Kansas City Small Business Monthly is a resource for aspiring and established entrepreneurs and small business owners. The magazine offers both information and strategies for starting a business and improving business efficiency. It also provides a forum for recognizing and supporting the achievements of small business owners. Following are guidelines and matters of house style regarding articles written for the Kansas City Small Business Monthly.

Strategy articles (i.e., those that appear in Big Blue Marble, Electronic Planet, Financial Foundations, Health Matters, Legal Edge, People Power, Sales, Marketing & Promotion):

• Should be composed in second or third person (you or he/she/they), not first person (I/we).
• Should be 750–800 words long.
• Should present practical “how to” guidance about the topic under discussion.
• Should avoid marketing-oriented, self-serving verbiage.
• Are enhanced by use of subheads and bulleted/numbered lists where appropriate.
• Do not generally use interview sources/quotes.

Using an example to illustrate a point is fine, but generally avoid recommending businesses, products and services by name (unless the assignment is a review or market comparison).

Refer to The Associated Press Stylebook (2005) and Webster’s New World College Dictionary (4th ed.; 2004) for style, spelling, punctuation and usage guidance.

Writers should include a statement of title/professional credentials (e.g., John Grey is a freelance writer in Kansas City or Cathy Earnshaw is an analyst with Heathcliff Investments, specializing in financial services for small and mid-sized businesses) along with contact information (telephone number and/or e-mail address) at the foot of the article.

Deadlines are generally two months preceding issue date (i.e., March 1st for the May issue). Articles and stories should be submitted electronically. If this is not possible, please make arrangements with the Managing Editor for an alternative mode of submission.

All editorial inquiries and press releases should be directed to the Managing Editor (ellen@kcsmallbiz.com). We do accept unsolicited submissions; however, we suggest that anyone who is interested in writing an article submit via email a one-paragraph summary of their idea.