The 6 Excuses Entrepreneurs Use To Justify Their Struggling Business

He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else. 

~Benjamin Franklin

Still juggling excuses to justify your struggling business? You are not alone—not by a long shot. But it’s time to face them, once and for all.

Many of our struggles as entrepreneurs are a direct result of the excuses we make up. It’s almost like a convoluted badge of honor that goes something like this: “You think you have it bad? I have it really bad.” Come on, enough is enough already. Here's the big six excuses that I hear day in and day out from entrepreneurs, and more importantly, how to fix them.

1. The competition is too established

What you are saying here is that you are simply throwing your hands up into the air and admitting that you don’t believe you can compete head-to-head with them. The fix for this? You need to realize that in business, you don’t need to go head-to-head. In fact, it is to your advantage to make new rules and approach your business in an entirely new way. Drop the excuse and change your approach.

2. I don’t have the money

Cash is simply a shortcut to getting things done. Without cash, you can still achieve the same results; you’ll just need to get innovative. Stop using cash (or the lack thereof) as an excuse, and start getting innovative. Haven’t you heard? Necessity is the mother of invention.

3. I am too old (or too young)

This is a common excuse, but there is no “ideal” age at which to grow your business. You are alive, so there is no better time to grow than now. And, the only thing guaranteed is that tomorrow you will be a day older—so start now. There have been successful entrepreneurs that run the spectrum of ages. Colonel Sanders started in his mid 60's and Mark Zuckerberg started as a teen. Both made enterprises worth tons of money.

4. I don’t have enough experience

Experience takes you down the path of repetition. Experienced entrepreneurs often get into the dangerous trap of repeating the past, just because it worked back then. But that doesn’t guarantee that it will work now. Consider that lack of experience to be your greatest asset, because it can bring about new approaches that experienced entrepreneurs are blind to.

5. I don’t have enough time

This is one I hear all the time. “If only there were 28 hours in a day, I would be rich!” Here’s the deal: everyone has the same amount of time in every day. You simply need to choose your priorities. When you don’t have enough time, you are simply choosing something else to devote your time to. It’s a choice, not an excuse. (Just for grins, keep tabs on how many hours you sit in front of the television or Facebook for a week. That will show you how much time you really have available to dedicate to your business!)

6. I’m just not there yet

This may be the most insidious excuse of all—it puts you on the hamster wheel for life! And, as I know from personal experience, you will never be “there.” Entrepreneurship, like anything else in life, is about the journey. The rewards will come, but they won’t always be monetary (which seems to be almost the only measure of progress that entrepreneurs use). The rewards may be that you simply demonstrate courage, or that you achieve entrepreneurship. Stop using excuses and just go for it. Saying you are not there yet is just one more excuse. You are there. Right here. Right now.

Article Source:http://www.openforum.com/articles/the-6-excuses-entrepreneurs-use-to-justify-their-struggling-business?extlink=sm-openforum-tw

10 pieces of management conventional wisdom you should ignore,especially in a weak economy

With uncertainty in the market, many business leaders are focused on “playing it safe.” By following conventional practices, they may be taking a far more dangerous route. While it is important to rely on best practices, some may be short-sighted and hold your business back from achieving its true potential. 

As CEO of Beryl, a company that manages patient interactions for hospitals, we have a unique culture that has resulted in extremely low turnover and engaged employees who deliver exceptional customer service, resulting in loyal customers who allow us to continue to grow our business. We’ve challenged conventional wisdom to protect our culture at all costs. As a five-timeInc. 5000 company that continues to meet our business goals, we have no regrets. 

To that end, over the past few tough economic years, we’ve chosen to ignore these 10 common practices:

1. Outside capital is necessary. In January 2010, I signed a letter of intent to sell a majority interest in the company to a private equity firm. In the end, I walked away from the deal because I realized that bringing in a financial partner with a short-term view of financial performance could have a negative impact on culture, which has been a key ingredient in our success.

