Ufoc Franchisor Disclosure Documents And How To Get Them

Writen by Lance Winslow

How can a person who is interested in a franchise business study the mandatory UFOC Uniform Franchise Offering Circulars without having to contact the company and have a salesman hounding them? Well it is possible to get a companies UFOC fairly easily, as many states and countries require them to be registered and have on hand a copy you see?

Also some smart entrepreneurs have developed websites and will offer them to you online for a small fee; Go to http://www.franchise.com as an example of this. They sell them online I believe. But you can also get them from any registration state by asking them and paying for the copies. There are also books by Robert Bond on Amazon.com, which will allow you to evaluate the offerings side by side.

Not all Countries in the EU require such disclosure registered documents with their country, but most do. And the ones that do can help you get them there if you live in Europe. Actually in a perfect world and maybe someday there should be one law for Middle East, USA, Australia, Asia and EU and it should be simplified to allow better money flows between nations, better concepts, more efficiency in markets and more unity thru the share of culture.

It would be best for all concerned and the World would become a closer place. It should be done. If I were in charge I would make it a mission of the UN to see this thru and ask for the support of the World Bank and all industrialized and immerging nations. Consider this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

Your Business Success Checklist

Writen by Megan Tough

As a business coach, I spend a lot of time working with people who want to improve different aspects of their business. Many times these aspects are merely symptoms of a more fundamental, underlying issue.

If you want your business to truly shine, then there are some basic principles that, if not present, can lead to sub standard performance in other areas. And here they are:

1. Crystal clear purpose

The most common reason companies run into trouble is losing sight of the customer and their needs. Having a crystal clear purpose helps keep the focus from becoming too internally fixated, instead articulating why the business exists from the customer's perspective. A clear and inspiring purpose will also give your employees a reason to be connected with their hearts, not just their minds.

2. Discipline

Sometimes this is an unpopular topic, but it is critical. Discipline means having a sharp and constant focus on your objectives, whether they be growth, profits or customer objectives. Successful businesses build continual monitoring into their processes, constantly aware of the gap between where they are and where they should be.

3. Goals that compel action

Most people are motivated to work for a cause of some sort. The business must continually paint a picture of what the future may hold. And it needs to be more compelling than 'surviving' or 'selling lots more'. Goals that challenge without being unrealistic, and that inspire people to go above and beyond, will reinforce a culture of innovation, effort and excitement.

4. Prepare for several futures

Successful businesses are rarely taken by surprise. They spend time thinking about "what if" scenarios, and planning their responses. It's a fact that most business owners don't think beyond the next quarter or six month period. This can lead to sticking with products and services for too long and failing to identify shifts in the market - making change and innovation almost impossible.

5. Leadership

The leader's job is not only to inspire effort and provide direction. They also carry the task of meeting the psychological needs of their employees while they are at work. Leaders that are emotionally mature, energetic and future oriented are an absolute necessity, if the business is to thrive rather than plateau.

6. Excellence in everything

Companies will not survive long today if they are "just average". What does it take to foster a culture of excellence? High standards, accountability, a willingness to learn and a continual focus on creating value for customers. If these things are in place, excellence becomes a by-product.

So how can you tell if your business lives these principles? See how you go at answering these questions:

How do you measure performance of the organization as a whole?

What is the purpose of your business?

What is it to "go beyond yourself" and how is that important to the business?

Can you articulate the differences between what you need personally and what the business needs?

Assuming most companies reach an early plateau, what do you think successful companies do to avoid that?

Far too many organizations are limited in their capacity to grow because of the skills, capabilities and attitudes of their people (including ourselves). How do you plan to address this potential problem in your business?

How can you be sure that your employees tell you everything you need to know?

So how did you go? Any room for improvement? Aim to instill and live these principles in your business, and you will have laid truly solid foundations. From there, the sky's the limit.

Complete potential is here to help you make more of your business. More profits, more income, more of what you want. Remove obstacles to growth and create new opportunities. To get more practical business strategies and tips, sign up to our ezine - Profits for Professionals - at http://www.completepotential.com

How Easy Is Payroll

Writen by Paul Green

The Institute of Pension and Payroll Management (IPPM) has a saying developed and used by its members: "We don't simply do payroll, because payroll isn't simple". Recently the Inland Revenue has introduced major changes which affect payroll and include legislation covering extended maternity leave, new paternity leave and payment rules, student loan repayments and many more.

Any company offering Stakeholder Pensions to its employees needs to be aware of the rules governing the application of pension through payroll.

Payroll becomes a juggle of paying employees, understanding the legislation and how to apply it and then ensuring compliance with the PAYE and National Insurance audit groups.

Over the next few years there will continue to be changes in legislation applicable through payroll. The IPPM and other organizations constantly lobby the government departments to ensure that new laws do not make the job of the payroll managers more and more difficult. The IR is in the process of introducing electronic filing which should make a big difference at the end of the tax year, especially to large organizations, but also throughout the year when form will be downloaded and returned electronically. All organizations will be expected to file paperwork and to pay the Inland Revenue electronically. This will be phased in with large organizations initially and smaller ones by 2008.

One major change recently has been the increase of National Insurance contributions. Not only has the percentage increased but the upper limit 1% has resulted in most people paying more NI. National Insurance does not only apply to the gross pay provided for employees but also to many employee benefits. A number of companies have been caught out by this change because it complicates the completion of P11Ds, often produced alongside payroll.

It sometimes seems that the Inland Revenue takes delight in finding ways to complicate tax and benefit legislation and there are some of these that catch out smaller companies.

The problem is that should any of these be picked up in a PAYE or National Insurance Audit, the company is responsible for payment, rather than the employee.

Here are some examples:-

• Any amount of money paid to the employee, except where it is explicitly for business expenditure, is liable for tax and national insurance and should be paid through the salary.

• If the company gifts an employee with virtually anything, the value is liable for tax and national insurance.

• Fortunately paying the costs of employee's business mobile phone is no longer seen as a benefit but any home phone paid by the company is a benefit in kind.

• Any fuel for private mileage paid by the company is a benefit and is liable for Tax and National Insurance.

All businesses need to ensure that the payroll and benefits are handles by a competent person, or otherwise outsourced to the accountant or a payroll bureau. Payroll bureaus can be expensive, but they don't need to be so it is best to shop around. It is no longer necessary to do a manual payroll although surprisingly large numbers of companies do just that. There is excellent and reasonably priced software around, both for payroll and P11ds but in buying software, do ensure that the Inland Revenue has approved it and that it is supported, improved and updated every year. Administrative or payroll staff who have some knowledge of the PAYE and NI legislation are invaluable to an organization.

Payroll is seldom simple but it is vital to every business. Ask the employees! If the payroll is a day late everyone knows about it!

Paul Green, FInstIBI - Director | Thames Valley Business Advisors Limited | (e) paul.green@tvba.co.uk | (w) http://www.tvba.co.uk |

Restaurant 86 Item Countdown Feature A Point Of Sale Solution To An Old Problem

Writen by Jerry Wilson

The History of the 86 Feature

The term, "86" started so many years ago that its origin has long since faded into the memories of all but a few restaurateurs. Suffice it to say, if you "86" an item you are out and you need to stop taking orders immediately.

A lot of table service restaurants use a board located near the kitchen to write items that have been 86st for the day. Servers are expected to actually read this board and remember the items that are not available. Some restaurateurs yell out the items as they run out. Problem is, the restaurant sounds more like an old style fast food restaurant with employees yelling at each other.

Yelling is not the only problem with trying to track items in this way. Like, who has time to write the items down? Also, do you really expect the wait staff to remember how many of each item is left? And then when the count gets down to 1 item left you know that 2 servers are going to sell that last item.

The Need for the 86 Countdown Feature

You need a fast and accurate method of letting the wait staff know the exact number of items left and then stop servers from ordering the item after the last one is sold. This needs to be displayed at each station every time the server goes to the terminal. It needs to be visual, eye catching and instantly updated each time an item is sold.

The Solution for the 86 Countdown Feature

Some restaurant point of sale systems come standard with an "86 Item Countdown" feature that displays actual counts, deducts from the count when an item is sold and then prevents sales of the item once it is sold out. All management has to do is set the count for the items to be tracked and the system will do the rest.

Every item being tracked will have the number of items left displayed on their menu button. Each time an item is sold from any terminal in the system the number available will decrement and update on every terminal. Once an item is sold out the item will no longer allow the item to be sold.

Some systems will even allow for an substitution menu to pop up for items that have been sold out.

The Benefit To You

Better communication to your wait staff means better service to your customers. Your wait staff will now be able to approach your customer with confidence about the quantity of items remaining and be able to quickly shift customers to other items when your daily specials are all sold out.

Customers will benefit from knowing before they order if an item is available. No one wants to order an item and have the server return to the table and be told that they can't have what they want. By using an 86 Item Countdown feature this problem will be reduced.

Something Extra For You

How about getting more than just a countdown of daily specials? How about using this feature in a bar to inventory bottled beer? Yes, you could use this same feature to inventory and count down bottle beers.

Other uses for this feature would be baked breads in a bakery/sandwich shop, pre-made salads in a fast food restaurant and tickets to a special event.

Use your imagination and you will be well pleased with the many other uses that are possible with this easy to use feature.

However, not all restaurant point of sale systems have this feature. Please make sure to ask to verify that this feature is available on the software you are considering.

