Small Biz Sanity

Is the Internet the end-all be-all...

...when it comes to marketing your business? 

And I mean this on a personal level, as well--a bit of introspection, if you will.    If you're like me, you come up with a million-and-one ideas throughout the day.  While you're trying to develop them online, it's so easy to get brain overload and burnt out--there are so many websites & related links that grab your attention & sidetrack you...by the end of the day, my brain is usually fried when I log off.

So, here's what I've begun doing--I get off the Internet.  I take a break, do some chores, spend time with my daughter, run some errands, work out--whatever.  It might sound counterintuitive--how can you market online if you're not online?  But in order to stay on the right path & remain focused, your mind needs to stay fresh.   I've learned to stay online just enough to do certain tasks--check & send specific emails, research a potential client, write an article or blog entry, Tweet a little--and then get off.  And while I'm off, I come up with new ideas & to-do tasks--so when I do get back online, I'm focused once again on another set of specific tasks.  I'm not just meandering around the Internet aimlessly--I'm working in shorter, smarter bursts.

So, I dunno...that's what works for me, I find.  Hopefully I can stay with this, because I do believe that less is more if it's done right.

That being said, folks--here's the question:  What systems do you have in place to stay focused on your small biz tasks?

Inexpensive marketing...alright!

Recession here, recession there--recession everywhere.  That's all you hear about--and at times it's enough to make even the toughest small business owner real nervous.  But in times where every penny counts, there are ways to reach out to potential customers without breaking your budget.  I came across a great article by Internet marketer Barbara Casey, called...what else? "Inexpensive Marketing." (The article also includes tips from fellow marketers Catherine Groves & Robert Middleton.)

Internet Marketing by Barbara Casey

Here are a few inexpensive ways to promote your products and services and stay visible to those who need you:

1) Cross-promote with a complementary business. If you're a massage therapist, cross-promote with your hair stylist, for example. Give your stylist coupons for their customers for $5 - $10 -- heck, even 50 percent -- off an introductory massage with you.

Your stylist will, in turn, give you coupons to give your clients for a discounted haircut. You and the stylist gain a new client (and potential repeat business). The client gets a "fail safe" way to try a new service at a reduced cost -- plus he or she gets a free gift. Everybody gains.

2) Enclose your business card or flyer with any personal or business bills you are paying. Hand write a short note offering an introductory discount.

Here's a tip from Catherine Groves on hand-jotted notes:

This tip surprised me with its astonishing results. Myself? I am never impressed with personal notes penned onto the top of a promotional mailer. If the product itself doesn't interest me, I trash the flyer -- handwritten scribble and all.

But handwritten notes do bring results! For the past few years, I've taken to jotting a personal greeting on standard marketing pieces and have seen my response rate more than double! And others have similar success rates. One prominent communications specialist I know, who commands upwards of $1000 for an hour of his time, writes a warm hello on every promotional letter leaving his office. Considering his hourly fee, that's an astounding investment of his time. But it works and it's worth it!

3) Use the phone. Call current and past clients to let them know of new services, classes or products that you offer. You don't necessarily need to "sell" anything. Just remind them that you're available whenever they do need you.

Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing has good advice on phone calling in his excellent course for independent professionals "The InfoGuru Marketing Manual." This man is a terrific teacher of marketing. If you're a professional in private practice of any type, you owe it to yourself to check out his work.

If you don't get his book, make sure to subscribe to his free ezine "More Clients." His is one of the marketing newsletters that I actually print and keep for reference. If you click on this link, you'll receive a free marketing plan start-up kit with your e-zine subscription.

Here's what Robert Middleton says:

Perhaps the most often used form of direct outreach is simply calling up past clients to "drum up new business." This can be effective if done well. The main point I want to make is that you don't ever want to call out of desperation. Ideally you want to call when you're busy. That's right, not when you haven't had a project for 3 months. And in the true spirit of InfoGuru Marketing, when things are slow, don't just call past clients looking for new work, send them something valuable, such as a report, survey results or other information, and then follow up to discuss it. You'll get a much better reception than "begging" for work." 

4) Join a co-operative mailing. Save on postage and gain a wider audience with someone else's mailing list. You can do this informally, with other complementary business owners you know.

5) Don't forget to send a "mini press release" to your local holistic, spiritual or business magazines for inclusion in their "Events Calendars." Listings in these calendars are very inexpensive, or often free. Mail, fax or email your "blurb," which should include: the name of the class or event, the sponsor and presenter, the location, date, time and fee. Also note your phone number, email and website for additional info. 

