Blair Thomas

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When searching for the right company to join, hopeful job seekers often consider professional development opportunities to be a major incentive to apply. However, for businesses with budget limitations, providing employees with the best development opportunities can be a challenge. Fortunately, some savvy businesses have found ways to create a culture of continuous learning and employee growth without breaking the bank. To that end, 13 Young Entrepreneur Council members weigh in with their best budget-friendly strategies for employee professional development.

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While some people may be resolving to start a new fitness routine or give up a bad habit in the new year, others may be hoping to start a business. The feeling of a fresh start and the boost of motivation the new year brings can be the catalyst necessary to finally take the leap into entrepreneurship. But, business ownership isn’t for everyone, and some aspiring entrepreneurs may be more excited about the idea of owning a business than they are about the sometimes tough realities that come along with it. To ensure you’re ready to take up the challenge, consider the following 12 questions as outlined by the members of Young Entrepreneur Council and determine if starting a business in 2024 is right for you.

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As the year draws to a close, small service-based businesses face the challenge of not only reflecting on their past performance but also positioning themselves for success in the upcoming year. But how can these businesses stand out in the crowd to truly distinguish themselves and set a solid foundation for the year ahead? Here, 15 Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question to help small businesses rise above the competition and pave the way for a bright 2024.

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New artificial intelligence tools seem to crop up every day—and many businesses are implementing them just as quickly. However, while these tools are meant to make businesses more efficient, that doesn’t mean they don’t also come with their own challenges, especially when it comes to implementing them in the first place. From simply not understanding the technology to gaining customer acceptance and trust, there are numerous struggles leaders are facing while attempting to adopt artificial intelligence into their processes. Here, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss 10 of those hurdles and what they think business leaders can do to overcome them.

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A cornerstone of any thriving business’s operations, a company’s human resources department plays a key role in the success of its people. And yet, it can be easy for CEOs to think of their HR departments like their own self-sustaining departments, recruiting and hiring employees without much need for additional assistance. However, just like any other department, HR can experience their own challenges and require the full support of the leadership team (and the company as a whole) if they are to function well. So what can CEOs do to provide that support? Below, the business leaders of Young Entrepreneur Council share their thoughts and outline 10 different ways company leaders can better support their HR teams and why it's so important to the overall health of a business.

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In his 2023 report, the U.S. Surgeon General reported that millions of Americans are lonely, not just at home, but also at work—and this continues to be an ongoing issue. While this trend began before the pandemic isolated millions of individuals from their families and friends, these feelings of loneliness have only increased since. As one’s work makes up a significant part of a person’s life, finding ways to seek connection with co-workers and build a sense of belonging and camaraderie is key to addressing this ongoing problem. So how can employers help? Here to share their insights, 10 business leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council weigh in on what employers can do to ensure their teams feel connected and supported at work, and discuss why doing so is so important for everyone’s well-being.

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When you’re an entrepreneur, time management and productivity are key to lasting success. However, finding the time to get everything done can seem overwhelming, especially with the packed to-do lists that come with running a business. Fortunately, in today's technology-forward landscape, many apps are available to help busy entrepreneurs make the most of their (limited) time. Below, Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) leaders share their answers to the following question:

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As leaders of their respective companies, CEOs are naturally very busy, so often it can make sense to outsource tasks to a virtual assistant, or VA. From simple yet time-consuming tasks like scheduling meetings and managing emails to more involved tasks such as research and report preparation, VAs can help CEOs gain back a significant amount of time during their workday, allowing them to turn their focus back to vital decision-making and operational tasks. But not every task a CEO may have on their to-do list each day can be assigned to someone else, so what are the tasks best suited for a virtual assistant? Here, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council weigh in with 10 tasks they recommend CEOs outsource to VAs and why doing so will save them so much time.

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Getting promoted or moving into a new role at your company can be a difficult path to take if you’re not sure how to get there. While you may feel you’re ready for such a change, you may still need certifications, new skills or more experience that can give you the resume you need to take on this new role. Rather than guessing what further qualifications you may need, it can be helpful to reach out to your manager first. By asking the right questions and starting the right conversations, you can learn a lot about what problems your company faces and what you can do to help tackle them. To help get you started, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council each offer one question they believe you should ask your manager if you're looking to both improve in your current role and advance in your company and career.

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As a business owner, it’s easy to assume that you have to be a nonprofit in order to get involved in the world of philanthropy. However, your business doesn’t have to be centered around a particular cause in order to give back. By building a company culture that values generosity and doing good for the community, you can make a difference no matter what type of business you’re in. But how can you as a leader incorporate these kinds of values into your company culture? Here, nine business leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council offer their suggestions for easy ways businesses of any size can make philanthropy part of their company culture and the impact this has on your employees and your company overall.

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"Build your network" is common advice given to professionals looking to find new jobs, make major business moves and succeed in their careers. But when the busyness of life and work sets in, it can sometimes be difficult to build and then nurture those relationships so they maintain their strength over time. Without these relationships, you may miss out on potential opportunities or connections that could play an important role in your future success. To help you find the balance needed to manage both your network and your personal life, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their top advice for maintaining professional relationships while also prioritizing your personal ones.

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While LinkedIn is a great place to connect with others in your space and share your unique perspective on industry problems, engagement isn't always guaranteed. Because the platform boasts over 930 million members, if you aren’t being intentional about your LinkedIn strategy, your content may not even get noticed. However, if you’re looking to seriously up your LinkedIn game and give your engagement a major boost, consider the following advice from the members of Young Entrepreneur Council. Here, they outline nine steps any professional can take to increase engagement with their content and why these methods work so well.

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Being an entrepreneur requires a unique blend of creativity, vision and innovative thinking. To stay ahead in the ever-evolving business landscape, entrepreneurs need constant inspiration and fresh perspectives. Luckily, podcasts have become an invaluable (and readily available) source of knowledge and motivation for ambitious business minds. Whether you're just starting your entrepreneurial journey or are a seasoned professional, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) offer their suggestions by answering this question:

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In both personal and professional realms, growth and progress are often the outcomes of embracing challenges and pushing beyond our comfort zones. Within the workplace, this means professionals who actively seek to challenge themselves may be more likely to experience accelerated development and fulfillment in their careers. Below, Young Entrepreneur Council members explore various strategies for stepping outside the confines of your comfort zone and delving into uncharted territories within the work environment. By venturing into new areas, taking on unfamiliar tasks and embracing discomfort, professionals can unlock their full potential, acquire valuable skills, cultivate resilience and foster innovation.

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From rejection and adversity to self-doubt, entrepreneurs will inevitably encounter many challenges as they work to build a thriving business. Fortunately, there are effective strategies new business owners can leverage to help them navigate the rough patches and stay motivated to achieve their goals.  Without preparing for unexpected setbacks and downturns, a new entrepreneur may struggle to maintain the focus and confidence they need to succeed. Here, 12 Young Entrepreneur Council members share their best advice for persevering through the difficulties that come along with entrepreneurship, offering tips to help entrepreneurs stay the course and find lasting success.

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When it comes to building a healthy working relationship with your employees, trust is essential. However, building trust takes time, and for new employees, it can be even more challenging. As a manager, you want to establish trust with your new hires as quickly as possible to set the stage for a positive and productive working relationship. Fortunately, there are practical steps you can take to build trust with your new employees from day one. From establishing clear expectations to showing empathy and support, these strategies can help you create a culture of trust and respect that can benefit your team and your organization. To help, Young Entrepreneur Council members share their best tips for quickly establishing trust.

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When it comes to training employees, there’s no one way to do it right—but there are a few ways you might be doing it wrong. Using outdated materials or failing to check in enough may not be intentional blunders, but they could prevent your employee from succeeding as quickly as you’d like them to in their role. However, after years of training new employees, business leaders are bound to have picked up a few lessons along the way. The members of Young Entrepreneur Council are here to share a few of the lessons they’ve learned over their careers about how to train effectively and the advice they would give other business leaders who are training new employees for the first time. 

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Small actions to build trust with your team can go a long way. For employees, the CEO can seem like an elusive figure -- too busy and too important to engage with on a day-to-day basis. However, leaders who take the time to build relationships with their team members can create a more connected and engaged workforce. Being approachable is key, but it's not always easy to know where to start. To help, a group of entrepreneurs shared their tried-and-true strategies for creating an approachable, open work environment and building better relationships with their teams.

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In business, you have those who strive for stability and the peace that comes with knowing you have a steady stream of revenue. There are also those who like to push the envelope and create the next big thing, sometimes taking big risks in order to do so. However, no business owner has to fall on one side or the other.  To achieve the best of both worlds, consider the following advice from the members of Young Entrepreneur Council. Here, they offer up their best tips for how to balance the need to stay ahead of the curve and innovate with the equally important need to maintain stable cash flow and profitability.

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While personalization may be easier to accomplish in the e-commerce space, that doesn’t mean brick-and-mortar stores are out of luck when it comes to personalizing the customer experience. With face-to-face interactions acting as a strong advantage, brick-and-mortar retail stores can create unique, custom experiences tailored to individual customers’ needs. To do so, however, they’ll want to follow the recommendations made by the members of Young Entrepreneur Council. Below, they share eight ways brick-and-mortar stores can offer customized, personalized experiences to their customers and how doing so can help separate them from their competition.

