Firas Kittaneh

March 30th, 2023

Nine Ways Entrepreneurs Can Use Cloud Technology To Scale Their Businesses

While the cloud is perhaps most notably recognized as a convenient way to store and access data, there are many other benefits of this technology users may not automatically think of—namely when it comes to business growth. From streamlining project management to reducing retraining time, there are a multitude of ways business owners can leverage cloud technology to help them scale.

March 21st, 2023

12 Characteristics to Look for in Early-Stage Hires

March 20th, 2023

Eight Ways Entrepreneurs Can Leverage Technology To Get Control Of Their Time

When you’re a small-business owner, you’re likely doing all you can to manage your schedule, stay on top of your to-do list and handle other vital tasks. Especially if you have a small team or a limited budget, you may be trying to tackle all these different tasks at once, wearing as many hats as you can to ensure your business has what it needs to be successful. 

March 9th, 2023

Nine Books Every Entrepreneur Should Read In Order To Become A Better Leader

There are countless successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders in the world today, each with a wealth of information and experience to share. Thankfully, many of them have written books that detail their most powerful thoughts, ideas and lessons. The difficult part comes in choosing which ones to read.

March 6th, 2023

Business In Need Of A 'Declutter'? Nine Steps To Get You Started

There can come a time for many established businesses when processes become overwhelming, projects start running off track and tech stacks can get too complicated to function cohesively. All of these signs point to a need for simplification—a “decluttering” of the business and its systems. Taking the time to review what’s no longer necessary, keeping only what adds value to the business, is essential if you want to streamline your processes—but where should you begin?

February 27th, 2023

10 Signs Your Business Has Outgrown Its SaaS Vendor

As your business grows, it's important to regularly assess whether your current software-as-a-service (SaaS) vendor is meeting your needs. Some factors you can evaluate periodically are whether the vendor is able to scale with your business, provide necessary features and offer the level of support that you require — and if the answer is “no,” it may be time to move on to a new provider.

February 27th, 2023

10 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Networking Efforts

Networking is a scary prospect for a lot of people. Seeking out events, speaking to new people and trying not to feel imposter syndrome while doing so can be intimidating for new entrepreneurs (and even seasoned ones). And while many entrepreneurs will give networking their best effort, they may end up accidentally sabotaging their efforts if they’re not careful.

February 15th, 2023

When to Franchise Your Business: Is Now the Right Time?

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.

February 8th, 2023

Eight Tips For Increasing Engagement With Your Business's Instagram

Though TikTok may be receiving a lot of press as of late, steadfast platforms like Instagram still reign supreme, with around 4.25 billion visits per month and 1.39 billion daily global active users alone. This means marketers and social media managers should always be thinking of ways to engage their followers and create meaningful content that will garner attention.

January 31st, 2023

10 Mindset Shifts You May Need to Make in Order to Hire the Right Fit

January 26th, 2023

Nine Ways CEOs Can Add Structure To Their Workdays And Maximize Productivity

Whether you lead a bustling startup or an established business, as a CEO, your days are likely full of endless meetings, questions from leadership or staff, “fires” that need putting out and very little time to get any actual work done. Without an intentional plan or schedule, your day can get away from you, allowing your work—and your stress—to build up over time.

January 20th, 2023

10 Tips For Creating SOPs Your Employees Will Actually Reference

Convincing your employees to read through pages of dry policy and procedure—especially on a regular basis—is never the easiest of tasks. While documenting your business processes is important for consistency and clarity, this documentation only becomes valuable if your team members actually reference it.

January 20th, 2023

Nine Factors To Consider When Choosing The Perfect Project Management Tool

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.

January 18th, 2023

Nine Ways To Ensure Your E-Commerce Website Is Ready For Increased Traffic

While increasing the number of visitors to your site is always the goal of any e-commerce business, it’s a goal that can quickly become overwhelming if your site isn’t properly set up first. As your e-commerce business and your customer base grows, a sudden spike in traffic or just a gradual increase in purchasers over time can result in slower load times, unprepared customer service agents, irritated customers and even a total website crash.

December 19th, 2022

Business Really Picking Up During The Holidays? Eight Tips For Workload Management

With additional time-off requests, increased shopping and urgent customer service needs, the holiday season can be a busy time of year for any business. But for those seasonal businesses or businesses where sales really pick up during the end of the year, workload management can be a juggling act of responsibilities.

