Small Business Blog

Ways to Save Money on Your Business Trip

2012-05-08T10:35:00.000-05:00

Business trips are a great way to network with other businesses and if you have the privilege of traveling for your company, congratulations—you have made it. While these trips can be stressful and enjoyable at the same time, budgeting for travel and finding ways to spend less will make things easier for you in the long run.

Be sure to create a customized budget for each trip according to the destination. It’s going to be significantly more expensive to go to Los Angeles than Detroit. Don’t just come up with an arbitrary number; research the place you are going and plan accordingly. You may want to temporarily hire a travel expert to set up a lot of the accommodations for you. There are also business travel plans out there that are packaged in a way that is more affordable than booking everything separately. Use discount travel companies; often you can do everything online.

Try to book air travel for the middle of the week when the rates are the lowest. Avoid luggage fees by only using a carry on (if possible) or flying with airlines that don’t charge a luggage fee. Save any unused tickets and apply them to future travel.

Consider using alternative transportation while you’re there such as subways and bus systems. If you do need a rental car, ask for one with a full tank of gas and fill it up before you return it—that way you are only paying for the gas you use. Waive the insurance if your personal auto insurance or credit card can cover it as these policies tend to be very expensive and the need to actually use the insurance policy is rare.

You can decide to have lunch with your clients instead of dinner. Lunch menus are generally less expensive than dinner menus and a restaurant that is outside your price range for dinner may be affordable for lunch. Focus on and plan the leisure part of the trip. You don’t want to be bored to tears when your meetings are over and if you plan activities in advance, you will spend less money. Stay in a hotel with a kitchen and buy ingredients for some of your meals at the grocery store to make them yourself. You can also take advantage of free breakfasts at the hotel. Finally, you should plan business trips as part of your yearly budget so you don’t overlook these costs and wind up in debt. All these tips will make business trips easier to manage and more relaxing. Make it happen!

The Pros and Cons of Hiring Contracted and Temp Employees

2012-04-19T13:57:00.006-05:00

When someone is searching for a job, most of the time, their goal is to obtain a permanent position, part-time or full time. They are looking for security, a place to grow in their skills, and they don’t want to have to worry about being unemployed again. However, there are times when a need for extra help arises and that need may not be long term. Therefore, a company decides to post an opening for a contracted or temporary position. People in search of this type of position may be a newcomer to their career field—college students and recent graduates, people who have had trouble finding work—people who have been fired and unemployed for months, even years, or people with a more undefined set of skills. There are specific characteristics and situations you will be looking for in a temporary or contract employee and there are positive and negative effects for the worker and the company from hiring a temporary employee.

Some reasons for hiring a temporary employee include employee absences, maternity leave, a sudden vacancy, special projects, or a peak in the season. When companies bring on temps, they can adjust more quickly to workload fluctuations. Their temporary status provides flexibility for them and for you: they may have other commitments to work around and you may not need them for eight hours a day, five days a week.

You can also evaluate the employee without making a commitment. You can determine if they are a good fit for your company and study their work performance—if you like what you see and the possibility is there, you can decide to offer them a permanent position. On the other hand, you know exactly how long they will be working for you as a temp and can release them without a lengthy explanation if you don’t see them fitting into your company long term. Temporary employees also save cost because you can offer them a lower pay rate and are not obligated to provide a benefit program and the same goes for independent contractors. With contractors, when there’s not work for them, you don’t need to pay them. When you hire through an agency, they can quickly help you find a qualified person and you can build a relationship with that agency.

With any temporary employee, there will be some need for training because there are skills and procedures specific to your company that they need to learn. Oftentimes, these employees have a lower morale because they don’t feel like an equal part of the team—although they should be treated with the same respect as any of your full-time employees. There are safety issues they must quickly be trained on and if they don’t learn them in time, there is a greater chance for injury. You don’t want to take any legal risks, either—make sure the timeframe and other terms of their employment are set in stone. For contractors, you do need to pay them according the market rate for the type of work they do and classify them correctly for taxes. They have control over whether or not they accept a project from you, making them less reliable. Finally,contractors are allowed to also work for your competitors—if they do great work for you, they’ll do great work for them.

