Small Business Labs

JANUARY 7, 2019

The study found "28 percent of adults age 18 and older participated in informal work for pay during the survey reference month."   For example, we reported in 2014 on our research that showed the questions asked in government surveys led to an underreporting of gig work. We

2017 206

2017 2005 2014 Agencies 206

Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 26, 2018

For those not familiar with with the VanLife trend , it refers to the growing number of mostly millennials who have traded in their homes and apartments for life on the road in vans.  For example, the picture below is from the blog of the #VanLife Hearnes family  and shows them having fun while touring Utah with their dogs.

Social Media 164

Social Media Lifestyle Twitter 164

Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 8, 2020

Most countries refer to them as "dependent contractors" and they get some, but not all, of the benefits and legal protections associated with being a traditional employee. The reason is Prop 22 requires firms like Uber and Lyft to provide their drivers with benefits not normally given to independent contractors.  But the U.S.

Legal 207

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Small Business Labs

MARCH 18, 2019

They describe this as: " building a statistical view of your project based on a reference class of similar projects."   For example, we built our coworking forecasts in part by using the growth and expansion rates experienced by premium coffee shops and boutique hotel chains in their early years. 

AT&T 146

AT&T Learning 146

Small Business Labs

AUGUST 27, 2019

points out there is a new form of remote work emerging which they refer to as "WFA" (work from anywhere). The article goes on to cover examples of productivity gains associated with remote work.  .  Two recent articles also point this out and add several new buzzwords to our remote work vocabulary.

Lifestyle 119

Lifestyle Forms AT&T UPS 119

Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 1, 2018

workforce used an online labor platform during their reference week in May of 2017. A good example of the false positive problem is asking people whether they plan to start a business over the next 2-3 years. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the results of their Electronically Mediated Work study. This works out to about 1.6

2017 123

2017 123

Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 2, 2015

They're mostly referred to as "sharing economy" companies. We agree with this point of view and we referred to this sector as the "rental economy" back in 2012 for the same reasons (we've also referred to it as the variable cost economy ).  See Shareable Magazine for true sharing examples.

Suppliers 100

Suppliers 2012 AT&T UPS 100

Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

This is a more stringent set of rules than was in place prior to AB5 (for those interested in legal geekery, the prior rules are referred to as the Borello factors ). Second, many gig economy companies ( Uber is a good example ) are claiming their independent contractors pass the ABC test. This is not correct.

Legal 110

Legal Travel AT&T Policies 110

Small Business Labs

AUGUST 29, 2017

For example, building a marketing app as part of a new product roll-out. Please refer to Andrew's article for more details. This is leading to more independent workers to create either formal or ad hoc teams that can bid on larger and more complex projects. Often these projects are sub-projects in a broader task.

Agencies 145

Agencies Skills International AT&T 145

Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 10, 2015

At first, "bleisure" only referred to business trips that were extended for pleasure. The Fast Company article has a great example: I recently heard about a millennial business traveler who booked a hotel 40 minutes away from his destination city, in a ski resort town.

Travel 100

Travel Lifestyle AT&T 100

Small Business Labs

AUGUST 14, 2012

Almost everyday we hear about another example of non-food businesses using trucks and other mobile platforms to deliver goods and services. For example, NPR's  Canning Factories on Wheels Rev Up the Beer Canvolution describes two companies that have put fully automated beer canning lines on trucks.

Google 100

Google Equipment Purchasing Learning 100

Small Business Labs

MARCH 12, 2012

During Apple's recent iPad announcement CEO Tim Cook made several references to the "post-PC era" This led to a flurry of articles on the topic. At the simplest level, the post-PC era refers to the growth of computing devices that are not traditional PCs.  Each plays a role and adds to my productivity.

2011 100

2011 Travel AT&T UPS 100

Small Business Labs

JANUARY 15, 2015

I'm a big fan of the Gallup organization and often reference their work. The 20 million "inactive" businesses Gallup refers to are "non-employer" businesses  (also called solopreneur businesses).   My business - Emergent Research - is an example of an active non-employer business.

2014 100

2014 100

Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 31, 2016

We're not referring to the holidays. For example, adaptive security systems (trend 10) are adaptive because of their use of machine learning techniques.  It's that time of year again. It's trend forecast season, when everyone releases their top trends lists and predictions for the next year. 

2017 100

2017 2020 2022 Holidays 100

Small Business Labs

APRIL 30, 2013

The title refers to an expensive custom bike made by bike studio Signature Cycles  - and yes, it costs $22,500.   My favorite example from the story is bike frame maker Richard Sachs. .   My favorite example from the story is bike frame maker Richard Sachs.   But this trend is not limited to the U.S.

Expenses 100

Expenses Training UPS 100

Small Business Labs

JANUARY 24, 2017

Hoffman's article references a recent U.S. Many others who are self-employed or own small businesses (me, for example) aren't buying their insurance through a ACA marketplace. Treasury study that shows in 2014 1 in 5 ACA marketplace consumers was a small business owner or self-employed. 

