Pressure Washing Of Paving Equipment And The Epa

Writen by Lance Winslow

Many pressure washing companies will be glad to take on additional work when a company calls them up to come and wash, but the days of cleaning asphalt compactors, steamrollers, paving equipment with diesel fuel are gone forever. If you are caught doing it the old fashioned way it's a $1,000 fines in the United States, fist offense and you pay for cleanup. The second offense is $10,000 and one year in jail and you pay for cleanup, in August of 1999 Newfoundland became the last place in North America to outlaw washing out asphalt dump trucks and paving equipment. It is now illegal every in the US and Canada to hose down paving equipment in this manner. This is because one gallon of Diesel fuel can pollute one million gallons of fresh drinking water about the allowable limits for safe potable water supplies.

There are, however ways to clean and still retain your affluent and then take that water for treatment. In our company we use a vacu-boom system; See the link for a picture of the containment device to collect the waste water:

http://www.truckwashguys.com/reclamation.shtml.

A typical paving machine such as this costs $250,000. It must be cleaned off at the end of each day with a thorough cleaning after a weeks work, if not it will build up and never come off, much the same as a Cement Truck. Dirty machines do not operate as effectively. Daily service for a medium sized paving unit should be in the neighborhood of $45 and we charge $85 for weekly thorough cleaning, but you will have to judge your market and competition before you set your prices. We do have quantity discounts for large companies with many units such as Penhall, JTL, Granite Construction, Tutor-Saliba and RPC, Inc. In your area you may have some of the same names. You might wish to find out who the bigger fish are and set your prices accordingly after you set your basic pricing structures based on supply and demand for services and competition in your market.

Small asphalt compactors are about a 15 - 20 minute job, once your crew gets good at it. At $125,000 average price, it is worth a quick blasting weekly and all the operators know this. Most paving companies also own a fleet of ten wheeler dump trucks. These also need cleaning on a regular accelerated schedule. We also recommend offering detailing services to these company for their dump trucks, which can be detailed on a rotating schedule with other dump trucks, 2 each week.

Keep your pressure washing business EPA compliant and be sure not to overlook paving companies, there are usually anywhere from three to a half a dozen such companies listed in most phone books, even in rural or suburban markets. Think about it.

Lance Winslow

Franchise Business For Sale

Writen by Kristy Annely

Looking for the right franchise business? Check out the franchise business opportunities list available online for those currently on sale. You may also post the franchise business you are selling.

The Internet abounds with different franchise business opportunities, and search engines and websites can help you get connected with the companies you are interested in. They also offer free consulting services, especially for those who haven?t decided yet on the kind of business venture to get into.

Most of these online consultants provide interested parties with help in crafting feasibility studies. They also explain the more technical side of buying a franchise.

But before going ahead with the purchase, make sure you have studied the business well. For one, make sure the business follows the guidelines of the Federal Trade Commission on franchise and business opportunity. The rule requires the sellers to provide prospective buyers with a detailed disclosure document. From the disclosure documents, you will get information about the other franchisees. This will help you get direct feedback about the feasibility of getting into a franchise. These documents must also contain a financial statement fully audited by a third-party auditing firm and must also articulate the agreements or requirements of the business to its franchisee, such as the terms and conditions and the legal responsibilities of both parties to each other.

Get the full details before deciding to go ahead with the deal. Request a thorough presentation from the business. Ask extensive questions about how much capital you need up front and what other fees you will need to pay.

There may be instances when a business will refuse to provide you with a disclosure document upon demand. Some businesses are not required to have a public disclosure document, but you should still insist on seeing one. You may also ask the assistance of the Federal Trade Commission on such matters. You may reach their help desk through their toll-free hotline: 1-877-382-4357.

Franchise Businesses provides detailed information on Franchise Businesses, Franchise Business Opportunities, Small Business Franchise, Franchise Business For Sale and more. Franchise Businesses is affiliated with Franchise Opportunities.

Lawn Care Business Contracts Get Professional

Writen by Kevin Whiteside

Customers are important and you want to make sure you keep them. Finding new ones can be costly and time consuming.

For a professional approach and to increase your chances of keeping them, put your services in a contract. Yes, a written agreement. Many companies, you probably wouldn't expect, use contracts. So get on the bandwagon.

You may be unable to do this with some customers, but many will be open to it. It show's professionalism. A contract doesn't have to be looked upon negatively. It can actually comfort a customer. It shows them you are serious about the business and you will do what you say you will.

Some key points to include in a contract are

* Services

* Address(es)

* Payment Terms

* Termination

* Renewal

* Hold Harmless

Services

Make sure to list what will be provided. Be extremely specific. For example, when cutting a lawn list whether it will be bagged. For leaf removal, tell how many times a year it will be done. Don't just put leaf removal. The customer may think it is 1 time a month during the season.

If doing a lawn spray service, list how many times, when, and what applications will consist of.

Always include how many times and when with a clause in the contract to compensate for weather conditions. Make it easy to understand.

Address(es)

Some business may have multiple locations and branches such as convenient stores and gas stations. Make sure you list the address and name of each business you are servicing. Different locations for the same company may have different services.

For example, some gas stations may require more mulching or leaf removal than the others. Make sure you are specific in what you will do for each of the locations. Try not generalize. It could burn you majorly.

Payment Terms

List how and when you expect to be paid. Most payments are expected upon invoice, but some big companies expect to pay 30 days after receiving the invoice.

If you want immediate payment for certain jobs stated in the contract include it. Give them an incentive and offer a discount for paying within 7 days of the invoice and penalize them when they do not pay within a certain time. Consult a lawyer and find a percentage that is fair.

Some contracts consist of one easy payment once a month. They add all the services' payments over the course of 1 year and divide by 12. For example, if all the income for 1 client totals 50,000 for a year, divide 50,000 by 12 months = $4,166 per month.

Termination

Have a clause in the contract so you or the customer can terminate the contract. You never know what will arise. You could become ill or unable to continue. A 30 day written notice from either party is fair. Don't burn your bridges and be professional.

Renewal

If you and the customer are pleased, having an easy way to continue service after the contract is up is a MUST. This avoids having to write a new one. That's why a clause should be included.

You can say the contract automatically renews or that the customer should notify you 30 days prior to the end of the contract to discontinue service. There are many other ways to accomplish to do this. This is just one.

Hold Harmless

An agreement that states your company agrees not to hold the customer liable if you or one of your employees gets hurt while on their property. Liability and workers compensation insurance is important for this type of agreement. Some customers may require this, but most bigger businesses require that all service professionals show proof of this business insurance even if it is not required by law.

A contract is a good thing. It helps in business planning. How many employees will be needed at certain times of year, how much inventory needed, types of fertilizers and chemicals and what quantity. Also, will let you know if you are able to afford new equipment or vehicles. Plus, it shows professionalism.

I spoke about the words contract and signature(sign), but please use these instead when dealing with customers- Agreement and OK.

I need you to sign right here OR
I need your OK right here. <==this one

We have a yearly contract OR
We have a yearly agreement <==this one

Be sure to seek legal advice. Different laws pertain to different states, so the money you spend with one will be worth it. It could cost you thousands if you draft a wrong contract.

I am not a lawyer who cuts grass on the side- you probably already guessed that- so I can't answer any legal questions. All information in this article is not meant to provide legaladvice. PLease consult an attorney.

Best of Luck!

Kevin Whiteside is the owner and editor of http://www.LawnForum.com Monthly, an online newsletter and website for lawn and landscape professionals. Get a FREE subscription here LawnForum@aweber.com

He is also the author of "Turn High Grass Into Cold Cash- How to Start the Ultimate Lawn Business" http://www.GrassToCash.com

You can use this article as long as the bylines are included.

Small Business Marketing Strategy Enrich The Customer Experience

Writen by Craig Lutz-Priefert

When we think of "Enriching the Customer Experience" our mind leaps to luxury brands like Lexus or Rolex. We imagine a customer surrounded by an elegant showroom, with sophisticated, beautiful salespeople waiting on her. Images of Champs Elysees, Fifth Avenue or Orchard Road float through our mind.

But there is another way to enrich the customer's experience, and that is to reduce the customer's pain.

Not as glamorous, of course, but quite effective.

What if people are already prejudiced toward our own business? Every business type carries along with it certain pre-conceived notions about it. Dentistry involves pain and Fast Food involves waiting in line--these facts are a given, just a part of the environment these businesses operate in, and no amount of smoke and mirrors advertising is going to change that fact.

The good news is all your competitors are shackled by the same set of constraints. Your customers already chose to use the services of you or one of your competitors—they are committed to buying.

Now we just need to stack the deck in your favor, so they commit to buying from you. The first thing to do is improve the product or service you are delivering. If you are a dentist, then use every new pain-reducing technology to minimize pain; if you are in fast food, then by all means speed up the process.

