Know me before selling me; that’s what Americans expect from sales reps.

In a recession, it’s critical to align with customer preferences to avoid losing sales to rivals. Competition is stiff, as people have less disposable incomes. A 2018 study by the Federal Reserve found that 40 percent of Americans can’t come up with $400 to pay for an emergency. And that’s before 40 million people were out of work virtually overnight.

Three months into COVID-19 and there are a lot of new normals, new things to consider and new ways to improve your business as things shift.

As we focus on the obvious things like the rise of Zoom and consumer reluctance in frequenting things like gyms and movie theaters, there will be small, under-the-radar ways to keep your business moving and create advantages.

Just like millions of other people, I’m hooked on TED Talks. They’re innovative, informative and engaging, but these talks are also intentionally short enough to be consumed when you feel like you only have a couple of minutes in the day. You will learn something new or be reminded of a topic that's essential that you haven't thought about for a while.

During times of crisis, it’s vital that we find ways to creatively keep employees on payroll rather than going on unemployment. America is known for its entrepreneurial spirit, but when the answer is to disaster is to mitigate corporate risk, there is a clear disconnect in what is best for this country.

Are you snap happy? Then you probably have on your phone. The photo-sharing app has 1 billion monthly users; 500 million use it daily.

There have been many (Snapchat-influenced) upgrades to the platform since it was sold to Facebook; so many that Instagram's co-founders resigned without warning. Kevin Systrom often stressed that what he loved most about his creation was its simplicity. Now Instagram is anything but simple, but these tips can help. And be sure to follow PCMag.

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Between uncertain cash flow and concern over how to meet financial obligations such as payroll and bills, it's a stressful time to be a small-business owner. Many entrepreneurs are experiencing the same anxieties over unemployment, debt and financial sustainability. Your personal and business credit scores could take a hit if you have to miss payments due to a cash shortfall.

Whip-smart brand positioning drives revenues for enterprises from Apple to Zappos. But for growing organizations, cutting-edge marketing can feel like a luxury. The Small Business Association suggests companies budget 7 to 8 percent of revenues for promotion, yet the average small business allocates just 1 percent. 

That’s a shame, given that marketing brings in more money than it costs. A Nielsen study revealed an average return on investment of $1.09 for every dollar spent getting offerings in front of clients. Remember, that’s an average. With a little planning, marketing can deliver serious returns for even the smallest of startups.

Think short-, medium- and long-term, and know what you should and shouldn't be changing.

These are extremely difficult times, and making it more difficult is that these are uncharted waters full of speculation, self-appointed gurus and presumptive forecasts, leaving business owners unclear on what they should or shouldn't be doing with their business.

Trying times demand innovative measures for online and social media marketers.

Yup, things have changed. You don’t have the same resources you had a few weeks ago, and your kids are now your most unproductive co-workers ever — with no HR department to complain to. So, what can you do when you don’t have the resources you’re used to? You get resourceful.

We are in the midst of a "black swan" event that will have drastic, global economic consequences. No company is immune.

As the world scrambles to make sense of and respond to the coronavirus threat, leadership will be tested in unimaginable ways. Each day brings jarring new information that requires system-wide response.

As businesses shift to remote working setups, here are top tips for staying productive and connected.

This week, thousands of in-office workers will experience their first foray into the world of at-home work, as large and small businesses try to manage the threat of COVID-19 by asking their employees to work remotely.

Act now to ease upstream and downstream impacts.

Many have speculated about whether the current coronavirus outbreak will spark an economic recession. Renowned venture capital firm Sequoia Capital recently shared their experience of best practice, advising that, “Having weathered every business downturn for nearly 50 years, we’ve learned an important lesson: Nobody ever regrets making fast and decisive adjustments to changing circumstances.”

Whether or not the novel coronoavirus and the disease it causes, COVID-19, end up inciting an all-out recession, the prudent entrepreneur ought to make sure they are prepared and ...

If you’re a consultant, LinkedIn is the platform to master if you want to build a strong professional presence and consistently grow your business. With more than 80 percent of social media-generated B2B leads coming from LinkedIn, and an extremely easy way to reach your audience, learning how to effectively leverage this platform could be vital to scaling your company.

As more and more businesses go remote, these are ways to be more effective and efficient on conference calls.

Update: Since this story originally ran, the worldwide coronavirus outbreak has made video conferencing an essential component to keeping businesses running. This story originally ran in 2017, but the advice is as relevant as ever.

Did you know the moment someone looks at your Instagram, they immediately form an opinion based on your profile picture, bio, and what the rest of your feed looks like?

First impressions are just as important online as they are offline. When meeting someone in the physical world, they can gauge how they feel about you in a matter of seconds. In the digital world, it’s even less.

This year, for the first time, federal tax forms ask about your bitcoin and other cryptocurrency activities. Here's a look at the implications for your income taxes.

Cryptocurrency is digital currency, or a “digital representation of value,” as the IRS puts it. You can’t see it, hold it in your hand, or put it in your wallet. It’s been in use for over a decade and has grown in popularity over the last few years.

Take charge of your feelings, and start overcoming obstacles.

Nobody is born with limitless self-confidence. If someone seems to have incredible self-confidence, it’s because he or she has worked on building it for years. Self-confidence is something that you learn to build up because the challenging world of business, and life in general, can deflate it.

Being successful often means learning from those who have already achieved their goals. Having a mentor is an amazing blessing to an entrepreneur, but not everyone can find one in person.

If you haven’t yet found your personal business guru, here are 21 tips for young or aspiring entrepreneur to help get you started.

Here's what entrepreneurs need to do to avoid costly mistakes down the line.

Many people aspire to start their own business, but succeeding in the commercial marketplace is easier said than done. Companies led by inexperienced people unfamiliar with the legal requirements they need to fulfill are particularly susceptible to failure.

"Arriving late" is the biggest meeting taboo, according to the survey and infographic.

Would you rather attend a bad meeting or... Go to the dentist? Talk politics at family dinner? Watch C-SPAN in a waiting room? Call Comcast? 

If teeth cleaning, table fights, nonprofit television or on-hold music sound better to you, you're not alone: When employees were posed the "would you rather" scenario, these were the top four responses, according to a survey of 757 U.S. workers in 2019 (conducted by SurveyMonkey and commissioned by Google Calendar extension Clockwise). 

Over 30 percent of people spend more time with their phones than they do with their significant others. Here's how we use that time.

It's very likely that you're reading this story on the thing you spend the most time with: your phone. A survey from Reviews.org found that over 75 percent of people consider themselves addicted to their phones.

If you Google "time management," you'll just under 5.5 million results. You might notice some common themes within those results like using a calendar, learning to say "no," delegating and prioritizing your health. Techniques like following the 80/20 Rule, blocking out distractions, eating frogs in the morning and planning your schedule in advance are often mentioned.