Small Business Success Index

Index Score^*		Grade
SBSI INDEX	75	C
Capital Access	67	D+
Marketing & Innovation	70	C-
Workforce	79	C+
Customer Service	91	A-
Computer Technology	74	C
Compliance	90	A-
*Index score is calculated on a 1-100 scale.

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10 Easy-to-Miss Business Deductions

March 11th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

The deadline for completing your tax return is closing in. There are so many different tax deductions, though, it’s easy for a few to slip through the cracks. Make sure that you claim all the deductions that you’re eligible for.

Going green: Did you take steps to make your office greener in the last year? If so, you may be able to write off the expense of doing so as a deduction. Depending on your industry, there are even some tax credits available.
Payment processing fees: Using online payment processors, like PayPal, is becoming more common among small businesses, but there’s a price tag that goes along with doing so. The fees charged on each of your transactions are deductible.
Travel to and from the airport: The fact that you can write off business travel on your taxes is common knowledge, but did you know that you can even write off the taxi trip to and from the airport, as long as you’re traveling for business purposes?
Tax preparation: Considering the expense of getting a tax return prepared when you own a business, it’s a good thing that you can deduct your tax preparer’s fees. The same holds true if you have any help throughout the year with tax planning or other tax-related tasks.
Blog posts: If you hire a writer to put together posts for your business’ blog, it’s a marketing expense and can be written off. The same holds true for other social media help.
Hidden bank and credit card fees: If you have a bank account or credit card in your business’ name, go over the statements very carefully. Even if you can’t get hidden fees removed, they are still business expenses and can be written off on your taxes.
Unpaid invoices: As long as you’re using the accrual method of accounting, rather than cash, your unpaid invoices can be written off on your taxes. However, this deduction can be tricky, making it particularly important that you talk to your accountant before claiming it.
Employee benefits: Of course you can write off any benefits that you provide for your employees, but that term can cover a lot of ground. If you buy an employee a monthly bus pass as one of their benefits, that’s just as deductible as health insurance.
Holiday parties: Do you have a get-together for your employees during the holidays? The expenses for that shindig can be written off, as can holiday cards to your clients.
New employees: The expense of hiring a new employee, from putting out a job listing to printing up new business cards, is entirely tax deductible. Even paying for a prospective employee’s travel for an interview is deductible.

It’s important to note that every business’ tax situation is different and it’s impossible to address every situation in a blog post. In order to make sure that your taxes are in order, it’s crucial to talk to a tax professional who can walk you through determining your eligibility for these tax deductions.

Image by Flickr user AlanCleaver_2000

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Tags: business deductions, tax preparation, taxes
Posted in Accounting and Taxes | Comments

Hiring Web Designers and Other Creatives

March 9th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Finding a creative professional to work with isn’t always a piece of cake — not only do you have to find someone whose talents match the project you’re working on, but you must navigate the process of working with a web designer, writer or other creative professional. The process just isn’t the same as working with a typical vendor.

Getting the Right Creative

Buying creative services isn’t really the same as most purchases you might make for your business. You can’t exactly run down to the local office supply store and pick up a logo the way you might grab a box of envelopes.

You’ll likely be able to find someone whose portfolio matches what you have in mind for your project by looking at who other people in your network rely on or by looking online. But finding that graphic designer or copy writer is just the beginning. You’ve got to check availability, pricing and a host of other questions to make sure the fit is good. The creative professional in question also needs to be comfortable.

Todd Adkins is the creative director behind Born to Design, a firm that has created brands and designs for a wide variety of clients for over 13 years. He points out that while most creative professionals have the opportunity to pick and choose projects, not that many actually do — meaning that if you can sort through the details, the designers or writer will probably be on board. “My experience has always been that it’s hard (and sometimes dangerous) to say ‘no’ to a project. So many really good projects have been borne out of a recommendation from someone who gave me a project that really wasn’t my cup of tea. Specializing is a good idea, but I find the variety keeps me, and hopefully the work, fresh.”