All things considered, you may decide that hiring a temporary employee is just the thing to fit your current company needs. Just remember that most of the time, the benefits for you are the drawbacks for the employee, so make sure they are willing to work with them.

Pick Up the Phone!

2012-04-02T10:11:00.001-05:00

What is one of the first things you do when want to schedule an appointment somewhere or set up a meeting with a client? You call them! But have you ever called a business and the phone just kept ringing and ringing? Sometimes there may a prompt to leave a voicemail, but then it goes unreturned or the phone rings 15 times and you just give up. No one likes when this happens to them, so don’t do it to other people. Answer your phone!

Of course, that may not always be possible when you’re in the middle of a meeting or out of the building. But when you’re sitting at your desk typing an email or taking inventory in your stockroom and the phone rings, stop what you’re doing and answer it. Email is chosen as the primary method of contact far too often—people still value direct interaction and often this is a faster and more thorough way to accomplish business. Ignoring phone calls can make people frustrated with you and assume you don’t care to get back to them. It can also lead to missed business opportunities, with customers and with other businesses. Besides, what if that phone call was about a customer wanting to change their appointment? Or what if a supplier had a question about your order, but since you didn’t answer, they just made an assumption and went with it? You wouldn’t want to be unprepared or end up with 50 black polo shirts when you needed 50 white ones.

Breaking the habit of ignoring phone calls will save you time, face, and headache. Do the best you can to pick up the phone as much as possible and return calls as soon as possible. Make it happen.

© 2012 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Should I run an ad in the newspaper for a new employee?

2011-05-31T13:34:00.000-05:00

That depends, what type of position you are trying to fill? If the position is for an employee that will not have to be internet savvy, then the answer is yes. If you’re looking for a person that will be using the internet for communication in their position you should advertise the position online.

Looking for new employees is just like looking for new customers. Get into the mindset of prospect employees and post positions where they are most likely to look. For an online service like Careerbuilder.com or Monster.com you should plan on spending between $300 & $500. These two employment websites give you a better opportunity to provide a detailed description and overview for your positions. If you decide to post in a newspaper ad, you’ll be looking at less dollars but less space to talk about your position. If you place your ad online plan on putting an email address so people can email you. If you go with an ad in the newspaper be ready to answer the phone, because the people will be calling you.

Whichever way you go, be as descriptive as possible with your position and be ready to communicate with people about your available position right away. Don’t delay in getting back to people, the best ones go fast! Make it happen!

© 2011 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Do you need to train people on how to answer the phone?

2011-04-11T09:23:00.001-05:00

Yes and put it in writing. You want to create a phone presentation on exactly how you want your phones answered, your customers spoken to and how to end a phone call. Sounds simple right? Then do it. It shouldn’t matter if it’s your spouse or an employee at your company answering the phone; write down exactly how you would like it done.

Here’s an example for you: (phone rings and person answers) “eMarketing 4 Business….” Was this sufficient? No it wasn’t because it doesn’t give a name or ask how you can help someone. People are calling you because they want information about buying your products or services, customer assistance, or they want to speak to another employee. Knowing this, the best way to answer the phone would be to let the caller know who they are speaking to and recognizing they may need assistance. How about: “eMarketing 4 Business, this is Randy, How can I help you today?”

Answering this way takes little effort and makes people feel at ease when they call in. To get consistent behavior and results you must have a consistent service plan in your company, so write down how you want it done. That takes all the guesswork out of it and now you have a standard in which you can hold people accountable for. Try putting things in writing more and you will surprise yourself with the results you’ll get. Make it happen!

© 2011 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

How are you personally performing in your company, really?

2011-02-19T15:22:00.001-06:00

Judging and reflecting on your own personal performance is the hardest job of being an entrepreneur. It’s easy to criticize others’ performance but what your own? Are you really doing everything you can to grow your company or do you find yourself “thinking” about doing more?

Try this exercise, point your finger straight out like you are pointing at someone, now count how many fingers are pointing forward? Your index finger and your thumb, right? Now stop and look where your other three fingers are pointing? Yes, at you. So, one or two are pointing towards others, but the majority of them are pointing right back at you! I know, I know, you’re starting to get cranky because there are more fingers pointing back at you than at others.

