• Fleet Management
  If your small business is in the market for some used vehicles, beware. A 2007 study by Carfax, which provides consumers with vehicle information history, showed that waves of flood damaged cars are washing up in areas all across the country.

• Improve Your Elevator Pitch
  An elevator pitch is a quick statement that tells a stranger who you are and what you do. The theory is that you have 30 seconds (about the length of an elevator ride) to make a memorable impression.

• Hit By The AMT?
  The IRS has updated its online tool to help taxpayers determine whether they may owe the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) on their personal tax returns.

• Increase Ad Responses
  Try this trick when you need to write the copy for your small-business ad: Every time you’re tempted to write “we” or “me,” write “you” instead.
   

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Get Connected Issue 116 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Cash For Phones
  Don’t trash your old cell phone when you latch on to the latest model. Some online sites are willing to pay you from $2 to $200 for a working phone that you no longer need.

• Early Time Change
  Mark your calendar now. The change to daylight-saving time happens on March 11 this year. That’s three weeks earlier than most people are expecting.

• Two Extra Days
  Taxpayers across the nation will have until Tuesday, April 17, 2007, to file their 2006 returns and pay any taxes due.

• Ad Agency Tips
  Before you plunk down a check to hire an advertising agency, follow these four tips.
   

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Get Connected Issue 115 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Know Your Customers
  Building a customer database is a great way to get to know your customers’ preferences. You can include data that tracks purchases, demographic data, contact information, inquiries and more.

• Find Suppliers
  Some distributors and wholesales thumb their noses at small-business customers. Those suppliers don’t want to take the time and energy to process your $200 order when they could be taking big-business orders for $10,000.

• Faster Refunds
  Want to get your 2006 federal income tax refund in a jiffy? Then file your tax return electronically.

• Demographic Targeting
  The majority of your customers may be made up of a specific demographic group. For example, your client base might be mostly Asian or over age 65 or women.
   

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Get Connected Issue 114 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Flash Wristband
  Here’s a new way to promote your small business: customized USB flash wristbands from Imation.

• Get Free Publicity In USA TODAY
  The nation’s biggest newspaper is giving small-business owners the opportunity to get free publicity.

• New Rules For Giving
  For the 2007 tax year, you’ll have to provide bank records or other information when claiming deductions for charitable donations of money.

• Entrepreneurial Education
  If you – or a young entrepreneur in your family – want a smart business education, check out one of the nine universities that received grants from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
   

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Get Connected Issue 113 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Get A TV Spot
  Don’t think that television advertising is too expensive for your small business. Go to Spot Runner, a Los Angeles-based company that produces digital ads you can use on local cable TV networks.

• Can’t Get A Loan?
  If banks have been turning you down for a small-business loan, your accounts receivable might be the deal breaker.

• Telephone Tax Refund
  Anyone who paid the long-distance telephone tax will get the refund on their 2006 federal income tax return.

• Resolve To Reduce Stress
  If you’re not working to reduce stress for your employees, your small business will suffer. In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in 2006, 69 percent of workers said job stress is worse than it was a decade ago.
   

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Get Connected Issue 112 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Make A Million
  Women entrepreneurs can get some serious business help from Make Mine A Million. Launched in 2006, the initiative supports the growth of women-owned businesses with less than $1 million in revenue.

• Keep It Short
  Don’t send novel-length e-mails to customers during your next marketing campaign. Many readers skip long e-mails, opting to read shorter ones.

• Tax Crackdown On Small Businesses
  Some small businesses felt the tax pinch from the IRS in 2006. The agency increased S corporation audits by 34 percent.

• Holiday Leftovers
  Online retailers have a new holiday term to remember from the 2006 shopping season: “eFriday.”
   

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Get Connected Issue 111 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Get Yourself Certified
  Are you a management consultant looking to land a fat contract with a blue chip company?

• Cut Costs
  Every dollar you save in business expenses goes directly to your bottom line. So, cutting costs can improve profits immediately.

• Payroll Taxes For New Hires
  For any new employee you hire, you’ll need to determine how much payroll tax to withhold. IRS Publication 15, Circular E, Employer’s Tax Guide, has all of the answers you’ll need.

• You’ve Got Four Seconds
  Four seconds is the maximum length of time an average online shopper will wait for a Web page to load before potentially abandoning a retail site.
   