2. Never fire a client. A very large customer put our employees in the position of violating their core values. This customer charged clientele for something they didn’t buy, and when it received complaints, wanted Beryl to try to talk them into keeping the product—a prospect we felt would compromise our integrity. As a result, our employees voted to fire the customer. While the loss of income had a short-term financial impact, we realized that ignoring our core values was a slippery slope that could significantly impact our business in the long term. Core values are the one thing in our business that never changes. If we go outside those lines, we can lose the trust of our employees and our customers.

3. Keep talented employees, even if they aren’t a culture fit.  At Beryl, we had an operational leader with a great resume and tremendous experience.  However, the employee was not able to gain the trust and buy-in of other employees.  Great ideas will only take you so far.  Ultimately, we fired that employee because her leadership style was not a fit for our organization.

4. Don’t hire during a recession.  If there is one positive for employers during a recession, it is the availability of great talent. We have hired more than 100 net new employees since 2008, many of them senior leaders with extraordinary experience that have helped take our company to the next level. 

5. Avoid spending money on “fun.”  When times are tight, it seems difficult to justify spending money on things like a holiday party.  However, these activities foster employee engagement, and help reduce employee turnover. 

6. Scale back on training and education.  Spending on training and education directly benefits both employees and employers.  Employees enhance their skill set and feel good about the company’s investment in them, and businesses benefit from more productive and engaged employees.  

7. Keep benefits to a minimum.  When businesses started experiencing pain at the start of the recession, many reduced employee benefits such as their 401K match. At Beryl, we doubled our 401K match to show employees that we were committed to them in the long-term. Actions like this have helped us maintain low turnover.

8. Grow by acquisition. Certainly there are more stories about failed mergers and acquisitions than successful ones.  It is even more challenging when culture is important.  During a recession, it may be tempting to acquire a struggling company with promise.  However, it is rare to find another company that shares your value set. While it is possible to infuse your culture within the new organization, it creates a significant distraction and risk, since it isn’t always possible. Instead, we’ve focused on organic growth. 

9. Stay focused on your product or service. People buy relationships—not just your product or service. You can enhance the relationship by elevating the conversation to a topic that is important to you and your customers. At Beryl, we also have The Beryl Institute, which engages healthcare leaders in the broader discussion about patient experience.  Ultimately, we all have a product or service to sell, but it’s listening to and talking with customers and potential customers that helps get us (or even keep us) in the door.

10. Put customers first. It seems counterintuitive, but employees should take priority over your customers. When employees have a high level of job satisfaction, it translates to excellent customer experiences, which results in growth. This isn’t to suggest that you should ignore customers, but rather that your customers will benefit more when you focus on your employees. 

In a recession, it is especially tempting to try different approaches, even if they challenge your core values. No one knows your business better than you. Resist the urge to be a lemming. Know the trends. Watch the trends. But charter your own course.

Article Author: Paul Spiegelman

Article Source:http://www.inc.com/articles/201109/beryl-companies-paul-spiegelman-lead-your-own-way.html

5 Ways To Thrive In A Overcrowded Industry

3 real stories

Back in 1994, an excited Tony Ellison sat down with a few friends to tell them of his plans for a new company. Just minutes into the meeting, one of his friends interrupted Ellison, and with a blank stare shrieked, “Tony, are you insane?!”

His friend was rightfully worried. Ellison, a veteran of Wall Street, was planning to leave his job to start an e-commerce company selling office supply products. Huh?

“The industry was already crowded with the big guys like Office Depot and Staples, and back then, no one really knew what e-commerce was; but I had read papers suggesting how big the Internet was going be an how it would be a great way to conduct business, so I went for it,” says Ellison.

He soon launched Shoplet.com and turned a profit within the first three years. Today, the company supports 70 employees and is wildly successful.

Entrepreneurs Thomas Hoebbel and Michael Carney also know what it takes to succeed in a crowded marketplace. In 2001, Ithaca, New York-based Hoebbel launched a photography company titled Thomas Hoebbel Photo~Video; and in 2009, Carney, a CPA based Chicago, founded MWC Accounting. Both companies are going strong.

I sat down with all three small business owners to learn the five best ways to thrive in market saturated with like-businesses.

