Market Watch

Special to USA TODAY There is an oft-quoted statistic in business that it costs six times more to create a new customer than it does to keep a current one. Why is that? Well, there is no doubt that getting new customers definitely takes time, effort, and money, and so, as such, long-time customers are, indeed, small business gold; they allow us to pay the bills, hire employees, and grow our businesses. They are how entrepreneurs keep the dream alive. And that then begs the question: How do you in fact create repeat, long-term customers? For, while a one-time customer is nice, it is that repeat customer who really makes the difference. Customers can choose any business to service their needs; they will only choose yours time and again if you offer them something above the ordinary. Here then are five ways to keep customers coming back for more: 1. Be great at what you do People hire you to do a service for them, or they go into your shop or online store to buy something from you. If your product or service is average, they may be back, they may become a regular, or they may not. […]

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Each year the Philadelphia Business Journal compiles a list of the region’s fastest-growing companies for our Soaring 76 publication. Nominations for this year’s program are now open, with updated parameters. Taking into consideration nearly three years of the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects on businesses and their bottom lines, we’ve adjusted our requirements for 2023. Companies still must have minimum revenue of $750,000 in the first year of the considered timeframe – in this case 2020 – but the second-year minimum revenue threshold is being waived. This updated structure broadens eligibility to the many companies that launched in the region over the past three years and takes into account the headwinds all businesses have faced. What hasn’t changed is the need for companies to have sustained revenue growth year over year. That means a company must have had greater revenue in 2021 than in 2020, and then continued that growth in 2022. To make the final list of Greater Philadelphia’s 76 fastest-growing companies, nominated firms will be ranked by their combined year-over-year revenue growth rate. We determine this figure by averaging the percent increase of growth from 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022. That figure then determines if […]

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Creativity is an ongoing negotiation with yourself and the world. While making space in the daily hustle of running a business is difficult, finding small ways to tap into your creative mind can spark insights and innovations that broaden your business’s horizons. Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Creativity is a crucial aspect of running a successful business, as it allows for insights and innovations that can drive your company forward. While it may not always be easy to make time for creativity in the fast world of entrepreneurship, practical measures can help tap into your creativity and boost your business’s potential . As an entrepreneur, teacher and author who can’t wait for inspiration to strike, I always add new techniques to my toolbox to jumpstart my imagination. Here are a few techniques to try: 1. Brainstorm Brainstorming is a powerful tool for fostering creativity in business. This can involve jotting notes on napkins, indulging in streams of consciousness or using an app like Biograph to speak my mind, collect ideas over time and collaborate with trusted partners. Brainstorming allows you to generate abundant fresh material and make connections you might not have otherwise considered. It can […]

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By Rieva Lesonsky The future looks bright for small businesses, but 2023 will have challenges in store, too. getty Many small business owners expected 2022 to be a year of recovery after two years of struggling to survive a global pandemic. But inflation, fears of a recession, a still unreliable supply chain, and a nation at nearly full employment resulting in a tight job market all loomed large, dampening many of our goals. As we enter 2023, the outlook seems somewhat brighter for small business owners. I talked to several small business experts to get their advice, insights, and predictions for small businesses in the new year. Small business outlook for 2023 Impact of a recession on SMBs " Nobody knows whether a recession will occur, but it’s certainly fair to say that small businesses are dealing with several economic obstacles right now. Fortunately, small businesses are resilient. Even if a recession does develop, our 2022 Small Business Now report shows that 90% are confident that they will still be in business a year from now. We also often see lots of small businesses get started during recessions. "However, some sectors would likely be impacted more than others. The […]

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Signs display the prices of products in U.S. dollars outside a grocery store in Caracas, Venezuela, last year. The Edelman Trust Barometer survey shows that fewer people believe their family will be better off in five years. People worldwide are more gloomy about their economic prospects than ever before and trust business far more than other institutions like governments, nonprofits and the media in an increasingly divided world , according to a survey from public relations firm Edelman. Released late Sunday to coincide with the World Economic Forum’s gathering of business elites and government leaders this week in Davos, Switzerland, the online survey conducted in 28 countries shows that fewer people believe their family will be better off in five years. Those who believe they’ll be better off dropped to 40% from 50% last year and hit all-time lows in 24 nations. That is because 89% fear losing their job, 74% worry about inflation , 76% are concerned about climate change and 72% worry about nuclear war. The Edelman Trust Barometer also says 62% of respondents see business as both competent and ethical, compared with 59% for nongovernmental agencies, 51% for governments and 50% for the media. That was […]