Check with the magazines first to see how they prefer to receive your information. Some publications like you to mail, fax or email, rather than to phone in these items. This way the magazine editor has a written record to refer to.

6) If you have a website, make it do its job of pulling more clients to you. How much will it cost you to rewrite your website so that (a) prospective clients will find it more appealing and (b) search engines will rank it higher for your keyword categories.

I have read "Make Your Site Sell" twice. The information is all there in black and white to do it right. If you own a website but aren't satisfied with the results, this is the book to get. And it's now FREE.

7) List yourself in online body-mind-spirit and business directories. You can list your business or organization free, or for a small fee. If you don't have a website yet, you can use your directory page in the meantime.

I've added an entire web page of directories to the New Radiance website. Just click on the directory links, visit their sites and list your business. If you have a website, make sure to link back to it from your directory listing. It will help your search engine ranking.

Find holistic, spiritual and business directories where you can list your services here: www.newradiance.com/businessdirectories.htm

8) Are you looking for an inexpensive internet presence - or multiple free or low-cost sites so you can cross-link for increased traffic?

For $4.95 a month, you can create an attractive blog with Typepad. There's a 30-day free trial. Or sign up for a free Blogger blog.

A popular freebie for body-mind-spirit professionals and creative folks is ByRegion.net. You can also upgrade to a fancier web page if you wish.

Powerful Intentions, Ryze and Squidoo also offer a free web presence.

(c) Copyright by Barbara Casey.

“How-To-Start” Spotlight: Home-Based Daycare

Since I work from home, I’m all about home-based business (HBB) resources, and I’m interested in all types. So I’ve decided to start spotlighting different HBBs periodically, and how to start them.  If whatever I’m featuring at the time happens to be the type you’re interested in—great, read on!  But also, feel free to contact me with HBB suggestions of your own—and they just might be featured in an upcoming spotlight.

 

So this time around, I’m featuring tips on starting a home-based daycare.  Of course, this is probably a no-brainer for those who are great with kids (and might already be stay-at-home parents). 

Another income stream: A speaking career?

Here's something I've been thinking of myself, and I wanted to pass the thought on to you fine folks. Speaking engagHere's something I've been thinking of myself, and I wanted to pass the thought on to you fine folks. Speaking engagements. Ever done them? If not (and I know how many of us loathe public speaking), it might be something to consider.

If you're reading this blog, you're probably interested in small business info in some way or another--you're either a small biz owner, or trying to become one. But if you're good at what you do, why not share your expertise and get paid for it? Speaking engagements are a great option, because you can set your own speaking schedule to work around whatever else you have going on. I could go on, but instead I'll give you this article by Mike Moore on how to get started in a speaking career.

Saving for retirement when you're self-employed

Sure, the perks of working for yourself are flexibility and not having to deal with long commutes & annoying co-workers.  The downside?  Let's admit it, our full-time friends' matching 401k plans often look pretty good when you're out there on your own, lol. 

We might not work for big corporations that handsomely match our retirement contributions, but there are savvy ways to save if you're a small business owner.  Here's a helpful article I came across on eHow.com that offers some tips. 

How to Plan for Retirement When You're Self-Employed

If you're self-employed, you're on your own when it comes to planning for retirement. But you can still retire comfortably by implementing smart investment and savings strategies.

Overall Things You'll Need:

• Financial Calculator

• Brokerage Accounts

• Paper And Pencil 

Step One: Project your retirement expenses and income and determine how much additional income you will need. Take income from pensions and Social Security into consideration, as well as expenses for things such as increased travel and medical care.

Step Two: Budget for your savings. Treat contributions to retirement savings as you would any other weekly or monthly expense.    

Step Three: Set up and contribute to a tax-deferred savings plan. You're probably familiar with Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), but Simplified Employee Pension plans (SEPs), Keogh Plans and Savings Incentive Match Plans for Employees (SIMPLEs) are specifically designed for the self-employed.

Step Four: Invest in stocks and bonds, particularly if you start planning for retirement early. Decide which combination of potentially volatile, higher growth stocks and more stable, lower growth bonds is best for you.

Step Five: Purchase an annuity. In the simplest terms, an annuity is an investment contract that guarantees you a set income in return for your investment.

