A purveyor of environmentally friendly cleaning products, Living Clean taps into popular concern about what we expose our bodies to and the environment in general.

Founder Julie Bishop tells BOB about how she started the business, which has just taken on its first franchisee, and how Living Clean stands apart from other cleaning franchises.

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What is viral video?

A viral video is a brief video clip, usually no longer than a few minutes, which gains greater exposure as viewers share it via internet or mobile technologies.

The mediums through which viral video is distributed include email, instant messaging, blogs and video sharing websites, the most popular of which, by some distance, is YouTube.

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From the BBC: Despite the credit crunch, increasing inflation and falling house prices, some businesses are reporting record profits.

Pawnbrokers, bailiffs, company liquidators and discount retailers are recording bulging order books and soaring profits.

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From the BBC: As Bill Gates prepares to end his full-time work at Microsoft, he tells the BBC in an interview that it wasn't just what Microsoft did, but what his rivals didn't do that let Microsoft get ahead.

"Most of our competitors were very poorly run," he tells Fiona Bruce, for The Money Programme.

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From the BBC: Management speak: don't you just hate it?

Emphatically yes, judging by readers' responses to writer Lucy Kellaway's campaign against office jargon. Here, we list 50 of the best worst examples.

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A business book like no other on the market has just been published.

The Book of Business Inspiration doesn’t just feature the usual step-by-step business guides, it also has interviews with people who have started or bought their own business or franchise. These everyday entrepreneurs talk about how they did it, the problems overcome and the lessons learnt, and offer advice on how you, too, can have your own business.

The book also features how-to guides, ranging from how to buy a business to how to make money via the web; profiles of various businesses, from newsagents to nightclubs; profiles of legendary entrepreneurs; information on relocating your life to another country; and much more.

The Book of Business Inspiration is available to buy on Lulu.com for £14.95, or £5 for a downloadable copy.

The Book of Business Inspiration is published by Dynamis, the online media brand behind BusinessesForSale.com, FranchiseSales.com, BusinessOpportunities.com and BusinessWings.co.uk

From Businessweek: Your website should convey your brand.

Our columnist looks at three small companies' sites to see how well they do.

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From Businessweek: Here are seven tips on how to launch a successful Internet outfit without leaving your desk.

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Building a brand is not the sole preserve of large companies – the Coca Colas, Microsofts and BMWs of this world.

Small businesses can also build recognised and trusted brands.

But what is a brand?

A brand is, on one level, the symbol, words or mark that distinguishes a company from its competitors.

But branding is about more than simply the effectiveness of the logo design and font used for the company name. It’s also about the reputation of a company, which is determined by public perception of the product or service, customer service and increasingly, it’s social and environmental credentials.

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From Businessweek: For both groups, flexibility, adaptive capacity, and ability to perform are of paramount importance.

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From Businessweek: Accidental entrepreneur Bob Williamson's personal turnaround led to the creation of his 180-employee, $26 million company.

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"The world is more malleable than you think and it's waiting for you to hammer it into shape."
Bono, U2 frontman

"If you don't act now while it's fresh in your mind, it will probably join the list of things you were always going to do but never quite got around to. Chances are you'll also miss some opportunities."
Paul Clitheroe, Australian television presenter, financial analyst and financial adviser

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From The Independent: Many people dream about developing a business around their hobby, although few realise that dream.

Of those who do, fewer still make a go of it. But Christina Doré, 50, has done just that with her craft centre business, A Maze of Memories.

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The search is on for the UK’s most inspiring female entrepreneurs, as the annual NatWest everywoman awards are launched on 1May at the House of Commons.

The awards, now in their sixth year, recognise and reward the most successful women, of all backgrounds and ages, who are leading the way in UK business, and acting as role models for others wanting to go it alone.

Women make up 51% of the UK adult population, but only constitute 27% of the self-employed*, and these awards are an opportunity to celebrate those that are bucking the trend and achieving success, to help address this inequality.

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From Businessweek: Assuming you've saved some cash, there are a few steps you can take to weather the economic downturn, and even flourish.

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David Griffiths had been working as head of marketing for Europe in a market-leading payments company called Bottomline Technologies for five years – all the while thinking of how he could get to run his own business again.

The first company he had owned had specialised in developing and selling high-end web-based tools. Now he was impatient to get up and running again, and worked out that buying an established business offered the best route.

“To be honest, I wanted a faster start,” he says. “I’ve done it from scratch before and it takes a year and a half to get things going, and can be quite painful.”

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...If only you had it!

People often seek professional advice about speculative proposals that they believe could make them money, if only they had funds to turn their ideas into action.

Chris Baguley, managing director of short-term funding specialist Bridging Finance Limited, gives some popular ideas a reality check.

Professional advisers are accustomed to being approached by clients who believe they've just stumbled across a business idea that they believe is 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'.

These approaches often come from otherwise rather cautious individuals who bemoan their inability to fund the opportunities that have come their way.

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From TheStreet.com: For Brian Kurth, a six- or even seven-day workweek is nothing unusual.

In fact it's the norm for the 41-year-old business owner, who also admits he doesn't get much sleep.

"I'm usually up until midnight, and back up at 5am," says Kurth, owner of Portland, Oregon-based VocationVacations - a company that allows people to test-drive dream jobs. "But it's not work if you love it."

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From Businessweek: Author Gregg Vanourek on applying entrepreneurial principles to your life, why a recession can be a good time to start a business, and more.

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Marketing consultant Paige Arnof-Fenn writes about her experiences of Tai Chi and Qigong on Entrepreneur.com - Eastern Arts that help strengthen the mind and body.

The principles of these martial arts can be applied to the daily life of an entrepreneur.

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