But let's get real--most small businesses are completely dependent on the technology developments in their industry to improve the customer servicing or check-out process. So, rather than improving the technologies, most small business can at best refine the process by which they use that technology. Our dentist can become defter at inserting the needle, and better at reading the customer's facial expression when the first hint of pain appears. Our fast food chain can lessen the actual time in line by streamlining the ordering process and reducing wasted motion in the food-prep area.

Unfortunately, this is where many great small businesses stop--they only improve their product or service. And many customers fail to note the difference in service level, because the business didn't communicate the improvement. And that's when the poor small business owner starts pulling her hair out wondering why more customers don't come to her shop when she knows for a fact she's more efficient than the competition.

But there's another key to customer satisfaction that should always be a constant companion to product improvement--subtly tell your customers that you are doing the best you can to minimize their hurt.

For a dentist, one of the first steps could certainly involve the waiting room. It should be bright, with lots of photos or prints of people smiling and laughing and having fun. The effect need not be in-your-face, but imagine how a few photos of smiling faces sprinkled throughout can help the patient remember the benefit for visiting the dentist in the first place.

Of course, there's no substitute for a big smile from the receptionist as she greets you.

How about that line at the fast food franchise? Brightly colored Tensa-belts, floor advertising for the latest kiddie meal toys, balloons--anything to keep people looking about and distract their minds at least a little as they wait in that line. It's impractical to greet each customer at the door--so you really have to rely on your point of sale to help you out.

One suggestion--supply the parents something to help occupy the kids. A mom with small children is distracted enough, so she already has something to keep her from being bored in line. But you can subtract some stress from a parent if, right when she comes in, you can supply the child with something to keep his or her mind busy.

This is where little things like stickers on the Tensa-belt poles or some friendly floor graphics can help pull the child's mind away from the fact they are trapped in the chute on their way to order.

Remember this key lesson regardless of what business you are in: Improve process, but then consider the People, the customer, and as much as possible ease her pain.

It sounds like common sense, but at the end of a long day it's the last thing your staff is thinking about. But the Chief Marketer must think about the customer's perception and her attitude

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.

Contractor Referrer Service 5 Steps To Gold

Writen by Tope Ola

Contractor referrer service is a very profitable business. More so, doing it on the net make it far more cost effective.

Contractor referrer service involves finding customers or leads for online/offline businesses, and you get paid a referrer or finders fee. You can earn thousands of dollars in a vary short time, through this if you do it right.You can follow the steps below to kick off your contractor referrer service business.

(i) To start with, think in the area of your best interest, passion, idea, hobby or work experience. Referrer service involves telling others what you know, so don't dabble into unfamiliar terrain no matter how tempting.

(ii) To build a successful contractor referrer service, you need a website. From here the whole world will see you, and more importantly your customers. Your site should be theme-based content site (to be search engine friendly).

(iii) Look for profitable keywords that are relevant to the products and services you want to refer your customers to. They are key phrases that people search for often but are less targeted by webmasters.This will place you ahead and above your competitors.

(iv) Provide real customer - satisfying info on your site, don't sell,.Just provide solution to the problems bordering the mind of your site Visitors. When they come to trust you they will click to the business or products sites you are referring them to.

(v) To make huge profit from contractor referrer service, you need to link your site to companies and services that provides the best solution to your site visitors problems. After you told them the solution through your site info, you must provide the means of getting it through your link.

Once they get fulfilled, they will always come back to your site, and even refer others to you, a win-win situation as you make money and build up your contractors referrer service business empire.

TopeNelson Ola a Business Building and Marketing Expert will show you how to build a profitable referrer service business through his sites http://www.myss.net/ref.html and http://www.myss.net/multipleprofit.html

Niche Market Or Generalist

Writen by Joshua Feinberg

Niche markets offer a great way to target specific clients and build a marketing strategy. The problem is that when we think about niche markets, we typically think about specializing in one particular product or service. It is important to remember that niche markets also mean targeting one particular industry or type of client.

Being a Generalist in a Niche Market

Niche market and generalist are not mutually exclusive terms. While you shouldn't try to be all things to all people, you can provide general services to one type of client. This is where the two strategies intersect particularly well for the computer consultant first starting out. Develop your niche market by marketing yourself as the general point of contact for just a select group of clients.

When you're just starting out it's really important that you don't invest dozens and dozens of hours and thousands of dollars in classes, certifications, tests and prep work. You need to be developing contacts to get paying contacts rather than contriving a niche market. Use the skills you have right now to get those clients. And if you already have a specialized skill set, you don't want to commit to a very narrow niche market before you have a good handle on how profitable that niche is.

Once you see that your paying clients have some common threads and you can anticipate a common set of needs, that is when you should think about further developing a niche market. Get the clients first, then look for trends and opportunities for niche markets.

The Bottom Line on Niche Markets

Creating a highly specialized niche market is not necessarily the way to build a computer consulting business. You can't be all things to all people but you should start off with a niche market that is defined by the client not by your services. By doing this you have a larger opportunity to build a strong client base and often times niche markets will naturally evolve from there.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consultants Secrets. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Joshua Feinberg has helped thousands of computer consultants around the World get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too get more steady, high-paying clients. Sign-up now for Joshua's free Computer Consultants Secrets audio training.

Ftc Report On Franchise Rule Making What Purpose

Writen by Lance Winslow

The Federal Trade Commission out of the blue decide in November of 2004 that they wanted to revamp the franchise and business opportunity rule; specifically addressing franchising. Now then, why now? To prove to the masses that the Federal Trade Commission is in control? After all it is nearly 10 years after the Federal Trade Commission considered revising the rule, before this report has surfaced again. Ten years?

Franchise companies have come and gone since then, technologies have come and become obsolete since then. The Federal Trade Commission does not need to prove self worth in the franchising realm, for the industry is fully under control with fewer than 2000 active franchisors at this point. Making rules which will only effect 2000 total companies in an already over regulated industry is just not needed. Do not worry about it. Change some definitions, reduce these over burdensome regulations in the franchise rule to prevent unnecessary barriers to entry, maintain competition in the market place and everything will be fine. Right now as it stands these regulations in franchising and those proposed changes will actually create criminals or perceived fraud of entrepreneurs who will be investing capital into markets and providing jobs. Making criminals out of the hard chargers who create, build and innovate, merely because they did not fill out a form correctly, have an extra sentence in a paragraph or make a chart just right is simply something that the Federal Trade Commission should not be involved in.

The statue in front of the Federal Trade Commission shows a half naked man on steroids who could not make the Olympic team in Athens due to doping issues. This man in the statue is attempting to control the mighty wheels of commerce depicted by a horse, it does not show a man shooting the horse in the head with an unregistered handgun. Either way this cruelty to animals is so highly and politically incorrect it must be stopped at once. The Federal Trade Commission needs to get with the program, provide a seem-less market place and work with the business community or remove the statue.

Since 1980 the number of active franchisors is down from 5800 to about 1700 as of 2003. The franchising industry employs a huge chunk of our workforce. Franchising accounts for almost 1/3 of every consumer dollar spent in America, which drives sales and sales tax revenues for state and local governments at a time when they can use all they can get. Franchising accounts for over 350,000 plus outlets, which open each day to sell their wares to willing buyers of their products and services. For us to consider the few complaints in franchising a trend that fraud is increasing and for the Federal Trade Commission to go out of their way to bring cases about out of mere complaints and further burden the industry with additional rules is truly absurd. Think about it.

Lance Winslow

Small Business Marketing Strategy A Blink Lesson 4

Writen by Craig Lutz-Priefert

This is Article four of six in a series of lessons for small business marketers from Malcolm Gladwell's Blink.

Here in Chapter Four of Blink Gladwell uses the lessons of a seasoned, brilliant Marine Corps officer and an improv troupe to prove a key component of spontaneity: practice.

To quote page 114: "How good people's decisions are under the fast-moving, high-stress conditions of rapid cognition is a function of training and rules and rehearsal." Then further, on page 119: "…allowing people to operate without having to explain themselves constantly turns out to be the rule in improve. It enables rapid cognition."

The lesson small business owners can take away from this chapter is clear. Train, practice, and let your people "in the field" make decisions based on what their training has prepared them for.

The "Big Victory" is that of a seasoned expert, Paul Van Riper, over a larger team armed with computers and data and, in essence, a much bigger budget. But isn't this what you go up against all the time as a small business marketer? You have expertise in your industry, experience with your customers, and passion. The Big Guys have much more money and databases and advertising agencies. But if this chapter shows us anything, it reveals the surprising results an expert--the combat-seasoned Marine, Van Riper--can accomplish using his own expertise and a well-prepared team that is allowed to do what they've been trained for.

This is a chapter that is worth highlighting and pulling down from your marketing bookshelf, especially during those days when you are so discouraged about your own battle with the big guys. Remember, you've assets they don't have--your experience and your employees.

Here is a link to some more questions on Chapter Four, from Malcolm Gladwell's site: http://www.gladwell.com/blink/guide/chapter4.html

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.

