Navigating the world of small business finances can be daunting. While you don’t need to be an expert in every area—like the complex tax code or cloud technology—having a solid grasp of your financial statements is crucial. This blog will break down the key components of your small business financial statements, what they mean, and…

Today’s Networking Networking is crucial for business success, as it opens doors to opportunities and provides a cost-effective way to boost marketing. Effective networking can significantly enhance your business’s visibility and create valuable connections. Networking traditionally involved face-to-face interactions, such as meetings and professional gatherings. Today, social media has become a dominant platform for networking,…

ChatGPT Understanding the scope of work is essential in project management. The scope, or scope of work, outlines the who, what, when, where, and how of a project, providing a detailed description of each aspect. It includes a timeline, the responsibilities of individuals involved, and a clear explanation of the final deliverable. A well-defined scope…

Have you noticed the skies aren’t as friendly for flight attendants lately? According to a survey, 85% of U.S. flight attendants dealt with unruly passengers in 2021, leading to an alarming turnover rate of 20% in the airline industry. Surprisingly, the primary reason employees, including flight attendants, are leaving their jobs isn’t just difficult passengers—it’s…

Now is an excellent time for small businesses to reassess these small business mid-year strategies and adjust to drive growth. Here are some effective steps you can take: Review and Adjust Goals: Assess progress towards annual goals. Set new, achievable targets based on current performance and market conditions. Financial Health Check: Conduct a thorough financial…

Empowering Startups: How Collin SBDC is Helping an Early-Stage Tech Startup The journey from taking an idea to a sustainable business is certainly complex – crafting a business plan, understanding the market, knowing who is their competition and financial planning. However, amidst this complexity Collin Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is empowering startups. In the…

As the end of the year approaches, businesses find themselves at a crucial juncture to assess their performance, tie up loose ends, and lay the groundwork for a successful start to the upcoming year. Navigating year-end success means appropriately preparing for any regulatory requirements but also creates an opportunity for strategic reflection and planning. Financial…

Important Resources for Small Business Owning a small business can be challenging, especially if you are just starting. The good news is the United States loves small business and our government loves to see small business succeed. There are plenty of local and national resources ready, willing, and able to help you with your small…

What is a PEO Company? A professional employer organization (PEO) is an organization that helps small businesses by taking over some of the human resource (HR) responsibilities such as administrative tasks, workforce compliance regulations, employee benefits, workers’ compensation, and payroll.  A PEO enters into a joint-employment relationship with you, the small business owner, by leasing…

Employee handbooks don’t need to be boring and full of legalese that no one can understand…and that no one will read. Did you know there is a food company in Ann Arbor, Michigan whose employee handbook is so entertaining and sought after that they added it to their online bookstore?  It’s true!  While you may…

Wait! Did you read that correctly: “Fire your customers”? Yes, you did! You’ve had it drummed into your head forever: “The customer is always right,” “The customer comes first,” “Always please the customer.”  What do you do if the customer is unpleasable? What if the customer is actually costing you time, money and maybe even…

Martin Luther King, Jr. has been credited with starting the saying: “A budget is a moral document.”   For your personal budget, this means your priorities and values are primary and ethical. It tells you, the small business owner, or self-employed, what areas, issues, things, or people are most important in your life, and which…

There are a lot of compelling reasons to start a small business, or to be self-employed. The freedom to be your own boss, set your own hours, and decide which projects to take on can be a “dream job” situation for many. Unfortunately, statistics show that many self-employed or home-based businesses fail often due to…

Learn how to find quality employees in a competitive hiring climate, what to look for and how to keep them.

Back in the 1930’s Ned Sparks was a silent film star. On his tax return, he wrote off his $3,000 dentures as a business expense, claiming he needed them for work – so he could enunciate words properly. The IRS rejected his deduction, claiming that Ned couldn’t prove that he used his dentures only for…

David H. McConnell started his business in 1886, selling books door-to-door. He quickly realized a lot of the people he was trying to sell to were women, so he began to lure in female customers by offering little gifts of perfume. Before long, the perfume McConnell was giving away had become more popular than the…

Being self employed or owning your small business offers several financial advantages over working for someone. Your income can (potentially) be limitless, and you get to choose how and when to invest your profit. There are a few things you’ll need to implement, and make sure you follow-through with, to assure your future financial success….