Step Six: Consider working after you retire. Start a small business or consult on a part-time basis to keep your mind active and to reduce the amount of money you need to withdraw from your savings.

Tips & Warnings:

• Take inflation into consideration when calculating the income you'll need during retirement.

• Although it's not designed specifically for the self-employed, consider an Individual Retirement Account (IRA).

• Contribute the maximum amount to your tax-deferred plans each year. The more tax-deferred savings you amass, the faster your nest egg will grow.

• Evaluate your stock/bond combination as the market and your tolerance for risk change.

• If you're new to investing in the stock market, participate in an investment club before you start investing on your own.

• Reduce your retirement expenses by planning to purchase a smaller home or to retire in a less expensive area of the country.

• The tax-deferred savings plan you choose might require you to set up the same plan for your employees.

• Navigating your financial future can be a bit harrowing on your own. Before leaping into an investment strategy, consult a financial planner or accountant who can explain the tax implications and risks of your retirement plan.

What's on your business' 2009 agenda?

So, happy 2009!  Ready to really make things happen for you & your business this year? (And are you still writing 2008 on everything, also? Don't you just hate that?)

Now, normally, I'm not one who's big on New Year's resolutions.  But it's always good to make positive changes where/when needed--and if it happens to be at the start of the year, then I'm all for it!   So, if you're looking to jumpstart your business in 2009 with a fresh outlook, the following article by Susan Ward (About.com Canada's Small Business guide) might give you some ideas. 

Top 10 New Year's Resolutions for Business Success: Improve Your Work-Life Balance With These New Year's Resolutions

By Susan Ward, About.com

The end of the year is a good time to reflect on your business's progress over the past year and plan how you want your business to develop. Do you want increased success in 2008 or the chance to enjoy the success you've achieved more? These top 10 New Year's resolutions are designed to help you strike a better work-life balance, so you can achieve a truly satisfying success in the New Year.

1) Learn how to delegate and do more of it.

There are so many things to do when you're running a small business, it's easy to delude ourselves that we need to do all of them. Then we wonder why we're so tired and frazzled and have no time to do anything else! Determine Your Personal Return on Investment, and decide to let someone else do some of the tasks for a change. Delegation is the key to a healthy work-life balance.

2) Promote your business regularly and consistently.

Too often the task of promoting a small business slips to the bottom of the to-do list in the press of urgent tasks. If you want to attract new customers, you have to make promotion a priority. Make a New Year's resolution to hire a marketing expert, or take the time to create a marketing plan on your own and follow through. Try some of these Low-Cost Ways to Promote Your Business to get started.

3) Make business planning a weekly event.

Planning is vital if you want a healthy, growing business. Business planning lets you take stock of what worked and what didn't work, and helps you set new directions or adjust old goals. So why do it just once a year or once a quarter? Set aside time each week to review, adjust, and look forward - or even better, make business planning a part of each day. Not only will this help you avoid costly mistakes and stay on track, but you'll feel more focused and relaxed.

4) Learn something new.

What you choose to learn may be directly related to your business (as are the four free ecourses I offer on this website) or completely unrelated. Learning something new will add to your skills and add a new dimension of interest to your life - another important part of achieving a healthy work-life balance. Depending on how you choose to learn, you may meet new and interesting people, who may become customers, colleagues, or friends. How will you find the time to learn something new? By delegating, remember?

5) Join a new business organization or networking group.

There's nothing like talking to other business people for sparking new ideas, refining old ones, and making contacts. Whether it's a group specifically designed for networking or an organization dedicated to a particular type of business, in person or over the 'Net, making the effort to be a part of a group will revitalize you and your business.

6) Give something back to your community.

There are all kinds of worthy organizations that make a difference in your community. Make a New Year's resolution to find a cause that matters to you, and give what you can. Make this the year that you serve on a committee, be a mentor, volunteer, or make regular donations to the groups in your community that try to make the place you live a better place. And those that give get. As I say in Top 10 Ways to Get Known, nothing will seed and grow goodwill for you and your business better.

7) Put time for you on your calendar.

In Schedule Time for You, I point out how important it is to take the time to recharge and refresh yourself; a healthy work-life balance demands time out. All work and no play is a recipe for mental and physical disaster. So if you have trouble freeing up time to do the things you enjoy, write time regularly into your schedule to "meet with yourself" and stick to that commitment. If you won't invest in yourself, who will?

8) Set realistic goals.

