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“Marketing is not only much broader than selling; it is not a specialized activity at all. It encompasses the entire business.” – Peter Drucker

Over the past several posts I’ve been talking about the role of search, conversation, and media in your business. While not explicit, each of these posts was about one thing: Marketing.

Marketing is one of the most misunderstood practices in business today. For most of us, marketing is about convincing potential customers that our product or service is worth their money. And while that’s certainly party true, it never struck me as the whole narrative.

Where does marketing really begin? As management guru Peter Drucker stated it, “Marketing is the whole business seen from the customer’s point of view.” Put another way, every single interaction the customer has with your business can and should be seen as marketing.

I’ve argued elsewhere than a truly successful business is one that is an ongoing conversation. Those conversations are marketing – if you add value and connect to your customer, you’re succeeding. If you don’t, you fail.

It’s easy to know if you’re succeeding while having those conversations – we’re all pretty good at sensing when customers are happy as we directly interact with them. But we often forget a crucial ongoing conversation that usually occurs beyond our personal presence: The conversation between the customer and our products.

Case in point: I’ve worked closely with a well known software firm that spends millions on marketing programs that do a very good job of convincing consumers to buy their products. Once those products are in the hands of customers, however, that marketing spend ends. But the conversation has just begun – the customer not only installs the software, he or she then interacts with the product again and again, often multiple times a day.  And sometimes the customer sees an error message.

And while the software company doesn’t see it that way, that error message is marketing.  Unfortunately, that message is written by a programmer, and it fails to do anything but irritate the customer.

But wait, you might argue, marketing isn’t involved in the creation of a product! Marketing is all about selling the product once it’s made! Sadly, this is how marketing is usually defined. But it shouldn’t be. When you are developing your product, you are, in essence, developing a marketing program. If you view your product as an extension of your marketing efforts, chances are your business will be far more successful.

In short, marketing and product development are not separate functions. They should be part of the very same thing. Imagine an error message that said: “Oops, our software just got confused. We’re a bit embarrassed, but here’s a link to a forum where other customers with exactly the same problem can talk about the error. We make sure that our representatives are always there to answer questions as well, so there’s a pretty good chance we can find a fix quickly. Please come by to tell us about what happened. If you do, we’ll give you a discount on our next upgrade, and you’ll be helping us develop an even better product over time. Thanks!”

Now that’s what I call a conversation: marketing that integrates product development with customer service. I can’t wait till it happens.

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Source: John Battelle of SearchBlog

The Olympics in China, surging wealth in oil nations, a strong European Union — all of these have U.S. entrepreneurs thinking: Mmmmmmmm, so how can I get a piece of that? How can I start going global?

The current downturn in the U.S. has made global ventures increasingly attractive — and worth the learning curve.

The good news is that the learning curve can be accelerated. What I’ve discovered years ago when I first went global is this: We don’t have to proceed alone.

Actually, it’s smart, at least initially, not to even try.  Instead, we can find simple, low-cost, convenient ways to partner with other businesses. Those alliances — and there is an infinite number of ways to create and operate them — have plenty of advantages.

The advantages to partnering include:

• Piggybacking on others’ expertise, experience, systems [e.g. supply, manufacturing, distribution], and contacts.
• Reducing risk when entering markets.
• Positioning our business as larger than it is. Mass communicates credibility.
• Gaining influence from alignment with established brand names.

Here I’ll recount two success stories to illustrate the power of strategic global alliances for entrepreneurs.

Success Story #1

It was the late 1980s. I saw opportunity in exporting foodstuffs. My initial step was to contact Mitsui and Company. I chose that potential partner because it was one of the largest Japanese trading companies worldwide. Also, it had an office here in Chicago. That office, I knew, did a significant amount of exporting to Japan. That made approaching it convenient.

My proposal was to piggyback some of my products with theirs. How I packaged my pitch was pointing out, first of all, that I had the suppliers and they had the distribution systems and the customers. Secondly, I emphasized that my gourmet line of food items would create value for their commodity beef products in the Japanese markets.

