How to DeBunk an “Expert”

I talk with dozens of business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs every week. Yesterday a prospective client asked me:

There’s so much information out there and so many people claiming to be Internet experts, how do I know who to listen to?  Given my uncertainty, what’s one piece of advice you’d give someone in need of guidance who is new to the online business world?

My answer was that besides already having an excellent product or service and a realistic budget to work with; find someone with LOTS of experience!Continue reading…

Top Predictions for 2012

It’s a new year, filled with new opportunities.  Here’s what I see coming:

  1. Outsourcing continues to grow… but this year it happens in small-town USA. Business processing outsourcing (BPO), especially call centers, bring back jobs to America from India and other places where costs are rising and quality has plateaued.
  2. The social Web remains ubiquitous.  Facebook is a trend and like all trends it will fade… but not this year. Specialized social networks will however; begin to seriously chip away bits and pieces of Facebook’s giant market share as generic social networks become passé.
  3. Tablets and smartphones continue to eat the PC’s lunch.  Content publishers will make more money via apps, because even when consumers won’t pay for content, they’ll pay for apps.  Content apps become the savior of the publishing industry, as the iPad saves their dying business model… for a little while.Continue reading…

Connecting The Dots…

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards.”

“So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.  You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.”Continue reading…

Startup CEO or Entrepreneur?

This is something I’ve been grappling with for years… 

Am I a startup CEO or an entrepreneur?

In my head I’m an entrepreneur… but when staring at our monthly payroll and other commitments… I am definitely a CEO!

What’s the difference between an entrepreneur and a CEO?Continue reading…