The Weekly Dispatch: Do 'Buy Local' Campaigns Really Work?
The Dispatch scours the Web every Monday to find must-read news that affects you and your business, and what it really means. Here's what I'm reading this week.
1. "Buy Local" campaigns -â€" do they work?
The takeaway: More than half of small business owners will launch a "Buy Local" campaign this year, according to a survey conducted by American Express Open. About 55 percent of owners claim that encouraging consumers to buy from local companies can help boost business in a rough economy. But the Wall Street Journal isn't so sure. Investigations by the paper have found that the results of "buy local" campaigns are often "limited and short-lived."
2. Repeal of 1099 requirement held up in the Senate
The takeaway: The House finally voted to repeal the 1099 reporting requirement --- the part of the health care law that requires businesses to issue a tax form for every transaction over $600 in a single year. But the pesky and dangerous requirement isn't going anywhere yet. Dropping it means an expected revenue loss of $20 billion over 10 years, and the House and Senate can't agree on a plan to offset the cost. For its part, the White House has backed repeal, but has not offered a solution to replace lost revenue.
The battle is an important one for small business to watch, not just because of the consequences, but also because it shows how hard it is to change even parts of the healthcare law that no one likes. According to lawmakers, the move to repeal the 1099 requirement has almost universal support in Congress, yet months of effort to get rid of the thing haven't really gone anywhere.
3. "First-to-File" patent amendment fails in the Senate
The takeaway: Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Ca) put forth an amendment to get rid of small businesses' biggest beef with patent reform: the "first-to-file requirement" that hands the rights to an invention to the first to file for a patent, instead of the first to invent it. Smaller businesses with fewer resources would likely not be able to beat bigger businesses in the race to file for a patent. But Feinstein's amendment failed, and "first-to-file" is still on the table as the Senate continues hashing out patent reform this week.
The takeaway: As the worldwide economy slumped and lending to small businesses crumbled in the U.S., French President Nicolas Sarkozy started a whole new office to put the pressure on banks to keep lending. The result? The rate of lending to companies with fewer than 250 employees is actually growing at a rate of about 4 percent per year. Meanwhile in the U.S., it's fallen by about 10 percent since the second quarter of 2008.
5. How to make your small business look bigger
The takeaway: For tiny businesses and entrepreneurs rolling solo, there is a host of tools out there that can help you deal with tasks from scheduling to accounting to organization -- and make your business seem more robust. Calendar management tools, Google Voice, monthly newsletter services and office space memberships are just a few of the tools and services that can make life easier for the "solopreneur." Check out this list to see what tools can help your business (even if it's not so tiny).
6. More owners jump on the tweeting bandwagon, but Facebook still reigns
The takeaway: Twitter use may have doubled among small businesses between the third quarter of 2009 and the fourth quarter of 2010, but the majority are still sticking with Facebook when it comes to their social media marketing strategies. According to a report, only about 19 percent of businesses are using Twitter for marketing, while about 48 percent use Facebook.
More from the Dispatch:
- You Can Thank Small Business for the Falling Unemployment Rate
- How to Get Your Small Business into the Export Game
- The Weekly Dispatch: Should You Hike Prices to Offset Higher Gas Costs?