Running a small business has it’s own unique set of challenges in any economic climate, but when trying to recover from a recession, small business survival depends upon a tenacious attitude and the ability to draw upon both external and internal resources and not be discouraged when things get tough.

You’ve heard me sing the praises of the New York Times “You’re the Boss” family of blogs before. I’ve highlighted the series “Staying Alive” in a couple of previous posts, (here and here) which recounts the story of how a small furniture company has weathered the recession; a series that presents the nitty-gritty details of what it’s like in the day to day struggle of a small manufacturing company.

“You’re the Boss” just started a new series of videos they’re calling “How I Saved My Company”, to bring real stories of small business survival to life. The first installment tells the story of Apt 168, a small interior design firm that helps people who are relocating to NYC furnish their new digs, and what they had to go through in order to survive the recession. My guess is that by documenting these small business survival stories, they will provide some well needed business motivation to other SMB owners to keep on plugging and do what’s necessary to keep their companies afloat.

There’s a marketing opportunity attached here as well. YTB is providing the venue and asking for volunteers who would like to showcase their companies and give others an insider peek at their small business survival story. Here’s an excerpt from the editor’s introduction:

“Almost every successful small-business owner has survived a near-death business crisis. Today, we’re beginning to collect these personal stories in a series of video contributions called How I Saved My Company.

We’re looking for business owners who have struggled and survived and who are willing to submit a short video telling about their experience. The following video explains what we have in mind…” (read entire post here)

Whether you are looking for some business motivation or would like to take advantage of the marketing opportunity to share your small business survival experience with the world (and get some well needed publicity in the process), I predict that this blog will be worth checking out over the next weeks/months.

Susan Martin, Business Sanity

Does business success and money matter if you’re not doing something you love?

One of the basic foundations of business coaching is to help people zero in on their purpose, the thing that makes life and work interesting, rewarding and fulfilling.

Often, clients come to coaching who have achieved what others may think of as “business success”, who are making tons of money but still aren’t happy. When that happens, there’s usually something missing, and that something usually has to do with “purpose”.

It’s hard to stay motivated and consistently have the drive to keep on keeping on when you’re not deriving any fulfillment from what you do. Running a business isn’t always easy, there are problems, obstacles to overcome, yes it’s sometimes a lot of hard work…but what’s the point of doing all of this, if you’re not doing something you really care about?

Hugh MacLeod summed it all up succinctly on his gaping void post on this very subject. It’s part of a series of “cartoons drawn on the back of business cards.” This one was inspired by Tim O’Reilly, of O’Reilly Media. Hugh writes:

“What’s there to say about Tim that hasn’t been said already? He’s one one of our great Internet and technology visionaries. I was fortunate to meet him a few months ago at Supernova in San Francisco. A really charming, well-mannered guy in real life.

The cartoon above was DIRECTLY inspired by a personal mantra of Tim’s, “Work On Stuff That Matters”. And of course, it’s the fact that we’re mortal (and life is short) that gives Tim’s mantra its sense of urgency. If we lived forever, we’d be more inclined to just sit on our butts all day long…”

Have you connected with your purpose? Are you doing work you love? If not, let’s talk.

Susan Martin, Business Sanity

Last Thursday, President Obama proclaimed May23-29th to be National Small Business Week, a week in which “I call upon all Americans to recognize the tremendous contributions of small businesses to our Nation with appropriate programs and activities.” The Small Business Administration has scheduled a variety of events taking place at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington D.C., and Startup Nation is hosting a webinar entitled “Small Business, Big Wins: Innovative Tools to Drive Your Business Forward” with Barbara Corcoran and Anita Campbell.

How will you as a small business owner, out in the trenches, celebrate the achievements of your small business?

Susan Martin, Business Sanity

The vast majority of professionals I’ve come across have a “build it and they shall come” attitude. They think that if they do a good job, that they’ll generate enough word of mouth referrals to support their practices and will never have to worry about professional services marketing. But can professionals really thrive without marketing?

A few lucky ones can, sure, for the rest, it’s more likely than they’re just doing “OK”. Here’s why:

Professional services marketing encompasses much more than just advertising or networking. It starts with strategy: building a brand and creating a message before you even get to the point of working towards getting that message out to your target market.