December 14th, 2022

10 Ways Any Company Can Tighten Up Their Cybersecurity Efforts For The New Year

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.

December 14th, 2022

8 Predictions for How the Workforce Will Change in 2023

The workforce of 2023 will continue to change and evolve, from more hybrid work policies to a greater focus on global candidates.

December 13th, 2022

Found Overnight Success? Nine Tips For Scaling Your Business Quickly

Becoming an overnight success is every entrepreneur's dream, but when it actually does happen, it can rapidly turn into an overwhelming nightmare if you aren’t prepared for the influx of new customers and orders. Rather than allowing yourself to be buried by the consequences of your success, finding a way to scale your business quickly can ensure you keep up with rising demand.

November 16th, 2022

Eight Ways To Simplify Your Website And Pull In More Customers

In an effort to be unique, informative and persuasive, many businesses can end up with overly complicated and wordy websites that may be doing more to push customers away than pull them in. When it comes to building an effective website, often simplifying its content and design is the most effective approach, giving visitors the space they need to find the answers to their problems.

November 10th, 2022

Nine Ways Advertising Could Change In 2023 (According To These Entrepreneurs)

Both social media and the internet as a whole are ever-changing digital landscapes—and that means the companies that advertise on them must advance alongside them. With new platforms, changing regulations and evolving user preferences, advertising is likely to experience a few changes in the coming new year—but to what extent?

October 26th, 2022

Nine Ways To Ensure Your Company Culture Breeds Successful Leaders

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.

October 19th, 2022

Nine Young Entrepreneurs Share How They Measure The Success Of Their Workdays

When it comes to defining success, there’s no one right answer. It can mean owning your own business, making over a million dollars, driving a particular car or even just having more freedom with your time. But when broken down into a single workday, success can sometimes be a little more difficult to measure. Its definition can even change throughout your career as you develop both professionally and personally.

October 18th, 2022

Starting a Side Business While Employed? Prioritize These 9 Tasks

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.

October 14th, 2022

11 Steps Companies Can Take to Impress at College Job Fairs This Year

October 9th, 2022

11 Clear Signs It's Time to Cut Ties with a Vendor

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.

September 13th, 2022

Facing Supply Chain Issues? Nine Tips For Weathering The Storm

As companies continue to face supply chain issues across the board, many are looking for solutions to help them get back on their feet and heading toward “business as usual.” Even when the current supply chain storm passes, savvy business leaders will be looking ahead and preparing for the next time processes go awry. 

September 7th, 2022

Nine Tips For Achieving (And Maintaining) A Healthy Co-Founder Relationship

The partnership you have with your co-founder is arguably the most important relationship you'll build as an entrepreneur, so it's important to keep it healthy. Constant arguments or disagreements about how the business should be run will only divide your relationship and your company, weakening them as well as your chances of success.

September 6th, 2022

10 Skills Even The Best Employees Should Always Work On (And Why)

No matter how far along you are in your career, there are always going to be opportunities for you to learn. This is especially true when it comes to leveling up certain skills that only increase in importance as you climb the corporate ladder. Skills like empathy, adaptability and even active listening all require constant practice and refinement to truly master—even for those who already feel like they have a solid grasp on them.

August 11th, 2022

10 Things You Should Never Do When Negotiating Your Salary In An Interview

Negotiating your salary—especially when you haven’t officially gotten the job—can be a frightening prospect. Obstacles like imposter syndrome or inexperience can make you feel as though you should just accept the company’s original offer and move on, but it’s important to know your worth and to advocate for yourself if you believe you deserve a higher salary.

August 11th, 2022

11 BAD HABITS EVERY MARKETING PROFESSIONAL SHOULD BREAK

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council share how changing these habits could bring you greater success in the marketing field.

August 8th, 2022

10 Important Skills Every Leader Should Build

No matter the industry, there are many different hard and soft skills a leader should develop to be an effective and inspiring presence on their team. While some required skills will be field-specific, skills like managing your time, speaking publicly, motivating and listening apply to all leadership positions.

August 5th, 2022

11 Ways To Be More Convincing When Pitching An Idea To Your Manager

When you have an idea—whether it’s a simple tweak to an ongoing project or a major overhaul to an ineffective work process—and you want to share it with your manager, pitching it can be as simple as walking into their office or messaging them on Slack and explaining the idea. However, if you want to ensure your pitch is successful, you may need to think through your overall strategy first.