About the Author

Jerry D. Wilson is Director of Internet Sales for DirecTouch Restaurant Point of Sale. With over 25 years of hospitality point of sale experience, he has written several articles explaining different aspects of hospitality point of sale software. You can visit DirecTouch Do It Yourself Restaurant Point of Sale or DirectRetail Do It Yourself Retail Point of Sale for more information.

Six Small Business Management Tools Can Make You Rich

Writen by Mike Kramer

Did you ever delegate a project to an employee that did not quite produce the results you were looking for?

Did a vendor, customer, or employee ever communicate a valuable piece of competitive information that slipped through your fingers and that you did not take to full advantage?

Do you ever feel that sometimes you and your team just don't make a connection? You don't quite understand them and they don't understand you?

Well, it is this kind of communication break down where growing companies begin to lose their competitive edge.

Think about it...

Smaller companies have one critical advantage over their larger competitors. Can you think what it is?

Smaller companies have less people to manage. Having less people to manage means they have fewer minds to coordinate. Fewer minds to coordinate makes smaller organizations very flexible and able to react quickly to marketplace opportunities and threats.

Now the question becomes: How do you retain the flexibility of a small organization as your business grows?

There is only one way. You have to achieve a true "meeting of the minds" among your staff. You have to understand them, and they have to understand you.

The only way to achieve a "meeting of the minds" is to create a common management language for your business.

Remember these words: common management language. A common management language is what's lacking in most businesses. It's the reason why most businesses hit brick walls that prevent their breakthrough to ultimate success.

Think about it…

Everyone involved in your business, from partners and investors to employees and advisors, lives in his or her own reality. They see your business through their own eyes. As you add more and more personalities to the mix it becomes very difficult to manage your business.

That's why you need a common management language. You need a standardized set of leadership tools that everyone involved in your organization uses for:

1. Marketplace Analysis

2. Strategic Planning

3. Project Management

4. Team Building

5. Staying Organized

6. Operational Standardization

Doesn't that make sense?

Imagine for a moment the improvement in your company's performance if everyone involved in your business worked with the same set of leadership tools.

* What if they gather and communicate marketplace information the same way?

* What if they develop strategies the same way?

* What if they implement projects the same way? It would be amazing.

* What if they standardize your routine operations the same way?

* Now, imagine if everyone in your business ran their meetings the same way.

Can you imagine how productive and effective your organization would operate?

Your standardized leadership tools would help you maximize your team's productivity. Your tools would promote communication. Your tools would create a common management language that your company needs to maintain its agility as you grow and become more and more successful.

The tools would give you an amazing competitive advantage. The tools make building your business easy!

The problem for most leaders is it takes years of trial and error; and, success and failure, before you figure out how to create the tools. In the times it takes you to create the tools you've missed out on millions of dollars in lost opportunities.

The solution is to use a set of ready-made leadership tools in your business. Why recreate the wheel?

To learn more about how to create a "common management language" in your business, please download the free twenty-six page eBook titled, "My Win Big Secret – The Ultimate Breakthrough Strategy" -- www.winbig.org/secret

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Michael Kramer provides the antidote for overworked business owners. He's a highly successful entrepreneur and the award winning author of the eBook, "My Win Big Secret - The Ultimate Business Breakthrough Strategy." Learn Kramer's secret approach for making more money, working less and selling your business for millions. Get your free copy now: http://www.winbig.org/secret

Change May Be Your Ace In The Hole

Writen by Karri Flatla

Whether it has been thrust upon you by external market forces or it has simply bubbled up from the internal dynamics of your enterprise, change itself always presents opportunity for improvement. And in a knowledge based economy, change may be the only thing we can count on as small business people. So, if you want to stay ahead of the curve, you must embrace change as a necessary strategy for commercial success.

Despite the inevitability of change, we spend a great deal of time and energy trying to stop it from happening or, at the very least, trying to slow its momentum, hoping to lessen its impact on our fragile yet cozy paradigms. However, small business owners should not overlook change management as a killer business strategy, for this is one arena where even the solo-preneur should have no problem outrunning the big guns.

Smaller operations can literally bend strategies and rewrite policy books overnight if the market is asking for it. The bloated budgets and cumbersome management structures of large corporations simply have no chance against the strategic agility of their smaller cohorts. Day to day responsibilities are reduced to administrative minutiae in hierarchical commercial settings. For the small business, these tasks can be dynamic and even interesting, but someone has to lead the way.

Small business entrepreneurs often forget why they began working in this "grass roots" playground in the first place. As their success builds, administrative hassles start to overwhelm them like weeds taking over a garden. While the corporate suits must spend day after day sifting through policy documents and snoozing through monotonous meetings, small business leaders are continuously presented with opportunities to tear down what is old and reinvent their operation, if that is what their markets desire. This kind of strategic fluidity is what moves the small business from the surviving to thriving.

So, next time your "success" is getting you down, deal with the weeds, clear the air, and be glad you have the opportunity to move a mountain or two.

Karri Flatla is a business graduate of the University of Lethbridge and principal of snap! virtual assistance inc., a business and project support service that specializes in business research, planning and communications. Karri also produces Outsmart, a small business newsletter full of practical tips and fresh insights for entrepreneurs. Visit http://www.snap-va.com for more information.

Mobile Carwash Senior Citizens And Mobile Homes

Writen by Lance Winslow

Senior citizens are generally not a large marketing segment for mobile detailers or car washers, however, they should not be ignored. You will find in a near by area a seniors-only mobile home park. You will also find square dance clubs and senior centers. All of these places can be extremely good places to look for new business. If you want to accelerate word of mouth advertising, you should meet with people in these groups. Wash cars at senior centers while they play cards. Hand out flyers, etc.

In mobile home parks you should hand out flyers and put flyers on bulletin boards in the recreation rooms. If you wash one mobile home in a mobile home park, the word of mouth will spread the news of your service like wildfire. Next thing you know, you'll be washing every mobile home in the place. Sometimes a simple visit to the park's manager who usually lives on-site is enough to get the ball rolling.

Many senior citizens belong to groups like: veteran's groups, AARP, Masonic Lodges, temples, churches, senior volunteer programs, Shriners Clubs, garden clubs, sewing clubs, antique auto clubs, Audubon Society, arts councils and various political groups. Many of the more affluent seniors play golf and many of the local courses have senior discount days where you can meet the senior crowd. They are usually members of well-known local clubs and organizations; great for word of mouth networking. Many times they will have their cars washed while golfing. Usually most municipal or older golf courses have senior day discounts once per week. Some seniors simply use the driving range during senior day. This is good as it provides good turn over in the parking lot. Every hour new golfers come to hit balls.

Square dances are very popular amongst the older crowd. A city with a population of over 50,000 could have as many as four to five groups. Each group may have a membership of fifteen to one hundred people.

Any city or community worth its salt has a senior center. It is imperative to develop a good working relationship with the program director. She (usually a she) is in contact with all senior groups, activities, field trips and such. Senior centers usually have racks of pamphlets near their entrance with interesting information, schedules of upcoming events and lists of names, phone numbers and addresses of the board of directors of various non-profit organizations throughout the area. You will be amazed at the incredible network seniors have and how fast word of mouth information spreads. Many seniors are involved in more than one group or activity. You may be at a bridge club meeting washing cars one day and the next day you will get called by the instructor at the square dance club. Then the following day you wash cars for a political action committee while volunteers stuff envelopes. This can go on day after day. You can significantly speed up the word of mouth advertising with this segment by showing up at various senior centers.

You must also remember that negative word of mouth topics permeate from these groups too. Don't let this happen to you. Spend an extra minute or two with each senior customer. Ask them if they wouldn't mind giving two or three flyers to their very best friends. Usually they will. Get to know each senior customers by name; you'll be glad you did. Name dropping amongst seniors is great, a they value relationships with friends with much higher regard than the younger crowd does. They will try to help you by offering advise about how you might attain more business and places you might go to. Acknowledge these tidbits even if you think they are ridiculous. It is sometimes the ridiculous things that bring you to a new idea. Even if you don't want any new business, listen anyway. Many of the greatest ideas we ever go to help our company innovate came from talking with seniors with a slightly different perspective than today's rat race.

Accept all tips from seniors even if you think they can't afford it. This is one of the greatest compliments they can give you. It means they accept you. This is not an easy thing for a senior to do, especially since younger generations constantly fail to even acknowledge their existence and fail to meet their work ethic expectations. The gap has been widened before you got there and it is your job to close the gap. By uniting the seniors and your company and uniting the kids of the multitude of fundraising groups you help, you can unite the entire community. You can be something everyone can talk about. Grandparents and grandkids can all talk about your company.

Too get information on car wash fundraisers, search Google; "car wash fundraisers"

Lance Winslow

If You Dont Know Where You Are Going You Probably Wont Get There

Writen by Al Lipper

We've all heard of corporate mission statements. Many small business owners believe that a mission statement is only for big business, and certainly doesn't apply to them. Unfortunately, eight out of ten small businesses will fail within the first year, and only half of the remainder continue beyond five years. Lack of a clear mission statement often reflects lack of clear direction for the business. If this sounds harsh, it is only because I want you to succeed. If you own a business, you've worked hard for it, and deserve the best chance possible for it's success. As a former air charter pilot, I have a love for aviation, so I will share the following metaphor. A mission statement is to a business what a destination is to an airplane. When a plane takes off from Los Angeles, headed for New York, the pilot has a very clear idea of exactly where he's flying. During the flight, the plane may get off course countless times, due to factors such as weather, air traffic, etc. Still, the pilot returns to the course again and again, and ultimately the plane lands in New York. This is like the business with a clear mission. Often a small company will operate with "rules" or "guidelines" mistaking these for clear direction. This would be akin to a pilot taking off from Los Angeles with a set of rules that say things like "I will only fly in clear blue sky" or "I will not fly near clouds." Unfortunately, while these rules may be important, they do not answer the essential question of "Where is my company headed and where should my efforts be focused?"