Obviously the proposition was mutually beneficial. Our strategic global alliance was successful for a number of years. During it I developed deep knowledge of that marketplace.

Success Story #2

This is a tale of one of our U.S. clients who was only doing business domestically. He took our advice about the opportunities inherent in international partnering. At the time, that client was selling a high volume of office supply parts to the U.S. branch of Brother International.

Brother, as you probably know from shopping in Staples, is a world-class manufacturer of mid-priced printers, fax machines, sewing machines, and typewriters. It also, we discovered, has an even larger “brother” called Global Brother. Why couldn’t our client tap into that “brother’s” worldwide distribution channel and go global quickly? It was obvious to us and the client that this could be attempted.

We coached our client on how to approach his contacts at Brother U.S.A. The proposal, we instructed him, had to be structured to describe the mutual benefit which could come from using Brother’s distributions systems to market and sell our client’s unique parts.

That first step led to a door opening. The door that opened was the chance to create bonds of trust with Global Brother through his contacts at the U.S facility. On that platform he was then able to explore with Global Brother what markets to enter first, how to enter them, what relationships to build within them and when to expand. His global operations grew into an enterprise more profitable than his domestic ones.

That same process of partnering, of course, can be applied to services, too — not just products.

The bottom line on strategic global alliances is this:

Identify and document where working together vs. either company going it alone can be advantageous to all parties in the loop.

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About the Author: Global business expert Laurel Delaney is the founder of GlobeTrade.com. She also is the creator of “Borderbuster,” an e-newsletter, and The Global Small Business Blog, all highly regarded for their global small business coverage.

Laurel is a member of the Small Business Trends Expert Network.

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Source: Laurel Delaney

A lifetime of leadership experience can sometimes yield precious, short insights that encapsulate tremendous wisdom in a simple sentence. We call them “quotes,” and I’m pleased to build on the previous series of quotes shared a few months ago. Have a great quote that really makes you think? Leave a comment and share it with the rest of us!

“All new doctrine goes through three stages. It is attacked and declared absurd; then it is admitted as true and obvious but insignificant. Finally, its true importance is recognized and its adversaries claim the honor of having discovered it” - William James, Philosopher and Psychologist

“Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn’t have to do it himself.” - Steve Kerr, Former Chief Learning Officer, Goldman Sachs & Co.

“Teamwork = Not permitting others to fail.” - Steve Kerr

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards” - Steve Jobs, Co-Founder & CEO, Apple Inc.

“Love what you do. Someday you will die.” - Steve Jobs

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Behance articles and tips are adapted from the writing and research of Scott Belsky and the Behance team. Behance runs the Behance Creative Network , the Creative Jobs List, and develops knowledge, products, and services that help creative professionals make ideas happen.

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Source: Scott Belsky of Behance

Recently I read a post by Paula at Small Business CEO about balancing work and family as a home-based business owner. She talked about the importance of creating a routine and having the discipline to walk away at dinner time and immerse yourself in your family for the evening.

Although trying to create a workplace environment at home and operate similar working hours has its benefits, I have found a different style to work for me.

I’ve owned my business for four years; however, for ten years prior to that I worked from home as a field manager for Pearle Vision. Those ten years encompassed the early elementary years of my oldest and the birth and toddler years of my youngest.

The pull between home and work was never stronger than when I had a hungry baby with a wet diaper to care for while responding to the needs of business. Here’s what I learned:

1. Crying babies trump whiny managers.

2. A focused workday while working from home is an oxymoron.

3. Shutting the door on your home office doesn’t stop your brain from working overtime.

4. Kids don’t understand that “Mommy’s on the phone with a potential customer right now” means “Go keep yourself busy and stop the dog from barking!”

So here are a few tricks that I’ve found help me manage my business and my family while enjoying both.

Create a Mini-Work Space

Every home office I have had includes a desk set up for my children. Kids just like to be near you. By creating their own work area for their homework, coloring or even stuffing envelopes for your latest marketing effort, you keep them occupied and satisfied.