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As an entrepreneur, joining an online group can be a great way to stay up to date on the latest trends and developments in your field. These groups, which can be found on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn, offer a wealth of information and advice from other entrepreneurs, industry experts and thought leaders. To help you find the right community for you, a group of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members weighed in on the following question:

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Podcasting has become an increasingly popular medium for businesses to build their brand and connect with audiences. However, launching a successful podcast requires more than just recording and uploading episodes. Many podcasts fail to gain traction and reach their target audience, leaving business owners wondering what went wrong. Below, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members share essential tips for podcasting successfully. By following these tips, businesses can maximize the potential of podcasting as a marketing tool to achieve their goals.

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Finding a job is always a matter of competition. While you may be highly qualified for a role, there could be a myriad of other applicants equally or even more qualified than you are, all hoping to be selected for the position. However, when employers can see that you’re experienced, thoughtful and motivated to learn and grow—“top talent,” so to speak—they’ll be eager to bring you on board. But to earn this reputation, you’ll need to work on building your personal brand. To do so, consider the following advice from the members of Young Entrepreneur Council. Below, they discuss some of the steps you can take to develop a “top talent” personal brand and why each step is so effective in helping you achieve your career goals.

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For entrepreneurs, publishing a book can be an excellent opportunity to share their expertise, experiences and perspectives with a broader audience. However, for first-timers, the process of writing and publishing a book can be daunting, and they may not know where to start or what to expect.  To help entrepreneurs who happen to be aspiring authors, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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Deciding to franchise your business is a big step in entrepreneurship and there are many factors to consider before doing so. Aside from ensuring that your main business has enough financing to support your overall brand, there are legal processes that need to be completed, hiring that needs to be done, and branding procedures that must be solidified. Here, 11 Young Entrepreneur Council members note some specific questions to ask yourself when thinking about franchising your company and why you need to do so.

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With advanced technology like virtual reality (VR), it can sometimes be difficult to fathom all the potential applications it can have in the business world. However, nearly every day there seems to be new and exciting innovations in the VR space that can impact both businesses and their customers.  Below, several members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss some of the cool, unique ways they’ve seen virtual reality being used recently—from immersive training experiences to global collaboration—and how these use cases might inspire any entrepreneur to leverage virtual reality for their own business.

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For many modern businesses, tech teams are the backbone of operations. Business leaders can support their IT staff in many different ways, from allocating an adequate IT budget to recognizing and acknowledging tech employees. Here, 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members share ways to set up your tech department for success.

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With the right project management tool, you can save you and your team valuable time and money as well as streamline your workflow and reduce stress. Having all your project information in one place ensures deadlines and details aren’t missed, and you’re better able to keep track of who is working on what and what roadblocks they may be facing. However, not all project management tools are created equal, and this means you’ll need to be intentional about determining which tool will best fit your team’s needs. To help, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss factors you should consider when looking for the perfect project management tool for your team and how these will help you make the right decision for your company.

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Especially given the growing remote workforce, companies may be looking to tighten up their cybersecurity efforts come the new year. Hackers and cybersecurity threats unfortunately aren’t going anywhere, so finding new ways to secure your company’s technology and protect your customers’ data is a good practice to begin to ensure your business’s safety all year long. To offer up a few ideas for what you can do, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council list some of their recommendations for improving your cybersecurity efforts for the new year and why doing so is so important to the well-being of your company and its stakeholders.

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The workforce of 2023 will continue to change and evolve, from more hybrid work policies to a greater focus on global candidates. Over the last few years, businesses have grappled with decisions such as offering permanent remote work, creating hybrid work models or requiring employees to return to the office. Businesses have also faced the impact of quiet quitting and the Great Resignation, which have made them think more deeply about hiring policies, employee benefits and retention rates. In the new year, businesses are likely to see even more changes come about. Below, a group of successful entrepreneurs share their predictions for some of the workforce changes we might see in 2023 and how businesses can adapt.

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One of the most challenging quarters for business leaders is often Q4. There is often a rush to close out the year’s expenses, plan year-end initiatives and marketing campaigns, and coordinate holiday PTO. Even though Q4 is sure to be a busy season, it’s also a great time to do some business “housekeeping” and check in on annual goals that haven’t been completed. Here, eight Young Entrepreneur Council members each share one item that’s always included on their year-end checklist.

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Cyber Monday and Black Friday are great opportunities to attract customers to your small business, but there is often a lot of competition from major retailers during the holiday season. While your small business may not be able to compete on the same level as a major retailer, there are a lot of strategies you can use to sell more products or services through the end of the year. To help you plan ahead for the big holiday sale days and beyond, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) answered the following question:

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One of the best ways to ensure your company is always in good hands—whether you are at the helm or not—is to make sure your team is made up of great leaders. And while careful hiring can deliver a similar result, another and perhaps more effective strategy for achieving this is to create those leaders through your company culture and values. Whether it’s by giving employees more autonomy or encouraging curiosity, there are a multitude of ways you can ensure your company culture breeds successful leaders. To share a few of their favorites, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council list their recommended methods for building leaders within your company and why this is important for the long-term retention of your employees and overall growth of your business.

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When it comes to work and getting things done, effective communication is about more than getting along with your teammates. In a business context, communication can affect not only the interpersonal relationships of the people who work there, but also the speed at which a project is completed, the quality of a product and even the rate at which employees leave the company. Effective communication, then, acts as a solid foundation necessary for any business to thrive.  To help build up this foundation, you’ll first need to clear out any of the mistakes, such as those listed by the members of Young Entrepreneur Council. Below, they share some of their biggest communication pet peeves in business, and what people can do to communicate more effectively at work.

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When you start a business, you not only become a part of your local community, but you also join a network of local business owners. Being part of this business network means you can often find help among your fellow entrepreneurs and even lend a hand yourself when others are in need. This may come in the form of advice, but it can also take the form of partnerships where you both support each other’s businesses while also marketing your own. There are a few ways to take on a partnership like this, so business owners can choose which solution works best for their situation. Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council share the methods they recommend any business use and why this kind of partnership can be beneficial for both parties.

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Many entrepreneurs start new businesses while also balancing full-time jobs. When there’s limited time to work on developing a new company, you need to pick and choose what tasks to focus on first. Here, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members each share one task that should take priority over all others when you have limited time to work on your startup.

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Maintaining good relationships with your vendors helps ensure that you consistently receive the goods and services you need and achieve mutually beneficial goals. But when the buyer-supplier relationship begins to sour for whatever reason, it may be best for your business to cut ties and move on. To help you determine whether it's time to seek out a new vendor partnership, 11 Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members shared their insights on the following question:

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While nearly every role has some degree of creativity involved in its duties, heavily creative roles such as those in social media content creation, marketing, video production, copywriting and more naturally require a different skill set from those roles that may rely more on logical or analytical thinking. When hiring for these roles, then, employers will be basing their decisions on a different list of desired traits and skills. So what exactly should aspiring creatives be focusing on improving or highlighting on their resumes? Below, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council share nine skills and traits they look for when hiring for a creative role and why a candidate who possesses them is so appealing.

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A company’s culture—or its shared values, behaviors, goals and beliefs—can be one of the most difficult aspects of business for an entrepreneur to build. It involves bringing together employees from different backgrounds, with different experiences and with differing goals, and determining commonalities and a unified vision that everyone can agree on and strive toward. Naturally, this process can involve a few bumps along the way. But no matter how difficult the journey, building a strong company culture is key to building a successful business that lasts. To help, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss 10 pain points they often hear about in company cultures and offer their best advice for addressing them.

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A healthy employee is a happy employee, and many companies that understand this go out of their way to support the health and well-being of their employees by offering employee wellness programs. However, even if a company offers an employee wellness program, its benefits can often go unused by employees. In fact, some studies suggest usage of employee assistance programs is as little as 10%.  So how can concerned employers raise participation rates and encourage better health for their team members? Below, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council share nine tips for getting employees interested in your company’s wellness program and their own health and fitness.

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When an entrepreneur brings on a business advisor, they often do so with the intention of gaining sound insight and advice—finding that “second opinion” that can help steer their business in the right direction. But, many times, an advisor turns into something more: a true mentor who can offer guidance, support, motivation and understanding when times get tough, as well as the advice needed to help get you back on your feet. When thinking about the advice from their own business advisors, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council have a few key tips that come to mind. Below, each member shares one piece of sage wisdom their business advisor gave them, and why they consider it to be one of the best pieces of advice they’ve ever received.

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Business travel is an excellent opportunity to make new connections and close deals. However, between transportation, meals, accommodations and other per diem expenses, it's easy for a traveling professional to rack up a hefty bill. To help busy travelers find ways to keep costs down during a business trip, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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Employers look for a variety of qualities and traits in job candidates. While you’ll always want to highlight the hard skills that are relevant to the position you’re applying for, there are also soft skills that could help you land a job, even if you’re a little less qualified than the other candidates. Because it’s so important to develop these skills to impress potential employers, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their insights on the soft skills they think are key to succeeding in any career and why you should develop them if you want to get hired.