Small Home Business Marketing

Writen by Dianne Perrett

The idea of running a profitable small home based business is very appealing to many people.

The thought of being your own boss and earning a good living from home is the ultimate dream for many. But, as we all (should) know - it isn't that easy.

Small home business marketing is one of the most critical factors that you need to understand and undertake if your home business is to flourish.

It is one of the few small business tools that can make you money, rather than saving you money.

While small home business marketing is vital to the survival, and then growth, of your home based business, it is also true that many people launching small home businesses do not have the background or knowledge to successfully undertake small home business marketing.

In reality, the principles involved in small home business marketing are no different to those used in marketing a multi-national corporate.

And that is perhaps part of the problem for many small home based entrepreneurs.

A lot of information that you can find on marketing is quite theoretical, full of marketing jargon and the examples cited are about as far removed from the realities of a small home based business as you could get.

Even if small business owners try to make sense of all the theory, most home based business entrepreneurs end up squandering precious time, money and opportunities by approaching their marketing in a haphazard fashion.

Worse, if they do have some success with these efforts, many will not know what worked, and why!

Your small home business marketing needs to be taken seriously if you wish to realize your goals and dreams.

The starting point is to develop your own tailored small home business marketing plan that will give your marketing efforts direction and focus and which will allow you to recognise and measure your marketing successes and failures.

This is not as difficult as it sounds and it also doesn't have to take copious amounts of your precious time.

All you need is a structured framework and you can turn an energy trap into a powerful business tool.

Dianne Perrett is an international marketing consultant. Click here to find out how her experience and advice can help you make a success of your small home business marketing

Why Businesses Dont Get Past Even Mediocre Success The Overwhelming And Sad Proof

Writen by Tim Stokes

The one thing very few people in the world would realise, if they didn't have it explained to them because its...

Habits and pre-conceived ideas.

We're all creatures of habits and what's more, we can't change easily change our habits.

Most people in business are doomed to fail. Doomed to be mediocre not have a high income and a great lifestyle, right from the time they started.

That's because they have pre-conceived ideas about life and business that won't easily be changed.

How many business owners have realised that every business on the planet involves dealing with people and that means they really need to study human behaviour, personality profiles, psychology, how to influence people, or at least emotional needs of people?

I'll tell you. Virtually none.

Very few think it's that important. This is their pre-conceived idea.

Can you have a business without people? No impossible. Can you have a business that will work without any time input of your own without hiring other people? No impossible. Can you have a business without doing any form of marketing? No impossible.

And all of these areas benefit unbelievably well with training to do with people. By that I mean understanding people at a much, much deeper level so that you know how to use 5-10 word to peak a customers interest to buy from your well written marketing. Or potential customers on the phone decide to buy because you said a few carefully chosen words. Or you understand people so well you can almost instantly pick a great potential employee from one who won't care about your business and be a poor performer.

There isn't an area of business that doesn't benefit from intimate understanding of people and how they react and behave in buying or workplace situations.

When business owners start a business they have a pre-conceived idea they have to work hard and so they do. This pre-conceived idea is so ingrained into their thinking they feel guilty if they aren't at work every hour of its operation.

Business owners are ordinary people, but without changing their habits and pre-conceived ideas they will never succeed at a very high level.

Look at it another way… business growth is about change. For something to grow it must by definition change. However a business is really people but people resist change, in fact most people are terrified of it. And because they fear it, they can't do change.

People worry about finances, lack of cash in the bank, trusting their employees, but still do nothing to solve the problem they know they have.

So what can be done?

How can you, a small business owner, change your way of thinking and embrace change, change your habits, do something differently and allow your business to grow, by growing yourself?

There is one way and only one way.

You need to develop yourself personally. Yes, personal growth.

Personal growth is not something you do once because you read a few books. Personal growth is one thing...

The removal of fear. The more personal growth you do, the more fear you remove.

Do you know what the biggest fear is that people have?

Surveys and research says its fear of public speaking. But public speaking is really the basis of another greater fear, the essence of public speaking, which is a fear of what other people think of YOU and your actions.

If you have a fear of what other people think, it will absolutely stop you from doing things that will seem uncommon or unpopular to those around you. Fear will stop you from changing your own habits of success and failure.

Unfortunately to do something different means to change and change incurs other people noticing and with other people noticing, comes other people's thoughts and opinions and hence the dilemma.

So yes, personal growth is your solution to overcome learned fears so you can become an individual, instead of someone who runs their life and business based on fitting in with the consensus of opinion of those around them.

Want some examples of what I mean?

How about this, do you read books on business, on sales, marketing, success principles, team training and management? If not why not?

Education is the only thing that stands in the way of extreme profits and a business that can work without you needing to be there every hour. There are people who can help you to do this and overcome every conceivable challenges you have that prevents you from enjoying this, but will you let them help you? Will you seek them out willingly or will you use scepticism to prevent that happening while you put up with your challenges indefinitely?

There are thousands of businesses running in the country and world where the business owner doesn't turn up at all, so if you work every hour of its operation why do you?

Is it because you believe no one can do your work as good as you, or you think you have to be there, or you can't trust someone else? All of these pre-conceived ideas are based on a lack of knowledge, which is the cause of all fears.

Again let me say, all business success comes down to one thing. Personal growth. After meeting thousands of business owners, seeing many hundreds come through my seminars and working one on one personally with many dozens the proof is overwhelming that personal growth is what everyone in business needs far more than any other thing.

Fear is what prevents people changing habits. Habits and discipline are what make people successful, long before they acquire the knowledge. If you want success, how much are you willing to change and what fears are standing in the way of your success?

Ah… that's the magic question!

Tim Stokes is a master at increasing business growth rapidly, because he removes the fear of the unknown within a business. To find out more about Tim and his sensational results, equal to anyone elses in the world, go to his website at http://www.bbms.com.au.

Are You Invested In Your Small Business Idea

Writen by Don Osborne

Time and time again, small business owners are caught trying to convince some one else to back their business idea without demonstrating a high level of confidence in their idea as measured by their own hard dollar contribution. I know the off set is to point out the strength of your idea backed by the time, effort and expertise you're going to supply. But, if you won't or can't put your own money where your mouth is you just might have trouble raising money for your "can't lose" small business idea.

As you reach out to various sources of funding you might want to acknowledge the your level of financial contribution as you approach others. Just letting people know that beyond the brilliant business idea you're proposing they invest in is a solid, well thought our business plan is a good starting point. When potential lenders sense you understand the need to demonstrate how your small business idea is going to make a profit and return their capital with interest they will be more willing to entertain investing in your business idea.

If you can't provide a significant hard dollar amount of money you have to work even harder at developing a workable business plan with a clear set of projections about how and when you'll be into a positive cash flow position and you can begin your loan pay back. An investor wants to know you're invested in your small business idea enough to supply all the required facts and figures for them to make a sound financial decision. It's not enough to tell a potential investor how much you care about your small business idea. They need to see evidence that you took enough care in the development of your business plan to satisfy their need to know. An investor needs to know enough to make a sound financial decision. All the "sweat equity" in the world is not enough to off set a poorly researched business idea.

The flip side of the same coin is the fact that regardless of the amount of money you'll be putting into your small business idea to make it successful, you'll be fully invested in the daily effort of the business. That alone should give you cause to do everything possible to make sure your business idea has every possible chance of succeeding. Why in the world would start a small business without making sure everything was top notch.

So the question is not so much about how much money you're going to invest in your small business idea. It's more a question of whether you're invested in your small business idea to the point that you've given it enough to demonstrate you're sold out to the idea so you're investor can buy into it.

Don Osborne authors The Profit Puzzle course to help you plan, finance, start up, run, grow, sell your small home based business ideas. The web site's small home based business directories link articles, books, courses, products, services, web sites, blogs, and software covering objectives, management, finance, personnel, marketing, operations, production and resources. For your free course and directories: http://www.profitpuzzle.com.

Loose Lips Sink Ships The Fastest Way To Put Yourself Out Of Business

Writen by Tia Scott

I agree that knowledge should be free, but the next person I see revealing their hard attained business practices in a public forum, I am going to feel the need to approach them, make them choose their own switch from an outside tree, then whip them with it.

This is the mistake I see most small businesses make: running their mouths too much. I understand you want to be helpful. I understand you want to pass knowledge around. Telling someone where to find a font is okay. Telling someone where to find cool clip art is okay. Telling someone your methods of placing Google Adsense to maximize revenue is kind of foolish.

The internet gives us a false sense of many things: security, popularity, and most importantly anonymity. People are too quick to blab; not realizing what they post is being indexed, linked, viewed, and monitored. Just think if your competitor came across your post, the one that revealed your business practices. That could really affect your business in negative ways.

