This month the winners of the 5th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business were announced at the awards dinner in New York. This year I have the honor once again to be on the Board of Distinguished Judges.

The Stevie Awards has been called "the business world's own Oscar Awards" according to the New York Post. This year over 50 categories were open for competition. Winners include:

• Best New Product of the Year: MyStrategicPlan Software, M3 Planning Inc, Reno, NV
• Best New Service of the Year: Thyme for School, Thyme Out, Gaithersburg, MD
• Blog of the Year: Theglasshammer.com by Nicki Gilmour, Evolved People Media LLC, Brooklyn, NY
• Fastest-Growing Company of the Year:Search Wizards, Inc, Atlanta, GA

Strength occurs in numbers. Nothing can be more powerful for economic survival than combining the resources of various companies through the power of joint ventures, co-branding and strategic alliances.

A joint venture or strategic alliance is a form of partnership where businesses come together to share knowledge, markets, and profits. It's typical for a small business to balk at the thought of sharing customers and revenue but the sum can be greater than the parts.

What can you gain from forming a joint venture or strategic alliance?

• access to larger markets and greater customer base
• reduced marketing expenses and risks
• tap others with better core strengths

While a joint venture can reap many rewards for small business, one has to take the necessary cautions by doing due diligence and creating a joint venture agreement.

Should you or shouldn't you? That's a question to ask this year when it comes time to send your customers a holiday greeting card. No doubt, you have focused your business gaze on cost-cutting measures and the bottom line but should this expense be eliminated from this year's market budget?

It's easy to dismiss the impact a holiday business greeting card can have in times like these. Corporate gift buying may be out of the question but holiday cards are a smaller expense. Think about it for a minute. Your customers today have so far made a decision to stick with your business and are remaining loyal. A personalized thank you note or greeting card can simply say to clients how much you really appreciate their business.

A Hallmark Business Expression survey found 78 percent of respondents receive holiday cards from businesses and half of those recipients are more likely to do future business with a company that sends holiday greeting cards. An act of appreciation can keep you on the top of the mind of your most loyal customers.

They don't call it snail mail for nothing. A business letter mailed back in March 1972 has finally reach it's location. According to CanWest News, a Windsor pizza business owner received the dated mail which was addressed to the Canadian Acceptance Company. After 36 years, the paper clip had rusted on the document. Canada Post is unsure of how the letter took so long to deliver.

Today, the speed of sending business communications takes a few seconds compared to regular mail. But have we lost something in the age of connectivity.

Remember the fine art of sitting down and writing a business letter. In the slower days of past, the process of writing a business letter was something mulled over and delivered after a final edit. An email is often sent with a push of the button and in many cases, the sender never takes the time to review it. When your correspondence is sent in a click, it's important to remember the old rules of business letter writing still apply. Use proper email etiquette and read what you wrote before it's too late.