How does your Small Business Rate?

This is a good time of year to assess the health of your company. Review these 10 elements and determine your small business health score to find out where you stand.
What is Your Small Business Health Score?
1) Cash Flow
Having a cash flow positive company is critical for success. This means the business has more cash at the end of the month than the beginning.
How to score: Add 2 points for cash flow positive. Subtract 2 points for cash flow negative (less cash at the end of the month).
2) Quick Ratio
This simple balance sheet formula divides current assets minus current liabilities. Ratios greater than one mean the company has enough current assets to pay its current bills.
How to score: Add 2 points if the company’s quick radio is above one. Subtract 2 points if it is below one. Note that a healthy quick ratio number will vary by industry.
3) Customer Residual Income
This means repeat customers pay the company automatically every month.
How to score: Add 2 points if this is true. Subtract 1 point if the company needs to recreate its revenue and find new customers every month.
4) Fixed Overhead Expenses
High fixed overhead expenses do not give companies flexibility as sales and profit changes.
How to score: Add 1 point if most of the company’s expenses are variable. Subtract 1 point if most expenses are fixed or they are high compared to sales.
5) Management Team
Strong companies are not about their owners, but their team leaders.
How to score: Add 2 points for a truly collaborative organization. Subtract 1 point if the CEO makes all the top down decisions.
6) Employee Turnover
Loyal employees generate more profit for companies than those with high turnover.
How to score: Add 2 points if the company retains employees for at least 5 years. Add 1 point for 3-5 years. Subtract 1 point if employees stay 2 years or less.
7) Strategic and Focused Plan
Companies that have a written plan about where they are going and employees that are clear about the company’s direction succeed.
How to score: Add 1 point if every company employee can articulate the plan. Subtract 1 point if they can’t.
8) Systematic Sales and Marketing Plan
Many small businesses only market when they have no sales, but immediately stop when they do.
How to score: Add 2 points if the company has an ongoing systematic plan including social media. Subtract 2 points if sales and marketing is mostly improvisational.
9) Infrastructure
Growing companies need to have an infrastructure that supports them. Nextiva uses the integration of tools from Marketo, SalesForce, and NuviApp (social) to deliver reliable communication solutions to their business clients.
How to score: Add 1 point if the company has integrated systems that can be effectively used by employees and customers. Subtract 2 points if each system is independent from each other or does work effectively.
10) Outside Advisors
Small business owners need to ask for help.
How to score: Add 1 point if the owner has a formal advisory board. Subtract 1 point if the owner is insulated and never asks anyone outside the company for advice.
Scoring Totals:
Above 10: Congratulations! Your small business is healthy and well positioned for 2014. Look at improving any area where the score was negative to increase your strength.
0 to 9: At risk! Key parts of your small business need to be improved. You are vulnerable to changes inside and outside the company. Pay attention to the elements where your score was negative.
Below 0: Danger! Too many parts of your business are unhealthy and your company risks going bankrupt this year. Seek help immediately!
So what is your small business health score?

Qualities of Small Business Success

I have been in business for my self for most of my adult life.  When I founded Smallbusinessgrow.com, a sales and marketing company dedicated to helping entrepreneurs bring their small business ideas to fruition, I began to mentor and coach lots of small business owners and since as I sat in their offices I began to observe some similarities among those who were successful.  

Many of the successful entrepreneurs I have met share at least three of these five qualities:

1. A Passion for their product or service.
   Being an small business owner demands long hours and dedication, even more than most higher paying jobs do. If you're not excited about your product or service, then your clients won’t be either.  Passion will sustain you through the financial highs and lows that will inevitably occur. If you find something you love enough to want to share it with others, that love will fuel you and give you the drive to succeed.

1. Willing to take advice.
   The most successful entrepreneurs I know never forget how much they can learn from others. They are flexible and teachable. They soak up the advice from business owners around them, then adapt that advice to their own company.  Most belong to one or more business networking groups where they meet other small business owners and share referrals.
2. Become an expert in their field.
   As a small business owner it is to your advantage to gain as much knowledge as you can in your industry. When you spend years in the same industry, you learn its history. Knowing what's been done before can help you identify how it will change in the future. By building a network of relationships that trust your expertise you are securing a team of loyal people you can draw from in the future.
3. Thinking about the next step.
   Successful entrepreneurs are always thinking about where they are headed next. They have a clearly established set of goals but are flexible on how to reach those goals. Your strategies may be constantly changing, but as long as you know where you are going, if you are flexible, chances are you will get there in a faster and more efficient way. 
4. Idea factory.
   Having one small business that is doing well is great, but the successful entrepreneurs I know don't put all their efforts into one project. Instead, they're constantly asking themselves, "What else can I do?" They understand that being a successful entrepreneur is a lifestyle, not a final destination.  Be creative and consider how you can use your existing customer base to generate more revenue for your business.  Perhaps starting a second business that can cater to another need your customers have, but have been paying someone else to do.  Always be on the look out for revenue generating ideas and opportunities and you will become a more successful small business owner.