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With so many technological advancements taking place and remote and hybrid workforces on the rise, recruiting and hiring processes are much different than they used to be. These days, apps, software and social platforms are where many companies go to seek new talent.  Depending on your industry and company culture, however, some software will be more beneficial than others when it comes to hiring. Here, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss their picks for today's most impactful apps and software for recruiting and hiring.

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After the Covid-19 pandemic hit and lockdown was in full swing, many businesses were forced to figure out how to run their operations remotely in order to stay afloat. Although business is regaining a sense of normalcy now, many job applicants continue to look for hybrid work environments when seeking potential job opportunities.  Many companies have thus realized the benefits of operating under a hybrid work model, but they still need to ensure their hybrid work environment is appealing to candidates. Here, 11 members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss various ways for business owners to ensure they’re providing what potential hires are looking for.

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Modern automation capabilities can free up workers’ valuable time to help them be more productive and focus on big picture tasks that will further a company’s vision. With so many tools available, how can you determine which automation technologies would be best for your company? To help you decide, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council share a few of their favorite tools that have helped them automate their work and boost productivity.

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Members of Young Entrepreneur Council recommend apps and software that can help improve your social media marketing strategies. With so many companies using social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and even TikTok, getting noticed and keeping up with the time-consuming demands of a social media marketing strategy means taking your social media game to the next level. Whether it’s saving your team time on the back end or streamlining your content creation efforts, there are a multitude of ways you can improve your current strategy. Below, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council experts recommends the top software for leveling up your social media.

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Everyone struggles with self-doubt at some point in their lives, especially if they own a business. Self-doubt as a business owner can be daunting to overcome and may sometimes derail you from your goals. But part of being an entrepreneur means learning how to grow a thick skin in order to take on the adversity, rejection and low confidence that can often come with the job. To help mitigate these common feelings, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their best advice for becoming more resilient as an entrepreneur and why it's worked for them over the years.

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Every growing organization will experience role transitions at some point. Whether a project is changing hands, an employee is moving into a promotion, or you’re hiring someone to take on a new position, you will want the transitions to go smoothly. For the best ways to ensure successful transitions, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members share their best advice.

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Trust is key for any relationship to be successful, and this is especially true for manager-employee relationships. Managers rely on their employees to carry out the daily tasks necessary for the success of their business. Employees rely on their managers for guidance, support and leadership.  But in order for trust to be built, both managers and employees need to put in the work. This can be more difficult for managers who work remotely or who have to split their time between so many different people and tasks. To help you work on building trust with your team, these tips from the members of Young Entrepreneur Council are a great starting point.

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Having more than one social media account for your brand may mean reaching more people, but it doesn't mean businesses can simply post the same content to each platform. If you want to grow your audience, it's important to differentiate your content across accounts while still ensuring everything feels cohesive and consistent. To help you do this, 12 members of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) weigh in on the following question:

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No matter what industry you're in, if you’re trying to hire in the current job market, chances are that you're up against some fierce competition. With so many companies to compete with, it's vital to find a way to stand out so that the best talent will want to join your team — and your job posting is the best place to start. To that end, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members were asked to answer the following question:

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Throughout the pandemic, it has been difficult for many professionals to build and maintain new business relationships. Interactions may have been limited to Zoom calls or virtual happy hours, while valuable in-person networking events were placed on the backburner. Now that many restrictions have eased and employees are heading back to the office or have settled in to their new work-from-home routines, many people are ready and eager for more intentional networking efforts. Below, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council explain how professionals can make their networking efforts more effective for the rest of 2022 and beyond.

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Is your brand in need of a makeover? While it may seem as simple as something like changing your company’s name, rebranding is a complicated process with many moving parts.  After a time, many companies change or update their missions, and rebranding is an effective tool for signaling to customers that a company is undergoing major changes, but it can also result in pushback from the target audience if not handled well. Below, nine Young Entrepreneur Council members reveal steps you can take if your rebrand doesn’t achieve the reaction you were hoping for.

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For entrepreneurs who want a leg up when starting a business, consider becoming a franchisee of an already successful company. This path ensures a built-in customer base, brand recognition and support from a parent company—benefits you might not get if you started a business from scratch. There are many profitable franchising models out there across nearly every industry, so aspiring entrepreneurs of all interests and backgrounds have plenty of options to choose from. To help you narrow the list down, seven Young Entrepreneur Council members weighed in on current franchising trends. If you’re looking for a starting point to explore the world of franchising, check out the industries these experts say lend themselves well to the franchising model.

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There's a story behind the start of every business, and many entrepreneurs write books to share their own. Whether it's a motivating story of overcoming challenges, an inspiring story of passion or a story full of practical lessons and advice, an entrepreneur's first book can be used to help them grow their business.  To share insights on how to do that, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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Jumping on the latest cultural trends can be a good way to make some quick money or earn some fast fame. However, steering your ship off course to try to take advantage of passing trends isn't always the best long-term decision.  It often happens that businesses try to profit from what's trending just to end up wasting time and resources in the end. Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council share their arguments for why it’s actually better to stay the course with your business and let the trends pass you by.

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Super Bowl commercials are known for capturing their audience’s attention in an extreme way, whether through humor, storytelling or the star power of their commercial cast. It seems that everyone has a favorite Super Bowl commercial that, no matter how many years have passed, they still remember. Given the national attention these ads garner, entrepreneurs can look to these commercials for lessons on what advertising works and what doesn't. Here, eight Young Entrepreneur Council members shared their favorite Super Bowl commercials of years past and the lessons each one taught them about advertising in their own businesses.

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In the era of information overload, we're surrounded every day by new ideas, technology and innovation. Finding a niche that hasn't already been dominated may seem impossible for the aspiring entrepreneur. Yet every day someone creates something new to reach a market that hasn't yet been saturated. It's possible to carve out your own unique niche, but you need the right tools and expertise to do it. Below, eight Young Entrepreneur Council members shared their best suggestions for how to find a business niche that still has plenty of untapped potential.

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Starting a new business isn’t for the faint of heart. It takes courage, ambition, and a tangible plan. Many people will be eager to support you on your journey, but some may actually give you advice that could hurt your chances for success. Here, members of Young Entrepreneur Council list an “unlucky 13” collection of the worst startup advice they were given, and explain why that misguided startup advice is so harmful to entrepreneurs who are just starting out.

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No matter your current role, when work gets to be too stressful or monotonous you may begin to daydream about moving on to bigger and better things—things that you're in charge of. The thought of starting a new chapter of your life where you call all the shots can be thrilling, but the reality of making such a move isn't always what you dreamed of. Before you make the life-changing decision to trade your position in an organization for entrepreneurship, take the time to consider what that really means. Below, 10 professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council discuss the most important things a person should consider before quitting their job to become an entrepreneur.

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At the beginning of the year, companies and employees alike are setting resolutions for the months ahead. As employees set their sights on new goals, there are a few questions leaders should be asking them at the start. With these thought-provoking questions, leaders can be a part of the solution to set employees up for success and help them contribute to the company goals. To help you identify the best things to ask, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council each offered one question business leaders should ask employees in January to pave the way for a successful year.

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One income stream isn't enough for many people to make a comfortable living these days. Luckily, there are a myriad of ways for a working professional to make money on the side — so many, in fact, that it can be difficult to settle on just one.  If you need to start a second stream of income but are having trouble determining how you want to do it, answering a few crucial questions can help set you on the right track. Here, 10 members of YEC share some of the most important questions you can ask yourself to figure out the best side hustle for you.

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January is a time when many professionals and businesses set goals and company resolutions for the year ahead. However, even the most well-intentioned may lose sight of their goals as the year goes on. The key to following through with your business's big annual goals is measuring your progress each week, month and quarter. To help you do this, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council each provided an effective solution for tracking progress on your department-specific goals over the next 12 months.

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Every professional should master the art of persuasion. Whether you're negotiating for a raise, pitching to an investor, giving a presentation, or trying to win a new client, having influence can help reach your goal.   Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council share top tips to appeal to others — and why those tactics work so well.

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The future of your business relies on finding the best candidates to hold senior positions. Making the right choice can spell the difference between success and failure for your company, but it isn’t always easy finding the best fit to lead your company to the next stage. To help fellow leaders hiring for senior-level roles, Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members weighed in on the following question:

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Modern entrepreneurs know the importance of using social media to grow their business. It can be a great way for business owners to connect with customers and expand their company’s reach. As social media’s relevance has grown, so have the benefits of using popular platforms like Instagram to reach your target audience. To help you make the most of your business Instagram account, members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their best advice for engaging and retaining followers. Follow their recommendations to take your Instagram game to the next level.

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As the weather gets colder and the days get shorter, it's easy for your team's motivation to decline alongside it. If you don't want to see morale and productivity plummet through the winter months, it's important to take proactive steps to energize and inspire your staff. To help, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council recommend some ways in which you can keep their spirits and motivation high all winter long.

