The contest ran for 30 days, collecting entries from April 12, 2012 until May 12, 2012 and up for grabs was $1000 worth of credit to spend at MOO under a new MOO Business Services account.

Now it’s time to close the loop, and let you know who won.  We are excited to announce that the winner was randomly chosen.  Without further adieu, drum roll please . . . the winner is:

Steven Reed of Dynamic Solutions Group, Inc.

Twitter:  @dsghelp

Facebook:  Dynamic Solutions Group

For the last 12 years, Dynamic Solutions Group’s (DSG) passion has been the dedication of resources, industry intelligence and expertise to working with their clients to help them make affordable design, maintenance, service and support decisions of all their business technology.

As stated on their web site:

“DSG’s core goal is to empower Information Technology to drive greater business value while improving operational efficiencies. By decreasing the amount of time spent on operations management and securing the infrastructure, DSG helps organizations begin to align their activities with the needs of the business.”

Many congratulations to Steve and the Dynamic Solutions Group! And many thanks to MOO for helping deliver an excellent event for small businesses.

The post We Have a Winner in the MOO Free Business Cards Contest appeared first on Small Business Trends.

For blog rankings, Wikio takes into account the number of tweets and the weight and number of other sites linking to the blogs,  among other things.  As a result, Wikio generates an up-to-date blog ranking and the Wikio Blog Ranking makes it a place to find blogs to scope out.

Thanks to you, dear readers, we were delighted to see that Small Business Trends experienced a nice leap forward in the Wikio Rankings for business blogs and now stands in the top 15 business blogs. It is an honor to be in the company of sites like GigaOm, Techdirt, Freakonomics, BusinessInsider War Room and others.

Below you will find an early ”sneak peek” preview of the very latest list of Wikio’s Top Business Blog Rankings, that is coming out officially tomorrow (May 5, 2011):

Ranking from Wikio

One reason we like to share listings is that it’s a good place to discover other quality blogs, or remind yourself about ones you already know of.  So please check out the entire Blog Ranking section at Wikio.

While you’re at it, you might also want to explore the rest of Wikio.  From the name it sounds like it might have started out life as a wiki site — but it’s not really a wiki site.  And it’s more than just a blog ranking service.

The main focus of the site is a news search engine that aggregates news articles and original interesting blog posts. In other words, Wikio is a place to find the latest news.  Wikio gets its information from various sources such as news pages, blogs, consumer websites, merchant pages and Wikio members.  So you’ll find more varied news sources at Wikio.com than you might find in something like Google News, which tends to focus on information culled from the major media outlets and press release services.

The post Business Blog Rankings From Wikio – Sneak Peek! appeared first on Small Business Trends.

The Economist will be hosting a two-day event online for entrepreneurs and business owners seeking opportunities for conducting business in Brazil and moving into that’s country’s economic market. The aptly titled event, Doing Business in Brazil, will take place on December 14th – 15th, 2010.

This online event will provide:

• Practical advice to guide you gently into the Brazilian market
• The unprecedented opportunity to connect with consultants, lawyers, bankers and other investors for entrepreneurs to learn, collaborate, and explore ways to enter the Brazilian market.
• Access to resources and influential connections

The key to expanding in any new geographic market is knowing the lay of the land.  It’s especially important when it’s a foreign country.  You have to understand the economic, social, legal and business environment.  You need market research to understand where the opportunities are and how to go after them.  And you need connections who can open doors for you.  That’s what you get by participating in this online event.

You don’t have to “attend” the full two days.  Join in for however long you can.  And if you’re not sure what an “online fair” is, check this out and learn.

There is no charge for this event.  Registration is required for a free online pass.

Register for the FREE 2-day online event now.

The post Doing Business in Brazil: Advice and Resources appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Today, we are proud to announce that we have five copies of “Attention!  This Book Will Make You Money,”  to giveaway in a randomly chosen drawing.  And with a title like that . . . you can’t afford to pass this up.

TO ENTER: Please visit the Small Business Trends giveaways page and fill out the entry form. Entries are now closed.  Thanks to everyone who participated.

DEADLINE TO ENTER: Midnight PST (3:00AM EST) on August 22nd, 2010

Be sure to bookmark the giveaways page, where we list contests and drawings. We also include discounts and special offers. Check back often to see what’s new.

The post Giveaway: Attention! This Book Will Make You Money appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Together they participated in a roundtable discussion on how to leverage the opportunities that this economy is providing (Yes, I said “opportunities” . . . many exist during an economic downturn).  The panel discussed  how you can take the challenges and obstacles standing in your way and use them to propel your business forward through innovation, quick thinking – and maybe even a bit of risk taking.

So how on earth do you begin to do that, you ask? Well, here are just a few examples of success strategy tips that you can start with from the webinar discussion:

“Wise use of technology can give you expansion capacity without increasing your expense burden greatly.” ~ Anita Campbell

Experiment with technology.  The cost of technology has come down, and there’s a lot of it out there that can help you to increase productivity.  You can expand the number of new customers you bring on, without necessarily adding employees right away — keeping your costs low.   Your goal – a lot of experimentation and then mastery of only the technology that is most useful to you.

