To compete in the $15 billion bottled water industry, your brand has to find a way to stand out. That's why bottled water companies like Liquid OM Water and Spiritual Water, both mentioned in this New York Times article, are hoping to appeal to people's spiritual sides. Unlike high-end bottled water brand Bling H20, these new spiritual waters are trying to spread positive energy to consumers. "We're at war, the world is in a relative state of turmoil," said Arthur von Wiesenberger, a bottled-water industry consultant. "People are looking anywhere for guidance. Why not start with fundamentals, like water?"

So how do they go about packing "good vibes" into a bottle of water? Liquid OM's creator, Kenny Mazursky, uses Tibetan singing bowls and a giant earth gong to send vibrations through the water at specific frequencies. Spiritual Water focuses more on religion by incorporating prayers and religious illustrations on their bottles. As the economy declines and people oppose the environmental issues of bottled water, it will be interesting to see if spiritual waters can help the bottled water industry stay afloat.

Salary.com's annual Small Business Executive Compensation Survey found that CEO salaries vary amongst small, medium and large companies. The results, which were revealed yesterday, showed that the national median salary for a small-business CEO is $233,500. For a company with 500-to-5,000 employees, the average CEO salary is $500,000, while for companies with more than 5,000 employees, that number increases to $849,375. "As companies grow, so do the responsibilities and paychecks of their executives," said Christine Midwood, director of survey services for Salary.com. "To attract and retain the best talent, it's important for smaller companies with smaller budgets to emphasize non-cash advantages such as company equity or work/life balance."

If you’re looking to keep younger employees satisfied with their jobs, be sure to give them their due praise. A new study by training and research company Leadership IQ shows that only 30 percent of workers ages 21 to 30 would strongly recommend their workplace to others.

The study surveyed more than 11,000 employees ages 21 to 70 from 872 organizations. Questions were designed to gauge employee satisfaction with their boss, corporate culture and motivation at work. The study found that younger workers attribute their workplace satisfaction to how often their bosses acknowledged or commended them for their accomplishments.

“It’s become a cliché to bemoan younger workers’ need for praise and recognition,” says Leadership IQ Chairman and CEO Mark Murphy. "But what’s disturbing is that six out of 10 younger workers are being actively de-motivated because their boss won’t give them the one thing they really care about. And these results are especially disappointing because praise and recognition don’t really cost anything.”

On the other hand, 47 percent of employees ages 61 to 70 would strongly recommend their workplace. Older workers are more likely to be satisfied with their work if they can assess that they are working at an appropriate performance level and moving in the right direction.--Kevin Manahan

The holiday shopping season is in full swing. And if you're in the business of selling electronics, you probably already know just how important this season is: According to the Consumer Electronics Association, $22 billion in electronic purchases is up for grabs. So how can you stand out from your competitors? It would help to understand your consumers. This Advertising Age article takes a look at results from a new survey by Omnicom's Integer Group. It provides some valuable clues to help you woo holiday shoppers:

• About one-third of shoppers surveyed bought electronics based on an offer or promotion. The most popular? Rebates and sale prices.
• Shoppers went online an average of more than three times to do research before buying.
• When shoppers do get to the store, they prefer the online merchandising and in-store marketing match.
• Men and women have opposite shopping styles; women tend to look at specific brands before looking at products, while men decide what product they want before reviewing the brand choices.

If you're trying to attract more women, Kim Menier, senior VP-director of account planning for Integer says to try positioning your store as "a place where people can find everyday values."

Dessert-only restaurants are part of a growing trend specializing in satisfying the growing sweet tooth of Americans. We've heard about restaurants exclusively selling ice cream and cupcakes, but now, a traditional yummy treat is making a comeback: pudding. Thrillist.com added New York's Chikalicious Puddin' to its hot list. The take-out-only coffee, tea and pudding bar serves items like Steamed Apple Puddin', Brioche Bread Puddin' and French-Verona-based Adult Chocolate Puddin'.

