Today’s guest post comes from Brad Manuel, founder of nothing knew, a sales consulting firm focused on communication and equipping others with practical principles that will contribute to their success.

“39% of B2B buyers select a vendor according to the skills of the salesperson rather than price, quality, or service features.” – Harvard Business Review 2012

Let’s Do Lunch

In many industries, the common practice of taking current and potential clients to lunch 3 times per week is obsolete. And while I love a free meal or a free round of golf, I was never too keen on spending money to meet a quota. Those client “entertainments”, however did serve a very important function: building customer connections. continue reading…

At Signs.com, 2012 was a huge year. We launched this blog, we created an incredible new website for designing and purchasing custom signage, and we managed to have a lot of fun doing it! In 2012, we posted 255 articles on the Signs.com blog, tweeted 1,340 times on Twitter, gave away 16 mini-billboards during our Facebook Sign Quest Contest, and created 1 sweet video on how to install perforated vehicle window decals. But today, we wanted to recap some of our most popular stories and articles from last year. So, we hope you enjoy our best of Signs.com 2012.

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Everyone has their New Year’s resolutions and most of them revolve around weight, some form of exercise or discontinuing a behavior detrimental to their health. Admittedly, my resolutions may include some of these too but all too often they are neglected by January 31st. This year I decided to go in a different direction. So here are my 2013 New Year’s resolutions and how you can apply them to your life or business.

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If you are like me, you are probably wondering what happened to 2012. The year flew by…even though there were times during endless political bickering, strange natural events, and Notre Dame’s return to national football prominence that it felt like it would never end! Either way, 2012 has been a year of ups and downs. In the business world, we have seen economic ebbs and flows that would have made Noah sick. But the question now is what to expect in 2013 (this whole falling off the fiscal cliff thing aside).

To answer this question, we scoured the best business websites, blogs and publications to bring you the Signs.com 10 Trends for 2013. continue reading…

This week the articles on the Signs.com blog have been all about home-based entrepreneurship. Brad Manuel’s guest article on Monday told us about Nothing Knew, the business he started from his home in order to keep track of his three busy teenagers. On Tuesday, our copywriter Catherine interviewed the owner of Pear Tree Preschool. Libby Monson’s in-home business allows her to spend the day with her four-year-old and be finished with work in time to care for her two school-aged boys. On Wednesday, Catherine shared seven of the traits she’s seen time and again while interviewing successful small business owners. continue reading…

Over the last year, I’ve interviewed many entrepreneurs. From furniture store owners, to medical device manufacturers, to cheese artisans—it doesn’t seem to matter what the industry—all seem to have a few traits in common. Looking back over those interviews, I’ve compiled a list of traits that all the successful small business owners I spoke with possess.

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Quitting a job to stay home and raise kids sounds like a wonderful concept; all the time in the world to snuggle your sweet little child, read books, play educational games and generally be the kind of perfect parent that only exists on television shows. Reality? Is a little bit different. continue reading…

Today’s post is brought to you courtesy of Brad Manuel. Brad is a consultant, serial entrepreneur and sports fanatic, who in 2008 decided to take the “road less traveled” and become a stay at home dad.

According to the US census bureau, the number of men who have left the workforce entirely to raise children has more than doubled, to 176,000. If you expand that search to include men who maintain freelance or have part-time jobs, but still serve as the primary caretaker of children under 15 while their wife works, the number is around 626,000. I’m one of those men and, while it’s tough to navigate sometimes, it’s one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done! Check out this New York Times article, titled “Just Wait Until Your Mother Gets Home“. continue reading…

Ever heard of the Mutiny on the Bounty? Sailors on the HS Bounty were tired of swabbing the decks and working long hours on a boring ship. So they mutinied, burned the ship and set up housekeeping in nearby Tahiti.

We’re not talking here about mutiny on the high seas— we’re talking about mutinous store employees. And the stakes are much higher. Black Friday weekend is a billion dollar business for the retail industry; store owners eagerly await the hordes of shoppers and large sales numbers that will bring the year’s profits higher. But while owners love these four biggest shopping days of the year, employees dread Black Friday weekend. continue reading…

The Holidays are Here

Walk into any Walmart at 11:59 pm on October 31st and what do you see? Pallets of Christmas products, decorations and other assorted holiday items. Employees hover around like a pack of ravenous wolves waiting for the OK to pounce. The clock strikes midnight and the walkie-talkies light up like a trucker convention. The holiday season has arrived. Let the madness begin. continue reading…