Business Contact Management Software

Introduction

Networking is a popular buzz world in the business world today. The importance of making and utilizing contacts to expand your business and develop professionally is key to being successful and rise above your competition. It can be tricky however to manage all the contacts you make through networking and all the different networking opportunities you have, such as meetings, lunches, appointments, and other social gatherings. However, there is a Business Contact Management Software available on the market today to help you make the most of your networking contacts and opportunities. This Business Contact Management Software is Prophet offered by Avidian. There are many reasons why you and your company can benefit by using this Business Contact Management Software.

Using Business Contact Management Software makes sure that all information is kept together in one place.

One of the hardest parts of networking is keeping track of all your different contacts. Some individuals choose to keep their networking contacts on a rolodex, but this just sits on a desk and takes up space. Others choose to keep their contacts by keeping their business cards in or on their desk. This too takes up space and can be hard to keep organized. One of the best ways to keep track of all your business contacts is through Business Contact Management Software such as Prophet. This Business Contact Management Software keeps all your contacts in one place without taking up any space on your desk.

Information is easily accessible using Business Contact Management Software.

By using Business Contact Management Software, such as Prophet, it makes all your business contacts easily accessible. Prophet Business Contact Management Software uses the common email program, Outlook, to keep track of all your business contacts. This Business Contact Management Software makes sorting, tracking, and accessing your business contacts easy with just a few clicks of your mouse.

Business Contact Management Software helps you track past and future contacts

Anyone who is good at networking has several different business contacts. Some of these contacts you work with on a regular basis, while contact with others is irregular and minimal. However, these are important people in your network, it’s just that time doesn’t allow for you to contact them as regularly as you would like. Business Contact Management Software can help you keep track of all these different contacts now matter how often you touch base with them or work with them. One of the great things about Prophet Business Contact Management Software is that the Business Contact Management Software keeps track of all the times you contact your business contacts. For example, Prophet Business Contact Management Software tracks meetings, lunches, and other appointments you have with your contacts. Business Contact Management Software also can track phone calls, emails, and other contacts you have. Business Contact Management Software helps you when you are trying to figure out where you left a discussion or project with your business contact or helps you see when you need to make contact with them to keep them involved in your network. Business Contact Management Software makes keeping track of past and future contacts easy.

Business Contact Management Software reminds you of key networking times.

One of the great assets of Prophet Business Contact Management Software is that it keeps track of key networking opportunities, such as lunches, meetings, appointments, and other social gatherings where you can touch base with current or past business contacts or meet new ones. Business Contact Management Software is especially great if you are a busy individual, who doesn’t have a lot of time to manage a schedule. You’re computer and the Business Contact Management Software simply does it for you and then just reminds you before the time.

Prophet Business Contact Management Software is easy to use.

Time is money in the business world, so executives and managers want Business Contact Management Software that is not only compatible with their current computers and software but business contact management that is also easy for their employees to use. Prophet Business Contact Management Software is one of the easiest types of Business Contact Management Software to learn to use. Not only is Prophet Business Contact Management Software user friendly, but Prophet Business Contact Management Software also provides a tutorial and several help information sections in case anyone has questions about a specific feature of the Business Contact Management Software. Many executives and managers have switched to using Prophet Business Contact Management Software after discovering how much easier it was to utilize than the competitors’ Business Contact Management Software.

Business Contact Management Software is compatible with several other types of software.

Compatibility of Business Contact Management Software is a key concern of most managers and executives of companies. They want Business Contact Management Software that is not only easy to use but Business Contact Management Software that is also compatible with the current software the company or business already owns. Prophet Business Contact Management Software is compatible with many different types of software and information and can be used or accessed through Word, Excel, PDF, and HTML file formats.

Prophet Business Contact Management Software can serve other purposes.

One of the great things about Prophet Business Contact Management Software is that you can use Business Contact Management Software for other things besides managing your business and network contacts. For example, if your business is driven by sales, you can use the Business Contact Management Software to manage your different sales contacts, sales opportunities, and all correspondence with those you do business with. In addition, Prophet Business Contact Management Software allows you to easily sort the different sales categories, so you can see how sales are for different employees or groups using only your Business Contact Management Software. Prophet Business Contact Management Software can also help you track your past and current revenue, as well as predict what your future revenue will be.

If you are an executive or manager in a company or business that is looking for Business Contact Management Software to suit your needs, consider Prophet Business Contact Management Software by Avidian. Prophet Business Contact Management Software is compatible with a variety of different types of software, and Prophet Business Contact Management Software is easy to use. Prophet Business Contact Management Software can help you manage your business contacts and networking opportunities with just a few clicks of a mouse. If you’re interested in Prophet Business Contact Management Software, check it out at www.avidian.com.

Business Manager

Defining a Business Manager.

When an individual thinks of a Business Manager, their mind often leads to a man or woman that is in charge of a business. Often times, this case holds true, but with new technology other types of Business Managers are being used. Such a Business Manager is not a human, but in fact can be a computer program.

Prophet can ACT as a Business Manager.

Although there are many different computer programs that are available to ACT as a Business Manager, one of the most popular and effective forms of a Business Manager is the software program known as Prophet. Prophet is a Business Manager software program that is made available by Avidian, a computer company that specializes in customer relationship management, also known as CRM. CRM is highly important for many companies, as it is the relationship between a customer and a company that regulates the sales for a company. If there is a positive CRM relationship established, there is a high certainty that a client will be a repeat purchaser. Many companies give thanks to Prophet as their acting Business Manager, as the program can generate multiple sales for a company.

The multiple factors of Prophet as a Business Manager.

There are many factors that Prophet plays upon as a Business Manager. For example, Prophet can regulate a client’s contact database for all of its customers. This means that as an acting Business Manager, all of a company’s clientele can be regulated and organized into an electronic file. A company can keep electronic records of all of their clients, including a company name, physical address, telephone number, and an e-mail address for the contact individual at the company. A Business Manager can do the same things for a company, but it will take much more time to keep everything as organized as a computer program such as Prophet can. Prophet also acts as a wonderful organizer, keeping all of the business contact information in order, as well as easily and readily accessible.

Prophet can save money as an acting Business Manager.

Another reason why many companies are turning to computer programs for a Business Manager instead of working with a person within the company is due largely for costs. The price of Prophet’s Business Manager is quite affordable (starting cost is around $100.00), which makes for a wonderful investment for any company. It is hard to find a Business Manager system such as Prophet that is as affordable as it is. The competitors are much higher, and a lot less cost effective than Prophet. Prophet has proven that as a Business Manager, that the software can keep track of sales, hold notes on accounts for reference, provide graphs and charts of projected sales as well as sales past, and the most beneficial means of gaining additional profits. Prophet’s Business Manager is indeed geared towards multi-tasking, which is what many companies are looking for.

Prophet can ACT as a Business Manager for companies large and small.

Prophet is not only helpful for companies, but for individuals and major organizations as well. For an individual, Prophet Business Manager is great for a small business. This is often the choice for entrepreneurs that have a very small staff, usually under 10 people. Just as a major company can keep track of transactions and sales projections, a small business owner can as well. Sales lead management is filtered all throughout the Business Manager, which is one of the main reasons why there is such a high demand for Prophet software. Business owners are constantly looking for additional outlets for their company, and can find such business management with Prophet.

Large size companies can benefit from Prophet as a Business Manager, too.