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Get Connected Issue 110 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• You And Your CPA
  First-time business owners should take a look at the book “The New Entrepreneur: What Your CPA Wants You to Know” (AuthorHouse, 2006).

• ATM Fees
  Want to save a few bucks every month for your small business? Reduce the number of your ATM transactions.

• Mileage Rates For 2007
  Small-businesses that use the optional standard mileage rate to calculate the deductible costs of operating a vehicle got good news recently from the IRS.

• Media Matters
  Media coverage is free and gives your small business credibility. So, when you get interviewed by a journalist for an article in a newspaper or magazine, jump for joy.
   

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Get Connected Issue 109 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Find An Intern Online
  When small-business owners want to hire an intern, they traditionally look for candidates through local colleges and universities, trade associations or even local high schools.

• Changing Banks
  Ready to move your business banking to a new financial institution? Better make a plan. Changing banks requires more than just moving your money.

• Seasonal Employers
  Even if you have no regular employees, you must complete IRS Form 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return, during those quarters when you hire and pay wages to seasonal employees.

• Credit Card Facts
  Using that plastic when business cash gets short? Spend carefully. Here are four facts you should know before you put that next purchase on a credit card.
   

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Get Connected Issue 108 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Quick Business Tips
  Get great business tips without wasting time. The SCORE Web site offers its Top 5 Tips on various subjects, ranging from business planning and finance to taxes and marketing.

• Holiday Retail
  Retailers can expect a subdued holiday shopping season, says the National Retail Federation (NRF).

• New IRS Collection Program
  The IRS is starting its private debt collection initiative, meaning that a small segment of taxpayers who owe back taxes will be contacted by private sector debt collectors.

• RSVP Manners
  With holiday invitations about to arrive, here’s what you need to know about handling RSVPs like a pro.
   

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Get Connected Issue 107 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Get Financing
  Tired of maxing out your credit cards to finance your small business? Can’t get a bank interested in giving you a loan? Then check out these two alternatives.

• Leash Those Laptops
  Last May, burglars lifted a laptop computer from the home of a data analyst at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

• Installment Payments
  Don’t have the dough to pay your federal income taxes? The IRS offers an installment plan that lets you make monthly payments.

• Blasted By Bloggers?
  If bloggers get angry and verbally attack your small business, how should you respond?
   

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Get Connected Issue 106 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Get A Google Coupon
  Now your small business can offer coupons online with Google Maps. When consumers use Google Maps to search for a type of business in a specific geographic location, your coupon can appear next to your business listing.

• Sweaty Billboards
  The ubiquitous sweatshirt turns 80 this year. What better time to put the favorite clothing to work for your small business?

• An Expensive Offer
  An offer in compromise (OIC) is an agreement between a taxpayer and the IRS that resolves the taxpayer’s tax debt.

• Start Up For $10,000
  It doesn’t take big bucks to start your own business. A Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index from August 2006 found that on average, an entrepreneur needs $10,000 to launch an enterprise.
   

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Get Connected Issue 105 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Exit Strategy
  You built your small business from the ground up. Now, it’s time to sell. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation can help you prepare for that final sale.

• Let Them Eat Cake
  Show your employees appreciation the easy way – give them birthday cakes.

• Tax Deadline
  If you filed an extension for your 2005 federal tax return, a deadline looms: Your return will be due on Oct. 16, 2006.

• E-Mail Promotions
  When’s the best time to send e-mails that promote your small-business services and products?
   

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Get Connected Issue 104 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Women In Biz
  Women who own small businesses might want to check out the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce.

• Watch Consumer Spending
  Could high gasoline prices put a ding in your small-business sales? Maybe. A recent survey by The Boston Consulting Group found that 76 percent of Americans believe gas prices will rise over the coming months, with 48 percent believing it’s possible gas will hit $5.50 a gallon.

• Don’t Deduct These Donations
  If you’ve amassed thousands of airline miles or hotel reward points, you can donate them to many charities.

• Bank Roll
  Most small-business owners stash their cash in a bank checking account that’s federally insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
   

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Get Connected Issue 103 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Minority Business Help
  The U.S. Department of Commerce offers minority business owners assistance through the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA).