In a normal eight hour day there are about 480 minutes (8 hours x 60 minutes) of working time. Most entrepreneurs that are starting to build their company work closer to 10 or 12 hours or 600 to 720 minutes per day. How much work are you really getting done in that time? Could you be doing more? Will you do more?

If you were work at an 80% efficiency rate, you can still accomplish a great deal each day. If you were making calls and each call took 5 minutes, you could make 12 calls an hour or approximately 100 calls in an 8 hour work period. Breaking it down to a simpler level lets you see just how much you can get done each day.

Now, think about getting paid by the minute instead of the hour. Do you think someone would take 35 cents a minute over $15 an hour? If they did they would end up making $43,680 a year instead of $31,200. If you had a goal of making a $1.00 per minute you would make $124,800 a year for a normal 8 hours a day, 5 days a week and 52 weeks a year.

Value your time and your results by the minute instead of the hour and start adding real value to your business and your income! Make it happen!

Click here to read a great article about efficiency ratings for employees and yourself.

© 2011 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Getting business cards and developing relationships

2011-01-03T11:04:00.000-06:00

You already know how important it is to have your own business cards handy at all times. Now that you have your own small business, you want to network with as many people as possible, so get as many peoples' business cards as you can. When you get these business cards, you'll want to utilize them in a way that is more than just filling your pocket. Don’t let them go into a desk drawer and sit for a month.

After you meet the person and get their card, give them a call to spark both your interests and prove your ability to communicate. If you get a hold of them great; if not, send them an email to make sure they see your interest. Then, the most effective way to spark a relationship is to do another follow-up call. Tip: be sure to keep track of these business cards in another place. Create a working document that stores all of these contacts. Business cards are easy to lose, and you want to be able to look at all of your contacts at once. Keep your contacts organized!

You want to network with potential clients and partners on a regular basis, so they see that you will be available when they want your services. Put yourself in the shoes of the person you are calling. Wouldn’t you like to see that they are attentive to your needs and interests? Of course you would, and subsequently you are interested in doing business with them. Make other businesses want to do business with you. Get their business card, give them a call. It is that easy. If the relationship doesn’t work out, you've only spent a few hours of your day trying to make it work. Even if it doesn’t work, you have made an impression and they will remember your name and company for a possible referral. You never want to miss out on a partner or client that will help to drive more business.

© 2011 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Do you take responsibility for the service your company provides?

2010-12-19T09:17:00.000-06:00

We’ve all had it happen; your airline seat has changed from the original you booked without any logical reason, so you question the people behind the counter. Their response is that they can’t do anything and you’ll have to check at the gate, unfortunately their hands are tied. You proceed to the gate and now those people are saying they can’t make a change because it is “beyond their control.” Every now and then you’ll get an employee that says “Sure I can take care of that, there is no reason that should have happened to you”.

The funny thing is you’re so happy someone is finally helping you that you forgot how poor the service was with the other two reps, this occurrence is called contrast. Initially, the customer service was so bad that when you finally received decent service (that you should have received from the beginning) it seemed superior. But it really wasn’t…

How is the service at your company? Is it just average or is it something you would like to receive and feel comfortable paying money for? Have you ever made an excuse for the service your company provided? If so, nobody wants to hear it, just like you don’t want to hear it when you get poor service.
Step up and provide service through your company that you would want to receive, not settle for. Service separates the successful company’s and the excuse makers. Excuse makers that offer poor service eventually go out of business.

We all know companies that give great service that we continue to support, and refer to our personal contacts, because of this, these companies will experience continued success. Be one of those companies and strive for excellent service. Make it happen!

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

What should I look out for when turning in a leased vehicle?

2010-11-19T11:27:00.000-06:00

Fees for Termination, Wear and Tear, and Mileage are the biggest things to look for. There are many horror stories of people turning in leased vehicles and the leasing companies, banks or dealerships charging them thousands of dollars for these fees. It seems the definition of “Wear and Tear” is typically not defined until you turn in the vehicle. When you lease a vehicle, you need to have all fees CLEARLY laid out for you IN WRITING before you sign the lease.