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The new year always brings with it the desire to make changes and resolutions that will better both yourself and your company. It can be exciting to look back at all that you've achieved in a year and look ahead to what else you can do in the future. Maybe there are certain projects your team didn't get to that you hope to complete, or goals you didn't quite reach that seem even more achievable now. While "new year" projects are an exciting prospect, it can also be overwhelming to try to accomplish so many new goals and initiatives at once. Below, nine Young Entrepreneur Council members shared their best advice for prioritizing and planning during Q1.

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Launching a new product on social media can be a great way to go to market, but that’s only if you design an effective social media campaign. From creating content to scheduling, building awareness of your new product on social media requires a lot of careful planning and consideration. To help get you started, 14 members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their best tips for successfully launching a new product on social media.

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Businesses may need to participate in fundraising efforts to secure additional capital, fund research efforts or expand their market reach. Before they can begin, however, leaders must determine their company's valuation. A valuation of a company is determined through various calculations that take into account factors such as market value and annual revenue. This step is crucial as it may determine whether or not investors choose to invest in your business. If you're about to begin the fundraising process for your startup, consider these eight factors that can influence your valuation, as shared by the members of Young Entrepreneur Council.

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High turnover rates are a tell-tale sign that something is wrong within your business. Whether the turnover rate is in a specific department or company-wide, it’s important for business leaders to address the issues that are occurring to prevent any further issues.  Not addressing a high turnover rate can be problematic for a business and will likely lead to an unsuccessful team, a bad reputation, and low company morale. To help leaders better understand what’s happening, 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members recommended some steps a business leader should take to investigate what is going on in the company and solve the root issue.

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Performance feedback is an important way for your employees to know how well they are doing in their role, especially in a growing company. While annual reviews help your employees see how they’ve been doing throughout the course of the year, they could also benefit from receiving regular performance feedback.  Continued feedback allows employees to address any changes they should be making in their workflow, rather than finding out later on that they have been underperforming. However, it should be given in a way that employees feel encouraged to improve, rather than micro-managed.  Below, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members offered some creative ways to give regular performance feedback to key team members, even in a growing company.

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Many product-based companies want to be carried by major retailers, but with so much competition, only a select few ever achieve that goal. Landing your product in a major retail store will take a lot of time and persuasion, and you’ll have to be able to demonstrate why your product is worth a retailer’s shelf space.  To help entrepreneurs sell their product to a big retail store, 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members shared their best advice. Here, they offer important steps an entrepreneur can take to get their product on shelves nationally and even globally.

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When people hear the word "sales," they may think of demanding revenue targets, nonstop calls and long hours. While some sales roles can be challenging, this one-sided perception takes away from the fact that the field of sales is often a rewarding career choice.  Depending on where you work, your sales role will likely afford you a flexible work schedule, a chance to diversify your skills and high compensation potential. Below, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council detailed some common misconceptions about sales they don't want industry newcomers to believe. Here's why these leaders say sales is a great field to get into, especially as a recent graduate.

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When meeting with a potential investor, it’s important that entrepreneurs come prepared for any questions that may arise. You’ll likely spend hours preparing your answers, but even then, tough questions may be posed that, without good answers, could damage your confidence. Therefore, to help you avoid being surprised during a pitch, 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members each shared the toughest question they’ve ever been asked during an investor meeting and how they recommend you prepare for it.

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As the holidays quickly approach, it's almost time for you and your team to set your “out of office” auto-replies and get some well-deserved rest and relaxation. However, this is easier said than done when many professionals continually feel the need to be productive. This feeling of not doing enough and needing to be “always on” can lead to guilt about taking time off and will keep you from enjoying a much-needed break. To help your company avoid this issue, eight Young Entrepreneur Council members shared some tips to help you and your team truly unplug and enjoy the holidays.

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Sifting through piles of job applications and resumes can be tedious work. However, you can take advantage of certain recruiting “hacks” to find the best job candidates, people who are likely to be a great fit right from the start. To learn more about methods that work, 14 successful entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) shared their favorite recruiting tips for finding the best of the best.

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Firing an employee for the first time in your career can be a difficult and emotional process. But whether an employee’s performance has been consistently subpar or a difficult downsizing decision has been made, sometimes it has to be done. To help you do it in the most effective, kindest way possible, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members weighed in on the following question:

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One of the biggest challenges for new entrepreneurs across the board is learning how to manage their finances. This is especially true of cash flow management. If you're not used to handling a business budget or invoicing, it's easy to lose track of how much money is coming in versus going out of the business. Because cash flow is such an essential indicator of a company's overall financial health, it's important to learn how to master best practices and avoid critical pitfalls. Below, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council shared some common mistakes they've seen entrepreneurs make with their cash flow and how to avoid them as a new business owner.

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When you first started your business, you may have found a few trustworthy team members to back you up. As the business is growing, you may be noticing your original startup team isn't aligning with your overall vision or perhaps you've simply "outgrown" the need for the roles you hired them to do. This misalignment can ultimately lead to stagnation within all facets of your company as well as an unhappy workforce. So, how do you know when it's time to bring in fresh perspectives? Nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council offered some signs that may indicate your original startup team is no longer suitable for your current business direction.

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Employees aren’t the only ones who can receive feedback about their performance at work. As a manager or business leader, it’s important to receive feedback from your employees so you can understand how you’re doing and what you need to do to improve. While every manager hopes for positive feedback, they may still receive negative feedback from time to time, and it’s how they respond to that feedback that can really make the difference. If an employee thinks you're not performing at your best and lets you know about it, there are some steps you should take to address the complaint the right way. Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council explained what leaders should do after they receive negative feedback.

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Accurately gauging the fit of a job candidate can be difficult, and sometimes new hires who seemed great during the interview process don't pan out as expected. In situations like this, a leader must take action to course-correct and figure out the problem before the whole team suffers. To help you identify some red flags to look for early in a new employee's tenure, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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Employees, especially when new to their positions, often need guidance to be successful in their work. However, too much direction can be less like helpful and constructive feedback and more like micromanagement. This, in turn, can have a negative impact on an employee's work performance and mental health, and they may begin to feel less confident in the work they produce. Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council offered advice on what to do as an employee if you feel like you’re being micromanaged at work.

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In the digital age, having a website is an extremely important and valuable way to inform customers of your services. However, it’s not enough to just have a website that looks good—the copy needs to stand out as well. Well-crafted, effective copy will help draw customers in and keep their attention away from the competition. Below, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council offered their best tips for making your website’s copy stand out and why each tip is key to attracting customers.

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In an era when cybercrime and data breaches are more prevalent than ever, businesses can't afford to ignore data security. From phishing and ransomware attacks to careless password practices, there are countless ways for thieves to penetrate your company's digital walls and access sensitive information. That's why all businesses should implement any strategies they can to improve the security of their company data. Below, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members offered some quick and easy solutions that will help you shore up your defenses. Follow their tips to make your business more secure.

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The secret to a successful and efficient company culture is transparent communication. This is especially true when you need to announce big news to your team in a way that will make them feel confident about the company's direction and decisions. To help you do this, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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Your customers can be an invaluable business resource if you know what to ask. Happy customers are the key to any successful business. Ensuring a great customer experience requires sales and customer service teams to speak with customers and find out how they feel. However, your team must know the right questions to ask to gain truly valuable insights from customer conversations. Below, a group of successful entrepreneurs shared eight smart questions sales and customer service reps should be asking their company's customers. Here's what to ask and the potential impact the answer could have on your business's growth.

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One of the most significant milestones for any business is the day it reaches a point of expansion. While every business owner looks forward to the day they can grow their business, it's important not to be hasty in doing so. A successful business expansion depends on a number of factors and needs to be carried out at the right time. To help you understand when the time is right for you to expand your business operations, 13 experts from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) answer the following question:

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As your company grows, you might face challenges maintaining the same level of transparency across departments and teams as you had when your company was small. However, doing so is crucial to cultivating a healthy company culture with every employee on the same page. A big part of promoting transparency is ensuring clear communication between all departments, especially when it comes to shared projects and goals. To help you do this, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council explained how to achieve the right level of communication and transparency.

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One of the biggest challenges for any new entrepreneur is learning their own sales habits and processes. It can take years for a person to really hone their skills and become an excellent salesperson. To help those starting out on their sales journey, the experts of Young Entrepreneur Council shared their experiences. Below they discussed the sales tips they wish they knew when they first started out and how those lessons can help new and aspiring entrepreneurs get on a path to business success.

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When you are interviewing job applicants, there are certain “soft skills”—that is, non-technical skills that relate more to how you work with others and solve problems—that you should be on the lookout for, as these attributes are not usually spelled out on a candidate’s resume. Here, members from Young Entrepreneur Council share 13 underrated but important soft skills they look for when they are hiring new employees.

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Communication is extremely important in the business world, especially when it comes to customers and clients. Without transparent communication, customers might feel disconnected from your brand and like they lack any support from your business. To help you avoid some of the more common communication issues, a panel of YEC members shared the mistakes many companies make when communicating with their customers and what you should do instead to improve your overall communications process.