July 26th, 2022

10 Tips For Defining And Achieving 'Meaningful Work' In Your Career

In 2022, employers are still feeling the effects of the Great Resignation as employees continue to quit their jobs in droves. Research points to burnout and dissatisfaction as two of the main reasons people are leaving their organizations in favor of more "meaningful work."

June 30th, 2022

12 Tips to Banish Self-Doubt and Boost Your Confidence as an Entrepreneur

June 26th, 2022

9 Questions You Can Ask to Gauge the Trustworthiness of Potential Hires

When your business is one of the most important things in your life, it's hard to trust others to handle any aspect of it. No matter how good a candidate looks on paper, you likely won’t have a good idea of how trustworthy they are until you’re able to meet them face-to-face. Luckily, there are some productive questions you can ask a potential hire to help you gauge their trustworthiness.

June 17th, 2022

14 Key Tips for Impressing Your Very First Client

June 16th, 2022

Eight Steps A Leader Should Take When Faced With A Company Crisis

There are many crises that a company can face during its lifetime, and they happen for many different reasons. Whether it's a financial crisis, an economic crisis, an environmental crisis or any other type of crisis, it's important for business leaders to have a plan in place to manage the situation quickly.

June 14th, 2022

Eight Things The Best Marketers Do Really Well

Marketing is both an art and a science. It requires acute attention to detail, in-depth analysis, an understanding of mass psychology and a level of creative thinking that not many people possess.

May 19th, 2022

10 Website Design Elements to Increase Sales and Engagement

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss website elements that could help boost customer engagement and overall sales.

May 16th, 2022

Marketing Locally? 11 Ways to Make Your Interactions More Personal

Local shoppers can become a business's most loyal customers by helping spread the word about the business to other community members. It's important, then, for businesses to establish these local connections early on to see the best results from local marketing.

May 6th, 2022

9 Pandemic-Driven Technologies That Entrepreneurs Love

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss their favorite tech that's come about in response to ongoing culture changes.

May 4th, 2022

Nine Ways To Make Your Website Appealing To A Diverse Audience

One of the first things a business owner might do when starting their business is determine their target audience. Even after narrowing down your target audience, however, you'll still find a lot of diversity in your customer base. Whether they’re of various ages, genders, careers, cultures or needs, there are many different types of people who may be interested in and find value in your product or service. In order to appeal to them all, then, you’ll need to design your website thoughtfully.

April 5th, 2022

Eight Steps To Take If You've Made A Financial Mistake In Your Business

Many entrepreneurs find it particularly difficult to recover from financial mistakes. Small businesses especially often run on very tight margins, meaning that one slip-up can be detrimental to a young company.

April 5th, 2022

13 TIPS FOR TRANSITIONING YOUR BRICK-AND-MORTAR STORE TO AN E-COMMERCE MODEL

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council offer their best advice for moving your physical retail store online.

April 1st, 2022

Nine Common Sales Obstacles You May Face In The Early Stages Of Your Business

Sales challenges are unavoidable in any business, regardless of industry. From curating an effective sales process to pinpointing your ideal customer, solving these sales challenges is crucial during the early stages of your company.

March 30th, 2022

Is a Business Opportunity Right For You? 12 Factors to Consider

March 10th, 2022

Is It Time to Sell Your Business? 11 Clear Signs That Point to 'Yes'

There may come a time during your entrepreneurial journey when you need to decide whether or not to sell. Maybe business is booming and sales are thriving — so how will you know when it's time to hang up your hat and walk away?

February 18th, 2022

Why It’s Better For Your Business To Let Trends Pass You By

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. 

February 18th, 2022

10 'Spring Cleaning' Tips To Streamline Your Business Operations This Year

During the first quarter of the year, businesses often start to notice what’s been working and what hasn’t, what goals have been accomplished and which haven't quite yet. Maybe an initiative started in the first few weeks of the year still hasn't gotten off the ground or a campaign launched at the end of January didn't show the results you expected.

February 4th, 2022

Are You Ready To Start Your Next Business? Nine Clear Signs It's Time

While some entrepreneurs are content with one business under their belts, there are many others who run two, three or even several businesses all at once. Some business owners are simply brimming with ideas and, at some point, they may find themselves itching to launch their next venture. Others see success in their first business and want to replicate it.

February 3rd, 2022

10 Things to Target When Studying Your Competitors

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council suggest the information you should try to find when researching your business’s competition.

