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Wharton Business Foundation asked:


Many of our clients have been able to build their businesses successfully as a direct result of outsourcing. One of the most common jobs that they outsource is appointment setting. If your company does any type of outside sales (and most do) having an outsourced telemarketing department is ideal. Think about it, if you tried to hire telemarketers in house, you have to set up office space, get office furniture, get special phone lines installed, get computers, etc. You even have to either manage them yourself or hire someone else to make sure that they’re showing up on time, working their agreed upon shift, calling properly, reading the scripts properly and performing the way that you want them to. 

Yet when you outsource your appointment setting, all you do is have your sales force (or yourself) show up to prescheduled appointments and write up deals. That’s it! No trouble no hassle no headaches. All of this for an employee that costs around $5 per hour.

As a small business owner, you can also use virtual assistants to contact your existing clients and cross sell them on additional products and services (a very successful and profitable strategy). In addition, they can serve as an answering service when you’re out of the office, handle your billing / payments & collections, perform accounting and bookkeeping and more. Some mortgage companies use outsourced workers to call homeowners and sell them mortgages over the phone.

Realtors use virtual assistants to help them run their offices. Their reps help them prepare documents, upload listings, answer phones, do internet marketing, send out client newsletters and more. Other businesses have outsourced reps handling some of their marketing functions. These include internet marketing. There are over 50,000 free classified ad sites on the internet other than Craigslist. Some business owners have their outsourced marketing reps posting ads on these sites each month. They also design their print and internet ads, launch their direct mail campaigns, fulfill information request orders, perform E-blasts, perform “Live Chat” for their website, perform search engine optimization, blogging, writing and posting articles online, updating their website monthly, and much more. Some accounting companies even have outsourced reps doing their clients bookkeeping (unbeknownst to their clients). Other companies have outsourced reps doing actual sales entirely over the phone and internet.

So as you can see, there are a tremendous amount of ways that you as a small business owner can benefit from outsourcing. The ways we mention above are just a few examples yet the possibilities are endless.

 

 

John M. Lund asked:


Small business is anything but small in our economy.  Small businesses represent over 99 percent of firms with employees.  They generate almost half of the total private payroll in the United States and have generated sixty to eighty percent of all new jobs per year for the last ten years.  It is also interesting to note that fifty-three percent of small businesses in the U. S. are home based.

These businesses need photography, particularly in this age of the internet.  Even if a business does not yet have a web site, it soon will.  It is rapidly becoming, if it isn’t already a stark necessity.  Over the next ten years it has been predicted that there will be over 15 billion more web sites.  That is a lot of photography!

Conceptual stock photos, or descriptive stock photos?

There are two basic different types of stock photos that will be needed, conceptual and descriptive.  Conceptual shots are useful for businesses that deal with such hard to illustrate themes such as financial services, insurance, banking and various non-product oriented businesses.  Realistically, most business can use both.  For example, if you run a dry cleaning business and you want to print out a flyer you might use a picture of a shirt on a hanger…or maybe something like a two people rolling out a red carpet…to indicate the service orientation of your business. 

If you shoot pictures of shirts on hangars to fulfill those needs you might license a lot of them to dry cleaners.  If you shoot people rolling out a red carpet your market suddenly becomes dry cleaners, bed and breakfast inns, even auto repair shops.  A picture of a red carpet representing superior service can work for large, medium and small businesses alike.  The market for your stock pictures becomes that much larger.  When the stock photo in question reads quickly as a small thumbnail, you dramatically enhance your chance of the image being chosen. 

You can shoot a shirt on a hangar for little cost.  To shoot two people rolling out a red carpet is probably going to cost more and take more time.  It will also be more difficult to shoot really well, and may need a lot more post.