“When the big companies are cutting back and lying low, that’s the best time for the little guy to move ahead.” ~ Barbara Corcoran

Big companies have “pecking orders” to approve change and this takes time.  Timing is crucial and the little guy doesn’t have the hierarchy and red tape that large corporations and big businesses do.  This is your advantage as an entrepreneur or small business owner.  Free yourself to take a risk, be nimble, move quickly – and then take a deep breath and a giant leap forward.

Think you and your small business can’t do it?  Think again and remember, as Barbara says, “The big guy might have the corner on money, but the little guy always has the corner on creativity.” Use that creativity of yours and don’t be afraid to take a risk every now and then.  Experimentation is key.  Some risks may not pay, but some may . . . and when a risk pays, it usually pays BIG.  Just ask Barbara – she landed a front page article in the real estate section of the New York Times when she took a risk and filled a “silence” with something that caused a commotion. Barbara took yet another risk a little further on down the line – and landed Richard Gere as a client.

You can catch the archived webinar even if you couldn’t participate in the event live.

Many thanks to DYMO and DYMO Endicia, the sponsors of this webinar.  They’ve kindly made available these discounts for readers:

• Visit Dymo and enter promotion code SBWTwinTurbo to receive 25% off a DYMO LabelWriter 450 Twin Turbo or code SBWTurbo to receive 15% off a DYMO LabelWriter 450 Turbo.  (Expires June 5, 2010)
• Visit Endicia and sign up for a DYMO Stamps account to receive $5 off Endicia internet postage with promotion code WSP1. (Expires June 30, 2010)

The post Tips for Succeeding in This Economy appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Writing copy is different from other styles of writing and to be good at it, you need to be knowledgable about it first.  To help you understand the differences in copywriting, Susan provides a copywriting outline in the book that helps individuals such as small business owners, non-professionals, marketing managers and the like identify gaps in their messages and their approaches – and successfully fill them in.

Today, we are proud to announce that we have two copies of Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps to giveaway as part of the new giveaway program we have implemented here at Small Business Trends where, each month, we hold a randomly chosen drawing and give away free stuff to you. 

TO ENTER:  Entries are no longer being accepted.  The contest has ended and the winners will be announced shortly.

DEADLINE TO ENTER: Midnight PST (3:00AM EST) on May 24th, 2010

Be sure to bookmark the giveaways page, where we list each month’s contest or drawing. We’ll also include discounts and special offers. Check back often to see what’s new.

The post Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps Book Giveaway appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Each of the panel experts contributed several valuable tips and suggestions and the webinar was packed full with useful information.

In case you may have missed this event, below is a list of the 11 small business panel experts along with a sample tip shared from each:

Craig Sutton of IkonMG: “Support them! An FAQ or support page that can answer questions about your product or service in a clear and understandable way can cut down on user frustration and support costs for the business. Use video to personalize this when possible.”

Matt McGee of Small Business Search Marketing: “Be visible offline. Write about local events before they happen, but also attend events and then blog afterwards with photos; show people what they missed, be their eyes and ears (i.e., local parades, community concerts, etc.)”

Ivana Taylor of DIY Marketers: “Create a direct mail campaign with at least 3 mailings. Your customers won’t even begin to know you exist before 3 mailings. A wave of 7 mailings is good. Do three relatively quickly, then follow up with 4 through 7 in about weekly increments. Those that don’t respond should go into a monthly mailing routine.”

David Mihm of Get Listed: “Encourage users to submit photos of your business to Flickr or Panoramio or videos to your YouTube channel. Flickr and Panoramio photos are showing up more and more on Google Place Pages (i.e. Local Business Listings) and in the case of YouTube videos, you can even choose which ones to embed directly. You might even create a contest for the best photo submitted where, for example, your email newsletter subscribers are asked to vote, and you’ll put the winner up as the photo on your Place Page.”

Becky McCray of Small Biz Survival: “Tell your customers’ stories. You can do this on your blog, on your Facebook page, in your email newsletter, in your store, in your Flickr photo pool, or any way you can think of. An Oklahoma hunting ranch posts photos of trophies immediately, even before the hunters go home. What is the first thing the customers do? They call or email all their friends with the link to their pictures.”

Melinda Emerson of Succeed As Your Own Boss: “Retail & professional service businesses can host “How to” workshops & events. Breakfast or lunch and learn presentations are best. Businesses can market the event using their mailing list, Linkedin events and Twitter.”

Cathy Larkin of Web Savvy PR: “A local publicity win-win: include a client as a part of your press pitches, or even blog posts. This must be done well; not a fluff piece. They help make your story real and they gain some publicity, you gain loyalty and it catches the interest of other prospects.”

Paul Rosenfeld of FanMinder: “Since 97% of your customers will read a text message, typically within a few minutes, businesses can use text message marketing to stay in close contact with their customers via their customers’ mobile phones. Send slow-day offers, coupons, new inventory alerts and seasonal messages.”

David Garland of The Rise To The Top: “Learn to sell “around” your product: Most small businesses make the mistake of making videos about their product. That is all well and good on your website for folks that are already there and seeking specific information, but NOT good for marketing purposes and bringing people in. Instead, find a passion that is shared by you and your audience and in many cases for a local business, this could be the home town.”

