I was struck by a story in the New York Times today about entrepreneur Christy Prunier, who introduced a line of soap, cosmetics and bath products for preteen girls under the brandname "Willa." She started the product line three years ago after her 8-year-old daughter, Willa, put her foot down and said she no longer wanted to use soaps meant for babies.

Hmm. A personal care product called Willa...Willa...Willa....Hey, doesn't that sound sort of like the haircare brand Wella? Yes, it does!

Procter & Gamble, owners of the Wella brand, sent a cease-and-desist letter to Prunier in January. She is undeterred, and the case goes to trial in October. It could cost her $750,000 in legal fees, the Times reports.

So, a couple of thoughts here.

I can anticipate the comments already, so bring it on:  "Why are you taking the side of the big corporate monster?" and  "Why are you getting down on this particular product -- after all, it's entrepreneurship at work. " On the first question, I think P&G is right to defend a brand they spent $7 billion acquiring. On the second question, I have to admit I might have a different point of view if the product line in question wasn't lip balm, facial masks and other stuff aimed at the terribly under-served tween-girl market. So sue me.

Wella, Wella, Wella, Huh! originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Thursday, September 29th, 2011 at 15:17:58.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Just when you thought you had social media covered with Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, now there's Google+. And it turns out that for small businesses who don't have as much time as they'd like for social media anyway, Google+ may be the most important one to start focusing on.

Social media analyst/blogger Chris Brogan writes that he's getting a lot more traffic to his website since engaging with Google+,  and frankly, that's enough for me to take the platform more seriously. He notes that, "First (and important) Facebook is not indexed by Google for search results, meaning that everything you do inside there stays inside there. Second, Facebook and LinkedIn both are set up for more of an 'exclusive' model, which means that you have to know someone to know something. That's why you see companies pushing so hard for 'likes,' and why you see people spam the LinkedIn Groups."

So, if you haven't already, start your Google+ activities this week. The best thing to do when getting started is to specify your "Groups" early. Like "Clients," "Prospects," "Influencers" and make sure your posts are available to those people. If you get this platform under your belt now and grow with it as it grows its scale and features, it's likely to be a very valuable addition to your overall marketing strategy. No matter what your entrepreneurial niche, you can't afford to ignore it. Please share what you're doing with Google+ by posting a comment.

Why Google+ is Important for Entrepreneurs originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Sunday, September 25th, 2011 at 19:18:44.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

I love me some Morning Joe on MSNBC .I'm watching the founders of Method, the nearly-ubiquitous "green" cleaning brand. The two young founders (under 40) look like they came straight from central casting. Their products displayed in front of Mika, Willie, Barnicle. "Our house is full of this stuff," Willie says. Mika said she's going to take a bunch of it home. The founders have a new book out (I am always a little suspicious when small business execs have time to write a book, but nevermind), called The Method Method. I checked out their website and, wow, it is really very good. While I have never purchased their products (I'm more of a Costco guy when it comes to soap),  I could only admire their presentation, branding and messaging. If you're starting a company in an impossibly crowded market like soap, you can learn something from these guys.  Here's what I found noteworthy about Method:

Method proves there is no market too crowded for entrepreneurs who have talented marketing and product development people. Who else out there is doing a great job breaking through in a crowded market? Leave a comment.

Method Looks to be Cleaning Up originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Friday, September 23rd, 2011 at 09:50:56.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

The folks who made my buggy-slow two-year-old BlackBerry released their second quarter earnings yesterday -- down 58.7 percent. Whoops! The New York Times reported that analysts are circling overhead in buzzard formation: "Mike Abramsky, of RBC Captial Markets, challenged the company's forecast, saying to Mr. Balsillie [the co-CEO], 'I'm just wondering why you feel that confident.'"

Why is it that I can't wait until my Verizon contract upgrade is available so I can switch to iPhone or an Android from my BlackBerry Curve? Why is it that companies who had their markets by the tail almost always end up hanging on for dear life? Is there anyone willing to bet that you'll be able to buy a BlackBerry two years from now? I wouldn't bet more than $100 on that. Make that $10.

What are the signs that a company is headed down the drain?

Who are the next giants to fall? And why are they (boards, shareholders, management, labor) letting it happen? What's your take?

Slurp. That's the Sound of BlackBerry Going Down the Drain originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Friday, September 16th, 2011 at 09:02:23.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

I loved reading today's New York Times story about the renegade Applebee's franchisee in New York, who now owns 34 of the chain's restaurants. His locations average $4.25 million in annual revenue -- twice the average Applebee's, the Times reports. The owner, Zane Tankel, perfectly articulates the way someone can be a franchisee and an entrepreneur. Most franchisees are sheep, not business people. They're hoping someone else's vision will save them, as long as they can follow the manual. Tankel said fuggedaboutit to the manual. He changed menus, uniforms, hiring practices and many other operating assumptions that Applebee's considers sacrosanct.

