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50 results in articles and videos for “Small Business”
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Get Your East Texas Business Ready Before Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday is Nov. 28. Ryan Nichols lays out a free six-step checklist East Texas owners can finish this week: hours, one offer, follow-up, video.
- ArticleEast Texas Business
East Texas Business Spotlight: How Megan and James Heath Grew Pack N Mail
Meet Pack N Mail owners Megan and James Heath, the Longview and Gilmer entrepreneurs recognized by the SBA in 2026. See their story, services, and practical small-business lessons.
- ArticleBusiness
36 Robocalls Hit My Business Line In 72 Hours
A rotating number robocall campaign hit my business line 36 times in three days and my own AI receptionist answered it. Here is the record and the five minute fix any small business can copy.
- ArticlePolitics
House Passes Stopgap Funding Through December 4: What H.R. 9770 Does—and What Happens Next
A facts-first guide to H.R. 9770, the House-passed stopgap funding bill: the December 4 deadline, programs continued, restrictions, Senate path, and shutdown risk.
- ArticleThe Work
An East Texas Ministry Hosts Its Own Videos and Shares Them Home
Ryan Nichols on how Don and Patti Nichols host their Ore City ministry videos on their own site, and the data ownership lesson for East Texas businesses.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Your Facebook Ad Is the Hallway Sign, Not the Store
Ryan Nichols explains why a Facebook ad is a sign in the mall hallway, and how East Texas small businesses build the website, CRM and follow-up that turn it into jobs.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Interface Design Starts With the Easiest Thing a Visitor Can Do
Interface design for small business sites: why every form field is a cost your visitor pays, three fixes from my own site, and the WCAG 2.2 rules that agree.
- ArticleRyan's Take
Should Texas Set Its Own Minimum Wage Above $7.25?
Texas still uses the $7.25 federal minimum wage. Here are the strongest arguments for a higher state floor and for letting local labor markets set pay.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
A Website Change Is Not Finished Until You Can Undo It
A website change is not finished until someone can undo it. Use this five-line rollback note before the next release breaks forms, prices, or pages.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
What leading Marines taught me about running a business
I led 25 to 35 Marines in Okinawa and never saw combat. Five habits carried into business, plus the seven step Monday brief template you can copy today.
- ArticleThe Work
The $197 Product That Tells You Not to Buy Software
I sell business systems, and my $197 follow-up product says you need no software. Leads are not lost because they were bad. They are lost to the silence after.
- ArticleEast Texas Business
East Texas Business Spotlight: Daren Horton and Gecko Pest Control
Ryan Nichols meets Gecko Pest Control owner Daren Horton in Marshall, covering the company's services, history, community work, and a checklist for customers.
- ArticleEast Texas Business
East Texas Business Spotlight: Connor Walters and Silver Grizzly Espresso
Meet Silver Grizzly Espresso co-founder Connor Walters and learn how the Longview coffee shop built craft, community, and a downtown gathering place.
- ArticleEast Texas
Kilgore Christmas Under the Stars: 2026 Dates for East Texas Families
Ryan Nichols lists Kilgore's 2026 Christmas Under the Stars dates: derrick lighting Nov 12, parade Dec 1, a free drive-through nativity and more.
- ArticleNews
Longview Library’s Free Excel Class Builds Practical Job Skills
Longview Public Library’s free Basic Excel II class covers formulas, filters, formatting, and practical spreadsheet skills. Here is what to verify.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Your Automation Should Run on a Machine You Can Log Into
Owning your content is step one. Owning the clock is step two. Why I moved my scheduled jobs to a server I control, and the one systemd setting that catches missed runs.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Your Website Can Live on the Home Screen Without App Stores
One small file lets customers install your website on their phone, no app store needed. What is in my site's manifest and a ten minute check for yours.
- ArticleEast Texas Business
East Texas Business Spotlight: Shawn Ingram and Custom Graphics TX
Ryan Nichols meets Shawn Ingram of Custom Graphics TX in Longview, a branding shop offering in-house production, local connections and practical skills access.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Every Lost Lead Needs a Reason Code
A closed lead without a clear outcome teaches your business nothing. Build a small reason-code system that turns missed opportunities into repairs.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Fix the Handoff Before You Replace Your Business Software
Ryan Nichols shows East Texas business owners how to find the broken step between their tools and connect the CRM they already like before buying new software.
- ArticleAI & Technology
I Run My Business From a Black Screen
Why I moved my whole operation to a terminal with Claude Code, what it changed, and the honest list of who should never try this. Plain English from an East Texas builder.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
If It Only Works When You Do It, You Built a Job
Ryan Nichols on the two-week test for any business: trigger, steps, check. Write the system on an index card before you spend a dollar on software.
- ArticleEast Texas Business
East Texas Business Spotlight: Laura Nevils and Books & Barrels
Ryan Nichols meets Books & Barrels owner Laura Nevils in downtown Longview and covers how the bookstore supports readers, local authors, events, and community.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Your First CRM Should Answer Four Questions Before You Pay
Ryan Nichols lays out four plain questions every East Texas small business owner should ask before paying for a CRM, plus what to skip at first.
- ArticleRebuild
They Stopped Sending the Work Out and Built the Shop
Family owned in Marshall since 2002, they brought fabrication and powder coating in house in 2013. Five questions to run before you make the same call.