Common Misunderstandings

Adkins has seen numerous projects, including a few misunderstandings between clients and creative professionals. When it comes to the key problem, though, Adkins says “…The only one that comes to mind is that you can’t always drop everything and tend to a specific client’s needs right then and there. They may be used to a devoted staff for their needs, but I may already be putting out a fire for another client that really has to be wrapped up before diving in elsewhere. Patience is a good thing to have on both sides.”

If you’re used to handling most projects in-house, working with an outside creative professional can be a big adjustment.

Staying On the Same Page

The key to just about every issue that can arise between you and a creative professional is communication. Ask every question you need an answer to and bring up any concerns that you might have. If you can talk through each step (including your assumptions), you can wind up with not only a great project but a relationship that will allow you to continue to work with a creative professional for the long-term.

Photo by Flickr uUser PedroSimoes7

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Tags: creative professional, freelancer, web designer
Posted in Workforce | Comments

Small Business Success Index — Technology Dimension

March 4th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

The latest Small Business Success Index cage small businesses what amounts to a C when it come to computer technology. That’s unchanged from a year ago, and there may be a simple reason why: with the economy adding uncertainty to many small business’ bottom lines, there are fewer business owners that are willing to spend money on improving technology, especially when it’s hard to see the return. However, when it comes to technology, small businesses do have incredible opportunities right now.

Improving Operations

The SBSI’s calculations in determining a technology score for small businesses specifically tracks the adoption of fifteen online business solutions that help small businesses with marketing, customer service and operations. The numbers point to a whole list of opportunities for small businesses to become more efficient, win over more clients and even save a little money.

The most commonly used technology, as far as small businesses go, is a disaster recovery / backup system. As of December, 2009, 61 percent of small businesses had implemented a backup system of some sort. What’s surprising is that nearly 40 percent haven’t. The expense of data recovery when you don’t have a backup system in place can easily reach four figures, without any guarantee of getting your information restored. Paying a few dollars per month to back up data is a much lower price to pay.

Website Ownership

Right now, website ownership is sitting at 46 percent — less than half of small businesses have a website. When you consider that you can set up and maintain a business website for under $10 a month, that number seems incredibly low. But it is also an opportunity. The benefits of having a website when your competitors aren’t even online allows you to tap into markets that those competitors don’t even have access to.

Email Customer Service

Offering customer service via email can translate into some significant savings. While you may have to have an additional email address, you don’t need anyone manning a customer service line. That can free you or an employee up to do work, only processing customer service questions a few times a day.

Other Technologies

There are plenty of other technologies that can provide big wins for your business. Making use of tools that allow you to communicate and share information internally allow your employees to work more efficiently, no matter whether they’re in the office or not. You can reduce expenses like printing, just by choosing the right tool. Similarly, marketing technologies, such as the ability to list ads in online directories, allow you to improve your reach for new customers. The benefits of improving marketing technologies go beyond price: you can often more clearly see how a customer found your business and made the decision to buy — allowing you to more clearly understand the ROI of a particular ad buy — than with traditional television or newspaper advertising.

Looking at the tools and technologies your business uses can help you find opportunities to become more efficient, save money and even land some new customers.

Image by Flickr user Jose C Silva

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Tags: operational technology, SBSI, Technology, Website
Posted in Small Business | Comments

Small Business Success Index — Workforce Dimension

March 2nd, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

According to the Small Business Success Index, small businesses are scoring, on average, a C+ when it comes to workforces — but that grade is trending upwards. Many small businesses are facing staffing issues as a direct result of the poor economy. Many small businesses have reported having to take steps like reducing employee benefits, shortening the work week or even reducing staff in response to the recession.

Morale

Despite the workforce difficulties facing small businesses recently, most remain moderately successful — few struggle to keep employees productive, especially in light of the high unemployment rates. Those businesses in a position to hire have no trouble finding the right employee. While employees in businesses that are struggling may experience lower morale, many small businesses are in a position to find out just how efficient they can make their businesses.

You may find that your workforce is stretching itself to cover projects with fewer staff members. While not all methods that you use to cover gaps in your business will be sustainable in the long-term, they can be useful in determining how to make your business more efficient overall. It also offers up opportunities to refine and focus your attentions on the most important aspects of your business.