Once the brand is conceived and message developed, you then point the tactics that will get your message out to your target market on a consistent basis, and put them into action. We’ve all heard that it takes multiple impressions to make the sale. I believe that it’s not only multiple impressions, but multiple impressions over a consistent period of time. Typically, professionals do nothing at all when they’re busy, and make sporadic attempts when they’re slow (which is often too late). It takes consistent multiple impressions to sow the seeds and nurture the plants that bear fruit.

Professional services marketing also requires an appropriate attitude. Many professionals will admit that opportunities often slip through their fingers because they fail to take action. Sometimes this failure to act has to do with timing or the amount of work that’s on their plate at that moment. But often it stems from a lack of confidence, shyness or an aversion to self-promotion. Those who work to adjust their attitudes, build confidence and come out of their shell, find that they naturally are more willing to put themselves out there. As a result, they find it easier to take action and capture whatever opportunities come along. This translates directly into more business.

If your firm or practice is merely surviving but not thriving, it may be time to give up on the “build it and they shall come” attitude and start to embrace professional services marketing.

If you need help doing this, contact me to schedule a consultation.

Susan Martin, Marketing Coaching

With over 400 million users and growing, facebook is cashing in big by changing the way your personal information is shared, and users are starting to revolt.

In a recent post entitled “Facebook Privacy Controls, Marketing Opportunities or Internet Danger?“, I wrote about some of the opportunities and dangers presented by this mammoth social networking site.

Yesterday, I got an email from NY Senator Chuck Schumer, which asked me to “Act today to protect your privacy online” which pointed to a webpage on moveon.org, all about the specifics of the changes and how they will affect you. Regardless of your political affiliations, I think it’s worth a look at “Did you see what facebook is trying to do?” and consider joining the group that’s rallying support against the changes.

Here are a couple of things they are particularly concerned about:
-Making your name, profile photo, hometown, network, work, education, friend list, likes and dislikes public.
-Access to your basic info, even if you told them not to reveal it
-If you click onto one of their “Instant Personalization Website” partners, they will reveal personal details about you as soon as you visit that site…WITHOUT your permission.

Susan Martin, Facebook Insanity

If you run a small business or work for yourself, you know how hard it can be to get things done. When the buck stops with you, trying to manage it all can be overwhelming. One of the biggest time management mistakes you can make in your business – or in your life – is to let time wasters creep in and eat up your time. If you find yourself wondering why you’re not accomplishing more, here are some time management tools you can use right away to get things done:

1. Pinpoint goals and priorities: No time management tools will work unless you first have a crystal clear idea of the things you’re trying to achieve, in order of importance. Trying to manage time without first understanding your goals and priorities is kind of like getting into a car without having a destination. To get things done, you must know where you’re going and how important it is to get there.

2. Identify and list common time wasters and interruptions. Effective time management tools also include understanding what you don’t want to do, the things that waste your time and keep you from accomplishing what’s most important. Make a list of common distractions, note how you’re wasting time, then constantly remind yourself not to do it by posting a list in prominent spot.

3. Set clear boundaries for yourself and your co-workers, clients and employees. No list of time management tools would be complete without referencing boundaries. Establish boundaries around the internal and external distractions and behaviors that most often result in wasting time. Once you determine what you don’t want to be doing, let others know precisely what these boundaries are and enlist their help in keeping them.

4. Create a schedule and learn to stick to it. One of the most common, useful and often overlooked time management tools is your calendar. A calendar can help you structure your day, and understand what you want to accomplish during it. Noting daily goals in your calendar can work wonders, so keep yourself on track by referring to it religiously.

5. Commit to focused work periods. The last of today’s time management tools is one of the most useful. Most of us are so busy doing “stuff” for and with others, going from one thing to the next, and operating from the seat of our pants; that we don’t overlook important tasks that must be accomplished. Whether you’re trying to find time to finish a client’s project or work on marketing or strategic planning, making appointments with yourself to get specific things done is a crucial part of any time management strategy.

What are your favorite time management tools?

Susan Martin, Time Management Coaching

The internet is abuzz with the marketing opportunities that social networking offers. But as social networking has become an integral part of the way we communicate, not just for marketing purposes, but also among friends and family members; concerns about facebook privacy controls have been mounting.

And for good reason. The site originally promoted itself as a social networking venue which facilitated communication and the sharing of information with friends that they specifically selected. But Facebook privacy controls have been changing. In recent months, the social networking site has been undermining user’s trust by changing the way it shares their personal information both with advertisers and the general public. To make matters worse, a recent security glitch allowed others access to communications that were once believed to be secure.

