's visionary network management team strives to exceed customers' expectations and foster long-standing relationships to help businesses succeed. We provide a comprehensive suite of customizable managed solutions that allow our customers to complement their existing IT infrastructure. Utilizing our cloud computing technology platform and nationwide network, we offer the most complete and advanced managed services to businesses of any size. Visit The Website.

VENUE SPONSOR:

Enter Chelsea Manor! Your lounge, restaurant and event space located in Chelsea, a few steps from the Flatiron area. Chelsea’s newest 3,500 sq ft lounge boasts a vintage Miami vibe with plush white couches, long glass bar, and crystal chandelier. Late nights are perfect for birthdays, bachelor/ette parties and girls’ night out. The venue is open for full dinner, late night partying, sporting events, and private corporate functions. There is a full DJ setup, 12 plasma TVs and an 84-inch projection screen. Definitely check out Chelsea Manor!

Visit Chelsea Manor at www.chelseamanor.com.

 

 

 

NYC Summer Networking & Expo – Vendor Tables Available!

The NYC Business Networking Expo & Mixer: Vendor Tables Available

You're invited to join members of The NYC Business Networking Group (NYCBNG) for our Summer Networking & Expo event.

Meet business professionals and executives, business owners and entrepreneurs from a diverse group of industries. Network with members and interact with our sponsor companies who will showcase their business-related products and services. We look forward to seeing you at this event!

WHEN: Wednesday, August 22, 2012, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM

WHERE: Chelsea Manor, 138 West 25th Street, (btwn 6 & 7)

COST: $10.00 prepaid [ONLY 100 AVAILABLE] or $20 cash/door

RSVP: http://bit.ly/NbddNQ

 

VENDOR TABLE BENEFITS INCLUDE:

• Square-top vendor table for your marketing materials (flyers, brochures, etc.)
• Company promotional paragraph (100 words), logo & URL posted on our website
• Company promo sent to over 10,000 NYCBNG members until event date
• Company promoted on Social Media (Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter = 25K)
• Promoted on NYCBNG Business Blog

VENDOR TABLE SIZES & COSTS:

• 24 in. x 24 in. Square-top table: $200 + PayPal fees
• 48 in. x 24 in. Two square-top tableS: $350 + PayPal fees
• Booth Section: $400 + PayPal fees

Interested in a vendor table at our event? Fill out the form and we’ll get right back to you. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dE5qcEJSeXFNam1SS3ZPR3Y1dTJrSlE6MQ

THIS MONTH'S VENDORS INCLUDE:
(More Vendors to Come)

CLEVER CHOICE GROUP
Clever Choice is a multimedia web solution agency located in the fast-paced NYC area. We offer website development and design, marketing services, in-house development, business strategy and consultation and so much more. Our goal is to give the start-up community the resources to succeed in an extremely difficult business market. Our marketing services include SEO, social media and press releases. Our web development team is proficient in HTML 5, Java, J-Query, Flash, Photoshop, Visual Basic and more. Clever Choice specializes in modern development standards such as WordPress and BuddyPress. Visit The Website.

COFFEE CUP DESIGN STUDIO

Coffee Cup Design Studio creates custom graphic designs and promotional material for business and personal use. Established in 1991, the small NYC shop offers eye-catching graphics, fine typography and quality printing at reasonable rates. Anything-you-need can be designed, printed, delivered to your door. Ads, brochures, invitations, logos, newsletters, catalogs, booklets, annual reports, letterheads, business cards, flyers, postcards, hangtags, tent cards, menus and wide-fomat posters. Need an art department? Visit The Website.

ATLANTIC METRO COMMUNICATIONS
Atlantic Metro is an award winning, full-service IaaS provider with solutions for businesses that make technology simple, manageable, and affordable. The company's visionary network management team strives to exceed customers' expectations and foster long-standing relationships to help businesses succeed. We provide a comprehensive suite of customizable managed solutions that allow our customers to complement their existing IT infrastructure. Utilizing our cloud computing technology platform and nationwide network, we offer the most complete and advanced managed services to businesses of any size. Visit The Website.

VENUE SPONSOR:

Enter Chelsea Manor! Your lounge, restaurant and event space located in Chelsea, a few steps from the Flatiron area. Chelsea’s newest 3,500 sq ft lounge boasts a vintage Miami vibe with plush white couches, long glass bar, and crystal chandelier. Late nights are perfect for birthdays, bachelor/ette parties and girls’ night out. The venue is open for full dinner, late night partying, sporting events, and private corporate functions. There is a full DJ setup, 12 plasma TVs and an 84-inch projection screen. Definitely check out Chelsea Manor! Visit Chelsea Manor at www.chelseamanor.com.