For those that are dealing with a larger sized company, Prophet is a wonderful tool for Business Manager as well. This is what is known as the “professional edition” of the Business Manager end of Prophet. The Professional Edition of Prophet offers the same incentives for acting Business Manager as in the small company, but it is also available as a network. When Prophet software acts as a network for a Business Manager, it can be manipulated in a variety of ways. For instance, when Prophet is networked as a Business Manager, it can simultaneously share information with those that are connected to the system of information. That being said, those that are linked with the Business Manager network can generate sales and the likes with the program. Workers that are connected to the Prophet Business Manager network can also see where others in the company have left notes of relevance on an account. This is highly important; as a note may be a flag on an account, such as payments rendered, or accounts past due of payments.

Conglomerate companies can save a lot of money utilizing Prophet as a Business Manager.

For conglomerate companies, a Business Manager is a must. A Business Manager in a large company keeps track of sales, and is responsible for where there needs to be sales generated. Prophet acts as a Business Manager on many levels, and this aspect is no exception. Prophet can be seen as a Business Manager in large, corporate setting, as it can be a Business Manager on many folds. Prophet as a Business Manager in a corporate setting can lead to an ease in record keeping, while showing where there is need for improvement in other areas. As an acting Business Manager, Prophet can demonstrate all of the duties as set forth with other levels of sales. Furthermore, as the principal Business Manager, Prophet is created to hold a plethora of information, as well as keep it all organized. Prophet certainly does the job well with the Business Manager program for corporate organizations.

Palm Pilot can operate Prophet.

Another addition that is important to many Prophet Business Manager users is the fact that it can be displayed on a Palm Pilot. A Palm Pilot, or a personal hand held electronic organizer, is compatible with the Prophet software, and makes for a great mobile Business Manager device. There are many features and benefits that can be generated from using Palm Pilot as a Business Manager. For instance, a Palm Pilot that is doubled as a Business Manager can become the equivalent of a computer, as it shares Business Manager information like the regular Prophet program would on a computer. In essence, the Palm Pilot is a mobile version of Prophet’s Business Manager software.

An overall view of how Prophet is an essential tool acting as a Business Manager.

A Business Manager is indeed an essential tool for any company, but utilizing Prophet as a Business Manager is even more efficient. The information that is needed is easily accessible, and can be transferred time and again. As a Business Manager, Prophet can utilize its electronic resources to generate sales slips and projections. Prophet is not only a Business Manager of today, but also a Business Manager of the future.

About Avidian Technologies:

Avidian Technologies is a software company specializing in creating software solutions for users of Outlook and Exchange. Prophet, developed by Avidian Technologies on the .NET platform, is the leading contact management and sales CRM software built in Outlook. The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.avidian.com or call 1-800-860-5534.

Small Business CRM

An introduction to small business CRM.

Small business may struggle more than larger businesses with keeping their profit and sales moving quickly and small business CRM may be able to improve the way a small business works. Small business CRM can help a small business with a variety of things such as keeping track of customer information. Small business CRM can also be used to help produce quality leads for the company and using the small business CRM to produce these leads can lead to a greater amount of sales being made. Small business CRM can help to keep customer information and lead information organized as well leading to a more productive company. If you own a small business and are looking for ways to optimize your sales and profit then you should check into small business CRM.

Prophet is the best small business CRM available.

Prophet is a small business CRM that is considered one of the best CRM software systems on the market today. Avidian makes Prophet small business CRM and offers superior quality in small business CRM. Avidian has won a variety of awards for their small business CRM and is a company that can be trusted. If your small business is looking for small business CRM then you should check out Avidian.com to see what their small business CRM can do for your and your company.

Prophet small business CRM can help you keep track of customer information and leads.

Prophet small business CRM offers many benefits to a small business. Often it can be hard to keep track of all the customer information that a small business handles daily and small business CRM can help with this task. Small business CRM can help to keep track of important customer information so you can work at building good relationships with the customers you already have. Small business CRM can also help you with your leads as well. Not only will you see a better quantity of leads when using small business CRM but you will also see better quality leads when using small business CRM as well. Using your small business CRM to build customer relationships can improve your company by bringing your customers back to your for service again and again. Using small business CRM for your leads will help you to find prospective customers to start working with.

Small business CRM can help organize your small business.

Small business CRM can help in organizing your small business as well. It is important that your contacts are well organized so they can be accessed quickly and small business CRM can help with this task. Small business CRM will make it easy to find all contact information and can help you follow up with customers in the future. You will also be able to keep your leads organized with small business CRM as well. Organizing your leads with small business CRM will enable those working in your company to follow up on new leads quickly to keep new leads from slipping away. As you use small business CRM to organize your customer information and your leads you will find that you end up closing more sales and that your company makes more profit as well.

Knowing what to look for in small business CRM.

Small business CRM software is important to your company and it is important that you find the best small business software available. You want to find small business CRM software that can be tailored to fit your company’s needs so you will not end up buying more small business CRM than you need. You also want to find small business CRM software that is cost effective for your company and that will save you money in the long run. You want to find a quality company to buy your small business CRM from you can feel comfortable dealing with. You should also buy small business CRM software from a company that provides technical assistance if you should need it. Prophet small business CRM software meets all of these requirements.

Prophet small business CRM software meets qualifications for excellence in small business CRM.

Prophet small business CRM software can be tailored to your specific needs and is affordable as well. Prophet small business CRM software is also very easy to use so you will not have to spend a lot of money training employees of your business to use it. This small business CRM software is also very easy to incorporate into your company as well and works with Microsoft Outlook. If you want the best small business CRM software, then Prophet is the software for you and your small business.

More benefits of Prophet small business CRM.

Prophet small business CRM has many benefits that your small business can take advantage of to increase your profit. You can use this small business CRM not only for organization of customer information and leads, but also this small business CRM can be used for scheduling as well. All of your important appointments can be kept track of by small business CRM. You will never have to worry about forgetting an appointment that you wrote down somewhere because your small business CRM will keep track of these appointments and remind you when you have one. You will also be able to use this small business CRM to help you with the reports that are so important to your company. These reports are important to seeing how your business is working and can help you decide where to make improvements and small business CRM can help you create these reports with little effort.

Small business CRM can help you be successful.

Every small business wants to be successful and often this can be a difficult job with so many small businesses out there today. If you want to stay a step ahead of the competition then you should consider implementing small business CRM into your company. You can use small business CRM to make your business shine and it will help you accomplish more tasks with less manpower and less time. You will be able to build a solid company when you use small business CRM to help you along the way. If you want your business to be successful then visit Avidian.com and check out their small business CRM today.

About Avidian Technologies:

Avidian Technologies is a software company specializing in creating software solutions for users of Outlook and Exchange. Prophet, developed by Avidian Technologies on the .NET platform, is the leading contact management and sales CRM software built in Outlook. The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.avidian.com or call 1-800-860-5534.

Small Business CRM Software

An introduction to small business CRM software.

Technology has afforded many changes in today’s market that help the small businesses to be more successful than ever before. One of these technological advances is small business CRM software. Many small businesses are struggling and do not have the money to hire new employees to help keep track of customer information and leads and small business CRM software can help keep track of this information, which allows a small business to run on less personnel. Every small business wants to be successful and success includes having great customer service and small business CRM software can help with customer service and customer relationships. Small business CRM software can also help with the organization of leads and customer information, which will in the end lead to more profit for the small business. Every small business should consider implementing small business CRM software into their business.

