Small business is the economic backbone of America and certainly the path to any economic recovery. - Inspired by John Jantsch, marketing blogger

After last Friday's passage of the $700 billion bailout measure, there are still plenty of skeptics who argue there are smarter alternatives. Some critics argue that we are forgetting our country's core business identity: the small business.

John Jantsch at Duct Tape Marketing writes: "How small business makes money, who they serve, when and where they work has little to do with the Dow Jones Index - a fatally flawed gauge of just 30 companies. Forget the Dow and focus on these numbers instead - lead generated, leads converted, average $ per transaction, average number of transactions per customer - and the turnaround will get underway."

The numbers: Over the last six months, large businesses have lost more than 170,000 jobs while small businesses saw over 200,000 jobs created during that same timeframe. According to the ADP National Employment Report and ADP Small Business Report, new data shows a continuation of this trend. In September alone, small businesses added 28,000 jobs.