The Business Herald

RSS feeds are great and I love Google Reader for collecting my all-time favorite blogs, but I also appreciate and enjoy reading those precious few Newsletters that I subscribe to from my E-Mail In-Box. There are only a hand full that I genuinely look forward to receiving and I’ve listed 4 below(in no particular order).  Although they each have different publishing schedules, they all have one thing in common… they contain great content that will inspire, inform and get you pumped about Business & Entrepreneurship:

Newsletter Title: SpringWise Newsletter
Website: www.springwise.com
Publishing Schedule: Weekly
What I Like About This Newsletter: This is probably my all-time favorite newsletter. In fact, their site is jam packed with ideas and inspiration for business ideas.

Newsletter Title: Startup Nation Weekly Publishing Schedule: Weekly
Website: www.startupnation.com
What I Like About This Newsletter: This newsletter always included helpful articles and with the creators and founders of Startup Nation being very involved with their Startup Nation Community, they’re constantly adding more features and resources to their lively site.

5Newsletter Title: Duct Tape Marketing Newsletter

Website: www.ducttapemarketing.com
Publishing Schedule: None
What I Like About This Newsletter: Although there is a little "Ad Overkill", this newsletter usually has at least 1-2 good articles. Sometimes you’ll find some free downloads.

 Sidenote: Although IMHO I think the self promotion is a little on the saturated side, it must be very effective.  Otherwise, I doubt this guru would be doing it.

Newsletter Title: Agenda Inc. Newsletter

Publishing Schedule: Weekly(sometimes a little late)
Website: news.agendainc.com
What I Like About This Newsletter: It’s all about the business of Branding in this newsletter.  This newsletter keeps you up-to-snuff on anything related to branding. From news and inspiration to opinions and gossip, you’ll find it all here.

Question: What does UFOC stand for and what exactly is it? 

Answer: According to Wikipedia…

UFOC is an abbreviation for "Uniform Franchise Offering Circular", a legal document used in the franchising process in the United States.

Franchisors must give a UFOC to franchisees at least 10 business days before any contract is signed and before any money changes hands. It contains extensive information about a franchisor, which is intended to give potential franchisees enough information to make educated decisions about their investments. The information is divided into 23 categories:

• The Franchisor, its Predecessors and Affiliates
• Identity and Business Experience of Key Persons
• Litigation History
• Bankruptcy
• Initial Franchise Fee
• Other Fees and Expenses
• Franchisee’s Initial Investment
• Restrictions on Sources of Products and Services
• Obligations of the Franchisee
• Financing Arrangements
• Obligations of the Franchisor
• Territory
• Trademarks
• Patents and Copyrights
• Obligation of the Franchisee to Participate in the Actual Operation of the Franchise Business
• Restrictions on Goods and Services Offered by the Franchisee
• Renewal, Termination, Repurchase, Modification and/or Transfer of the Franchise Agreement
• Public Figures
• Earnings Claims
• List of Franchise Outlets
• Financial Statements
• Contracts
• Acknowledgment of Receipt 

Also, Franchise Profiles International has an instruction page on a UFOC explaining the responsibilities of both the Franchisor and Franchisee.

As I was getting my daily TechCrunch fix, I found this interesting and exciting post. Congratulations and good luck to Brian Wilson, a former Army Officer.  This Military Veteran was able to launch Zolve.com, a promising looking web application for realtors… while deployed to Baghdad, Iraq.

Sidenote: For those who are thinking to yourselves, "They have this much time on their hands?!" 

I commend this gentlemen for taking the little time he did have to himself to use it in a productive manner rather than sitting alone in corner in a deep depression.  Each person out there has their own way of making it through the days.  This is definitely a great way!  I only wish we had this good of an internet setup when I was out there.

For years, I’ve been a subscriber to Entrepreneur Magazine, Inc. Magazine and Business 2.0 Magazine(no longer published).  Sometimes I get a great issue and other times I get a boring issue, so it’s really a hit or miss in my opinion. I’m more interested in reading articles and stories about people who started with practically nothing or How-To articles from those who have "been there, done that", not the politics or opinions about business.  If that’s what you prefer than there are definitely other magazines that cover those topics and issues very effectively(save that topic for another day), but if you’re like me I think you’ll appreciate the Millionaire Blueprints Magazine. The magazine has been around since Spring 2005, but I never really noticed it until about a year ago.  I didn’t actually picked it up and read it until about July of this year and I have to say it’s a great magazine for aspiring and budding Entrepreneurs.

The covers could use some design improvements, but besides that it’s practically jam packed with success stories from real Multi-Millionaire Entrepreneurs. What I believe truly makes this magazine unique from the typical others are:

In-Depth Articles: The articles are more like interviews and most are a few pages long in a Q&A format.

Resources Pages: After each 5-7 page article/interview, there are detailed Resources pages with descriptions and url’s that were mentioned in the interviews and the resources that were used by the Entrepreneur through his/her venture. VERY HELPFUL!

BLueprints To A Business: Each issue features a "Blueprint" to start a particular business.  From beginning to end, the do’s/dont’s and all the details, they manage to cover them fairly well in only a few pages.  Then of course the Resources pages follow right along. 

