As I listened to the news from Wall Street this week, I was reminded of the Dot Com crash in late ‘99 early 2000. And although this most recent downturn is fueled by more than internet companies I wonder about the fate of many of these intriguing, and some not so intriguing start-ups.

In presentations over the last few months Web 2.0 Evangelist Tim O’Rielly chas begun challenging his audiences with a tough question: “Are you working on the right things?” he asks as he displays slides Facebook application SuperPoke, which invites you to, among other things, “throw sheep” at your friends or a popular iPhone app “iBeer,” which simulates chugging a pint.

The technology is capable of so much, and our best and brightest are focused on games and dreams of a quick sale. The better path? Tim O’Rielly suggests we need to dream big and look to solve big challenges with the technology.

Lorraine Ball talks with Alan Houser of the Creative Component about web branding and the impact on web design.  She also answers questions from readers about brands in general, logos, web analytics and much more.

To hear the interview go to: The Creative Component

While the Magic Beans gave Jack his start, his own ingenuity lead to his ultimate success. The same is often true for small biz owners, there is rarely a “magic bean” Except in this video, Lorraine Shares one of her favorite “magic beans”

Lorraine Ball believes it takes more than magic to create a happy ending, in a fairy tale, or a small business!

In this 2 minute video, Lorraine Ball, explains often the difference between success or failure in business often boils down to how well you use resources and with whom you surround yourself!

Good marketing is all about the numbers, or so Lorraine Ball learned, early in her marketing career!

Running a business is like jumping off high dive. Every time you do it, it gets easier!

50 years ago, advertising was easy, figure out your target audience, and talk at them.  Today, you have to talk to them.  While many people talk about this changing nature of marketing communication, this extremely funny video by Geert Desager ( Trade Marketing Manager South East Asia for Microsoft.) demonstrates how wrong old style advertising can seem!

Go to Video

Do you have a network of people supporting you?  Lorraine Ball believes you should!

Sometimes the very best business relationships start from very unlikely connections and chance occurances.  My relationship with Eric Schneller, owner of Crew Property Improvment Specialists. is a great example.  With no common customers, and no need for each others services there was no need to meet, but we did.. and today, we own a building together.  For more on how this unlikely event occured, view the video!