There are many benefits to small business CRM software.

You may wonder how small business CRM software can help your small business be successful and the answers to this question are many. Small business CRM software can help you keep track of your customer information. While some email programs do offer some type of customer relationship management small business CRM software has so much more to offer. You can keep track of all of your customer information in one place with small business CRM software. You can also make sure that you can quickly and easily access all of this information with small business CRM software. Easy access to your customer information may reduce the amount of employees you need and this will save your small business money.

You will be able to organize your leads with small business CRM software, which will lead to more profit.

You will also be able to organize your leads with small business CRM software. While some believe that the quantity of leads is important in reality it is the quality of those leads that is most important. Small business CRM software can help you with the production of leads that are quality. Quality leads are the ones that lead to successful sales and you can have more of these successes with small business CRM software. With your small business CRM software to help you keep track of your leads, you will be able to make sure that you get to all of the leads and that no lead is missed or forgotten. Leads lead to sales so having small business CRM software that increases the quantity and quality of your small business’ leads is important to the growth and success of your company.

Small business CRM software can help make your work processes more effective.

Often you may find that what you are doing in your small business is not working and you may want to change some of your work processes to be more effective. Small business CRM software can you to change work processes in a way that will optimize the efforts you put into them. Following up on current customers will become easier with small business CRM software. You will be able to build better customer relationships by using small business CRM software as well. Small business CRM software can revolutionize the way your small business works and help you change things for the better. You will be able to use the small business CRM software to help you cut costs in a variety of ways as well.

It is important to know what too look for when purchasing small business CRM software.

If you are considering buying small business CRM software for your small business you need to be aware of what you should look for when buying small business CRM software. It is important that you look for small business CRM software that can be made to fit your company’s needs so you will not spend money on features that your business has no need for. You also want to find small business CRM software that will be easy for your and any others in your business to use. No one wants to spend hours trying to figure out new small business CRM software so it is imperative that you find small business CRM software that will be easy to understand. You also want to find small business CRM software that will be easy to implement into the system you may already have. Small business CRM software should be cost effective as well. Small businesses often have a limited budget so finding small business CRM software that is budget friendly is very important. You also may want to find small business CRM software that offers technical support in case you have questions or problems with the software. Often if your small business CRM software package does not come with technical support you may not get any support or you may be charged extra for support.

Prophet is the best small business CRM software available and can revolutionize your business.

The best small business CRM software is sold by the company Avidian and is called Prophet. Prophet is small business CRM software that far surpasses any other small business CRM software on the market today. This small business CRM software is the winner of a variety of awards and has much to offer any company, whether large or small. Prophet small business CRM software can be tailored to your needs and is easy to use. It also comes with tech support, which is very important. You can rest assured that you are buying the best small business CRM software when you buy Prophet. Avidian stands behind its’ small business CRM software and you can get your money back, no questions asked, within 30 days if you are not happy with the software. You have nothing to lose by trying Prophet small business CRM software.

Consider small business CRM software to help make your company more successful.

If your small business is looking for that edge to keep you a step ahead of the other small businesses then you should consider purchasing small business CRM software. Small business CRM software can help you on your journey to success and enable you to enjoy more profit from your small business. Go to Avidian.com today to see what options may be available in their small business CRM software. Small business CRM software could be the change in your small business that ends mediocrity and leads your company above and beyond other small businesses to success.

About Avidian Technologies:

Avidian Technologies is a software company specializing in creating software solutions for users of Outlook and Exchange. Prophet, developed by Avidian Technologies on the .NET platform, is the leading contact management and sales CRM software built in Outlook. The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.avidian.com or call 1-800-860-5534.

How To Start A Profitable Work At Home Business In 5 Simple Steps

For many years people have been looking for a way to turn home offices, dens, and even kitchen tables into money making machines by starting their own work at home businesses. Now that the Internet has came into play it has only accelerated the want and desire of millions around the globe who are looking to cash in on the new Internet and Home Business revolution.

But how is your average person supposed to find work at home business success? Although many think that it’s as simple as putting up a website and away you go, the hundreds of thousands who have failed would tell you different. The truth is that finding the right work at home business can be an easy or a hard task depending on where you are looking. As for achieving success that comes after you establish your new business and turn on that invisible open sign in cyberspace.

Over the next few minutes I’m going to expose to you how a rookie was able to locate and start a work at home business as well as make it profitable in a short period of time. After reading this information you too should be able to locate, start, and build a home business that gives you serious long term results.

Introducing the “5″ simple steps to starting a profitable work at home business…

#1 – Discover Your Work At Home Business Options

Everyone can agree that there are thousands of ways to start a work at home business. Unfortunately most of these ways require a full-time commitment and a leap of faith. This usually eliminates 95% of the people who would like to make money from home but don’t have the time, money, or resources to make something like that fly.

Of course with the advent of the Internet we have been exposed to many new possibilities that do not require a full time commitment or a lot of money. Here are just a few examples of how people are making money from home these days:

Affiliate Marketing

Google Adsense

Private Label Products

Network Marketing

Niche Marketing

Direct Sales

Etc.

While all of these are viable options, I personally endorse network marketing for a few meaningful reasons. First off, it’s a residual income business meaning that if you do the work once you can get paid on it for years to come. Second, it’s a people helping people business and I’ve been able to meet some of the greatest people thanks to network marketing. Third, it’s an easy business that anyone can get started with regardless of past experience or current situation.

With that said please understand that all network marketing companies are not created equal and there are many out there that aren’t much more than fly-by-night operations posing as legitimate network marketing opportunities. If you choose to go network marketing stay away from “pre-launch” opportunities and companies that only offer an opportunity without a real product to back it up.

Whatever avenue you choose make sure it makes sense to you. Nobody has ever been successful with something they didn’t believe in so make sure the home business you pursue is something you are passionate about.

#2 – Uncover the finances involved with your new venture.

Every business will be a bit different in costs but one thing is universal. Your start up costs is not the only thing you need to factor in when looking at how you’re going to finance your new venture. Besides start up costs you are also going to have the costs of doing business and marketing / advertising costs.

Here is a breakdown of the different costs you need to account for:

Start up costs: Your start up costs is how much money it takes you to get the ball rolling with your new venture. Any type of work at home business is going to have some kind of upfront money needed to simply get the material in place to open up shop.

Costs of doing business: Your costs of doing business are going to be the money that is needed to keep your day to day operations functional. For most home businesses this is simply a phone line, an internet connection, office supplies, book keeping, monthly fees, and product inventory. Another reason I like network marketing is because it greatly reduces your costs of doing business.

Marketing / Advertising costs: For some reason this is the one cost that everyone forgets to factor into the equation. Here is the bottom line, without marketing or advertising nobody will be exposed to your business meaning it can’t grow. Some things in business will never change and this is one of them. However, the good thing about a home business is that if your smart (or have a smart mentor or coach) you can market your business without spending very much money.

Okay, so now that we established the three different business costs you can come up with a game plan on the finances your going to need to make your new business fly.

#3 – Use tools but don’t take the relationship factor out of your business.

Isn’t modern technology wonderful? We now have so many great tools at our disposal that cost us next to nothing. Unfortunately this modern technology has also been the downfall to many entrepreneurs who didn’t know how to use it correctly. While technology does make a home business owner’s life easier it is not a replacement for building relationships.