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A public relations crisis is a common incident many companies face at some point. The lasting impact of the incident is not so much about the crisis itself, but the way it’s handled. In the midst of the crisis, it’s important to approach your audience and the issue at hand with careful consideration. This is often achieved by delivering the right communication at the right time through the right medium, such as your social media channels. Below, 15 members of YEC shared some of the ways you can use social media to help resolve negative PR situations as they occur.

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Time management can be a challenge when you’re faced with work that’s piled up over a period of time. It can be overwhelming to look at a list of tasks and determine which are priorities and which can be temporarily moved to the side, causing some employees to stress or panic about where to even begin.  To alleviate this situation, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council explained what an overwhelmed employee should do to get back on track. From actionable advice like speaking with management to tips for adjusting your mentality, these entrepreneurs share their best habits for better managing your time despite an overwhelming workload.

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In a world filled with uncertainties, businesses want to be able to rely on customer loyalty. Many businesses know they wouldn’t be successful without their customers, but they may not be sure how to best thank them for their loyalty. To retain customers, it’s important to find effective ways to thank them for their business. That's why 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members shared their favorite unique ways to thank loyal members of your brand community. Follow their recommendations and make your customer's day.

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As social media becomes a go-to communication platform for consumers across all demographics, it’s important for companies to increase their brand awareness on the platforms their audiences use. Leveraging these social media platforms effectively can help create strong connections with customers, draw them to your business, and build brand loyalty. To help businesses boost brand loyalty, 14 Young Entrepreneur Council members offer their best advice.

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Searching for a new job can be a huge challenge. Modern recruiters have an influx of applications to sift through and judge, and it can be difficult to stand out from the crowd. Many professionals offer advice to help people get noticed by potential employers or guide them toward better career options, but not all job hunting tips are good ones. To provide some clarity, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council weighed in on some of the most overrated job search advice they often hear. Here's why they believe these commonly-dispensed words of wisdom aren't necessarily all that wise.

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Scaling a business usually means employees will be taking on new tasks and responsibilities and new rules or processes may be put in place. Depending on how fast the company grows, the employees may become frustrated with all the changes, leading to disengagement and low team morale. If not addressed, this lack of connection with the business and its goals can be the first step to losing those employees. Business leaders who want to retain their talented employees should figure out the best techniques for keeping this frustration to a minimum. To help, ten members of YEC discuss how a business can make employee retention a high priority while growing the company.

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With social media, businesses have a unique tool to get firsthand insights from customers in an environment which allows them to interact with their audience, ask questions, highlight new products and share information. However, with this tool can come the potential for massive disaster. Social media is littered with examples of brands and companies that failed to realize the best way to use these channels for customer service and have suffered the consequences. To help, 12 professionals from YEC weigh in on some of the rules businesses should keep in mind when using social media to engage with clients in a customer service setting.

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In any type of face-to-face or video meeting, your body language can set the tone for the direction of the conversation. Depending on how you present yourself, the other person may be able to tell if you’re tense, worried or even closed off. Poor body language can have detrimental effects, especially if you’re speaking to a "very important person" who can determine the fate of your business. That's why it's important to put your best foot forward with parties like potential investors and business partners by paying extra attention to your nonverbal communications. To help you, eight Young Entrepreneur Council members shared some common body language mistakes you should avoid when speaking to a VIP.

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Taking on the leadership role of a manager can be daunting the first time. You're in charge of an entire team, and their successes and failures fall largely on your shoulders. Even though it can be intimidating, it's important to start on the right foot. If you're a first-time manager, you'll want to prove to your company why you were the best person for this position. Begin your new career path successfully by following these tips from expert managers from Young Entrepreneur Council.

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You have a great business idea that you're passionate about, and you're excited to get started, but before you do, you need to choose a business partner. This person can help you make complex decisions and guide your team through projects. They can be your best ally. However, if your partner doesn't have values and goals that align with yours or adds more stress to situations, they may be detrimental to your business. To make sure you don't end up in the wrong partnership, look for eight essential qualities of a business partner from members of Young Entrepreneur Council.

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A normal part of running a business is having ideas fail. However, sometimes these circumstances lead to crises within the business. When this happens, employees look to business leaders for guidance on how to respond. To help your company handle crises in a competent manner, you need to have a level mindset. Professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council offer eight ways you can calmly manage a company crisis.

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Digital receipts, online bank statements and cloud-based document storage are the norm in today's business world. Some business owners may wonder whether they truly need physical copies of any documents at all these days. However, some important documents should always exist in both physical and digital form.  To that end, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

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One common piece of marketing advice is to meet your audience where they are. For the many companies looking to reach millennials, that means social media — and especially through the use of Instagram and TikTok. These social platforms provide great opportunities to engage with millennials and influence their purchasing behaviors. But how can you ensure your social media marketing efforts will be successful and won’t actually turn millennials away from your brand? With more than three billion users spread across the most popular social networking platforms today, it’s easy to get lost in the mix — even if you are spending top dollar on paid advertising and influencer outreach. The good news is, there are always new methods that are grabbing attention, while other advertisers and content creators are focusing on stale content methods. To help in this process, we’ve reach out to eleven experts from YEC to discuss their best tips on how to catch the attention of millennials and help your brand stand out among the competition. Follow their advice to provide the value this generation so desperately wants.

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It’s important for leaders to know that, when it comes to teams, just because the weekly team meetings are quiet or the suggestion box hasn’t seen a valid recommendation or criticism in a while, doesn’t mean no one has anything to say. In fact, more often than not, employees have thoughts, suggestions and criticisms to offer, but they don’t share because they’re not sure how their leaders will respond if they do. Listening to your employees and their ideas is a powerful and important way to help your business grow and progress, so how can you get them to speak up? To help, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council provide tips on how to encourage employees to share their ideas at work.

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Just because a piece of advice is common doesn't mean it applies to every entrepreneur. Follow your passion. Always be hustling. Don’t be afraid to take risks. Every new and aspiring entrepreneur has likely heard common pieces of business advice like this repeated over and over again. The problem is that these types of tips are rarely universal; each business is unique and needs to find its own path to success, regardless of what has worked for other entrepreneurs. Below, eight successful entrepreneurs shared some common business principles that they believe are overrated. Here's why they think you shouldn't necessarily follow these tips, and what they would advise doing instead.

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With the rich educational value podcasts often provide their listeners, it’s no surprise that the business community turns to this popular form of content to improve their skills and strategies. Some entrepreneurs even make major business decisions based on the information they’ve learned and the stories they’ve listened to on podcasts. With this in mind, 14 members of Young Entrepreneur Council responded to the following question:

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As a new small business, engaging your community is crucial to getting your business off the ground. The goal is to nurture lasting relationships that will drive your revenue and increase brand awareness; however, forming genuine connections with members of your community requires strategy and patience. To help you do this, 15 members of Young Entrepreneur Council answered the following question:

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Newcomers to the world of business ownership may have a hard time navigating all the requirements and challenges of setting up their first company. If you’re just starting out, finding another founder who has been through it and can provide sound advice may be worthwhile. With industries evolving so quickly these days, though, it could be difficult to find someone who understands your target market very well. When planning to open your new business, the first steps you take are crucial. Doing the right thing from the get-go can give entrepreneurs an advantage, as they can get up and running that much sooner. To help, 12 experts from Young Entrepreneur Council shared key first steps to take to ensure that your company achieves long-term success.

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Sometimes an employee just doesn’t work out within an organization and needs to be let go. Firing an employee is a task that needs to be handled with delicacy and care, and the process can be intimidating for someone who has never been responsible for terminating an employee before. If you find yourself in this situation, follow this advice from the members of Young Entrepreneur Council:

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Content marketing is one of the most effective methods of gaining exposure for a brand and bringing potential customers into the sales funnel. By integrating strategic distribution, search engine optimization and inbound tactics as part of this approach, most businesses see excellent returns on their investments in content marketing. Building a content marketing campaign strategy around specific goals the business wants to meet helps narrow the focus, which improves results. Brand promotion, for example, requires different content than product marketing. Here, members of Young Entrepreneur Council explore eight content marketing secrets that all business leaders should know about to successfully promote their brand.

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Small businesses have several benefits over larger companies, but resources aren’t usually one of them. This limitation can significantly impact the way a small business deals with new hires. While a larger company can dedicate weeks or months to training a new employee under an experienced team, smaller businesses don't always have that luxury. The result is that these smaller enterprises have to be more creative with their onboarding. Below, 13 professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) delve into this topic by answering the following question:

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The pandemic has made remote and hybrid work arrangements mainstream. But it has also given managers a unique opportunity to bring different talent to their teams from all over the country and the globe. That being said, it's also important to think about how those new hires will work and be managed in a remote setting. It takes a certain skill set to succeed in a remote work environment, so it's vital to identify some key traits that will set a candidate up for success. Below, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council shared the qualifications they've been looking for in new hires lately, especially those who will be working remotely.

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Conversion is an essential part of crafting a retail website. After all, it's one thing to get people on your website, but it's another to get them to purchase something. Approaches for this process can vary from business to business, but all successful enterprises have a few methods in common. So how can a company convert website visitors successfully? Nine leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council share some of those successful methods for increasing online sales and why they work so well.