I hope you have seen some of these qualities in yourself and will strive to grow in these areas as an entrepreneur, which will make you as successful as you desire to be.  Keep up the good work my friends!  

Go to www.smallbusinessgrow.com for more helpful tips for Small Business.

Sales, the only way to grow your business!

SALES; The Only Way To Grow Your Business....

Small Business owners often make staying in business way harder than it is.  Business owners over-think their marketing strategy, complicate their services or product line, worry too much about their employees.

There is only one primary focus for a successful Small Business, make more SALES!

These other issues are important to be sure, but they pale in insignificance compared to the one area of business that contributes most to success.

Spending time every day on Sales!

I have consulted with many Small Business owners and almost every time I see a business that is struggling, it is primarily because they are not spending enough hours in the day on the sales process. Every business owner must spend time on this most important aspect of the life of their company, either through refining how they sell their products or services, or getting out there and getting one to one with potential customers.

How much time should a Small Business owner spend on sales? Well if you’re running a brand new start-up business you should devote at least 75% of your day to sales.  If you’re an established business you should spend at least 35% of your day on the sales process.

Does that sound impossible? It shouldn’t. What else could you be doing that is more important to the long term success of your company?

When you spend a large amount of your time in sales, and make it a priority to your employees, selling opportunities quickly arise. Doors will open for you that you did not formerly have. Thats when checks get written and that is what every business needs. When you spend all your time in your office working on every problem that crosses your desk, you begin to feel defeated and unmotivated.  New sales brings new life to your Small Business. So get out there and ask more people to purchase your products and services and success will come.  Make sure you are utilizing the internet, your website and social media to bring in consistent leads that you can follow up on and sell.

All great companies are great at sales. Coca Cola committed themselves in 2000 to get a Coke in the hand of every person in the world by 2020! Companies like Apple Computers have made their way on selling a better product and even in a recession their sales are up!  They grew huge not just because of the quality product line, after all there are many companies with great products that are struggling to survive, but their commitment to selling just one more, made them beat their competitors.  

Here’s an exercise well worth trying: Sit down and work out the average amount of time your people are spending each week either directly selling or on marketing to improve the sales process. Then set a goal to double the amount of time you are spending on sales, start tomorrow.   You may say you’re too busy, but if you don’t you will be busy and broke, its just a matter of time.  

Sales should be the center of what your company does, every single day. If you’re not happy with how fast your business is growing, this is the area you should focus on, first, second and third. Get out there and ask more people to buy your products and services, because making more sales is what its all about.

If you need help in the area of sales I provide hands-on sales training for you and your employees, contact me for a Free consultation.  www.SmallBusinessGrow.com

Six Qualities of a Successful Small Business Owner

Do you have what it takes?

I have been in business for my self for most of my adult life.  When I founded Smallbusinessgrow.com,

a sales and marketing company dedicated to helping entrepreneurs bring their small business ideas to fruition, I began to mentor and coach lots of small business owners and, as I sat in their offices, I began to observe some similarities among those who were successful.

Many of the successful entrepreneurs I have met share at least three of these five qualities:

1. A Passion for their product or service.
   Being an small business owner demands long hours and dedication, even more than most higher paying jobs do. If you're not excited about your product or service, then your clients won’t be either.  Passion will sustain you through the financial highs and lows that will inevitably occur. If you find something you love enough to want to share it with others, that love will fuel you and give you the drive to succeed.
2. Willing to take advice.The most successful entrepreneurs I know never forget how much they can learn from others. They are flexible and teachable. They soak up the advice from business owners around them, then adapt that advice to their own company.  Most belong to one or more business networking groups where they meet other small business owners and share referrals.
3. Become an expert in their field. As a small business owner it is to your advantage to gain as much knowledge as you can in your industry. When you spend years in the same industry, you learn its history. Knowing what's been done before can help you identify how it will change in the future. By building a network of relationships that trust your expertise you are securing a team of loyal people you can draw from in the future.
4. Thinking about the next step. Successful entrepreneurs are always thinking about where they are headed next. They have a clearly established set of goals but are flexible on how to reach those goals. Your strategies may be constantly changing, but as long as you know where you are going, if you are flexible, chances are you will get there in a faster and more efficient way. 
5. Idea factory. Having one small business that is doing well is great, but the successful entrepreneurs I know don't put all their efforts into one project. Instead, they're constantly asking themselves, "What else can I do?" They understand that being a successful entrepreneur is a lifestyle, not a final destination.  Be creative and consider how you can use your existing customer base to generate more revenue for your business.  Perhaps starting a second business that can cater to another need your customers have, but have been paying someone else to do.  Always be on the look out for revenue generating ideas and opportunities and you will become a more successful small business owner.
6. Stong moral center. The most successful Small Business owners that I know are those who have a strong moral center that is founded on the Bible.  They have integrity that comes from their committment to the truth and to providing an honest product or service to their customers. They have thier priorities in order, their first priority is their relationship with God, next their family, third their friends, business and costomers.  They are people others come to depend upon and trust.  This is the foundation of the successful entrepreneurs that I know.

I hope you have seen some of these qualities in yourself and will strive to grow in these areas as an entrepreneur, for a Free Small Business Consultation contact Skip at www.smallbusinessgrow.com

Small Business Successful Sales Strategies

From Planning to Profits... 

If you are a Small Business owner in the Service Industry you are probably looking for ways to generate new leads and improve sales. A sales strategy will focus your efforts on your most important target customers, both existing and potential.  Here are several of the most important things to focus on when designing a sales strategy.

• Create a sales plan. Having a document that outlines your sales goals and strategies will help you to stay on track and track your progress. If you need help developing a strategic sales plan contact www.smallbusinessgrow.com After you define your sales plan, keep these things in mind:

• Sales goals: These goals should be specific and measurable, not something like; “We want to serve thousands of new customers this year.” Instead base sales goals on your current sales history. For example, if you have been averaging 10 sales per month, set a new goal of 15 new sales in a specific area, then market to that area.
• Marketing activities: These are your tactics -- how you plan to make the sale. You may say you'll sell directly-to-consumer through a website or via a Business Networking group, for instance. Or this part of the plan may include activities like developing a sell sheet to give to your service technicians.
• Target accounts: Your sales plan should also include the specific people you want to sell to. If it's end-users, for example, plan how you're going to reach them through your company website, Social Media platforms, referrals, door to door sales, flyers and through classified ads through craigslist.  
• Set a Timeline: Put dates to all of the above elements so you can define your steps within a realistic timeline. Don't forget that your timelines should be fluid--if you're underachieving, your sales plan can help you figure out why and define the corrective steps you need to take.  Take advantage of free software to organize your sales efforts such as www.timetonote.com
• Expand into new markets. Once you have established success in your current market, consider expanding to include other markets. This will open doors to service more customers, but don’t forget to upsell new services to your current buyers, don’t leave that revenue on the table.
• Presentation: Develop a sales strategy and have a professional-looking sales presentation ready. Your product or service should also have packaging, branding and advertising that captures attention and gives a call to action! 
• Know your Competition: Understand what products and services they carry and how yours compares. What offers do you provide that your competition does not? Why should a customer buy from you over the competition?

There are many factors that go into developing a successful sales and marketing plan. Each business is unique and every business owner has their own set of goals and targets.  If you are a Small Business owner that is struggling with slow sales, contact www.smallbusinessgrow.com for a free initial consultation.  You have nothing to loose and a great deal to gain.  

Say Hello to Sales Leads!

Six Helpful Tips to Generate More Sales Leads for your Small Business!

1. Capture leads quickly—Establish a standard process for your business to capture lead information during any interaction with a potential customer. Train employees on the process and emphasize its importance for future business growth.

2. Search Engine Optimization—Establish a Web presence for your business and optimize your website. Tools like Google Places are essential for getting listed and found online. 

3. Organize your Customer Database—Get the right message to the right person at the right time by tracking behavior. Clearly outline the benefit your product or service offers based on your potential customer’s needs.