For example, I have my own personal method of placing Google Adsense on my pages. If you visit any of my sites, you could probably figure out easily what the placement method is, it's not that hard, kudos to you if you figure it out. However, if someone asked me about Google Adsense placement, I'd send them to this page: https://www.google.com/support/adsense/bin/answer.py?
answer=17954&ctx=en:search&query=placement&topic=0&type=f I don't like to tell anyone my methods because I don't want my competitors to know and information tends to be digitally raped at this place called the internet.

Just use your head before you lend knowledge to others. If there is a certain way you do business that is out of the norm, something that is tailored to your business, or something you had to figure out a solution to on your own, it's probably best you don't go around making posts about it on the internet.

With saying that, I feel so much better now. This probably saved someone from getting a spanking.

"Ignore what other people think you like and listen to your heart, it's your passions in life no one can rightfully criticize."

Tia is CEO of Client Centers, LLC, an internet and graphic service business based in Florida since 2000. She is also the editor and founder of http://www.NerdByte.com

This article is free for reprint without the permission of the author as long as proper credits are left intact.

Tia Scott
CEO
Client Centers, LLC
http://www.clientcenters.com
http://www.NerdByte.com

Paperless Cpa Office Myth Or Reality

Writen by Amir Morani

As a new CPA on the block, about eight years ago, I had made it a practice to read as much as possible on practice management along with the regular reading I had to do keep up with the technical matters. I came across articles after articles about how it was possible for CPAs to operate in an almost paperless office. It was, however, quite difficult for me to imagine my own office being a paperless office.

"How could a CPA really operate a practice without papers?" I would wonder all the time. I thought of these talks about paperless offices as being something of a creation of imagination about how life would be in 2035 when I may not be there.

The technology that I was using in my office was helping me improve the production. It was also helping me learn some of the more advanced possibilities in my system. In my small practice, it was a simple client-server network with a T1 internet connection. It was during one of my overseas trips about four years ago, that I discovered the power of my system to its best. With the T1 connection and a static IP address, I was able to work on my office system from over 10,000 miles away without any problems. This was a wonderful experience and my desire to learn more about the paperless office became extremely strong at this point.

I spent a lot of time, powered by my strong desire, to learn on the ways I could possibly convert my CPA practice into a paperless practice. I had already enjoyed the pleasure of working on my office system from around the world. I thought that if I could only access all the other papers I needed to look at while working on a client's file I would not even need to be in the office at all to work. Besides enjoying the frustrations of continuous interruptions, accessing papers was the only remaining reason for me to be in the office. Sure there were other reasons, but to carry out my work for a client, accessing papers was the only one.

Now that my desire was so strong, I started running into various pre-packaged solutions advertised in the direct mail and magazine advertisements. I checked out a few, called a few 800 numbers and received some promotion materials. All turned out to be beyond my budget. I had learned a lot about the potentials of my simple office network by now, and figured out that I was too poor to afford some of the good pre-packaged solutions available out there for CPAs.

Upon a thorough study of the technology in my office and the hardware available in the market at affordable costs, I came to an unbelievable conclusion. It was unbelievable because based on my calculations the cost of converting to a paperless office was going to be 5 or 10% of what it would cost me to go with a pre-packaged solution. This happened within one year of my trip overseas and it has been three years since then. I could not believe it but I had a gut feeling that I was right in my conclusion. I considered the cost of failing in an attempt to go paperless not too high. I was already managing a paper-full practice and if an attempt to go paperless were to fail – I would remain where I was – a paper-full practice.

I spent a considerable amount of time developing the detailed plans on the whole process of going paperless, ordered the scanner that I had studied and found to be most affordable and launched the project. In terms of managing the staff time to work on the conversion process and managing priorities it was quite challenging. The process itself was quite enjoyable and revealing (about the hidden treasures in my filing cabinets) but above all quite enriching.

At the conclusion of my project to go paperless, about 60 days from when it started, I discovered that it was truly possible to manage an almost paperless office. I enjoyed more than two years of paperless office at my practice. The efficiency of the office went up significantly during that period. Clients experienced a different, a much higher level, of efficiency in service.

There were certain things that went right for me in this process. I was able to develop my understanding in this area over the years due to my curiosity and had a good handle over the capacity of my seemingly small office network. I discovered that the current office networks, in many small CPA offices, are like human brains. They are highly powerful and highly underutilized.

A paperless CPA office is no more a thing of the future. The true beneficiaries of this move by CPAs are their clients. CPAs who do not have to spend a lot of their time pushing papers and locating lost documents, would definitely be able to provide high-level services to their clients and benefit them more. All clients deserve a CPA who is at least paperless at the basic level, which is completely possible with a small office computer network and a very small investment.

Amir Morani CPA CMA CFM MBA is the author of 10 Steps to A Paperless CPA Office – The Simplest Guide to Make Your Practice Paperless. Visit the blog at http://paperlessofficeforcpa.blogspot.com

Small Business Marketing Strategy Make Your Promotion Sticky

Writen by Craig Lutz-Priefert

Remember Features and Benefits? Sure; that's Sales 101, right? Features describe a product or service, Benefits describe what that product or service does for the customer. These are pretty basic concepts, but sometimes a small business marketer needs to borrow these time-tested sales techniques to help build a Brand Banner or to dredge up a clever marketing promotion or ad campaign.

Stickiness is an idea described by Gladwell in The Tipping Point. For our marketing purposes, stickiness is how well your marketing message is remembered by--sticks with--your customers and prospects. Stickiness can be achieved by a catchy phrase or a clever marketing gimmick or some type of giveaway or a clever slogan. The idea is to get customers to remember your business; to make it stick with them inside their mind.

The following is a simple exercise designed to help you with building your next promotion or clarifying your brand. Set aside, say, fifteen minutes and just look at your company's strengths. For now, please forget about your company compared to the competition. This isn't a discovery exercise in figuring out where your company is positioned in the market. To start with, simply list features and benefits of your primary products or services. Remember, a feature is a function, the "what it does" of a product or service. A benefit is a "what is does for the customer". There is a world of difference between the two. We suggest you build a simple table on your computer, or you can even rough it out on a piece of notebook paper. Construct four columns, with the following column headings:

• Feature
• Benefit
• One or two Words that Sum Up Benefit
• How to make it Sticky

Underneath the four columns, list ten or twenty rows. It's best to write down loads of features and benefits, even ones that you think trivial, and then eliminate ones that aren't relevant to your marketing efforts. So the first two columns may have twenty rows, while the last two might look half full. You might be able to combine certain features and benefits with the same marketing message or device. Your time will be well spent if you conjure up even a couple decent marketing ideas that help to effectively communicate your company's Brand to your customers.

For example, if ample parking is a plus at your shop, then list "plenty of free parking" as a feature. The benefits would include "no money spent on meters; no wasted time looking for a parking space; customers don't have to walk far to our store". A couple words that sum up your parking might be "free, close-by parking".

Making this benefit memorable is a different trick. What if you ran a week-long promotion where you gave a dime to each customer who shopped at your store? The reason—the next time they are shopping where there's a meter they'll have a dime, courtesy of Your Store, the home of "always free, always close parking". The idea here isn't to come up with a dozen promotions. Rather, it's to flesh out the little things that can set you apart from the competition. This is the type of exercise you can spend a few days on, thirty minutes at a time, here and there. It's hard to pull everything up and out of your brain in one quick setting; better to let ideas percolate around inside for a while.

Oh, and don't forget the People marketing element when working on this. After you make a good beginning on your list, share it with the Bloom Team. They will no doubt hand you some valuable marketing ideas for that last column, but there's often another benefit. Because many of them are close to the customers, they may have customer feedback on actual Benefits that you may have overlooked.

Best of luck--and please do share with us any of your success stories or ideas that have worked well for you.

© 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.

Small Business Lessons From The Crossing Guard

Writen by John Herman

While out running errands the other day, I found myself stopped at a crosswalk. The crossing guard was leading young schoolchildren across the quiet street in a very organized fashion. I thought to myself, "What will the children do when they have to cross a busy street by themselves?" Hopefully they will learn by following the crossing guard's system. I often work with small businesses that need help crossing busy streets. They had no trouble in the beginning, when traffic was light. But now that their business has grown, the traffic is much heavier and the street much busier. Many could use a crossing guard to help them safely cross. However, most business owners don't have a crossing guard and they have to cross on their own. Don't worry, if you remember the lessons of the crossing guard: Stop, Look, Listen, Think, and Walk….Don't Run; you'll be able to safely cross the street no matter how heavy the traffic.

Stop
You wouldn't just run across the street would you? No, you'd stop first! Stop and take some time to evaluate your business. Where is it going? Up until now, you've run your business all by yourself. Now you need to add more staff, develop a plan and a budget. There seems to be thousands of options. Stop and take some time to think about it – don't make snap decisions!

Look
Would you cross the street without looking? No, you'd look both ways! Take stock of your business. Look at what you've done in the past and what you're doing now. Look at what works and what doesn't? Look at what your competitors are doing and what seems to be working for them? Look at ways to incorporate some of those ideas into your business.

