10 Big Myths About Copyright Explained

Summary:

Thanks to the Web, copyright laws are now front and center for entrepreneurs.

• Are the Fortune magazine quotes you use in your marketing e-newsletter protected? (Possibly)


• Are e-mails protected? (Yes and No)

This article, while not legal advice, is an excellent, readable guide to today's changing copyright laws.

10 Big Myths about copyright explained
An attempt to answer common myths about copyright seen on the net and cover issues related to copyright and USENET/Internet publication.
- by Brad Templeton

Note that this is an essay about copyright myths. It assumes you know at least what copyright is -- basically the legal exclusive right of the author of a creative work to control the copying of that work. If you didn't know that, check out my own brief introduction to copyright for more information. myths.

Go to source: (Templetons.com)

15 Entrepreneur Blogs Worth Reading

Posted by Wendy Bounds
The best entrepreneur blogs – and often the most successful ones — do more than just promote the entrepreneurs or their projects. Star power can draw attention, but it won’t sustain it if the blog doesn’t “give.”

Give is a broad term. You can give tangible tools and information to help build a business. Or a motivational story that inspires someone to try an idea. You can give a laugh. You can give food for thought. You can give debate. You can give of yourself, and if you’re interesting enough, people will come back for more. Below, some examples of entrepreneurs who do this:

Dominate a Niche:Tom Szaky writes The Eco-Capitalist, a blog about driving profits by being environmentally and socially responsible. Mr. Szaky is chief executive officer of Terracycle, a company that finds creative ways to reuse waste in products like plant food, cleaners and tote bags. Recent posts include: “Will Your Customers Pay to Go Green?”

Ecommerce blog Get Elastic is another example. The blog shares general strategies for selling on the Internet. Recent posts include: “9 Privacy Policy Usability Tips,” “Cart Abandonment,” and “Dads and Grads: Missed Merchandising Opportunities.”

Motivate/Inspire/Teach: Two well-known bloggers in this category are Seth Godin and Guy Kawasaki. Mr. Godin was founder of Yoyodyne, an interactive direct-marketing company, which Yahoo Inc. acquired in late 1998. He is an author, blogger and public speaker, and his marketing blog often inspires by giving broader direction in business and life. (Recent posts talk about serial numbers and financial advice for grads.)

Mr. Kawasaki is a managing director of Garage Technology Ventures, an early-stage venture-capital firm. He’s an author and public speaker and his blog, How to Change the World, also includes a link to a job board, which is a motivator. Like Godin, he often provides usable lists to readers. One example: “The Top Ten Stupid Ways to Hinder Market Adoption.”
Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com @ flickr.com

Kevin Kelly’s Lifestream is in this vein. Mr. Kelly, who helped launch Wired magazine in 1993, recently posted about the “Power of Failure” and how to Bribe Your New Employees to Quit. (The ones that aren’t committed.) Malcolm Gladwell, author of the Tipping Point, is another such go-to blogger for entrepreneurs.

Offer Tools:Most entrepreneur blogs do some of this, though several specialize in it. WorkHappy.net by Carson McComas writes about “killer resources for entrepreneurs,” often calling out new online tools. Anita Campbell pens Smallbiztrends.com with tips and strategies on issues such as business plans, picking domain names and going mobile. So does John Jantsch’s Duct Tape Marketing and Drew McLellan’s Drew’s Marketing Minute.

Entertain and Promote:The best route to self-promotion is through entertainment. Holly Dunlap fuels marketing of her fashion company with a juicy, photo-laden online diary chronicling her dinners, parties and, sometimes, hangovers. Justine Ezarik, a graphic/Web designer and video editor, began transmitting her life via Internet video last year and has transformed that success into multiple avenues, including her blog, tastyblogsnack, where she dissects technology and entertains us.

“If You’re Interested in My Company……maybe you’re interested in me – or more about my company.” These blogs feed loyal customers’ desire to connect with a brand. The founders of Honest Tea, Seth Goldman and Barry Nalebuff keep such a blog. Craig Newmark of craigslist blogs regularly on anything he finds of interest (finches, politics and “Sex and The City”).
One of the most successful examples is billionaire entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks. His Blog Maverick waxes on everything from cutting-edge technology to the NFL and salary caps and gets tremendous response from readers.

A warning: Readers have typically already bought your product, so don’t just flog it; give them something new to enjoy.

This list is just a start. We want to know what entrepreneur bloggers you think are doing a great job in a particular arena. What else should people be reading—and why?

What Does President-Elect Obama’s SBA pick mean to you?

If you know me personally - you know that I am a bit of a political junkie and pretty well known for my policy "wonkishness". As we all approach this inaugural week with its history, ceremony and pomp - I am thinking, "What now? What (if anything) will an Obama administration mean for small business?"

I think we received a pretty good signal that the importance of the US Department of Commerce would be elevated in an Obama administration with the selection of Governor Richardson as its new Secretary. But now that Gov. Richardson has withdrawn, we must look to the new appointment for Commerce Secretary and to some others that Obama tapped for business leadership positions.