For tips on how to start your own dessert-only restaurant, check out this article.

According to the 2007 American Family Business Survey, sponsored by the Kennesaw State University Coles College of Business, MassMutual and the Family Firm Institute, family-business owners are reporting a positive outlook for their economic future. About three out of four firms surveyed said they've increased revenues over the past three years, while 22 percent expect double-digit growth.

But the research study also found some things family businesses need to improve upon. "To ensure continuity and future growth and security, family-business owners need to focus attention on succession, estate planning and other family business and financial issues," said Beth Wood, marketing director for U.S. Insurance Group, MassMutual. In fact, among family-business owners expecting to retire in five years, less than half have selected a successor.

A new way of assessing women-led businesses shows they are making a greater contribution to the U.S. economy than previously reported, a new study has revealed.

The report, drawn from the Census Bureau's 2002 Survey of Business Owners and Self-Employed Persons, is the second half of a two-part study prepared for the National Women's Business Council.

Previously published data only included information on businesses owned at least 51 percent by women. The new report includes data on companies where a woman owns a percentage of the business at least equal to any other owner, and where a woman or women manage day-to-day operations.

Using those criteria, more than 1 million women-led businesses generated more than $300 billion in revenue in 2002, or about 3 percent of U.S. gross domestic product. Combined, more than 7.5 million businesses were women-owned or women-led businesses in 2002. The combination employed 9.6 million people and generated nearly $1.2 trillion in revenue--about 12 percent of U.S. GDP.

Other noteworthy statistics:

• Twenty-nine percent of women-led firms had paid employees compared with 14 percent of women-owned firms.
• Only 16 percent of women-owned/women-led (WOWL) businesses had employees, but those firms generated 86 percent of all WOWL revenue.
• Women-led businesses were concentrated in low-revenue industries, with the highest number in retail trade.
• Three percent of women-led firms were in wholesale and another 3 percent were in manufacturing. But these generated high levels of total receipts--16 percent and 10 percent, respectively.

Women-led firms had higher receipts than women-owned companies, but women-owned firms paid employees more, on average.--Eve Gumpel

Every year, we see entrepreneurs starting businesses and launching innovative inventions at younger ages: under 30, fresh out of college or even in college. Entrepreneurship courses in school and other programs help youngsters develop their business-owner interests and skills early on. And for kids that can't even vote, there are companies like By Kids For Kids that provide support and educational resources.

The global marketing, branding and licensing company gives teens tools and outlets for expanding their entrepreneurial spirit. And In October, BKFK announced its fourth-quarter innovation competitions. For a chance to win $10,000, all youth under the age of 19 can enter one of four competitions: the Digital Arts Challenge, the Sports Evolution Challenge, the Signature Style Challenge and the Going Green Challenge. Each competition lets young innovators share their ideas or inventions for the arts, athletics, fashion and the environment, respectively. "[These] competitions will bring together the best of America's creative youth," said Norman Goldstein, BKFK founder and CEO.

So, if you're a teeny-bopper with a hot idea or you know someone is, the deadline for submission is March 31, 2008. Who knows, these tikes could become Entrepreneur's next Young Millionaires. –Lindsay Holloway

If you're clueless when it comes to picking a good URL for your company's website, let self-proclaimed "URL-aholic" Aaron Goldman guide you. Goldman's website, Good URL Bad URL, features a blog filled with examples of the good, the bad and the ugly of company URLs. The blog is definitely worth a read. Not only does Goldman write it with humor, but he also explains why certain URLs work for a company, and why some actually detract from the product being advertised.

Here are a few of Goldman's URL "do's":

• Capitalize the first letter of each word;
• Use different colors or bold to help each word stand out;
• Whenever possible, use YourBrandName.com; and
• If .com is not available, use YourBrandName.net.

And a few of his URL "don'ts":

• Don't include www;
• Don't include http://;
• Don't use all lower case or all upper case; and
• Avoid hyphens or slashes.

