Small Business Propel: Getting Clear 3.3- What To Spend Money On

Earlier, I suggested that you spend a few minutes getting clear about YOU.  If you missed the post, you can read it here.

Today we are going to explore the subject of MONEY.

In my experience, many business owners get started thinking that they are going to get what is needed to run a business as sales come in.  Still, there is a large group of folks out there that think they can do everything and get by until the money is there.  As a side note, as much as it is a huge passion of mine to help women owned companies grow, this idea that we (women) can run and establish a company much like we run our households (meaning that we will do it all ourselves) is; in my opinion, one of the foundation reasons why female owned businesses fail at scary rates compared to male’s.

One reality of business that we all need to be clear about is that it takes money to do things right.  One does not need necessarily to spend thousands but there are areas where there are no short cuts.

If you opt for either not spending the money on these things, or you think that you can do them the right way on your own I suspect that the rate of failure will increase many fold and that is nothing compared to the risk to yourself and/or your family.

So here is my list of things that most business owners should spend money on:

• Consultation with a CPA do determine what business formation type(s) are most advantageous to you.
• Hiring an attorney to legally form your business entity type and protect you and your family from law suits.
• Hiring a bookkeeper to help you set up at the onset your accounting system and teach you how to enter/categorize transactions so that you can file takes without pulling your hair out when the time comes.
• Open a BUSINESS BANK ACCOUNT.  If you are too cheap to spend $10/month to keep all of your business money separate and properly managed I need to wonder if you should be in business.  You can find free accounts out there but think carefully about features that can make your life much easier.

• Open a BUSINESS SAVINGS ACCOUNT where you will move a designated % of your revenues to be re-invested in growth related activities.

• Hire a professional to help you create your corporate identity and brand.

• Hire a professional to design your logo, business cards, and web site.  The choice is this: either attract the right buyers to you or turn people off by looking like this is a hobby and not a real business.

• Have your web site professionally search engine optimized.

• Set a budget for your networking activities, trade shows, or other in person selling opportunities.

• Purchase the equipment that you need to operate.

Based on my experience as a business owner and also a former business banker, I estimate that you can do all of these things (well done) for about $5000.

One way to make this work is to make an initial deposit into your business bank account for this sum or whatever sum you came up with so that you can emotionally part with the money and know that it is allotted to doing the right thing.  If you don’t, it will become an emotional thing each time that you have to write a check or you will stall to do it.

By +Maria Ryan McElhenny

 

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Small Business Propel: Getting Clear 3.2- Yes, You Are Going To Sell

In the last segment, I shared some ideas to help you get clear about you.  If you missed it, go to Small BusinessPropel:  Getting Clear 3.1- About You; to get clear.

Today I am going to help you get some clarity about the selling issue.  The thing is that most business owners that I have met hate the idea of being a sales person but we both know that unless you come up with the greatest thing since sliced bread, you are going to need to find a way to sell your product or service unless you have the capital to hire people to do it for you.

So a million years ago, when I hated the idea myself, I had to create ways of getting me to do it knowing that without a strategy I would find how to avoid it at all costs. 

OK, first get clear:

·        My product or service will not sell itself.

·        If I have a great thing to offer, why would people not want it?

·        If I am not connecting to potential buyers how will they find out about my offerings?

·        Potential buyers will get an inferior product or service when they buy elsewhere.

Now, here are strategies that I have used and continue to use very successfully:

·        In the early stages of a business, spend 70% of your time doing a combination of activities that connect you to potential buyers.

·        Select two or more networking places where your target market goes.  Sign up and pay the fee. Put it on your calendar.  (By registering and paying you will not make last minute excuses not to go.)

·        Commit to going to two events per week consistently so that you get to know people and they get to know you.  Do not go to drink for happy hour and have a relaxing time.  This is part of your sales plan.

·        Find and set up speaking opportunities and educate people on your area of expertise.

·        Set up a blog and begin to share ideas, comments, tips, promotions, relevant information.  Do this weekly and find out where to post it so people will find it.

·        Select the best social media for your market and work on it 3 times per week.

·        Do not go crazy trying to do all social media types and spend all of your time doing a little here and a little there.  Commit to one and do it well and consistently.

·        Set aside one day a week to schedule one on one meetings with people in related areas.  Schedule for the following week (after you have blocked out when you are networking, blogging, and doing social media).

·        Spend 2 hours per week helping a related business get referrals from you.

·        Spend 8 hours per week of phone follow up:  thank people for spending time with you at an event, set up a one on one, and follow up on any requests for information, schedule appointments, and call referrals that you got.

·        If you hate the phone, use the sandwich method:  do one hour of other sales related tasks that you like better, then call for one hour, then do another more desirable task.

·        Identify the characteristics of a new group of people or business that need and use your product or service line.

·        Spend at least 4 hours per week looking to introduce your company to that market segment.  Create an effective email that you can send via Linked-in to individuals in your target market.  Use the same email to create an email blast for your contacts.

·        Develop your sales kit:  presentation materials, samples, contracts, etc.

·        If you hate talking about money, have a price list at all times and include a “sign up or buy me now” form.

·        Have an effective logo, business cards, and web site.  You are either selling or UNSELLING yourself every time a person sees one of these items.

·        Spend money on SEO for your website, or take the very long time it takes to learn this stuff and get it done.

·        When you can afford it, spend on advertising.

So the bottom line is that if you are spending at least 70% of your time doing selling, marketing, and/or related activities your chances of success go up tremendously.

Paper work, bookkeeping, spending hours learning how to do something that you have no clue how to do, let alone do it effectively is a sure way to run you out of business.

Until such time as you can pay others to do it, yes-you are going to sell.

By +Maria Ryan McElhenny

 

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Small Business Propel: Getting Clear 3.1- About You

Why do you want to have your own business?

There are people that start businesses for all sorts of reasons ranging from the ego satisfaction of feeling like “I am independent”, “I want to be rich” to “I can’t find a job”, “I am sick of corporate America”, and on and on.

There are so many great things about having your own business (I should know since I have one) but I believe that there is a time, a place, and a mind set for it to amount to more than a dream.

I am convinced that the mind set of success requires way more than just great skill at what you do and the ability to work hard.  Equally important is to be brutally honest with yourself and to be crystal clear about yourself.

What I propose is that you take inventory of the skills, tasks, processes, likes, dislikes, and even contemplate how you will define success or failure in this business.

For now, I will propose some questions that you may want to explore to help you gain clarity.  In the upcoming articles I will expand some of these issues to help you drill down into subjects that require more detail thought.

So let’s start here:

·        How long can you afford to make no or small amounts of money?

·        Do you have money set aside for the initial investment that the business will require in terms of equipment, marketing, manpower, legal, insurance, supplies, etc.?

·        What specific tasks will you do in this company?

·        What specific tasks that you will do are the ones you like and want to do?

·        What specific tasks that you will do are the ones you dislike and want to not do?

·        Do you have a process for getting you to do what you don’t want to do? (In other words… preventing you from procrastination, avoidance, making excuses, and simply not getting those done)

·        Are you willing to be a sales person and if not, are you planning on hiring one?

·        In general, are you self-motivated or do you need structure and deadlines to get things done?

By now, you may be thinking that this is negative stuff or potentially a turn off from having your own business but I think that this level of honesty and clarity is in fact, what can help you plan on taking action early on the areas that could drive you out of business.  There are plenty of tools, ideas, training, and hired help with just about any topic that you need to deal with; and this can be of great value and allow you to thrive.

You can only empower yourself to get things done that needs to get done when you have clear on your mind what it will take to make it happen.

By +Maria Ryan 

 

 

 

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