In late December the President-elect nominated a venture capitalist to head-up the Small Business Administration. Obama tapped Karen Gordon Mills, president of MMP Group, a private equity investment firm in Brunswick, Maine, to lead the SBA.

Several business media sites have asked small business experts and advocates for their thoughts on the Mills appointment:
"Hopefully, as a Harvard Business School graduate, Ms. Mills will demand more accountability from SBA programs.
"This department has been more fluff than action and according to our surveys has not served small businesses well. By this we mean that 47 percent of respondents said they had not been successful in obtaining help or viable options from the SBA in the past.
"For the average, successful small business, the SBA offers little in the way of viable information or support. The hoped-for emphasis of the Obama administration on the middle class, in which most small business managers fit, may change this lack of focus and follow-through." -- Donald Mazzella, publisher of Small Business Digest.


“We look forward to working together with Administrator Mills. In these difficult economic times, it is more important than ever for the SBA to refine, restructure and implement programs that will help America’s small business owners do what they do best – grow their businesses and create jobs, and thus help guide America out of this economic downturn.

"We hope that the administrator will begin to focus the agency’s efforts toward our established businesses, helping them with the technical assistance they need to grow, rather than focusing on starting businesses. Since 2001, the SBA has undergone a 27 percent budget cut, hampering it from providing the very programs that will help our economy the most.
"Her challenges are our challenges, and working together we can make a difference.”-- Barbara Kasoff, President and Co-Founder of Women Impacting Public Policy



“President-elect Obama's decision to name an SBA administrator so early in the transition is a good sign for small businesses. This appointment shows that his economic team recognizes the key role that small firms play in job creation and the need to take quick steps to revitalize the agency's role in spurring growth."
“Through budgets cuts and mismanagement during the last eight years, the SBA has become nothing more than a shell of the agency it used to be. Reversing this course is essential, and I look forward to working with the new administrator to accomplish this during the next four years."-- Nydia M. Velázquez, D-N.Y. House Small Business Committee Chairwoman

“Advantages: In general venture capitalists help small companies grow, and that bodes well for her.
"She is not a career politician. By nature the Small Business Administration exists to assist small businesses, and not all politicians can relate to the small business owner.
"Obama likes ‘green energy,’ and by picking Mills she may have a good understanding of the nuances of this field.
"Venture capitalists by very nature are risk takers, and it is an extremely competitive business. This administration may need to take some risks to help this very important component of the economy.
"Disadvantage: Most small businesses are ‘mom and pop’ and will never get venture capital nor want it. She may have a hard time relating to these truly ‘small’ businesses.”-- Scott Testa, a consultant who teaches marketing at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia

So, What do you think of the SBA and Obama's choice?

New Iowa Entrepreneurs' Coalition = Business Networking

There are so many great Web tools and sites to help market yourself and your business that it can make your head spin. These tools seem as if they are multiplying exponentially.

Now - with your kind understanding that I am in the 'Senior Set' and not as web savvy as the 'thirty somethings' - I believe the best sites for me are those that are easy to navigate, understand and use. That is why I use Meetup.com as the template for New Iowa Entrepreneurs' Coalition.

If you are looking for a simple, inexpensive way to reach out to other small business owners and perhaps your target customers; New Iowa Entrepreneurs' Coalition could be just the thing for you.

Our group uses the Meetup template as a social and business networking platform (meetup is one of the originals in fact) that makes it really easy to create group discussions around a particular business interest or challenge. We use the site to attract members who share our interests and we schedule events to meet group members offline. We also keep the calendar filled with other opportunities for our members to network and market their businesses throughout the community.

I use the meetup platform for two other groups as well - one is my small neighborhood association where the membership is limited to only those who are neighbors, former residents and their children.

Of course you might be interested in starting a meetup group that is more closely linked to your particular interest. If you have a passion for roller derby then start one about that. You may find that a lot of fellow derby enthusiasts might be interested in your services once they get to know you.

I can attest that starting, organizing and maintaining the group is a time consuming process but I think it is one that could really pay off for smart Entrepreneurs and other who market their businesses and services.

Why not join us? Right now, the price is right!

Interested in other web based resources? Check out the video -

Entrepreneurial Predictions for 2009

The Wall Street Journal’s entrepreneurship blog, The Independent Street, has made its predictions for what might happen in the world of entrepreneurship in 2009.

As with all economic sectors, the world of entrepreneurs will be dominated by how they respond to the economic downturn. As such, blogger Kelly Spors predicts a major uptick in entrepreneurial activity as downsized workers seek to start their own companies.

Some other trends to watch for include: a renewed focus on bootstrapping (as opposed to accessing outside finance), a rising wave of foreclosures buffeting entrepreneurs, and a growing small business interest in government contracting. “Predictions for Entrepreneurship in 2009,” was posted on December 30, 2008 at The Wall Street Journal’s entrepreneurship blog, The Independent Street.

2009 Predictions - MSNBC 'Your Business' Video