Some may argue buyers beware. After all, we’ve been filling out demographic and psychographic information on the back of warranty cards for years. But is the sharing of user information simply the next logical step in the world of marketing opportunities? Or, is this a gateway to internet dangers?

Perhaps it is both.

Anyone who has read George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four may have encountered a bit of paranoia about what might happen if “big brother” were watching. Today’s concerns focus more on what personal information advertisers can have access to, how they might use that information to manipulate us into spending our money, and or what private details people (beyond our networks) may be able to find out about your personal and family life.

Filling out a warranty card is like giving a company permission to market to you. A social networking site that allows access to your personal profile information without your consent is a different story. However, there are some that argue they would rather have ads customized to their interests than to be blasted with all kinds of random promotions.

There is no doubt that this social networking site offers interesting marketing opportunities for large companies and small businesses alike. For that I have no doubt and will continue to use it.

But, from a personal perspective, I am very concerned. A security glitch recently made the text of chats between friends accessible to others. Teenagers are especially vulnerable because they continue to use the social networking site as a primary source of communication in growing numbers. Of course you could argue that parents should warn kids not to reveal personal information, but you would probably be forgetting what is was like to be a teenager. They regularly note what schools they attend, where they hang out, post photos of themselves, friends, siblings and other family members, their ages or grades in school, and sometimes even reveal phone numbers and email address.

Although the marketing opportunities that social networking offers are substantial, both for large companies and small businesses alike, it’s not only about the almightly dollar. Facebook privacy controls and the whole issue of internet danger is a complex one that is drawing the attention of advocacy groups, educators, marketers and parents. In fact, the The Electronic Privacy Information Center notes that:

“The EPIC and 14 privacy and consumer protection organizations filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, charging that Facebook has engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices in violation of consumer protection law. The complaint states that changes to user profile information and the disclosure of user data to third parties without consent ‘violate user expectations, diminish user privacy, and contradict Facebook’s own representations.’ ”

It will be interesting to see how this suit unfolds and how facebook privacy controls may be revamped due to public and government pressures. In the meantime, I will continue to take advantage of the marketing opportunities, but would suggest that we all take special care not to post anything on the internet that could put ourselves, our friends or our loved ones at risk.

Susan Martin, Business Sanity

An article in the “You’re The Boss blog alerted me to an amendment to the Senate Financial Reform Bill proposed by Senator Durbin of Illinois “that would loosen the hold credit card networks such as Visa and Mastercard now have over merchants. Senate leaders are expected to bring the amendment up for a vote — an important milestone, because in major bills, most amendments never get this far.”

Evidently, support for such an amendment has been building for some time. A report entitled Credit Cards: Rising Interchange Fees Have Increased Costs for Merchants, but Options for Reducing Fees Pose Challenges issued by the U.S. Government Accountability Office released last fall stated that “The level and growth of these (merchant processing fees) …have become increasingly controversial.”

Mastercard and Visa have been accused of having a monopoly on this market, and small businesses, mostly retailers and restaurants, have been held hostage to fees out of proportion to the amounts of the transactions.

The post also cited an article by columnist Andrew Martin, who charted the growth of merchant processing fees in January “…the growth of swipe fees on debit card transactions, which have become a profit center for banks large and small. When customers sign for a debit card transaction, a merchant pays on average 75 cents for every $100 in purchases. A Visa official told Mr. Martin that the fees are “not a cost-based calculation, but a value-based calculation” — based, that is, on what the market will bear.”

Merchant processing fees are actually a combination of charges leveled by the credit card processors and the banks.

Under the amendment to the Senate Financial Reform Bill, the Federal Reserve would be given the power to reduce merchant processing fees on debit cards to a “reasonable” rate, that would be in proportion to the amount of the transaction on the processing side. And, it would seek to create a competitive environment for the fees charged at the bank level.

An interesting sidebar: My friends at the NFIB (National Association of Independent Businesses) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, who you would hope would rally support for the amendment, did not join over 100 other trade organizations in signing a letter of support.

Susan Martin, Small business financial management

If you’re like many professionals, marketing professional services may make you a wee bit uncomfortable. You may feel as though self promotion is a sleazy activity, engaged in only by people trying to put something over on unsuspecting prospects.

But marketing professional services is an important skill to cultivate if you want your business to thrive over the long term, despite what might be happening with the economy.

