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1. 7 ways to get rich before age 40

The trend, when making multiple millions before you hit 40, seems to be to find your niche and stick to it. JAMES THOMSON reports on how this year’s Gen-Next have changed the way they found their fortunes.By James ThomsonThis story first appeared 29 September 2008

2. Top 10 online retailers

In November 2008, Gerry Harvey issued SmartCompany with a challenge - find 10 Australian online retailers who are making "real money". Harvey was convinced the world has been conned by online retailing, claiming the co...

3. Identity of work - getting the flow

In follow up to last week's Identity of Work - Part 1 I wanted to spend this week sharing one of my favourite books of all time. It is called "Flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihaly. It explores the psychology of optimal experience - what makes us happy, and while for many, work may not seem to ...

4. New site monitors your online shopping

The rise of social networks has made internet users more aware of their privacy than in the past, but one new start-up actually goes against this trend by displaying a user's online retail movements. California-based Blippy describes itself as a "fun and easy way to see and discuss the things people are buying". The site works by allowing friends to follow each other. They will then receive updates of what each other friend is buying, and can even comment on the transactions. ...

5. Australia’s top 10 online retailers 2011

The past 12 months have seen a revolution in the online retailing sector.  Emerging players such as DealsDirect, Catch of the Day and OzSale dominate Australia’s top 10 online retailers and the past year has seen Australia’s big retailers finally start to take online selling seriously. Major department stores Myer and David Jones have ...

6. Why your company needs core values

The very phrase “company values” is enough to make some business owners – and many employees - groan and roll their eyes. For many businesses, corporate value statements are little more than vague motherhood statements that sound nice but bear little relation to way business is done. But that’s not that case in every business. For a n...

7. The digital dozen – our next big things online

While Australia is yet to produce anything of the scale of Google, eBay and Amazon, there is always an interesting crop of up-and-comers threatening to burst on to the scene. We've compiled a list of 12 companies that demonstrate the spirit of innovation that exists among Australia's internet entrepreneurs, and which may go on to become the "next bi...

8. Should you buy an iPad?

After months of delays, speculation and countless reviews, Apple Australia is finally taking pre-orders for the much-vaunted iPad. But despite high demand, a fierce debate still rages – should you hand over up to $1,000 for a device that can't do many of the things a basic laptop can? Apple's long-awaited debut in tablet computing has certainly been a financi...

9. 10 ways to make your website Google friendly: Tips from Goog

Making your business Google friendly so it gets picked up by Google’s search engines is “pretty easy actually”, according to Google’s chief technology advocate Michael Jones. Jones was previously chief technologist of Google Maps, Earth, and Local Search, the teams responsible for providing location intelligence an...

10. Australia's eCommerce superstars

Australia's bricks and mortar retailers have been doing it tough of late. But then, it is getting hard to remember a time when they weren't. But while news reports are filled with stories of companies such as Borders, Blockbuster and Premier Retail closing stores, many of Australia's online retailers are going from strength to st...

11. Re-inventing a cottage industry

Serial entrepreneur Ryan Trainor, 35, has spent the last year turning a cottage industry into a national, scalable business called Franklyn Scholar.  It has attracted a high profile board and has revenue of $20 million. Amanda Gome talks to Trainor about how ...

12. The hottest gadgets for 2010

There's nothing better than a hot new gadget, and 2009 had plenty of them. A plethora of smartphones, laptops, netbooks and software have given technology fans enough to keep them satisfied over the past year. With new features and services released every month, it's becoming harder and harder to keep up with the industry's innovation.

13. 2012's Hot 30 Under 30

They are young, smart and hungry for success. Meet SmartCompany's Hot 30 Under 30 class of 2012 – a group of entrepreneurs aged 30 years and younger, drawn from 30 of Australia's fastest-growing SMEs. These 30 young people are well on their way to becoming Australia’s next generation of top entrepreneurs.

14. Small Business Software and Tools

Starting a business is always difficult, and trying to start one in the middle of an economic crisis be even harder. To add to the problem, many small businesses are unaware of the internet's power when it comes to free business advice. So we've compiled a list of simple small business software applications and tools to help small business managers setup and grow their businesses for little or no...