1. Focus on a niche

Hoebbel is a theater and music buff, so when he started his photography company, he focused on his passions. He called up studios, theaters and concert venues and offered his services. “I soon established a reputation for being the best at that niche in the area,” he says.

According to Hoebbel, it’s important for small business owners to think hard before choosing a niche.

“Don’t just go out there and pick a niche because you think it will work—instead, go with what you love and are really good at. Eventually, you will be seen as the expert in a specialized area,” he adds.

2. Study the market and fill gaps

Upon launching Shoplet.com, Ellison wanted to differentiate himself in the market and solve customer problems at the same time. He knew of a company that helped streamline procurement processes for large businesses, but was too expensive a solution for small business owners. To solve this problem, he developed a free online procurement platform for the little guys.

"In the old days, admins had inefficient processes for collecting purchasing requests and didn’t have a way to keep track and manage inventory—the system we set up allowed them to do it and do it for free,” he says.

Ellison launched the product and small businesses flocked—a lesson for other small business owners in saturated markets.

“Come up with a unique value proposition that helps you gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace,” he suggests.

3. Network, network, network

Carney was a 28-year-old with public accounting experience when he launched his company. Without any clients, he focused on one thing: Pounding the pavement.

“I knew I wanted to focus on small businesses, so I started with my own network and took people out for coffee—I would ask them how they got started and just build a relationship, not focus on the hard sell,” he says.

His plan worked. After numerous coffee dates, he had a nice roster of clients—and recommends the same strategy to others.

“You really need to get out there and let people know who you are. Don’t just think people will find you—that will take way too long and you won’t have any money by the time it happens,” he says.

4. Diversify your offerings

When the economy tanked in 2008, Hoebbel was ready. “I diversified and created a Web-based marketing video department in my company,” he says.

His plan worked and carried his company smoothly through the recession.

“I recommend small business owners be ready to innovate and change your business for the better; if you diversify you could open up a whole new business stream in a similar industry,” says Hoebbel.

5. Focus on customer service

Yes, customer service is a key ingredient to the success of any company—but it is especially important to those in saturated markets.

“I want my clients to enjoy working with me; I’m never happy unless they are happy—and sometimes that means I have to go back and reshoot something on my own time, but I’m OK with that,” says Hoebbel.

Great customer service doesn’t mean offering low-ball prices, he adds. In fact, undercutting the competition can come back to bite you later on.

He says, “Not everyone is going to go for the cheapest price. Remember: You want people who value your service and are willing to pay you for it—if you are the cheapest person in town you will get the cheapest clients in town.”

Article Source:http://www.openforum.com/articles/5-ways-to-thrive-in-a-overcrowded-industry

Article Author: Katie Morell

 

Four Guidelines for Picking the Right Idea For Your Startup:

1) Your idea needs to do at least one of three things:

Make something difficult easy: For example, AirBnB made finding an apartment rental easy. In fact, almost all businesses derived from Craigslist follow this criteria-- they make exchanging things between people very easy. My startup, GiftRocket, makes it easy to buy a gift for someone anywhere in the country. Even social tools like Facebook and LinkedIn make staying in touch with people easy, though that is a bit more abstract. Just to test the ubiquity of this quality, I checked the companies in YC's W11 batch and 83% fell into this category.

Make something expensive cheap: Hard technology companies like Apple make the most advanced technology available to a consumer in an affordable package. Deal sites like Groupon do this far more directly. People care about money, and if you're offering them something for a discount, there's a clear value proposition. I did a quick count, and 14% of YCW11 companies matched this quality.

Make something that entertains: Music, gaming, video, and media companies entertain. Zynga solves problems of loneliness and boredom. 23% of YCW11 companies checked this box.

These are all a more specific way to say that your idea needs to fulfill an existing need, and more generally should be something people want.

2) Pick something with a big market pain.

Market size isn't always a great indicator of potential for success. The better question is how happy are you making your users? If you make a few users exceptionally happy, that might be far better than making a lot of users marginally happy. That means that the market for your product may be small, but if you're creating thousands of dollars of value for those users by solving a major problem for them, they'll seek you out. User acquisition and marketing problems just go away.