2014 100

2014 2013 2016 Medical 100

Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 7, 2011

  Simply put, the term refers to incorporating game elements and mechanics into non-gaming websites and software.      Examples of gaming elements being used outside of traditional games include leader boards, badges, progress bars and virtual prizes.    Mine's at 85%. 

Social Media 100

Social Media Forms UPS 100

Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 8, 2015

See the article for details and examples. They feared being “Instacarted,” if switched to W-2 employees— referring to Instacart’s recent worker reclassification that resulted in restricted and scheduled hours for a low hourly W-2 wage. Aspiring entrepreneurs. Displaced workers. Part-timers who need flexibility.

Restaurants 100

Restaurants Policies Stress UPS 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 25, 2016

Wealth, Tastes and Entrepreneurial Choice , a 2015 academic study on this topic, is a good example and references a number of related studies.  We found  that most small business owners aren't motivated by or interested in growing their firms into big businesses. 

2007 100

2007 2008 2015 Interviewing 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 31, 2012

The gourmet food truck craze sweeping the nation is a classic example of business model innovation.   And the response from brick and mortar restaurants is a classic example of how incumbent industry participants tend to respond - by using their political power to try and fend off the innovative new firms. Few have succeeded.

Restaurants 100

Restaurants Legal Social Media AT&T 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 29, 2013

In our work we often see examples of small businesses refusing to cut their losses, even when it's clear there is little or no hope of a turn around.   For great, nightly examples of confirmation bias, watch Fox News or MSNBC. Let's assume, for example, that we decide to buy that television after all.

Finance 100

Finance AT&T Expenses Networking 100

Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 1, 2011

  Examples include: Coffee and Power : is a new marketplace with 2nd Life founder Philip Rosedale at the helm and funding from Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and VC firm Greylock Partners.  " Microsoft, for example, is using Gigwalk to add pictures to their Bing local search listings.   

Elance 100

Elance Google Goals 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 9, 2012

 This refers to a growing set of data and trends indicating that men are not as well equipped for the demands and stresses of modern society as women.  For example, close to 60% of today's college students are women.  For example, close to 60% of today's college students are women.

Equipment 100

Equipment Stress AT&T 100

Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 30, 2010

  Intuit, our partner on the Intuit 2020 Report , refers to this trend as creating products that "do it for me."    But like the military example, we will also see robotics becoming increasingly common in the home and places of work. . 

2020 100

2020 100

Small Business Labs

JANUARY 27, 2011

  NFC stands for "near field communications" and refers to a type of very short range radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.    In Japan, for example, it's common to use NFC enabled cellphones to pay for subway tickets.   

Google 100

Google UPS 100

Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 14, 2011

  Local search is an example.    In-Memory Computing:  This mostly refers to the growth of flash memory, which is solid state and much faster than traditional hard drives.    The program knows your location and uses that information to improve search results.

2012 100

2012 2011 Collaborate Forms 100

Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 11, 2011

.    The debate around Peak Oil is an interesting example.  " Depending on which source you reference, peak oil has: (1) already occurred; (2) will occur in the next few years; (3) will occur roughly in the 2020 time frame; or (4) will occur later than 2020.    My favorite comes from Wikipedia. 

2020 100

2020 2010 Learning 100

Small Business Labs

JUNE 22, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   A good idea for any business, Hartman uses the example of Skillet (see their Airstream mobile restaurant on the right), who got the idea for their popular "bacon jam" from a customer.   They listen to their customers. 

Social Media 100

Social Media 2010 Retirement 2020 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 26, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   An example is Seedspace , part of Georgia Tech's Advanced Technology Development Center.    An example is Parisoma.    You simply can't read their blog without thinking it is an incubator. 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 5, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   The best know example is the tech industry cluster in Silicon Valley.   If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it.

2010 100

2010 Retirement Restaurants 2020 100

Small Business Labs

JUNE 16, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   For example, did you know there is a Dr. Pepper museum ?  If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it. , check it out.    You never know what you may learn. 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 29, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   Intuit, for example, is currently  looking for a group product manager "to drive the creation of data-driven products."    There are great jobs available right now to people with these skills. 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 30, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it. Hackerspaces  are an example.  If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it. .    They are coworking facilities for people who like to hack or make things. 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

JULY 30, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it. Hackerspaces  are an example.  If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it. .    They are coworking facilities for people who like to hack or make things. 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

JUNE 30, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it. Yet another example of the growing role of the local web and new localism. If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it.

Yahoo 100

Yahoo 2010 Retirement 2020 100

Small Business Labs

JUNE 29, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   The trend spotting site PSFK has a great example of lightweight technology meeting frugal innovation.  If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it. . 

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2005 100

Small Business Labs

MAY 11, 2010

When we reference organizations that have provided us funding in the last year we will note it.   In March, for example, Nielsen reported that more than 9 billion video streams were viewed in the U.S.   If we mention a product or service that we received for free or other considerations, we will note it.

2010 100

2010 Retirement 2020 2011 100