Having a clear mission not only helps your company decide what to focus on, but it also determines what you will not focus on. In business, like in life, every time we say "Yes" to something, we potentially say "No" to something else that we could have used that time or those resources for. For example, consider the mission statements of some large companies. One of the nation's largest pizza delivery chains has a mission "To deliver hot pizza in 30 minutes or less." This guides everything they do. Note that it defines their priorities as making sure the pizza is hot, and it's delivered promptly. They have decided that these two qualities are what set them apart from their competition. Also note that they are not primarily concerned with providing the best-tasting pizza, or even the least expensive pizza. Because of this, when they had the opportunity to use a new recipe for their crust that would taste better than their current one (but increase their cost of ingredients by 10%), the decision was clear. Best-tasting pizza is not a primary goal of theirs. However, when they examined a new type of mobile re-heating unit that would keep pizza hotter in the delivery vehicle, this was in alignment with their mission, so the choice was to implement these units.

A mission statement is like a compass for your business. It tells you which way to go, amidst the myriad of choices.

Just because an opportunity lands in your lap, does not mean it is the right opportunity for your business!

Perhaps you have a clear idea in your mind of what your business is about and what it does. Another good reason to have a mission statement is to communicate this to others – both employees and customers. It helps keep them on the same page, and often avoids difficult misunderstandings. Here are some samples:

Otis Elevator Co. – "To provide any customer a means of moving people and things up, down and sideways over short distances, with higher reliability than any other similar enterprise in the world."

Disney – "To make people happy."

Marriott Courtyard Hotels – "To provide economy and quality minded travelers with a premier, moderate priced lodging facility which is consistently perceived as clean, comfortable, well maintained, and attractive, staffed by friendly attentive and efficient people."

Big Binoculars – "Our mission is simply to offer our customers the most binocular aperture, at the highest quality, for the lowest price."

Give some thought to what your business is really about. I'm happy to review mission statements from newsletter subscribers, so feel free to email yours to me if you like. With the right mission, your business will consistently land at its destination time and time again.

Al Lipper offers Personal Life and Small Business Coaching services for holistic people seeking life balance, small business professionals, and men's issues.

Contact him for a complimentary session to find out how he can accelerate you towards getting the life you want. http://www.destinysuccess.com

Small Business Marketing Solution Let Brand Guide Your Staff

Writen by Craig Lutz-Priefert

Your employees should know your Brand--what you stand for. We've written on this before, but it is just a vital concept for small business success. As we discussed in an earlier article, following process and procedures is important, staff training is a must, but there comes a time when you must trust you employees "in the field" to do what is right and make a decision on their own that is in accord with what the company brand stands for.

It's at this critical point that their training in proper procedures is most helpful, but sometimes they are faced with questions outside of strict training or procedural guidelines. Here they need to make the right decision--for the customer and the company. It's at these junctures that a solid working knowledge of what the company stands for can help them make the best choice.

And understanding the company brand starts with your Achievers.

Your junior staff will follow the example they see the Achievers set. The Achievers must intimately understand what your company's Brand represents--they need to also recognize that this knowledge can help them make a decision.

It sounds basic, but your customers' impression of what your Brand is--what your company stands for--will be far more influenced by what your staff does during a tough situation than through all your advertising. This is especially true for a small business on a limited marketing budget.

When customers and staff agree on what your Brand means, then you can trust that decisions your staff makes will truly be in the best interest of the company. Will those staff decisions be exactly what you would do? No, but they'll be close enough.

Occasionally they will even be better.

Remember: Brand (who you are) + Package (your Face to the Customer) + People (customers and employees) = Marketing Success.

© 2006 Marketing Hawks

Craig Lutz-Priefert is President of Marketing Hawks, a firm providing essential marketing vision for small business. Marketing Hawks also sponsors the ongoing small business adventures of entrepreneur Crystal Trino at the JourneyToday website.

Low Cost Or Highly Funded Start Up

Writen by Arvind Kumar

Many new ventures are preoccupied with all the money they are going to make, rather than how they are going to the about making it. Set realistic goals by setting realistic steps-discreet 'doable' actions, each of which connects to the next one in some logical progression.

At some point you have to walk through the wall to get to the other side. But don't just 'do it' until you have a good idea of what you do next. If you can't get 'there' from 'here' in a number of very specific steps, then you probably don't have a business yet.

I am a great believer that the more up-front money a new business requires, the less chance it has of ever getting off the ground.

If and when you do, you will probably find that they aren't as eager to part with their capital as you might have anticipated or, if they are, they will want to extract a large piece of the business in return for their faith.

Many new businesses never get off the ground, not because they were bad ideas, not because the people were wrong, but because the fund-raising efforts failed. Yet, many of these new ventures, I believe, didn't actually require the capital the participants convinced themselves that did. If they had been willing to start small, to go back a few steps and start from further back, they could have given themselves a fighting chance.

I can't over-emphasize the importance of starting small and keeping it simple. When I began, it would have been very easy to convince myself that it simply couldn't be done on any less than a million dollars. How could I represent the top three superstars in the booming sport of golf without a staff of seven or eight and at least a token presence in England and Japan? A million dollars, in fact, would have been helpful and certainly convenient. But it wasn't necessary.

Many of the great American success stories emerged from humble beginnings. If you are selling a service, a skill, or an expertise, how much more do you really need than a desk and phone?

This article may be re-printed as long as following resource box is included as it is with out any alteration.

Article by Arvind Kumar. Arvind Kumar is one of prominent writer and consultant on Marketing and Management. You can reach him at arvind@nuttymarketer.com. For more on Gorilla Marketing Strategy and planning visit http://www.nuttymarketer.com

Need Credit For Your Business Some Tips On Getting Started

Writen by Germaine A Hoston

One of the most significant problems that small and home-based business entrepreneurs face is getting capital to finance the growth of your business.

If you're like most small business owners, you often charge expenses to your personal credit card(s). This will work for a while, but there are 4 reasons that your business must establish its own credit lines as soon as possible.

1. The greater the separation between you and your business, the better. Having a separate credit card in the name of your business establishes clearly that your business is a separate entity.



2. You are personally liable for charges that you make for your business on your personal credit cards, because they were made in your name and not in that of the LLC or corporation.



3. Your business will build credibility that will make it easier for you to borrow larger and larger sums as you expand. Not seeking credit in the name of the business conveys the impression that you don't expect your business to be around for long.



4. You can more easily delegate bookkeeping and accounting responsibilities. A bookkeeper can readily identify and record the charges that are for your business without your having to expose your personal credit card information.

Here's how your company can begin to establish credit:

1. Open two or three credit accounts with major suppliers, such as Office Depot or Staples. Be sure not to pay off your balances in full each month--the account needs to maintain some sort of balance for at least 12 to 18 months to build a credit history.



2. Open an account with a major credit card company, such as a MasterCard/Visa or American Express. American Express will typically want to open an account linked to the account of the majority partner (or the cardmember partner with the stronger credit rating) if your business is new.
   
   For MasterCard or Visa, the best, recommended by "Smart Money" magazine, is Advanta's Platinum Business Card. You will have to rely on the credit report of one of the individual owners of your business, but you can use your own discretion in transferring business charges from a personal credit card to your Advanta card. (This is not possible with American Express).
   
   Advanta's best offer is a card with 0% APR for 15 months on balance transfers and a 5% rebate on certain purchases. You can find a link to this offer on the resource page of our website.



3. Let your banker know that you are planning to open a credit line with them. She will confirm that when the time comes, it will be to your advantage if the majority partner or shareholder is female.



4. Meanwhile, if you must use a personal credit card, designate a single card to use for your business expenses. This will make it clear that in your own mind, your business is separate from you--and it will save considerable time in determining which expenditures were for business purposes.


Then, as soon as you can, transfer charges from your personal card to a new business card such as the Advanta Platinum card and save yourself some interest.

Germaine A. Hoston, Ph.D. Copyright 2006 Azur Pacific Associates.
Germaine A. Hoston is President of Azur Pacific Associates, a consulting and translation firm doing business in the United States, Europe, and the Far East. Receive a free special report and monthly tips on how to easily make changes in your business structure that will dramatically improve your bottom line and protect your business and personal assets. Subscribe to her free monthly eNewsletter for Small Business Entrepreneurs at: http://www.wealthstrategies202.com

Multiply Your Business Results Fast

Writen by Alan Boyer

How many of you are struggling in your business?

When the Small Business Administration says that over 80% of all small businesses fail within 2 years, and over 90% within 5, there are a lot of struggling businesses out there, most of them in fact.

What I'd like to do is change how you look at running your business. Most have been doing the same things over and over, and probably just doing them harder and harder. You just can't keep doing the same things and expecting different results!!

For one, most don't have a clue what is working and what is not. Most don't have a measurable goal, nor do they measure their progress towards anything.

And I hear the roar from the peanut gallery….."I AM measuring! I'm aware that I'm not making the progress I had hoped for." Most assume they are measuring when they see the bottom line and they fail to pay the bills. That isn't measuring, that's simply feeling the pain. Start measuring the smaller steps in your business.

If you send out 1,000 sales letters what is your response rate? How many leads, sales, and customers do you get for every 1,000 sales letters (or whatever else you do in marketing)? Are you getting 5% or better?