3) Commerce ideas are very different from social ideas.

Social software (e.g. foursquare, Instagram, Twitter) follows a different path than ecommerce. These companies have userbases that are valuable because of their engagement, and are ultimately monetizable for their data. Foursquare sells their data to local merchants. The key metrics for companies like these are user growth, virality, and engagement.

Compare this with ideas that have a clear business model from the start. For example, Hipmunk and SeatGeek make money on affiliate for flights / hotels and ticketing sites. The key metrics for these businesses are revenue, and eventually margin.

There are big impacts for how you get users to your product depending on which one of these your idea is. Social software usually has to rely on word of mouth and virality. On the other hand, commerce businesses have more concrete customer lifetime values and can buy customers and traffic using ads.

4) Pick something where you can empathize with your users.

Ideally, you would be building something for yourself. However, a lot of founders are able to build something that they don't regularly need-- it just requires that they are good at getting and acting on user feedback. So for example, if you were building some software you needed at your old job, you still might need to build it with the interests of the procurement officer or IT manager in mind.

How to come up with good startup ideas

1. Keep a log of things that you use that were not good throughout the day.

Life is full of inconveniences, and the neurotic complainers actually have a huge advantage in this department. Every time I get in the cab line when I get to the airport, I always think "there's got to be a better way." Out pops an idea like Uber, or some sort of ride sharing service that helps me split cabs with people nearby.

2. Look through your business and personal credit card statements.

If you're already spending money somewhere, is there a way to cheapen the amount that you're spending? Or do you feel like you're not getting your money's worth on something you bought? Spend statements are a great way to see where there are big markets waiting for disruption.

3. If you work for a company, think about some of the biggest issues that you face.

I was a former management consultant, and version control for documents and powerpoint files was a massive problem for us. I would stay up late at night writing a deck, and find out the next day someone else was working on that same section. Other times, I'd realize that I was using an older version of a deck, working on slides that had been deleted in later revs. There should be solutions to those problems out there, but what exists isn't still sucks. I'm convinced every company out there still has multitudes of these problems, and if you've ever worked for one you've probably encountered them.

In Conclusion

Given even the most experienced investors miss out on ideas that end up being very successful, the only real way to know whether something will be successful or not is to launch it and see what happens. There's no shortage of ideas. Every YC demo day, including the one that just happened, there are always 4-5 companies where everyone wonders "why didn't I think of that?"

But before dedicating your life to a startup idea-- it's certainly worth having a good brainstorming period of a couple weeks, or even months, where you familiarize yourself with the spaces out there and commit to working on something.

Article Source:http://onstartups.com/tabid/3339/bid/64782/How-To-Pick-The-Right-Idea-For-Your-Startup.aspx

How to Create a Winning Employee Retention Strategy

 

Most business owners and managers think retention is based on compensation issues--wage and salary levels, incentives, and golden handcuffs--when in reality the drivers go much deeper into the human psyche to the actions and attitudes that make employees feel successful, secure and appreciated. As a result, a sound retention strategy should focus on and tactically address four key elements--performance, communication, loyalty and competitive advantage.

1. Performance. The benefit of having measurable objectives for employees is fairly obvious to most business owners and managers, but this perception usually stops short of relating performance metrics to employee retention. Study after study confirms that people have a deep desire to feel they're succeeding and that their talents and capabilities are being used in a way that makes a difference to the business. When people sense their actions are fulfilling this desire, they begin to develop a sense of belonging and a feeling that your company is their company.

Human beings are often the happiest when they're in the process of achieving a goal. Clear, achievable objectives that gauge personal, team and company performance provide the feedback employees need to confirm they're making valuable contributions and accomplishing desirable goals.

2. Communication. The second essential element in a retention strategy is communication, specifically a communications process that's structured to inform, emphasize and reaffirm to employees that their workplace contributions are having an impact. Since we're dealing very directly with how employees feel about their performance, the company and their work environment, the question becomes, "How do you know how they feel about these matters?"

