Home › Authors › Rieva Lesonsky

About Rieva Lesonsky

Authored 24 articles.

Rieva Lesonsky, founder and CEO of GrowBiz Media, is a widely recognized small-business expert and author of the bestselling book Start Your Own Business. Former Editorial Director of Entrepreneur Magazine, Rieva has been meeting with, consulting to and speaking to America’s SMBs—and the big corporations that want to reach them—for over 25 years. This experience has given her an inside perspective on what entrepreneurs want, how to connect with them, and how to help them grow successful businesses. Rieva has worked with B-to-B marketers including American Express, Dell, State Farm and many others, and with organizations including ASBDC, SCORE and the SBA, to market to and educate entrepreneurs.

    Articles

  • 8 Tips for Retailers When Dealing with the Holiday Labor Shortage

    Features, November 11, 2016

    With unemployment rates dropping and retail wages rising, small retailers who need seasonal holiday employees are facing stiff competition from big retailers this year, Monster.com reports. Adding to the crunch, since Christmas falls on a Sunday this year, more consumers are projected to head to brick-and-mortar stores for last-minute gifts since they won’t be able to get products shipped fast enough. That means more customers and potentially less help. How can your business successfully compete for retail employees at this critical time of year? First tip: Start hiring now.

  • Should You Hire Overqualified Employees?

    Features, February 04, 2016

    When hiring, have you ever thrown away a resume from a candidate who sounded far too overqualified? According to some new research, you may have made a big mistake. A study from the Journal of Applied Psychology followed job candidates who were hired for roles they were overqualified for, either by experience or education. Turns out, the overqualified employees performed better at their jobs than the average employee.

  • Are Your Employees Getting Enough Sleep? (And if Not, Why Do You Care?)

    Features, April 13, 2015

    It’s no secret to any harried entrepreneur that getting too little sleep has plenty of ill effects. But did you ever stop to think about the effect lack of sleep might be having on your employees. And, by extension, how that could be affecting your business?

  • 5 Ways to Boost Your Retail Sales This Summer

    Features, June 18, 2014

    For many retailers, summer isn’t exactly the high season. But that doesn’t mean it has to be a bust. With summer about to go into full swing, have you thought about how you’ll boost business for your retail store this season?

  • Are You Hiring for the Right Traits?

    Features, June 06, 2014

    There’s lots of talk lately about the talent shortage – how employers, especially small ones, can’t find workers with the skills and experience they are seeking. But maybe the problem is that small business owners are putting too much emphasis on the wrong things.

  • How Do You Feel About Raising the Minimum Wage?

    Features, April 11, 2014

    President Obama’s efforts to encourage Congress to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10.10 have received a lot of press. The Small Business Majority polled (PDF) small business owners to see how they feel about this controversial issue and found that—well, actually, they found that there’s a lot less controversy than the news media might lead you to expect.

  • The Benefits of Giving Your Staff a Raise

    Features, February 28, 2014

    Are you trying to keep your key employees happy by offering them perks like work-at-home days, cross-training and flexible hours? That’s great and I encourage you to keep offering those extras, but a new study shows that they may not be enough to retain workers.

  • Do Men and Women Have Different Small Business Outlooks?

    Features, November 18, 2013

    How are men and women entrepreneurs feeling about their businesses’ prospects for the coming year? The 5th in a series of studies by Hiscox Small Business, the DNA of an Entrepreneur (PDF), found that while both men and women small business owners are optimistic about their futures, there are some important differences in how they run their businesses.

  • How Do Your Employee Benefits Stack Up?

    Features, August 12, 2013

    Are you worried about retaining your key employees as the economy heats up? Or do you need to attract new workers to help with growing demand for your product or service, or to expand your business? In either case, employee benefits are an important factor in whether employees choose to join your company, stay with your business for the long haul or jump ship. How do you know if your employee benefits measure up?

  • No Ifs, Ands or Butts: Get Your Employees Fit!

    Features, July 29, 2013

    Are your employees sitting at their desks all day? If so, chances are they’re not maximizing their productivity—and they could be racking up your health insurance costs. If you’re looking to build a healthier workforce (one that won’t have as many accidents and illnesses, and saves you money on health insurance and workers’ comp), consider ways to make yourself and your team more active at work.

