Tip Alert - Advice to Avoid

People are always trying to be helpful but that doesn't always mean that each and every piece of advice they are doling out are gems. Courtesy of Mashable, here are five of the worst pieces of advice small business owners hear.

1. Hire people you know: Sometimes your best friend will be the perfect business partner but not always. It's important to determine the specific expertise and skill sets your company needs, rather than trying to figure out how your second cousin will fit into the new business.

2. There's no room for you in the market: Nobody likes a negative Nelly and it's not true that every new business needs to come from a 100% original idea. Rather than struggling to come up with a brand new idea, take a look at your target industry and see where there's a void to be filled. Figure out the best possible way to fill that need and run with it.

3. You have to be cheaper than you competitors: Many young companies feel the pressure to discount their prices heavily in order to win business. In the long run, you're better off focusing on how to bring more value to customers, rather than simply slashing your prices

4. Social media is free: While technically you can start accounts on most social media platforms for free, managing social media is a time consuming task and any small business owner will agree that their time is anything but free.

5. You have to spend money to make money: This may be true in some cases but it by no means is a hard and fast rule. Be sure to give thought into what you are spending your money on to make sure it is a worthwhile investment in your business and you are making that money back in returns.

This post was originally posted on Mashable and we proudly share it with our small business readers in an effort to continuously provide them with tools to better their businesses.