My business only has a few employees, do I need to implement an Employee Review program? I owned a retail store a few years ago and I only had a few employees. At the time, I did not think there was a need for an Employee Review program.  We were like a family!  Everyone was…

What is scope or scope of work? In business, we’re not talking about Scope Mouthwash; scope or scope of work often has to do with project management. It is the combined objectives and requirements needed to complete a project. The scope of any business involves all of the activities performed by that business. Scope includes…

As we discussed in our blog called: From Retirement to New Business Owner, there are many benefits for starting a new business after retirement, especially if you are doing something you love. There can also be financial, social and health benefits when starting a new small business. It is important however, to research the type…

If you are considering either starting or buying a small business, then you should also consider creating a business plan, but if you need a loan, you need a business plan! A business plan is an essential step to outline how you will start, develop, and grow your small business.

For a small business to survive, it is essential to build and grow a strong customer base who are loyal to your business’s products, brand, and to you, as the business owner.  Rather you offer a service, or retail and wholesale goods, the types of customers you have can mean the difference between making money…

Retirement is the perfect time to start a new business, learn more about why starting a small business after retirement is a great idea.

You can use your retirement plan to fund a new business. Learn how to use your 401k to start a new business with a ROBS Rollover.

What is an SBA Loan and what information do I need to apply? Will my small business qualify for an SBA Loan?

What is an SBA Loan and how are they different from a traditional loan? What can they be used for and how do I qualify?

You may have a significant amount of cash tied up in your 401K. Can you use your 401k to buy a business? The short answer is yes. The long answer is complicated, and it may take specialists and lawyers to make sure you escape possible penalties. Can you afford to risk your retirement savings? That’s…

Maximize Your Digital Marketing Strategy in 2021 A recent survey of 2,500 digital marketers revealed that email marketing generates the highest ROI, followed by content marketing, social media marketing, and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising.  Maximize your digital marketing strategy to ultimately maximize your short-term and long-term profits.  In this article, we will discuss the top digital…

While there are several business valuation approaches and many valuation methods, the most commonly used and accepted method is the Multiple Of Seller’s Discretionary Earnings (Seller’s Discretionary Cash) Method.  SDE makes business valuation made easy. To understand the method, you should understand a few components: Seller’s Discretionary Earnings (SDE) The International Business Brokers Association defines…

Finding Your Niche and Pricing for It Why Niche and Pricing Sales have been down everywhere.  We are slowly emerging from a pandemic. We have a new president.  Why are we talking about finding your niche and pricing for it? Because pricing is getting back to basics.  What we are really talking about is your…

Why Sales Strategy is so Critical Recently, SalesXceleration took a look at the current state of sales within the small-to-medium-sized business community, and what was found was plenty of room for improvement. What’s missing here, and what steps can be taken? Let’s explore why sales strategy is so critical. The State of Small to Mid-Sized…

  Are there benefits to being small? If you’re asking yourself if your business can qualify for SBA perks, you aren’t alone. Are there benefits to being small? Your business doesn’t feel small. It feels huge. You’ve got 200 employees. You make great profit year after year. Yet you’re still classified as small. How is…

Building Sales, Loyalty and Trust Doing Business in Difficult Times Operating a business during the COVID-19 Pandemic may be the most challenging experience of your lifetime. You may have had success in the past, but the disease has changed everything. A customer’s loyalties, priorities and how they buy have all changed dramatically. We are in…

How to Add Top Line Sales Using Your Current Database  How many times have you said to family and friends: “If only I had more foot traffic”? If you’ve been doing this retail thing for a while, too many to count, I’m sure.  Steady foot traffic and new customers are a wonderful thing, sometimes the…

Right Person Right Time Hiring a new employee is both exciting and terrifying! We know that having the right people on the team is critical to successand for that very reason, there is a lot of pressure in completing the hiring process. There are ways to make the proces smore pleasant while ensuring that you…

  Build Your Ideal Customer Profile When you think of your ideal customer, what comes to mind? Is it anyone who wants to buy your products or services? Actually, that is not the best answer if you’re looking to drive sales and build a loyal, committed customer base. So how do you build your  ideal…

Putting Our “People” Game Face On – Getting Stronger as We Emerge from the Pandemic COVID Threats From the broad view of all my clients and my 30 years of business leadership, COVID has challenged everything we try to protect in life. The health and safety of our families, our business economic stability, and everything…

  It might seem a bit crazy to think that something as complicated as success and the hospitality industry can be reduced down to a simple 6 step process to successful food and beverage business, but after 25+ years in the industry- I decided to give it a try and see if I could create a…

Leadership in the Era of Change The Impact of COVID-19 Things appeared to be improving but there may be another step back.  But we know at some point, with vaccines and improved medicine, we will turn the corner. The business closures will end, employee health concerns and economic uncertainty will improve as we find that…

