Small Business Confidence Shouldn't Be Overrated; Negative Online Reviews Can Help Sales; Coconuts Are An "In" Food;

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To build sales, focus on the company's core values.

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On another note, coconuts are an "In" food this year. Here are some food trends for this year to wet the palate.

Surveys show optimism amongst small business leaders but at the same time caution as to this continued good feeling.

For the second consecutive month, small-business optimism rose 1.8 points, according to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Optimism Index; the small but notable gain settled the December reading at 93.8. This represents the fourth monthly increase since September, suggesting that the rising trend might stick. However, a comparative look at early 2011 shows the Index rising in the early part of the year, only to decline in March and April.

“Much of December’s gain resulted from the fact that concerns about business conditions over the next six months have subsided and because many small-business owners have improved their expectations for real sales gains in the coming months,” said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “But make no mistake: the economic winter is still here. Similar gains in the early part of 2011 quickly faded, and the Index is still well below where it should be at this point in the recovery."

Focus groups conducted by this newsletter’s parent, Information Strategies, Inc. in December mirrored these findings with a strong undercurrent of doubt as to continued optimism.

Newtek Business Services said the results of its monthly Small Business Market Sentiment Survey shows that a majority of business owners are optimistic about the future and their 2011-year end results. According to CEO Barry Sloane “this optimism is the result of recent headlines indicating a drop in the unemployment rate, the growth in consumer spending and small gains in hiring in the fourth quarter.  Whether this optimism will continue in the first quarter of 2012 is anyone’s guess, given that consumer spending growth has not been accompanied by personal income growth.”

The story is still the same about healthcare. One in 10 dollars is expected to be spent on healthcare costs and just under 5% additional monies are earmarked for marketing. Read more.

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