It's amazing to me that more women-owned small businesses are not taking advantage of a huge revenue stream -- the federal government.

Only 3.4 percent of all the federal contract dollars went to female entrepreneurs last year, according to data released by the Small Business Administration last week.

That figure's just unacceptable.

Earlier this year I wrote about long-awaited government rules that are supposed to help more women business owners jump on the government's gravy train, but many people believe the rules didn't go far enough.

"After nearly seven years of studies, delays and empty promises, the Administration had a chance today to finally show its commitment to women-owned firms -- unfortunately, this did not happen," said Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez (D-N.Y.), chairwoman of the U.S. House Committee on Small Business, after the rules under the "Equity in Contracting for Women Act of 2000" were finally released.

"These entrepreneurs are being shut out of billions of dollars in federal contracting opportunities, yet their concerns are falling on deaf ears," she added.

While I understand the disappointment Velazquez has expressed, women also need to step up to the plate and demand their share.

At a time when the economy is struggling, savvy businesspeople have to look for business wherever they can find it.

With a new administration coming into office, there will be new programs and initiatives, so now is a good time to check out what Uncle Sam has to offer.

You can get a little help from a new program co-launched by Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) and American Express OPEN, the small business division of the financial services company. The program is designed help give women a boost when it comes to accessing federal contracts.

"The numbers released by the SBA last week further validate our position that more needs to be done to improve access to federal contracts for women business owners," said Barbara Kasoff, president and chief operating officer of WIPP.

"The 'Give Me 5' program provides education about the federal procurement system in order to help women capitalize on this opportunity," she added. "Better access to federal contracts can help increase revenues for women business owners by billions each year, and the 'Give Me 5' program is designed to help women business owners reach that goal."

The federal government's goal is to have at least 5 percent of contracts go to women-owned businesses. But even that figure seems pretty pathetic, especially given that women own about 41 percent of the private businesses out there today.

So, what do you gals think -- can you surpass the goal this year?

(By the way, here's a link to the SBA's government procurement site, and here's some information just for women-owned businesses.)

Decision '08

The election is just days away, and both candidates are pushing hard for votes from the small business community. Find out about John McCain and Barack Obama's respective tax and healthcare proposals for small businesses, as well as their strategies for protecting business owners during these difficult economic times.

Unleashing New Products

Selecting the right product mix is critical for success. As a small business owner, how do you know when you're selling the right number of products? See how Marco Giannini, founder of Dogswell, makers of natural dog treats, has increased his product mix to more than 100, and has stayed profitable throughout the growth.

Panelists

Joan Schneider, President and Creative Director of Schneider Associates, a marketing and communications firm which specializes in launching new products, and author of "New Proven Launch: 10 Proven Strategies."

Susan Wilson Solovic, CEO of SBTV.com, a small business portal delivering advice and information, and author "The Girls' Guide to Building a Million Dollar Business."

Benjamin Nemo, founder of Scorpio Ventures.

How To Succeed In Small Business: Raising Money From Friends and Family

Mariam Naficy, founder of several successful e-commerce companies, including Minted.com, an online store selling custom stationary, provides tips on how to safely borrow money from friends and family members.

Elevator Pitch

Ernabel Demillo and Meredith Kasun, co-founders of TennisRAQ, a lightweight belt that you wear around your waist while you play tennis, with three pockets in the back to hold tennis balls, are looking for capital to grow their business.

1. Splurge on a chair

2. Create a cordless desk

3. Buy an inexpensive desk

4. Purchase nice art

5. Put up a whiteboard

Source: Outlaw Design

technorati.com can show you what bloggers are saying about your company or your competitors. Type in any term or business name, and the site provides recent blog posts that match your criteria. Technorati can also provide you with a list of blogs by category if you are looking for places to get the word out about your business.

Everyone is talking about how difficult it is for small business owners to get loans these days.

But, for some reason, we've all forgotten about the firms that already have loans but are struggling to pay them off in a tanking economy.

That's why I was happy when I got an e-mail this week from the Small Business Administration describing the problem.

The government agency is reminding lenders that participate in the SBA's loan programs that they can give small business owners some breathing space when it comes to paying back loans.

That's the kind of reprieve that could make a difference to small firms teetering on the edge in this economy.

