As a small business owner, it is important to stay up to date with the best available knowledge in everything from sales to marketing. Thankfully, the Internet makes learning anything – about anything – a relatively straightforward exercise.
There are hundreds – if not thousands – of small business blogs. These focus on everything from sales techniques to taxes and everything in between. Not all business blogs are helpful or even relevant. However, there are a few specific blogs aimed at small businesses and equipping them to run a better enterprise from top to bottom.
You should probably avoid becoming overly consumed in some of this content, especially considering how much time running a small business takes. However, taking an hour or two each week to peruse some of the insight that professional marketers and salespeople put out on the Internet is well worth your time. Consider this list of blogs your starting point.
#1: Harvard Business Review
This is the big picture stuff. HBR covers entrepreneurship, innovation and the best leadership practices for the modern day business owner. With guest experts and regular writers, the Harvard Business Review has a large – and well-organized – catalog of everything related to driving growth in your business.
If you have questions about team management, organizational culture, or even human resource management, this is the place to start. You may even find a few pieces on finding a work-life balance.
#2: Small Business Trends
This extensive small business blog can sometimes look like a topical magazine. The site covers gives equal space to both how-to tips in managing your time and the newest developments in the small business industry.
While some blogs may focus in on a specific facet of a business, Small Biz Trends covers marketing just as much as it covers finance. Not only that, but it can make for an interesting Monday morning read, as you drink your coffee and get caught up on industry news.
#3: Hubspot
Hubspot is easily one of the most recognized authorities in marketing around the world. Their blog is ripe with new insight, data and detailed research – especially related to the marketing world. If you want to know what the best practices in marketing for small businesses look like, the Hubspot Marketing blog is the place to start.
Hubspot also runs a sales blog, so if you are looking for more of a person-to-person perspective, the blog has that insight as well.
#4: Marketing Profs
As the name implies, Marketing Profs focuses in on one element of running a small business: marketing. For the cash-strapped small business owner, this topic may be a little overwhelming. But the blog has a wealth of information on low-cost or free marketing strategies. Social media and pay-per-click ads, for instance, are a great place for small businesses to start growth.
To avoid falling down the rabbit hole, pick just one topic that you want to learn more about and start there.
#5: Copyblogger
Again, the name gives it away: this blog focuses in on just one element of running a small business. Content marketing has been shown to be a cost-effective marketing approach for small businesses with small budgets. Copyblogger walks managers and owners through the basics of copywriting, as well as consistently provides content that improve writing over the long-term.