January 26th, 2022

13 Strategies for Getting More Work Done in Less Time

Hint: organization and time management go a long way.

January 19th, 2022

10 SMART WAYS TO VET POTENTIAL INVESTORS BEFORE SEALING THE DEAL

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss the steps you should take when seeking an investor for your business.

January 13th, 2022

Trying To Differentiate Your Business? Eight Common Mistakes Entrepreneurs Often Make

As a new entrepreneur, getting your product out into the market is hard enough, but when there is a lot of competition in your market, it can make things even tougher. When trying to differentiate their products in a situation like this, entrepreneurs are bound to make mistakes along the way.

January 5th, 2022

Limited Business Experience? 10 Tips To Build A Successful E-Commerce Site

E-commerce has steadily risen in popularity among aspiring entrepreneurs who want a simple business model with less overhead than a traditional retail store. Selling online is a great way for inexperienced entrepreneurs to make money, test their business acumen and interface with customers online.

January 5th, 2022

Nine Tips For Crushing Your Career Goals In 2022

With 2021 now at a close, it's the perfect time of year to start looking forward to the year ahead and setting goals for success. As you set your personal resolutions, don't forget to focus on your career aspirations for the coming year too.

January 4th, 2022

Eight Entrepreneurs Share The Top Marketing Lessons They Learned In 2021

Over the past year, there have been many changes in the world of marketing. As technology continues to advance and businesses find new ways to be creative with the way they promote their products and services, other companies are faced with the choice to keep up or fall behind.

November 24th, 2021

11 Ways to Reduce Cart Abandonments for Your E-Commerce Business

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council recommend using these e-commerce tricks for lowering shopping cart abandonment rates.

November 12th, 2021

Nine Clear Signs Your Business Is 'Outgrowing' Its Original Startup Team

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.

November 2nd, 2021

10 Software Tools to Keep Your New Business Documentation Organized

October 11th, 2021

14 ESSENTIAL TRAITS TO LOOK FOR IN A CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council share some important qualities companies should look for in their CTO candidates.

September 28th, 2021

Nine Effective Email Marketing Strategies That Aren’t Just About ‘Selling’

Email marketing can be extremely effective for advertising products, whether through sale announcements or updates highlighting new items. But this marketing channel can also be leveraged in a number of other ways to connect with customers on a more direct and personal level, ultimately leading to more purchases.

September 24th, 2021

10 Entrepreneurs Share Their Top Writing Tips For Aspiring Thought Leaders

Getting your voice out there is an important part of becoming a successful thought leader. However, it can be difficult to know the right way to convey your perspectives on different topics without a strong writing foundation.

September 9th, 2021

12 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER DO AFTER RECEIVING A BAD CUSTOMER REVIEW

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council discuss why doing these things could do more harm than good for your business.

August 16th, 2021

10 Clear Signs You Might Not Be Cut Out For Entrepreneurship

Every aspiring entrepreneur starts out with a great idea. Some people turn this idea into a side hustle and sell a small amount of their product or service, while others succeed at expanding their businesses quickly and widely. However, many quickly discover that running and growing a business is hard work and may struggle to sustain their fledgling startup.

August 13th, 2021

How To Use Augmented Or Virtual Reality To Enhance Your Website’s User Experience

Now more than ever, people are skeptical about the products and services they want to purchase. Prospects will spend a lot of time researching everything there is to know about a brand before they commit.

August 4th, 2021

Eight Ways Companies Can Turn A Negative Customer Experience Into A Positive One

Turning a poor customer experience around continues to be one of the main struggles customer service professionals face daily. When the service experience goes poorly, a company can risk losing that customer forever.

July 28th, 2021

Writing Your First Business Plan? Nine Elements You'll Want to Include

July 23rd, 2021

Solopreneurs: 11 Tips for Hiring Your First Employee

June 21st, 2021

8 Overrated Business Principles You Shouldn't Always Follow

Just because a piece of advice is common doesn't mean it applies to every entrepreneur.

June 17th, 2021

Need Inspiration? Eight Methods For Coming Up With A Great Business Idea

Whether you’re an aspiring entrepreneur or a seasoned business owner, coming up with a winning business concept isn’t always easy. You may already have some ideas for a new business brewing, but how do you know if it will be successful or if it’s something you’ll enjoy? Where do you even find inspiration in the first place?

