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Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of…Well, at Least the Stuff That Chicken and Waffles are Made Of

There is an old saying that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Unfortunately, the sincerest form of flattery doesn’t necessarily work in the world of business. Chicken, waffles and trademark infringement are colliding in Chicago. Who will come out on top? What can you learn from it all?

Tags: trademark infringement, roscoe's

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Posted: 4/11/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Gas Prices and Online Shopping: There is a Connection

If you have a brick and mortar establishment, there is a facet of your product delivery scheme that you may have overlooked: Gas prices for your customers. Think about it: As the price of fuel rises, customers are less interested in getting into the car and driving out to your establishment. What can you do? Read here to find out.

Tags: gas, economy, customer service, marketing

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Posted: 4/9/2008 | Comments (5)

Jim Tracy

Jim Tracy

What's Special About Your Town?

Do you remember the fun you had shopping with just $5 or $10 of birthday money when you were a kid? I do. Some of my happiest memories were the Saturdays I spent shopping with my Aunt Connie 30 years ago on the northwest side of Chicago. Five or ten dollars went a long way back then.

Tags: jim tracy, peace corner, american dream

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Posted: 4/8/2008 | Comments (1)

Lisa Doyle

Lisa Doyle

Thanks, Merci, Gracias, Danke, Grazie, Agradecimentos

April is International Customer Loyalty Month, a great time to show your customers that you appreciate their patronage. The key is to make your customers feel as though they are more than mere customers. Make them feel special as people and they will be back time and again. Here are five easy ways to show your customers that you value their repeat business.

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Posted: 4/7/2008 | Comments (4)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Is Insourcing Coming Back to the U.S.?

OK, now I am impressed. Senator Hillary Clinton—who hasn’t really done much to catch my attention so far—has come up with an “insourcing” agenda for American business in the 21st Century. I am glad to see that someone is actually talking about this issue. I have to wonder if talk will turn to action.

Tags: insourcing, clinton, mccain

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Posted: 4/4/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Recession-proof Your Business

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke climbed Capital Hill on Wednesday with some bad news. "It now appears likely that gross domestic product (GDP) will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly." By one definition of the word, six consecutive months of decline in the GDP (the value of all goods and services produced in the United States) constitutes a recession. What can you do to protect your business? Read on.

Tags: recession, fed, gdp

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Posted: 4/3/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

The ADA and Your Business: Times, They are a Changing

The American’s with Disabilities Act has had, since its inception, a real effect on American culture and on how we, as Americans, do business. However, thanks to the actions of the Supreme Court, what was once an intimidating source of frivolous lawsuits against businesses great and small is now far more useful and reasonable.

Tags: ada

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Posted: 4/2/2008 | Comments (0)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Cell Phone Protection: A Budding Cottage Industry

Cell phones have been blamed for everything from cancer to infertility to acne due to the electromagnetic radiation they give off. Having figured out that cell phones are not going away, these well-meaning crusaders now want to sell you stuff. If you are thinking of jumping into that business, read on.

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Posted: 4/1/2008 | Comments (5)

Dave Cosper

Dave Cosper

Chargeback Proof Your Business

The benefits of accepting credit cards are innumerable. We have immersed ourselves in a world of platinum plastic. The reassuring feeling of having a wad of cash in your pocket has been replaced with a plastic sliver of magnetic circuitry few understand. What merchants do need to understand is how to properly protect their business from credit card fraud.

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Posted: 3/28/2008 | Comments (3)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Biometric Scanning: Intrusion or Good Financial Sense?

Today, there is something new on the employment landscape: Biometric Scanning, and it is becoming big business with over $2.1 billion in sales worldwide for 2006 alone. Is it all about control? Does it raise privacy or civil liberties issues for you. Let us know what you think.

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Posted: 3/27/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Small Business Reaches for the Stars: Do You Have the Right Stuff?

Who said you have to be a government agency or some huge conglomerate to send people into space? There is nothing keeping a plucky entrepreneur from getting in on the next big thing in tourism: Space.

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Posted: 3/26/2008 | Comments (3)

Dave Cosper

Dave Cosper

Best Small Business Blogs You Might Not Know About

Like a well-scripted novel, a good blog usually keeps you engaged and waiting for more. With everything that’s on the Web today, it’s impossible to filter and summarize all that’s relevant to a specific business discipline. A blog also helps you establish a public dialogue where anyone can participate and learn.

Tags: blogs, weblogs

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Posted: 3/25/2008 | Comments (45)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Employees vs. Independent Contractors: What’s a Small Business to Do?

Have you noticed the upsurge in the number of companies outsourcing work to independent contractors? We’re not talking about a gradual upsurge, either. The growth is robust and shows no sign of slowing down. What does that mean for your small business? Read further to find out.

Tags: outsourcing, contracting

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Posted: 3/25/2008 | Comments (2)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Requiem for a Fallen Business

Have you ever gone back to a place—a store or a restaurant—after some time only to find that it has changed and not for the better? It could be the service, perhaps the product or even just the ambiance of the place. Whatever it is, by the time you walk out you know that you will never go back again.

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Posted: 3/24/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Charles M Cooper

Business Opportunities: Not All That Glitters is Golden

We are all looking for it, the one great business that will give us a good income, all the free time we could want and allow us to be our own bosses. Sometimes, though, that so-called opportunity is too good to be true.

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Posted: 3/21/2008 | Comments (1)

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