by Marna on January 28, 2010
New year, new ventures. Over the past few weeks I have continued to work on my new business venture in the hopes of quietly launching it before the end of this month. While I achieved my original goal of completing the site by the end of 2009, it was still not ready to launch. Domain names, technical issues and more plagued me. It was a new year and I needed a new outlook.
I found new excitement last week when I took the opportunity to pitch this business to Startup Chicks. The pitch would offer me the opportunity to participate in the Startup Chicks Accelerator Program. I also had the opportunity to practice my pitch the night before at Startup Gauntlet.
The program not only offered me the opportunity to gain valuable insights from the Startup Chicks Advisory Board; but also networking and sharing information with nine other startups in the program. This would be the first program of its kind for women starting businesses in Atlanta, and while I was apprehensive, I really wanted to be part of this! So while I continued to work on fine tuning my website, I needed to complete my Executive Summary and prepare a slide presentation of 5 slides. The criteria to pitch was:
- must be a startup chick (female founder)
- need a well-formulated idea
- committed to working in business for at least 10 hours / week.
- willingness to be coached
- willingness to spend min. of 5 hours in coaching program/month
Flash forward to the competition. For those of you that have never been involved in pitch competition, it is truly remarkable. So after each of us presented our pitches, the judges excused themselves to vote. In order to win, we were judged on:
- viability of idea/growth potential
- credibility of founding team
- ability to be coached
And even though there were great prizes for the top three winners, thanks to the generosity of the Advisory Board, we soon discovered that we would all spend the next 90 days working together receiving coaching and sharing information. So regardless of the results, we were all winners! I can only imagine where these businesses will be in 90 days!
Oh, I guess you want to know the results. Well, I didn’t win. But I did come in second! I did win some amazing prizes, but as I have already stated, the community that we will build together as a team will help us move our businesses forward and learn from each other. I can hardly wait to share more with you after our first meeting….
by Marna on January 21, 2010
In the movie, “You’ve Got Mail”, we watch how a large bookstore quickly put the small neighborhood shop out of business. And while we were all rooting for the “Shop Around the Corner” to survive, it was not to be. As small business owners, do we support each other? Do we even remember the shops downtown or do we quickly opt for the large chains at our local mall?
I grew up in a small town and have fond memories of walking through the shops downtown. My sister now lives in a small town with quaint boutiques that come and go as they feel the pressure of large chains putting small brick & mortar stores out of business. Over the last few decades many small businesses have struggled to compete against national chains. And like my sister, I live in a quaint small town where the downtown shops continue to struggle to survive.
I recently read an article about the 3/50 project to help save the brick & mortars our nation was built on. I was amazed at some of the information. For example, did you know that for every $100 spent in small, independent stores, $68 goes back to the community through taxes, payroll and more. But the national chains only return $43 to the local community. And online sites…nothing comes home!
So what can you do? First and foremost, the large chains do serve a purpose. The national stores offer us cost savings on many of our staple items. But sometimes we want something different. And our small independent businesses offer us that. The 3/50 project is simply that …
Pick 3 locally owned “brick and mortar” businesses you want to help and spend $50 a month helping them stay in business. If half the employed population did this, it would generate more than $40 billion in revenue! Here are some ideas:
- Instead of hosting your networking meeting at a a national coffee chain, change it to a local coffee shop once a month.
- Instead of meeting at the mall for a shopping expedition, meet at a local “downtown” or neighborhood plaza and explore local treasures.
- Stop by the local florist for that bouquet this week, instead of picking it up at the grocery store chain you frequent or calling the online service.
Challenge your friends to join forces with you. Imagine the possibilities…for you and the local businesses. The malls and large chains are great, but wouldn’t you miss that great little “Shop Around the Corner”?
by Marna on December 30, 2009
Technorati Tags:
UI,
customer service
One day left. I am still working on launching my new website and having difficulty with plugins. And as I continue to struggle, I think about support and what they means. What will we all improve on in 2010? This experience has helped me to understand the importance of customer service and the promise of support. Some companies get it, some don’t.
Small business owners often pride themselves on their customer service. But are they doing it right? Could we all do it better? When we are frustrated with the support we receive from one of our vendors, do we stop to think how we would handle it differently? Are we implementing changes to our own systems to improve the support we provide? If your company is web-based, does your UI reflect the customer service experience you intended? Do your support manuals provide answers to common questions? Have you tested your documentation with users unfamiliar with your program?
So as we close the year, think about what you did well for your customers in 2009 and what you can do better in 2010. Ask yourself:
- Do I respond as quickly as I should?
- If I don’t know the answer, do I make every attempt to find one?
- Are issues resolved in a satifactory and timely manner?