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From the past 4 weeks, the index has been trading in the range of 17770 to 18200. The underlying tone of the market is sideways to negative as the index had formed a bearish engulfing pattern on the monthly chart which is a bearish reversal sign. On the lower side, the index has strong support at 17800 level as it is neckline of Inverted head and shoulder pattern and 100 EMA support on daily chart. With the Nifty trading in the range of 17,770 to 18,200 for the last four weeks, any downward reaction around 17,200 to 16,800 can be considered a good buy opportunity, says Kapil Shah, Technical Analyst at Emkay Global Financial Services. “Moving above 17,400 level, buyers will regain their strength,” he says. Edited excerpts from an interview: Nifty showed support at 17,600 level during the week but faced resistance above the 18,100 zone. Do you expect the coming week to be a sideways market? From the past 4 weeks, the index has been trading in the range of 17770 to 18200. The underlying tone of the market is sideways to negative as the index had formed a bearish engulfing pattern on the monthly chart which […]

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Source: Shutterstock Key Insights Andritz’s estimated fair value is €81.2 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Current share price of €54.6 suggests Andritz is 33% undervalued How far off is Andritz AG ( VIE:ANDR ) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we’ll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today’s value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple! Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company’s value, and a DCF is just one method. If you still have some burning questions about this type of valuation, take a look at the Simply Wall St analysis model . The Method We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second ‘steady growth’ period. To begin with, we have to get estimates of […]

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Photo by Marcin Nowak on Unsplash For this coming summer, Bellevue College students have the opportunity to join Professor Leena Shah on her Comparative Politics in London Study Abroad Program. Attendees will spend four weeks in the capital city as they study the differences between the U.S. and U.K. political systems. “This program is a great opportunity for our Bellevue College students to immerse themselves in a different culture and learn in the locale rather than in a classroom situation,” Shah shared. “It will give the students a better understanding and appreciation of another country and its people, history and culture. It gives them the opportunity to explore not only academically but also learn about a new system, a new way of life that classes here would never accomplish.” Though the program and its scheduled field trips will stay within the United Kingdom, “students will have the weekends available to travel on their own.” According to Shah, past students have ventured to countries like France and Wales. Shah led this program for Bellevue College back in 2019 and was a part of the program through Washington State Community College Consortium for Study Abroad (WCCCSA) in 2016. When asked why […]

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Salim Shaikh and Akash Puranik Salim Shaikh is executive chairman & founder of Symbio Generrics & Akash Puranik is promoter, MD & CEO of Symbio The Indian pharma industry is a sunrise industry in the Indian economy. The Indian pharmaceutical market is expected to reach $39 billion by end of 2022 as reported by prominent industry sources. However, the projections for the next 6 years are noteworthy; while the global generic API markets are projected to grow at around 6%, the Indian market is expected to have a CAGR of 13.7% in the first 4 years itself. There has been a US$ 4-5 billion investment in the API space in India over the last couple of years. The last quarter has seen many investments from top venture capital organisations. India’s emergence as the alternate source of bulk drugs has been quite dramatic. Ironically, the growth of India as a reliable source for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) was fanned by the two serious virus outbreaks, first the SARS Virus back in 2003-2004 and the second was COVID in 2020. At both these points, China was the only dominant supplier of bulk drugs (APIs) while India was the primary source of […]

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S.C. Education Superintendent Ellen Weaver As I begin my tenure as South Carolina’s state superintendent of education, I am excited for the journey ahead and honored by the trust that has been placed in me by the people of this state. With the turning of each new year, we have the chance to renew our shared commitment to our students and their future, ensuring that every child in our state has the opportunity to get a great education. We face tremendous educational challenges, with nearly two-thirds of our children below grade level in the foundational skills of reading and math. We face a shortage of teachers, as fewer young people pursue the profession and current teachers battle red tape, rising costs of living and deteriorating discipline in the classroom. We face an erosion of trust and a system too often designed for the needs of the last century. But South Carolinians have proven time and again that our moments of greatest challenge are our moments of shining opportunity. I’m more convinced than ever that now is the moment for all South Carolinians to answer the call to unite around our students. Our future is sitting in today’s classrooms, and […]

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