Assign Blocks of Time

It is amazing just how much you can get done in 20 minutes of uninterrupted time. Chris Perrow of Perrow Systems is an organizational specialist and she helped me understand that when you work from home, you can’t always shut the door and focus for hours on a project. Using that knowledge I broke up my day into smaller blocks of time that met my home and work needs:

• Set goals for the day and check email before anyone wakes
• Take time to enjoy breakfast with the kids and get them to the bus
• Focus on a specific customer project
• Resist the urge to check email or phone messages while in the “focus” time block
• Give myself permission to stop work when the kids come home for one hour to hear about their day, help with homework and start supper
• Work while supper is cooking and kids are in their mini-office
• Break to drive them to countless after-school and evening activities
• Write a blog post or comment on someone else’s
• Review a task list and carry over unfinished projects

Not Limit Working Hours to 8-5

By not limiting my day to 8-5 I can afford to take off a couple hours during the day to participate in a kid activity at school. I still work 8-10 hours on my business everyday, but I break the day up to include my family time. Of course, the joy of knowing I can throw a load of laundry in while working on a project also has its benefits.

My approach to operating a home based business may seem a little unconventional and often means that I miss American Idol or the latest episode of Two and a Half Men. Yet, I know that when I focus on work — I’m focused on work, allowing me to dedicate quality time throughout the day to my family as well.

My oldest is now 17 and he’s not my biggest fan — what parent is to a kid of that age? Yet I recently overheard him tell his girlfriend: “I hate to admit this, but it can be nice to have her here when I come home to tell stuff to.”

Wow. Reason enough to ensure I always work from home!

My way isn’t the only way, although my kids might tell you that it is my way or the highway.

How do you manage the juggle? Whether you work from home or not — parents today have an amazing challenge when it comes to focusing on their career and their family without dropping one or two or 12 balls. How do you keep up the juggle?

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About the Author: Deborah Chaddock Brown opened her freelance writing business AllWrite Ink in 2004 after almost 17 years with the International retail optical corporation, Pearle Vision. Deborah’s background is in franchising, operations, marketing and communication, however, her passion is helping businesses connect with their target audience using the Internet. Deborah blogs at Websites People Read.

Deborah is a member of the Small Business Trends Expert Network.

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Source: Deborah Chaddock Brown

A mantra is three or four words that explain why your product, service, or company should exist. A mission statement is a fifty-word tome that no one can remember or believe that’s supposed to impress readers of your business plan. Unfortunately, most people work for an organization with a mission statement. Who among us has not had the horrible experience of a management offsite to build teamwork and to craft a mission statement? The offsite went like this:

• Day 1: Teambuilding. First, form cross-functional teams so that engineering has to work with sales. Then tolerate a day of exercises such as, “Each of you will come up to the front of the group, turn your back to the group, close your eyes, and fall backwards into the arms of your colleagues. This will teach you to communicate with and trust your fellow employees.”

• Day 2: Crafting the mission statement. In a hot, crowded room with a pad of white paper and a facilitator who knows nothing about your business, you are going to collectively craft a mission statement. Everyone who is director level and above in the company is there—that’s sixty people. You each figure you get one word, so at the end of the day you have a sixty-word mission statement that is good for the customers, shareholders, employees, whales, and dolphins:

“The mission of Wendy’s is to deliver superior quality products and services for our customers and communities through leadership, innovation, and partnerships.”
Don’t get me wrong. I love Wendy’s, but I’ve never thought I was participating in “leadership, innovation, and partnerships” when I ordered a hamburger there. I have given up on trying to get companies to create short, different, and meaningful mission statements, so go ahead and spend the $25,000 for the offsite, facilitator, and consultants to create one.

However, you should also create a mantra for your organization. A mantra is three or four words long—tops. Its purpose is to help employees truly understand why the organization exists. If I were the CEO of Wendy’s, I would establish a corporate mantra of “healthy fast food.” End of story. Here are more examples of corporate mantras to inspire you:

• Federal Express: “Peace of mind”
• Nike: “Authentic athletic performance”
• Target: “Democratize design”
• Mary Kay: “Enriching women’s lives”
• eBay: “Democratize ecommerce”

The ultimate test for a mantra (or mission statement) is if your telephone operators can tell you what it is. If they can, then you’re onto something meaningful and memorable. If they can’t, then, well, it sucks.

