Which Comes First: Plan or Pitch? — You might think you can pitch your business idea without having a plan. Tim Berry explains why that’s not a good idea.

How a Business is Learning What Small Businesses Want to Learn — Asking your customers what they’re looking for can help you develop or improve your product or build new business.

Startups: Unique and Revolutionary, or Forget It? — Does a new venture have to be groundbreaking to be worthwhile?

Get an Evergreen for Your Blog This Holiday Season — If you have a blog, you want to read this post about how to create an “evergreen” post — one that readers will keep coming back to again and again.

Social Media Means People and, Eventually, Maybe, Friends — Tim Berry shares a story of virtual friendship.

Unclear on the concept –  Sabrina Parsons believes web business models have been around long enough that business people should understand them.

My Mail — A Handy Widget — When you wear a lot of hats, you need quick, easy ways to manage your email  inboxes.

What’s your advertising IQ? — Marketing pro Cidnee Stephen offers a true or false quiz to help you reassess what you think you know about advertising.

5 Business Moments to Never Say No To — Tim Berry provides business, and life, advice about times when “yes” is a better answer than “no”.

Focus on Simplicity — Sabrina Parsons writes about starting small by focusing on your customers real pain points and needs.

The “KNOW” factor — People have to know you’re out there before they can decide whether they like or trust you. Marketing pro Cidnee Stephen discusses the importance of getting known.

Do you Really Want That MBA Degree? — Trying to figure out if going back to school for your MBA is a good fit for you? Tim Berry offers some things to consider in making your decision.

Can B-Schools Teach Entrepreneurship? — Tim Berry discusses what can be taught in businesses schools, and how the value of studying entrepreneurship can really depend on who’s doing the studying.

The Best Startup Funding is Initial Sales — Nothing funds a new business like actually having sales.

Want ECP News? Check Your Dashboard – A cool widget on your Email Center Pro dashboard connects you to news from the ECP Blog.

Why I’ll Never Retire — Tim Berry talks about how liking what you do can make it more attractive to keep working, rather than retire.

How I Tweet — Guy Kawasaki shares his work flow for using Twitter as a marketing tool

5 Ways to Improve Your Email Replies — Auto replies can really turn off your customers. These tips can help you make your messages more useful and less annoying.

How to Get Lucky With Content Marketing – Everyone who writes a blog wants people to read it. What can you do to get more eyeballs?

5 Kinds of Trolls Hiding Under Business Bridges — Trolls aren’t just creepy creatures from fairy tales. As Tim Berry explains, they really do exist in the business world.

Three Magic Questions That Drive Sales — Asking the right questions can not only close a deal, but help you get what your service is worth.

See an example — When you’re working on a business plan, sometimes examples are just what you need to get started.

Homepreneurs and Pots of Gold — A new report shows that home offices are employing a lot of people, doing a lot of business, and making serious money.

Define Your Strategy by What You Aren’t Doing — Tim Berry suggests figuring out who isn’t your customer, to help narrow down who you actually ARE going to serve.

Is Disaster Recovery Possible When the Computing Cloud Evaporates? – Data loss happens. Are you prepared for the worst case scenario of complete data loss?

Success by Listening, Correcting and Evolving — Sometimes it takes several attempts before you get your business idea, and the pitch for it, right.

Don’t Believe the Hype: Email’s Not Dead –  Despite recent blogs saying the contrary, email is alive and well, and not going to be replaced by social media any time soon.

For the best customer service: TWEET! — Sabrina Parsons posts about a recent experience using Twitter to get better customer service.

The Big Idea behind every “Young Gun” — An inspiring post by author and guest blogger Robert Tuchman, about finding your niche and excelling in it.

Gee, You Had to Pay $2, Once, to Get News? — Tim Berry writes about the reluctance of some iPhone users to pay a one-time fee for content that includes advertising.

The Impression of Specialization — Having the right email addresses can make a difference in how you are perceived by the people who want to contact you.

Technology vs Productivity vs Expectations, Oh My — Tim Berry writes about how, as tools change, so do expectations.

Good planning for succession in the family business — Handing down the family business can be done in many ways. Here’s one family’s interesting method for making the transition.

The Easiest Way To Explain the Marketing Process — Marketing expert John Jantsch uses an hourglass analogy (rather than a funnel) to explain the marketing process in simple and practical terms.

Commerce Department on Entrepreneurship Bandwagon — Tim Berry’s take on the recent announcement of the formation of the new Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Get Nuts About Granola — A Success Story — The story of a college student who turned a fundraiser into a successful business.

Why do so many people reach success and then fail? — Richard St. John lays out his simple  principles for success in a four-minute talk called Success is a Continuous Journey.

How To Win at Business Negotiation — A brief post by Tim Berry on the win-win approach to business negotiations.

Who’s the Boss — You or Your Inbox? — Email productivity doesn’t require seminars and learning new ways of handling the same old inbox. It’s easy when you adopt new tools to help manage your work flow.