"The SBA is here to help small businesses during these difficult economic times. We are encouraging our lending partners to follow suit by extending three-month payment deferments on their SBA guaranteed loans to qualified borrowers who need relief," said SBA Acting Administrator Sandy K. Baruah in a statement.

"We recognize that small business owners are faced with challenging decisions right now," he added. "By providing three-month deferments to qualifying borrowers who are struggling, our lending partners can help small business owners free up the capital they need to maintain their businesses."

Basically, the SBA is telling bankers out there they have the authority under government loan terms to review each case and extend temporary payment relief for those small firms that qualify.

And the SBA is not only telling business journalists about this.

The agency just issued a notice to lenders and 120 of its field offices "encouraging them to look at these cases individually and to work with individual borrowers in order to facilitate the longer term success of these small businesses," the statement goes on to say.

Even if you skipped three months of loan payments, you may be able to work something out with your banker.

I did wonder why the SBA is doing this right now. Could it be that SBA loan defaults are skyrocketing?

A spokesman at the agency told me the default rate on general loans was 6.24 percent through July 31 of this year. Unfortunately, he could not immediately provide me any numbers from last year, so I couldn't compare the rates.

Bottom line is this: If you're struggling to make that monthly loan payment and you have an SBA loan, call your lender ASAP and find out if you can get a temporary respite. You should also consider calling your banker, even if you don't have a government-based loan. After all, what do you have to lose?

What do you think of this development? Are you having trouble making loan payments?

1-800-Autopsy:

Vidal Herrera has built a successful career on death. Herrera has franchised his company 1-800-Autopsy, a private autopsy company, and he's also built several related businesses selling couches made from coffins and renting vintage autopsy equipment to Hollywood.

Weathering The Storm:

Find out what the federal government is doing to help small business owners during these turbulent times. Rod Kurtz, Senior Editor at Inc. Magazine, discusses the state of the economy with Carlos M. Gutierrez, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Panelists:

Cynthia Franklin, Senior Associate Director of the Berkley Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at New York University's Stern School of Business.

Jolyne Caruso, Founder and CEO of Alberleen Capital Management:

Nick Marsh, Managing Partner of GrowthPoint Capital Partners, a venture and private equity group focusing on micro-market consumer businesses.

Learning From The Pros:

Sarah Blakely, Founder of Spanx, a multi-million dollar shapeware company, discuss the strategies she has employed to grow her business into a nationally recognized brand.

Youmail.com offers a number of free services to help you manage your incoming calls. You can set up different voice mail greetings for different numbers, or have all of your messages sent to your inbox as emails.

I received an e-mail recently from a telecommunications company touting how they are cutting prices to help small businesses struggling in the current economy.

Now, I've covered business long enough to know that few, if any, business owners change their operating strategies just to help others. So I e-mailed back to ask:

"Isn't the company lowering prices to help boost its customer base?"

The spokesperson for GotVMail, a virtual PBX (private branch exchange), wrote back:

"Yes. But we also recognize that small business owners are trying to squeeze every last dollar out of their outsourced technology solutions."

Fair enough.

Still, I wondered, should small business owners be cutting prices for goods and services in a bad economy? (A twist from when I looked at raising prices in a bad economy last March.)

I asked pricing guru Mark Burton, coauthor of "Pricing with Confidence: 10 Ways to Stop Leaving Money on the Table," what he thought about the pricing strategy.

"I have a lot of concerns about doing this across the board," he said. "You're not running a charitable organization."

And such a pricing move can come back to haunt you.

Burton points to a newspaper he worked with in the 1980s that reduced ad rates in order to help department stores that were struggling during tough economic times. When the economy eventually turned around, the department store operators dug in their heels when the newspaper tried to push through price increases and refused to pay for the hike, he explained.

"If you think cutting prices earns you goodwill, you have to be careful about that," Burton said. "Some customers have short memories."

The best approach, he advises, is creating a new tier of products and services -- one that offers customers less expensive options with fewer bells and whistles. That way, you don't cannibalize your existing offerings.

In Burton's own consulting business, Holden Advisors, he offers a low-cost option as a fallback during negotiations, if needed. It's all to encourage a fair give and take because, he notes, "we recognize budgets are constrained right now."

Siamak Taghaddos, the CEO of GotVMail, a company with 50 employees, has a different take. He believes it all depends on what you're selling.

"Cutting prices alone may start commoditizing some products and devalue others, which can lead to challenges when the economy turns around," he said. "For us, increasing the value of our service is beneficial to both us and our customers regardless in both a bad and good economy."

Business has been hurt lately for GotVMail, especially among financial customers.

"In the last two weeks, there has been a decrease of financial customers and over the last six months, mortgage brokers," said Taghaddos.

The way he sees it, "we didn't just cut prices, we increased the value of our plans. As entrepreneurs ourselves, we place more importance on value than just cost."

It all comes down "happier customers, he adds.

What's your take? Is it a good idea to cut costs when the economy is sinking?

Weathering the Storm

Rod Kurtz, senior editor for Inc. Magazine, Ken Yancey, CEO of the SCORE Association, and William Dunkelberg, chief economist for the National Federation of Independent Business, discuss the latest developments in the nation's financial crisis, and provide tips on what small business owners can do to survive.

Bartering for Business

Small business owners are using creative methods to grow their businesses during these difficult times. See how some entrepreneurs are using trade exchanges to barter their goods and services with other businesses in an effort to save money and reach new customers.

Panelists

Steve Strauss, USA Today's small business columnist, and author of "The Small Business Bible: Everything You Need to Know to Succeed in Your Small Business"

Phil Town, partner with Oracle Equity, and author of "Rule #1: The Simple Strategy for Successful Investing in Only 15 Minutes a Week!"

Elevator Pitch

Francine Glick, President and CEO of Water Journey LTD., pitches Hands2Go, a line of alcohol-free hand sanitizers, to the panel, she is looking for capital to expand her product line, and open a manufacturing facility that utilizes alternative energy sources.

1. Palm Centro

2. Nokia 6263

3. Blackberry Pearl 8100 Series

4. Samsung SPH-M520

5. LG VX4500

Source: PCMag.com

Yahoo!'s Zimbra desktop service is a free downloadable program that collects all of your emails in one place. The program also has tools for editing spreadsheets, tables, and charts.

It's getting ugly out there for small- and medium-sized businesses.

According to a semi-annual economic report by PNC Financial Services Group, "the outlook for the nation's small and mid-sized business owners is at a new all-time low."

Here are some of the report's key findings:

*Nearly one in three (29 percent) of business owners are pessimistic about their own company's prospects during the next six months, compared to 21 percent in the spring and 10 percent in last fall's edition of this semi-annual survey.

*Three out of four business owners (74 percent) say the possibility of higher energy prices will have a negative effect on their company during the next six months. The possibility of recession is second (71 percent) and the possibility of higher inflation is third (65 percent).

"These results support our view that the U.S. economy has entered into a recession and the economy is likely to remain weak through the middle of next year and beyond if the federal economic stabilization plan is not enacted," reports Stuart Hoffman, chief economist for PNC.

I figured now is an opportune moment for some advice on dealing with this crummy economy.

"This is a time when business owners need to re-examine what they're doing in today's economy while also preparing plans for tomorrow's rebound," said Beth Wood, assistant vice president of Business Owner Advocacy for MassMutual. "While this is no doubt a difficult market we face, it also can be a time of opportunity for business owners who act strategically."

Here are some of Wood's tips:

1. Identify sources of cash by reviewing expenses and trimming fat. Revisit the operating line of your income statement. Which overhead expenses can be reduced or eliminated? For example, this could be a great time to renegotiate overhead costs such as credit card fees, payroll processing fees, office supplies and other vendor services.

2. Hire better. Revisit your approach to hiring talent. Typically, there is higher-quality talent available to small businesses during slower economic times, particularly in light of the many layoffs and business closures we've seen recently. Take the time to find and hire strong talent, not just warm bodies.

3. Evaluate unproductive staff.  Make sure you and your staff understands the difference between productivity and activity. To optimize productivity, make sure you have the right people in the right jobs.

4. Explore new income streams.  A bad economy often causes business owners to retreat into their core business, but in doing so they might be missing a chance to leverage their existing infrastructure. Is there a complementary business that might bring in more profits or that might boost the visibility of the company overall?