If you talk to 10 people this week how many of them will buy? Are you getting 4 or 5 out of 10?

Do, you have your market divided into segments? Which segments give you the best marketing response, sales response? And why?

Do you have a revenue target for the year? How many customers does it take to get to that figure? How many do you have to produce, sell, market to THIS WEEK to hit those numbers?

If you cannot answer even one of these questions then you are not managing your business, you are letting whatever happens just happen to you.

The key to successful business is being able to manage these numbers and results every week.

Edison made an interesting statement when his light bulb finally burned for 45 straight hours he said, "If it will burn that number of hours now, I know I can make it burn a hundred."

So, if you can sell ONE item in a week, or one in a month, you CAN turn that into selling as many as you want in the next week. It comes down to measuring the results, learning from the results, and then multiplying the successful results as many times as you want. The problem is that most don't even have a clue what is working and what small changes will result in HUGE increases in results.

I once worked with a company that had sold only $60K in their first year and were struggling. They had expenses of over $290K for that year, a $230K loss. All we did was look at the different types of customers they had worked with in that year, found a group that had been successful, and then went after them. The same marketing material sent out just one week later generated 10 times more revenue than the week before. Now we know that for almost every dollar spent they can generate over $50. Now, we can determine how much marketing must go out to generate the number of dollars they want to generate. That company went from $60K in a year, to $200K over the next two months.

So, can you answer any of the questions I asked above?

I don't want to hear answers like "I don't know," or "I don't have that information." I'm going to ask you RIGHT NOW to write down your best guess for those questions. When you are done, IF you've honestly attempted to come up with those answers, you will see ways that you can more than double your business.

Alan is a Small Business Coach who's goal is to at least double a business in the first few weeks, and frequently has multiplied them up to 10 times while working with them, and most continue to multiply after working with him. He says he wants to pass along what he does to the business owner so that the business owner can do it over and over and over. Alan Boyer, is a Small Business Coach and Sales Coach doubling most businesses in weeks.

Sign up on his website to receive his Hints and Tips to Double Your Business (http://www.leaders-perspective.com/contact-Us.aspx") Alan Boyer --Helping People and Companies Worldwide Reach Further Than They EVER Thought Possible....FASTER.

Learning From Mistakes

Writen by Avis Ward

You're working a project and you realise hours into it, you have sold your services for far less than the job at hand. What are you to do? First, you must learn from this mistake by documenting where you went wrong. You will review these detailed notes again and again so that you will not make the same mistake twice. Remember? "Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, shame on me!"

A provider of services in a small business can become too eager and to the point of desperation to secure a contract and fail to properly evaluate the project. If it sounds as if I'm speaking from experience, it's because I am. I believe this is a common mistake we have all made and the client's name is forever etched into our minds. (The project didn't make a dent in our bank accounts, sadly enough.)

It's not until you've seen the full scope of the challenge that lies ahead do you realise your mistake. A contract is signed and you must deliver as promised. After writing yourself notes to avoid a future fiasco, crack your knuckles, give a salute (to no one or nothing in particular) and get ready to rumble! Your reputation is at stake. You've promised an increase in profits by implementation of certain systems. You've committed to this project until the end and you must make it to the finish line. I have a few suggestions to help you 'save face' in the event things do not turn out as you thought they would based on your initial assessment.

Decide at once to give this client more than they expect to receive. In this case, you're likely to do that anyway to build your reputation and keep a client happy.

This mistake can be costly — or not! Give this project your very best and then some. The 'seemingly' impossible is possible with your God-given talents and abilities! Do not forget you have what it takes to solve this client's problems per your contractual agreement. Do just that and think of the many referrals (think positively) you'll get.

Re-evaluate the areas where you neglected to properly assess deficiencies.

This will give you an accurate measuring stick at the end of the project. An increase in one area and decrease in others could be shown by using charts and graphs to illustrate positive changes. (e.g., increase in collections and decrease in delinquencies) Any reasonable and prudent person would be pleased at such changes.

After your reassessment, inform your client how desperately in need their company was for your services. (Show facts, figures and formulas.)

(Facts) - This is the time you lay it ALL on the table. You thought you'd done that before but now you have new evidence and new ammunition.

(Figures) - You also have an honest motive, you must make sure you deliver above and beyond your client's expectations after discovering their company is not only anemic but comatose! (Play it up, big time.) You're not being dishonest, just open and straightforward. Things are a mess!

(Formulas) - Your life support plan for their business is revealed. You have solutions and can begin the methodical recovery and conscious awakening of a sleeping giant! Now deliver!

Do not be ashamed/afraid to call for backup!

Your reputation is at stake here, remember? You want to do the best job possible in the allotted time and not longer. If you have discovered you have a disaster, you need disaster relief! Ask a mentor or competitor even, how they'd handle this situation. Make sure you ask one who's been in business longer than you have simply because of their experience. They've been where you are.

Ask for referrals before you've actually finished this project.

You've worked hard and are providing written reports to your client. Without a doubt, there are improvements. Implementing one system where there haven't been any must result in positive changes and improvements. The improvements could be in the areas of employee-morale, increase in revenue, decrease in staff absences or others areas of growth. Ask for referrals so you can begin marketing to these prospects. You are determined to turn this possible loss into gain; financially, educationally, emotionally, and professionally.

When we learn from our mistakes, we grow. When we punch ourselves repeatedly for having made mistakes, we paralyze ourselves and miss opportunities. "Opportunities are easily recognised once they have been wasted." (Javan, Poet/Author said that in his book, "Footprints in the Mind") Mistakes and opportunities make excellent partners.

© 2006 Avis Ward of AWard Consulting, Inc.

Avis Ward is a Consultant to dental healthcare professionals in Practice Management specializing in Case Acceptance and Marketing. More information can be found here: http://aviswardconsulting.com/

Street Wars Between Mobile Car Washers And Mobile Auto Detailers

Writen by Lance Winslow

There is much competition in the mobile auto detailing business. There are two different lines of reasoning emerging as to how the business should be run. One is go for volume and discount and wash the world. The other is go after the high end customer which is 10% of the market, do exceptional work and charge as much as the market will give. These two principles are the reason for a war between mobile auto detailers and mobile car washes. Mobile car wash companies are often seen washing the Honda car for the single mom in an office complex. While the auto detailers would not touch the car unless she was a total babe and they thought they might get a date out of it.

Sometimes there is much animosity in parking lots and words spoken when the two types of businesses are at the same location. Sometimes you hear the mobile car washer say something like; "We don't do detailing, we wash cars."

This puts the mobile auto detailer at ease; unless they also sometimes wash cars. Sometimes the mobile car washers will tell them that they will refer customers to them who want detailing because you don't do that; even ask for a stack of business cards. During the next week the mobile car washer might refer eight to ten people to them. If they hear back that people are pleased, refer two people per week from then on; meanwhile the mobile car washer ends up stealing all the mobile detailers weekly wash customers because the prices are so much different. As soon as this starts happening the mobile detailer starts to bad mouth the mobile car washers quality.

Mobile car wash operators think; "Why would someone bad mouth you when you just referred business to them?" Good question, it is hard to understand why people shoot themselves in the foot. Here is their logic:

They do detailing, they spend more time on a car, therefore, they are better

They believe that since they charge more they are better

Since they are so much better, they are helping the customer by warning them about you

'You get what you pay for' so the customer should pay more

You have taken all their wash business so they are getting back at you

They made a lot of money where you sent them on a referral and would like to keep going back

What the mobile detailers don't understand is that if they were really that great and that smart, they indeed would be making as much as the mobile car washers who derive their income on volume and do not limit their customer bases in doing so to the top 10% instead they go after the 90% and accept the 10% on their level if they choose to purchase services. The mobile auto detailers also fail to understand the driving force of the free market system:

Supply and demand

Quality and service

Image and marketing

Location

Consider this. If the mobile auto detailers would lower their price, they would get more work and more people would tell more friends and they would have an out of control snowball effect - enough work to last a life time. Sort of like the franchises in mobile car washing. Oh well; they say you can't teach an old dog a new trick. If a competitor mobile detailer doesn't want to play fair and wants to bad mouth, in the end the customer will probably switch. But since the customer is always right, both parties of the war on business methods and concepts of mobile auto cleaning ought start thinking and stop fighting.

Lance Winslow

Forming A Corporation Investors

Writen by Richard Chapo

You've come up with the best idea since sliced bread, figured out a business name and formed a corporation. There is, however, one small problem. You need money. Welcome to the world of investing.

Business Funds

Unless Bill Gates is your friend, money is going to be a problem for every new business. Even the might Google had to hunt for cash with one of the founders of Sun Microsystems finally kicking down a much needed $100,000. Whether you decide to pimp your business plan to anyone breathing or beg your step-mother for funds, here are some issues to consider.

Investors are looking for the best deal, to wit, the most stock possible in an entity. If you are asking them for cash, they have the leverage. Don't be so desperate that you give away the farm. All to often, I speak with individuals who started a business on a whim and have become disillusioned because they have lost equity in the business.

Assume I start a corporation and need funds. My neighbor agrees to kick in $20,000 for 20% of the stock. Things go great, but four months later I need another $50,000 for inventory and cash flow. My aunt agrees to kick in $50,000 for another 20% of the stock. Yikes, I am not even through the first year and I have given up 40% of the equity!

What happens in year two when I need a $100,000? I give up more stock and suddenly own less than 50% of the business. Inevitably, this leads to feelings of resentment and bitterness. "It was my idea, but now these blood suckers are going to get most of the money and they aren't even working on the business." This sentiment is so common that it would be laughable if it weren't so depressing.