Far Less Advertising: I counted less than 20 full-page ad pages throughout the current issue.  The rest of the magazine is pure reading information and inspiration.

Millionaire Blueprints Jr.: They’ve recently launched a version of their magazine for the Kid Entrepreneur and I’m sure it’s going to be very successful. This reminds me of an idea I had a few years ago to develop a Young Entrepreneur Expo(maybe I should reconsider).

Millionaire Blueprints Teen: Coming Soon! 

Writing a Business Plan is one of those things you absolutely hate to do, but know it has to be done if you want a real chance at getting a business loan(most times).  Through the years I’ve scoured through books, websites and even attended workshop(free of course) on developing your business plan and yet I still hate doing it.  It’s just a boring process, but I think that’s all about to change… Finally!

I just started using it myself about 3 days ago, so I haven’t seen it’s full potential yet, but with a 30 day free trial, I’m sure I will. I’ll point you to a favorite blog of mine, WorkHappy.net, to read what Carson McComas has to say about PlanHQ. I’ll follow-up in a few weeks with my final thoughts on PlanHQ. Until then, what’s it gonna hurt to check out? If you’ve been holding off writing that Business Plan, take this opportunity to force yourself to get started.

 QUESTION: Have you used PlanHQ? What do you think of it?

Ok, ok… I admit it.  In addition to my Entrepreneurial addictions, I’m also a serious tech junkie.  Now that doesn’t mean I’m into all that raw coding/programming stuff because I’m clueless when it comes to that.  I’m more into gadgets and apps that make your daily life more functional, productive, organized or just plain cool.

Just want to give you a heads up so you’re not shocked when you find a random tech post here. 

After searching around for hours on the internet for a logo designer(what a nightmare) for my next project, I found a designer named Gary Simon at GarySimon.net.  Gary has been designing custom logos for over 8yrs now and in my opinion is very talented. A few things that caught my attention and made him stand out from other designers were:

1. He lives in the US and actually does the work himself.  Nothing against outsourcing, but it’s nice to know he’s local(sorta local).

2. He has a great project management system(he apparently developed himself) that allows you to track his progress and communicate dynamically along the way.

3. Along with the final concept, he provides you with a gray-scale version of your design and multiple file formats of your logo.

4. He guarantees 100% satisfaction, but I don’t think he has to worry about that often.  Don’t believe me? Take a look at his work.

I highly recommend using Gary for your next logo design requirements.  Tell him I sent you and he’ll take good care of you.

Here are the two concepts Gary created for my upcoming project Pawsh Pet Luxury Homes:

Concept 1                                             Concept 2

Question: Which concept do you like best?

Ok, so it’s been about 8 months since I’ve posted anything here at The Business Herald and for that, I apologize(like anyone cares). 

Besides my hectic life getting in the way of blogging lately, I’m still not completely over the fact that I lost ALL of my posts(corrupted backups) from my former blog, TREPNetwork.com.  I get a little teary-eyed just mentioning it.  Gimme a sec… (fighting the tears)

Ok, I’m back.  Almost lost it there. Now, as I was saying… I’m back and ready to post-post-post.  The name may have changed, but my passion(more like addiction) for all things Entrepreneurial & Business related hasn’t, so check back every once-in-a-while.

Another favorite TV pick of mine is The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch.  The host can get a little out of hand at times, but he can definitely pull the big dogs of business in for an interview.  From Paul Mitchell and Donald Trump, to Bill Gates and even Mike Tyson… he’s got heavy hitters coming on his show.  Definitely check this one out.

SHOW TITLE: The Big Idea on CNBC

HOST: Donny Deutsch(wiki, CNBC)

WHEN: Monday-Friday at 10:00 PM, 1:00 AM (ET) (shows are 1hr long)

OVERVIEW: Power meets power, every night on "The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch."

Donny Deutsch, the maverick CEO who built a multi-billion dollar advertising and media business, asks the fearless question of the most powerful people in business, entertainment and politics.

Whether it’s a one-on-one with Bill Gates, Howard Schultz, Harrison Ford or Donald Trump… "The Big Idea" celebrates the power brokers, trendsetters and stars who really make it happen.

-Source: CNBC’s The Big Idea Homepage

Donny Deutsch is definitely a marketing guy and you can see it as he always seems to tie in his guest’s success and life in with marketing tactics.  Sometimes that’s what gets him in a little trouble with his guests, but that adds to the show’s flavor in my opinion.  Donny engages his guests by asking thought provoking questions to give his viewers more insight to these power hitting business people’s lives and business successes.

Unlike the "Your Business" show, Donny doesn’t have a show with segments, viewer’s e-mails, etc.  He focuses completely on the guest, his/her experiences and how others can learn or be inspired from that.  He takes his guests(and the viewers) back in time to "when it all started" and works his way to the present.  From there, the business, the product and the service are broken down and explained.  Most times, this is where talk shows drop the ball and lose the viewer’s interest, but The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch manages to ask the right questions, keep his guests engaged and ultimately turning out excellent interviews. 

Should You Tap Into Your 401(k) To Invest In Your Startup?  The Sloan Brothers just posted a well written article on this very subject.  I recommend reading this if you've ever considered doing this.