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Search engine optimization is a prominent concern for marketers across all industries and for any business with an online presence. Having good SEO habits is likely to get your website ranked on search engines above your competitors. However, poor SEO habits likely won’t produce the results you’re looking for and can potentially lead to your site getting heavily penalized. To help you cultivate acceptable SEO practices, 13 professionals from YEC discuss several examples of poor SEO habits they've run into and explain why these habits could have a severely negative impact on your marketing.

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Entrepreneurs can come from any background, any place and with any experience level. Yet because entrepreneurs task themselves with starting companies to develop solutions and generate value, it’s vital that they have a specific set of skills that help them get the job done. These skills are a necessary part of the entrepreneur’s tool belt. However, there are some skills that are more valuable than others and some that are highly underrated. Here, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council examine some of the underrated skills that they think entrepreneurs should cultivate, even if others aren’t.

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Public relations can be a delicate balancing act. If your business does PR right, it could skyrocket in popularity overnight. If, however, you run afoul of public opinion, you may find your company falls as fast as it grew. Startups, especially, may be at a disadvantage. They don't have dedicated PR firms behind them and have to develop unique ways to engage the public that get them noticed and ensure their relevance. For a discussion on some of the methods startups may not have considered, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council share what they’d recommend to boost PR efforts and how these approaches can result in a better company image.

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When your business starts seeing success, it's natural to want to ride the momentum and build upon it. However, it's possible to grow too fast, too soon.  Even if your business is thriving, growing too quickly can tire out your staff and burn through your resources. New companies experiencing their first "growth spurt" may try to scale up before they have the team or infrastructure to support it, and this path rarely ends well. To help you scale at a reasonable pace, 12 members of YEC shared their tips for properly managing your growth rate.

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Because they often have very limited resources, small businesses have to be intentional about the tools they use. They don’t have the luxury of testing out and paying for expensive software and systems they ultimately may not keep, so it’s important that their chosen solutions are budget-friendly and effective from the start. For these reasons, cloud computing and storage can provide some major benefits for these businesses. With free or low-cost pricing plans available, companies can take advantage of cloud technology to grow their businesses like never before, which is why these eight experts from Young Entrepreneur Council offered some specific and impactful ways that cloud technology can be used by small and medium companies to fuel growth.

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Finding a core audience to market to is a crucial part of making a business profitable. Many marketing departments spend thousands of dollars building a picture of their ideal customer to inform how and where they should market. Once they do that, it's just a matter of unifying their content and media planning to target their product's most viable buyers. But how exactly should they go about this? What’s the best way to unify these two plans? To offer some guidance, eight professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council examine some of the strategies they recommend for combining content and media planning to target a specific market and explain why they’re so effective.

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As machine learning becomes more prevalent in business, it has the potential to affect a company’s day-to-day interactions with its customers, whether positively or negatively. Many businesses have already invested heavily in machine learning and have found great success. However, new tech can always be intimidating, scary or potentially difficult to implement. Below, eight leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council attempt to quell some of those fears by discussing the merits of machine learning and how they see it affecting their own daily interactions with customers. These are just a few things machine learning can do to help take your business to the next level.

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Email marketing is a great way for small businesses to stay connected with their customers and encourage more sales. The problem is that because of their size they often have limited resources for growing their subscriber lists. So to help small business owners expand their email audience (even on a budget), the members of Young Entrepreneur Council weighed in on the following question:

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2020 brought a plethora of changes to consumer behavior. Many of these changes will serve as inspiration for new product ideas and functions that will help businesses better serve their customers in the year ahead. In many cases, serving customers better begins with great design. This applies not only to the design of physical products, but to the user experience and interface of digital products. To provide their own expert insight, a group of successful entrepreneurs shared some design trends they expect to see in 2021 and why these trends will be so impactful.

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Managers have the difficult responsibility of achieving their own goals to meet the business objectives of their company while simultaneously overseeing the performance of its employees. As a leader, you want to make sure you’re there for your team when they have questions or need guidance. However, it’s important to strike a balance between meeting your own goals and making yourself available to your staff. To help, members of Young Entrepreneur Council offered 10 steps managers can take to achieve this balance.

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When it comes to small and large businesses, not every encounter has to be about competition. Sometimes, interactions could result in a mutually beneficial partnership. The path to getting there, however, isn’t always so clear. For small businesses to ensure they are heard and that they don't get the short end of the stick in the deal, there are certain steps they should take. To provide some insight on exactly which steps you should consider taking first, 10 professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council weigh in on what a smaller company should do to get noticed and strike a beneficial partnership with a larger company.

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Email lists are fantastic tools for keeping in contact with consumers, sharing information and generating leads. But putting together an email list and figuring out how to attract customers to your list can take a lot of time and effort if not done thoughtfully. So how does a company go about creating an email list that will yield a good return on investment? What's the first thing an entrepreneur needs to do to ensure that the list is successful? Here, 11 experts from YEC look at some crucial first steps to setting up an email list that will offer a good ROI, and why these steps are so critical to the list's (and the entrepreneur's) success.

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When a client signs on with your business, they have certain expectations about what your performance will be. The best way to end up with a happy client, however, is to manage these expectations early on. If you don't, and a client feels as though they should have gotten more from your business but didn't, their testimony could severely damage your future business and your reputation. To ensure you don’t end up in this situation, 12 experts from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) share their insights on the following question: “What's one rule you'd suggest for better managing client expectations early in a business relationship, and why?” Follow this advice to avoid disappointing your client and instead provide even better service.

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As a new business owner, it isn't easy to sort out which business strategies work and which ones don’t. There's no standardized roadmap that guarantees success. Instead, success in business is a series of trial-and-error tests that result in a positive outcome, with plenty of mistakes along the way. When it comes to marketing, many business owners make mistakes without even knowing they’re doing so. If not addressed, these issues can lead to failed campaigns, unjustified expenses and very few results. Below, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council look at some of the most common mistakes new entrepreneurs make when planning their marketing efforts and the best ways to remedy them.

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In business, it's only natural that you'll be called on to present to an audience. However, the stakes of some of these presentations can be relatively high, which can lead to anxiety and heightened nerves for the person giving them. Not everyone is naturally cool under pressure, yet so many business professionals manage to give these pitches effortlessly, or so it seems. What all these professionals know is that calming your nerves isn't always as difficult as it first seems. To offer some insight, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council weigh in on the strategies that work for them and how they’re able to deliver calm, collected pitches time and again.

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Being an entrepreneur and owning your own business is an end goal for most people. It's a thrilling end result -- the fact that you're your own boss, you set your own hours, and remain accountable only to yourself can be a heady mix. Yet, the benefits of the position usually overshadow the more pertinent considerations that would-be entrepreneurs overlook. Although there are significant benefits to being a business owner, there's also a considerable amount of background work that rarely gets highlighted but needs to be done. These 12 members of YEC look at these extraneous factors that new entrepreneurs tend to overlook before embarking on starting their business and explain why these elements are so critical to your success as a business owner.

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The modern world has made it really easy for anyone to get started on a side hustle. In fact, most entrepreneurs get started with some sort of side gig. Transitioning those side hustles into standalone businesses that can financially support them usually begins with understanding how to make a significant amount of profit, but not all side hustle ideas are lucrative enough to evolve into something financially stable. Below, 10 entrepreneurs from YEC share their experiences and suggestions for side businesses that are set up to work, and even suggest a few critical steps for success long term.

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Communication is one of the most essential skills that a business leader needs to master to be successful. Great leaders may develop their communication skills early on in their careers, but they also have created and maintained habits that help them communicate more effectively. When you watch great leaders address an audience or interact with others, the practices they cultivate to help them communicate so well may not be immediately apparent. Even so, their effectiveness is unquestionable. Here, nine members of Young Entrepreneur Council share the habits they believe all great leaders have and explain why these help make them such powerful communicators.

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Hiring for a senior position at a company usually requires a lot more time and effort than hiring for other positions. In many cases, business owners may have a hard time finding the most effective way to source senior talent for their organization. You don't want to lose out on great talent, but you also need to spot the best talent out of the field of applicants, because making a wrong hire at this level can spell disaster for the organization. To offer some guidance, 13 professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) use their own experience hiring for senior-level positions to reflect on the following question: “What's the best recruiting lesson you've learned when it comes to hiring for a senior position within your company? How has it affected future hires?”   Here’s a few of their most important tips.

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Small businesses, like any business, have finances that need to be kept in order. Owners can deal with these duties to a point; however, small businesses tend to grow, and hiring an employee dedicated to keeping the company's finances in check is often a necessary next step. Luckily, many small business owners can hire someone on a part-time basis. This route carries a lot less overhead in terms of time and money compared to hiring a full-time employee, but it also comes with its own challenges. That’s why we asked 11 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following:

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Businesses are in an unenviable position of having to find the most talented individuals in their field and entice them to work at their organization. In many cases, finding qualified candidates has come down to creating the right ads and vetting candidates properly. However, some organizations have refined their candidate sourcing. They've streamlined the process to ensure that they only get those that are already qualified for the position. In such a case, it's just a matter of choosing the most viable candidates. Narrowing down these candidates is a lot easier with filtering early on in the process. Here, 10 experts from YEC explore their preferred methods for locating the ideal candidate for their businesses and explain why those strategies work so well to net them the best individuals for the job.