Listen
Would you cross the street if you heard a siren? No, you'd listen to see what was happening! Talk to your clients and listen to what they say. Talk to your staff (if you have any) and listen to their ideas. Talk to your vendors and listen to their perspective. You can learn a great deal from people who experience your service or product on different levels.

Think
Once you've stopped, looked both ways, and listened, then it's time to think about when and how to cross the street. The same is true for your business. Take some time to think about it. Develop some plans and then evaluate which plan will work best. Determine what would be involved, when it will happen and what you need to make it happen. Intuition can be your best guide. Often, if it looks too good to be true, it is. Make sure the plan is a realistic one you can follow.

Walk…Don't Run
Would you run across the street if there wasn't enough time to walk? No, you'd stop and make sure you had enough time to cross the street safely! The same is true as you implement your plan – make sure you don't rush it. Remember plans change. Make sure you don't lock yourself into anything and always reevaluate as you go along. Rushing into something can be costly and you may back yourself into a corner. You might really get hurt.

It may seem overwhelming, but you can do it. When you were a kid, it was overwhelming to cross a busy street for the first time, but you did it. As a business owner it can be overwhelming as your business grows, but if you follow these "lessons from the crossing guard", you'll be taking steps to ensure your business succeeds, safely. We call those Succeeding Steps!

John Herman is a managing partner of Succeeding Steps LLC. Succeeding Steps specializes in assisting startup and growing service-based small businesses with sales, operations, marketing and internet solutions. Stay up-to-date with the latest business ideas – visit their blog at http://www.succeedingsteps.com.

Starting A Cabinet Refacing Business On A Shoestring

Writen by Carlo Morelli

So – you're handy with tools, love working with cabinetry, and are considering starting a cabinet refacing business. You've done your own cabinet refacing, and it turned out looking just like a pro did it! But, like many of us, you suffer from those oft-heard blues: under-capitalization. Simply stated, this means you don't have enough money to do a bang-up job of advertising to get the word out about your new business. And to tell the truth, you really don't have a clue as to how to get started. Well, here are a few tips that just might help you get on your way. Read on…

First Things First

Starting a cabinet refacing business, as in so many other service businesses, means others need to know of your abilities. This is when the old adage of "giving in order to receive" comes into play. Let it be known among friends, acquaintances, and coworkers that you're willing to reface their kitchen cabinets for the cost of materials only. This is a sure-fire way of getting at least one, two, or more jobs in a hurry. But be careful to not extend yourself so far that you can't keep up with what you've promised.

Don't reface cabinets "pro bono" for more than three people. That's all you'll need when starting a cabinet refacing business. Do the best job possible, of course. And use these three jobs to refine your skills and work on doing the job the fastest way. Time means money, so the better you get at doing your job, it's only natural that your speed at doing it will pick up, too.

Take Pictures & Advertise Cheaply

Always bring along your digital or regular camera and use these three jobs as samples. After each job you complete, take plenty of pictures, keeping the best ones to use for both an online portfolio and/or to place in a sample book. This can prove to be invaluable as a selling tool. You'll also want to get permission from your three original customers to use them as references. People almost always want to talk to someone for whom you've actually done work in order to feel more confident about allowing you to work in their homes.

Advertise your service. Starting a cabinet refacing business won't go far without at least some initial advertisement to get your services known. Avoid large newspaper advertising and instead, utilize neighborhood papers that offer cut-rate advertising at a fraction of the cost of the larger publications. You can also spread the word online through Web sites such as CraigsList.com, TownHub.com, Hoobly.com, and others. Do a search on Google for "classified advertising" to find out where best in your local area to place some free or low-cost ads.

You may go through an initial period of sporadic work when starting a cabinet refacing business, but it won't be for long. So many people prefer sole proprietors over big-name companies that they will often choose the solo working man (or woman!) because they know they will get one-on-one customer service and won't have to deal with a faceless corporation if something's not quite right. And after a short period of advertising, you'll soon find that word-of-mouth gets your name out well enough that you won't need to spend time or money for advertising.

But what's the very best advice for starting a cabinet refacing business? Always perform like you're working on your very own cabinets. That way, you know you're giving the customer what they deserve – your very best work!

Visit http://www.onlinetips and read about painting kitchen cabinets.

Reseller Business Opportunities

Writen by Randy Wilson

Are you looking for an opportunity that will allow you to earn a living from home? Reseller business opportunities are a great way to start. With no background in sales, you can still earn a substantial living in the reselling industry.

The industries involved in reselling are endless. For example, everything from computers to horses can be resold and often are. Amazing as it sounds, even food products and web space are marketable and profitable in the reseller business opportunities field.

Computers, of course, are a big hit on the resell market. One of the largest computer manufacturers on the market today started as a home based business, reselling computers.

There are several companies in the computer resell business that you can register with. This type of reselling opportunity has little draw back for the home based business. There is usually no inventory, items are drop shipped to your clients from a central warehouse, and you just manage the ordering end of the deal.

The company you register with usually simplifies your estore (web site) and billing process. You are basically selling their items on your web site. Industry statistics say that online computer resellers will generally make are fifty-five thousand dollars a year.

Another example of reseller business opportunities is nutritional, health and beauty products. The aging baby boomer generation is buying up health and beauty products by the millions. This is a trend not likely to end for a while. In our health conscious society, these types of products do very well on the reseller business opportunities market.

There are many companies in the health and beauty field that offer resell opportunities. Nutritional products are quickly becoming popular within this field. Alternative medicines and holistic medicine is worth a look, too.

Web space in another hot ticket on the resell market. Millions of businesses and individuals buy web space every year. Reselling web space can be extremely profitable especially if you go with a company that takes care of the web design as well. Maintaining a web space for a business is in demand. Of those millions of businesses buying web space, a tiny percentage of them actually know anything about web design or programming for the Internet.

Pet supplies and accessories are also great resell items, particularly the larger animals such as horses and cattle. Tack and other horse equipment is hard to come by in parts of the country and if you are a supplier, you have a niche market almost all your own in the reseller business opportunities field.

Books, music, computer programs, pets, and just about anything else you can imagine has a resell value. Companies are springing up everywhere offering resell opportunities to small businesses and home based businesses. Finding what you like and enjoy should be easy with so many fields to choose from.

Setup and initial investment are going to be somewhat different depending on the type of products or services you are reselling. Some companies will require that you keep an inventory. You may need special licenses or permits for one industry that you wouldn't need for another.

Make sure that you believe in the product or service you are trying to sell. Your faith in the actual products will help you in your sales effort. Also you will need to map out an advertising campaign within your budget. Most companies that offer reselling opportunities will be of great help in the advertising department, having helped many other resellers in the past.

Reselling business opportunities are a great way to start out a home based business. Most require little or no training, no additional education, and little or no inventory. Finding something you believe in and would be comfortable presenting to others should be no problem with all the opportunities out there. Start looking for your reselling opportunity today.

© Copyright Randy Wilson, All Rights Reserved.

Randy has dozens of home based business articles at Home Businesses such as Money Making Opportunities that are Unusual.

Tips And Tricks For Legal Debt Collections

Writen by Steve Austin

If a customer owes your local business money, it's hard not to feel angry, like you want to do anything possible to get your money back. But the days of going all out to collect on a debt over. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, designed to protect consumers from harassment or intimidation, sets firm limits on what you can do to collect a debt from a consumer. The federal debt collections law even prohibits practices that were once standard, and that you might not consider harassment at all.

Besides, as a local business, you have an even more powerful reason to be especially careful about legal debt collection issues. You have something much more valuable at stake than a lawsuit: your business's reputation in the community.

Legal Debt Collection Best Practices

There are plenty of articles on the web that lay out in plain English what the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act says you can and cannot do. Just to give you some idea of the law's requirements, here are some of the biggest:

* No telling any third party about the debt (except collection bureaus, collection agencies, or the debtor's attorney).

* No calling on the telephone 9 pm - 8 am, or calling repeatedly in a way that is annoying.

* No postcards or envelopes that mention the debt.

* No threats to take actions you cannot or will not really take, such as seizing property, in the case of an unsecured debt.

* No misrepresenting yourself (e.g., "Hi! This is the Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes. May I speak to John?").

* No paying down the debt with payments the customer has directed be applied to other debts

Tips and Tricks for Legal Debt Collections

With all these limits on what you can do to collect a debt, what can you do legally?

* Speak with the debtor personally on the telephone; most likely he or she wants to pay but is in over his or her head. Begin by asking what circumstance has kept him or her from paying. Offer to set up a repayment plan.

* You should both send letters and make telephone calls. Many people will only respond to one or the other.

Document every part of the collections process. Take notes for each call and keep a copy of each letter. If the debt does ever go to court, you will have proof you acted legally.

* Look into reporting the debt to credit bureaus. If you can, and are willing to do it, you can tell the debtor that not paying will impact his credit rating.