 

 

2012 Small Business Influencers Award Champions: Please Vote For Me!

The search is on … for the Small Business Influencer 2012 champions

The 2012 Small Business Influencer Awards recognize those who are influential to small businesses and entrepreneurs in North America.

Benefits of entering

Get recognition from your peers and the industry. Raise your profile online and off. Motivate employees. Get publicity, and impress clients and customers.

Voting is Now Open!

Voting for the 2012 Small Business Influencer Awards is open through August 5, 2012. See who's been nominated and show your support by voting.

Awards Gala in New York

Once nominations and votes are in, the news media, friends, clients and the industry are invited to celebrate with the Champions at the Awards Gala, October 17, 2012. Last year's was a blast!

 

PLEASE VOTE FOR ME AT http://influencers.smallbiztrends.com/small-business-experts-2012/eberson-ilana-1/

 

 

How to Build Your Small Business Customer Base

As a business owner, you should always be on the hunt for new customers and seeking methods to bring them to your door. If you are not consistently looking for opportunities to build your customer base, your business could fall off of the growth track. There are lots of ways to reach your prospects. I offer you these tips that will help you keep your business out in front of your target customers:

Start using one new social media site. If you have been spending all of your time on Facebook, it might be time to branch out to Twitter, Pinterest, Google+ or LinkedIn. It all depends on whom you are targeting for business. Figure out where your best target customers spend time online, and go become part of the conversation, too. Share generously and remember content is your currency. Go for the relationship, not the sale right away.

Do more face-to-face networking. It might be surprising, but old fashioned in-person networking still works well. Why? Because people do business with people they know. Your goal at any networking event should be to develop five quality contacts. Don't be one of those drive-by networkers trying to give your business card to everyone. Arrive at the event on time for the reception, and have a plan for who you want to meet. Keep in mind, everyone is worth your time. If you build a relationship with someone, you can quite possibly turn them into a customer or a referral. You never know who they know or who their brother is in business.

Read More:

7 Tips for Networking

Networking goes hand in hand with running a successful business.

But many of us dread walking into a room and introducing ourselves to a bunch of strangers.

I've been asked to share my best networking tips at a meeting today of the National Association of Women Business Owners in Philadelphia. Here are the most valuable tips I've come across – and put to work myself – over the years:

1. Resist the urge to arrive late. It's almost counter-intuitive, but showing up early at a networking event is a much better strategy than getting there on the later side. As a first attendee, you'll notice that it's calmer and quieter – and people won't have settled into groups yet. It's easier to find other people who don't have conversation partners yet.

Read More

 

The 7 Pillars of Connecting With Absolutely Anyone

 

“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” - Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People

I don’t care what your goals, industry or interests are, there’s no getting around it: Personal relationships run the world. But why is it that some people seem to build instant rapport with most anyone they come across, while others are left with a network of one?

Over the past few years, I’ve conducted a study of exactly what sets these people apart. Turns out, the results are more simple, and more powerful, than you’d think. And they led me to interactions and connections with world-class CEOs, best-selling authors, professional athletes and other seemingly untouchable folks, including Tony Robbins and Warren Buffett.

Read More

 

When It Comes to Networking, Farmers Will Always Beat Hunters

Has a complete stranger ever solicited you for a referral or business? I call this “premature solicitation.”

I’ve been its victim many times. I was recently speaking at a networking event, and before my presentation, a man came up to me and said, “Hi, it is a real pleasure to meet you. I understand you know Richard Branson. I offer specialized marketing services and I am sure his Virgin enterprises could benefit from what I provide. Could you please introduce me to him so that I can show him how this would assist his companies?”

Here’s what was going on inside my head: “Are you completely insane? I’m going to introduce you, someone I don’t know and don’t have any relationship with, to Sir Richard, whom I’ve only met a few times, so that you can proceed to attempt to sell him a product or service that I don’t know anything about and haven’t used myself? Yeah, right. That’s never going to happen.”

Read More

 

Learning to Network: Organized Study vs. Winging It

My colleagues and I, as co-authors of the new book Business Networking and Sex – Not What You Think, thought it would be interesting to see if men and women acquire networking skills in different ways. So in one of our surveys, we asked participants how they learned to network.

Most respondents--both men and women--cited multiple ways. More than one-fourth said they had been mentored, which is widely considered one of the most effective ways to learn anything. Almost half said they had learned on their own, but many of them also participated in networking groups or read books and articles. In fact, more than three-quarters of respondents cited their use of networking groups. Which isn't surprising. Such groups often provide training programs and materials. Their popularity also illustrates the old wisdom of learning by doing. Many people learn fastest by watching others, making mistakes and correcting them.

Read More

17 Ways to Mismanage Your Sales Team

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Want to make sure that everyone on your sales team is ready to jump ship for your competition? Implement one of these all-too-common sales management "strategies."

1. Keep them uninformed. Update your website without telling the sales team, so that the customers can tell them what’s new in your product set.