As a general rule, you should only sell ownership in a business as an absolute last resort. Instead, try to get loans from investors, banks, home equity lines and even credit cards.

If you must sell stock to raise funds, be very careful when valuing the stock. You should place a value on each share as though the company was already a raging success, not just starting out. Further, make sure you sell only small allotments of stock such as three to five percent. If you owned IBM, how much of the ownership would you sell for $20,000?

In Closing

When starting a corporation, guard equity as though it is the Holy Grail. If you don't, you risk becoming a disillusioned shareholder down the road.

Richard Chapo is with http://www.sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com - providing legal services to San Diego businesses.

Beginning An Internship Program

Writen by Andrew E. Schwartz

CONSIDERATIONS FOR YOUR INTERN: Specify the number of hours the intern will be needed each week. Will specific hours be adhered to, or will the schedule be more flexible? Applicants want to know up front what they will be paid, if anything. At this point specify whether the intern will be paid by project, by the hour, a stipend, or not at all. Remember that internships which at least offer a stipend will attract more qualified individuals.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND REQUIREMENTS FOR AN INTERN: Responsibilities might include outcomes that may not be apparent at first glance. For example, an intern working in a real estate office may not realize that the computer experience he or she will be getting will be helpful in a later job search. Requirements are your best opportunity to narrow down the field of prospective applicants to what you are looking for. You may want to include a required or preferred background, organizational abilities, any necessary experience, or office skills. Try not to be too selective in asking for experience -- that's what you are there for.

HOW TO APPLY TO AN INTERNSHIP: The application is where you give the necessary information on how and where to apply. Include an address and a telephone number, and whether you will be requiring a resume and a cover letter. Many managers find it is effective to conduct an initial screening by telephone. This enables them to determine if there is a possibility of a good match between the needs of their organization and the applicant's goals. Candidates who remain then participate in in-person interviews focusing on the intern's interest, expectations and skills. Each intern's abilities and requirements will be different, and depending on the individual candidates and the amount of effort and time one is willing to put in, provisions may need to be made to accommodate them. A verbal contract with the intern before the beginning of the internship is the least that should be done. Some managers may prefer a written contract.

Copyright AE Schwartz & Associates All rights reserved. For a free site to look for interns seeking internships: Internships4You and for a Free listing as a Trainer, Consultant, Speaker, Vendor/Organization: TrainingConsortium

CEO, A.E. Schwartz & Associates, Boston, MA., a comprehensive organization which offers over 40 skills based management training programs. Mr. Schwartz conducts over 150 programs annually for clients in industry, research, technology, government, Fortune 100/500 companies, and nonprofit organizations worldwide. He is often found at conferences as a key note presenter and/or facilitator. His style is fast-paced, participatory, practical, and humorous. He has authored over 65 books and products, and taught/lectured at over a dozen colleges and universities throughout the United States.

Put Your Marketing On Autopilot

Writen by Fabienne Fredrickson

Would you be surprised if I told you I actually coach a LOT of marketing consultants and business coaches who help others build their businesses? Many of these consultants and coaches come to me because, even though they know how to put these steps into practice, they still don't have a full practice, or at least not consistently. WHY?

The reason is simple. They don't market consistently.

What usually happens (to most of us self-employed professionals) is that we get caught up in the everyday of our businesses and when we have clients, we focus our entire days on those clients. (Is that the case for you too?)

Until the clients leave and our well runs dry. So, we find ourselves digging our well when we're thirsty. This is the scenario my clients tell me about: because they know what to do, when marketing consultants need clients, they market, market, market, market, and sign up a bunch of new clients. Then, because they have all these new clients, they stop marketing. No time to market!

But, sooner or later, the well runs dry once again and they have to start marketing furiously again. So they, market, market, market, and they again sign up a bunch of new clients. Then the same thing happens and they start living this unbearable life of Feast or Famine, an intolerable rollercoaster they wish they could stop. Well, now they can.

The solution: you can eliminate "Feast or Famine" by being systematic about your Client Attraction and putting your marketing on autopilot.

The only way to make sure you always have a full practice is to always market. The best way to do that is to make all the pieces of your marketing pie run on a system, like a well-oiled machine that doesn't need you to be there the whole time, just once in a while to make sure everything's going smoothly.

As clients get to know me in our one-on-one private coaching, they tend to see how fanatical I can be about systems. I've created systems for EVERYTHING, probably because I wasn't always a very disciplined person by nature. (I know I'm not the only one, so don't start throwing stones!)

So to counteract that (because I need to have a full practice at all times or else I'd have to go back to being corporate, which is a big no-no for me), I make sure everything I do runs like clockwork.

Here's how I do it and how I've taught hundreds of clients how to do it too:

• Breakfast networking group (WEEKLY MEETING, paid for once a year and booked in my calendar for the entire year).
• Associations (MONTHLY MEETING, paid for once a year and booked in my calendar for the entire year).
• Free teleclasses on how to attract clients, MONTHLY.
• My own seminars (BIMONTHLY, paid for and booked at the beginning of the year).
• E-zine (WEEKLY, goes out ever week, without exception—my assistant makes sure that it does).
• Articles for association newsletters (MONTHLY, schedule of articles and deadlines are set by the association).
• Speaking for associations/organizations/conferences (OFTEN WEEKLY OR BIWEEKLY, I have a list of speaking opportunities that I'm constantly following up on to get booked regularly).
• Strategic alliances (OFTEN WEEKLY OR BIWEEKLY, I have a list of strategic alliances that I'm constantly following up on to do things with regularly).

Do you see a trend? Everything I do in terms of Client Attraction, every single piece of my own Marketing Pie, is set up to work automatically and systematically. I set these things up ahead of time and then all I have to do is show up. I don't ever have to worry about what I have to do next. It's already in my calendar.

This is the one thing that I have rarely seen in any book or course that teaches you how to get clients, yet I think it's one of the most crucial.

If you don't set things up to be systematic, then you won't stay on track. If you don't stay on track, you won't market consistently. If you don't market consistently, then you won't take action and get results consistently. That means you're going to have a much harder time keeping your practice consistently full, UNLESS you set things up to work on their own, with a little tweak from you here and there.

Your Assignment:

Set up systems for everything that is marketing and Client Attraction. Figure out what you will do daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly so you too can go from being undisciplined with not enough clients, to disciplined with a full practice.

© 2006 Fabienne Fredrickson

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Expert, is founder of the Client Attraction System™, the proven step-by-step program to help you attract more clients, in record time and consistently. To learn more about Fabienne's Client Attraction Home Study System™, sign up for her FREE client attraction tips and no-charge teleclasses on attracting more clients, visit http://www.ClientAttraction.com

Arranging Your Fundraiser

Writen by Cassie Kale

When deciding to host a fundraiser for your company or organization there are many fundraising ideas available to you for choosing. The most popular fundraising ideas range from chocolate, magazines and candles to candy and much more!

When picking your fundraising product be sure to pick a product that will have a good mark up and will be an easy sell. Most people like candy as well as most Moms love candles. Who do you think is going to be your biggest target audience when selling your products?

Don't pick the first product you see, make sure to compare prices and see if you can find a company that will offer your organization a greater discount on fundraising sales. How long will it take them to fill the orders once the fundraiser is over?

We suggest collecting all money upfront whenever possible! This will make it much easier for you when the orders come in and you won't have to deal with who still owes money, who hasn't paid, who wants to cancel their order and all those other situations that may arise.

Next, will you deliver the products to the customer or will there be a set location where they can come pick it up? Depending on the number of orders may very well sway how you set this up.

Now that you know what company you will use for your fundraiser and you have your products picked out, you next have to decide on the percentage for your organization and how long you will have your fundraiser last. This is a very important factor in your fundraiser, while you don't want it to be too short a period of time, you also don't want it to be too long. People will then loose interest and the need to purchase, right then and there. We suggest a minimum of one week for your fundraiser but not past two weeks.

Will the company supply any order forms or materials for you when hosting your fundraiser? This is another important factor to consider. Most if not all companies will give you this help but always be sure and verify up front.

Following these few tips when setting up your fundraising event and picking your fundraising products will help assure success and help your organization reach its goals!

Get all your fundraiser information, fundraising ideas and more! This season chocolate fundraisers are hot and an easy sell!

Vending Cart Or Food Concession Trailer That Is The Question

Writen by Robert Berman

During the course of a week I receive one similar question time and time again; "Should I start my business with a concession trailer or a vending cart?".

The answer to the question is subject to a lot of things, but at the end of the day, if this is someone's first venture into the food service industry then I usually recommend a vending cart.

For the individual who has little or no experience in the food service industry, a vending cart is a much easier and much more economical entry point than a concession trailer. Used vending carts can be purchased for as little as $3K and depending on the food service that the person wants to offer, little if any food cooking or preparation experience is required. Many vending carts are little more than freezers on wheels, offering ice cream, Italian ices and popsicles. Others are food warmers, offering hotdogs, pretzels and other hot, prepared foods. The more complex carts are barbeques on wheels, allowing the operator to cook items to order such as hamburgers, sausages, hotdogs, and spareribs.

In recent years, vending cart franchises have started, offering the budding entrepreneur a supposedly proven methodology to a specific product. Along with the methodology comes training in everything from the item(s) to be sold to an education on finding venues and bookkeeping skills.

