Small Business Encyclopedia
Letter: N

Naming a Business

The act of selecting a word or words by which your company will be known

Negotiation

The act of discussing an issue between two or more parties with competing interests with an aim of coming to an agreement

Net Worth

The amount of equity a company has, which is the difference between its total assets and total liabilities.

Network Marketing

A business model in which a distributor network is needed to build the business. Usually such businesses are also multilevel marketing in nature in that payouts occur at more than one level.

Networking

Developing and using contacts made in business for purposes beyond the reason for the initial contact. For example, a sales representative may ask a customer for names of others who may be interested in his product.

Newspaper Advertising

Print ads that run in local or national, daily or weekly news publications

Niche Marketing

A portion of a market that you've identified as having some special characteristic and that's worth marketing to

Noncompete Clause

Contracts between you and your employees in which your employees promise not to take what they learn while working for you and use it against you while working for a competitor. A typical noncompete agreement says the employee agrees not to work for rivals, solicit business from current clients, or otherwise compete with you for some period of time, such as a year, after leaving your company.

Nonprofit Corporation

A business organization that serves some public purpose and therefore enjoys special treatment under the law. Nonprofit corporations, contrary to their name, can make a profit but can't be designed primarily for profit-making.

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