I’ve ran into hundreds of home business owners (not profitable ones) who hide behind the screen of their computer and wouldn’t come out to actively build their home business. They never wanted to talk to anyone, help anyone, or be publicly proud about what they were doing and who they were helping. Just imagine if you went down to the local tire shop and nobody wanted to answer your questions, give you recommendations, or guide you through the sales process. Do you think that tire shop would make any money or have any customers? Of course they wouldn’t!

The same rule applies for Internet / work at home businesses. You need to build relationships if you want to be successful.

#4 – Dedicate both time and resources to grow your budding venture.

Want to know the biggest obstacle home business owners face? It’s treating the business like a real business and not like a hobby. Of course this isn’t how it starts out to be but a few weeks after your business has been officially started is when some “hobby mentality” will try and creep in. Pretty soon your business is getting absolutely no attention and you are there wondering why it isn’t working.

The truth is that you will only get out of your business what you put in and if you are not actively doing things on a daily basis to grow your business than who is? Nobody! If nobody is doing any work then it’s only obvious that the business can’t become profitable.

I call this having a hobby mentality because most people treat their hobbies as something that is on the back of their mind and they get to it when time permits. If you attack your work at home business like this or you will not achieve success.

#5 – Always set goals and work towards them.

The final thing you must do to achieve work at home business profits is make sure that you are constantly setting goals and achieving those goals. Goals serve as your road map and keep you focused on the business at hand. Without goals you will find yourself drifting away from your home business and not staying on track to put profits in your pocket. You should have daily, monthly, and yearly goals.

Daily Goals: If you can set out to make a positive difference in your work at home business everyday than pretty much nothing can hold you back. Every night before you go to bed, get on your laptop or pull out a notebook and write down your goals for the next day. Daily goals should be simple but big enough to make a difference in your business.

Monthly Goals: Each month you should evaluate where you stand in your business. Make it a goal to be progressing every month. If you are doing this, not only will it keep your spirits high, but also assure you that you are on the right path. If for some reason you do experience a drop (that does happen) don’t get discouraged and let it motivate you to do even better the next month.

Yearly Goals: The great thing about a home business and network marketing is the fact that you can see results much faster than a traditional business model. While traditional business models usually require 5 years before a profit is reached, someone working a network marketing business hard could be a multi-millionaire by then.

The first yearly goal you want to make when you get started is that you will work your business for at least 12 straight months before you decide to press on or give up. Since most people quit before they get started (2 to 3 months), this goal will stop you from making the same mistake and actually give yourself a realistic chance to succeed.

In closing, I hope this short lesson serves as a guide to go out and find your own profitable work at home business. Don’t take shortcuts, steer clear of the “to good to be true” opportunities, and take personal responsibility to make yourself successful when you find the right home business.

Remember that there are only two factors that can make a home business a success or a failure, the business itself or the person working it. So get out there, find something that fits you and then make a promise to yourself that you will be the reason it succeeds.

Creating a Car Wash Business Plan

Before embarking on writing a business plan for starting a car wash, a definition of what a business plan is in order. A business plan is a document to identify an opportunity, research why this opportunity is profitable and the steps needed to capitalize on the opportunity. The business plan can be a formal document or it can be written on the back of a napkin but the mere act of writing the idea down forces you to get the idea out of your head and on paper which helps find hidden business flaws and makes you think carefully about each phase of your business.

Creating a business plan is something anyone can do, even if you don’t know anything about business or finances. Even though the business plan is critical to getting the idea off of the ground, many entrepreneurs procrastinate when it comes to preparing a written plan. If you don’t know anything about business or finances, this is the best time to begin learning as the chances of your business being successful will be limited without this knowledge. Just as a builder won’t begin construction without a blueprint, entrepreneurs shouldn’t rush into new ventures without a plan. The old saying that “those who fail to plan, plan to fail” is very relevant when talking about starting a business. SBA’s statistics claim over half of new businesses fail in the first three years and the common factor is poor planning or under-capitalization (which is also poor planning).

Getting Started
The first step in creating a business plan is just getting started. Writing the business plan may seem overwhelming at first, but if you break the plan down to bite sized pieces and work on one section at a time won’t seem as daunting. Begin with what you know first and describe your business and your product or services. Work towards the more difficult subjects such as marketing, operations and financials. Don’t worry about it being perfect now, just get the concepts on paper – expand and refine later. If you get stuck on a section in the plan, skip it for now and come back later when you have more details.

Who is your audience?
When writing your car wash business plan, you need to keep in mind who your intended audience is and why you are writing the plan. Why? A plan for the bank will be less interested in the exit strategy and return on investment than one for equity investors. Additionally, a plan for written for internal use will be different than one looking for financing as a bank is not necessarily interested in detailed operations of the business.

Structure
Business plans tend to have a lot of elements in common. While there is not a format that all business plans follow, there are generally accepted guidelines that most follow as the order in which the subjects flow are not random. The Business Description of a business plan is aimed at painting a picture of your business and why this business will be successful. The Marketing, Management and Operations sections are researched and a strategy of how your business will compete and operate is developed. Last financial projections show in numbers what you explained in the business plan for the sales and expenses.

Breaking these three major sections down even further, a business plan consists of six key components:

Executive Summary
Business Description
Marketing
Managers & Employees
Operations & Location
Financial Projections
In addition to these sections, a business plan should also have a cover, title page and table of contents.

How Long Should Your Business Plan Be?
The answer that nobody liked in school applies to a business plan which is, “as long as it needs to be”. The more complex a business or the more sophisticated investors or funds requested will increase the length of a plan. An average car wash business plan narrative should be 4-15 pages plus financials and appendix items.

Business Plan Outline

Executive Summary
The executive summary is the first part of the business plan but is the last to be written. It gives the reader a quick glance of what your business proposal is about and what you are asking for. This part is critical as most readers will scan this section before deciding whether to read further.

The executive summary should typically be about one-half of a page in length and include what you would cover in an elevator pitch such as:
Explain the condensed version of the business concept
Product description or service proposition
This section should emphasize any unique features or benefits that what is currently in the industry or area, aka why would someone buy your product over the competition.
The demographics of your market
The Management team
When the anticipated start date is
Your equity position
How much are you asking for

Concise is the key in the executive summary. You will go into more detail later in the business plan.

Business Description
The purpose of the business description is to objectively describe the car wash business details and future potential include:
Mission
What the business does
Description of products and/or services
Industry information
Business Organization
Status of the business (start-up, expansion or purchasing)
Current and future goals

Any facts or figures should be noted and sources included in the business plan. This information is important should you need to defend your data and assumptions. The business description is where you are trying to paint a picture of the potential of your business along with the facts to support it. Try to inject energy and excitement to get the reader enthusiastic about the idea, without going overboard of course.

After describing the business, it is time to describe and additional products or services your car wash is selling. Keep in mind that it is important to show how your products and services are better than the competition. If you don’t have a good answer than you should rethink your strategy. What is it about your car wash that is going to get the customer to change doing business with the competition?

Marketing
A very important part of your business plan is the marketing section. Regardless of the quality of your products and your services, your business will be lost in the clutter of advertising. If you don’t know your customers, how will they ever find you? All of this begins with doing some research.