Read More: 17 Ways to Mismanage Your Sales Team

Does Your Business Need a DBA?

Have you ever wondered about the meaning behind those seemingly endless listings of ‘Fictitious Business Name’ entries in the newspaper classifieds? Do you know if your business needs to file one? Read on to learn all about the DBA or Fictitious Business name.

Fictitious Business Name: An Overview

Sometimes called a Fictitious Business Name, Doing Business As (DBA), assumed business name, or trade name, these filings let the public know the true owner of a business. Note that I’ll be using DBA and Fictitious Business Name interchangeably throughout this article.

Read More: Does Your Business Need a DBA?

4 Rules For an Effective 'Thank You'

A university professor began reflecting on the people who had a positive impact on his life.  In particular he remembered a schoolteacher who had gone out of her way to instill in him a love of poetry.  He hadn’t seen or spoken to her in many years, but he located her address and sent her a letter of thanks.  A short time later, he received this reply:

Read More: 4 Rules For an Effective 'Thank You'

The Downton Abbey Guide to Irresistible Narrative Marketing

Every content marketer needs to build relationships with readers.

To have a chance at achieving your marketing goals, you need readers who love what you do.

What if there were a blueprint for telling irresistible stories, for making almost everything you write have an impact in the hearts and minds of your readers?

Look no further than Downton Abbey for that blueprint.

What can a once-obscure period television drama teach us about effective writing, content marketing, and engagement online?

Read More: The Downton Abbey Guide to Irresistible Narrative Marketing

How to Redefine Your Business in a New Market

What happens if you get your market research wrong and sales don't take off?

You don't have to call it quits, but it's clearly time to consider a new customer focus--and fast. "You can't just say, 'If we build it, they will come,'" says Kevin Daum, author of Roar! Get Heard in The Sales and Marketing Jungle (Wiley, 2010). "You've got to go where the business is."

Here are three ways entrepreneurs have refocused their companies to jumpstart their businesses -- and you can, too.

Ticket Kick Founder Greg Meunder

Photo courtesy of the Company

No. 1 -- Change the focus of your service. When Greg Muender was a junior in college, he founded TicketKick, a San Diego-based company that helped contest speeding tickets for California drivers. Back then, in 2008, he thought pinpointing his core market--college-age men--was a no-brainer, given their high number of speeding tickets. In those early days, Muender's customers came almost entirely by word-of-mouth, and business was slow.

But about a year after starting TicketKick, Muender got a call from a driver who had received a ticket in the mail showing that a camera had caught him running a red light. Muender didn't know what to do for the customer, but he couldn't afford to lose the business. As he looked into the matter, he found that most drivers were stumped when it came to disputing red light tickets based on camera surveillance.

Read More: How to Redefine Your Business in a New Market

Adaptive Marketing Set to Become the Next Big Thing

Google took a lot of heat last month when it announced its decision to incorporate personal data into its search results. The "Don't Be Evil" people were vilified by commentators and competitors. But its move was just another step in a shift by many marketers toward more actively tracking and responding to consumers.

Amazon gives shoppers personalized recommendations. Nike lets runners customize their trainers via Nike ID. Coca-Cola has introduced Freestyle vending machines, which enable patrons to create their own beverage by mixing together existing Coke products and then sharing their favorite creations with their friends via Facebook.

 

Read More: Adaptive Marketing Set to Become the Next Big Thing

How To Build a Rockin’ LinkedIn Presence

Let’s face it: Too many of us spend a lot of time actively ignoring LinkedIn. We don’t intend to, it’s just not as flashy as some of the other social networks. But if you haven’t checked out the business social networking site lately, it’s time to stop ignoring LinkedIn and go back. Because the site has added a host of new features in recent months that have helped transform it from a static resume site to a full-blown business networking site that SMBs will want to take advantage of.

One feature small business owners want to specifically be aware of is the ability to create company profiles on the site. By claiming and building out your profile, SMBs will be able to increase your company’s prominence on the site, help prospective employees find you, and use it as your own personal recruiting network. If you’ve ever had to hire locally, you know important this is.

Read More: How To Build a Rockin’ LinkedIn Presence

6 Emotions That Make Customers Buy

Customers make purchasing decisions because they have carefully considered a set of good information, right?

Wrong.

Buying decisions are always the result of a change in the customer's emotional state. While information may help change that emotional state, it's the emotion that's important, not the information.

All buying decisions stem from the interplay of the following six emotions:

1. Greed. "If I make a decision now, I will be rewarded."

2. Fear. "If I don't make a decision now, I'm toast."

Read More: 6 Emotions That Make Customers Buy

Is Affiliate Marketing Right for Your Business?

Affiliate marketing is a sales strategy. Businesses or individuals link to a merchant's products and receive a commission if the affiliate partner gets a sale. The strategy is sometimes known as performance marketing.