If you still insist on doing a mission statement, then at least let me help you save a lot of time and money. Just go to the “Dilbert Mission Statement Generator.” There, without a consultant, facilitator, and offsite, you can get the mission statement of your dreams. Meanwhile, you still need a mantra, so get working.

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Excerpted from my next book: Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition. For more information about leadership, go here.

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Source: Guy Kawasaki of How to Change the World

“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
-– President Reagan, in a speech given in, then, West Berlin, June 21, 1987.

Berlin Wall, 1987 - Photo Courtesy Ronald Reagan Library

For many, this phrase continues to ring as a call for freedom for people to live and work, maximize their strengths, live their dreams and create nations around those principles.

But did small business hear it?

How many asked “Do we have walls that block communication, collaboration, solutions, ideas …. prevent our people from bringing their strengths to work, each and every day?”

Sadly, not enough.

And, where’s the person like President Reagan to issue this demand for small business and their leaders and employees, even customers, vendors and partners:

Small businesses. Tear down those walls!

Tear down those walls that keep your employees from working together, from collaborating together, from communicating … together.

Tear down those walls that keep their ideas never heard.

Tear down those walls that crush their passion and enthusiasm for the experience they create for your customers.

Tear down those walls that keep you and your partners from discovering new products or services.

Tear down those walls that enforce fear of failure and eliminate innovation, change and growth.

Why and how should you tear those walls down?

Here’s the answer to WHY: you have no choice. As a small business your number one asset is your people. For many small businesses, it’s the only asset, ultimately.

• You don’t have market share (you’re small);

• you don’t have the economies of scale (you’re small);

• and you can’t compete on price as a result.

No one knows you … yet. You don’t have access to multiple sources of capital.

You have a dream, with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. And a lot of work awaits you. You have one asset, your people, to make that dream real: deliver your brand promise, execute your tactics, adjust them when they meet the marketplace … create sales, keep customers, deliver on your growing IT needs, find new partners, create new products, market,…

Ultimately, your people will be the ones that deliver your dream. You owe it to them to tear down those walls that keep them from living to their potential.

For some that thinking may be too humanistic.

Here’s a financial reason, then: ROA, return-on-asset. It’s one of the great metrics of a successful business. It measures how well you’re managing, leading, your assets. It’s a feather in your manager/leader cap. It could be. Call this the enlightened self-interest protocol. The messy procedures to insure their growth means you grow towards your financial goals.

Now, we’ll answer HOW to tear down walls.

Step 1: Read two books: “First Break All the Rules” and then “Now Discover Your Strengths.” First Break all the Rules shares what all the great managers do. They: 1) manage for a person’s strengths, 2) don’t waste time correcting weaknesses; 3) place people where they’re able to make their best contribution; 4) recognize, recognize, recognize their contribution.

Step 2: Tear down the walls. Start the transparent conversation. No more hidden agendas. No more silence. No more silo-mentalities. Experience is the best teacher: Show how everyone’s accomplishments contribute to the success of the company.

Step 3: Be quiet. It’s their conversation. Remember this ratio — two ears: one mouth. Listen twice as much as you talk.

Step 4: Be patient. Old dogs can learn new habits and unlearn bad habits. Expect resistance, fear and trepidation as people relinquish tightly controlled territories of influence and the habits (and ego) they developed to maintain them.

Step 5: Acknowledge openly. Do it in writing, too. I used a wiki called Basecamp to document conversations, to-do, milestones, ideas … everything.

Step 6: Celebrate early, often and late. Find and celebrate every victory, step of progress, achievement. Recognize, recognize, and recognize their contributions. You’re asking for a lot of change from people. Some will find that tough. Make the journey easier with celebrations, big and small.

Step 7: Don’t stop. You’ll discover more of your strengths on this journey. That makes you better, your life better. Those around you will enjoy the result.

Step 8: Enjoy, and good luck. And be sure to share your stories for others starting this journey.