Properly done, communication with your staff will provide you with the insights you need in order to know how your employees feel about working for your business. Do you communicate on a frequent basis with your employees? Do you have regular meetings with your people? Is it two-way communication, and do you have a nonthreatening channel for them to offer comments and suggestions? Do you conduct employee surveys to gather opinions on company issues and activities? Are your managers and supervisors good listeners? An effective and sensitive communications plan can provide you with insight on exactly what's driving employee morale and how your staff members feel about your company.

3. Loyalty. The third element in a successful employee retention strategy is employee loyalty. True loyalty is not an enforced requirement but an earned response to the trust, respect and commitment shown to the individuals in your company. When you demonstrate loyalty to your employees, they'll reciprocate with commitment and loyalty to your business. Remember that people don't begin their employment with you as loyal employees, but will develop loyalty over time as they're trusted, respected and appreciated by you.

So how are you going to demonstrate your commitment to them? How loyal are you to your employees? Are you more concerned about their success or their contributions to your company's success? In actuality, these two considerations are not mutually exclusive but are both essential and should work together.

4. Competitive advantage. The fourth and final element in your strategy to retain employees has to do with your competitive advantage. While that may seem odd at first, think about it: People want to work for a winner. What sets your company apart from your competition? How are you--and as a result, your employees--making a difference in your industry, in your community, and for your customers? Take the time to identify and inform your clients and your employees about your unique competitive advantage. If your product is similar to others in the marketplace, your service can be what distinguishes you (and probably should in any case). People want to be with a winner...and that includes employees.

Together, these four elements can provide you with a retention strategy capable of producing amazing results. You may even have some of them already in place, such as performance metrics and a communications process. The key is to make sure you've integrated all four elements into a strategy for retaining employees that's grounded in a genuine commitment to serving your customers and employees well over the long haul.

 Article Source:http://www.entrepreneur.com/humanresources/article76456.html

7 common personal-finance mistakes that young entrepreneurs make – and how to avoid them.

1. Overinvesting in the business

To look more professional, young entrepreneurs may spend their savings too freely. Maybe they lease ritzy offices or purchase high-dollar equipment. Overspending on business expenses that aren't absolutely necessary can quickly erode your personal finances, says Alexa von Tobel, founder and CEO of LearnVest.com, an online personal-finance resource for women. It can be easy to burn through your savings before you even have a product or service to sell, she says. That's when young entrepreneurs dig themselves deeper in the hole personally.

Instead, "spend every dollar you have on building a really good product and get it in front of users," von Tobel says. "If your product isn't good, there's no hope for making any progress."

2. Cutting corners on formalities Tips for Business Owners on Retirement Planning

All too often, young entrepreneurs will cut corners on legal and accounting advice, notes Johnson. Maybe they know an attorney or a finance guy so they ask if they might help them get licensed or take a look at their books. But those moves can backfire. "Hire someone who is an expert in the specific field that you need," he says.

One accounting mistake, for instance, can lead to paying far more in personal income taxes than you should. And when personal finances are in disarray, it can scare off potential investors and force you to sink even more of your own money into the business.

3. Not paying yourself

Like Major, young business owners tend to live off ramen noodles and plow all of their resources into their business without removing a dime. While this can help keep cash flowing into a business -- not to mention it can be necessary to fund expansion -- it gets tricky when the business is paying your rent and buying you meals. What to do instead? Pay yourself at least a modest salary to keep your personal finances straight -- and separate -- from the business. And don't go overboard by giving yourself a six-figure salary right away. "You need to leave enough money in the business, so it can operate in lean times."

4. Failing to plan for the worst

"Young people often think they're 14 feet tall and bullet proof," Johnson says. But since they're not, they need to plan for the worst. Create a succession plan and some form of insurance to support the business if you can't run it. Johnson recommends setting up a "revocable trust" -- which, unlike a standard will, helps a company bypass the potentially costly court procedure known as "probate" and establish whom should run the business in your stead.

If you have a partnership and a business that can't easily be sold, Johnson suggests establishing a "buy-sell agreement." This binding agreement governs what happens if a co-owner dies and typically includes an insurance component that provides funding should something happen to either owner.

