Do You Know Your Numbers?

Large corporations know their numbers but I bet most small businesses don’t know theirs. I know it’s not my strong suit but I’m glad I found out what my numbers were. What I mean by “knowing your numbers,” is knowing how many leads you must get if you’re a salesman, how many potential customers must walkthrough your store if you own a shop or how many people you must add to your network if you’re a consultant. These numbers are extremely important to the success of any company. As a young entrepreneur, I thought in terms of sales instead of thinking in terms of what leads to my sales. Before I realized it, my sales were dwindling because I was focusing on the wrong things. If you are trying to achieve a goal, find your number by playing the law of averages. The law says that one person in ten will say “yes” to what you’re offering so if you want ten more clients this year, plan on shaking hands with at least 100 new faces. One success for every nine failures sounds bad, but it could be worse.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison

Local Events Promote Entrepreneurship

There is a new wave of young entrepreneurs poised to take over Michigan. A colleague of mine participated in Startup Weekend Kalamazoo last weekend, where entrepreneurs pitch their ideas and form teams to start the company in a mere three days. At the end of this three day event, in which entrepreneurs spend over 12 hours each day working on their idea, entrepreneurs present their ideas again with awards going to the top companies. My calendar is filled with more of these exciting events that are coming up in April. Central Michigan University is sponsoring a New Venture Competition with awards totaling $45,000. There will be another Startup Weekend this time in East Lansing. Even Detroit is getting in to the mix with the Ignite Detroit event at Motor City Casino. These are great networking events for young entrepreneurs to attend. Even if you’re not participating, you need to get out and meet people.

“The only difference between where you are now and where you’ll be five years from now are the people you meet and the books you read.” –Charlie “Tremendous” Jones

What Most Small Businesses Don’t Have?

I’ve been talking with small business owners and entrepreneurs for a number of years now. One thing I know for certain is that most of them lack project management skills. They have fantastic ideas and even larger dreams but they only see the end goal. They have a hard time grasping what steps it takes to get to the end goal. To me, the best analogy for getting to that end goal is similar to playing sports or trying to lose weight. Everyone starts with a certain set of statistics they wish to achieve the next season or a goal weight they wish to achieve by a certain date. An entrepreneur’s dream is no different. If you wish to lose weight, you know that by working out for 30 minutes a day everyday for two months will get you closer to your goal, and then add in a better diet over the same period of time and you can get there.  A business is no different, just figure out the steps and follow them.

1.       Goal. What are you trying to achieve? Write it down.

2.       Steps. What do I have to do to get to the end goal? Write everything down that must be done.

3.       Timeline. Where do I start? Number the order the steps need to be done.

NOW GET TO WORK!

Who Says Social Media isn’t Worth It?

I constantly hear from the non-believers that social media doesn’t work. That it’s just something people do to pass their time. I say “Nay” to that concept. These people merely do not understand how important social media is. As a matter of fact, Coca-Cola decreased their mainstream advertising budget by 6.6% and focused more of their budget on social media. If the one of the world’s most recognized brands is taking social media seriously, then why shouldn’t you? If you are at all serious about your business, you must adapt to using social media. If you don’t, not only you but your business will be left behind.

Many people don’t know how to use social media properly but it’s as easy as reading a book or searching for some how-to videos on YouTube. If you are uncertain about the importance of social media in your business, I suggest reading the book 33 Million People in the Room by Juliette Powell for some insight.

“The definition of intelligence is having the ability to adapt the environment around you.” -Unknown

What business are you in?

Many people come up with the greatest new invention or idea, quit their job and start their own business. What exactly does that mean?

 Did they start their own company or are they self-employed?

Doesn’t self-employed mean they own their own business?

Owning a company or being self-employed is the same thing, if you have to show up for work every day. The real business you are in is owning a job not a business. Sure, if you’re self-employed you can choose whether you work or not, but if you don’t work you don’t get paid. Doesn’t sound like a business to me (sarcastic voice).  A real business can run on its own without you. So the question you must ask yourself is, do I own a business or does my business own me? I hope you answer yes to owning a business but if you unfortunately found out that your business owns you, I strongly recommend reading the book E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. This book is the beginning to freeing yourself from your business and seeing it a different light.

“Life isn’t about finding yourself, it is about creating yourself” –unknown.

Don’t find a business you can work in, create one that works for you.

Think you know how to research online? – 5 steps to do it better

You might think you know how to research online. After all, Google’s been around since 2002. Well, think again! Finding the information you seek takes more than keying a couple words into a search engine. Follow these 5 steps and see if your findings improve.

First, let’s pick a topic to search. Currently, I’m doing some research for a product in the boating industry. Let’s work with that topic as an example. The following steps work well to gather information online for any project.

1.       Start simple: First things first, always start off simple and go to Google, Bing or Yahoo. I prefer Google. Type in the topic and scan the first two to three pages that show up on the search engine. You will most likely not find what you are looking for. Using the boating theme, my guess is you typed in “boats” or “boating industry” and most of the links that came up were for boating related products for sale in your area.

2.       Make query specific: Searches need to be specific. Make a list of all the specific information you want to find. For example, I’m looking for how many boaters are in the U.S., demographics and buying patterns. Try typing in “How many boaters are in the US” into the search engine. Scan the first two pages again. This time you’re likely to find a couple good links. For even better information keep tweaking the query and re-entering it into the search engine. Try “How many boats are in the US” or “What state has the most boats.” Keep changing the queries until you have found at least three to four different links that have consistent useful information.

3.       Check trade/government association websites: Chances are you won’t get all of your questions answered through this process. Through your initial research some of the links that pop up should be for trade or government associations in the industry you are researching. These organizations usually offer information for free. If you are lucky, they will provide their annual reports or statistics for the industry for free. Perform searches for industry related organizations such as “boating associations” or “boating industry associations.” These searches should come up with some respectable associations like the US Coast Guard and the NMMA.

4.       Dig deeper – industry magazines: These associations have a lot of knowledge on the industry as whole but not in-depth information on the consumers themselves. Using government resources like census.gov, Michigan.gov and others, you can find demographic information on where people live, how old they are and how much money they make per year. This information is important and useful but to dig deeper and fully understand consumers, search for industry magazines. Every magazine is looking for advertisers. In order to get them in the magazine, they provide what is called a media kit. This media kit is full of reader demographics and buying habits. Search “boating magazine Michigan” one of the links should be for Great Lakes Boating magazine. Take a look at their media kit and you’ll find lots of worthwhile information.

5.       Finally, use your library resources. If you have access to a college library many of them have subscriptions to market research reports. This is always the first place I look when doing research but only because I have access to it. Even if you do not have access to many of the market research reports, search for them anyway because there is still useful information in the summary they provide for the report.

Following these steps will set your search in the right direction.  You may not get every question answered initially, but as you learn the process, finding information will become quicker and easier.

Welcome to the world of online researching. Happy searching!

Go Out on a Limb and Grab that Fruit

So you want to start your own business?

You better get started!

 But I don’t know how? I’m afraid? What if it doesn’t work?

Entrepreneurs deal with these fears everyday by planning for them. Most by answering these simple questions:

1.       Who is currently doing what I want to do?

2.       Can I do it better?

3.       Are there enough people who want what I am selling?

4.       Are they capable of paying for it?

5.       What do I need to get started?

6.       How much do I charge to break-even?

Finding the answers to these questions is the first step and the first step is always the hardest.

"Don't be afraid to go out on a limb. That's where the fruit is." - H. Jackson Browne

P.S. Just remember to check the limb for fruit before you venture on to it.