How effective has this strategy been?

The 2010 IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report showed that performance-based advertising models accounted for 62 percent of Internet ad revenues, up from 59 percent in 2009. In 2010, affiliate-marketing pioneer Amazon derived 40 percent of its more than $34 billion in sales from its program, according to Wikipedia.

Read More: Is Affiliate Marketing Right for Your Business?

6 Ways to Give Your App a Leg Up on the Competition

Paul Baldwin is the chief marketing officer of Outfit7 Inc., a subsidiary of Out Fit 7 Ltd, the leading entertainment app developer. Paul has more than 17 years of experience developing, marketing and monetizing digital entertainment content.

Spend a few minutes browsing through both the Android and Apple app stores and it’s easy to see the fierce competition for user attention. The number of apps has grown to more than 1 million, each vying for downloads and market share.

The app development world is still very top-heavy, with a very small percentage of developers controlling the majority of downloads and revenue. But that in no way means that a newcomer can’t build a successful app that captures the hearts and minds of consumers, and becomes the next big thing.

Since the app stores themselves control which apps are elevated and highlighted, how can you ensure your app gets time in the spotlight and the attention it deserves? Here are six tips drawn from experience

Read More: 6 Ways to Give Your App a Leg Up on the Competition

How to Accomplish the Impossible

Genius sometimes just means not realizing that something is impossible.

A college student arrived a few minutes late for his final exam in mathematics.  The room was quiet, with everyone working hard, and the profes­sor silently handed him the test.  It consisted of five math problems on the first page and two on the second.  The student sat down and began to work.  He solved the first five problems in half the time, but the two on the second page were tougher.  Everyone else finished the exam and left, so the student was alone by the end of the time period.  He finished the final problem at the last second.

Read More: How to Accomplish the Impossible

How're We Doing? No, Really

Entrepreneurship can be a lonely business, so it's important to get lots of feedback from customers and employees. But what kind of feedback do you really want, and how do you get it?

I was recently asked to help get effective, casual, and simply more feedback into the daily rhythm of a fast-growing technology company. This is a timely question: With the start of a new year, organizations are conducting annual reviews, which are generally the big kahuna of feedback. Too often, these reviews are the only substantive feedback most employees receive.

But no one gets it right the first time, all the time, which is why the process of giving and receiving feedback needs to be embedded in the practice of leadership—and to be more than a once-a-year event.  Unfortunately, giving and receiving feedback can be tough for many leaders. Some of the reasons for this include:

• Reluctance to criticize another person, or to be seen as doing so
• The emotional vulnerability that accompanies an openness to feedback
• The power dynamic of a boss evaluating a subordinate, or even of peers evaluating each other
• The politics of saying that one perspective is ‘right’ and another ‘wrong.’

In order to influence the process, and to make feedback a healthy part of a functioning organization, a leader must first ask a series of questions.

Read More: How're We Doing? No, Really

The Shady Practice Of Spinning Articles To Avoid Duplicate Content Penalties

If you've been walking on the sunny side of a clean street on your Search Marketing journey, hopefully you've skipped right past that dark and narrow alleyway in which lurks the spin monster. The practice of 'spinning' articles for directory submission isn't new, but it has come to my notice that marketing firms are currently utilizing this as a post-Panda effort for avoiding the dread Google duplicate content label, and I'm writing this article today to describe what the process is. If you're about to hire a marketer/SEO whose methods of promotion include submitting 'spun' articles to content sites, read this first before you sign that contract.

Read More: The Shady Practice Of Spinning Articles To Avoid Duplicate Content Penalties

Which Way Is Best: Relationships First or Business First?

Editor's note: The following is an excerpt from Business Networking and Sex (Not What You Think) (Entrepreneur Press, 2012) by Ivan Misner, Hazel M. Walker and Frank J. De Raffele Jr. The book parses data from a survey of more than 12,000 businesspeople that focused on gender differences in networking to understand communication roadblocks between women and men and to provide breakthroughs that can help improve results.

Related: Networking With the Opposite Sex by Hazel M. Walker

It's no amazing revelation to say that the first priority for women is relationships, and for men, getting business. DNA evidence and the roles men still play in our society support that fact. Men have been the hunters, protectors and providers of our clans since the beginning of time. This is not to say female breadwinners are not increasing in number every day as the sole supporters of their families, because they are. But let's go back to who we are at a primal level.

As the provider, I feel it is my responsibility to bring home the bacon, steak, buffalo -- or squirrel, if it has been a very bad day. When I'm bringing that catch home, I'm not trying to build a forever relationship with that meal that I'm hunting. I need to catch it, prepare it for my family and get it home, just like the sales and deals I go after in today's world.

Read More: Which Way Is Best: Relationships First or Business First?