Customers: Who Is Your Market
The first step is to determine who you are going to sell to by identifying common characteristics of your market such as age, income, race, religion, education, interests and/or geographic locations. While everyone will want to wash their car product how are you going to effectively advertise to everyone and still make a profit? What you need to do instead is determine the group or groups of people who are most likely to use your car wash services and market to them. After all you are trying to generate a positive return on your marketing dollars, so use them wisely.

Competition
In today’s ultracompetitive marketplace, there is going to be competition, no matter how creative your business concept is. Attempting to run a portion of your car wash business better than the competition may be a difficult challenge so it is often better to focus on planning on being different and competing with them less directly. Can you serve a particular market niche such as the elderly that isn’t being looked at? Can you identify a unique operations/marketing/distribution strategy with a mobile approach? Even if you don’t have direct competition in your area meaning someone selling the same or similar products/services, you will have indirect competition for replacement products/services. If you indicate in your plan there is no competition it will be viewed that there is either no market for your product or you have not done your research.

Optimally you will want information on at least three but no more than five competitors. List information about who they are, how long they have been in business, location, products or services offered, perception on pricing, quality, etc. and compare your advantages and disadvantages. If the information you are looking for is not available online, you may need to pretend you are a customer to get some of this information.

Distribution – How Will You Get the Product To The Customer: By looking at who your market and competition is, you will have an idea of how to get your product to them. Perhaps through your research you will find a strategic advantage to serve the customer that the competition does not.

Promotional Strategy
With the above steps researched, the promotional strategy follows. The promotional strategy is where most entrepreneurs fail as they use the blanket statement that they are going to advertise in the newspaper, radio and/or television without thinking through the process or the customer. The promotional strategy provides you a map of how you are going to reach your market in the most efficient manner possible. Advertising is expensive, use it wisely.

Sales Projections
On of the more difficult areas of the business plan is coming up with sales projections. This number is probably going to be wrong and that’s ok. What you want is a figure backed up with justifiable data. Just grabbing a number out of the air saying you will make $300,000 won’t work. There are many sources to help come up with this number including:
Industry journals
Trade groups
Car washes in similar demographic areas
Industry experts
Census data

Pricing
The effects of pricing play a large role on how your product is perceived in the marketplace. Price too low compared to the competition and your product could be perceived as cheap and unreliable. Price too high with the features and benefits of your product and few customers come through the door. While this is a complex issue, here are a few things to keep in mind.
Make sure you can make a profit at whatever price you are selling at.
If you want to have lower costs and “get your foot in the door” it may be better to offer discounts or coupons initially until your business is better known.
Don’t be afraid to charge more for your product or service than the competition if you have something of more value to offer.
Pricing is the easiest of the marketing mix to change. You may find that a large competitor will under price you to ensure you can’t make a profit and your car wash goes out of business.

Management & Employees
In this section you would describe who is going to manage the business on a daily basis as well as provide strategic direction (if these positions are separate). Each of these people need to have a brief biography included as well as a resume in the appendix. Try to show how the experience and education of these people will be able to successfully execute the strategy in the business plan and succeed. Many times the owner may not have the specific experience for this business, so it is very important to pull their other professional experience in and explain how it will make for a successful operation. Next, a brief explanation of the employees is in order including:
What positions need to be filled
When they need to be filled (This is important in developing financial projections as you may have some employees come on after you start)
How much they get paid (Be sure to calculate payroll taxes as well, estimate 15% if not sure)

It is also recommended to add the professional and advisors to your business. These people include:
Board of directors
Consultants
Accountants
Attorneys
Bankers
Mentors

Operations & Location
The operations and location section of the plan illustrates how you are going to make or acquire your product and information about your business location.

Operations – Explain how and where your products or services are made. A few points to include in your plan
How does your car wash operate, what steps are in your service?
Who are your suppliers?
What are the terms and lead time for this product?

Location – Location is where you will be doing business out of. If you are in the classic, I can’t get my location until I get a loan so I can’t finish my business plan scenario, list what features you are looking at in a building along with average prices or rents and pad that number a little just in case. A few things to add:
Department of Transportation traffic count – most states have this information online to show how many vehicles pass your location each day.
Building description
What is the size
Where is it located
Specific reasons for this property
Proximity to suppliers, roads, airports, railroads, and shipping centers, etc.
Zoning
Average utilities – Be sure to get the last 12 months from the electric company if the building had been occupied. This could be an expensive lesson from a dishonest landlord. If you are opening a new location, try to talk with other car wash operators in a non-competitive area to get a estimate
Add pictures to the appendix
Add a floor plan to the appendix
Purchase price or monthly rent/lease
Include sales/rent/lease agreement in appendix
If building or renovating be sure to include quotes as this is an area frequently underestimated in costs.

Financial Projections
Financial projections are placed at the end of your business plan, before the appendix but it a very critical piece to the plan. The three must-have financial statements are a cash flow statement, a profit and loss statement and a balance sheet. The information already provided in the narrative portion of the business plan must match the financial projections. Most financial projections are three years in length. It is a good idea to include a Notes & Assumptions to Financial Projections page to both help make sure all of your numbers come through and provide an itemized list to provide clarity for the reader.

Notes & Assumptions to Financial Projections
Loans
Break out each loan (building, equipment, inventory)
Amount
Interest rate
Length
And any monthly costs not discussed in business plan narrative
Cost of goods/inventory
Advertising
Employee wages
Insurance
License & fees
Miscellaneous
Professional fees
Rent/property taxes
Repairs & maintenance
Supplies
Telephone
Utilities
Vehicle expense
Etc.
Anything else that needs to be explained in the financials that is not in the narrative

Financial Projection Sections

Startup Expenses – These are all expenses you will incur prior to opening your car wash. It is recommended to have quotes available or in the appendix for the larger items. It is also recommended that you pad your numbers some as there will always be unexpected expenses that were not accounted for.

Sources and Uses of Funds – This section details how the loan money will be used (inventory, car wash equipment, repairs and improvements, working capital, etc) and who is providing it (bank, investor or owner). You will likely need to be injecting 20% of your own money and maybe more depending on the risk assessment of the business and your personal finances.

Cash Flows – The cash-flow statement is one of the most important pieces of your business plan. It shows a schedule of the money coming into the business and expenses that need to be paid and whether you have enough cash to sustain the business gained during the warm month to cover the costs during the winter months. Every part of your business plan is important, but none of it means a thing if you run out of cash. Should this number be negative, you either need to raise sales, reduce expenses or have more cash. Your cash flow statement will typically be three years in length with the first year analyzing the monthly figures and later years by quarter. Don’t be intimidated with the cash flow statement as it is merely a future look into your checking account.

Profit & Loss – This statement, while similar to the cash flow statement but illustrated annually looks at the effects of non-cash charges such as depreciation and amortization to get an accounting overview of the operations of your business.

Balance Sheet – The balance sheet is a summary of the value of all assets, liabilities and equity for an organization at the end of each year. A balance sheet is often described as a “snapshot” of a company’s financial condition and will show the value of the business over time.

