Salesforce.com (CRM) provides applications that manage customer information for sales, marketing and customer support. It has a customer base of approximately 85,000 clients. Its service provides sales leads, maintaining customer information and tracking customer interactions.

Intuit (INTU) caters to small businesses with its QuickBooks and TurboTax software. As well, it provides payroll and financial software for small businesses. The company has about 50 million users of its products.

Shares of insurance giant The Allstate Corporation (ALL) are trading sharply lower in after hours trading after the company reported weaker than expected Q4 results this afternoon.

Going into this afternoon's earnings report, analysts had been expecting to see the company report earnings of $0.88, but actual results came in much lower than expected at just $0.55 per share.

Tibco Software (TIBX) has carried the concept of social networking to business, as reported in Investor's.com. Tibco's software, dubbed Tibbr, ties together all the departments in real time. This give management and employees a "heads up" on business activity as it happens. For example, at MGM Resorts (MGM), when a big spender walks in the casino, the system immediately alerts the entire staff to treat the customer like he's a king.

Tibco's chief, Vivek Ranadive, said: "It's like a nervous system that works in real time and responds in real time." It allows a company to capture the right information at the right time and act on it preemptively for a competitive advantage.

Fewer business start-ups are being launched, reports the the Wall Street Journal. The Labor Department said that the number of companies with at least one employee fell by 100,000, or 2%, in the year ended March 31. That was the second worst performance in 18 years -- the worst one was a drop of 3.4% the previous year.

Why are these numbers important? In past recessions small business start-ups were the key to spurring the economy. In the three quarters that ended in March, newly formed companies created only 2.6 million jobs, 15% fewer than in the first three quarters of the last recovery.

Of the many things clouding the equities event horizon, one of the ugliest for investors may be internet retail taxation. A recent tax bill in the amount of $269 million, sent by the state of Texas to Amazon (AMZN) stands as testament to that looming ugliness.

Amazon claims that because technically its distribution activities are headquartered in Kentucky rather than Texas, it owes no retail sales tax to the armadillo state. So, the gauntlet has been thrown down and the challenge accepted.

According to the ADP National Employment Report, US businesses cut 39,000 jobs in September, as reported in the Financial Times.

We've heard for weeks that the economy was slowing. Now for the first time in eight months, U.S. businesses shed jobs. Jobs in the private sector are the backbone of economic growth. This is where new jobs are created. Businesses are holding pat, not risking new hires. What this means is that at the business to business level, there simply are not that many new orders.

The lifeblood of business is credit. Unfortunately, the credit available has been shrinking instead of growing. As of June 30, U.S. commercial and industrial loans held by banks have declined to $1.24 trillion from $1.6 trillion in 2008

Ben Bernanke, Fed chairman cites that credit creation as the key to economic growth. He has prodded banks consistently to lend more. Banks, instead of loosing up. are making it harder for small businesses to get credit. Even those with a good credit rating are finding it hard to get loans. Bernanke stated: "Making credit accessible to sound small businesses is crucial to our economic recovery and so should be front and center among our current policy challenges." Again speaking to lenders he stated: "Our message is clear. Consistent with maintaining appropriately prudent standards, lenders should do all they can to meet the needs of creditworthy borrowers."

Running a consulting business can be a juggling act. It's not easy to manage a variety of accounts while also continuing to look for new business. And, in light of the tough economy, clients are looking for ways to cut back on services.

What to do? Well, you can try to find new revenue sources. And one interesting option is to sell software products.

When I was a kid, one of my favorite games was Trivial Pursuit. Although, I certainly had a tough time answering many of the questions. Ironically, that was the main reason I liked the game.

Of course, I was not alone. Since 1981, Trivial Pursuit has sold more than 20 million copies and has generated over $1 billion in revenues (Hasbro currently owns the rights). And yes, this got started during a terrible recession.

Some highly successful businesses are husband-and-wife teams. Or, may even involve the hiring of the kids. Yes, the proverbial family business can be a powerful thing.

What's more, there may be some attractive tax benefits.

But of course, you need to know the rules (which, no doubt, can get complicated). So here are some things to consider:

According to a recent survey from the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor, only about 60% of business owners are confident that they will get enough capital to grow. Yes, even with the federal stimulus plans and improved economy, small businesses are still feeling the credit squeeze.

What can be done? Well, it is important to realize that financial institutions are rethinking their credit policies. In fact, American Express has provided some helpful tips to deal with the new landscape (they should know, right?). Let's take a look:

Even when credit is flowing, it's still tough for small business owners to get a loan. As a result, they often will look for financing from friends and family (known as a private loans). Some of the world's greatest businesses got their start from this approach. For example, Walmart's (WMT) Sam Walton got a $20,000 loan from his father-in-law.

Of course, there are many risks when putting together a loan from friends and family. After all, if the principal and interest cannot be paid back, there could be family discord or a lost friend.

Of the millions of business across America, only a small percentage are incorporated. Perhaps one of the biggest reasons is the cost. For example, in California there is a whopping $800 franchise tax fee. Yes, in today's tough economic environment, this is certainly a big deal.

Another problem is the paperwork, which can distract from your business.

But if you want to operate a sustainable business, you should really think seriously about incorporating. The benefits often outweigh the costs. Let's take a look:

As a major validation of the importance of smartphones, HP (HPQ) agreed to shell out $1.2 billion for Palm (PALM) this week. The truth is that consumers and businesses are increasingly using mobile devices. In fact, the market for smartphones is $100 billion and growing at more than 20% per year.

OK, so how can you use a smartphone to help your business? Actually, one idea is to turn it into a point-of-sale system, which is actually fairly straightforward and affordable.

With the recession and budget pressures, there has been more aggressiveness with collecting sales tax. Just look at Amazon.com (AMZN), which is fighting a variety of states. For example, the North Carolina Department of Revenue has audited Amazon.com and is requesting personal information about residents. The case is now before a federal court.

Such controversies are likely to continue, and it will probably get tougher for small businesses.