• Just The Stats
  The next time you send a press release about your small business to the media, don’t forget to include a list of statistics, or stats.

• Get A Tax Credit
  A tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction for taxes owed. Sound appealing?

• Get A Government Contract
  For the first time in history, small businesses received a record-breaking $79.6 billion in federal prime contracts in fiscal year 2005, $10 billion more than the year before, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) reported in June.
   

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Get Connected Issue 102 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Hone Your Win-Win Skills
  New and veteran small-business owners alike can sharpen their negotiation skills with a collection articles from Kauffman eVenturing.

• Present The Unexpected
  The next time you prepare to make a presentation, go for the surprise factor. Find one or two little-known facts or compelling pieces of information that will grab your audience’s attention.

• File W-2c Online
  Employers who need to file IRS Form W-2c, Corrected Wage and Tax Statement, can now do it online.

• Employee Ethics
  Small-business employees face ethical dilemmas every day. It’s your job as the boss to ensure integrity in the workplace and to encourage ethical behavior.
   

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Get Connected Issue 101 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Online Tool For Retailers
  Independent retailers with a bricks-and-mortar store now have help marketing their products online. StepUp Commerce is an Internet local shopping service that boasts roughly 5,000 independent retail stores nationwide as subscribers.

• Trivia Marketing
  Use industry trivia to give your marketing a twist and grab attention. Find some facts about your industry.

• More Options For Refund Deposits
  Recently the IRS announced the creation of a program to allow taxpayers who use direct deposit to divide their refunds in up to three financial accounts.

• You’re Not Alone
  Don’t feel like you’re the only one feeling the pinch of higher gasoline prices. A recent survey by DollarDays International, an Internet-based product wholesaler to small businesses, found that 86 percent of its customers expect a negative effect on their revenues as a result of increased gas prices.
   

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Get Connected Issue 100 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Ideas For Small Manufacturers
  All small manufacturers face competitive challenges. If you need some ideas about making your company a world-class operation, check out the report “The Future of Small and Medium Manufacturers: Challenges and Policy Issues.”

• Picnic Reminders
  Company picnics with employees. A barbecue with colleagues and clients. Summer get-togethers can be a time to put professional relationships on a more personal level.

• Get Employer ID Online
  Small-business owners who need a federal employer identification number (EIN) can apply online at this IRS site, Online Employer ID Number.

• Small-Business Facts
  The Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) estimates that in 2005 there were 25.8 million businesses in the U.S. Estimates for businesses with employees indicate there were 671,800 new firms and 544,800 closures in 2005.
   

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Get Connected Issue 99 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Letters To The Editor
  Maybe you can’t get quoted in a magazine or write a column for your local newspaper. But you can always drop a letter to the editor in response to anything you read in publications.

• Budget More For Vacation
  Better fatten up your wallet before you take off on vacation this year. The AAA Annual Vacation Costs survey found that the overall cost for getting away is increasing by 5.4 percent over last year.

• Tax Cuts Extended
  Small-business owners have three more years to benefit from increased expensing limits under Section 179.

• Help Employees Save On Gas
  You’re not the only one feeling pain at the gas pump. Your employees are spending more too in their commutes to and from the office. Show them you sympathize – and give them some help.
   

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Get Connected Issue 98 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Avoid Knee Jerks
  The next time you pack for an airplane trip, take some Knee Defenders along. These small devices protect your knees when the passenger sitting in front of you becomes an aggressive seat recliner.

• Sweet Dreams
  The National Sleep Foundation’s annual Sleep in America survey consistently finds that Americans don’t get enough sleep.

• IRS Notices
  Don’t panic if you get a letter from the IRS. The agency sends millions of notices to taxpayers each year.

• Networking In Kansas
  Entrepreneurs in Kansas should check out the new Web site NetWork Kansas, www.networkkansas.com, provided by the Kansas Center for Entrepreneurship.
   

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Get Connected Issue 97 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Generation Y Entrepreneurs
  If you’re under the age of 25 and want to launch your own business, there’s a Web site just for you, www.gen-y.org.

• More E-Mails Opened On Friday
  Small businesses that depend on e-mail campaigns to communicate with customers should consider Friday for send out day.

• Gone Phishing
  The Internal Revenue Service has established an electronic mailbox for taxpayers to send information about suspicious e-mails they receive which claim to come from the IRS.