Here are some examples of fees to watch out for:

Lease termination fee - This is a fee the leasing company is charging you to “turn in” your vehicle to them. This can range from $250 - $500.

Wear and Tear fee - This is a fee the leasing company can charge for something that is typically not defined when you lease the car. When you prepare to turn it in they will come up with charges for excessive paint chips, dings, scratches, tire tread depth, gouges, worn carpeting, wear in seats and the list goes on! This can get really high, from $500 to over $1,000.

Investigation fees – These are fees they try to charge you to further investigate things like engine components, pulleys, belts, drive train, etc. Often the leasing company will try to charge you a flat fee to “check” these items and waive any additional fees if they find things. This fee is usually $250 - $500. Or they may try to “investigate further” to find other things. Refer to what you signed in your lease contract.

Mileage fees - These fees are assessed when you exceed the mileage you have contracted for. If you have an allowance of 12,000 miles per year and you have a 3-year lease, you have 36,000 miles. If you turn the vehicle in with 50,000 miles, you will be charged typically between .10 and .25 cents per additional mile. If you went over by 14,000 miles, this fee would be from $1,400 - $3,500 depending on the per mile charge.

Gap fees – This is the gap (the difference) between what your insurance company will pay if your vehicle gets stolen or totaled in an accident and what you still owe on the lease at the time of the loss. For example: If your vehicle is stolen half way through your lease and the insurance company will only pay $18,000.00 and your lease payoff amount in your contract is $22,500.00, you would have to pay the difference between what the insurance company will pay and what you pay the leasing company. This is the Gap fee.

How can you minimize these charges?

1) Clean up the vehicle before you turn it in.
2) Typically the leasing company will call you for a vehicle inspection before you turn it in. Get everything in writing.
3) Pull out the paperwork you signed when you took out the lease. Were you told any of this before you signed the papers? Did they give you examples of what the charges might be and did they go into this level of detail when you signed the paperwork? If not, why are they doing it now, after the fact? You will need to ask them to justify, from your contract, whatever items they are trying to get you to pay for now.

Be careful when leasing cars. Contracts are changing and leasing companies are looking for opportunities to charge fees on the back end of your contract. What seemed like lower payments during your lease term can end up haunting you when you turn the vehicle in, so be careful! If possible and if it makes fiscal sense (especially given all the fees above), purchasing your next vehicle might be the better way to go.

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Should I join a networking group?

2010-10-15T16:52:00.000-05:00

Networking is a vital activity for all businesses. Becoming a member in a networking group is a great way to expose your company to the public and other business advocates. The organizations available have standards and procedures in place that will assist you in becoming successful. With that said, each organization is tailored in its direction and not all may be great fits for you. But how do you know which ones are best to join? You’ll have to get proactive.

The only way to get an accurate sense is to attend different networking groups and base your decision off of these ‘trial meetings’. While you are there, talk to the members. It doesn’t cost anything to ask questions so start up conversations with multiple individuals. Try to get business cards from people you didn’t get a chance to speak with and give them a call later on that week.

Before you call, create an outline of questions that are important to you because like you, these individuals are busy and you don’t want to waste too much of their time. Here are some good sample questions to start off with:

What do you like best about the meetings?
What do you like least?
What kind of advice would you give a new person like me that is joining the group?
What’s the biggest benefit of being a member of the group from your perspective?
Are there other groups you think might be a good idea for me in my business?
How would I go about exchanging referrals with someone like you in the group?

After speaking with other members it will easier to decide if that group is good fit and positive use of your time. Talk to at least 5 people from the group before you decide to participate. If you decide to join one, participate fully. Step up or step aside. Make it happen!

Should I accept credit cards at my business?

2010-09-13T09:06:00.000-05:00

It’s always a good idea to provide prospective and existing customers with as many ways to pay you as possible. Accepting credit cards is a good way to accomplish this. There are many instances where it would be more convenient for a customer to pay you by credit card rather than sending a check, meaning you get paid faster. Before you run off and start accepting credit cards you’ll need to make sure you have a couple percent of your revenue to pay for this convenience.