5. Reward talent with new employee benefits, often at no cost. Although many might think this is a time to trim benefits, it's actually a great time to reward employees with benefits that keep them happy and productive, especially when salary increases might not be possible. One way to do this cost-effectively is to offer voluntary benefits that will provide all employees with access to coverage at no or little cost to the company.

6. Create a financial and succession plan that lets you act on your terms in a down market. This is particularly important if you are approaching retirement and counting on the sale of your business for retirement income. In an economic downturn, you need to have these plans in place and be ready to execute any of several planned options, such as selling the business outright, taking on a partner until the economy rebounds, transferring the business, or liquidating it.

7. Build a network of unpaid business advisors. By building an unpaid board of directors from among non-competing, small business owners, you can tap into a wealth of knowledge, creative thinking, and shared experiences.

Do you have any good tips for dealing with a difficult economy?

Building a sales team is one of the most important and challenging parts of developing a business. Entrepreneurs can add salespeople to their staff or hire independent reps, but they have to stay within their budgets. AK Kennedy, founder of Hype, a yoga clothing company, has devised a cost-effective plan for selling her line of clothing by finding the perfect salespeople. Find out how small business owners can develop sales teams that work for their businesses.

Panelists:

Greg Alexander, CEO of Sales Benchmark Index, a strategic advisory firm.

Jeffrey Carr, Executive Director of NYU's Stern Berkley Center for Entrepreneurial Studies.

Erica Duignan-Minnihan, CEO of Minnihan Consulting, which provides advice and services to startups looking to raise capital and expand. 

How To Succeed In Small Business: AdWords

Steve Strauss, USA Today's small business columnist, and author of "The Small Business Bible: Everything You Need to Know to Succeed in Your Small Business," provides tips on how small business owners can use adwords to increase traffic to their business's website.

Elevator Pitch:

Kathy Miller-Kramer, founder of the Invisibelt, a clear plastic belt that is virtually undetectable, is looking for capital to expand product development, manufacturing, and marketing efforts.

1. Look at corporate culture

2. Communicate with staff

3. Make sure employees are committed

4. Monitor systems and procedures

5. Plan ahead

Source: Score

The Federal Deposit Information Corporation's website provides detailed information on deposit coverage and insurance. The site has links to bank lending rating services across the country that can help you make sure you money is in a safe place.

While Congress fights over whether to pass the $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill, one small business group is hoping for a majority of "yahs" from legislators.

Todd Stottlemyer, president and CEO of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, or NFIB, sent out a statement on the bill earlier this week to a bunch of journalists like me.

In it, he outlines where he stands on the issue.

"No one, least of all small business owners, is happy that this bailout is necessary. They did not create this financial mess and they are extremely frustrated and angry that they are being asked to clean it up. But they understand that their ability to access credit to grow their business, send their kids to college, and save for their retirement depends upon stability in the financial markets."

So, he adds, "Congress must act quickly to pass this legislation, which is critical to containing Wall Street's problem, restoring stability to the financial system, and ensuring that Wall Street's problem doesn't become Main Street's."

The bottom line, according to Stottlemyer, is that the squeeze on credit is hampering the daily cash flow for small firms and the squeeze needs to be alleviated pronto.

"Community banks will be insulated from potentially devastating losses. This bill provides special tax treatment so that community banks can clear worthless government-sponsored enterprise assets off their books.
 
"Community banks play an especially important role in providing credit and capital to small businesses; 48 percent of small businesses are customers at banks with less than $1 billion in assets. If we fail to clear these assets off the books of community banks, it could decrease the banking system's lending capacity by as much as $450 billion."

But will a check for $700 billion for Wall Street help take the pressure off?

Even the NFIB's own officials can't agree.

William Dunkelberg, the NFIB's chief economist, was interviewed by the Washington Business Journal last week. He answered "probably nothing" when asked what the massive Wall Street bailout would do for small business.

From the story:

Dunkelberg, who also chairs Liberty Bell Bank in Cherry Hill, N.J., said the rescue plan wouldn't affect his bank or most other community banks.

"I don't have any toxic mortgages to sell," he said. "We have money to lend."

So it's unclear even to the experts don't know what this would mean.

What's your take on this very important issue?