Robert Berman is a business consultant and operates a website and forums for the mobile catering, food concession and vending cart industries. For additional information visit: mobilecateringbusiness.com

Whats Your Reserve

Writen by Donna Higton

What is your current reserve? How long could your business survive if the work dried up? How much work do you 'have to' take because you need the money? So many of us small businesses live with a reality of boom and bust – one month we are rolling in work, the next we have none…but we do have the money from last month, so we're ok…until the month of no work catches up with us!

Recognise this pattern? How many times have you thought 'I've cracked it!' only to have a lean spell shortly after?! We often then compound the problem by spending the money that we earn – either back into the business or on things we deserve because we work hard! For many of us, the money averages out so that our bills are covered and we have 'enough' to continue as a business. Which is great…but stressful. And if anything happens, panic can set in because there is no reserve.

When work comes in, we have to take it whether we want to or not, because we need the work and the money. While this is one way to build a business, it is not the only (or in my opinion the best) way. Of course, there are times when a client is too good to turn down, and when financial considerations mean you really must take what you can get. But do you want this to be the pattern of your business until the end of time?

No. This is where the reserve comes in. If you build a reserve, you do not 'have to' take work just because its there – you can make choices about how you spend your time. For example, I have had a call today from a temping agency I have previously worked for in lean times. Just a year ago, I would have had to take what they were offering, because I needed the money. Now, I can make a choice – of course a bit of extra money would be lovely, but I don't need to do it.

I have the financial reserve to keep my business going for another 3 months even if not one more client comes to me. So the temping contract is an option, but not something I 'have to' consider. And looking out of the window at the glorious weather, it is unlikely that I will take it! By contrast, this time last year I had NO reserve at all, and had to take whatever I could get. Let me tell you, it is a sweet feeling to be in this position.

For those of you who are looking at me askance, thinking 'no, I have 24 hours a day to be working, I'm going to work all of them!', let me ask you this – did you go into business so you could be bossed about by other people? Or did you do it so you could be your own boss, set your own schedule, do work you love and have some flexibility? While you don't have a reserve, you are still at the mercy of other people's choices.

So, how do you build a reserve? My advice is as quickly and efficiently as you can! The way I started was to put 10% of everything I earned in my savings account (only once, in a VERY lean month, I had to cut down to 5%, the rest of the time, I could manage without 10% of my income). I also got out of my overdraft and put a bit of a 'cushion' in my current accounts. By the way, this is not a short term strategy – it has taken almost a year to get to this point! Once I'd done that, I started paying everything I earn straight into my savings, and paying myself a 'wage' every month.

This wage is a minimum wage – I can live on it and I have a little extra for a bit of a life, but the idea is to build up my 3 month reserves to 6 months, then 12 months. This will give me some choices – and take away some of that 'self-employed panic'! So, where's your reserve? How long can your business survive if you have a poor few months, or an illness? This is not thinking negatively – it is thinking ahead positively, and could prove the difference that keeps your business growing.

DonnaOnTheBeach is a life purpose coach who is dedicated to helping people to tap into their joy and passion, and use it to make their world extraordinary. For more information, go to http://www.donnaonthebeach.co.uk

Profits Are A Reward Not A Purpose

Writen by Jim Clemmer

Why do you get out of bed in the morning? Why do you go to work? What do you want to be remembered for when you're gone? Why do you exist? What about your team or organization? Why does it exist? What's its value-add? What's its function? How do you want to be positioned in the market and minds of your customers? What business are you in?

These are all questions of purpose. They deal with the deeper motivations and assumptions underlying and intertwined with your visions, values, goals, and improvement intensity. Purpose is the third component of Focus and Context (the first two are vision and values). It could easily be the first. But arguing whether the picture of your preferred future, principles, or purpose comes first is about as productive as arguing whether air, water, or food is most important to life. They're all vital.

Purpose is also called mission, meaning, reason for being, calling, life theme, niche, strategic intent, value-add, business definition, and the like. As with vision and values, what labels you use don't matter. As long as you, your team, and your organization have clear answers to the above questions, use whatever terms make sense. Just be sure the label you use is clear to everybody and is used consistently.

The Profit Paradox

If the reason for your company's existence is profit, you won't be very profitable. Eventually your company probably won't even exist. The dollar sign isn't a cause. It doesn't stir the soul. Operating margins and return on investment don't excite and inspire. As an ultimate objective on its own, the pursuit of profits is hollow and unsatisfying. Such naked greed is one dimensional. It comes from, and leads to, the naked selfishness of "what's in it for me". Profit seekers are out to serve only themselves. In the Intelligent Enterprise, James Brian Quinn writes, "an overemphasis on profits rather than on those things that achieve profits, with rare exception forces an internal and short-term orientation that is actively destructive to service delivery".

Few people today want to buy from, work for, or partner with a company that's only out for itself. That's like taking a set of elaborate architectural drawings for a huge, luxurious dream home into your team or organization and saying, "if you all work real hard, someday this will be mine". About ten years ago I came across a mixed up manufacturer that had produced a slick little logo and published this mission statement - "In Pursuit of Profits". I haven't heard of that company for a few years now. I don't think they're in business any more.

But if your company isn't profitable and financially strong, it won't exist long enough to serve any other purpose. You need clear financial objectives, goals, and priorities. You can't afford waste and inefficiency. You need strong feedback and measurement systems to eliminate the "nice to do" activities and focus everyone on doing only the "need to do" work that produces profitable results.

That's the paradox to be managed; companies that exist only to produce a profit don't last long. And companies that don't pay attention to profits can't exist to fulfill their long term purpose. Pursuing profits without a higher purpose or pursuing a purpose without profit are equally fatal strategies. These aren't either/or positions to choose between. They're and/or issues to be balanced. But get them in the right order. Many studies of the role and impact of values or ethics on corporate performance have proven that profits follow from worthy and useful purposes. Fulfilling the purpose comes first, then the profits follow. Profits are a reward. The size of our reward depends on the value of the service we've given others.

Developing a personal, team, and organization purpose that's aimed at serving others adds a richer sense of meaning to our lives. It taps into the deep craving we all have to make a difference. We need to feel that the world was in some way a little bit better off for the brief time we passed through it.

Jim Clemmer is a bestselling author and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, workshop/retreat leader, and management team developer on leadership, change, customer focus, culture, teams, and personal growth. During the last 25 years he has delivered over two thousand customized keynote presentations, workshops, and retreats. Jim's five international bestselling books include The VIP Strategy, Firing on All Cylinders, Pathways to Performance, Growing the Distance, and The Leader's Digest. His web site is http://www.clemmer.net/articles

Sample Territory Reduction Policy For A Franchise Company

Writen by Lance Winslow

I propose this thought on the subject of Franchisee territory reduction based on performance for a Mobile Business Model. Please read the sample policy below as it explains the reasoning and methodologies considered to extend brand without risking underdeveloped territory. We will use a Mobile Car Wash Franchise Business for this discussion. This sample is speaking from the Operation Manual of the franchisor to the franchised unit:

If the volume of your business decreases to forty percent of your original volume, we may request that you decrease your territory. During the first four months after purchasing your franchise, your business is just really getting going and you can kind of see that your franchise is working. Any time after the four-month start up period, if your business drops to forty percent of that initially achieved volume, you are not servicing your area's client demand adequately. Let's say at the end of the four-month period you are doing ten thousand dollars a month gross revenues with your car wash truck. In later months if your volume drops to 40% of that or four thousand dollars a month, we, rather then terminate your franchise for non-compliance of our standards, which could be a leading reason for such a drop, would allow you to make your territory smaller. All without you losing your franchise.

Let's say for instance you are getting older, you love the work, you kind of want to retire but you want to go out on your car wash truck a couple of days a week. We would understand that, not a problem. But in that case we would want to decrease your territory. We would ask you, if in fact you are only going to work three days a week and you are not going to service your area's total volume, can we decrease your territory by the factor of which you no longer want to work? For instance, if you are working six days a week or five days a week and you want to just work two days a week, that is a significant drop. That means you are not getting to sixty percent of your business. Well that sixty percent of your business needs to be serviced by someone. If you were not willing to do it, we would like to take your current exclusive territory, decrease it so that someone else could have part of your area to work in or you can sell that portion to the next nearest franchisee. This only makes sense.

Now we are not going to decrease your territory without telling you or warning you or helping you if it wasn't your intention to decrease it in the first place. In other words, if you really do want to control the whole territory but you just do not want to work the truck yourself fulltime, we can train your managers for a set training fee. You can have them run the truck on the days you are not running it. You can also decrease your work load but still service your entire territory by using an independent contractor who might rent a car wash truck from you and work for you three days a week. He/she could continue to build the route and you could still keep your original customers that you love to do. We do have franchisees that think like this. They would still like to work but only on a limited basis. This is fine with us. But if you just want to do your business a little bit, then we would want to decrease your territory. Of course, we would compensate you for the decrease in area and reassign it to a new person. Or we could let you sell part of your territory to another person. We need to approve the sale or transfer. This would give part of your area to someone else and let him or her build upon that business. This arrangement would let you can keep any of the original customers that you got during the Blitz marketing mission that you wish to keep.

