FastUpFront Small Business Blog

If you are thinking about starting a new business or you are already in those early growth stages, then you’ve probably heard about the importance of writing up a good business plan. While having this collection of research, projections, goals, and strategies is very important, what many small business experts and consultants fail to mention [...]

Effective inventory management is one of the keys to running a profitable business, and yet it amazes me how out of touch some business owners can be about the flow of products in and out of their companies. Inventory management is all about balance and flexibility. If you buy too much inventory, too often, then [...]

As you go about allocating your online marketing dollars, you may wonder at some point if you should be pouring money into a Google AdWords campaign, or trying your luck with Facebook advertising. Though Facebook gets a lot of negative press- especially among smaller businesses looking for ROI on their Facebook presence- there are plenty [...]

Forget about what the media has been saying. If it feels like bank lending to small businesses has been on a decline over the last few years, it’s because it is really happening. Surprisingly though, this decline extends way beyond the past few years. According to data collected by the FDIC, small loans (those under [...]

Even though most topics in business tend to be rather technical and dry, the truth is a business is a lot like a living organism. It’s why many organic terms, such as growth, development, and maturity have found their way into the business vocabulary. An implicit aspect of the organic business model is that you [...]

Now that the 2013 tax season has gotten into high gear, you may be considering using the services of an accountant- whether to help you with your tax preparation or to get your financial reporting in order. But where and how should you start looking for the right candidate? Making a poor choice with a [...]

As social media continues to evolve and expand, the business world has been hard pressed to keep up. Not only must businesses be concerned about what is appropriate for employees to post about their company within social networks, both at work and privately, but they also need to be mindful of a whole host of [...]

Now that interest and enthusiasm for daily deals sites, such as Groupon, LivingSocial, and Google Offers have begun to wane, a new wave of social media of platforms lies in their wake. Location-based services, such as Yelp and Foursquare are being heavily targeted to small businesses as a way to increase sales and customer engagement. [...]

With the new year underway, you may have an urge to just put your head down and plow forward- especially if 2012 didn’t treat you or your business so kindly. But, one of the biggest mistakes that we on a societal level tend to make is that we fail to apply the lessons of the [...]

The new year hasn’t even arrived, yet many small business owners may be wishing the clocks would go backwards. With big issues such as the Fiscal Cliff and the early stages of health care reform slated to go into effect on January 1st, there’s little wonder why. But even if 2013 looks a bit rough [...]