15. 2011's Hot 30 Under 30

Meet SmartCompany's Hot 30 Under 30 class of 2011 – a group of entrepreneurs aged up to 30 years, drawn from 30 of Australia's fastest-growing SMEs. While many of the entrepreneurs here have leveraged technology to grow their businesses, this group of business owners prove that IT isn't the only avenue to q...

16. Australia's new dot com boom – and why it’s different

It’s the sort of spending spree that’s bought back memories of the dot com boom. In the last six months, a host of local and overseas investors have poured more than $300 million into 18 of Australia’s leading web start-ups. But there is one very important difference between this spending binge and that which preceded the dotcom bust in 2000 – most of the companies a...

17. The 20 best iPad apps for entrepreneurs

Got a spare $100? That's all you need to transform your iPad from a cool tablet device into one of the most powerful business gadgets on the market – and one that will make you consider ditching the laptop forever. The iPad is a nice piece of hardware, but it's the apps that really unlock the power of the device. Here...

18. 10 lessons from the collapse of Borders and Angus & Robertso

The collapse of REDGroup Retail, the owner of Borders Australia and Angus & Robertson, sent shockwaves through Australia’s retail and publishing world. While the episode has much to do with problems specific to the book sector – such as the rise of online booksellers like Amazon and Book Depository, the government’s decision last year not to drop its parallel import restrictions for books and growing eBook sales – there are important lessons for all entrepreneurs.

19. How will your sector perform in 2009?

The threat of recession hangs heavy over the business landscape, but not every company is bracing for bad news. In a sector-by-sector breakdown, SmartCompany reveals the industries of likely refuge in the maelstrom ahead. By Patrick Stafford and James Thomson

20. Australia’s leading group-buying Spreets site bought by Ya

Internet giant Yahoo7! has announced this morning it will pay $40 million for local group buying operator Spreets, in the latest deal within the local group buying scene that has rocketed from a niche market into a multi-million dollar global industry in just over a year. The announcement means three of the four major competitors in the local group buying industry – Spreets, Cudo and Jump On It – are now owned or financed by major corporations, with Scoopon the only independent operato...

21. The top 20 Australian online retailers of 2013

It was the year when online retailing grew up. Though the industry has had the same debate for years, the last year has seen a huge resurgence in the way companies both large and small are dealing with digital. A decade after shutting down its original digital strategy, David Jones has come back with a vengeanc...

22. Sitepoint: Ideas = exchange = business

Web 2.0 pioneer Mark Harbottle, 35, is changing direction, and has has started another business, 99designs.com, from an idea that grew out of his forums. By AMANDA GOME By Amanda Gome   Web ...

23. e-Retail therapy

Paul Greenberg has almost doubled the revenue of online retailer Deals Direct, to $40 million, in a year. Now, he tells AMANDA GOME, he plans to double it again.Paul Greenberg runs online department store Deals Direc...

24. Apple unveils iPad 2, launches in Australia on March 25

Apple chief executive Steve Jobs fronted a press event this morning to unveil the iPad 2, an updated version of the company’s flagship tablet device that is set to launch in America as early as next week and in Australia on March 25. The new gadget sports a thinner design, two cameras, including a rear-facing lens that captures high definition video at 720p, a faster CPU and an optional cover that snaps on the front of the iPad like a magnet. Jobs also announced – to...

25. Etsy opens Melbourne showroom as part of its Australian push

Online marketplace Etsy has turned to bricks and mortar with the opening this week of a showroom in Melbourne to increase awareness of the site ahead of further planned growth in Australia. The announcement of the showroom comes as the Brooklyn-based American company embarks on a new phase of expansion after raising $40 million from investors last week. Kirsteene Phelan, Etsy's Australian spokesperson, told SmartCompany opening the showroom was part of the online ma...

