In Southern California, where I live, sitting in traffic for up to two or more hours per day is part of life for millions of commuters. But it doesn't have to be that way — especially for owners of small businesses and their employees. Telecommuting, or working from home, is a viable option for almost every business these days. When you've got a very small company, telecommuting may make it...

I've seen and heard lots in the news lately about restaurants offering healthier food options. KFC pretty much inspired a stampede when it offered free grilled chicken meals for Mother's Day. But a recent survey by Mintel Menu Insights, reported in Advertising Age (log-in required) , found that although some 75 percent of people surveyed said they would like to see more healthy choices on menus...

The state of the economy has entrepreneurs cutting back everywhere they can. But one area where you shouldn't cut back is in giving back. The OC Register recently spotlighted Earth Friendly Products , a Southern California company that makes environmentally friendly cleaning products. Thanks to record-breaking quarterly profits, the company is giving its employees bonuses equal to a week's...

Anyone who knows me knows I like to move fast. I like to talk fast, walk fast, and act fast. No wonder that I've taken so well to Twitter, the social networking tool where the messages you post have to be 140 characters or less. Twitter is the latest illustration of something I'll call "keep it short," a point that is well illustrated in this BusinessWeek article . The author highlights...

If your company caters to seniors as consumers in any way, you may think that you don't need to worry about Twitter, Facebook, and other social media that everyone's buzzing about. Well, think again. What do seniors crave more than anything? Connection. No wonder, then, that as this article from The New York Times points out, more and more seniors are using social networking. The Times spotlights...

Have you ever tried to market your products or services to the federal government? The government is a great client — and the feds are required to award a percentage of their contracts to small businesses. But for a small company, navigating the processes, acronyms, and requirements of dealing with such a big customer can be intimidating and frustrating. Marketing to the government requires a...

Online review site Yelp.com has become a tool that many customers rely on to find out about local small businesses. But what happens when an unhappy customer bad-mouths your business on the site? Yelp.com recently added the ability for business owners to respond to negative posts on its site, and Inc.com took an interesting look at how three entrepreneurs responded. Craig Stoll, a pizzeria owner, doesn't...

Despite concerns about childhood obesity, or maybe because of them, American kids are actually beginning to eat healthier foods (at least when they are eating out), The New York Times reports. Based on NPD's "Consumer Reports on Eating Share Trends," the data shows that consumption of cheeseburgers, fries, and colas among children under 13 has declined while that of healthier foods has...