• Be Prepared
  Is your small business prepared for an emergency? Probably not. That’s why the U.S. Department of Homeland Security launched its Ready Business campaign to focus on small and mid-size businesses.
   

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Get Connected Issue 96 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Virtual Meetings
  With gasoline prices soaring and airline service tanking, now might be a good time to invest in online Web conferencing.

• Hire Seniors
  If you’re having trouble finding top talent for your small business, give seniors a try. They bring experience developed from years in the workforce.

• Track Your Tax Refund
  If you filed a complete and accurate paper tax return, your refund should be issued in about six to eight weeks from the date the IRS receives your return.

• Direct Mail Checklist
  To boost response rates on your direct mail campaigns, try including a checklist for customers.
   

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Get Connected Issue 95 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Online Biz Training
  Need small-business training, but don’t have time to leave your home office? Check out SCORE, “Counselors to America’s Small Business.”

• Love & Money
  Six out of 10 marriages in the U.S. end in divorce. Entrepreneurial couples would be wise to take this fact into consideration when developing their business plans.

• 2006 Tax Returns
  It’s never too early to start planning for tax time.

• Go Local Online
  Locally-targeted online advertising is experiencing a boom that may last for several more years.
   

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Get Connected Issue 94 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• All About Franchises
  Entrepreneurs interested in buying a franchise should stop by the Web site www.franmarket.com.

• Under Pressure
  When you’re interviewing job candidates for your small business, you need to know how potential employees will act under pressure.

• Check Your Math
  Want to avoid the No. 1 mistake taxpayers make on their income tax returns? Then check your math.

• Multicultural Prediction
  Yankelovich Inc., the respected marketing consultancy in Chapel Hill, N.C., predicts that in 2006 U.S.
   

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Get Connected Issue 93 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Online Safety Net
  The federal government and the technology industry have pooled their knowledge to help you protect your business and personal information in the cyber world.

• Get Paid Faster
  A little incentive can be a big boost to your small-business cash flow.

• Easy Taxes
  Sole proprietors may be able to get off easy this tax-filing season.

• Pricing Pressure
  The difficulty of passing rising costs on to customers is a primary concern for the leaders of smaller U.S. companies, according to the Merrill Lynch Smaller Firms Survey released in January.
   

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Get Connected Issue 92 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Friends In High Places
  There are resources to help you in every step of building a business. You just have to know where to look

• Risky Business
  Replace with “Every small business faces financial risks. Don’t wait until a crisis arises to plan for financial trouble. Develop a contingency plan now.

• Tax Stop
  Before you sit down to wrestle with your small-business taxes, check out the IRS Web site Small Business and Self-Employed One-Stop Resource at www.irs.gov/businesses/small/index.html.

• Giving Thanks
  The next time you want to show gratitude to a client, give them an inexpensive gift: a small notepad, a pen, a magnet.
   

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Get Connected Issue 91 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• For Women Entrepreneurs
  Last month the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) launched a new Web portal for women business owners.

• Making Contact
  Your small-business press release might be the best ever written. But if media folks can’t find your contact information in a hurry, you could lose their attention.

• Hurricane Tax Laws
  The IRS has issued a new publication explaining changes to the tax law and relief provisions available to those affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma.

• Crunching Numbers
  Just because you were lousy at math doesn’t mean you should avoid the financial details of your small business.
   

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Get Connected Issue 90 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Weighing Your Nest Egg
  Small-business owners who want to see if they’re saving enough for retirement can turn to online calculators for help.

• Sticky-Fingered Employees
  Post-it Notes and pens are the favorite items for employees who pilfer an employer’s supply cabinet.

• Scam Warning
  Don’t get scammed or phished while preparing and filing your business taxes this year.

• Healthy & Happy
  Want to keep your employees healthy and happy? Offer wellness benefits.
   

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Get Connected Issue 89 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Teen Entrepreneurs
  If you’re a teenage entrepreneur – or you have one at home – check out the new Web site Teen Business Link at www.sba.gov/teens.

• Photo ID
  Displaying your photo on your business card will help prospects remember you.

• Bigger Gifts
  Inflation adjustments made by the IRS for the 2006 tax year show that taxpayers will be able to give away more gift money.