The uncertainty surrounding many jobs right now does mean that keeping employees updated and working with them to improve morale is key for many small businesses. If you’ve been cutting back, it’s especially important to allow employees the opportunity air concerns — you may not be able to resolve them, but even a simple conversation can improve morale. No matter how things are going for your business, your employees’ morale can make a difference.

Benefits

One of the most difficult areas for small businesses, at least when it comes to managing a workforce, is providing benefits packages that can attract and retain employees. Recently, the issue of benefits has become more pronounced. In order to respond to the recession, 29 percent of small businesses reduced employee benefits. It may not be an option to attempt to improve benefits packages in the near future, either.

However, you can make effective use of those benefits that you are in a position to offer. It may be worth discussing with your workforce which benefits are particularly important to them. If something like health insurance is crucial, your employees may be willing to drop other benefits in order to keep insurance in place. It’s also worth thinking creatively about which benefits you can offer. If you’re in the position to allow your employees to telecommute, for instance, that sort of benefit may improve morale without breaking your budget. You’ll likely find that your workforce is more willing to discuss questions like which benefits are necessary currently, especially with the numbers of small businesses finding it necessary to make pay cuts, ask employees to take furloughs or shortening the work week in order to reduce workforce costs.

Image by Flickr user Steve Rhodes

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Tags: benefits, employee morale, employees, SBSI, Workforce
Posted in Small Business Success Index | Comments

Crafting A Want Ad that Will Get Answered

February 25th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Whether you’re looking for a freelancer or a full-time employee, getting a want ad just right can be tough. You need to make sure that you get enough responses that you can find the best person for the job, but you don’t want to have to sort through off topic responses.

Deb Ng is an expert when it comes to looking at listings. Her website, Freelance Writing Jobs, brings together want ads from all over the web on a daily basis. Ng has been sifting through Craigslist, job boards and other sites listing employment ads day in and day out for ten years. She also publishes exclusive listings and has written a few of her own.

The biggest problem with most want ads is that they don’t include enough information, says Ng. On her site, she’s constantly seeing want ads that won’t actually get companies the type of writer they need. “There are too many vague ads so potential clients are receiving a flood of applicants from writers of all levels, most of whom aren’t what they’re looking for. In order to narrow the playing field they need to describe exactly what they’re looking for. If they can include their budget, and some details about their business that will also help to narrow the candidate list. Writers and bloggers should be able to tell ‘at a glance’ if it’s the job for them.”

The same holds true whether you’re looking for a full-time employee, a freelancer, a creative, a salesman or anyone else. Provide as much information about what you’re looking for. “I try to be very detailed and include what I’m looking for and what I’m not looking for.” She also points out the importance of telling applicants what you don’t want: “Since we put out periodic calls for bloggers and, also, encourage pitches for one off submissions we get a lot of the same thing, much of it fluff. So now I’m specific. I ask for useful tips and list the topics we’re most in need of. I also list the items we’ve done to death or have no use for and ask bloggers not to pitch these ideas.”

It’s worthwhile to prepare yourself for what your want ad is going to turn up, as well: not all applicants are going to be the best fit. Ng hears plenty about less-than-perfect matches from the advertisers who post listings on her site: “…Writers don’t follow directions. Advertisers will request specific information and not receive it or ask for certain things and get something completely opposite. The biggest frustration of advertisers I deal with is writers who don’t bother to read the ad in its entirety.”

In the end, you’ll probably receive at least a few responses that aren’t good fits, no matter what. But the more information you can include in a want ad, the more likely you are to get at least some applicants who can help you take your business to the next level.

Image by Flickr user Egan Snow

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Tags: job listing, want ad, writing want ads
Posted in Workforce | Comments

Follow-up: The Secret of Networking

February 18th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Networking is crucial to any small business. Whether you’re looking for clients or vendors, who you know will make a difference in the deals you can find. That can translate into attending a lot of networking meetings. Just showing up, though, isn’t enough. If you want to make the most of your networking efforts, you need to follow up with the people you meet. Whether you send out personal emails after an event or pass along opportunities, you’ll get the most out of introductions if you follow up with a real relationship.