Some of his tactics are pure New York: he didn't like cocktail waitresses dressing in loose uniforms, so he made them, well, tighter -- because that's what his customers want to see. His main criteria for hiring is niceness. He's been known to send job applicants home to change their clothes (no low-hanging pants, no sideways baseball caps) and come back when they want to have a decent chance of actually getting a job.

If you're thinking about franchising and entrepreneurship and don't think they're mutually exclusive, you can have no better model than Zane Tankel.

What it Takes to be an Entrepreneur -- and a Franchisee originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Wednesday, September 14th, 2011 at 21:04:33.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

There has been significant criticism from the business community of President Obama's new jobs proposal. Some say giving a  tax credit for hiring workers laid off for six months or more is a nice gesture, but it won't create many new jobs. If demand existed, new jobs would be created with or without a tax break. Without demand, unless the government pays the business owner more than the net cost of the hired worker, no jobs will be created. Of course, if it had the will to, Congress could create demand -- in infrastructure, education, first responders, healthcare and many other areas. But private sector job creation is all about demand first and tax incentives second. Without it, U.S. corporations will continue to sit on their $2 trillion cash stockpile. What do you think it would take to get every road, bridge, tunnel, airport, rail system and public school in this country to be world-class, and would it be worth it? Everyone talks about the legacy we're leaving to future generations. Would the ROI on the best infrastructure in the world be greater than the cost of the borrowing? What's your view?

What Would it Take for the U.S. to be World Class Again? originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Monday, September 12th, 2011 at 08:57:29.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Wow, that was a good speech, no?

What did you think?

// // ]]>

What Did You Think of the President's Jobs Speech? originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Thursday, September 8th, 2011 at 20:07:27.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Anyone want to hire Carol Bartz?

Not likely. Here's how <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&zu=http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2011/09/06/yahoo-ceo-carol-bartz-gone.html">Yahoo's CEO handled her termination yesterday: she sent an email to everyone in the company that read, "To all, I am very sad to tell you that I've just been fired over the phone by Yahoo's Chairman of the Board. It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward. Carol."

Bartz was known in her two years at Yahoo's helm to send some odd emails to the entire company, and for other weird behavior, but really, is this snark the best way for to handle getting canned? CEOs of big companies make so much money because it's only a matter of time until they do get thrown over the side. Their careers are short, like NFL linebackers, so they need to make a lot of money sooner.

And who cares if she got flushed with a phone call? Aw, did they hurt your feelings, Carol? Pullease. An old boss of mine taught me a long time ago: never put any bad news in an email. Never write  anything in an email you wouldn't want on the proverbial front page of the Times. By doing what she did, Bartz proved herself worthy of being fired with a phone call. And then of course there's the fact that Yahoo! is pretty much dead in the water, which is her fault. I would have sacked her with a text message.

Anyone Want to Hire Carol Bartz Now? originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Wednesday, September 7th, 2011 at 08:59:17.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

The buzz is starting about President Obama's jobs speech on Thursday night. He reportedly will propose a $300 billion jobs program involving tax cuts, infrastructure spending and aid to states and localities.  The tab would be picked up by raising tax revenues down the road when the economy is better. There are said to be over a million idle construction workers in the U.S. who could be put back to work quickly, and many others tied to infrastructure industries who would benefit. We already know what the Republican response will be and that the president's plans will never be implemented, at least not before the 2012 elections.  My question to entrepreneurs reading this is: let's say a fairly large jobs program, focused on infrastructure, magically did happen tomorrow. Would your business potentially benefit, and how? Leave a comment.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, Jobs originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Wednesday, September 7th, 2011 at 07:41:09.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

A few weeks ago,  I posted about July's lackluster jobs report and the state of the entrepreneur economy. Now, of course, the July numbers (117,000 jobs added) looks positively jubilant compared with ZERO net jobs added in August. In that post, I asked you to put on your policy wonk/politician-for-a-day hats and help get us out of this financial mess we're in. Your comments were intriguing.  One commenter thinks the answer is to go back to metal money -- gold, silver and copper. Another advocates abolishing income taxes and moving to consumption taxes. Another says we need more government stimulus, but not WPA-style jobs programs which the commenter said did not creating lasting value because they were not manufacturing jobs. Check out the other comments and jump into the argument. It'll only get hotter as we near November 2012.

Small Businesses Argue on Ways to Get Out of the Economic Mess originally appeared on About.com Entrepreneurs on Monday, September 5th, 2011 at 21:59:25.

Permalink | Comment | Email this