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About the Author: Zane Safrit’s passion is small business and the operations’ excellence required to deliver a product that creates word-of-mouth, customer referrals and instills pride in those whose passion created it. He previously served as CEO of Conference Calls Unlimited. Zane’s blog can be found at Zane Safrit.

Zane is a member of the Small Business Trends Expert Network.

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Source: Zane Safrit

From jazz musicians to painters, a growing number of artists are choosing to become entrepreneurs. Artists do this so they can pursue their artistic passion and pay the bills. And while making a living as an artist continues to be difficult, 3 broad trends are combining to create new opportunities for artist entrepreneurs:

1. Consumer interest in unique, one-of-a-kind or handcrafted products is growing, broadening the market for works of art.

2. The Internet is creating new and effective methods for tech savvy artists to find an audience - and for art buyers to easily find art that interests them.

3. Technology is reducing the costs of producing many types of art, allowing artists to price at levels that attract new buyers and expand the art market. Technology also gives artist entrepreneurs the ability to create and manage small businesses with multiple revenue streams. This greatly increases the likelihood they will generate enough revenue to succeed.

Collage artist and illustrator Claudine Hellmuth is a good example.

She creates unique and customized collage art which she sells on her own website and on her Etsy online store. Because high quality printing costs have declined, she can profitably sell her customized prints for less $200. An avid user of social media, she communicates with her audience via her blog, podcasts and Twitter.

Like many entrepreneurial artists, Hellmuth has multiple revenue streams. In addition to her collage art she gives workshops, has written two books, sells DVDs on collage making and has a line of greeting cards. Digital tools allow her to easily re-purpose content for different uses and office automation tools help her manage her complex personal business.

Even artists without business skills or interests are able to take advantage of these trends. The online art gallery 20X200 is one of a growing number of online art middlemen who connect artists with buyers. Gallery 20X200 introduces two new art pieces each week, with each piece limited to 200 prints. The smallest prints sell for $20. Artists effectively outsource their sales and marketing to Gallery 20X200, which uses low prices and the reach of the Internet to get their artists exposure and tap new buyers.

The result of these trends is a growing number of self-employed artists and creative professionals. Etsy, an online marketplace for handmade items, claims that over 200,000 artists and crafts people make a living selling on their site.

According to the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation, there are over 22,000 self-employed creative professionals in Brooklyn alone. Their numbers increased by over 35% between 2000 and 2005.

We expect the trends driving the growth of artist entrepreneurs to continue to gain strength over the next decade, resulting in many more entrepreneurial artists. While many artists resist the call of entrepreneurship, others are embracing it. According to Yury Gitman, an artist entrepreneur and the creator of My Beating Heart, it’s not about money alone. It’s about being able to pursue his passion, distribute his work to a broader audience and provide for his family.

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About the Author: Steve King is a partner at Emergent Research, a research affiliate at the Institute for the Future, and senior fellow at the Society for New Communications Research. He is a co-author of the Intuit Future of Small Business report series, and he blogs at Small Biz Labs.

Steve is a member of the Small Business Trends Expert Network.

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Source: Steve King

David Eraker started a company called Mindsite to help people who are searching for answers about mental health. I found out that the DSM-IV is the go-to guide for diagnosing mental health issues, and Mindsite is the first company to publish this resource online for consumers to read directly. I know lots of people who are searching for mental health information–they’re called “disgruntled employees,” so I asked David to help me help you figure out if your boss is crazy. Here are the main personality disorders from the DSM-IV as they relate to your boss.

Narcissistic

If your boss shows arrogant behaviors or attitudes, has a grandiose sense of self-importance, and takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends, then your boss may be a narcissist. This is the loudmouthed CEO with a Porsche parked out front and a Rolex who is always claiming that he’s doing “the next big thing.” He frequently needs an entourage of yes-people who suck up to him. Support groups for the employees of narcissists are some of the most active online. Continued interaction with them can be downright toxic though because they can turn you into a spineless puppy dog or a powder keg of anger. (For more information about the narcissistic personality disorder, go here.)