26. The legal traps of cloud computing

Being unable to retrieve data hosted overseas, downtime stretching for days and recovery costs that reach into the tens of thousands – these are just some of the problems small businesses are now facing when moving into the cloud. Legal experts say while this relatively new market is providing many businesses with pr...

27. Top 10 search marketing predicitions for 2011

Last year was another frenetic year of change in the world of search marketing. A series of rapidfire changes introduced by Google – most notably its Instant Preview function – left search experts in a daze, while the continued rise of Bing and mobile search were also important trends. And 2011 promises ...

28. The social web: A fad? Or fulfilling a fundamental human nee

Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter are growing massively worldwide. As the citizens of the social web become more addicted by the day, non-believers are increasingly concerned about the strange behaviour of family and friends. New phrases like "Twidow' (a Twitter widow) are being coined to describe the impact of their obsession.   One comment made on Twitter (by @Monibing) sums up the skeptics' point of view: "If you walked out into the street and started shouti...

29. Creating advocates for your brand and products

"In times of uncertainty, the best response is to stop 'shouting' and start a conversation. Now, what are you going to talk about?" - What's Next Report, STW Communications Group (June 2009). The most successful companies over the coming years will be the ones who don't shout at customers. Instead, they will listen to them, be honest with them, empower them, build relationships with them, and connect them with other like-minded people. If companies do these things...

30. The top 20 (non-iPhone) apps

The apps market might still be dominated by Apple, but that hasn't stopped Google, BlackBerry and Nokia building app stores to try and close the gap. These new markets, along with the Windows Marketplace, are not only giving users more variety, but are providing developers with a range of new ways to gain revenue and market their apps.

31. A "haul" lotta success

Today on lunch with an entrepreneur we are talking with 39-year-old Scott Kilmartin, a self-confessed uneducated heathen who spent most of his 20s running bars in the US before returning to Australia and starting Haul, which recycles rubbish into green products. He's going to talk to us today about how the business ne...

32. Simon Baker

We like to regularly check in with internet entrepreneur and investor Simon Baker, the former REA Group chief who now heads up two businesses – Classified Ad Ventures, which focuses on working with real estate companies, and CAV Investments, which holds stakes in 10 internet businesses around the world. Talkin...

33. The 12 sales trends for 2012

The theme for Barrett’s 12 Sales Trends for 2012 is “Adapt or Perish”. This theme is borne from the turbulent and challenging economic time we now find ourselves living in. Many of us need to rethink how we do business, how we sell and buy, how we live our lives and how we engage with the world. With the looming...

34. The new broadband debate: Fibre-to-the-node vs fibre-to-the-

Advertising and media kingpin Harold Mitchell has added his voice to calls for new Broadband and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy to give greater consideration to the possibility of building a national fibre-to-the-home broadband network. The broadband debate has predominantly focused on how to build a fibre-to-the-node network – a cheaper option involves building a central fibre-optic network but still relies on “last mile copper connection” to deliver intern...

35. Five ways the Apple iPad will change business

Early this morning Apple chief executive Steve Jobs finally announced the company's worst-kept secret – a tablet device called the iPad. The device features everything analysts could have hoped for, including the ability to use iPhone apps, a new range of dedicated iPad apps such as the iWorks office suite, a new iBooks store and a constant 3G connection....

36. The top 10 gadgets of 2012 – and 10 more for 2013

Everyone loves a good gadget. Entrepreneurs are especially attracted to the latest tech, and with good reason – a well-crafted gadget can make your work life more organised. Technology has enabled people to be more productive, and the latest smartphones, tablets and computers help entrepreneurs manage their time better. This...

37. Amazon buys online bookseller The Book Depository

Online retail giant Amazon has purchased British online seller The Book Depository for an undisclosed amount. Book Depository has become one of the most popular internet booksellers during the past few years due to the fact that it ships products free of charge worldwide. The purchase comes alongside movement in the local online bookselling market, with publishing group Pearson buying the online divisions of collapsed booksellers Borders and Angus & Robertson. Th...