- Have I updated my documentation to reflect new information and made it available to all of my customers?
- Is my website easy to navigate and user friendly?
Wikipedia states “User interfaces are considered by some authors to be a prime ingredient of Computer user satisfaction.” Let’s make 2010 the year that UI (user interface) becomes a priority.
by Marna on December 10, 2009
Giving thanks …
As a small business owner, I am required to wear a lot of hats. Sometimes that hat is Marketing and PR, which can be overwhelming. But thanks to the help of High Velocity Radio and Gravity Free Radio, (both part of Atlanta Business RadioX), I had the opportunity to share information on my books. As internet radio shows, their audience is far reaching and made a huge impact on the visibility of me and my books.
I know that the community that they have built to help support small businesses is important to them, but it is also very important to us. And their reach into the community goes far beyond the radio show. Todd Schnick and Stone Payton have developed several programs to help increase visibility for small business owners. I recently had the opportunity to be interviewed by them again for their Video Dust Jacket Tour. And they are currently working on a new project, Speed School. So yes, small business thanks them for their ongoing efforts to help support us.
Gravity Free Radio. Erik Wolf and Stephanie Frost interviewed as I was finishing up my new book; listen here. We shared insights into self-publishing, since they were also working on their book, Marketing: Unmasked. Through their radio show and also through Zero-G Creative Services, they help small businesses understand marketing and branding.
And while internet radio is certainly something for small businesses to be thankful for, the people behind the scenes are what makes it so impactful. So I want to thank Todd, Stone, Erik and Stephanie for the help they have given me, and to the many others in our community.
by Marna on December 8, 2009
As the year draws to a close and I begin to compile all of my year-end paperwork, I cannot help but stop and be thankful that it is organized and accessible, mostly because it is stored online or on flash drives. One of the things I accomplished this year was storing all of my important paperwork on a flash drive. We all say we’re going to do it, later. Then something happens, before “later” occurred, and we wish “if only I had done that sooner.”
A business continuity plan is the least expensive insurance policy that a small business can have. It costs nothing! And while it’s not included in most of the long lists of paperwork needed for your small business, it is probably one of the most valuable documents you’ll create. You just need to document critical information so that your business can continue in case of an emergency. For yourself, it is sometimes difficult to remember where things are during an emergency. Your head isn’t focusing on anything but the emergency. For your employees, knowing how to continue in your absence can be the difference between your business thriving or failing. For your vendors and others, it is the professional image of your business continuing regardless. Your business is your livelihood, and you need to prepare for “what if.”
A business continuity plan should include:
1. Key personnel – including address, emergency contact number and where they will be during an emergency, so that you can verify that they are OK, and reach them if you need them. Also include business continuity directions and include powers of attorney, as well as any other legal documents that may pertain to key personnel.
2. Vendors and others – your contact management system should be backed up and easily accessible, including local emergency numbers like security, electricity, gas, water, police, fire, etc.
3. Equipment – critical information about all of the equipment you use in your business including purchase information, warranty information, contact information for these companies.
4. Paperwork – legal documents including articles of incorporation, HR information, tax returns, insurance policies – any documents that you would need to start your business. You should also ensure that your financial documents are in place in case of receivables, payables and bank account access.
5. Computer information – keep records of all software serial numbers or key codes. If your equipment is destroyed, you will need this to find out about replacement software.
6. Photos – take photos of valuable equipment that you may need for insurance and/or replacement purposes.
7. Contingency plan – can you rent comparable business equipment locally, is there another location that you can use until your is available, can some employees work from home and if so, what type of communication system do you have in place to share information;
8. Documentation – the plan should be given to key personnel. A copy of this information should be stored in secure locations. All of this information needs to be updated on a regular basis. While a copy of your business continuity plan should always be accessible, some of the information is confidential and should not be made available to everyone, so think about this before you include it in every copy. Some of that information can be given to key personnel and just document who has it in case of emergency.
All of these issues are “what if’s”. If you have all of the materials saved in your bank safety deposit box and at home, and then something happens and the bank is closed, how do you access the information? I gave flash drives of my plan to out-of-town family members. The documents are saved as .pdf files and can be easily accessed through e-mail on my Blackberry. And then plan to update and test a new plan quarterly.
So I am thankful that I have my BCP. I also feel good when I update it and realize that changes have occurred and I need to make note of it. Change means growth and that makes me happy!
by Marna on December 7, 2009
Giving thanks …
I learned about Neat Receipts this year. And while I don’t need it so much for my own business, I have certainly made good use of it. I consolidated all of my mother’s files down to one small tote. And after watching a friend gather all of their paperwork for their tax return, I researched how I could adapt this system for him. His 2009 records will be ready to be downloaded to his account at the end of the year! So why don’t all self-employed businesses use systems like this? Mostly because they don’t know they exist. If you are overwhelmed with paper receipts, business cards and documents, then please read on!