Paranoid

If your boss is preoccupied with unjustified doubts about the loyalty or trustworthiness of people, suspects that others are exploiting, harming, or deceiving them, and is reluctant to confide in others because of unwarranted fear that the information will be used maliciously against him or her, then your boss may be paranoid. You could make the case that a paranoid company is always worried about the competition, and is therefore more likely to take care of its customers. That’s the basis of Andy Grove’s book Only the Paranoid Survive. However, there’s little to be said for working for a paranoid boss if the fears do not make any sense. (For more information about the paranoid personality disorder, go here.)

Obsessive-Compulsive

If your boss is preoccupied with details, rules, lists, order, organization, or schedules to the extent that the point of the activity is lost and interferes with task completion, then your boss may be obsessive-compulsive. Many entrepreneurs have experienced board members and investors who tried to micromanage their financial projections and reports to the point no return. Maybe it makes the person feel like he’s in control of an uncontrollable situation, but “uncontrollable” means uncontrollable. These folks are simply deluding themselves to think they are improving the situation and making the rest of us crazy. (For more information about the obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, go here.)

Anti-Social

If your boss exhibits consistent irresponsibility as indicated by repeated failure to sustain consistent work behavior or honor financial obligations and a lack of remorse when having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another, then your boss may be anti-social. You should be watchful about joining a company where the CEO talks about unleashing economic disruption solely to destroy the competition. Companies that are created for such purposes seldom succeed. The key is what you do for your customers not to your competition. When is the last time you bought something to help a company hurt its competition? (For more information about the anti-social personality disorder, go here.)

There you have it: a quick guide to the dysfunctionality of bosses. To learn more about these issues and to increase control of your mental health, check out Mindsite. You might also enjoy Psychology.alltop. Now stop and also ask yourself if you’re exhibiting any of these characteristics too.

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Source: Guy Kawasaki of How to Change the World

I am of the Baby Boomer generation and I’ve been using technology for 25+ years.

So I have to laugh when I read articles suggesting Baby Boomers are a bunch of old, tech illiterate dinosaurs.

OK, maybe the calendar doesn’t lie and we are getting up there in years.

But what’s with this tech illiterate stereotype, already???

What prompted me to write this is a recent blog post I read about entrepreneurs and technology. The post basically made the point that you should dumb-down technology for Boomer entrepreneurs. It was written by a 20-something tech blogger. (Said blogger shall remain nameless to protect the guilty.)

Here’s a news flash for Gen Xers, Gen Yers and Millennials:

Millions of Baby Boomers have been using computers, software, and other technology for more years than you have — in some cases since before you were born.

For example, I have many more years of experience under my belt using computers, software, and telecom technology than the younger people who work for me. And I started back in the day when technology wasn’t nearly as user-friendly as it is today. Two decades ago we had to overcome a HUGE learning curve just to do simple activities that today most people take for granted — like number crunching, or creating a presentation, or setting up a computer network, or emailing, or building a website, or setting up voice mail for your company.

And here’s my main point: there are millions of Baby Boomers just like me.

Many Baby Boomers (and pre-Boomers) held jobs in corporations requiring them to learn and use technology years ago. Who do you think designed, built and implemented all that technology in the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s? Aliens from another planet? Baby Boomers made up the cross-functional teams that are responsible for the first or second or third generation of computing technology in America’s corporations.

And it’s not just the corporate weenies. Academicians, scientists, engineers, medical professionals — all used technology daily.

Boomers who worked in factories also had to learn to use computers a long time ago. (Have you been in a factory in the last 20 years and seen all the technology?) Same goes for UPS drivers, utility workers, bank tellers, clerical workers and others in other blue/pink collar jobs. They’ve been using technology for years.

And when, after years of working for the man, we decide to start our own businesses, we bring that tech experience with us to our own entrepreneurial enterprises.

I’ll grant you that some Baby Boomers are less tech savvy than others. And, yes, some even have a hard time with technology. But you’ll find examples of that among ANY generation.

