The Sunday, April 5 edition of the Richmond Times-Dispatch had several articles of note about Virginia Main Street communities. First was an article about Abingdon’s latest downtown promotion, then an article about Page County’s (including Luray) attempt to be designated as the “Cabin Capital of Virginia.” Then yet another article, this one talking about the … More Virginia’s Main Street in the news
You’ve spent years building your professional reputation and protecting your organization’s good name, but in today’s interconnected, information-rich world it’s easier than ever for the actions of others to damage the goodwill you’ve established. Networking is a basic responsibility of business owners and organizations serving them. We network to keep abreast of best practices, to … More Trading Faces: Building and caring for your online reputation
Workplans are hard. The good ones take time and thought. However, they are important to make sure that your downtown revitalization efforts stay on track and are a great way to tally your progress. There is usually a strong correlation between the success of any downtown’s revitalization and the community’s ability to create…and follow…a good workplan. How well … More Workplans
Once you have designed and launched your Web site, your next task is to get it noticed. One of the top ways to do this is to make sure you show up in relevant Web searches. If you are selling your charming and thriving business district, you will want to be sure that your Web … More Get noticed
While the Virginia Main Street staff was unable to travel to Chicago for the 2009 National Main Streets Conference, Becoming Main Street 2.0, Jessie Chase from Harrisonburg was able to attend and reported back that it was fun, interesting and worthwhile. We returned from the Chicago National Main Street conference on Wednesday evening tired and … More Report from the Main Street 2.0 conference
Did you know that you could receive a credit on your income taxes if you rehabilitate a historic building? If your rehabilitation meets certain requirements, you could claim 20 percent of your qualified rehabilitation expenses as a credit on your federal income taxes. And, you could claim 25 percent of your qualified rehabilitation expenses as … More Historic building rehabilitation tax credits: 101
Want to be sure your small business never becomes a big business? A surefire method to ensure a lack of success is to have shoddy accounting practices. Knowing where your money is, how much of it there is, and when you can expect more are key to proper business planning. Without a plan, your endeavor is … More Keep your books in order
Carrying the gardening metaphor forward, there’s not a lot you can do to control the weather. As a whole that’s true in economic gardening as well, but how about encouraging your own microclimate in order to foster a healthy local economy in the middle of a national downturn? It turns out that’s just what many … More Create a microclimate in your economic garden
When times are tough, even the most successful retail business can have some trouble. Making the right business decisions is paramount when the margin for error is slim. “Fear can be a motivator, but it can also lead you into bad decisions, particularly in times like these,” says Norm Brodsky, small business writer for Inc. … More Focus and attitude
Think the talk of “green jobs” is malarkey? This article on RichmondBizSense.com provides an example of how targeted incentives help promote growth in designated industries, such as home solar power, especially in the early stages of an industry’s growth when the economies of scale have not yet kicked in. Another article from The News Leader reviews the growth of the … More Home grown business