Can anything good come from heartache? According to entrepreneur Joshua Opperman, the answer is yes. Opperman started an auction website called I Do…Now I Don't as a way for fiancés left at the altar to get rid of expensive engagement rings. Now, the site has developed into much more: Jilted lovers are turning to it for its social community, where they can vent about their ex or find tips on surviving the breakup. The site also features the best breakup songs (with lyrics so you can sing along) and a blog for sharing personal stories.

Discover Small Business Watch says economic confidence among small-business owners declined for the fourth straight month in November. Confidence measured 93.2, compared with 96.8 in October, and 114.6 at this time last year. This downward trend reflects the overall feeling of economic instability across the country. "Challenges in the national economy over the past few months are no doubt influencing the perceptions of small-business owners, but there still is stability back on Main Street," said Sastry Rachakonda, director of Discover's business credit card.

For more poll results on holiday spending and online habits, view the rest of the survey here.

While many entrepreneurs and their employees look forward to the end of the year for time off, company parties and annual bonuses, others dread ringing in a new year because it means performance review time. Many companies conduct their employee evaluations at the end of the calendar year, adding mounds of paperwork and tasks to an already busy season of closing out the year's business details.

According to a recent study by Forrester Research, "Paper- or e-mail-driven performance review processes are dreaded by managers and HR and are rarely compliant." The hectic timing and disdain for doing reviews often leave them rushed and ineffective.

However, companies like Authoria, Softscape and SuccessFactors are aiming to change that with their automated performance review software. The programs include document templates, let managers track employees' progress year-round, calculate employee scores based on company standard ratings, and provide writing assistance and coaching for effective feedback.

So, deck the halls with a little automation this year and spend your holidays surrounded by good cheer instead of employee files.--Lindsay Holloway

How well do you know your employees? Results from this year's American Express Business Gifting survey may help you find out. The survey found that 92 percent of companies polled will be giving year-end gifts to their employees, though only 64 percent of employees say they're expecting a gift from their employer. As for their gift of choice, 42 percent of companies plan on handing out gift cards this holiday, followed by spot cash bonuses (37 percent), company products (35 percent), food baskets (26 percent), merchandise (25 percent) and time off (24 percent). Once again, employees and employers are at odds: The survey reported 44 percent of employees wanting cash as their company's gift, followed by time off (17 percent) and gift cards (15 percent).

If you're still debating whether to hold your annual holiday party, the American Express survey found that employees have mixed feelings. Though about 27 percent said a company holiday event can be "fun and interesting," about half say they can "take it or leave it."

Does the thought of reverting to the days of dial-up make you cringe? According to this USA Today article, the internet could begin slowing down as a reaction to overwhelming use by 2010. Business technology analysts Nemertes Research found that interactive and video-intensive services will continue overwhelming local cable, phone and wireless internet providers--and consumers will be forced to deal with the effects. "Users will experience a slow, subtle degradation, so it's back to the bad old days of dial-up," said Nemertes President Johna Till Johnson. "The cool stuff that you'll want to do will be such a pain in the rear that you won't do it."

To prevent the slowdown from occurring, Nemertes says cable and phone companies in North America must invest about $55 billion. A large chunk of the high cost goes toward running new, high-capacity lines.

A survey conducted in early 2007 suggests there may be a correlation between the state of the economy and teens' desires to become entrepreneurs. According to the sixth annual JA Worldwide "Interprise Poll on Entrepreneurship," about 67 percent of teens surveyed said they would like to start their own business someday, down from about 71 percent in last year's poll. JA Worldwide president and CEO Gerald M. Czarnecki explains the drop: "Starting with the 2001 recession, the job market experienced considerable weakness for several years and teen interest in becoming entrepreneurs climbed. When the job market improves, as it has in recent years, interest in starting a business seems to decline," he said.

About 34 percent of teens surveyed cited earning more money as the top motivation for starting a business, in addition to being your own boss (21 percent) and having a great product or service idea (19 percent). To check out the rest of the poll results, visit the JA Research Center.