The Importance of Follow Up

Phelan Riessen knows networking. Not only is he a serial entrepreneur, but he runs RefreshSD and has helped bring together events like BarCampSD. He can attend more than fifteen networking events in any given month.

Riessen points out the importance of follow up: “Chances are you’re not the only person they met at a networking event. They‘ll forget you soon after unless you’ve made a grand impression on them. People need constant reminders you even exist. The sweet spot used to be six interactions with someone before they may even consider buying from you. Now days it’s up to ten times or more. And don’t even think about getting any business directly from a networking event. Longevity, consistency, reminders and rapport are what will eventually drive the business back to you.”

A Follow Up Method

In order to follow up on the stack of business cards you take home from a networking event, you have to have a process in place. Riessen’s process is relatively simple:

He marks an ‘X’ on cards during the event to note warm or hot leads. Riessen points out, “In some cultures you should not write on their card so be careful about doing so in their presence.”
After he leaves, Riessen writes the date and event on the front of each card he received, so that he remembers where and when he met that person.
He gets the data into a format he can use. While manually adding information to a spreadsheet is an option, Riessen suggests either using a service like CloudContacts or a virtual secretary so that you can spend your time on actually making calls or sending follow up emails.

Once you’ve got your information in to a format that you can more easily handle, it’s time to actually reconnect. If you made a point of saying that you could send your new connection specific information when you met, you may already have a reason to do so — but even if you don’t, you should still reach out.

“Don’t be afraid. Pick up the phone. Set up a meeting or lunch date. Follow up and build that rapport,” says Riessen. He points out that even if your new connection doesn’t buy from you, he may introduce you to your next sale. Even something as simple as emailing out a report on an important topic affecting your industry to each person you meet can help spark the conversations that turn someone you met at a networking event into a connection who can help your business grow.

Image by Flickr user Locomotive Stillstand

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Tags: business card, follow up, networking
Posted in Sales Process | Comments

Choosing Newsletter Software for Your Business

February 16th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Email newsletters have become a standard marketing tool, and for good reason: compared to any sort of print marketing materials, an email newsletter is cheap to produce. Just how effective an email newsletter is can depend, but if you put together a newsletter that your readers (and clients) can look forward to, it can lead to significant sales. But without the right tools, it doesn’t matter how cheap or how effective your newsletters are. If you choose the wrong software, your newsletters will never even arrive.

The Dilemma of Spam

There are incredibly inexpensive newsletter software options available online, offering to send out your newsletters for only a few dollars each month. But it’s worth paying a little more, rather than going for the cheapest option out there: many of those inexpensive options have so many spam complaints against them that any newsletter they send out for you won’t reach your readers’ inboxes. Because those email marketing tools have a bad reputation with most email providers, they’ve effectively been blacklisted.

The price of those more expensive and more reliable newsletter tools won’t break the bank: Constant Contact offers plans starting at $15 per month, still far below what you might pay in postage alone if you were to send a print newsletter. Furthermore, higher quality email marketing tools make an effort to police newsletters and reduce spam, therefore reducing the chances that a reader might think your newsletter is spam. Other popular tools that fall into this category include MailChimp, Aweber and our partner, Constant Contact.

The Right Features

Different newsletter tools offer different features: depending on what your goals are with your newsletter — beyond simply making sales, of course — you may need specific features. Those might include any of the following:

Integration with your CRM tools
Newsletter design
Reports on who has opened your newsletters
Double opt-in registration
Templates for different types of newsletters

It’s crucial to make sure that the software you choose to manage your newsletter has all the features you expect to need from the get go. Moving a mailing list from one tool to another is difficult, and you’ll often lose subscribers in the process, especially if you choose an email marketing tool that requires opt-in from your readers (a technique used to minimize spam complaints).