Goal setting is a valuable habit - if the goals lead to success rather than distress. Make a New Year's resolution that the goals you set will be goals that are achievable, rather than unrealistic pipe dreams that are so far out of reach they only lead to frustration. If you have trouble setting realistic goals, see Goal Setting Is the First Step to Achievement for a formula to help.

9) Don't make do; get a new one.

Is there a piece of equipment in your office that's interfering with your success or something that you lack that's making your working life harder? Whether it's an old fax machine that's a pain to use, or the need for a new employee to lighten your work load, make a New Year's resolution to stop putting off getting what you need. The irritation of making do just isn't worth it. You'll find information on both office equipment and business software in the Running Your Office section of this site.

10) Drop what's not working for you and move on.

All products aren't going to be super sellers, all sales methods aren't going to work for everyone, and all suppliers or contractors aren't going to be ideally suited to your business. If a technique or a product or a business relationship isn't working for you, stop using it. Don't invest a lot of energy into trying to make the unworkable workable. Move on. Something better will turn up.

Achieving a healthy work-life balance is like maintaining a good relationship; you have to keep working on it. But if you apply these New Year's resolutions throughout the year, your success is guaranteed!

Going broke this holiday season? Not!

As the clock ticks away down to Christmas, I'm increasingly aware of the main thing I dislike about the holiday season--too little focus on the real meaning of "holiday spirit"--you know, giving, good cheer & all that...and too much emphasis on the commercial aspect of it all.   Just turn on the TV, and you're bombarded with retailers telling you that basically, you're a selfish loser if you don't run out & buy their product(s) as a Christmas gift for your friends and/or family. (Okay, they don't actually say that; I'm paraphrasing of course, but that's pretty much the message sent, lol.)

With the current tight economy, though--it's imperative to keep your eyes open for consumer traps, because going into debt to fill some superficial shopping list is real old. 

Here, Credit.com's Gerri Detweiler tells CNN's Gerri Willis how to avoid the traps of holiday spending.

Finance tips for small business owners

If you're a relatively new small business owner, you may have some questions about your business as it pertains to tax & IRS issues.  For example, how exactly does the IRS define a business? Money expert & coach Cindy Morus has a great article, "Is Your Hobby Tax-Deductible?" that breaks that down, along with the difference (in the eye of the IRS) between a business and a hobby--and the types of expenses you can deduct.   Check out this article (& a couple of others that are useful to small business owners) at http://www.mendyourmoney.com/category/self-employed/.

Staying afloat on Cyber Monday

So, first it was all about Black Friday (and I don't know about you, but 300-style battles w/ fellow shoppers at 4am is not my cup of tea, but to each his/her own...)--now, the hype is focused on Cyber Monday, that increasingly-infamous first-day-back-at-work when folks go crazy with the online shopping.  According to comScore, Inc., online shopping mushroomed from $12.3 billion to nearly $30 billion since 2003.  Clearly, it's way more mainstream than just a few years ago, when online shopping used to elicit raised eyebrows from most.

For small business owners, it's another challenge to stay on top of their sales game--but it's doable to not only achieve sales, but skyrocket them.  Here are a few tips from Inc.com:

• Keep your site up to date. Make sure it looks fresh and has the most current information.

• Keep your audience in mind with your website. This goes back to one of my favorite marketing adages -- "Think like your customer!"

• Content actually is more important than style. "Most people will put up with a bad design if the content grabs them." If you are not a good writer, use someone on your staff to write to copy. You may even to best to hire someone to write your copy for you. Such an investment should pay for itself with increased activity from your site.

• Don't overdue the animation. It can slow down visits to your site and cause people to move on to another site.

Question: Which do you prefer--Black Friday, or Cyber Monday--and why? What are your strategies for finding the best deals?

Child care gets creative. Yay.

Since I'm a working mom, my interest is always piqued when I hear of creative child care solutions.   Not just because it's normally ridiculously expensive, but because I and other freelancing moms have the added dilemma of often needing childcare only periodically.   That's where the problem lies, because most childcare services only have full-time options.  (And don't think it's that much easier, if at all, for WAHMs--if you're working on a large, time-consuming option at your home office, you'll probably still need the kids watched while you get things tackled.)

So, I thought the following NY Daily News article, "Kid Co-Ops," featured a cool solution.  Check it out, and who knows?  Maybe you can gather up a few moms in your community for a childcare co-op!