38. How the super rich will make money in 2010

With the Australian economy set to return to something like normal growth in 2010, there’s little doubt that Australia’s richest entrepreneurs will be looking to reclaim some lost ground. These early stages of recovery should throw up some good opportunities. Many of our richest entrepreneurs still have cash ready to deploy, and asset price...

39. Email marketing ROI continues to trounce that of social netw

Regular readers of this blog will by now understand the importance of keeping abreast of new business and technology developments.   In such a fast moving space, one can’t afford to be left behind and risk losing business to nimbler, faster and better-informed competitors. But so much attention to new developments can also have a downside – overexposure to hype. Boring but effective For example, it may surprise you to kn...

40. Meet the SmartCompany Web Award winners

If you think your website is humming along quite nicely, it might be time to think again - the inaugural SmartCompany Web Awards highlight exactly what you're up against.     We decided to launch the awards after ...

41. Big data: The trend that could change your business

Big data is a game changer for business. In an age of computers, GPS devices and fleet GPS transceivers, RFID tag readers, smart meters, embedded microprocessors and sensors, companies are now confronted with a tsunami of data. In a society where downloadable software applications allow people to do virtually everything from their smart phones, where ge...

42. Seven innovation lessons SMEs can learn from Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs will be remembered for creating some beautiful products, but no doubt he will also be revered as one of the greatest innovators of the past three decades.   The secret to Jobs' success lies not only in his keen eye for design and consumer electronics, but for being able to create a vision, innovate new products within that vision, and then do it again, and again. If nothing else, Apple under Jobs' leadership was focused on innovation, by staying ahead of ...

43. Poor management, rising rents and online sales rush blamed f

Poor retail conditions, skyrocketing rents and claims that REDGroup Retail was poorly managed are some of the reasons booksellers, publishers and industry experts are giving for the company’s shock collapse. The claims come after administrator Ferrier Hodgson took control of REDGroup Retail yesterday.  The company has 169 Angus & Robertson stores, 61 of which are franchised and Borders has 26 stores, mostly in Victoria. The group employs about 2500 staff b...

44. Online in a downturn – the top 20 trends

  After almost a decade of strong growth, the online sector faces its first major recesson. The experts are bracing for a tough year, but some products and services will still thrive. We...

45. The best and worst awards of 2009

46. Tony Nash

Tony Nash has built up his online bookstore, Booktopia, into an incredibly successful business with revenue of $7.54 million. So why is he moving into offline retail by introducing some of the first book vending machines ever seen in Australia? "This is all about providing visibility to the offline world. I still come across...

47. 10 ways to take advantage of the high Australian dollar

The Australian dollar has hit another two-year high overnight, reaching as high as US 96.45c due to some disappointing economic data released in the United States. Major economists also expect that trend to continue, with some suggesting we will reach parity by early 2011, driven by continued economic weakness in America. There are now concerns the Federal Reserve will use more stimulus to prop up the economy while unemployment remains high. But there is much more entrepreneurs ...

48. Sales indicator gives retailers hope, but experts warn consu

The latest CommSec Business Sales Indicator suggests the retail industry may finally be starting to pick up, despite research on consumer habits showing customers are dedicated to frugality. A new survey conducted by IBM of over 30,000 consumers suggests retailers need to start personalising their deals and offer tailored discounts in order to get the attention of customers bent on saving their cash. This trend has caught on in the United States, where clothing retailer Gap launched a Fa...

49. Time Magazine reveals its top 50 websites – and Google’s

Time Magazine has announced its top 50 websites for 2009 with popular internet services Twitter and Skype among the highest ranked, but internet giant Google has been knocked out of the top 10. Time is vague about the criteria for its list, saying that the sites are ones which will "make your online life more efficient - or just more fun". Photo-sharing site Flickr took out the top spot, with its "collaborative tagging" increasing its popularity over the ...

50. What makes a world-class CEO? Lessons for aspiring leaders

BHP Billiton has a world-class CEO in Marius Kloppers, according to a list of the world’s 30 best CEOs compiled by an American business magazine. Kloppers is joined by high-profile Berkshire Hathaway chief Warren Buffet, as well as JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon and Oracle’s Larry Ellison on Barron’s