How Being Quirky can Get Your Tech Startup Funding: Learn from Shota Ishiwatari

I love to visit crowdfunding site Kickstarter… for many reasons. To name a few, I like to know what inventors, artists and entrepreneurs are up to these days; knowing what interest people to back a particular project; getting some ideas for me to predict trends and try to use them to kickstart a mini project myself in the world I am familiar with – websites and web tools. On Kickstarter, I usually hang around visiting technology projects, simply because I have keen interest in everything-tech.…

10 Quality Fiverr Gigs that can Help you and your Small Business Grow

Bootstrappers: This blog post might be the one you want to read entering 2013. Why? Because I will share my Top 10 list of Fiverr gigs you can make use of to help you grow your business – on a budget! Have you heard about Fiverr? If you haven’t, it is a rapidly growing site in which users can offer their services for $5 (hence the name…) Today, some of the sellers offer “top-ups” that add value to their $5 service, but the core service is still $5 per gig.…

10 Easy-to-Do Social Media Tips for Small Business

Social media presence is very necessary for any business today. Even if you are a small business social media does not become any less relevant for you. The best thing about using social media for small business is that so many tools and platforms are free and that is something you can capitalize on… and there are always new tools and platforms launched – so, more options for you! Getting a Facebook page or organizing a Tweetmob on Twitter doesn’t cost anything.…

10 Small Business Funding Ideas that Work

The thing about starting and running a business whether big or small is that, more often than not, you will need to look for finance to help you turn your ideas into reality. Here are some funding options you can consider… 1. Family and Friends Classic and a bit cliche; however, I recommend tapping these sources first as they might be more willing to listen to and invest in your ideas and ventures. We are not suggesting you to borrow from them because you can take repaying lightly but you could request for a lower rate of interest.…

Big Brands adopt PSY’s Gangnam Style to Gain Social Media Buzz

Despite the latest issue faced by now-world-famous South Korean rapper PSY, we can’t deny the fact that his mega hit song “Gangnam Style” has taken over the world, one YouTube video view at a time (the song now has more than 900 MILLION views on YoutTube, by the way…) – and that includes the business world. The Korean Wave The economic impact of the song is also enjoyed by Korean brands, as people are becoming more aware of South Korean culture – and products.…

My Growing Startup: Should I Monetize it or Keep it Free? (Infographic Inside)

It seems like a no-brainer for the rest of us, but some business owners – especially those establishing venture capital (VC)-backed tech startups – have strong preference toward growing user base by keeping their services free of charge. So, which strategy to adopt? Should I monetize my products/services or keep them free as long as I can? While growth and innovation are typically what VCs are looking for, my profit-oriented mind is always telling me that a business is a good business if it makes money.…

5 Penguin Behaviours Small Business Owners should Learn from

I like penguins. That’s partly why I name this business blog Biz Penguin. It’s a catchy name and I expect it to stick on your mind as a brand. Plus with our orange-themed front-end design instead of the typical penguins’ black-and-white, I expect this blog to confuse you a bit and at the same time getting our branding messages across 🙂 Jokes aside, I choose this blog’s name after the penguins because I have much respect to them: These flightless birds’ behaviours are superior among other birds.…

Top 20 Business Ideas to Start in 2013

In 2013, we need to start strong, at least for one, good reason: We need to carry on in our entrepreneurial journey. Entrepreneurship is all about progress, whether your business is thriving or dying. You need to do something, and there’s no better way to do so early than starting out a business! Now, before you kick off, you need a proper plan (I am a big believer of planning before you starting out, simply because I have limited resources to play around with!)…

Entrepreneurs: Don’t be Arrogant!

Making millions of dollars? Winning many awards? Doing things others can’t do? Yes, some of you would think that you have the right to brag about your achievements. However, be warned – someday, somehow, you will be caught off-guard; and when bad things happen while you are at the top (or at least you think you are at the top), it sucks big time. Arrogance will destroy you, eventually I was arrogant; I once the owner of two franchise units. I think I can play the franchising game.…

Business Ideas are Not Enough – Can You Turn Them into Reality?

When you are looking for business ideas and scouring the market for small business opportunities things can seem quite confusing. You have oodles of advice and basically very little direction about how to develop and build on those ideas. If you are looking for some tips on how to kickstart your startup then here’s where you’ll find them… There are literally thousands of ideas you can turn into a profitable small business. Now, the question you need to answer is this: Can YOU really turn one of the ideas into reality?…