Shoot the concept, shoot the story

A good way to approach this whole problem of what and how to shoot would be to shoot a shirt on a hangar (descriptive shot), a suit of clothes spread out on a bed (illustrating preparation), a model fixing his tie (again, preparation), similar shots with a woman model.  Perhaps even the two asleep in bed, waking up, turning off the alarm clock, getting ready in the morning, fixing breakfast, washing dishes, a close up of dirty dishes in the sink, and, eventually, rolling out the red carpet.  In other words, set up a shoot around a concept, and when appropriate, work through a story with your photographs.

Have a shot list, stick to it

To prepare for your photo shoot visualize each shot, each step.  What props will you need?  What wardrobe? How will you need to light it?  Allow plenty of time for each shot, for the transitions between shots, and for wardrobe changes.  Wardrobe changes can dramatically increase the number of selects you can get.  But such changes can slow you down too.  I always print out my shot list and check each one off as I complete it.  If there is a clothing change I stop and review my list.  I always have enough extra shots built in that if one shot just isn’t working, I can move on to the next.

Get the shot, but don’t over shoot

There is a fine line between moving on too soon, and not shooting enough.  The trick is to know when you have your shot and it is time to move on.  I have improved the efficiency of my shoots tremendously by slowing down and paying more attention to each shot rather than just firing away and then firing away some more because I haven’t paid enough attention to really know if I gotten what I wanted.

Take time to check your work

At least two or three times during a shoot, if at all possible, I will stop what I am doing and check a few shots on my laptop to make sure that my photos are in focus and the details are looking right.  I’d rather find out problems during the shoot than after the models have gone home!

Slowing down yields more

Take the time to plan your shoot, create a comprehensive shot list, visualize the process of each shot, plan carefully for props and wardrobe, take your time, review your work, and reap the rewards. You will be glad you took the time and whether they know it or not, the small business that needs your work will be glad too.

Dr. Rami Schayek asked:


From the mid seventies we can note that scholars makes the distinction between small and large businesses in terms of needs, level of sophistication and range of strategic planning. Bracker and Pearson (1986), Rue and Ibrahim (1998), Perry (2001) and Wijewardena, Zoysa, Fonseka and Perera (2004) all formulate definitions of strategic planning which take the uniqueness of small businesses into account and allow for the fact that small businesses cannot draw on management and material resources in a manner similar to that of large organizations.

Empiric studies’ findings indicate at a correlation between strategic planning and performance. Nevertheless, the findings are mixed. A survey of twenty-six experimental studies enabled Miller and Cardinal (1994) to identify a significant positive connection between strategic planning and small business performance. Robinson (1982) found a significantly high level of profitability as well as an increase in sales and returns on sales and the number of full time employees in a group of small businesses that employed external consultants for the purpose of strategic planning. Compared with other businesses, Bracker and Pearson (1986) discovered a significant increase in income and remuneration per entrepreneur in businesses that prepared strategic plans (the highest of four designated levels of strategic planning). No significant increase was detected in the measure salary expenditure divided on the sum total of sales. A significant differentiation in the rate of sales increase was found by Rue and Ibrahim (1998) in small businesses that incorporated written planning (basic or sophisticated), as opposed to other businesses. Perry (2001) detected a significant differentiation in the degree to which planning was conducted in small businesses that did not applied for bankruptcy as opposed to those that did. Wijewardena et al. (2004) define three levels of planning: no written planning; basic planning; and detailed planning. The findings indicate that the level of planning stands in direct proportion to the level of increase in sales. Yusuf and Saffu (2005) classify three levels of planning: low; moderate; and high. A connection was found between increase in sales and the low level of planning. No correlation was found between strategic planning and increases in market share or in profitability.

Marty Shmanka asked:


As a small business owner, you realize the value of having live, able customers stepping through your door everyday. It’s a simple question of math and conversion that those potential buyers become good profitable customers. However, you may be one of the many small businesses feeling short changed in that regard. Have you ever noticed some of the other small businesses in your area always seem to have enough of these types of customers? Some may in fact be busting out a good business.

Your competition may be getting a hand up on you in many different ways. A new product, head office support, advertising agency, newspaper promotion, coupons, etc. Rarely though do I find small independent businesses making use of the most cost effective communication medium available – The Internet.

