In prosperous times, gifting your customers during the holidays doesn't require a second thought. This year more companies are being conscious of spending money on customer gifts. According to American Express Open Small Business Holiday Monitor, almost 70% of business owners don't believe the worst of the recession is over and nearly six in ten entrepreneurs (57%) say the economic downturn has changed their holiday gift giving behavior. Yet, 10% of those surveyed planned to increase customer gift spending this year.

With less holiday edibles and gifts for staff, sending corporate gifts can be an inexpensive means to stand out from the competition in tough times and show your clients you really value their business.

Resources such as time and money are in tight supply for most start ups and existing small businesses. These constraints often mean the difference between expanding into new markets or struggling to survive. However, it doesn't have to be that way. Small business is a community of like minded business owners. One of the best means to expand your business is to partner up with similar or complementary businesses.

Business partnerships and joint ventures offer a means for businesses to pool resources and grow business. Additional benefits include:

• exposure to larger shared customer base
• decreased marketing costs
• utilize the talents of others

Vampires have become a pop culture phenomena spanning TV, books, movies and even Vampires on Facebook. The spark for this current craze can be traced to the best selling vampire book Twilight by Stephanie Myers. The author redefined the genre with vampires who could love and created a cultural trend.

The vampire craze provides an interesting glimpse into what drives a hot trend for a valuable lesson to small business. Getting in early on any trend wave requires keeping in tune with pop culture. Best selling books are often the catalyst for movies and the precursor to a large trend. Looking at best selling book lists can provide a glimpse of what is popular in the public conscious. Other media such as magazines can tell you what is up and coming. Many leading visionaries often read all types of media from fashion news to nano technology to see the broader trends in society.

One of my favorite ways to test for trend development is Google Insights. This nifty tool will allow you to enter in search terms and see the trends over time whether consumer search volumes are increasing, decreasing or flat. Tracking trends can provide your business with the opportunity to see the road ahead and possibly capitalize on the trend.

It's no surprise that the capital markets have been running low for entrepreneurs wishing to take their business to the next level with a fresh infusion of cash. According to the University of New Hampshire Center for Venture Research, angel investments in the first half of 2009 were over $9 billion, a drop of 27 percent from the first half of 2008. Venture capital fared no better with only $5 billion in the third quarter, a 6% decrease from the second quarter of the year. The upside is while the total value of angel investing has dropped the number of deals has increased.

The news is less promising for start ups. In the first half of 2009, angel investors have decreased their start up investing, with 27 percent of angel investments in the seed and start-up stage, a decrease of 19 percent over the same period in 2008. This simply boils down to risk.

Investors are less likely to put money into a business early when the risks are greatest. Early stage companies are best to look for funds from family and friends or there is always the "reality VC" route by attempting to get on venture reality shows such as Shark Tank or Dragon's Den.