While there are several models available, my Neat Receipts operates on a USB cable hooked up to your PC or laptop. So the receipts could be scanned into your computer immediately. The proprietary software that came with my system was easy to install and set-up. This software allows you to create a permanent record that can be kept on Neat Receipts or exported to Excel, Quickbooks, or other financial programs. I do have to say that the initial set-up was time consuming and at times, confusing. But once you get the hang of it, the system is quick and efficient.
But even more than a receipt, business card or important document system, Neat Receipts can be adapted for multiple uses. If you like to maintain magazine libraries of pictures for future projects, you can easily scan them and then file them. And since they are saved as .pdf files, you can save them (in color) to a flash drive and have them accessible whenever you need them. I don’t recommend Neat Receipts to scan photos though. But I do recommend photo scanning. There are many inexpensive online photo storage services that will save your photos for you.
There are other systems on the market that offer similar services. These include I.R.I.S. Scanner which offers a variety of products including a pen scanner that scans handwritten notes; CardScan which scans business cards and offers a contact management system and offers an option to synchronize with your Blackberry; and Visioneer also offers a mobile scanning device.
Each of these systems enables a business owner to improve their productivity and safely store their information. And if you have any questions on paper management for small businesses, you can always read the IRS publication on record management IRS here. I still have paperwork in my office, but as I finish my projects I can now scan the documents I want to save and have them available for future reference. Now I just have to figure out what to do with the file cabinets in my office. So I am thankful to have learned about the products available to help me in my business, and also thankful that technology makes sharing this information so easy.
by Marna on December 7, 2009
Giving thanks …
I started this series with my thanks for all I have learned, but I also need to give thanks for some things I already knew. I started my business as a professional organizer. Because I do know how to be organized. After running a business and then entering the corporate world, I needed to develop systems that would help me get my job done, faster. As a corporate event planner and public information officer for non-profits, I was always struggling to meet deadlines. I finally developed a system that worked for me. My system was easy, I scheduled backwards. I had a “tickle” file on my desk and maintained it daily! This may not work for everyone, but it worked for me! When I left that industry and entered the retail world, those systems didn’t work anymore. In retail, things change daily! So you just had to know where you were every day and prioritize. I soon realized that being organized was different in each environment. And as my jobs changed, the systems adapted so that I could continue to be organized.
When I started my business, I chose the systems that worked best for me. But now I am thankful for all of the technology that makes being organized easier. I am also thankful for retailers like Ikea and the Container Store, my favorite go-to places. And as I have mentioned in previous blog posts, paints that make walls chalkboards, dry erase and even magnetic! The use of Neat Receipts helps eliminate most of the paper clutter. My own password system has eliminated the post it notes all over my keyboard.
And while I appreciate all of these things, I am most thankful when I help others with these tasks. I like learning about what others do and then helping them come up with their own systems. The time saved by being organized helps all of us to be more productive. And as this year ends, it’s a great time to think about what systems would help all of us to be more productive in the new year.
by Marna on December 4, 2009
Another thing I am thankful for…
I continued to learn more about WordPress, and one of the things I learned about was premium themes. Yes, the best thing about WordPress is that it is free! But there are limitations to free. First of all, there’s absolutely free, which is launching your blog on http://www.wordpress.com. You can host your blog on the WordPress site, but your url will include wordpress in it,not a very good decision for a business. After all, if you can’t afford the hosting service, should you really be in business? That said, you are also limited in the themes as well as the options available within those themes. There are currently 60 themes available on wordpress.com.
Once you choose to host your own blog, you can upgrade to http://www.wordpress.org. And there the options become endless! You can choose from the many themes offered by WordPress, or you can venture onto other sites that offer free WordPress themes. And these sites allow you to install plugins and personalize them for your needs. But, and yes, there is always a but, most of these free themes don’t come with support. And when you are a novice like me, that can be very frustrating. Around the time I was ready to give up, I found out about premium themes. Yes, premium means you have to pay for them. The benefit is that you get a support plan when you purchase the theme.
I have purchased themes from Studio Press (Streamline) and DIYThemes (Thesis) for a minimal investment. And both are amazing! They are very different, but filled with more options than I can use. And when I have needed help, I have received it, quickly. So, while I also host WordPress free themes, I am oh so thankful for my premium themes. It was money well spent!
Social Media Week. Celebrating being social? But I guess it’s like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day…all those holidays created to remind us of things we need to appreciate every day, but take for granted. And today, social media is something that users take for granted. 