June 16th, 2021

Eight Overlooked (But Important) KPIs All Entrepreneurs Should Track

When establishing a startup, it can be difficult to know which metrics you should be focusing on. You may be watching and reporting on basic key performance indicators (KPIs) such as your gross profit margin, but are there metrics you're overlooking? The answer is most likely yes.

June 1st, 2021

Nine Strategies To Push Past Fatigue And Accomplish Your Goals Each Day

Most entrepreneurs set daily goals for themselves in order to move their businesses forward. Yet setting those goals and meeting them are two completely different things. Loss of motivation, fatigue, listlessness and a general lack of energy are common barriers to accomplishing goals, but they are also challenging to overcome without the right strategies.

May 24th, 2021

Selling Your Business? 7 Founder-Recommended Best Practices to Follow

A successful business sale takes careful planning and preparation, so make sure you're ready before you start negotiations.

May 10th, 2021

Closing A Deal? Eight Negotiation Tactics To Ensure A Positive Outcome

When you've spent tens or hundreds of hours preparing for a deal, there's a distinct sense of relief when it gets to the point of closing. Yet, even in these situations, the deal still can go sideways if not handled carefully.

May 7th, 2021

Eight Software Features To Look For To Set Up And Maintain Your Business’s Online Store

Not every online storefront is the same and, when looking to set up and maintain their own online store, business owners can end up spending hours researching various components, add-ons, features and capabilities to find the right software to use. 

May 3rd, 2021

Hire Better: 10 Entrepreneurs Share Their Tips on Finding the Right Candidates, Fast

April 16th, 2021

Nine Small Actions Business Leaders Can Take To Ensure Diversity In Hiring

With the increasing awareness of the need for diverse workplaces and teams, diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) policies have become a pressing issue in the business world. Yet, not every business owner knows where to begin or what to do to ensure their company is hiring for diverse backgrounds and skills.

March 29th, 2021

Eight Ways Startups Can Boost Their PR Efforts

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.

March 26th, 2021

Eight Entrepreneurs Share Lessons From Business Disasters That Were Blessings In Disguise

Devastating occurrences sometimes happen in business without a lot of forewarning. Entrepreneurs can leverage insurance to protect themselves from things such as fire or theft, but there are other less obvious disasters that are more difficult to prepare for.

March 24th, 2021

Nine Tips All Entrepreneurs Need To Hear When Starting A Business

If you're looking for business advice, there are a lot of different places you could go. There are countless books and seminars that promise you success with your business, but many of them are built on the achievements of their creators. No two entrepreneurs or businesses are precisely the same, and because of this, their advice may not apply or resonate with you.

March 23rd, 2021

Lost Your Job? How To Discuss Getting Fired With A Potential New Employer

Many professionals have been fired from positions in the past. Getting fired from a job can be embarrassing and anxiety-inducing, especially when you have to explain the reason why you were let go to a potential new employer.

February 22nd, 2021

Eight Lesser-Known Ways To Encourage Brand Engagement

Encouraging and maintaining a high level of audience engagement is critical for any brand keen on building a loyal following and a tight-knit community of reliable customers. Engagement serves as a foundational pillar to growing a business’s presence in the broader market, and those happy customers are often your best form of advertisement.

February 9th, 2021

Not Enough Hours In The Day? 10 Simple Ways Entrepreneurs Can Better Prioritize Their Time

When you're a busy entrepreneur, there never seems to be enough time in a day. You likely have long lists of tasks that require your full attention, but little time to sit down and focus on them. This can be overwhelming and, in turn, send your productivity levels into a slump.

February 5th, 2021

Eight Expenses CEOs Might Not Think To Budget For

When heading a company, there are certain budget items that should be of critical concern. Basics like payroll and product costs are easy to figure in to your operational budget. But business is nothing without its unexpected expenses, and there are bound to be a few that CEOs will forget to account for.

February 4th, 2021

Looking to Partner With a Larger Business? Take These 10 Steps First

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.

February 3rd, 2021

How To Ensure A Seamless Transition When A Key Company Leader Leaves

When a leader leaves your organization, even on amicable terms, it could prompt a significant upheaval in the department that they were a part of. Depending on how intrinsic they were to that department’s function, their departure may even shift the company's operations.

February 1st, 2021

Eight Ways To Approach Monitoring Your Business Competition

Building a brand takes a lot of time, effort and resources—but so does monitoring the competition. No business can perform both at the maximum possible effectiveness, and so compromises must be made. Companies must balance their time and other resources to ensure they can achieve both.