* Best tip of all: hand over the job to a dedicated collection agency. Small business debt collection services start at as little as $20 per debt. The fight to get paid is a fight no business should have to involve itself in.

Unfortunately, debt collections are a part of business. Just make sure that for your local business debt collection law is followed to the letter, or legal proceedings may become part of your business, too.

If you want to learn Collection Laws, then visit http://www.debt-collection-laws.com for the latest information on debt collection laws and collection agency regulation.

We Learned More In One Day Than We Had In The Past 5 Years

Writen by Dr. Gary S. Goodman

It was a beautiful winter day in a small Illinois town.

I had been invited by two financial planners to do a day of consulting at their site, and I recall how starkly beautiful the morning was; about 10 degrees, clear blue sky and bright sunshine.

We got an early start and I asked them how they earned their business and they replied it was "by referrals," which is common in the financial community.

And as the day developed, we finally got to the areas that were most helpful: what they were avoiding and what their perceived limitations were.

Neither was confident over the phone, preferring instead to shake hands and to see people eye to eye. Both were very affable in person, but I knew that their phone demeanor was lacking. They sounded suspicious and reticent, and we needed to work on that.

The problem with most small businesspeople is that they fail to devise systems for sales and marketing, preferring to leave their fortunes to chance or to habit. What we did that day was develop some presentations for the phone for both of these planners as well as for their office manager.

Every inbound and outbound call was discussed and mapped. Instead of hoping for referrals, they asked for them, directly.

They wrote me a note afterwards that said: "We learned more about our business in one day than we had in the last five years."

And that was saying a lot because they were already successful when I arrived on the scene.

Coaching and consulting can be invaluable for small businesses providing it is focused on developing and delivering new practices. Owners and managers don't need "business friends," which is what some coaching organizations purport to sell.

They need do's and don'ts, and if this is what your consulting or coaching enterprise is about, you'll prosper, too.

Dr. Gary S. Goodman is the best-selling author of 12 books, over 700 articles, and the creator of numerous audio and video training programs, including "The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable," published by Nightingale-Conant-a favorite among salespeople and entrepreneurs. For information about booking Gary to speak at your next sales, customer service or management meeting, conference or convention, please address your inquiry to: gary@customersatisfaction.com.

Project Management Avoid Work Scope Creep

Writen by Wendy Maynard

Congratulations! You've just got a new client for an exciting project that is going to be fun and profitable. You carefully discuss the work with her and she sends in a down payment.

BANG! You are off and running!

The following week, you are happily working on this exciting project and your phone rings. It is your great new client...wanting to make a slight change to the project. Hmmm...

Being the wonderful and oh-so-easy-to-work with consultant that you are, you agree, hang up the phone, and get back to work.

A couple of days later, the phone rings. It's your {AHEM} great new client again with a "few more ideas for changes."

"Well, okay," you agree, somewhat reluctantly, and hang up the phone. Now, you have to go back and revise some of your work to date and your original estimate no longer covers the scope of work. Your new and exciting project just officially became a stressful time suck that won't be such a great moneymaker.

Yes, it's the Dread Work Scope Creep. {B-horror film sound effects kick in here with a woman's scream at seeing the monster}

Does this sound familiar? If you - like many consultants - aren't managing the change process properly, the result will be:

stress

long hours

inadequate compensation

missed deadlines

an unhappy client

an unhappy YOU

Well, there is hope. Here are some tips to help you manage those "little" changes to keep them from growing into the monster project with no end in sight:

Create a Contract: Ever heard the expression contracts keep friends? Well, it's true. Your written agreement should describe what you doing for this specific project, what each party is responsible for (deliverables), and how much it will cost. Also, make sure to include a line that explains costs for additional services, revisions, meetings, and so on that are requested by the client and are outside the scope of the agreed-upon project. Both parties should sign this BEFORE the onset of the project.

Communicate Changes: When your client calls asking for changes, make a note of the conversation. Then, write them down and e-mail or fax them to your client. Make sure you are clear about how this affects the project budget and/or deadlines. If it is a new client, you may want to consider a follow-up call to ensure they understand how their request will impact the project.

Don't Overcommit: Don't say "yes" just because you are afraid to say "no." It is perfectly acceptable to tell your client "it won't work." Make sure to follow up with a valid explanation and tell them what you are willing to do. If your client doesn't respect you, your abilities, and your time constraints, he or she is not a client you want to keep.

By managing your work change process effectively, you will avoid the Dreaded Work Scope Creep {Horror flick scream again}. This will help ensure your projects and client relationships are profitable, pleasant, and manageable.

Wendy Maynard, your friendly Marketing Maven, publishes REMARKABLE MARKETING, a weekly ezine for business owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. If you're ready to skyrocket your sales, easily attract customers, and have more fun, get your FREE REPORT at: http://www.gomarketingmaven.com

Small Business In Search Of Good Advice

Writen by Kevin Dwyer

In a small business it's not financially sustainable to pay for bad advice, nor is it advisable, of course, to act on free bad advice. So how do you know when you are getting good or bad advice.

Here are a few tips about sorting out the wheat from the chaff.

There is an old adage; "If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is". It applies to business advice. If someone tells you that buying or doing something will solve your issues or grow your business astronomically, it won't. If life was like that, some of your competitors would already be doing it.

A common example is the over-exaggerated claims with underestimated effort of many software vendors. With one push of a button, customers will beat down our doors. Software is a means of automating manual processes that we cannot afford the time or money to do or that we do at a high cost.

Software can make a great change in our cost structure or in our reach and capability, but it does not replace thinking about desired business outcomes, required processes, performance measurement and a long list of other thoughts to get things right for our business.

Another sign of possible bad advice is whether the advice is based on fact or opinion.

Advice given as a slogan is a dead give away of advice based on opinion. Slogans ripped straight from a book or an MBA course or the latest "trends" in business need to be avoided.

Phrases which indicate business advice is actually a well camouflaged slogan include; "best practice", "get it right the first time", "continuous improvement", any phrase with "excellence" or "vision" in it and "customer value proposition". If people cannot give advice which is specific about your business and unequivocal in its meaning, then they are probably not providing you any value.

Questions, or the absence of them, are another giveaway for bad advice. When people do not ask questions about your business, your customers or the channels through which your customers buy or your employees or goal or strategy and proceed to offer advice, what can it be but a few generalisations about business.

Generalisations are generally bad when it comes to changing your business on two counts. One is that whilst the advice is generally relevant, specifically it may have little relevance at all as a specific issue may overshadow the general world of circumstances within which the generalisation holds true. Another is that I have never seen anyone implement a generalisation.

Even when advice is specific there is a test to indicate the probability of the advice being good or poor. The test is whether the advice is based on fact or opinion.

"My manager is great", is an opinion; "I am wearing trousers" is a fact. Often when people give advice, they do it on the basis of a rationale apparently based on facts, but actually based on opinion.

In businesses there are four levels of facts/opinion. There is internal opinion, for example two sales people chatting generally about the industry. External opinion is more valuable as this consists of the opinion of customers or distributors. Internal facts are based on items like sales reports and external facts are based on external reports such as bureau of statistics numbers or customs import/export numbers.

Take care to validate important advice to be sure that it is based on facts and what level of "facts".

Given that picking good advice from bad is a task in itself that some small businesses need advice on, it is probably important to spend slim resources seeking advice on those things which really matter.

For example, if you own a retail shop with very small floor space, seeking advice on inventory control and merchandising might be a good idea. Or, if you were in control of a government department with a small budget, then seeking good advice on hard nosed planning and monitoring of outputs might deliver more results for your small budget.

Many people in small business tend to stick with their friends and acquaintances for advice. Whilst familiarity with your personality is good, an outside view is often what is required for critical areas of your business.

In seeking advice, be clear with yourself what advice you are seeking about said critical area. To know what advice you are seeking, "think through" the advice to the point that you know what you would do with the advice. Don't just "think of" the advice you want.

Sometimes when you go through this process, the solutions become clear and the advice you seek is validation and identification of risks, how to recognise them and what to do.

When seeking advice, look for people who will ask questions, do not use slogans and will be specific. Now that's good advice.

Kevin Dwyer is Director of Change Factory. Change Factory helps organisations who do do not like their business outcomes to get better outcomes by changing people's behaviour. Businesses we help have greater clarity of purpose and ability to achieve their desired business outcomes. To learn more visit http://www.changefactory.com.au or email kevin.dwyer@changefactory.com.au ©2006 Change Factory To see more articles visit http://www.changefactory.com.au

Small Business Owners They Owe You The Money Why Dont They Pay

Writen by Kelvyn Peters

Doesn't it frustrate you when you've given good service, sometimes super service, and the customer doesn't pay you?

Some of them aren't doing too well and are struggling for cash, but, gee, so are you. In the time they take to pay they could have paid off a little each week and the debt would be gone.