• Shoplifting On The Rise
  Shoplifting didn’t end with the 2005 holiday season. Unfortunately for retailers, shoplifting is on the rise according to a recent study by the University of Florida.
   

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Get Connected Issue 88 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Plan For 2006
  Jump-start your new year by reviewing – or creating – your business plan. It’s easier than you think, and we’ve got a free tool to help.

• Look Sharp
  Look organized when you go shopping for a business loan. Lenders pay more attention to borrowers that present a well-organized package.

• New IRA Limits
  Your individual retirement account (IRA) can get a boost this year.

• Online Decline
  Are your online sales declining? Maybe shoppers just don’t feel safe on your Web site. An IBM survey during the 2005 holiday shopping season found that consumers fear identity theft and credit card fraud when shopping online.
   

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Get Connected Issue 87 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Free Biz Templates
  No need to reinvent a wheel – or a business form. SCORE, “Counselors to America’s Small Business,” offers free business templates to help make your tasks easier.

• Don’t Go Postal
  Small businesses can’t seem to get a break. First gas prices went through the roof.

• Clean Auto Deduction
  The IRS has certified the model year 2006 Ford Escape Hybrid and the 2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid vehicles as being eligible for the clean-burning fuel deduction.

• Go Get A Loan
  Small businesses in areas affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita will be eligible for a new U.S. Small Business Administration-backed loan of up to $150,000.
   

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Get Connected Issue 86 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Web Site Check
  Is your small-business Web site getting all the clicks you need? Probably not.

• Don’t Be A Scrooge
  Business owners are planning to open their wallets a little wider this holiday season according to a survey by OPEN from American Express (SM).

• Should You Incorporate?
  Plenty of small-business owners think that incorporating their companies will give them a generous tax break.

• Sticker Shock
  Still feeling the pinch at the gas pump? You’re not alone.
   

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Get Connected Issue 85 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Startup Workbooks
  SCORE “Counselors to America’s Small Business” and The Company Corporation® have released new editions of educational workbooks on starting a business and selecting a business structure.

• FedEx Ups Rates
  FedEx announced last month that it will increase the net average shipping costs for FedEx Express by 3.5 percent.

• Watch Those Gifts
  Before you shop-till-you-drop for business gifts this holiday season, keep in mind these two facts about legitimate tax deductions for gift giving

• Privacy Please
  If you haven’t yet posted your privacy policy on your small business Web site, take action today before the holiday shopping rush.
   

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Get Connected Issue 84 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Seeking Hot Spots
  Road weary Wi-Fi users will get a little pep from the Iogear Wireless Hotspot Finder.

• Media Matters
  When a TV, magazine or newspaper reporter interviews you for a story, be sure to get yourself identified correctly.

• Hurricane Wilma Tax Relief
  Victims of Hurricane Wilma will get tax relief from the IRS. Deadlines for affected taxpayers to file returns, pay taxes and perform other time-sensitive acts have been postponed to Feb. 28, 2006, the same date granted to taxpayers affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

• Retail Promotions
  High gas prices at the pump will not keep retailers from offering free shipping this holiday season. That’s the finding of the “2005 Shop.org/BizRate Research Online Holiday Mood Study,” conducted by BizRate Research, a division of Shopzilla. Inc.
   

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Get Connected Issue 83 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Welcome To The Neighborhood
  If your small business aims to make customers out of new residents in a neighborhood, then check out www.movingtargets.com.

• Doing Biz With Uncle Sam
  The U.S. Small Business Administration reports that U.S. small businesses reaped a record $69.23 billion in federal prime contracts in 2004.

• You’ll Pay More Interest
  Better figure your federal taxes correctly. The IRS announced that it will increase interest rates for the fourth quarter of 2005.

• Get Into The HUBZone
  Small businesses affected by the military’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission can receive an economic boost from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s HUBZone program.
   

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Get Connected Issue 82 -- Click Here For The Entire Contents

• Stop Copycats
  Don’t let online plagiarizers steal your Web content. At www.copyscape.com, you can search for copycats that might have created Web pages remarkably similar to the pages on your Web site.

• Promote Your Web Site
  Too many small-business owners miss out on a simple way to promote their Web sites: Signs on their vehicles.

• Mileage Rate Increase