January 28th, 2021

Nine Tips To Conduct An Effective Trial Period For A Potential New Hire

The goal of any recruitment effort is to find a candidate who would be a good fit for the company. This would mean that the hire would not only be proficient in their role, but would also do well within the specific company culture. But beyond an interview, how can leaders ensure new hires will be the right choice?

January 17th, 2021

13 Recruiting Lessons to Remember When Hiring for a Senior Position

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.

January 6th, 2021

Overnight Success? Nine Effective Tips To Scale Your Business Fast

While it's not a common thing, some businesses do explode into popularity overnight. For the companies that do, it can be a completely new landscape to navigate. Suddenly, consumers want your product and they can't get enough of it. Your supply lines and logistics may not be able to handle the traffic at its new demanding level.

December 28th, 2020

Eight Obstacles Entrepreneurs Never Expected To Have To Overcome When Starting Their Businesses

The easiest part of opening a business is coming up with the idea and filing the paperwork. The most challenging part often might not be apparent right away. No leader can predict or prepare for every obstacle they might encounter as a business owner, and hurdles can vary by industry and by each entrepreneur. However, with a little insight from more experienced entrepreneurs and the right mindset, you can successfully guide you and your business through any challenge.

December 2nd, 2020

16 Excellent Sales Automation Tools

16 entrepreneurs from YEC share their favorite sales automation tools and strategies and explain why they work.

December 1st, 2020

Have You 'Outgrown' Your Original Employees? Here's How To Assess Their Evolution

When you first start your business, every member of the “founding team” -- i.e. you and your first employees -- is crucial to its early success. As your business grows and changes, there may come a time when you feel yourself starting to outgrow your original employees.

November 23rd, 2020

Eight Key Steps To Securing Retail Distribution

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.

November 18th, 2020

10 Smart Questions To Expect From Investors

When you set out to pitch your idea to an investor, you usually go through the most common questions that they're likely to ask. Discerning investors are careful about where they put their money, but a well-prepared entrepreneur can quickly answer a surprising amount of what they ask.

November 17th, 2020

https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2020/11/17/nine-risks-entrepreneurs-should-be-aware-of-when-starting-their-first-business/

October 29th, 2020

Got Negative Feedback? Nine Smart Strategies For Handling It The Right Way

No matter how diligent a person is, they will, at some point, receive negative feedback in their career. Whether it’s an unsatisfied customer, an upset manager or a tense situation with a colleague, you can’t make everyone happy 100% of the time.

October 28th, 2020

10 Key Steps That Will Help You Make Less Biased Decisions

We all have biases that affect our decision-making. These biases can sometimes be minor and have minimal impact, but other times they can have an outsized and potentially negative influence on your business and how it’s run.

September 23rd, 2020

Own A Brick-And-Mortar Store? Here's How To Thrive In The Digital Landscape

As more people are working from home and staying in, online shopping has become the dominant means of commerce. It’s more important than ever for small brick-and-mortar retailers to get their products online and accessible to their customers. However, with so many large e-commerce competitors like Amazon, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd.

September 23rd, 2020

17 Utilities to Automate Marketing for Better ROI

17 leaders from YEC share the tools and processes they use and why they work.

September 4th, 2020

Nine Effective Ways To Mediate Workplace Conflict

Disagreements and conflicts are inevitable in the workplace. As a leader, it’s your job to mediate any issues between workers so your company culture remains positive and productive. However, this is often easier said than done: It takes a truly empathetic and effective leader to listen to each side and help both parties come to a mutually-beneficial solution.

September 3rd, 2020

15 WAYS TO CREATE A MOBILE-FIRST E-COMMERCE EXPERIENCE YOUR CUSTOMERS WILL LOVE

Members of Young Entrepreneur Council explain how companies can optimize their mobile shopping experience.

September 1st, 2020

Here's How To Truly Take 'Time Off' As An Entrepreneur

It’s easy to have an “always-on” mentality when you’re an entrepreneur. You own a business that depends on you to survive, so you never really get a day off – right?