You know others have the money but it takes them six months of sending them copy after copy of invoices, letters and telephone calls before they open their purse…

And often the worst are Government Departments and large businesses. You don't want to lose sales to these customers but your cash-flow is hurting and you dropped your price to get the contract as well.

Is there any way to stop it?

Perhaps not completely, but there are ways to control the problem. Owners should have a clearly defined Rules of Credit which is known to staff and customers…and they should apply them consistently.

Many owners started off with some rules but over the years they have become lax at applying them. Customers and staff have become so used to breaking them that it's as though there are no rules at all.

The minimum rules are:

• Credit check for all new clients
• Credit limit for all clients
• Terms of payment 7 days, 30 days etc. Customers will have to negotiate a longer period.
• Procedure for letters 1, 2 and 3.
• Procedure for phone calls after letters.
• Cash Sales only after limit is reached or deviation from payment policy.
• Procedure for debt collection.
  
  It doesn't matter what the rules are, as long as your customers know them and know that you will apply them without favor.

  You may need some help from your accountant to fine-tune the procedure and help with the letters and telephone script. http://www.profitstrategies4business.com

  About the Author

  Kelvyn Peters CPA is one of the longest serving Tax Agents in Australia. He registered as a tax agent in 1962 and was appointed as a CPA in 1964.

  He is well-known for his ability to rescue an ailing business. http://www.profitstrategies4business.com

Common Mistakes Small Businesses Make And How To Avoid Them

Writen by Robert Warlow

Unfortunately very few start up businesses make it beyond their 3rd year. Failure is usually down to a number of clearly identifiable mistakes, which if small business owners are aware of, can increase their chances of survival.

Here are the top 10 common mistakes which small businesses tend to make.

Lack of Market Research

When a budding entrepreneur comes up with an idea for a new business he assumes that because he would buy such a product or service then everyone else will. This may be the case for day-to-day necessities but for other items this is usually not so.

It's important that when you start up you carefully research the market to check that:

• There is demand at a level which would lead to a sustainable business

• People are prepared to pay the price required for you to make a decent profit

Undertaking market research may appear time consuming but the effort will pay off.

Poor Record Keeping

Some business people are not born administrators; they feel more comfortable getting out there and 'doing the business'. Paperwork is too easy to ignore but can never be put off indefinitely.

Sales, purchases and other expenditure must be carefully documented, so you know whether you are making a profit or not. Invoices must be issued on time and chased up promptly if there is a delay in payment. It's all very well having the sales but poor record keeping can hold you back.

Having your paperwork in order will also save you time when it comes to your accountant doing your year-end books!

Insufficient Capital

When starting off it's easy to decide what capital is required for fixtures and fittings, machinery and stock. What many new business owners forget about is the cash needed to fund day-to-day requirements, i.e. cash to pay expenses before your customers pay you. This is known as your working capital requirement.

Small businesses can fail because they have insufficient cash to start off to meet these immediate expenses. If you wish to survive make sure you set aside enough cash to meet all your needs for the first few months.

Ineffective Marketing Or None At All

You cannot afford to treat the cost of marketing as an unnecessary expense. A business with no marketing is like waving in the dark – you know you are doing it but no one else does!

There are many ways to promote your business on a small budget; it's just a case of being inventive and creative. What ever you do, don't assume that people will quickly know you are in business – they won't, unless you tell them.

Ingoring Changes In The Market Place

As a small business owner it's very easy to get immersed in your business and not see what is happening around you in the market place. Always keep your eyes and ears open to what the competition is doing and what your customers want. Don't get left behind.

Owner's Attitude

Attitude is everything in business. Don't forget that the real boss in your business is the customer. Running a business may make you feel important but don't let this develop into an 'I am better than you' attitude. Do this and you will quickly chase your customers away.

Spending On The Wrong Things

Being in business can be exciting, especially as the cash starts to roll in! However, don't be tempted to spend it on a new car, a house or just a good time. If you are to own a successful business then you have to keep some cash back to fund future growth. A business cannot grow without cash, so commit to spending business money on the business.

Dependent On A Small Number Of Customers

Don't fall into the trap of setting up a business just because one person says they will buy from you every week or month. Setting up and running a business, which is dependent on one customer, is not a recipe for success. What happens if, one month after you have spent all your cash to set up your business, that customer says he has changed his mind and has decided to buy elsewhere? Unless you can find other customers very quickly you are faced with closure.

Before embarking on a new venture make sure you have a sufficient number of customers such that if a few go elsewhere you can still continue trading.

Growing Too Quickly

Surprisingly, growing too quickly can be a problem. You have to be disciplined enough to only take on work you can handle. If you are tempted to accept too much you could end up disappointing not only the new client but also your existing ones.

Also, don't under-estimate the impact rapid growth can have your administrative burden. As I mentioned earlier, getting behind on the paperwork can have an equally damaging effect on your business.

Trying To Do Everything

Finally, the problem most small business owners have is the fact that everything falls on their plate. Inevitably this is how it's likely to be in the beginning, when the limited budget means that staff are a luxury, but as the business grows be aware that you cannot continue to do all tasks. There will come a point when you become inefficient and not have enough time to complete everything in sufficient detail. Taking on an extra pair of hands will increase your costs but you will be surprised at how much time will be saved, allowing you to do what you do best – getting the business in.

Take a look at each of the mistakes and make sure that you don't fall into these traps.

Small Business Success is a resource dedicated to helping small business owners be more successful. If you are looking for a regular flow of ideas and tips then subscribe to Small Business Success a free newsletter, which provides you with quick tips, ideas and articles. Visit http://smallbusinesssuccess.biz

Single And Multi Owner Llc Taxes

Writen by Dennis Gardner

LLC owners must report their business income and losses on their personal income tax returns

Similar to a sole proprietorship or partnership you must report your income to the IRS. An LLC is not a separate tax entity like a corporation. The IRS considers Limited Liability Company a 'pass through entity." Earnings are taxed only once. Profits and losses of the LLC 'pass through' the business to the LLC owners. Owners (members) must then report this information on their personal tax returns. The good news is the LLC itself does not pay federal income taxes. But some states do charge LLCs an annual state tax.

Income taxes and the number of members in your LLC

The number of members in your limited liability company determines how it is taxed by the IRS.

Single-Owner Limited Liability Company Taxes:

If you are the sole owner of your LLC then the IRS taxes you much the same as it would a sole proprietorship. All profits and losses must be reported on your 1040 tax return (on the Schedule C attachment). You can not avoid taxes by leaving your money in the LLC's bank account. All profits in the LLC's accounts must be reported.

Multi-owner Limited Liability Company Taxes:

If there is more than one member of your LLC the IRS taxes you much the same as it would a partnership. Again the LLC itself does not pay tax on profits. Individual members must report their share of profits on Schedule E and attach it to their 1040 form. Each member pays taxes on their distributive share of company profits, as stated in the LLC operating agreement. Again, the LLC itself is not taxed by the IRS although there may be an annual state tax, depending on which state you are in.

State Taxation of Limited Liability Companies:

Although the IRS does not tax LLCs, California levies an annual minimun franchise tax of $800.00, they expect this payment within three months of forming your LLC and kindly send you a bill so you don't forget. Wyoming levies an annual State tax on of $100.00; California requires an annual List of Officers or Members filing, fee of $100.00; Delaware levies an annual franchise tax of $30.00.

Dennis Gardener is an assistant editor at small-business-assistance.

More small business information YOU CAN USE, available at small-business-assistance

Government Grants What Are They And How To Get Them

Writen by Mike Freemen

None of these Government Grants require a credit check, collateral, security deposits or co-signers, you can apply even if you have a bankruptcy or bad credit, it doesn't matter. Its Free Money Never Repay!

The Federal Government is Giving out over 155.5 billion dollars in Business Grants!

Receive Government Small Business Grants for virtually any type of business. Whether it is to start a business or expand your existing business there is money for waiting just for you. The Federal government provides this money to help existing small business owners and those who want to start their own business change their lives and achieve financial independence.

The United States Government wants your Small Business to succeed and you will be amazed at the lengths they will go to help ensure your success. At Grant Seeker Pro™ we have designed a State of the art software program that will aid you in locating the perfect grant or grants for your small business!

Once you find the programs for Small Business Grants that fit your needs you can use the Grant Seeker Pro™ software program to complete the applications! Don't forget to use your Grant Seeker Pro™ to complete your business plan also!

Facts About Government Business Grants:

# Over 20 million people gets Government grants every year

# Over 10 BILLION dollars for entrepreneurs in the form of Low Interest Small Business Loans.

# 4,000,000 people get money to invest in real estate!

# Did you know that if every business in America were to apply for and receive an equal share of Government Small Business Grants that each and every business in this great country would receive a $70,000 free cash grant?