If you are a small business and do not have an ongoing marketing effort online, you are most certainly handing customers over to your competition. In fact, you might as well gift wrap them and send them over with a sticky note on their back saying “Can you take this buyer? I don’t really need a buyer today.”

Smart small business owners these days know how valuable a buyer can be, not just their first visit, but for repeated visits and then for bringing in other customers. But you need more and more of them as your business competition gets tougher and tougher. That’s why the internet is so perfectly suited for the future of your small business marketing.

It’s inexpensive to setup (if you do things right that is), and there are ways to reach any potential customer you want, and communicate your products and service directly to that person. You can even direct your message to potential customers in a specific geographic area whether that be near your location or clear across the continent.

What a lot of small business owners don’t realize is that it isn’t as difficult as it seems to set up a website, (an effective website that is), get it noticed in the search engines and then start building an online clientèle that will eventually come through your doors. Maybe its a few half-days of work. You can get your family involved or even a staff member or two during their down time. Everybody loves special assignments, especially if it’s out of the ordinary routine. The thing is once it is set up, it pretty much runs itself and can be your best selling employee working non-stop with no wages, no benefits, no holidays, and no drama.

Once you get an internet presence working for you and have it as part of your everyday sales system your competition will soon be wondering: Where do you get all those customers from?

Fred Jones asked:


If you are a small business owner, you either have an accountant or you are an accountant. Either way, choosing the right accounting software is an important business decision. Some of the most important brands include Quickbooks and Peachtree.

Here are some of the important features to look for:

Adaptability: Small businesses in particular tend to change over time, and you need to make sure that the software you are buying today will be just as useful tomorrow. Are upgrades offered? How much trouble and expense is required to upgrade? How often are upgrades offered? Today’s software is likely to be obsolete in 5 years.

Support: How much support is offered? How effective is it? Is local service available or will you be restricted to dealing with a call center in India?

Price: Software packages vary greatly in price, not only among brands but also among merchants. Choose an appropriate package and then shop around for the best deal.

User Friendliness: How easy is it to use? If you are a sole proprietor, try using it yourself. Otherwise, have your accountant try using it and get his/her opinion.

Features: Don’t pay for features you don’t need, but look ahead 5 or 10 years when deciding which features you’re likely to need. If you don’t need them now, you can always check and see if your package can be easily upgraded to add features you may need in the future.

QuickBooks is by far the most popular accounting software, but then again there are many versions of Quickbooks available on the market. QuickBooks comes in Basic, Online, Pro, and Premier editions. The Pro Edition features tools such as the Cash Flow Projector and the Vehicle Mileage Tracker. Peachtree offers a premium small business accounting software package with over 125 functions including as in-depth inventory, time and billing and job costing features. Other popular accounting software packages include MYOB Plus Accounting Software and Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting.

Good luck!

Kevin Winters asked:


As an entrepreneur and owner of 3 companies (Payroll Associates, Sparkle Pool Service and CompanyMileage.com) I have invested in both my own businesses and the stock market.

The reality is those of us in small businesses are able to cut cost quickly..as my father taught me early on in business “you can’t control your revenue but you can control your costs”. In my 13 years of owning Payroll Associates we dealt only with small businesses and learned how they were able to adapt to changes in more ways than just layoffs. With my new venture, CompanyMileage.com we are selling a cost cutting services called MileageTracker to larger organizations, and there is a huge learning curve.

A great example is a division of a Fortune 1000 company that by utilizing our MileageTracker solution is going to save them over 1.5 million dollars a year..Great news for us right? Not really, the sales cycle to earn their business even during these trying times is over 6 months.

It is not the fault of the decision makers, it is the system. It is time for large organizations to act like small businesses, and cut all costs before layoffs vs. the other way around.

• Layoffs damage a company’s foundation and slow their ability to grow when the economy turns around (which it will).

• Layoffs create a disloyal environment

• Layoffs create a fear in the workplace

How to fix? Well let’s get big businesses to quickly react the way those of us in the small business community. My ideas are simple.

