Business finds a silver lining in Inland California’s downturn
A town hit by hard by the downturn is now thriving, attracting investments from all over, and The New York Times’ James Flanigan investigates how they managed to do it. “One of its advantages, paradoxically, is the result of its economic travails: low real estate prices for both houses and factories. But the other is the concerted support for small enterprises and start-up companies from the area’s universities and nonprofit organizations — programs that were set in place long before the current downturn.”

Rx for Downturn: Better marketing, better customer service
The Readerboard’s Brendan Read finds it surprising that companies are not doing enough with their marketing and customer service campaigns, especially at this time when these strategies could mean the difference between closure and survival. Yet there is unfortunately evidence to the contrary. “The study, ‘Giving Customer Voice More Volume,’ reported that 56 percent of over 400 executives surveyed said their companies have no programs in place to track or propagate positive word of mouth among customers. In addition, only 30 percent said their companies rate highly in their ability handle and resolve customer problems or complaints. A surprising 59 percent of said their firms do not compensate employees or executives based on customer loyalty, satisfaction improvements or analytics.”

The economy according to Mint
Aaron Patzer, CEO of personal finance site Mint.com, shows some stats from his site’s users, relating them to the economy as a whole. “Is it Great Depression bad? That’s a qualitative question I can’t answer. But what the data, the hard facts, mean for you – if you run a consumer business – is that your customers are spending $400 less each month than they were a year ago, have burned through half of their savings, and on average have taken on an additional $5k in debt. Good decisions are based on good data. And data – in itself – may be one of the most valuable by-products of any startup.”

When he’s just not that into saving
On MSNBC, an article features a sensitive topic for many households: discussing finances and cutting expenses, as well as the frustration that erupts when couples have different attitudes about money. “Talking about job security in particular is critical these days, with unemployment at a 16-year high of 7.2 percent and expected to jump higher by the end of the year. If you aren’t already, keep your spouse updated on your prospects at work. Hiding a potential layoff will only make it more painful if it comes to bear.”

Using Web 2.0 to reinvent your business for the economic downturn
On Enterprise Web 2.0, Dion Hinchcliffe discusses the strategic use of Web 2.0 technologies for growth and resilience. “The good news is that most enterprises actually have a fair number of compelling options right now if they are willing to think outside the box. While some might look at the social aspects of things like Web 2.0 as marginal subjects when things get tough, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to the deeper implications of Web 2.0 in the enterprise. Many of the more transformational aspects of the 2.0 era now have extensive groundwork laid for them, are available in genuinely enterprise-ready solutions/pilots, and many have just been waiting for the right situation; the driving need for businesses to change and transform in the face of radically different business conditions.”

Tough Economy? SCORE some help: Free services for small businesses
Pam Johnson of the Guilford Courier features a service that offers free counseling, education and guidance from experts for struggling small businesses. “Their businesses are falling off. We sent them off with excellent ideas. Sometimes, it’s as simple as stepping back to look at where you are, where you’ve been, and what the competition is doing. We’re there to facilitate that kind of thinking.”

Social democracy as a recession-fighter
On ThinkProgress, Matthew Iglesias offers his insights on some social policies and their positive effects for the public during tough times. “Of course there’s always the social safety net. And one major advantage the United States has in 2009 versus 1929 is that we have a much more substantial one than we used to. But we have a much less substantial one than do most of our peer countries in the rich world. It’s never pleasant to be laid off from your job, but in Europe such layoffs won’t generally have major implications for your ability to acquire health care for yourself and your family or for your ability to pay for your children’s schooling.”

7 Online things to do to help Obama restore America
Before the inauguration, Alex Iskold of ReadWriteWeb wrote this article on how to be a proactive citizen in the Internet age. “If Obama and his team are going to use the Internet to help change America, so should we. The Internet is the most powerful information technology ever invented, and it has already changed the way we elect the President of the United States. Next, it just may help us restore America to its true self. How? One person at a time, starting with you and then passing it along. Here are 7 things you can do on the Internet to help President Obama turn this great country around.”