Credit card companies usually charge between 2 – 4 percent of the total amount charged on the card as a service fee to process the transaction and deposit the money into your account. It is not unusual to also have a per-transaction fee as well. In addition many processing companies have minimum fees if your calculated fees do not exceed a certain amount each month. There may also be equipment rental costs if you need a machine to swipe credit cards at your business location. Be sure all of fees and charges are laid out in writing before you sign on the dotted line with a credit card processing company.

Lastly, since people can dispute and potentially decline credit card charges, it is a good idea to make sure your credit card terms and conditions are clear and are available to your customers. Giving customers several ways to pay is a good idea for most businesses but that’s the great thing about having your own business…You get to decide!

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Pick up the phone every now and then!

2010-08-10T16:35:00.000-05:00

Email is just too easy sometimes. It’s good to pick up the phone every now and then and have a real conversation with people. Not just friends but customers too. We get too good at email and text communication. If they’re in town, set up a lunch and get face to face. If they’re out of town then spend a few extra minutes and have a phone call with them.

Take a minute or two before you get on the call and jot down a few things to talk to them about. Ask how they are doing, the family and then after a little small talk you can transition to some business. You may find some other business you can do with them or a project for someone you know. Each time you give out a referral you should expect at least one back.

I know you’ll be on the phone longer with a real call than you will with a text or email but sometimes you just need to “put a voice” with the text....

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Do people really call from vehicle signage?

2010-06-16T15:02:00.002-05:00

If they can find you! I was driving the other day and I saw a truck that said "Reliable Painting" and it had a phone number on it. By the time I realized what they did, they were too far away from me in traffic and I couldn’t see their phone number. I saw the area code and it was local so when I got home I Googled them but nothing came up by that name. I called them because their truck was clean and the ladders, lettering and everything I saw led me to believe they “looked credible.”

The sad thing was I couldn’t find them when I looked them up online. Nothing about their business came up and they did not have a website, at least not one I could find.

The moral of the story? Make sure your business is findable online. Make it happen!

For more information on why your business may or may not be findable online, read this article too.

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

What percentage of influence do my words have on people?

2010-04-21T10:02:00.000-05:00

There are many factors that influence our interaction with other people. Here are the three primary drivers:

1) Words
2) Voice tone, quality and pacing
3) Facial expressions and body language

We interact with people all day long every day in business. So which one of these is more important than the other? It’s a great question with some answers that might surprise you.

Let’s say you tell someone they’re doing a good job….now that’s a pretty good one to make someone feel good. How much influence do you think you have on them with those words? 90%, 60, 50?

How about if you tell them they’re doing a good job and your voice emphasizes the “good job” part, what percent do you think that will affect them? 50%, 75, 100?

Now how about if you smile, shake their hand and tell them they’re doing a good job, what percent do you think that will affect them? 100%, 90, 10%?

There have been all kinds of studies about this kind of thing and here is how our ability to influence people breaks down in the three primary areas:

1) Words 7%
2) Voice tone & Quality 38%
3) Facial expressions and Body Language 55%

Words don’t mean as much as we think without a good tone in our voice and some good facial expressions to go along with it! Keep in mind your facial expressions and body language should still be in “full force” and working even when you’re on the phone.

Make it happen!

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Is changing your website Killing you?

2010-03-08T13:45:00.001-06:00

We get lots of calls from people who are absolutely frustrated with the company they bought their website from. They purchase a website from a website building company and then they pull out their hair trying to make changes to the site. That’s because most website builders are not business people or content creators...they are website builders. They don’t know what a small business person goes through and how frustrating it can be trying to make changes to a website or get customer service on a website you bought.

That’s why we make all of our websites at eMarketing 4 Business with the small business owner in mind. We know they will want to make changes to their website every now and then and we have an easy to use interface and tool so they can make changes. But if the small business owner needs our help we will make the changes for them.

We are here for the small business owner, we answer our phones and best of all, we get you results!

Call us to find out how we can get you your own website or how we can help you with your current website. Please call Vince at: 262.513.5220 for a free consultation.

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

How come getting new business isn’t as clear to me as getting a new car?