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Programming is highly in demand in today's digital-first world. Try these tools, courses and platforms recommended by business leaders. Today's world is all about technology, which means people who can develop software and applications are in very high demand. However, many companies that need help with development have found there simply aren't enough qualified programmers to go around. Businesses that are in need of programming talent but can't find or don't have the budget to hire top tech candidates often choose to build the skills of their internal team to supplement their needs. Fortunately, there are countless free and low-cost tools, courses and programs that can help teams boost their programming skills. We asked 15 members of Young Entrepreneur Council to share their top tool recommendations for businesses that want to build programming into their professional development flow.

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16 entrepreneurs from YEC share their favorite sales automation tools and strategies and explain why they work. Businesses have all embraced the reality of a technologically advanced society. Emerging technology has made it easier than ever before to interact with customers and shorten the time it takes to get processes done. A significant amount of businesses have embraced cutting-edge technology because they see it as a way of making their systems more efficient. One of the best examples is the adoption of artificial intelligence bots in customer service scenarios. However, as widespread as this usage is, it's not the only way companies have engaged emerging tech to make their business operate better. Sales automation is another practical use of emerging technology that businesses have managed to latch on to. Automating the sales department requires a bit more involvement, but it covers several different areas. Sales automation covers automatic lead generation and sequencing, development of automated reports using analytics guidelines, and alerts for data coming in that affects the sales process. These areas are crucial in determining the viability of prospects and in generating new leads. Throughout the business community, the idea of sales automation has pushed individual companies to look at many different methods of doing this task. Thanks to the demand, there are a vast number of sales automation tools available for businesses nowadays. We asked 16 experts from YEC to talk about the software suites and strategies they use for sales automation and explain why tools suites work so well for their own companies.

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Public speaking is a great way to gain exposure for your brand and a reputation for expertise in your field. Events with an audience allow for transparency and vulnerability—two key pieces to success when you're working to build a brand that consumers are eager to engage with. Speaking events also help you show off the core solutions your business has to offer. The pandemic may have slowed in-person conferences and presentations, but it's likely a temporary effect—and there are plenty of virtual opportunities out there right now. We asked 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council their advice on finding great speaking engagements to build up your brand. Here are their recommendations for tracking down the best opportunities for you.

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There's no question that retail is a challenging industry to master. However, for investors or manufacturers, the challenges it presents are more than worth the rewards. Retail distribution allows a business to serve its offerings up to a much broader population than direct distribution, thus increasing an enterprise’s visibility and revenue. However, entering retail distribution is complicated and requires a carefully planned strategy. To help, eight business leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council share their insights into what steps a company can take to move its invention or product close to retail distribution and why those steps are likely to result in success.

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The holiday season is usually a goldmine of opportunities for product-based businesses that deploy specific marketing strategies to make their offering stand out and be relevant for that time of the year. While service-based businesses typically find it more difficult to capitalize on this season’s business opportunities, there are still several creative strategies they can deploy to make holiday marketing work in their favor. To help, we asked 12 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following:

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Innovation is the key to a successful and progressive business, and your staff should constantly be looking for ways to grow your brand. As a leader, it’s your responsibility to keep your workers engaged and motivated. To help you inspire and encourage your staff, we asked the experts of Young Entrepreneur Council about ways to spark deeper thinking. Here are 10 important questions leaders should ask their employees to generate ideas and solutions to problems.

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These 20 entrepreneurs discuss the best features for remote management of a displaced workforce. Remote working isn't anything new. Many businesses have been leveraging the power of remote workers for years. Industries have replaced onboard hires with freelance workers who operate from anywhere globally, where they can have an uninterrupted internet connection. But with this year’s shift toward an almost entirely displaced workforce, many businesses are struggling to find the best strategies and tools for managing a fully remote team. Industries around the world have grappled with a change in the status quo before. Those businesses that had managers able to adapt to these changes were the ones that survived. With change on this scale, it's impossible to keep holding onto the traditional way of interacting with employees. The office has changed, and managers need to change with it or be replaced by those that do. Typically, upper management develops techniques that they can use in person-to-person interactions. As global offices have moved online, many of those techniques no longer work. As a result, managers are frantically searching for the right technology solutions that can allow them to run a virtual office with the same efficiency as a physical one. To help, 20 members of YEC discuss the innovative software they use to interact and manage their teams and why it's suitable for any company facing the challenges of a displaced workforce.

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Every successful business leader needs to know how to communicate effectively. Both written and verbal communication skills are crucial if you want to build and maintain strong relationships with your employees, customers and partners. These essential communications insights are often learned throughout an entrepreneur’s journey, and sometimes they can come to you through unexpected career situations. That’s why we asked the members of Young Entrepreneur Council to share the best communication lessons they’ve learned during their careers so far. Here are their top 10 lessons and why each was so impactful.

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Growing a business seems like a simple prospect, and it can be deceptively simple on paper. However, once you start to delve into the heart of the matter, you realize that a service-based business requires some deep thought before you can scale it. In any business place (but especially in a service-centered organization), time is money. You can only be present so often at locations that need you to be there. As the business grows, these locations multiply, while just one of you remains. How does an entrepreneur deal with this? Eight experts from Young Entrepreneur Council discuss how they grew their own service-based companies, offering actionable advice for any entrepreneur who wants to follow the same tactics.

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An effective internal communications strategy is essential when trying to build a cohesive team working together toward the same goal. Especially when it comes to announcing important news to your team, using the right internal communications approach is of utmost importance. The right communications strategy ensures the communicated message is clear and easily understood, leaving no room for error. That’s why we asked 15 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following:

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With each passing year, demographics change. Where a company's core demographic might have been millennials a few years ago, today it's shifted to Generation Z. Unfortunately, there's a marked difference in values between generations, and businesses need to revamp their marketing strategy to reach out to their newest client base without alienating their other followers. If the wrong strategy is applied and a company’s messaging reaches the wrong part of its audience, it can cost the business valuable sales. To help avoid such situations, these 11 entrepreneurs from YEC share their insight into how companies can reach out to their Gen Z audience while remaining marketable to their existing clientele.

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After a user likes or shares one of your posts on social media, you've got them interested in your brand or product. But how do you leverage this engagement and keep it going? Commitment is a fickle thing since people tend to have short attention spans. In the modern age, those attention spans are even further limited because of a society based on instant gratification. If you want to keep users liking, sharing, and commenting on your posts or blogs, you're going to need a strategy to drive that engagement. We asked 11 entrepreneurs from YEC to offer their own insight into how an organization can keep the commitment going after that initial like or share.

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For online businesses, a high-performing website that encourages engagement and conversions is the key to successful growth. It often takes time to build up a steady stream of website visitors and consistent buyers. However, there are some things you can do to help accelerate the process. If you want to scale your site visits and engagement, try these 13 growth hacks recommended by the experts of Young Entrepreneur Council.

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Having the right clients can make all the difference in your business’s success. Of course, finding those ideal clients isn’t always easy. You don’t want to be too selective and turn down a good business opportunity, but you also don’t want to overextend yourself for a client who won’t stick around in the long run. We asked members of Young Entrepreneur Council how they’ve managed to attract -- and more importantly, keep -- the right clients in their roster. Here are their best strategies.

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Despite the numerous digital communications channels available today, email is still one of the best ways to get and stay in touch with your customers. Email marketing is notorious for its high return on investment, and with nearly 4 billion active email users, there’s a huge potential audience waiting to receive your messages. However, email is only effective if you follow a well-planned strategy -- one that doesn’t involve bombarding your subscribers or sending sales pitch after sales pitch. If you want to improve your email marketing efforts, follow these 10 tried-and-true methods recommended by the members of Young Entrepreneur Council.

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Once seemingly confined to the spheres of gaming and technology, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are becoming increasingly common in both personal and professional ventures. In fact, VR and AR can be used to great effect in one’s personal branding strategy, especially if it's giving your audience a deeper connection or more intimate look at your business. As successful business leaders, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council are on the pulse of the latest industry trends and technologies. Below, they share nine high-impact ways you can incorporate VR and AR into your personal branding.

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Businesses thrive on interaction with large clients. They form the most significant inflow of money to the enterprise and help you meet your obligations from month to month. With so many companies closing down, it's not far-fetched to think that one of your massive clients might face bankruptcy. When that happens, you will need to have a clear plan in place to recover any overdue payments and soften the blow until you find new customers. That’s why we asked 12 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following:

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Brand loyalty forms a core concept of marketing in the 21st century. In a paradigm shift, thanks to better interactivity with consumers, brand loyalty is now easier to achieve than ever before. With a medium where the brand can interact directly with clients in the form of social media, all a company has to do is use their social media presence cleverly. Once they leverage their following and provide value to the audience, brand loyalty is sure to follow. To help, we asked 14 successful entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question:

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Entrepreneurs have some bad habits, one of which is not knowing when they need a break. With many young entrepreneurs, it's almost impossible to take a step back and relax. Yet studies have shown that entrepreneurs that don't take time out to smell the roses risk serious health problems later on in life. The goal of being a successful yet happy businessperson is knowing how to distance yourself from your business. Summer vacations are crucial in ensuring you keep your perspective. That’s why we asked 11 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following:

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Opt for gradual change and seek to align daily tasks with long-term goals.