• Each team submits fast tract cost cutting measures with cost / benefit analysis

• Each division prioritizes these cost cutting measures

• Financial team prioritizes and implements

• Any cost cutting measures that are that are below a certain threshold can be implemented directly by a team

• Bonuses paid to creators and owners of the measures

• Set a short time frames

Though our service may only cut 1.5 million (its a lot to most of us, but a rounding error for large organizations)..What if there were 20 measures like this that all took a year to implement.

This company could cut 30 million in a year (or prevent 600 layoffs).

By the way at our pool company we (easily) cut over 50K in expenses and continue to be fully staffed and ready for the upcoming summer..In my 13 years at the payroll company we never once had a layoff.

Helpful links

CNNMoney.com – Layoffs aren’t the answerhttp://money.cnn.com/2009/01/27/markets/thebuzz/

NYTimes – More Companies Are Cutting Labor Costs Without Layoffs

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/22/business/22layoffs.html

Esteri Maina asked:


If you asked fresh graduates about their immediate plans after school, many would answer seeking employment, which is obvious.

Once we secure good jobs, we never stop and think about the core founders of such a renowned company we have just become part of.

Thriving and smart enterprises were once small businesses with unlimited funding, workforce, physical resources and so on.

This would be especially so if the core founder’s idea then appeared inapplicable in light of challenges provided by the environment to small businesses just starting up.

Today, we are enjoying fruits of people, who in spite of all the ridicule and criticism of their business ideas did not give up their vision and over the years their enterprises have expanded splendidly.

Such big companies should be the inspiration to those who dream of starting up small businesses that should then grow to be a source of employment for generations.

I would like to share some few points that I think should be requisites to launching a small business enterprise.

Probing our minds for business ideas

All small business to be launched must start by setting up the purpose they wish to serve, which is entirely the duty of the starter.

We then would need to set free the creative genius in us so as to generate top and unique business ideas ahead of planning how to implement them.

If we do not do this, then we may only invest in one or two of the many existing businesses and depend on the probability of a customer choosing our products and services while leaving those of our rivals.

One could even do this, but locating a unique marketing niche ensuring that once you launch would make progress is the way forward.

To ensure that your business idea is well developed and mature, seek advice and carry out a through market research on the same.

Have an action plan

Having tested your business idea in the market, the next step involves planning about implementing it.

It will address the issue of initial costs for starting a small business of your choice in terms of funding, labor, physical and time resources as well as the sources.

Not unless the owner needs to operate from home, there has to be actions to find the most strategic location or an office and expenditure to incur at the start and monthly.

The office will need to be equipped with some furniture, machines and the like and these costs must be reflected on this action plan.

Additionally, planning ahead ensures that you make decisions concerning the workforce at the initial launch stage.

You are able to answer the question of whether your ‘green’ business would need an extra hand to facilitate management and the costs involved.

The owners also need to set the time limit in terms of when to start up the plan and the period it is expected to take till completion.

All this will just be in paper because the owner will be examining his financial strength to set the short-term goals, with the hope that the market mechanism changes to his or her favor.

Implement the plan

This now will be nothing short of action as per the objectives of the plan, which is very challenging.

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Todd Lehman asked:


Working capital for small businesses is a vital element in keeping the everyday operations of the business running smoothly from set up of the new company to maintenance and onwards. This form of ready funding is needed to conduct human resource tasks like hiring of able and competent staff that would support you in your goal of making a success out of the business, inventory purchases, buy needed raw materials, and produce sellable products to be marketed and eventually end up as financial gain. In a more technical tone, working capital for businesses may be defined as the operating liquidity that you end up with after the present liabilities are taken from the current assets of the business.

Working capital for small businesses must be available to ensure the longevity of the enterprise, feeding life into its cyclical operations. Not being able to retain ample amount to be used as working capital will cause the business liabilities to weight more than the assets. From there, things may go downhill with other financial issues materializing and in serious cases bankruptcy may be faced.