If you aren’t sure what option is best for you, it’s worth considering who will be doing most of the work on the newsletter. Working with a freelance writer or other professional who specializes in email newsletters can make sense and that approach lets you get the matter off your desk and out of your way. If you choose to outsource your newsletter, it may make sense to consult with your freelancer on what software she would recommend and would prefer to work with. If you’re going to handle the details of your newsletter yourself, it may be worthwhile to take the different tools out there for a test drive, so that you can see which is easiest for you to use. Most email marketing tools now offer a free trial that will allow you to do just that.

If you want to try a 60-day free trial of Constant Contact check out our Network Solutions-Constant Contact partnership.

Image by Stock.xchng user Arroba

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Tags: Email marketing, mailing list, newsletter
Posted in Small Business | Comments

Outsourcing Your Marketing: Your Options

February 9th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

As a business owner, it’s easy to get caught up in the day to day details of making sure you keep the clients you already have. That can take attention from marketing and finding the clients that will help your business grow, though. Those ’some day’ projects that will help market your business need to move up your priority list. Rather than trying to jam more into an already packed list, though, marketing can be an area where it’s especially easy to delegate.

That doesn’t necessarily mean bringing in a new employee just to handle marketing and public relations projects. The fact of the matter is that many business don’t need a full-time staffer for marketing — bringing in someone just creates stress as you try to find enough work for him or her to do. But it’s very easy to outsource marketing projects. Even better, there are benefits with working with a marketing professional outside your company. A freelancer or a firm offering public relations and marketing services often builds up a wide network that just isn’t available for an employee starting from scratch.

Beverly Flaxington is a consultant, as well as the author of two books. In order to handle the details of marketing her business, she relies on help from outside the company. She actually also brings in graphics, administrative and other kinds of help as needed, as well. Her business doesn’t offer enough work to keep full-time employees busy, but Flaxington does need help from marketing specialists every so often: “…Having people who are very talented, yet virtual independent contractors works great. Over time, they are a part of our firm and we work great together but we don’t have the pressure of full-time employees to keep busy!”

From a financial point of view, the arrangement has been very effective for Flaxington. She’s able to match her expenses to client work, making her cash flow much smoother. Since you can outsource on an as-needed basis, you can customize your project, based on your budget. Depending on who you’re working with on a press release, ad campaign or other marketing project, you may find that your consultant can offer help on getting the most bang for your buck, as well.

Flaxington found her marketing specialists (including graphic designers and proofreaders) on Guru. She suggests, “Ask to see samples of their work in advance because marketing and graphics are very much ‘personal taste.’” It’s important to find marketing help that not only understands your goals and knows how to reach your key customers, but who can also present your business in a way that you like.

There are a wide variety of ways to find someone to help you with marketing, beyond Guru and similar sites. While there are plenty of firms out there with full staffs, you also have the option of finding individual specialists for each type of project you’re considering. Maybe you need a graphic designer to put together a few ads, or an SEO specialist to increase your website traffic. You can find any sort of marketing specialist with just a search online.

Image by Stock.xchange user danielcruz

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Tags: beverly flaxington, Marketing, outsourcing
Posted in Small Business | Comments

5 Better Ideas than TV Spots — Even if You Have Enough Money for a Super Bowl Ad

February 6th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

A Super Bowl ad comes with a price tag of about $3 million dollars this year. Even if you have enough money in your marketing budget to pick up a 30-second spot, there are alternatives that can offer more bang for your buck than a televised ad, no matter how big an event it’s shown during. Considering how many people fast forward through the commercials, it’s time to explore other options.