Personal Financial Statement – If you are looking at bank financing every person who will have a 20% or more ownership position will need to provide a personal financial statement to show how effective they are at managing your money. This statement will show your assets (checking & savings accounts, cd’s ira, 401K, valuables, home, vehicle, etc) as well as assets (mortgages, credit card bills, installment accounts, etc)

Appendices
Appendix items are various pieces of information that help make your case. Include details and studies used in your business plan; for example:
Quotes for items over $500
Resumes of the management team
Industry research
Demographic data and trends
Maps/floorplans/blueprints of location
Leases and contracts
Letters of support

There is a lot to creating your business plan but will definitely make your business stronger. While it may seem easier to have someone else write your plan, there is no substitute to writing it yourself. This is your business and by writing it yourself you will have a better understanding of your business and strategies for success. There are also many free business plan templates and workbooks available on the web to help you get started. You can use these to help get started creating your business plan and then modify it for your car wash business.

For more free articles and resources for starting a car wash are available at www.StartingACarWash.com.

Additionally, business plan help can be found at www.TheBusinessPlanFactory.com

Business Credit: Why Small Business Owners Need Business Credit

If you currently have a business or you are considering starting a business, establishing business credit is a good idea. According to the National Association of Credit Management (NACM) small business owners should take steps to establish credit in the name of their business as a way to preserve cash flow for necessary business operations, purchases, and rental payments. Here are a few basics to begin building business credit.

Separate Your Business Credit from Personal Credit

Business credit can and should be established separate from personal credit. When business owners use their personal credit to obtain business credit, they run the risk of lowering their personal credit scores. The business owner also risks being personally responsible for business liabilities. If you file bankruptcy and your personal and business credit are one in the same, you stand to lose everything. Business credit protects your personal assets.

No Personal Guarantees

The most important element to establishing business credit is finding lending institutions, credit card issuers and vendors that will establish business credit without you giving a personal guarantee. A personal guarantee involves using your personal credit information to guarantee repayment of the debt incurred by the business. In other words, you are obligating yourself to be 100% responsible for the business debt. It may be your intention to fully repay any debt incurred by the business; however, obligating your personal and business assets to repaying business debts can lead to financial ruin if any business setbacks occur.

Business Structure

Doing business as a sole proprietor will not allow you to distinguish your business credit from your personal credit. As a sole proprietor you may be “doing business as”; however, you are not a separate business entity. In order to establish business credit without a personal guarantee you must structure your business as a separate legal entity such as a corporation or limited liability company. Even if you have been doing business as a sole proprietor for years, you can restructure your business into a separate legal entity. Besides, it is a better choice to set your business up as an entity separate and apart from you. Your business could get sued and if all of your assets are tied together, financial ruin may be lurking in the background. Having a separate entity protects your personal assets.

Tax Identification Numbers

Your business entity must have an Employer Identification Number (EIN) also known as a Federal Tax Identification Number (Tax ID). The EIN is your permanent number and can be used immediately for most of your business needs, including opening a bank account, applying for business licenses and establishing a business credit file. Never use your social security number. It may also be necessary to establish a State tax identification number. For the federal tax identification number you can apply online at www.irs.gov. The application process is fairly simple and you can receive the EIN immediately.

Business Checking Account

Your business entity should have at least one bank account, in the name of the business, that can be used as a bank reference. The older the bank account, the better. Having a business checking account helps in establishing your business identity and reputation. Banking relationships are still important in the business world. Building a strong relationship with your bank can be of assistance when you begin to seek business financing.

Get a Business License

You must always register your business and obtain a business license in the State, County or City where you conduct business. For some reason, this is not always done by businesses. It should be at the top of your “to do” list. Always register your business in the jurisdiction where you conduct business.

For a step-by-step process for building business credit please visit: www.rebuildcreditscores.com/Business_Credit.html

I?m A Small Business Owner, How Can Outsourcing Help Me?

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.

Essential Management Principles for Every Small Business

I have read, over my business career, well over 10,000 different articles and lists about how anyone can be successful with a small business be it an independent business or a franchise. Many well intentioned and intelligent consultants I have come across professionally believe that a great idea with a great marketing scheme and superior desire can make anyone successful. Do yourself a favor and tell the next person spewing this nonsense that they are absolutely wrong!

The success or failure of the vast majority of all small businesses has little to do with the desire, marketing scheme or the great idea that created the business. While these three items must be present in every successful business, solid fundamental management principles will allow a small business to prosper and succeed. Every successful company, be it a small, medium or large business, uses the same set of management principals. The size of the business determines the individuals principals used and the sophistication of the principle. As an example, a small business normally has informal and perhaps even unwritten employee hiring guidelines. A medium sized company has a legally approved, comprehensive employee manual with employee hiring guidelines as a separate section. A large global business has an entire department writing several employee manuals in several languages with employee hiring guidelines based upon legal and social issues in each country. However, the common sense management principal that all companies should have a fair, consistent and applicable employment program must be used by every company.

As I have spent the vast majority of my career with small and medium sized businesses, here is a simple and select set of management principles that every small and medium business should follow to ensure success and profitability:

A good accounting department with timely monthly financial statements provides the basis for all management decisions. Any business owner or officer who believes purely in his or her “gut” feel, is running what will be a failed business. Regardless of the business size, every owner and senior executive must have valid data to confirm the decisions their “gut” tells them to make. Your financial statements are a factual record of your business history and we must all clearly understand our history so we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. How can you determine whether your recent marketing campaign is a success unless you see and evaluate the financial results? We have all heard stories about the marketing campaign that brought many new customers to the company but killed the company because the advertising expense was greater than the profit margin on the new sales. A business owner does not need an accounting degree but should know enough to understand and participate in the financial information review.

Running a small business based on the cash balance in the business checking account also violates this management principle and will severely inhibit the growth and success of the business. Unless you want to remain a “mom and pop” business forever, good accounting information is a requirement.

Standardize and automate all routine functions. Have you ever noticed that most successful business people have a routine for most of their daily functions? They have staff meetings at the same time, they want all reports in a specific format, they want all PC’s and software to be the same in the office and they want the external phone calls to be answered with a specific greeting. By standardizing all routine functions, successful business people do not have to think about or manage these functions. They can concentrate their time and efforts on managing non routine situations.

This same principle also applies to your business. I personally know a company that, 10 years ago, had a credit department with 15 employees and 3 managers who made many decisions daily. Today, that company has doubled its sales and now has a credit department consisting of 5 employees, one manager and a set of software programs that manages electronic payments and even sends out reminder letters and emails to customers.

Review and analyze the Balance Sheet before the Profit and Loss Statement. Your monthly P & L tells you whether you were successful last month from your operations but your Balance Sheet tells you what shape your business is in and what you can do in the future. I have seen a company that doubled sales one year and closed their doors less than six months later. I have also seen a business that went bankrupt even though their P & L’s showed reasonable success. The company Balance Sheet shows how the company uses its daily operations to fund the long term success of the business. Analyzing Fixed Assets, Accounts Receivable, Long Term Debt and Retained Earnings will give us the long term view for our company. It is not as exciting as analyzing our new customers and product offerings but is necessary for the long term.

Business Planning and Budgeting will allow you to slow down the daily business fires and take advantage of opportunities. There are an unusual number of small and medium businesses that do not work hard at either annual or strategic planning and budgeting. Most are too busy fighting fires and struggling to keep up with daily business activity. There is no time for planning and budgeting in their 80 hours work weeks. We have all been in this position. The unfortunate issue here is that the fire fighting and long weeks will never slow down or cease until some planning and budgeting is put in place. The need for planning and budgeting becomes more intense as a business grows due to your inability to “manage by walking around.” The planning and budgeting can start simple and will grow naturally as the business expands. This management principle will allow all employees to see the vision and the focus of the business which will start to reduce the daily fires that pop up.