Percent Market Penetration

At the end of five years if you only have 1.2 percent market penetration and you are not really wanting to expand your business beyond that, we may ask you if you would not mind selling your business or decreasing your territory. Or would you consider taking on an investor who will buy a second car wash truck and be in a partnership with you to service the rest of the area's volume. Over a five-year period you should have achieved a three to five percent market penetration without too much problem. One point two percent is about the minimum that we would expect after five years. Each year consistently more and more people will know about your business. Since more people know about your business and want your services, you are going to have more potential customers. So, one point two percent market penetration over a five-year period would be kind of a dismal result. Although, if that is all you wanted out of your business, just to do it half way and work at your own pace, that would be acceptable to us. But we will advise you there are customers not getting serviced that probably want service. By this time you would already know that you are not getting to all of the customers that you want to get to. In which case you want to either add units with managers or hire independent contractors to run your truck on the days you do not want to work. We will be willing to help you with this but you have to understand that it is important to have complete market penetration. There is no reason to let would-be competition get a foothold in your area. You obviously will not be getting market penetration if you are not hitting all of the customers and if you don't service the customer "someone else will".

Now, if you lose some of your customers because something happened to the customer base in your territory like corporate relocation or downsizing, or you had a bad worker or you got injured and now you are better, we will want to go back into your territory and fix whatever was messed up. This makes sense. Obviously we want to do this. So kind of expect that if you have a problem with your business, we are going to come in and fix it with you. There may be a point where you are not going to want it fixed but we are going to come in and fix it for you anyway. We want you to be successful and the cars and customers to be serviced properly and to an adequate degree.

You may have your master franchise decide that you are not pulling your weight and they are going to come in there and help you. This usually happens after the fourth or fifth year. At which time we are going to have to ask you to either start servicing all your customers, or agree to sell part of your territory to someone else that wants to buy a franchise or to an existing franchisee that wants to add on to their territory or sell your entire operation and move on to something else. Take a profit by selling, shake hands and everyone wins. We really need to get to all of the cars and be a household name in your area. We want to be a household name in every city in the United States and later the world and your territory is not any different than anybody else's. All cities need to have complete market penetration over a five-year period. There should not be any competition remaining and if there is it is because you are not servicing your customers correctly. If you are not servicing your customers correctly we want to come in and help you fix that. If you were not willing to have us come in we would have to request that you take on a partner, buy an additional car wash truck or make your territory smaller. We can agree on something that is good for you and sell that territory to someone else with the proceeds going to you. These are all things to think about with your territory. If you are not going to work your territory then let someone else work it. Car Wash Guys must always dominate the industry.

Lance Winslow

Small Business And Branding Why And How

Writen by Ray Smith

When we speak of branding most of the time people try to relate it to big business house, however, the fact is that every business needs to establish their brand in order to survive the competition. This is nothing new; experts and management gurus had been preaching the same sermon for years now but what they have not told is why you need to brand your small business? How is branding going to help you to establish your business? How can you establish your brand without spending a fortune on it?

You might be having a very small business but would you like your client to perceive your business as a small time entrepreneurial effort? Definitely not, and your business cards, letterheads and other marketing collaterals does just that. They create an impression to your clients that you are an established business house of considerable strength and not just a mom-n-pop shop.

While you have read till this much, you might have started to plan to get a few home printed business cards or visit the website where you saw the preformatted business cards being sold for peanuts. Beware! The quality of your business card is an indication of the status of your business and your clients are intelligent enough to understand the difference between a standard designed perforated business card and a professionally designed business card printed on good quality card stock.

Most of us, including you, would prefer to consider the stability of a company before making a purchase decision. Once you have established your brand with a professionally designed logo, business card and other marketing efforts it becomes much easier for you to build your credibility among the customers.

Getting a professionally designed custom logo is one of the very important elements of branding a business. A logo is not just a symbol or a piece of graphics; it is actually your corporate identity. A properly designed logo can leave long lasting impression on your clients and will never let your business slip out of their minds. It also makes your business easily recognizable. Just think, wherever you see the Golden M of McDonald's do you really need to think twice, what company is that referring to? A good logo should ideally exude the nature and attitude of the business.

Once you have got a logo for yourself it becomes easier for you to establish your brand. You can use that logo in your business cards, letterheads and other accessories. Don't you think it is going to make a difference if the pack that you use to deliver your products to your customer has the logo of your company on it? And if you are using a reusable pack, your customer might just use the same pack to pass on some other goods to one of his friends- what happens then? Yes! Your logo gets noticed by one other person, you add one more name to the list of your potential customers. You are on your way to establish your own brand.

Similarly with business cards, as they get passed on from one person to the other, more and more people knows about your business and the potential customer base increases.

Having a business card or professionally designed logo also shows your commitment towards your business.

A short, easy to remember punch line is another useful tool for branding. Getting a tag line printed on your business cards or your business stationery makes it easier for people to understand the nature of your business. Ideally, your tag line should not only say about what you do but also speak about your USP.

Having said all that, the ultimate question that most of the small business people would have is, how much does it cost to get all these things done? I'd say, "not much". Money is always a problem for most of the small businesses (that's why they are small, otherwise most of us would like to open a Microsoft and be as rich as Bill Gates) but if you know where to look for, you really don't need to spend a fortune to get a professionally designed logo or a business card. There are loads of websites that offer them really cheap and some even allow you to decide the price that you want to pay. (Check out this twin sites, http://www.mycorporatelogo.com and http://www.mycorporateidentity.com ).

So, if you think you are tired of being a "small business" and its time to grow up, take the first step; establish your brand!

Ray Smith is a marketing expert with years of experience in different industries and specialized knowledge on branding and internet marketing. http://www.mycorporatelogo.com
webmaster@mycorporatelogo.com

Initial Steps In Setting Up Your Personal Carpet Cleaning Business With Minimum Budget

Writen by Rodel Garcia

Who cleans the mess when everyone has already left?

Most American homes do not have house helpers to do the "dirty job". After a party or any special event where foot traffic is high, and dirty silverwares are plenty, a hired help from an agency often gets the pay check. This is the primary reason why there are many businessmen looking into the seamless possibilities offered by the cleaning and maintenance industry.

Carpet cleaners for hire have two niches: residential and commercial. Unlike other businesses that can choose only a niche where to focus their sight, carpet cleaning can serve multiple sectors effectively.

Consumer market covers residential homes where the need for carpet cleaning service may not be as frequent as those required by commercial clientele. With commercial clientele however, competition is stiffer because of industrial service contractors plying their trade among institutional accounts. In the overall, the one who captures the bigger market slice, is he who understands the basics of carpet cleaning service, has a modest start-up capital and the resilience to start, manage, and grow the business.

The trick is to find out where you "tick".

Is your leadership skill in place? If you are a leader or someone who has strong leadership qualities, try to manage a team of carpet cleaners rather than do the job yourself. While the latter can save you on cost, the former can give you focus in elevating the business to higher levels.

The perks? The upside of carpet cleaning business outweighs its downside. For one, carpet cleaning is a highly viable business and return on investment is fast. Second, operation is highly flexible, it can be done from the home or in a rented office. Third, its simple operation allows an elbow of flexibility either to do it full-time or part-time.

Setting up: Think big but start small

You may start your carpet cleaning business from home. This is how most successful carpet cleaning ventures started. This is what this article meant, setting up your personal carpet cleaning business with a minimum budget.

Identify your market: Creating a "homebase"

Carpet cleaning service, venturing out on a minimum budget, targets residential homes as their start-up niche.

Why? Start-up cost is minimal and cleaning equipments required are just the basic vacuum cleaner to suck up the dirt off the carpet that has to be cleaned, an ordinary or home-use carpet shampooer, including a locally-manufactured carpet shampoo.

Residential homeowners mostly wanted their carpet to be just cleaned, sans the complexity in cleaning required when requested by commercial establishments, due to the large extent of the carpeted area that has to be cleaned.

Taken at a closer look, carpet cleaning service done on residential market is lucrative comparing minimal operating cost and profit. On the other hand, commercial market includes apartments, condos, buildings, schools, banks, restaurants, hotels, churches, terminals, airports and other similar facilities. Outlook of carpet cleaning venture among these establishments becomes highly viable when done regularly, and contracted for a period.

Rendering of allied services can also be sources of additional income such as upholstery spot and stain removal, drapery laundering, carpet dyeing etc…

How big is the start-up capital?

The trick is not on having a huge financial cash outlay, but on how well profit is reinvested to grow overtime.

Most businessmen entertain the notion that a huge chunk of cash, spells the difference between success and failure in business undertakings, which can be true to a large extent, however it was proven that proper financial management is the key.

Most successful carpet cleaning businesses that started small availed of financing when the need to purchase additional equipment arose. Apart from personal savings, financing can help a great deal.

Credit cards have proven helpful and beneficial when used according to good purpose. Many businesses have started and flourished by the virtue of credit cards. Showcasing personal savings, no matter how insignificant the amount is, can tilt in your favor, approval for a financing loan. Financing companies nod at businessmen who can show a certain degree of financial involvement in taking risks.

Other options for building up capital reserves:

On top of your personal savings, it is a good idea to trawl for financial assistance elsewhere to build your business up during its infancy years. Here are options you may undertake:

Enlist your assets. How far can you go for your business? How far can you lose?

Your savings accounts, home equity, retirement savings, insurance, vehicles, and all other investments can be utilized to build up your cash reserves. They can either be sold or used as collateral for loans you will undertake. Know who your real friends are.

Well-meaning friends who know your resoluteness of purpose to build up a carpet cleaning service can be source of funds either as partners or pure capitalists. You may include in this list your relatives, both immediate or extended.

Seek out private and government-funded programs.

Oftentimes, government-assisted programs for small-scale and medium-sized businesses are not availed of, simply because of ignorance. As a businessman, you should keep abreast with the latest information that can help your business.