5. Mixing business and personal assets

Whether it's personally guaranteeing a loan or getting parents to take out a second mortgage on their home, leveraging personal assets for business purposes is a personal-finance no-no. If the business sours, creditors can go after these personal assets. "You should only use the collateral from the business, so, if it goes under, you're not liable personally for the loan," says Lynn Mayabb, senior managing advisor at Kansas City, Mo.'s BKD Wealth Advisors.

6. Using personal credit cards for business purposes

Relying on personal credit cards when a bank won't front your business money can also prove risky. Not only can you be tempted to charge things when you shouldn't, mixing business charges with personal ones can wreak organizational havoc. Just think: What if your business ever gets audited? In that instance, you'll need to provide a record of your business expenses going back at least three years. Instead, apply for a business credit card and use it only on necessary business expenses.

7. Raiding the company’s coffers

If you have two or three months of outsized sales, young people in particular tend to become overconfident, says Mayabb. Being inexperienced, they start spending the business's cash flow indiscriminately. Perhaps they need cars, so they buy the best ones on the lot only to find the next several months at their businesses aren't nearly as successful. "I've seen people drain their businesses this way," says Mayabb.

PUSHING PRODUCTIVITY

5 ways to get things done-faster!

Time-management coaches say entrepreneurs often waste a lot of time in their day, but there are strategies for being more productive. Consider these five tips to get more done in a day.

1. Break projects into smaller pieces with deadlines. You can start by prioritizing activities for every day, writing a to-do list each night and scheduling each task, suggests St. Louis, Mo.-based productivity coach Cathy Sexton. For example, Hopkins realized she needed to place a higher priority to projects based on their revenue-generating capability. Once she had a list of what to tackle first, she scheduled a specific time on her electronic calendar to handle each item.
"If you don't block out your time, everything else is going to get in the way," Sexton says. Also, consider keeping a timer next to your desk to make sure you keep to your deadlines.

2. Delegate tasks that don't generate revenue. Bookkeeping, payroll and copywriting are three tasks entrepreneurs often try to handle themselves to save money. But they often aren't qualified or equipped to handle these tasks and end up losing valuable time that could be spent on revenue-generating activities, as Hopkins learned. "They end up doing what I call lower-value tasks that others could be doing for them," says Audrey Thomas, a Minneapolis-based productivity coach. Business owners should realize, Thomas says, that outsourcing these activities allows them to devote more time to making money.

3. Stop obsessively checking email. This was another huge time-waster for Hopkins, as it is for many entrepreneurs, especially when messages are constantly flooding your inbox and distracting you from other important work. "I'd say I spend more time talking to my clients about managing email than anything else," Thomas says. She recommends setting your email program to retrieve messages only manually -- when you press a button to check it -- or no more frequently than every 90 minutes. Moreover, she says, emails that are easy to respond to should be answered immediately, so you're not wasting time reading over the same messages again.

4. Take advantage of technology shortcuts. You likely already use Microsoft Outlook, Excel and other common software programs with built-in time-saving features. Yet many business owners end up wasting time because they never learn how to properly use these programs -- and the shortcuts. For instance, Microsoft Outlook lets people move items from their inbox directly onto their calendars, but many people still manually create calendar items, says Peggy Duncan, a time-management expert in Atlanta. Simply taking a class or reading a book about how to use common software programs can save a lot of time over the long run, Duncan says. "Any situation you bring up, there is technology out there to make that work basically go away," she adds. "But people won't spend the time learning how to use it."

5. Train your employees adequately. A big time drain for owners is employees who constantly ask questions, interrupting their day. If this is happening to you, the problem may be that they're not adequately trained to do their job, warns Duncan. So make sure you have the resources and training procedures in place to best prepare and support employees in their work. Another big time waster, she adds, are customers who call with questions that could otherwise be answered on your company's website. One solution is to create a "Frequently Asked Questions" section that prominently displays the helpful information on your website. "It should be a no-brainer for your customers to do business with you," she says.

Article source:http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220081

Article Author: Kelly Spors