The greatest advantage of planning and budgeting is that it allows every business owner to evaluate quickly and easily how an unexpected opportunity might be of benefit to the business. I have talked to many business owners who stumbled across a sudden and potentially great opportunity such as a competitor for sale, a good supplier needing a partner, a potential new customer that would immediately double sales or a potential new product that would require an entirely new set of tools and equipment. These opportunities happen to all business owners regularly but many also go away quickly. Those companies that have a good plan and budget in place can evaluate these opportunities quickly and easily to determine if the new opportunity fits into the company’s long term plans. These companies also have the ability to quickly approach a bank with solid financial proformas if additional capital is needed. 

It isn’t a sale unless you collect. Most small and medium businesses spend way too much time in the sales process and far too little time with the collection process. Most companies are willing to pay a six figure salary to a salesman who can generate tremendous sales for the company and, at the same time, put an entry level accounting clerk in charge of collection with little or no oversight and procedures. The company borrows more and more money to increase sales while an accounting clerk with no customer service experience struggles to collect. The sales department in every business must have a part in the collection process and the company must have a strong, fair and customer oriented collection process to ensure that a sale really means money in the bank.

This process must always start before the sale is made. Collecting information up front to determine whether the potential customer is able to pay and ensuring the potential customer clearly understands the credit terms and payment requirement will benefit all parties. All good potential customers will appreciate this process because we all enjoy dealing with quality companies. I have never found any company that was unwilling to pay for quality products and services when everyone understood the terms and requirements.

The credit department must also have a good set of processes and procedures to ensure that the payment process flows smoothly and efficiently. Supplier employee turnover, cash flow issues and other unexpected issues stop or slow down the payment process. The credit department must, in a customer oriented fashion, work to keep our cash flowing.

Run the business as if it your grandchildren will take it over.  Every business is a living and vibrant organization that has many similarities to our children. Your business starts out as an infant and learns to crawl and eventually walk. We would never make a decision for our child that does not take into account the child’s future and we should not do this with our business either.

Working with a supplier who has inferior quality but the cheapest price might be a great short term cash solution for our company but will eventually run off our customers and destroy our business. How many times has a business lost all its records because it decided it couldn’t afford computer backups or a fire alarm system on its warehouse? Have you hired an employee before you had them take a drug test? I even once jumped at the chance to hire a salesman from a competitor because I thought he would be able to bring over many customers. Unfortunately, he cost too much and didn’t bring over any good paying customers at all. There is no such thing as a good short cut for efficient management principals and the long term success of your organization.

Hire the smartest and best people. How many of us have hired our friends, the salesman we thought was a bargain, the bookkeeper who spoke the best during the interview or the manager we thought was most like us? Many small and medium sized businesses are littered with employees who were hired for these reasons because small businesses can’t afford high wages and all the fringe benefit packages that large companies can afford. We tend to hire the best we think we can get.

We need to set our expectations higher and use our planning process to find perfect employees. The first issue is that your company must have a good annual plan as well as a logical 5 year plan on where the company will be. Your company can then lay out what employees will be needed during this 5 year period. Now that we have defined what employees and what responsibilities are required, we need to find the individuals who meet these requirements and not just who we can afford today.

I have always tried to hire people who are smarter and have more experience than I have at the specific position. Any owner who believes he is the smartest individual in every area will never be able to hire the right people. A company will never be greater than its weakest employee so we must always hire the best.

The last company I worked with laid out a plan showing they were going to need their first CPA in 5 years. After 3 years, they told me they hired this CPA and were very surprised because this individual had other job opportunities with large national firms who were offering huge benefits. However, this small firm could offer professional growth and responsibility not available at the larger company. The vast majority of good employees prefer to have a more responsible position with a smaller company with a grand future than a less responsible position with a large company.

You can grow yourself out of business. Cash is king in business and those who recognize this fact will succeed and prosper. I have seen far more businesses that grow too fast with no good business plan and are forced to close their doors or find a quick buyer. Companies that are struggling watch their cash daily and doing what they need to keep the doors open. However, those companies doubling their sales see huge profits on their monthly financial statements and get caught up in the emotion and success. They watch their Accounts Receivable double, their Inventory double because they must buy much more product, their employees double because they must take care of these sales and suddenly they do not have the ability to make this week’s payroll because they have no cash in their checking account. Their company literally grew itself out of business which many small and medium business owners have trouble understanding until they have lived through it.

The culture of every business is as important as its mission. As mentioned earlier, a business is a living and breathing organization. The culture of every business is as important to the overall success of the company as the products and services offered. The owner of the business cannot delegate this function and must be involved. There is no right or wrong here as the business culture is a reflection of the quality, morals and ethics of its owner. A successful company’s culture is not a constantly changing but evolves based upon the growth and expansion of the organization. Constantly changing a company’s culture is a sure way to close a business.

A company with a strict dress code, time clocks that are strictly enforced, and many processes and procedures is no better than another company with no dress code, few processes, and telecommuting for employees. The only difference is the type of employees they retain and the way they do business.

Your quality competitors are essential to your long term success. You can stop laughing now because this is really a fact that every successful company understands. This is an unusual concept but one that great businessmen and women all embrace. Competition is a wonderful concept in every free market economy and quality competition makes us all better. Quality competitors push us to come up with quality improvements, quality products and services and ensure that we have a quality customer oriented operation. We have all seen businesses spring up offering a 50% price reduction for a cheap knock off of our products. Our sales drop and we spend time and effort away from our core business chasing this situation. They stay in business for a short period of time and accomplish nothing more than causing our customers to question our industry. Quality competitors push us all toward greatness and there is plenty of room in every industry for multiple organizations.

Outsourcing reduces costs and improves your weaknesses. Many individuals hear the jokes about the language issues at large company call centers in India or the Philippines and tell themselves they will never make that mistake. However, that might be one situation that is not really a mistake. A good IT programmer in the U.S. can cost upwards of $100,000 annually with payroll taxes, fringe benefits, etc. That employee in India with the exact same intelligence, skills and experience can cost as little as $30,000 annually.

The management principle here is that we should all concentrate on our strengths and outsource everything else where feasible. No business person thinks twice about using an outside tax accountant to do our Federal and State taxes. This is a highly technical area that changes constantly. Most of us also have an outside legal firm. Why do we primarily limit our use of outsourcing to those two areas?? Today, there are professional payroll firms, employee leasing firms, credit and collection firms, IT and Web programming firms and marketing firms. These companies work with many business organizations, stay on top of industry best practices and can better stay on top of the technical changes in their area of expertise.

The only area of any company that I advise against outsourcing is the area that is crucial to the success of your company. Never allow the core of your success to get outside your control. As an example, if your company has a proprietary marketing scheme or a customer database or an engineering method or a production process that is key to your success, do not let it out of your control.

How to Organize Your New Business: the Nuts and Bolts

Soon you will find yourself deeply involved in reaching your marketplace, analyzing customer needs and imagining attention-getting promotional ideas. But first there are a number of basic organizational steps you should complete.

 There are just enough stories in newspapers and magazines about successful new business that were started on a “shoestring” to make you believe you do it also. In fact, several monthly magazines are devoted to presenting low-cost home business ideas that are “guaranteed winners”.

