Whether you are thinking about starting a business or have already taken the plunge, to survive and succeed you need to take some basic steps when you launch your business and as your business grows.
Running a small business involves selecting the right business organization, good contracts with clients, efficiency challenges, getting and keeping business and pricing to maintain margins. You will need to work as hard as you can, so the key is to work smarter.
Specifically, I categorize the necessary considerations and decisions as:
· Emotional and Intangibles
· Legal and Insurance
· Financial
· Marketing & Sales
· Survival Keys & Strategic Planning
To cover each of the above topics would involve far more space and time than is available for this piece, so, with a clear disclaimer that the reader should seek appropriate legal and other professional counsel, what follows is a broad overview of the challenges you must address.
Emotional & Intangible
This comes down to the questions Do you have the fire in the belly? and is the timing right for you? This includes issues like your emotional and financial status. Is there someone in your life who is dependent on you for care and/or support? Do you have a substantial amount of debt that can’t be refinanced? Simply put, these are distractions that take time and prevent you from giving the new venture all you’ve got. The time may not be right for you.
If it is, do you have enough basic business acumen? Basic knowledge of contracts, accounting, finance, marketing, sales is critical. To paraphrase my friend, advisor and often co-presenter, Jonathan Howe, Esq., remember, you are a business providing meeting-related services, not a meeting planner (or AV tech or DMC). Think like a businessperson!
Legal and Insurance
Issues like the type of business organization (Sole Proprietor, Partnership, LLC, C or S corporation), contracts with clients and independent contractors that properly protect you are matters for a good attorney. Likewise, they can advise you on basic insurance coverage (comprehensive general liability, professional liability, etc.)
Financial
Here, too, the advice of an accountant, preferably one that deals with small businesses, is vital. Should you be on a cash basis or accrual basis? Use software for your bookkeeping/accounting. The simplest for non-accountants is Quicken. Often start-ups begin with Quicken, then move on to QuickBooks. Either will enable you to have the financial information (reports) you need to make sound decisions. An old but still telling fact is that 75 percent of a sample of small businesses that failed didn’t use available financial information to determine shortfalls or make adjustments.
And, remember, cash flow squeezes and small business are almost synonymous. Be sure you have either enough capital or loans/lines of credit when you start. Pragmatically, a bank is not going to loan you money unless you pledge something (like your house), and in today’s tough times, they still may not do it. Consider SBA (hard to get) and, by all means, start a banking relationship, preferably a small to mid-size bank that is small business friendly (and more personal).
Marketing & Sales
None of the other “stuff” matters if you don’t generate business. And, in my experience, those of us who are life-long meeting planners would prefer to do anything rather than make sales calls. No matter how simple, you need a written plan that commits you to spend time and money in creating/enhancing marketplace awareness, generating leads, providing outstanding service and producing profitable business. In today’s world, it takes less money with e-marketing including, of course, social media.
Also, A particularly valuable tool for small businesses is Publicity. Third person endorsements make public relations messages highly credible and persuasive.
Sales
Most businesses start with the owner/manager doing sales. Eventually, if the goal is to grow the business, more attention must be given to the sales function than the owner/manager can provide.
Survival Keys & Strategic Planning is a topic for a later time. For now, know that you should address it soon rather than later. Stay tuned for additional coverage on www.meetingstoday.com.
Rod Abraham is the creator of and continuing pioneer in outsourced meeting management and onsite staffing on a national scale. Industry veteran and serial entrepreneur Rod Abraham is the founder and managing director of the Rod Abraham Group, based in Durham, North Carolina. A resident of Durham, N.C., he attended Penn State University and received a B.S.in Accounting with honors from Temple University.