August 31st, 2020

15 Important Questions to Ask Yourself When Developing Your Company Mission

August 31st, 2020

Improve Your Mood in Under 10 Minutes With These 12 Strategies

August 26th, 2020

14 Ways to Increase Brand Loyalty Through Social Media

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:

July 7th, 2020

15 Useful Tips For Regaining Business Momentum

All entrepreneurs are excited to see their businesses grow, but this growth isn't infinitely exponential. Occasionally, the company's growth may become stalled. This contraction might happen due to any number of factors affecting either the business itself or the industry as a whole.

June 18th, 2020

14 Effective Methods for Improving Discipline in the Workplace

Professionals, regardless of their work environment, sometimes find their focus flagging. If you're someone who has to deal with divided attention between multiple tasks, the amount of effort you put into a job will start telling on your psyche before too long. To deal with this situation, you'll have to figure out how to retain your focus and discipline within the workplace.

June 16th, 2020

Think You're 'Innovative?' Try These 8 Alternative Descriptors

There are more accurate (and less overused) ways to tell the world what you do.

June 16th, 2020

11 Things Every Good Employee Referral Program Needs

An employee referral program is a win-win for you and your team. Referral candidates tend to be well-qualified, since they're pre-vetted by staff members you know and trust, and hiring referrals shows you value your employees' input. To help you build a great referral program, we asked the members of Young Entrepreneur Council the following question:

June 5th, 2020

Offering Live Customer Chat? Follow These 15 Important Tips

In today's always-on, digital-first world, consumers increasingly expect companies to offer fast and convenient channels for customer support. To this end, many brands now offer live chat so customers can reach them faster than an email or phone call.

May 29th, 2020

18 key considerations when selling a business

18 leaders from YEC discuss what elements business leaders should keep in mind before selling their company.

May 26th, 2020

Here's How to Run a Successful 'Traditional' Ad Campaign for Your Local Market

Despite the overwhelming preference for digital media among modern marketers, traditional advertising methods are still being implemented today and driving great results. Newspaper, TV and radio spots can offer tons of potential for businesses looking to reach a local market -- if they're used the right way.

May 11th, 2020

Eight Tips For Teams Shifting To A Work-From-Home Model

The culture of the modern workplace has changed drastically, and far more businesses are looking favorably at work-from-home arrangements. Industries that have traditionally depended on employees coming in no longer need to conform to the archaic principle of in-office work. The result is a lot more freedom for workers, as well as potentially increased productivity.

April 15th, 2020

14 Thing To Consider Before Making a Major Business Purchase

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.

April 7th, 2020

10 Ways To Craft A Truly Captivating Brand Story

Competition among companies can be fierce, especially those in the same field with similar messages. With so many other brands out there, it can be difficult to make your story stand out among the crowd. However, you need to identify that “something special” about your business that truly makes it shine. To help you, we asked 10 Young Entrepreneur Council members how to captivate customers through the art of storytelling. Here’s how they recommend crafting a brand story that captures attention and engages your target audience.

April 1st, 2020

Help High-Performing Employees Get Back In Gear: Eight Actionable Steps

If prompted, there's at least one employee that business owners can point to definitively and state that they are one of the most high-performing hires at the company. However, these high-performing employees sometimes go through issues that can put them off their game. For the company, this can impact performance and efficiency.

January 16th, 2020

Time Management Tips: Focus on Brand Growth or Competition?

December 17th, 2019

Eight Tech Hacks For Smarter And Easier Work Management

Technological advancement offers us lots of tools that can make our lives easier as entrepreneurs. Mass communication, social media and the ability to connect are hallmarks of the 21st century. Even daily work is a lot simpler, thanks to products such as Slack or Github, which allow remote management of teams. More than anything else, constant connectivity ensures that everyone within the business can be "in the know" at all points in time.

November 22nd, 2019

Prioritizing Recruitment: Eight Tips For Hiring The Best Talent On A Tight Schedule

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.

November 20th, 2019

11 Essential Aspects To Consider For Successful Online Video Development

Online videos are one of the most successful marketing materials that a business has at its disposal. However, crafting an online video to draw people in takes a bit more skill than merely recording something and adding branding to it.

March 25th, 2015

6 Rules for Building a Customer-First Company

Investing in each and every customer's happiness takes time, but the ROI is unmistakable.

November 5th, 2014

How Sleeping Too Little Is Ruining Your Cognitive and Emotional Performance

The impact of 'burning the midnight oil' is more far-reaching than you think.

October 31st, 2014

5 Things Traditional Retailers Can Learn From E-Commerce Companies

Brick-and-mortar retailers would do well to model the best practices of their online-only competitors.