4. Build a Qualified Team—Build relationships with businesses that offer complementary products and services. Build your partner’s business into your business and yours into theirs.

5. Build a Local Reputation—Local consumers want to benefit their local community. Consumers will buy local when it is convenient, when they have a relationship with you, and when they are informed.

6. Design a Referral Strategy—Create a methodical way to generate referrals. Outline a systematic referral process and incentivize your employees for collecting referrals. The best time to ask for referrals is at the time of purchase, shortly after a recent purchase or after a customer satisfaction survey.

"I have more where these came from!" Don't let another day go by, act now by contacting me!  You have nothing to loose, but much to gain.

 click the link below

Let's talk Growth

 

For hand-on help generating new Sales leads contact me at  www.smallbusinessgrow.com

Email Subject Lines that get your Emails OPENED!

Email Subject Lines 

that Your Readers Can’t look away from....

Your emails are only one of dozens that your potential customers receive each day.  Your subject lines are critical to increase open rates for your emails.  Here are several tips to help you construct effective emails that get opened.

Feed their natural Curiosity - Use a Subject line that leaves your reader wondering, this will encourage them to open and read rather than delete and move on.  Some examples:

Did you read this yet?  I lost something important can you help me?
It was a Humiliating Experience...
Check this out (it's really a great offer!)

Start with Shocking News - 

A Subject line that starts with alarming news will capture the readers attention. For example:

Did you hear the News!  So sad to hear about this!  I’m sure you heard!  Can you believe it!  This will effect so many people!  Tragic turn of events!

Promote Benefits - 

By promoting a benefit to the reader you increase the chance of getting your email opened.  For example: 

10 Things You Need To Know About Technical Analysis
5 Tips That Make You Super‐Productive,  12 Compelling Reasons to Ditch Stress from Your Life,  Five Essentials of selling online products

Ask a Compelling Question -

Asking a compelling question compels those who it qualifies to find the answer be reading the email. For example: How can your company outperform large competitors?  Do you need sales leads now?  Why did I wasted my time blogging? 

Do You Qualify? - 

Asking a qualifying question can get your emails read quickly.  For example: 

Are You getting your monies worth?  Are you an innovator or an imitator?  Are You Choosing the lessor of two Evils? Could These 3 Software solutions Grow Your Business?   Are You Getting Everything You Want In Life?
Are you tapping this hidden goldmine? Are you using this moneymaking tool?

Use Fascination - 

Create fascination through Subject lines that readers want answers to.  For example: The #1 Reason Most People Aren't Rich
The big secret *they* hope you never find out!
The biggest problem with most "Product Launches".  Proof this is causing the Failure Of Numerous Online Businesses.

Make “Free” Offers -  

Free offers are often over used, but if the content is something your reader is interested in it can be effective. For example: 

Here's Your Complimentary Report: 5 Stocks To Buy Now!  FREE Small Business Handbook of Sales Tips!
FREE Facebook tips and FREE Download with FIVE marketing tips
FREE: 5 ways to make domains pay now!  FREE OFFER Click here and get a 30 day trial for FREE!

Latest News - 

Use the latest news for Subject lines.  For example: Take advantage of Home prices being at their cheapest levels in over a decade!  This Month’s Unemployment Shocker!  This Recession is Official!

Unemployment rate increasing, is Your Job Is On The Line?

Numbered Lists - 

Lists are effective, but make sure the list is something your audience wants to learn. For example: 15 Things Learned from $1.4 Billion Worth of Advertising.  Five Mistakes That Can Hurt Your Ad Performance, 5 Reasons These Exercises help you think more clearly. Ten Red Flags the IRS Won't Miss!  10 Marketing tips that sell product!

Offer “Savings” for limited Time only- 

Offering savings for a “Limited Time Only” is a good way to get those who qualify to read your emails.  For example: How does $50 in your wallet sound?, How To STOP Paying For Dates With Women,  "My mistake means you save!" I'm knocking $20 off...  LAST DAY for my 70% Discount! Save 50% ‐‐ for 72 hours only

A Solution to a Universal Problem - 

Identify a problem and offer a solution.  

How to Overcome Writer's Block
I need help getting traffic to my site!!!
The cheapest way to start an online business.
Are you tired of all the Social Media Hype?

For more information on Email Marketing, Social Media, Lead Generation or other  Small Business Marketing help visit Small Business GROW!

Thanks to Lawrence Bernstein, Art Crowley for their contributions.