Managing in a Virtual World “When a paradigm shifts, everything goes back to zero.” These are the words of Joel Barker who has done extensivework in teaching us about paradigms. Good thing, because COVID-19 has indeed put us right in the middle of aparadigm shift – and we have gone back to zero. In February…

The Importance of Forecasting Sales & Planning Inventory Buys Using Real Time Data The Science to the Art of Retail Retailers often plan the future based off of the past, which can often mis-lead them to buy off of hope instead of strategy. This holds true now more than ever as 2020 proved to be…

Cash is KING! How to Create a Simple Financial Process that Helps You Follow Your CASH! In the uncertain times we are living in, cash is now more important than ever to give you a bit more stability in the event of something crazy like a pandemic happens. Cash is King! Been there, done that,…

  Do You Have a Strategy to Be Better than the Rest?  If you own/operate a restaurant and have seen your sales go down either before or during COVID and want to see them increase going into 2021, there is no doubt that you are dying to make changes.  But the problem is you may…

The 3 Most Important Steps to Amplifying Your Social Media Content Creation Warren Buffet once said, “It is not necessary to do extraordinary things to get extraordinary results.” Clients and friends ask me all the time – what’s the secret to social media? The short answer is impactful content. The long answer requires that we…

Selling in a Post-Covid World The famous Greek Philosopher Heraclitus said: “you cannot step into the same river twice.” Heraclitus’ observation, which argues that things are always changing, begs the question how the Covid pandemic has reshaped the current business landscape. Therefore, selling in a Post-Covid world is harder than ever. Trends According to a…

What Can My Small Business Do Right Now To Make More Money? I frequently get asked by small business owners, “What can I do to make more money, now?” When I’m asked this question, it is often delivered with a sense of desperation and/or exhaustion. Organic marketing methods (aka activities you don’t have to pay…

  5 Ways to Focus on Referrals Right Now This year has shaken things up for business owners. But few are shedding light on the fact that things have changed drastically for customers, too. People are having to completely rethink how to find, choose, buy, and remain loyal to the businesses they would normally frequent….

Manage Metrics to Grow Your Business Sales can sometimes be seen as a game of intuition and instinct. And there’s certainly room for those qualities in a successful sales team. But if you’re relying only on qualifications and you do not manage metrics to grow your business, you could be missing out on some exciting…

It’s been months since Covid-19 struck our planet. For such a long time have we been staying inside our homes trying to curb the spread of the virus. With no end-date in sight, according to the U.S. Bureau Of Labor And Statistics in July 2020 over 31 million people were unable to work because their…

Leading in Times of Change Things change so rapidly that change has become normal, expected, and for some – desired. Change is often subtle, yet sometimes it comes at us with such ferocity that it is overwhelming. For many, leading in times of change is not easy even when subtle, and it’s easy to understand…

  Collin SBDC CARES Businesses have received a huge blow in 2020. So, through the Collin SBDC, national experts will help local businesses better compete, advance, recover, elevate, and succeed in 2021!  Receive paid customized training and consulting through us and the Collin SBDC CARES Program. The Collin SBDC CARES Program was formed as a…

  Customer Care = Increased Sales Do you know that it costs 5x more to find a new customer than to keep your current customers (customer care is extremely important)?  The probability to sell to your existing customer is 70% vs. new customer is 5% to 20%. Existing customers are 50% more likely to buy…

  Marketing Tactics to Get More Customers It is important that you begin working on your marketing strategy now! Don’t wait until 2021 to start developing your strategy because, inevitably, you will get caught up in something else that will distract you from planning and executing that strategy. (i.e. If you start planning in January,…

Learning the #1 Platform for B2B Lead Generation Understanding how to market on LinkedIn for selling B2B (Business to Business) is imperative.  Why?  It is the #1 platform for B2B lead generation, rated by marketers.  In addition, it is 2 times the buying power of average web audiences, and 4 of 5 LinkedIn members drive…

Lease Space in Post-COVID Environment Small businesses continue to adjust their operations to what may be the new normal.  Social distancing requirements, health concerns and a potential shift to more businesses embracing remote working, limited travel, lack of interest in visiting restaurants and the continued trend of online shopping has significantly changed how business owners…

Pricing Strategies to Maximize Profit To reach sustainable growth, you need to think and act strategically.  Ensure you’re continually charging the appropriate amount for maximum profit, by evaluating and re-evaluating your pricing.  Because that’s what we’re in this for, right? Consider What You Charge: Take time each year to analyze your bottom line through the…

Building an Effective Sales & Marketing Strategy to Successfully Compete in a Post Covid World The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has long been considered a leading global strategic consulting firm.  Their 4 R’sSales Response Strategy is an approach any business can use to building an effective sales and marketing strategy to position their business for…