# Did you know that H. Ross Perot has received Government Small Business Grants?

# Did you know Paul Newman has received Business Grants.

# Did you know Donald Trump has used Small Business Grants to fund many programs.

# Most recently the airlines have received Billions in grants to make sure they stay afloat through these troubled times.

Learn about complicated Tax Refunds or Tax Credits. These are programs largely overlooked by the Small Business owner. At tax time these special incentive programs can (depending on the size of your business) save you tens of thousands of dollars!

In spite of the perception that people should not look to the government for help, the great government give-away programs have remained so incredibly huge that if each of the approximately 8 million businesses applied for an equal share, they would each receive over $70,000.

Thought Affirmative Action was dead? If you did you thought wrong. Though many of the catch phrases are no longer in use most of the money that was available still is.

Every year Congressmen and Senators make promises to the people that put them in office. Many of those promises are made to minority groups in specific areas but most are made at a National level.

There are also Reserved Free Government Cash Grants now available for the following special interest groups. American Indians, Veterans, Family Members of Veterans, Low Income Families, Community Block Grants, Non Profit Organizations, First Time Home Buyers, Artists, Musicians, Nurses, Teachers, Researchers, The Disabled, People Suffering From HIV and AIDS, Substance Abuse. There are literally Millions Available; All you have to do is ask!

Can You Imagine receiving:

One Billion Dollars in Minority Business Grants for business start up!

Millions in Minority Business Grants to expand your existing business!

Receive $8,000 in Minority Grant for Free Legal Advice!

Millions Available In Minority Grants for the purchase of your first home!

Receive $75,000 Housing Grant to Remodel Your House!

Receive $6,000 in Minority Scholarship Grants for College Tuition!

For more information on government grants and how to apply visit http://www.federalgovernmentgrants.biz

Entrepreneurs And Franchisors Watch Out

Writen by Lance Winslow

New Franchisors and Entrepreneurs need to watch out as they enter into the world of franchising. What advice can I give to a new franchisor, I was asked today by another entrepreneur with a wonderful new concept; what are the tiger traps that lay ahead?

So you are a new franchisor? Who can you trust? Can you trust FranData? The Industry's information source was thought to be a friend, is it? Well they can get you on a list so that SBA Loans for your new franchisees go smoothly. But after you send them your UFOC, which you most likely paid some $35,000 to an over paid boilerplate bandit attorney to create, they will turn around and sell it to your competitors. See for yourself:

https://www.frandata.com/frandata/cart/prod_IR.aspx?screenwidth=800

And if you choose to give out earning claims to prospective buyers, based on current franchisees sales, then they too will sell this to all your competitors also, both non-franchise competition and franchise competition which may have stores nearby or even next door to your current franchisees, thus putting your franchisees at a disadvantage as well as your own growth in the market. Remember the key to franchising growth is watch the cash and build brand name:

http://www.frandata.com/productofmonth.aspx?screenwidth=800

This is our wonderful Franchise disclosure laws at work, taking the small entrepreneur's information and life's work and selling it to your larger competitors who do not want you in business at all. Our government seems to think this helps consumers? Well it helps competitors put you out of business, so watch out. It helps competitors destroy your franchisees and therefore hurts those franchise buyer consumers. And even worse to the parent company, the franchisor, by giving information which is available to overseas competitors who want to know exactly how well your units perform so they can compete with you head to head in all of the other non-US markets? Great? Do you think for one minute that those overseas governments would make their companies give data that we could get? I don't think so.

We in the United States are continuously put at a competitive disadvantage in this country by government mandatory disclosure and FranData wants to get your data out faster to those same competitors and makes money doing so. This is how FranData can help your business grow? Give me a break. In 1997 at the annual IFA conference in Las Vegas, I met the former owner of FranData who was able to make a deal with the SBA to develop a registry. He was a black guy and I can only assume his minority status was used to get him this exclusive coup. Must be nice to be a minority and do government contracts. Then he started collecting UFOCs, Financial data, franchise profiles and then started selling these to attorneys who may wish to sue these companies and or call up all your new franchisees and ask them to join in a class action law suit. And to your competitors. FranData's Rational for doing this? They say it is public data, anyone can get it. That is not entirely correct, not just anyone can get it, especially if you are smart enough to fly under the radar a little. There are strategies for this and it is advised. Now then any foreign competitor in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, China, Philippines, Australia, Europe, UK, Middle East (great possible International Terrorists can buy data from FranData, is this true?), Canada, etc. can find out everything about your company. Everyone knows these UFOCs contain more data than anything on your company computer or in your trashcan. I got a call from FranData, which has been bought by National Cooperative Bank;

http://www.ncb.coop/

Great now we have a bank, which funds your competitor's franchisees, which has all your data on your new franchise to sell to your competitors. In this phone call the caller said that they could help our franchise company with publicity? Well, luckily we need no publicity:

http://www.carwashguys.com/innews.html and

http://www.carwashguys.com/history/museum1.shtml

The caller purported to be working on setting up a 50 Fastest Growing New Franchise Concepts for Franchise times:

http://www.franchisetimes.com/

Which is an industry newspaper, which is rarely read by the potential consumer franchise buyers, but rather your Competitors also. The Franchise Times has come and gone. Stops printing for a while and is then revived. It seems as a new franchisor you must guard your data and business model with passion or you will find all your trade secrets printed in national magazines and your corporate data in the hands of competitors who will go to any length to attack your company and your new franchisees. Think on this.

Lance Winslow

Business In The Days Of Awe Connection

Writen by Mark Silver

Someone has emailed you that they are interested in your work. Or, you have a list of potential contacts from your leads group. Or maybe you're thinking about someone you want to cold-call, because they could really use what you are offering.

You are headed towards a conversation, which will end, you hope, with the other person saying "Yes, I'm buying!"

These conversations can be very painful, because they end, more often than not, with an "Ummm.... I'll think about it." I think the pain of this conversation ranks right up there with bone marrow transplants. Well, maybe not that bad. But, Lord it ain't good.

The pain of these conversations goes beyond awkwardness. It's so bad, because you really do want to help and be of service. I know I do. When I'm left feeling as if I'm bothering someone, I just want to quit. I didn't get into business to bother people- and if that's what I'm doing, I'll go back to being a paramedic.

This October, 2005, contains an extraordinary spiritual double-header. Ramadan, the holy month of fasting for Muslims, began at the same time as Rosh Hashonah, the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashonah leads into the Days of Awe, ending with the fasting on Yom Kippur. Ramadan and the Days of Awe have the same spiritual purpose of internal purification.

Both Ramadan and Yom Kippur have an amazing process. It's called "fasting." Fasting is the process of abstaining. Abstaining from food, yes, but more than that. It's also an abstention from judgement, from "impure thoughts," from anything that fosters disconnection from your heart and from Spirit.

What do these holidays have to do with sales? The reason sales conversations are so awkward, is because there is an inherent inequality. Your prospect has a problem, and you have a solution. This puts you in a "superior" position.

And, the other side of the coin is that your prospect has money to pay you, and you don't have that money. This puts her (or him) in a "superior" position.

If you choose to be superior, they will choose to be superior, too. And, you end up butting heads. "I've got the answer!" "I've got the money!" And both of you trying to be superior, means everyone loses.

Take your cue from these Days of Awe- empty yourself. Have as close to "nothing" inside as possible. Abstain from superiority. Abstain from inferiority. The "nothing" of being empty, means that you have space to receive who your prospect truly is. You become the glass that can be filled, and your prospect can feel truly received. Connection: the first step in a successful sales conversation.

How do you empty, and then connect?

Keys to Connection

* Emptying yourself is an internal process, and it's best to do it before the conversation. One way to do it is to take a sheet of paper and list all of the thoughts, beliefs, and "voices" you hear about the conversation or the other person. "Why would a big company want to hire a pipsqueak consultant like me?" "She doesn't like me." "I charge too much." List all of these down, and take time noticing how they make you feel.

Make space for the emotions. And then bring in the Remembrance or other heart-centering practice, and turn all of these beliefs over to the Divine.

* Take some time to connect your heart to the Divine. Let yourself feel your neediness for the sale, your neediness for approval, your neediness for love, and bring it all to your heart.

These are legitimate needs. The problem is, your prospect won't be able to fulfill them. Instead, let your heart fulfill them directly through your spiritual connection.

* Bow in service. If you really are here to help, then take a moment and let yourself bow to this person you'll be speaking to. Dedicate yourself to only helping them, only caring about what's best for them.

You will need to be humble here, because the best thing for them might be to let the sale go. And, the best thing for them might be for them to buy your most expensive, most premium product or service, because that's what they really need.

It takes humility to do that.

Mark Silver is the author of Unveiling the Heart of Your Business: How money, marketing and sales can deepen your heart, heal the world, and still add to your bottom line. He has helped hundreds of people in small business succeed without losing their heart, through integrating1500 years of spiritual tradition with down-to-earth business practices. Get his free workbook, Getting to the Core of Your Business, online: http://www.heartofbusiness.com