With the rise in number of small business operators or owners in urgent need of this kind of service, came the mushrooming of lending companies offering various ways to make working capital for small businesses available. Typically these forms of readily available funds have not been outlined for the acquisition of fixed assets of investing but mainly for advertising, accounts payable and for staff salaries. And the increasing accessibility of working capital sources not only with regards of physical location where you are to find an office near you but also regardless of where you are via the Internet, applying for such would not be to mush of a hassle.

Not having access to enough supply of working capital for small businesses is a great hindrance in the journey of business to growth and success. Without it, any enterprise would not reach its full potential, missing out on the chance or opportunity of expansion within the market and reaching a wider range and variety of consumers. Availing of the funds however would bring great benefit to the business through the support that it affords in shaping up profitable strategic plans to gain more profits, continuing an ongoing venture, reviving ones that are at risk, or exiting from failed ventures.

The acquisition of working capital for small businesses has been designed to be easy and fast. In the application process, credit score and financial history check can be avoided. There is even no risk posed on any of your properties as no collateral is necessary. And as fast as, or even faster than you are able to fill in the details and meet a few conditions, is the response to your fund request.

Brody Dorland asked:


As the days go by, more and more people are getting hooked to the internet. So, if a business wishes to make a big name for itself, investing in a website, that too an SEO friendly one, is an expenditure worth its weight in gold. Small business SEO is available from several quarters in Kansas City. The advantage of this service is that it helps businesses that are perhaps only in their infant stages to join the competition with bigger competitors in gaining more visibility, more sales and more ROIs.

SEO, whether for small businesses or big ones, requires three chief elements to be successful: research, link building, and on-page optimization. Research needs to be done to identify the most competitive keywords, to know what the competitors are up to, and also to know what the target audience wants. To know what the target audience wants, you should know who your target audience is. In fact, an important step of successful small business SEO in Kansas City involves identifying the target market. This means considering factors including

• Age

• Interests

• Gender

• Occupation

The more the number of high-ranking inbound links, the greater would be the success of the website. On-page optimization is the use of apt keywords in the header tags, meta tags and page content. Indeed if a website is to get a good ranking on the major search engines such as Google, MSN and Yahoo, the content should include the right amount of keywords – not too much, not too less.

Beyond doubt, small business SEO services in Kansas City offer an affordable way to get a website that’s easily navigable and with relevant content. The SEO website design for a small business is an expression of its individuality and should appeal to the target market. In addition to the development of new SEO websites, SEO firms in Kansas City can also be approached for assessment of the health status of a current SEO website and evolvement of an action plan to improve the status.

John A Tulley asked:


SEO is crucial for small online businesses. With this in mind there are six quick steps to take in order to make a profit through small business seo.

The first step involved in targeted as SEO success is understanding the importance of search engine optimized copy and content at your website. This applys on many levels, keyword enriched content is the foundation upon which all of your other SEO efforts will be built.

The second step associated with small business SEO success is to make certain that you use appropriate metatags are at your website. Many people forget the importance of metatags when they go about designing a website. In fact there are crucial to your overall targeted SEO success.

The third quick step towards small business SEO success is making sure you select an appropriate domain name for your website. You need to bear in mind that the domain name you choose for your operation will have a bearing on your search engine rankings.

The fourth quick step towards small business seo success, to get you on your way to making a profit with SEO, is to make certain that your website is fully functional and fit for purpose. This means that you ought to make certain that your website is attractive and user friendly.

The fifth quick step towards targeted success is to consider engaging the services of a professional. If you’ve never engaged in SEO efforts, you want to give serious consideration to enlist the support and assistance of a professional or an expert. There is too much at stake to put your small business seo efforts to chance.

The sixth quick step towards small business SEO involves setting up a strategy and a system through which you will continually review what you’ve done in regard to your SEO activities. You need to make certain that your SEO efforts remain effective not only when you implement them but for the future life cycle of your website.