Let me introduce you to Harlan, a client who learned about the importance of self promotion the hard way:

Harlan is an architect who went out on his own about 7 years ago when he decided he didn’t like working for a control freak partner who micro-managed his every move, despite the fact that he was a talented designer. A couple of loyal clients ditched his old firm and supplied Harlan with enough work to take him through the first two years.

Busy with these clients, Harlan went along diligently focusing on his projects, but neglecting to do anything about getting new work in. Concerned about their ability to pay their bills and support their family, his wife suggested that Harlan start attending some networking events. She had an attorney friend who told her this was a good way to start marketing professional services, but Harlan kept putting it off, saying that the projects he was doing would generate referrals in time, he didn’t need to do any self promotion.

Deep down inside, he knew that self promotion made him feel a bit like a used car salesman, and he would do anything to avoid it. As luck would have it, about a month before his last project ended, just in the nick of time, another one came in. A nice juicy, big one which took him through year 5, and the stock market crash that officially started the recession in the fall of 2008.

The recession hit just as this project was about to be completed. Contractors were laying off their crews, suppliers were in a panic. Business had dried up, and Harlan was faced with a difficult decision: To deal with his aversion or start looking for a job.

Harlan had grown accustomed to working for himself. He liked making his own decisions, having the freedom to design without someone looking over his shoulder and setting his own pace. It seemed natural for him to work like this. What didn’t come naturally however, was doing any kind of self promotion.

The next 7 months was brutal. He soon went through his savings and started to tap into what little retirement money he had managed to squirrel away. His credit score dropped and none of the local design firms needed anyone, even part-time.

When Harlan called me, he was at his wits end.

Here’s what we did:

We pinpointed what he disliked about marketing. We talked about colleagues who seemed to have a knack for marketing professional services, and which of their attributes he admired. We developed a message which identified his ideal clients and projects. We analyzed his competition and determined what made Harlan different. We examined the reasons his client’s were attracted to him and what results they were able to achieve by having him design their spaces. We made lists of contractors, suppliers and engineers who respected his work, and developed a marketing and sales strategy that Harlan felt good about. We practiced and role played marketing conversations and developed a brochure and website to take his message public that he was proud of.

He began to sow the seeds that would turn into new business. And sure enough, these seed began to grow. Today, Harlan is busy with new projects and the phone is ringing with requests for new proposals. Self promotion is no longer a dirty word.

If your aversion to marketing professional services is holding you back, schedule a time to speak, I can help.

Susan Martin, Marketing Coaching

Hiring good employees is yet another task that falls on the shoulders of the overwhelmed small business owner, who may be unprepared for and inexperienced in how to make the best possible hiring decisions. But making sound hiring decisions is critical to the success of a small business or professional practice, because resources are often scarce and every single employee must bring significant value.

Many small business owners who are faced with the task of hiring good employees, take a shoot from the hip attitude, thinking they can make a sound hiring decision based upon gut instinct.

Unfortunately, this approach doesn’t often work, because a small business relies upon each and every employee to be able to accomplish their most crucial goals, despite the lack of resources or the untold obstacles that might stand in the way.

If hiring good employees is your goal, here are some tips that can help:

1. Before running an ad or reaching out into your network to find someone, first focus on what qualities, characteristics and type of accomplishments your future employee must have achieved in order to be successful.
2. Pinpoint the expectations that you have for this employee and understand why these expectations are so important.
3. Clarify the goals that this employee will be required to achieve and their importance to your business.
4. Interviews are important, so don’t wing it. Instead, craft a short list of interviewing questions that will help you determine whether the applicant is right, without wasting a lot of time.
6. Enlist several of your trusted partners or staff to take part in the interview. Have each focus on different areas, and get on the same page BEFORE the interview takes place so that you’re clear on exactly what you’re looking for. AFTER the interview, talk it through to get everyone’s impressions.
7. Focus on the most significant accomplishments the applicant has achieved. Find out as much as you can about these accomplishments, the results they achieved, how and why they did it, what obstacles they encountered and overcame, why it was important to their company and all of the circumstances around it.
8. Base your final hiring decision on what you’ve learned about the applicant’s accomplishments, rather than gut instincts. Look for qualities such as resourcefulness, determination, focus and teamwork.

To make sound hiring decisions, focus on performance.

Concerned about hiring good employees? Schedule a business coaching consultation.

Susan Martin, Business Leadership Coaching