- ArticleThe Work
An East Texas Dental School Built Its Own Software Instead of Renting It
Ryan Nichols on why Premier Dental Academy of Longview owns its training software, still rents payments, and the one question every East Texas owner should ask.
- ArticleOpinion
Should Texas Require One-Click Subscription Cancellation?
The federal click-to-cancel rule was vacated, and Texas has no matching statewide mandate. Should online subscriptions require a clear online exit?
- ArticleThe Work
An East Texas Dental School Built Four Small Doors Before the Big One
Premier Dental Academy of Longview sells a $19, $29, $97 and $147 ladder between its free tools and enrollment. The funnel lesson any small business can use.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Stop Waiting for a Crawler to Find Your New Page
IndexNow lets your own site tell search engines a page changed, in minutes, not weeks. How it works, who listens, why Google still needs a sitemap, and what to log.
- ArticleOpinion
Should Texas Require the Real Price Everywhere It Is Advertised?
Federal rules require upfront, all-in pricing for tickets and lodging. Ryan Nichols asks if Texas should extend that rule to other advertised prices.
- ArticleRebuild
Free Beans and Chili Every Day Since 1983
The Butcher Shop in Longview has been family owned since 1983 and gives beans and chili away every day. That is hospitality, not marketing. Here is the test.
- ArticleAI & Technology
ChatGPT Work Changes the AI Job: From Answering Questions to Finishing Work
ChatGPT Work explained: current availability, GPT-5.6 models, pricing, scheduled tasks, Sites, practical opportunities, risks, limits, and one test to try.
- ArticlePolitics
Trump’s New Defense Supply-Chain Order: What Changes, What It Targets, and What Is Still Unknown
What Trump’s July 20, 2026 defense supply-chain executive order requires, its deadlines, covered critical materials, foreign-supplier rules, and what remains unknown.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Write the number once
A fact that lives in two places on your website is a fact you will eventually get wrong in one of them. How to single-source every number your business publishes.
- ArticleBusiness & Technology
AI Arbitrage Is Not a Dirty Word. Here Is What You Are Actually Paying For.
A $500 website costs almost nothing to build now. So what is the client paying for? Both sides of the argument and the one question to ask any builder in 2026.
- ArticleBusiness & Technology
The Barcode Worked Because Everybody Agreed to Read the Same Lines
The UPC barcode changed retail because competing companies adopted one shared product standard. Its history offers a practical lesson for connected businesses.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Nobody at Your Company Has Ever Been Your Customer
You have never seen your business from the front door. Here is the one hour test that shows what a stranger actually receives, and what it usually finds.
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Whoever Owns the Domain Owns the Business
Your domain is the address every link, card and search result points at. Three ways business owners lose it, and how to check yours in about four minutes.
- ArticleBusiness
Facebook Sent Twice the Clicks. X Sent Every Sale.
Seven book orders in seven days. Six came from X, one from Google, zero from Facebook. I pulled the numbers off my own server and published what they said, including the part that made me look dumb.
- ArticleBusiness & Technology
Every New Lead Needs One Named Owner
Most leads are lost after the form, not on it. Use this five-handoff audit to assign one owner, one deadline, and one visible next move for every inquiry.
- ArticleOpinion
Should Texas Require Pay Ranges in Every Job Posting?
Texas pay ranges remain optional in private job postings. Here is the strongest case for disclosure, the real employer concerns, and a fair rule.
- ArticleOpinion
Should Texas Require Advance Notice for Work Schedules?
Texas generally does not require advance notice of schedule changes. Should workers get predictable hours, or would a mandate hurt needed business flexibility?
- ArticleEast Texas Business
I Have a Quarter Million Leads and Cannot Afford to Email Them
A 200,000 address list, $500 to $1,000 a month to send, and a five year old consent problem. The case for and against hitting send, with CAN-SPAM facts.
- ArticleRebuild
Squaring It Away Before a Week I Cannot Reschedule
You stage before the storm. Getting the businesses squared away ahead of a week I do not get to move, and why being present is an output of a system, not a decision you make in the moment.
- ArticleThe Work
I built a grader that refuses to grade
RepWatchr withholds a grade until the evidence clears a published gate. Unverified material is weighted zero. Why software can decline to answer and a website cannot.
- ArticleReflection
The East Texas Business Owner Down the Road Needs a Neighbor Too
Ryan Nichols on the East Texas business owners carrying a lot quietly, and five simple ways you can serve a local owner this week. Love your neighbor.
- ArticleOpinion
Should Texas Require In-Person Stores to Take Cash?
Federal law lets private businesses refuse cash unless state law says otherwise. Should Texas require staffed, in-person stores to accept paper money?
- ArticleBehind the scenes
Your Business Runs on Texas Time. Store It in UTC Anyway.
Daylight saving time ends November 1, 2026. Schedule your business systems in Texas time, store every record in UTC, and check three common mistakes.
- ArticleBusiness & Technology
Every Automation Needs a Failure Receipt
A workflow is not trustworthy because it ran once. Build four visible receipts so automation failures create an owner, a record, and a next move.
- ArticleReflection
Trust Is Built One Kind Conversation at a Time
Ryan Nichols on a day spent serving others in East Texas: a business owner, an unplanned church stop, a kind stranger, and one way you can help this week.
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