2010-01-18T17:23:00.000-06:00

When you decide to get a new car your emotions get involved. We start focusing on the car we want and we can see the shiny paint color, smell the leather, and hear the roar of the engine. Basically, we see ourselves driving it and emotionally we begin to crave this product. Very quickly, our minds become trained to notice these cars more often and soon we begin to see the same car everywhere!

Funny thing is, there aren’t any more of these cars on the road now then when they first peaked your interest. Your brain has just started to “pay more attention” now. This is human nature; the more thought and emotion you put behind something, the more your brain figures you want it, so it starts picking out and noticing those kinds of things.

Think about your business, do you put this much energy and emotion into getting new customers? If not, that may be why you’re not getting as many as you would like. Start projecting out all the benefits and enjoyment you will have by adding new customers to your business. Think about how happy those new customers will be enjoying your products or services and the positive experience they will receive working with you or someone else on your team. Do you find it hard to get emotional about this? If so, you’ve found your answer: lack of passion.

Time to re-invigorate and remind yourself about all the reasons you went into business for yourself in the first place! All those same emotions and passion need to resurface so your brain can once again get excited about it. Remember, you get what you focus on, so focus on the right things! Make it happen!

© 2010 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

What are the top 3 financial questions you must be able to answer about your company?

2009-12-11T10:27:00.001-06:00

1) Are you making money?

In many new businesses, the owner is putting so many of the companies expenses on credit cards that answering this question is more difficult than just looking at the business check book balance. They never spend the time to create a profit and loss statement to figure out if they are REALLY making money! Whether you are or not, the profit and loss statement should give ideas of where to focus your time. That may mean watching expenses or increasing sales of more profitable items.

2) How much does a new sale cost you?

I am always surprised at how many business owners can not answer this question. To get the answer, you need to add up all of your expenses associated with a sale. Many people want to just include the price of the lead, but don’t forget to include items such as: costs of leads that didn’t close, other advertising you do, salaries/commissions for sales staff, cost of item sold (product or service). It is best to know these costs per product/service line. This helps you know if the selling expenses associated with a particular product/service is eating up all your profit margins for that product/service.

3) What is the future value, in terms of revenue, of each of your customers?

This means how much business can you plan on getting from each of your new customers in the future? If you have consumable products, how often can you expect each customer to reorder? If you provide a service, when can you expect to do more work for each customer? Knowing the amount and frequency of repeat business allows you to better plan your company’s growth with each new customer won!

Having the answers to each of these questions will help keep you on top of the financial well being of your company.

© 2009 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

How fast should I return phone calls and emails?

2009-11-09T15:23:00.000-06:00

As soon as you can. By getting in the habit of returning your phone calls and emails as soon as practical, you will get more things done and less things will fall in the cracks. For sure there are times when you need to do some research, think about things before you do it or commit to it but in general you want to respond sooner rather than later. I know people who like to wait several hours or a day before returning emails.

Keep in mind you are setting an expectation with the people you communicate with that it is okay to wait half a day or a full day before responding to any communication from YOU. Treat others as you would like to be treated. Be careful what message you are sending to people with the way you return calls and emails.

When in doubt, always respond as soon as possible.

© 2009 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Marketing 101: Don’t blow your shot!

2009-10-11T17:29:00.000-05:00

Who doesn't love a good massage? I feel very fortunate I am able to get one of these stress relieving, knot reducing, self indulging acts on a regular basis to ease the pain from all this typing! When you think of massages, marketing typically doesn’t pop into your mind but for many masseuses marketing is a key tool for obtaining a full clientele base.

I have used the same masseuse for many years now, not only out of loyalty but because their services were bar none. More recently, I was approached by a new therapist who heard about my frequent massages. She attempted to sell us on her services raving how her techniques for deep tissue massage were second to none and that is was absolutely necessary we give her a try. Since deep massages are my forte and this therapist seemed to really understand the concept to giving deep sports type massage I thought I would be willing to try out her services.

As the new therapist's luck with have it, my current masseuse needed to change my schedule around, which did not work out for me and so I decided to contact the new therapist. I made several attempts to contact her via phone and email a couple days ago and I still have NOT HEARD FROM HER!