The fallacy of statistics is that if you generalize and dismiss an entire generation as tech laggards, you will surely miss the mark with millions of Boomers — who, in fact, may be technology trailblazers, not laggards.

Allow me to share a few voices of reason about the folly of stereotypes based on generations:

(1) Rich Newman in an article in MediaPost says it perfectly when it comes to the Internet:

” …we seem intent on fostering the myth that the Internet is the province of the young, that online is an ineffective way to reach boomers–particularly older boomers–and you might as well forget social media when thinking about older consumers. And nothing could be farther from the truth.”

(2) Ronni Bennett at Time Goes By says it when she takes on another blogger who reached faulty conclusions about technology and older workers, stating:

“Apparently, [the blogger] is unaware that most boomers are still active in the workforce (the oldest are 62, youngest 44) with a probable majority familiar with computers and the distances they cover. He probably doesn’t know, either, that people 65 and older are going online in record numbers which does, necessarily, involve use of a computer.”

(3) David Wolfe, author of “Ageless Marketing,” writes regularly about how making judgments based on age often leads to the wrong conclusions, noting recently:

“As I have said before in this space, I have fathered 3 boomers, 2 Gen X’ers and 1 Millennial. As expected, they are all different, but at the same time, they all went through the same stages, with pretty much the same worldviews and very much the same needs. And as I have also said in this space, the partitioning of the population into generational groupings is fraught with peril.”

So if you are one of those people lumping Baby Boomer entrepreneurs into low-tech stereotypes or dismissing them as old fogies incapable of understanding technology — try getting out more. You’ve lived a sheltered life.

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Source: Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends

Recently, President Bush signed what was dubbed by the New York Times as a “huge package of housing legislation” that is supposed to help thousands of homeowners who may be in danger of foreclosure.

There are other things in the bill, of course. As a matter of fact, there’s a little something here targeting the self-employed, something I bet nobody on Capitol Hill is going to claim credit for including.

Those vociferously fiscally-responsible Congressional Democrats, who want to pay for what they do but know they can’t raise taxes under this President, have spent the last couple of years lusting after a way to narrow the tax gap. The tax gap, in case you were wondering, is the difference between what the Treasury Department estimates it should receive in tax revenues and the amount it actually does receive.

Since the majority of taxpayers responsible for the tax gap (57% of them) have been identified as self-employed (Schedule C filers) and since the currently known tax gap would put a significant dent in the federal budget deficit, a lot of Congressional Democrats seemed to be trying to summon the courage to move their favorite proposal forward.

Parenthetically, the self-employed comprise 57% of taxpayers responsible for the tax gap but only 23% of the money involved — $67 billion of $290 billion, to be precise. Make of that what you will.

The proposal goes like this: credit and debit card issuers will be required to report electronic transactions of business merchants to the IRS. They will also be required to collect and verify Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs) and, if they cannot verify a merchant’s TIN, to immediately begin withholding 28% of that merchant’s transactions, which will be remitted to the IRS.

Advocates like the National Association for the Self-Employed have already pointed out that this is a stupid plan (although they were more polite about it than that). For starters, electronic credit and debit card transactions are already well documented and are unlikely subjects for willful under-reporting. So, this isn’t likely to make much of a dent in the tax gap.

It is likely, though, to add significantly to the costs of credit and debit card issuers, who will almost certainly pass those costs on to their microbusiness merchants.

Just what we needed right now, huh? Something else to increase our costs of doing business.

The provision was inserted into the bill as an offset for the new $7,500 one-time tax credit for new homebuyers. I doubt it will actually generate enough additional revenue to serve as a real offset, of course, but it probably looks good on paper. And, by sneaking the provision into this huge housing bill, the lawmakers involved even got to dispense with the need to summon any political courage.

I guess making life more difficult for the self-employed was more politically palatable than hitting up any of the other potential constituencies around.

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About the Author: Dawn Rivers Baker, an award-winning small business journalist, regularly reports and analyzes small business policy and research as the editor and publisher of The MicroEnterprise Journal. She also blogs at The Journal Blog.

Dawn is a member of the Small Business Trends Expert Network.

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Source: Dawn Rivers Baker