Big or small, your carpet cleaning business is one of the most viable service-oriented undertaking you can start today. As someone in the general cleaning industry puts it, "for as long as something gets dirty, we shall never run out of business".

R. Garcia is an experience housekeeper and currently working at BC Children's and Women's Hospital. For more information please visit my site: Temporary Carpet Protection - Temporary Cures For Permanency ; Car Upholstery Care - Tips to Spruce Up Your Car Interiors

Merchant Services Offers Innovative Solutions

Writen by Jack Chevalier

Merchant services enables businesses to accept a variety of payments including:

Visa

MasterCard

Discover

American Express

Gift Cards

Benefits to Merchant Services customers include

Cost effective payment alternatives

Secure method of payment

Improved cash flow

24 - 48 hour funds availability

Accelerated collection of receivables

The cost of setting up and maintaining a merchant account depends on who you choose to provide your merchant account services and how many middlemen to go through. It is better to eliminate costs through the use of one robust system, the greater the advantage to have with the credit card processing solution. Merchant account services enable you to begin processing credit cards immediately through a merchant account!

Merchant Services understands the most essential modes of payments including paperless money i.e. acceptance of credit cards. For such transaction to accomplish one need to have merchant account which is most vital aspect these days. To serve these payment acceptance needs and one can furnish his or her business with a merchant account to accept credit cards. Merchant services offer comprehensive line of payment solution of the business credit card acceptance, debit card acceptance and check acceptance for all type of businesses including retail store fronts, restaurants, hotels, stores via mail, telephone or internet. Merchant services offer you to become self-efficient in profitable opportunities surely making dynamic growth.

For more information on merchant services,please visit http://www.paynetsystems.com

11 Monstrous Small Business Marketing Mistakes And How To Avoid Them

Writen by Susan Carter

Increase your profit potential by identifying – and avoiding – these 11 marketing mistakes.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 1: Sinking a Fortune Into an Unproven Product

Is your business idea built on market research or a hunch?

Entrepreneurs often fall in love with their products or services before they determine if there's a real market, and they throw fistfuls of money into the venture. If you, your spouse, your uncle, and your neighbor think you've got a winning idea, that's simply not enough qualified input to run to the bank and drain your savings account!

Avoid this mistake by:

• Conducting your detective work (research).

• Testing your business idea with the real marketplace.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 2: Believing That "If You Build It, They Will Come"

Do you think you have a product or service that will practically sell itself?

Trust me - you don't.

There is a misconception among small business owners that, with the right product or service, your customers will simply "find" you when you open your doors for business. Whether you have a physical storefront on a corner lot in the busiest part of downtown, or a graphically pleasing online storefront offering easy access to your hot products and services, your customers will not find you if you do not market to them.

The day you open for business is the day you put on your "marketer's hat" and never take it off. You must consistently move product, or schedule service time.

To stay in business you must profit.

To profit you must sell.

To sell you must market.

The good news is that, with a marketing strategy, you take the control out of your potential customers' hands and put it into your own. If you have a product that will "practically sell itself," then your marketing job will be easy. Just remember that the job must still be done.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Defining your niche market and USP (Unique Selling Proposition) that differentiates you from your competition.

• Developing a marketing action plan and strategy to reach your niche market with your USP message.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 3: Trying to Reinvent the Wheel

Marketing is an age-old practice with some very basic principles. Yet, I'm sure you've read many marketing information products that stress the importance of being innovative and creative with your marketing efforts. It's easy to get caught up in the innovation process and forget that the REAL focus should be on results.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Emulating success instead of trying to create something completely new. Please note that I am not saying, "copy" what others are doing. Look at the basic structure of a tactic, campaign, advertisement, or event and use the same formula as a basis for developing your own tactics.

• Realizing great marketing ideas are used over and over again with just the right twist to make them fit a specific business. Focus on results, and choose imitation over innovation to create your own twist on a proven, winning technique.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 4: Over-Preparing and Doing Nothing

The fear of failure can be powerful. So powerful that we do everything we can think of to prevent it. Yet, there is a point at which we are so busy preparing, organizing, and researching to prevent failure that we never get around to the actual marketing of the business. Here are two things to remember:

1. Activity is not productivity.

2. In order to sell a million of something, you have to sell the first ONE.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Doing something! If you believe in your business and have done your detective work, it's time to dive into the marketing pool. Start small, track results and build from there.

• Not being afraid to make a mistake. Mistakes are the entry to success. At the very least, a failed promotion means you have SUCCESSFULLY determined what promotion does not work. And, to learn what does NOT work is a valuable tool in getting you closer to discovering what WILL work.

So, go ahead. Fail a little. It will make your eventual successes even sweeter.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 5: Boredom

When I was working for an ad agency many years ago, I had one client that was running an extremely successful ad campaign. After about six months, I received a phone call from the client. He wanted to develop an entirely new campaign. When I asked, "why?" he simply said, "I'm bored with the one we have."

What?

That client may have had the money to spend on a new campaign due to "boredom" but you and I usually don't. Yet, I've often seen my small business clients switch promotions for the same reason. This is detrimental to your business!

"Losing money" is a reason.

"Boredom" is not.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Remembering that, what is old to you, is new to an untapped target market. If you have a promotion that is consistently getting you results, stick with it until results show you its time for change.

• Testing new promotions without abandoning the current one. Then track results. Never swap a current promotion with a new one that hasn't been tested.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 6: Relying on Networking to Generate Sales Leads

Joining the Chamber of Commerce and schmoozing at association meetings can put you in contact with vendors and possible joint venture partners, and will be invaluable exposure for you as a community supporter - but it will rarely generate substantial sales leads.

Everyone else who attends these "meet and greet" assemblies is there to do the same thing you are. You may be able to make some valuable contacts for future ventures and promotions, but one-on-one networking is time-consuming and results are unpredictable.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Treating networking opportunities the same as any other marketing tactic. Track results by determining your costs and measuring your payback.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 7: Doing What Your Competitors Do

It's important to be aware of what your competitors are offering, but do not let it dictate the strategy you use for your own business.

If your competitor wants to be the low price leader, let him. Don't try to become the "lower price" leader. Chances are this will lead you to financial problems because it will thrust you into an ugly price war.

If your competitor wants to tout low prices, then you focus on value. Bargain hunters don't necessarily want the lowest price. They want the best VALUE. Make what you have to offer something of value.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Finding an unmet need or want of your target market, and fill it to differentiate your products and services from your competitors.

• Giving customers a reason to choose you over your competitors. Define your USP, and identify your niche market.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 8: Not Targeting a Specific Market

If you believe your market is "everybody," you will struggle to attract people who will buy from you. The value of target (niche) marketing is one of the toughest sells I make to my clients. They understand the logic of it, but the "fear of losing a potential customer" gets the best of them.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Viewing the practice of niche marketing as inclusive, not exclusive.

Think of your business as part of a person's support group. It's logical to say, "Everybody needs a support group so my business should attract everyone." But, will it? People - your customers - want to go to a support business that understands their specific concerns, needs, and wants. Make sure you ARE that business by targeting a niche market.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 9: Targeting a Market You Can't Reach or One That Can't Afford You

Targeting a niche market is the smartest way to market. Yet, targeting a market that is too specific will limit your ability to succeed long term. For example, a market that might be too specific would be: female pilots under the age of 35 who fly ONLY New York to London flights. That's a pretty narrow market to sustain your business in the long term unless you can capture the ENTIRE market with a product or service that has a high profit point and customers need to use or replace it often.

In that same vein, a market that is begging for the service or product you have but cannot afford it will also be a business impossible to sustain. Never compete for someone's rent money. Your target market must have the means to buy your products and services.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Creating your customer profile to identify characteristics of your potential buyers,

• Identifying a niche market,

• Examining the long term potential for new and repeat sales.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 10: Focusing On Acquiring New Customers Instead of Promoting to Current or Previous Customers

When you first start a business you have little choice but to focus on gaining new customers. The cost of finding those new customers can be expensive, which is one reason it is so important to really target a specific niche. However, once you've made just one sale, you're ready to start looking at other marketing options.

Wouldn't you like to:

... slash your marketing costs by half or more?

... reach proven buyers for your service or products?

That little goldmine of proven buyers available to you "on the cheap" is already yours in the form of current and previous customers.

Any respected marketing guru, past or present, online or offline, will tell you that the biggest asset your company has is your customer base.

Avoid this mistake by:

• Realizing that, when a sale is finalized, it is the beginning of your relationship with that customer, not the end.

• Offering additional products or services to current customers. If you don't have your own to offer them, then develop a referral, joint venture or product bundling program so you can reap profits from your already-interested (and buying) customers.

MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 11: Not Systematically Following Up on Leads

The least expensive part of business is making the sale. The most expensive is generating leads - finding the people who are interested in what you have.

Once you find people who express an interest in what you have to offer - whether they buy from you or not - you MUST develop a follow up system that will keep marketing to those interested prospects. A person who has expressed interest in your products and services is far more likely to eventually buy from you than someone who did not respond at all!

Avoid this mistake by:

• Curbing the tendency to become obsessed with generating more leads until you have exhausted the ones you already have.

• Developing an easy, systematic follow up for leads, designed to convert a "maybe" into a "yes."

About The Author

Susan Carter helps business owners "do more with less" to operate and market their small and growing businesses. She is the author of How To Make Your Business Run Without You, and SPLASH Marketing for Overworked Small Business Owners. Carter offers FREE book chapters, and distributes free business-building advice in her twice-monthly ezine, SuccessExpress Press, available at http://www.successideas.com susancarter@successideas.com