Get involved locally: That money you were going to use on advertising? Consider spending it on a community project instead. Not only will you get warm fuzzies for the impact that your business has, but it will also offer you an opportunity to get your community talking about your company in a positive way.
Create a resource that will help your customers: When most customers have a problem, they don’t watch advertising or even start looking for brands. Instead, they’ll start searching online for answers to their questions. Creating a website that offers those answers is on a whole different budgetary level than a Super Bowl ad (right now, a domain name can be had from Network Solutions for $6.99 with coupon code DOMSOCIAL1), but can convert customers far more effectively.
Sponsor a niche publication: With $3 million in your pocket, you can afford to sponsor an entire issue of a magazine that goes out to your primary demographic. You can reach out to the people most likely to be interested in your product or services. Even with a smaller budget, it’s easy to sponsor a targeted online publication for a month or two, allowing you to reach out to audiences already interested in what you have to offer.
Build a social media campaign: While it’s tough to predict what will go viral, creating content (such as videos) that online users can easily share is a a good source of traffic if you sell your product or service online. One of the best examples is the ‘Will It Blend‘ videos from Blendtec — they consistently attract attention, day in and day out.
Put on your own event: Getting your customers out for an event — whether we’re talking about a focus group or a big conference — offers an opportunity to make your customer base feel like they’re stakeholders in your success. The more personal connections you can build, with customers or members of the media, the more likely they are to recommend you to their friends, families, and listeners.

Big companies are realizing the dropping value of a Super Bowl ad. Even Pepsi is opting for one of the options on this list: For the first time in 23 years, Pepsi did not buy a Super Bowl spot. Instead, the company chose to use the millions of dollars that would have gone to the Super Bowl spend towards the Pepsi Refresh Project. The project is offering grants to organizations and people making positive impacts in their communities, effectively integrating Pepsi into local communities.

Speaking of the Super Bowl and marketing, Network Solutions has a couple of great deals you might want to know about:

For this 2010 Superbowl, Network Solutions has put together a special offer for Sunday and Monday. $6.99 domain names and 25% off hosting packages so you can “shuffle” on over to start or keep using Network Solutions as your small business solutions provider. Check these out:

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REMEMBER: This is only for 2010 Superbowl Sunday and Monday

Visit www.networksolutions.com to take advantage of these offers.

And enjoy the Super Bowl!

Photo by Flickr user Fluzo

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Tags: advertising, community, Marketing, sponsorship, super bowl
Posted in Marketing | Comments

Creating An Owner’s Manual for Your Business

February 1st, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Your car comes with an owner’s manual. So does your blender. Why shouldn’t your business have one?

There are more than a few books that have been called an owner’s manual for business — everything from Joe Kennedy’s The Small Business Owner’s Manual to the less literally named Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson have been offered that particular title. The fact of the matter is that there isn’t an owner’s manual that works for every business, though. Just like the manuals for a Porsche 911 and a Toyota Prius have different recommendations for maintenance and repair (along with just about everything else), each business has different needs in terms of a business manual.

For most business owners, creating a business manual is a matter of making sure that you can delegate certain parts of running your business, as well as have responses in place for situations the pop up. It doesn’t need to be a formal, step by step guide to what goes on under the hood of your business, but rather a changing document that provides a central location for information about your company.

Adding Information to Your Owner’s Manual

The specific information that can go into your owner’s manual depends on what purpose you need it to serve. Do you need to be able to hand it over to an employee and have them handle the day to day routines of the company? Do you need it to provide a reminder of all the ‘maintenance’ you have to do on your business — checklists for taxes and so on? Or should your owner’s manual provide guidance on what you want to do in a worst case scenario? Each of these options makes sense to include in a business’ owner’s manual. It’s just a matter of including the appropriate information:

Emergency phone numbers for service providers
Step by step instructions for handling tasks around the office
Forms for tasks you routinely complete
Dates for reoccurring tasks, like paying your quarterly taxes
Templates for letters and other documents you routinely use
Goals for the year and steps you need to take in order to meet them
A copy of your business plan
Training materials for new employees

Make your owner’s manual into whatever you need it to be.

Making Use of Your Manual

The difference between an owner’s manual for your business and a file folder full of information is that you need to be able to make use of that information. You may need to be able to run off a copy and hand it to an employee or look up information in a stressful situation. It’s important to organize the information in a way that it’s easy for you to use. If you’re depending on it to guide you through routine tasks for keeping your business going, such as filing yearly paperwork, an organizational method based on dates might make sense. Alternatively, you might organize it by task and create a table of contents that reminds you of where you placed information on specific tasks.

Image — Bsabarnowl

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