This brings up a very serious question. Why would the new therapist spend an intense amount of time trying to obtain my business and when the opportunity presented itself she completely dropped the ball? The answer remains a mystery but because of her lack of dependability, she blew it. If this is how she is treating me as a potential customer, how will I be treated once she gains my business when she no longer has to work for it? Unfortunately, she will never get the opportunity.

Not only do you never get a second chance to make a first impression, with some customers you'll never get another chance period. Keep this mind when marketing you services and products. Don’t spend the time to obtain potential customers if you don't plan on staying consistent with your business etiquette.

© 2009 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Is there room for new strategic partners?

2009-09-15T15:34:00.005-05:00

While we all try to survive the economic downturn, it might be worthwhile for you to open up your playbook and consider entering into some new strategic business relationships. You may not be as busy as you once were, and now could be a good time to not only seek out new strategic partners, but to re-visit some of the past partnership ideas that you originally passed on.

Perhaps you were too busy a year ago to pay attention to another small business that wanted to work with you. If you still have a contact at that company, reach out to them and ask them how business is going. Something like a word of mouth referral is worth your time.

It would be a good idea to have your own ideas about how you can make the alliance an effective one, but be more of a listener when you approach the other business. You don’t want to step on anyone’s feet, so listen to what avenues they are willing to explore and be ready to adjust your position on how you can help each other to be successful.

The best way to prepare when approaching these companies is by familiarizing yourself with what they do. What is their company history? What is their mission statement? What is their service and who are they trying to help? Who are their current partners? Visit their website and polish up on your general knowledge about the company. This makes you conversational and credible when speaking about potential business ventures.

Whether you end up trading contacts, providing each other with leads or website links, a little can go a long way during difficult times. Dig up those old business cards and go through your old emails, you never know who might help your small business get back on its feet!

© 2009 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

How much money should I spend on office supplies to set up my home office?

2009-08-14T17:24:00.000-05:00

As little as possible! Too many people go crazy trying to set up their home office to be perfect, to have all the gadgets, new furniture, computers and all kinds of other things. Get what you need to function to start and AFTER you start making money you can think about getting more. Get focused on marketing your new business, tell everyone you know about your new company and try to get referrals. Get your business cards out to people and keep your website up to date.

Start making money with your new business before you start making additional investments in office equipment you don't need yet. Make it happen!

© 2008 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Make your business more appealing by getting involved with other businesses

2009-06-25T13:18:00.003-05:00

Why not give yourself another competitive edge by associating your small business with something that catches people’s interest? Establishing a relationship with another company or organization does a few different things for you and your business. First, it puts your company name in front of more potential customers. It can also help to establish your company’s credibility. Thirdly, and perhaps the most important reasons to associate with something interesting – is that it’s fun. You should be involved with a business that you have fun running, and shouldn’t be doing it if it isn’t fun.

Focus on having fun and the outcome (money) is more likely to be what you have hoped for. Subsequently, you can pick and choose the types of companies and organizations that you might want to be connected with. If you haven’t already developed unique relationships that separate you from your competitors, start brainstorming about who you might want to deal with immediately. Your first step might come with looking at some popular websites that generate a lot of traffic, and evaluate who they are associating themselves with.Some companies might partner with similar companies within the same industry. Another company may be committed to giving back to charitable organizations in their community. If you end up coming together with a charitable group, you might incent potential customers to invest in your business by donating a small percentage of their purchase toward that charity. People are very careful with their money, but are often times more willing to participate when they are standing behind a cause that gives back.

Be creative though, think about ways that your company might be able to help a company in a totally different industry. Perhaps you are a construction company that is capable of building a set for a movie. Why not find a company in the movie industry that has filming locations available, and see if you can put their logo on your website? Most companies would be happy to have the additional exposure – they might even do the same for you – and of course you might end up finding some additional jobs.If there are well respected unions or organizations that you can join, it’s another way to raise your credibility. If you become part of a particular group they might let you place their logo on your site. This will indicate to customers and potential buyers that you are an industry player and have associates in the industry.Remember to have fun, and the possibilities are limitless. In fact, there are probably hundreds of different companies and groups that will allow room for some sort of partnership. It’s just a matter of you putting in the time to think about how you can help others, while they help you.