Barry Moltz of Barry Moltz.com: “Hold a fundraiser! Better yet, make it easy to let the community hold fundraisers at your business, and make a donation to the cause of their choice whenever they buy from you.”

Joel Libava of The Franchise King: “Encourage franchisors to make it easy for customers to get special discounts and buy from you, by how they set up their websites.”

The above is a sampling of the information and insights that were shared and discussed during the webinar.  If you’d like to explore the rest of the tips offered by Anita and the expert panel and learn more, listen to the archived webinar, “Loco for Local: Get Fiercely Loyal Customers Close to You.”

The post How to Create Fiercely Loyal Customers Close to You appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Many small business owners are conducting business via cell phones and smart devices – and we all know how frustrating it is to be in a “dead zone” or experience interrupted service and dropped calls. With the MobilePro portable cell phone signal booster, you’ll no longer suffer from those experiences.

Anita met up with Wilson Electronics team at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show and learned that Wilson Electronics is an entrepreneurial story.  One that began some 40 years ago with an entrepreneur by the name of Jim Wilson.  And today, we are proud to announce that we have 3 of the Wilson Electronics MobilePro portable cell phone signal boosters and accessory packages to give away to 3 lucky winners.

Some of the MobilePro’s features include:

• Can be powered by a USB port and is ideal for laptop data cards
• Amplifies signals to and from the cell site
• Microprocessor-controlled circuitry ensures reliable operation
• Built-in antenna
• Wireless operation and no need for a physical connection to cell phone or data card
• It’s portable and can easily be moved from vehicle to building
• Installs in minutes and no tools required
• Multiple power options – USB port, cigarette lighter adapter, or AC outlet
• MSRP: $269.95

Below is a video about the MobilePro portable cell phone signal booster:

TO ENTER:  Entries are now closed.  Thanks to everyone who participated!

DEADLINE TO ENTER: Midnight PST (3:00AM EST) on April 20th, 2010

This is part of the new giveaway program we have implemented here at Small Business Trends. Each month, we hold a randomly chosen drawing and give away free stuff to you. There will be something different that is of interest to entrepreneurs and small business leaders every month.

Be sure to bookmark the giveaways page, where we list each month’s contest or drawing. We’ll also include discounts and special offers. Check back often to see what’s new.

UPDATE:  The contest is now over and the winners are:

Ginger Derrickson (Assisting You Virtually)

Carolina Aguilera (NY♥ME)

Andrew Brodsky

The post Win a MobilePro Portable Cell Phone Signal Booster appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Magntize is a site that helps you to introduce yourself to the world.  As the guys at Magntize say, “Sure we all have blogs and accounts with various social networking sites. There are places to post photos, upload videos, chat with friends, edit your resume, or update your status These sites are fostering conversations among folks all over the world, but if someone wanted to know more than 140 characters about you – where would you tell them to begin?”

In short, Magntize makes launching personal websites so easy your grandma could do it. The challenge for most people is that designing a personal site, coding it out, purchasing a domain, and setting up hosting is completely overwhelming. The guys at Magntize have set out to make it a much simpler process for you.

The free pro account at Magntize includes:

• Your own domain (http://yourname.com)
• Custom email forwarding from your domain (email@yourdomain.com)
• Access to our Premium themes as well as the custom-designed Magntize iPhone version of your site.
• A personal aggregate RSS feed that combines all your web activity into a single stream

This is part of a new giveaway program we have implemented here at Small Business Trends.  Each month, we hold a randomly chosen drawing and give away free stuff to you.  There will be something different that is of interest to entrepreneurs and small business leaders every month.

This month, we have 3 complimentary pro accounts at Magntize to give away.  The winners will receive a pro account credited for 12 months of free service and one domain name registration.  This particular drawing is open to anyone, anywhere in the world.

TO ENTER: Visit the Small Business Trends giveaways page

DEADLINE TO ENTER: Midnight PST (3:00AM EST)  on March 21st, 2010 Entries are now closed, thanks for participating!

Be sure to bookmark the giveaways page, where we list each month’s contest or drawing. We’ll also include discounts and special offers. Check back often to see what’s new.

The post Win A Free Pro Account At Magntize appeared first on Small Business Trends.

So we’ve decided to implement a new feature here at Small Business Trends.  Each month we plan to hold a drawing and give away stuff to you.

There will be something different every month.  Whatever it is, it will be something of interest to entrepreneurs and small business leaders.

This month, we have 8 copies of the book, “Build a Green Small Business: Profitable Ways to Become an Ecopreneur” by Scott Cooney.  We’ll hold a random drawing and choose 8 people.  Each will receive a book.  This particular drawing is open to anyone anywhere in the world.  The deadline to enter is February 24, 2010.

ENTER: Visit the Small Business Trends giveaways page.

Bookmark the  giveaways page, where we list each month’s contest or drawing.  We’ll also include discounts and special offers.  Check back often to see what’s new.

The post Win a Copy of “Build A Green Small Business” Book appeared first on Small Business Trends.