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When you're negotiating a deal, misinterpreted tone or poorly-chosen words could ruin an otherwise-successful conversation. Sometimes you may not know even which phrases might turn a deal sour. That's why we asked 16 members of Young Entrepreneur Council the following question:

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These tools and strategies can make email marketing more efficient and less time-consuming. Email marketing is still a handy outreach method for businesses. It offers something unique in how companies can interact with their clientele. The big problem many companies have with email marketing is how much time it takes up from its staff. But does email marketing have to be that time-consuming? One of the things that businesses have realized over the years is that anything which used to take time can become more efficient. Email marketing isn't an exception to this rule. Where research meant digging through tons of questionnaires and noting results, today you can simply access an automatically-compiled list of preferences, sorted by an algorithm. These lists enable businesses to develop targeted, personalized emails that resonate with their target audience. These tools are only the tip of the iceberg, however. As more and more companies are looking into developing personalized marketing techniques, research needs to finish faster than ever before. Specialized tools and software exist to help businesses realize results more quickly. However, many companies are still in the dark about how they could streamline their email marketing to take up less time. We asked 17 thought leaders from YEC their take on the best tools and strategies to make email marketing a more efficient enterprise. Here's what they had to say.

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Within an organization, some skills are far more valuable than others. If your business is looking at hiring new employees, then these skills should be a primary focus for your interviews. Knowing what skills are crucial for an enterprise to grow and thrive helps you figure out if an employee may be worth hiring, even if they don't fit the ideal. Sometimes the company needs more than just the right qualifications for their employees. That's why we asked 16 professionals from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question:

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As a budding young entrepreneur, you're likely to meet a lot of people telling you, "no." While some of these people are well-meaning, the constant negativity will eventually impact your self-confidence. The unfortunate truth is that you can't just stick your head in the sand and avoid naysayers altogether. While their negativity is depressing, sometimes they have valuable knowledge and information you will need. How can an aspiring young business owner deal with this situation? We asked 12 members of Young Entrepreneur Council about their experiences dealing with those types of people and how they overcame the negativity to be successful. Here's what they had to say.

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Having a side hustle is a great way to develop a creative outlet outside of your regular career. However, these projects can consume a lot of your time, energy and money. That's why it's important to consider the required commitment and effort – and the potential return – before going all-in on your idea. To help you determine if your side hustle is worth pursuing, we asked a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members how an aspiring entrepreneur can test the idea's viability. Ask yourself these 10 questions to find out.

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Getting any business off the ground requires sufficient capital. However, all the financial stress doesn't have to fall on you as the entrepreneur – there are other ways to secure funding for your startup without assuming 100% of the risk yourself. That's why we asked the members of Young Entrepreneur Council the following question:

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The internet of things (IoT) is growing at a rapid pace, but sadly, security protocols for those devices are still in their infancy. Customer data security should be a significant concern for IoT companies. At present, there are several glaring holes in security that can be addressed with some dedicated effort. A few IoT companies have even patched out security vulnerabilities. The future holds a lot of promise for these devices, once their manufacturers can work out how to make them fully secure for consumer use. Here, eight leaders from Young Entrepreneur Council predict what they expect to see in the industry over the next few years and discuss how IoT companies can better safeguard their consumers.

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As a leader, you know your workplace dynamic directly impacts employee morale and, in turn, your bottom line. No matter how great your company culture might be, there is always room for improvement. But to make impactful changes, you’ll have to first understand which areas warrant the most attention.  To help you identify those areas, we asked a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members this question:

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Leaders should seek out ways to consistently express appreciation and ask for feedback.

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Internal meetings can be a fantastic strategic tool to help a business get all stakeholders of a project on the same page, but they can easily turn into massive time sinks if they are not properly scheduled and managed. Unfortunately, many companies don't strategize their meetings. The result is a once-weekly report that doesn't have any noticeable impact on the business.  There are ways to leverage meetings to be more efficient and practical, however. To help, 12 experts from Young Entrepreneur Council offer several strategies for using corporate meetings more efficiently to help business growth and productivity.

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In the age of remote work and social distancing, try these video conferencing tools for your company's online meetings. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing number of businesses had already embraced remote work and conducted online meetings with participants in different geographic locations. Today, nearly every company that could switch to work-from-home has done so, and groups that once met in person are now logging into virtual meeting rooms for their everyday business conversations. Even one-on-one calls are being held over video conferencing software to replicate that "face-to-face" interaction people are missing in the age of social distancing. While the majority of the business world has adopted Zoom as their preferred video conferencing platform, there are countless other choices for businesses that need to conduct online meetings. If you're not as familiar with the different tools out there, it can be challenging to determine which fits your company best. To help you explore your options, we asked members of Young Entrepreneur Council which online meeting software they recommend and what sets it apart from the others. Try out some of their recommendations to find your new favorite meeting platform.

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Winning a business or industry award can be a great honor for your business, as well as a highly effective PR opportunity. However, to be considered, you'll first need to submit an application to be reviewed by the award committee. To help you with this process, we asked the members of Young Entrepreneur Council the following question:

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Working remotely has become the new standard in the COVID-19 era. Companies that followed a traditional in-office model have had to adjust to how they presently work, and soon have to learn how to hire remotely. It's possible to find the right candidate via online screening and video interviews, but a fully virtual hiring and onboarding process can seem like a daunting proposition for companies that haven't done it before. To help, we asked members of Young Entrepreneur Council to share some insights from their personal experiences with bringing on remote hires. Follow their advice when you're ready to hire your first remote team member.

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18 leaders from YEC discuss what elements business leaders should keep in mind before selling their company. Selling a business is a significant step and one that entrepreneurs usually spend hours agonizing over. There are just too many uncertainties when it comes to a transaction. Is the estimation of value correct? Are you exiting the market at the right time? How do you ensure that you get the amount that you think the company's worth? Growing a business from humble beginnings to the point where it commands a decent value takes time, effort and a bit of your soul. For many small entrepreneurs, it's like selling a part of themselves. For an entrepreneur to be able to sell their company, they need to sever the emotional bonds they have with its growth and approach the sale without emotion. The best way to do this is to examine the elements that make up the sale critically before even putting the business on the market. But what features are the important ones to consider, in this case? Eighteen business owners from YEC delve into the elements they think entrepreneurs should consider before they decide to list their business for sale, and why those elements are so crucial to the decision.

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As a busy professional or entrepreneur, you’ve probably wished there were more than 24 hours in a day. While you might not be able to find huge chunks of free time, you can always find a few extra minutes a day, which adds up to a few extra hours in a week. Over the course of their careers, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council have found some great hacks to add some time to their busy schedules. If you’re looking to get back three to five hours of your time each week, try out their nine best tricks.

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As an entrepreneur, it’s useful to have strong business acumen -- an almost intuitive skill that can and must be honed. However, good business sense alone isn’t enough; there are several other traits an entrepreneur needs in order to succeed. As some of the top leaders in their respective industries, the members of Young Entrepreneur Council know what skills are required to succeed in the business world. Below, they share 10 underrated skills that all entrepreneurs should possess, but often don't.

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Making a major spending decision in your business, whether that be a new hire or a new marketing campaign, is often intimidating. You want to make sure you’re investing your money wisely, in a way that will yield a worthwhile return. To help you, we asked a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council members how to make financial decisions with confidence.

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Accessing capital is one of the biggest challenges many new entrepreneurs face. From loans to investments, securing the proper financing is a long and taxing process, but it can be overcome. Members of Young Entrepreneur Council explained how they worked through their funding challenges.

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Office culture doesn't stagnate, and there will always be a constant change around how a business operates. Instituting new office procedures and policies as the company culture changes may mean taking some chances. Not all new plans are guaranteed to succeed, and some of them require considerable risk on behalf of the company. If a business isn't sure if a policy or proposal will turn out positively, then its implementation should be weighed carefully. Failure of the policy might mean severe drawbacks to the business as a whole. For entrepreneurs who are looking at instituting new policies, such as, for instance, allowing pets at the office, 13 members of Young Entrepreneur Council examine the core considerations companies should make when evaluating the viability of implementation.

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Entrepreneurs usually don't have enough hours in a day to get everything done. That's the primary reason why prioritizing tasks is a common trait of the most successful business owners. However, many entrepreneurs overlook the importance of hiring great talent to their team and place the priority of hiring new employees way down their list. A business's success, however, depends on how well its employees perform, and that should be reason enough to raise this task up a busy entrepreneur's task list. Below, eight members of Young Entrepreneur Council shed light on how busy business owners can (and should) find time to locate and hire the best talent, without neglecting their other responsibilities.

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