  • Are Tough Times Inspiring Better Leaders and Increasing Engagement?

    Features, July 15, 2013

    Are your employees engaged in their jobs? A Gallup poll measured the growth of employee engagement and which of 12 different occupations tend to boast the highest engagement.

  • Do You Trust Your Employees to Work Remotely?

    Features, April 08, 2013

    Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer unleashed a firestorm of commentary throughout the business world with her recent announcement that remote working was off the table for the tech company’s staffers, who will now be expected to show up in the office every day. If you’ve still got a nagging feeling that letting employees work at home means paying them to watch Cartoon Network in their jammies all day, how can you get over it?

  • The Myth of Customer Service

    Features, October 29, 2012

    There’s a pervasive myth about customer service that, if you believe it, could have devastating consequences for your small business. It’s one you’ve probably heard dozens, if not hundreds, of times over the life of your business.

  • Hiring Temporary Employees: Read This First

    Features, October 15, 2012

    When your small business needs extra hands on deck during busy times, are you relying more and more on temporary employees to fill the bill? You’re not alone. NBCnews recently reported that the trend toward temporary employment is becoming a permanent feature of the U.S. economic landscape.

  • Here’s What Your Employees Want: Are You Listening?

    Features, October 05, 2012

    When it comes to what your employees want, too many small business owners are in denial. At least, that’s the finding of a new study by MetLife, which polled small business owners and employees and found that while employee loyalty has dropped steadily since 2008, employers mistakenly believe it’s on the rise.

  • The Rules of Employee Engagement

    Features, July 27, 2012

    Employees are singing a familiar song in the latest Global Workforce Study by Towers Watson. The study found almost two-thirds of U.S. workers are not fully engaged in their work, with just 37 percent of U.S. workers are highly engaged

  • Keep Your Employees Motivated This Summer

    Features, July 13, 2012

    Summer’s here in full force and, no matter where your business is located, chances are your employees have caught summer fever. How can you keep employees motivated, engaged and present when beautiful summer days are calling them away?

  • Have You Reinvented Your Business Lately?

    Features, June 29, 2012

    What has it taken to keep your small business thriving—or even just surviving—for the past four years since the U.S. economy crashed? For my business, it’s been an ongoing process of reinvention.

  • Does Flextime Benefit You More Than Your Employees?

    Features, June 04, 2012

    Are you resisting offering employees at your small business flexible working hours because you think it’ll give them an excuse to slack off? Well, some new research should convince you otherwise. It seems flextime may actually be less flexible than a regular schedule.

  • Is it Time to Sell Your Business or Buy a New One?

    Features, June 01, 2012

    Have you delayed retirement because the recession was preventing you from getting a fair price for the business you worked so hard to build? Have you been contemplating buying another business, but couldn’t find the financing? Small business owners in both of these situations have a lot to be hopeful about.

  • 5 Trends to Shape Your Business This Year

    Features, January 18, 2012

    Trendwatching firm, JWTIntelligence, recently released its seventh annual trend forecast, JWT 10 Trends for 2012. Which of the 10 are most likely to affect small business going forward? We share our picks.

  • Small Business Outlook for 2012: Business as Usual?

    Features, December 11, 2011

    As 2011 draws to a close, what are the biggest challenges small business owners are facing? And what is their outlook for the coming year? A new survey conducted by online survey company Zoomerang Online Surveys and Polls and my company, GrowBiz Media, creates a mixed picture.

  • Boost Your Holiday Business By Thinking Local

    Features, October 12, 2011

    How can your company benefit from customers’ desires to help their community? By being involved in your local community, of course. And there’s no better time than the holidays—when people’s thoughts naturally turn to sharing, donating and giving back—to get involved with a local charity of your choice.

  • Every Business Needs A Bench: 6 Steps To Building A Strong One

    Features, July 29, 2011

    How do great sports teams get that way? It’s not just because they have star players (although that certainly doesn’t hurt). No—to field a winning team with the ability to consistently perform under all kinds of conditions, they’ve got to have a strong bench.