© 2008 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Don’t be afraid to bring back old school business tactics

2009-06-03T10:32:00.003-05:00

Over the years a number of owners have gotten away from some of the oldest business tactics in the book. Now that we are able to contact people so conveniently with cell phones and email, owners are not handing out their business cards as often as they used to. This is a fundamental lapse in business tactics, as you may be missing out on potential customers every time you are away from home or the office. The best way to do business is by doing it 365 days a year. You never know who you might run into when you are at the grocery store, a ball game or any other place that involves people.

The first way to ensure that you are doing business year round and marketing all the time is by ordering yourself some business cards in considerable bulk. It might be one business card alone that pays for this cost one hundred times over. The second way to be sure that you don’t miss lucrative business opportunities and potential deals is by making sure that you always have business cards both in your wallet and in your car. Even if you are out to dinner and realize you don’t have a card on you, you can pop out to your car and grab a few to hand out. The best way to do business is to go find the business, and not make it come to you. You never know who you will run into that might run into. Always carry business cards with you and be sure to hand them out to anyone and everyone, including family and friends.
© 2008 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

I just started my small business…now what do I do?

2009-05-20T10:52:00.002-05:00

First of all, congratulations! You’ve got your business all set and ready to go - now it’s time to make some money! That’s the challenge for all small business owners, so although there isn’t a silver bullet, there are some things you can put in place right now to be successful.

The first thing you need to start doing is marketing. Do all of your friends and family know about your business? If not, tell them. Tell everyone you know about your business. Do you have business cards to hand out to anyone and everyone? Never leave home without some business cards. Put them in your car, in your wallet, everywhere. You never know when you’ll be somewhere and meet a potential new customer. Do you have a website? If not, get one. 70% of all searches for services begin online now rather than through Google and Yahoo!. A website will give you credibility, and chances are people will remember your company name rather than your phone number, so they’ll search for you online by your name when looking for a phone number. Do you have flyers for your small business? If not, buy them. Flyers are great for handing out in mass quantities, whether it’s at a picnic or a community event. They’re easy to hold on to and easy for potential customers to read.

The second thing you need to start doing is developing your service model. You will want to do what you tell your customers you’re going to do and do it with the highest level of customer service. You want your customers to know you are the number one specialist in your industry. Let them know you are committed to doing whatever it takes to ensure quality. From the first time you meet a potential customer to each time you do business, you will want to build your service so that the customer knows what to expect from you and that they can depend on you. The key here is to make sure you treat everyone the same and treat them the way you would want to be treated. You never know who your customers know.

The last thing you want to do is develop some type of referral program. Once you’ve found new customers and service them with the highest level of care, you can start asking for referrals. If you have fulfilled your customers’ needs and provided a great service, you have earned the right to ask them who they know – and if you have done what you say you are going to do – they will be happy to refer their friends. When asking for the referral, confirm with the customer that you have exceeded their expectations. Then say that in order to grow your business, you are looking to meet other people that they know that may also need your services. Use open-ended questions like, “Who else do you know in the neighborhood?” or “Who else in your family might need help getting started?”, and make the questions specific to a group. You can offer customers who provide referrals a free service or money off their next purchase.

Good luck!
© 2008 eMarketing 4 Business LLC

Do I need Letterhead and Envelopes for my business?

2009-05-11T10:31:00.001-05:00

Most businesses don’t really have a need for letterhead and envelopes. People used to think you were a “real business” if you had letterhead and envelopes and now people tend to want to look a business up online and see if they have a web site or any kind of internet presence for validation. For sure you still need to have business cards to be able to pass out to people but if you have a web site, letterhead and envelopes aren’t as necessary any more.

Not to mention so much of today’s business is done by email. If you do need to send someone something by “snail mail” then you can easily type your company name, address and phone number in the upper middle portion of your letter and generate the printed envelope from your printer and then provide your email and your domain name for your web site in the letter for additional validation.

If you still feel like you need to have letterhead made, than have someone create letterhead for you in a word document, then all you need to do is put nice paper in your printer and print it out in color instead of buying a bunch of letterhead and envelopes that you’ll probably never use.

© 2008 eMarketing 4 Business LLC