Business

Which drives you crazier when on hold with a company? An endless loop of smooth jazz tunes or hearing "your call is very important" every 10 seconds? Scientists have actually studied what makes waiting on hold worse.

By Dave Roos

Ever had a friend try to get you to sell Mary Kay, Rodan & Fields, Pampered Chef, jewelry, oils or some other product from home? How much can you really expect to earn doing these?

By Dave Roos

From Kendall Jenner attempting to end police brutality with a Pepsi to H&M's "The Coolest Monkey in the Jungle" ad, let's just say some of these brands didn't get it right.

By Khiry Clements

From Muzak to Mood Media, retailers are banking on music for more sales.

By Cherise Threewitt

Why get stuck with a useless jersey when your favorite football star gets traded to another team? A new company lets you switch out shirts as often as you wish.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

The 1993 case of Earring Magic Ken shows how marketing and focus groups can inadvertently create a kitsch classic. Mattel found this out the hard way.

By Bryan Young

People claim to hate pop-ups ads, and their more recent successor, the hover ad. Yet they still click on them. Here's why.

By Dave Roos

One hundred percent of female mannequins in a new U.K. study represented underweight individuals, while only 8 percent of male mannequins did the same.

By Jesslyn Shields

Is your cluttered desk a sign of creative genius or just chaos? Experts weigh in on whether either is really a true reflection of how your brain operates.

By Alia Hoyt

Mike Marts, the AfterShock editor-in-chief and co-founder, looks back at the diverse roster of titles and genres published by the new company.

By Christian Sager

As more toll roads move away from cash, where does that leave drivers who don't have electronic passes? Or even exact change?

By Jesslyn Shields

Pesky vowels. Who needs those, anyway?

By Kate Kershner

If human nutrition is essentially universal, why do yogurt commercials feature women so prominently?

By Laurie L. Dove

In an effort to discourage food waste, some all-you-can-eat buffets are charging diners whose eyes are bigger than their stomachs.

By Chris Opfer

A startup app called OneGo aims to find a niche as a provider of all-you-can-fly pricing for domestic air travel, for those who can afford the monthly membership.

By Patrick J. Kiger

You can learn about leadership in the darnedest of places. Like the 1980s television program "The Transformers."

By Christian Sager

Rooftop gardens and nap pods sound cool, but that's not what employees really value, nor do they help the bottom line, say experts.

By Dave Roos

No child needs a lemonade stand to make money, these days.

By Dave Roos

If advertisers buried hidden messages in commercials or print ads, would you be susceptible to them? Or are subliminal messages just a hoax?

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

Creating a website can be a pricey proposition for a small business. There are grants out there that can fund website development, but the competition is fierce — and the grants often come with strings attached.

By Gerlinda Grimes

From Disney and Mattel to Apple and Amazon, countless U.S. business staples have started in someone's home. The Internet only makes this feat easier. Could your home be the incubator for the next big online company?

By Gerlinda Grimes

Is it true that online businesses have lower startup costs than traditional companies? Sometimes. Etsy shops are fairly cheap, but it'll be a different story if you're trying to launch the world's next great technology.

By Gerlinda Grimes

Licensing seems so arbitrary — why do you need a license to catch a fish, for example, but not to be a parent? Sometimes, though, you need to follow the rules and get one. Is selling things online one of those times?

By Gerlinda Grimes

Many companies that used to have dedicated business servers are now switching to cloud-based storage solutions. But cloud computing isn't for everyone, so take a few minutes to read this article before you shut down that server.

By Gerlinda Grimes

Diamonds are rare? Not really. They became an engagement ring staple, thanks to a clever public relations campaign. Bacon for breakfast? That was another PR job.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus