Branding is an invaluable tool, especially for small businesses. A strong brand is one that is recognizable, clear and consistent. Such a brand generates repeat business, referrals, and adds value to a business that exceeds the worth of its physical assets....

This post has been last updated as of October 26, 2016 to reflect new, critical information. As small business owners speak with the designers or hosts of their website, they may hear the buzzword "SSL" and wonder what it is all...

As you may have heard, Microsoft released Office 2016, and, recently, it has become available for download with existing Office 365 customers. If you think Office 2016 looks very similar to Office 2013, you’re quite right. At first glance, the changes...

As you may already know, having a strong social media presence can help your business become more of a success. Even though you may be putting a lot of work into your social media marketing campaigns, you might not have all...

As a small business owner, you have put a significant amount of time and work into crafting the perfect website and promoting your company utilizing many different marketing methods. Yet, many small businesses forget the importance of encouraging customer reviews (also...

As we've discussed in the past, your logo is the face of your business. It’s how outsiders recognize or remember your brand. What do you think of when you see a “swoosh,” an apple, or two golden arches? Probably Nike, Apple,...

If you are a local business owner, you might be looking forward to attending a local event for business owners like you. Luckily, following these tips for how to make the best out of a local business exhibition or expo may...

Contact marketing has been discussed a lot this past year among businesses as a great way to establish their brand online, and it’s arguably going to be even more important for 2016. We get comments from small business owners saying they...

A Wharton Research Center study conducted by Lynn Oppenheim (Oppenheim, 1981) has shown that the retention rate of verbal only presentations is approximately 10 percent. Yet when you combine visual messages with verbal communication, an approximate 400% increase is evident as...

If you want to build your business online, content marketing is an important part of the marketing mix. However, finding the resources to create a blog, e-newsletters, a how-to video or other types of content is a common obstacle. In a...

Marketing has changed over the years and it continues to evolve as technology offers new, exciting ways to reach your market. Many small businesses today struggle to stand out in the business scene, especially with larger competitors who inevitably have a...

With all of the new features that world of web design has seen in the past year, it can be frustrating to figure out which trends to implement in order to keep your website relevant and up-to-date. To help you, we...

According to Nicole Fallen Taylor, Business News Daily Assistant Editor, "a 2015 survey by small business credit provider Headway Capital found that although 57 percent of small business owners anticipated growth this year, nearly 19 percent expressed concern about how unexpected...

For a small business owner, time is literally money. Solutions that can increase speed, eliminate duplication, or allow you and your employees to maximize time are invaluable. Below, we discuss three free or low cost productivity apps for Android and Apple...

Once you've made the decision to develop or redesign a website for your small business, many key points must be considered; budget, choosing a host site, determining the target audience, etc. One of the most important questions to ask is: do you...

Staff Fall Retreat So far, the Igniting Business team has had a great start to the fall season! In mid-October, a few members of the IB staff we're able to meet in Lee's Summit on a Saturday for a day of...

The final step in the email marketing series; email marketing best practices. This post discusses overall best practices, leaving you with open and honest advice that have helped us create successful campaigns. Make it easy for people to subscribe. Add a...

  Google is well known for allowing users to access their multiple web based services all with one account. One account can access Gmail, YouTube, Google+, Google Drive, Google Photos, and more, but what some don't know, is that there is...

Our President of Igniting Business, Ben Seidel has recently been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Lee's Summit Chamber of Commerce. Ben will begin his three year term in January 2016. Ben is excited to be contributing to the...

So you've learned about producing quality and relevant content, now it's time to go into more detail and learn how to get your emails not only opened, but read and even clicked. For many small businesses, email marketing (monthly newsletters, email...

            Ever since Microsoft introduced the Microsoft Office suite in 1990, with Apple joining with their iWork suite in 2005, individuals and businesses alike have been using it to enhance their productivity. This includes word processing,...