 In our experience, very few viable new businesses ran be started with less than $1000.00. A recent survey by Home Office Computing magazine revealed that the average reader spent around $5,000 to start his business. It should be apparent that shoestring businesses run out of cash fast – often just when the sales start to come in.

 Assessing Your Financial Readiness

 The first step in examining your financial preparedness is to sit down with your family and analyze where the money goes each month. Start with the major expenses first, such as mortgage or rent, car payments, utilities, insurance, food and school expenses. These categories probably represent over 60% of your total family spending each month.

 Next add in important but postponeable expenses, such as new clothing or furniture, a vacation or going to the movies or out to eat. By the time you are done you will probably have 15 to 20 key expenses in the family budget. Put the total by category on one piece of paper and add them for a grand total. Make sure every family member understands where the money has been going each month.

 Lastly, see what you can cut out of the budget. But beware, quitting a job (or losing one) and then starting a business will put your family under tremendous mental stress. Don’t expect them to endure too much further pain in order to cut the family budget.

 Most of us would be lucky to cut 5% out of the budget. Once you have some agreement on a monthly budget, it is time to review what sources of income the family has. The most common are: spouse’s salary and bonus, investment interest and dividends and rental income if you own property. Ask yourself a tough question: How reliable are these streams of income? Has your spouse’s employer announced layoffs? Is the return on your investments likely to go up or down over the next twelve months?

 Subtracting all the family income other than your income (you’ll he quitting remember) from the monthly expenses results in what I call the “business burden”. This is the dollar amount that vour economic activity must eventually create if the family budget is to continue at its agreed-upon level. Every month that your sales are not enough to cover this burden you must borrow – from yourself, your credit cards, your home equity loan or from your relatives. This gets old fast.

 The second area of personal finance you must carefully evaluate is your debt. Who do you owe? How much? What percentage of debt could be paid off in on more than one year? Remember, you won’t be working a regular job. Be realistic; if you credit card debt is $400 per month minimum payment, you will have a very hard time paying your business phone bill and buying gas for your car.

 Examine also what you own that you might turn into cash or use as collateral for a loan. The house is the most commonly used personal collateral, but remember what you are risking when you use a home equity loan.

 Estimating Startup Costs

 Startup costs are one-time expenses for equipment, furniture, computers, rent deposits, stationery; telephone hookup, insurance premiums, office supplies, and initial advertising. Be cautious here, it is very easy to spend a couple of thousand dollars before you realize it. Before you buy anything ask yourself: Can I get it used? Do I already have something that will work? Can I trade something for it? If you are starting with a home office you of course save on rent deposits and moving expenses.

 If you will be opening a retail store, it is critical that you research what inventory you will need, who supplies it and what is the lowest price you can get. You may also be facing a serious investment in renovation construction, fixtures and carpeting and painting. The average startup costs for a retail store, including inventory, run around $75,000.

 If you plan to make a product for sale you will need to buy raw materials. Do the same kind of investigation as the retail business owner does. Calculate the minimum material investment to produce the desired sales for the first few months. In addition, examine what additional tools, equipment or vehicles our business may require. A typical manufacturing startup can cost over $100,000.

 Exploring Business Expenses

 For most small businesses, the owners personal compensation is far and away the largest operating expense for the business. This is your contribution toward the “business burden”. But there are potentially many other business expenses you will face. Among the most common are: Rent, utilities, telephone and telefax charges, supplies, computer software and repair, insurance, bookkeeping fees, auto expenses, dues and subscriptions, travel and entertainment and sales promotion expenses. Some new business need an employee right from the beginning, so you would have to add in wages and withholding taxes.

 You find out what expenses your business will have to pay by talking with owners of similar businesses, through magazine and newspaper articles and from trade associations, just to mention a few. Also apply some common sense: ask yourself what expenses seem normal for my type of business? I suggest that you add 20% to your estimate of monthly business expenses.

 To discover what magnitude of starting capital your business will need, take your “business burden” and multiply by three. Add in the one-time startup costs. Multiply the monthly business expenses by three and add to the other two groups of costs. The total is known as “initial capitalization” — the money you had better have access to before you open the door of your new business, Don’t kid yourself; new businesses are very hungry — for money. Try to starve them and they perish!

 Picking A Business Name

 Up to this point, you have probably only spoken about your new business to your family and yourself. But now it is time to prepare to talk to the outside world. The first step in communicating all the wonderful things your business can provide is to create an identity for it by carefully selecting a business name and address.

 I have long believed that there is no such thing as the perfect name for a new business. After all your customers are largely buying you in the beginning. But a cleverly selected business name goes a long way toward making your new company more memorable. Here are some tips for selecting a business name:

 Keep it Short – no more than four words
Make sure It can be easily pronounced
Use either your own name or one that says what your business does
Look in the Yellow Pages to avoid a name that is confusingly similar to an existing business
Make sure that is looks as good on a business card as it does on a piece of letterhead. A way to do this is to use a graphic artist to sketch the name business card size.  

Be aware that some businesses not only legally register their business names but also trademark them. Trademarking is a legal technique made available by states and the federal government to give you the right to a particular name if you can prove you publicly used it before anyone else, To receive national protection you must file for a trademark through the U.S. Trademark Office (part of the Commence Department). This is much more expensive and time consuming. See an attorney before taking this step.

 Selecting a Business Address

 You now need a business address to go along with your legal business name. While you have been researching your startup costs you should have thought about where you will locate your business office. Will it be in your den? In a local office building? A retail store? Or in an industrial building?

 The simplest and least expensive way is to use your home address as your business address also. But before you decide to do this remember the following tips about selecting an address.

 Analyze who you want to sell. Would they think you are less professional if they see a residential address on your business card?
Are there potential zoning problems if your city or town finds out about your home business?
Will your suppliers or customers be corning regularly to your house? is there enough parking space so as to not annoy your neighbors?
Can you easily receive UPS, Federal Express, etc. at your home?  

If you don’t locate at home, what are your other options? There are three basic alternatives:

 #1 Post office box. I don’t like them because they are used by scam artists, Also, you can’t get to your box 24 hours per day and customer service at the Post Office is less than great.

 #2: Private mail box store: A little more expensive than P.O. boxes but offer many more business services such as shipping of all kinds, telefax, photocopying, passport photos, office supplies, to mention a few. The largest number of stores are the Mail Boxes Etc. outlets springing up all over. Costs start at $12-$16 per month for a mailbox.

 #3: Shared service office suites: Many traditional office buildings are setting up areas with small offices which share services, such as the receptionist, mail room, telefax, photocopy and a conference room. Rents start at $400 per month, but some buildings offer an abbreviated version, known as identity programs where you keep your office at home, but rent their address for your mail, have their receptionist answer your business phone line and meet with clients in their conference room. Costs start at $75 per month.

 Picking A Legal Form of Organization

 When you open a business, your life becomes more formalized because you are now subject to more laws and regulations. One of the first legal requirements you will face is deciding how to organize the business from a legal point of view. There are three major ways to do this:

 #1: Sole Proprietorship — Single owner or husband and wife. All business profit goes on your personal tax return. You are personally liable for all business debts and legal disputes. Very little regulation by the government. Over 70% of all small businesses are proprietorships, often because it is the easiest, fastest and cheapest way to legally organize.

 #2: Partnership — Two or more owners joining together to invest in and to run a small business. Similar legally to a proprietorship in that each partner is personally liable for business debts and disputes. In addition, each partner is bound by the business actions of the other partners, even if they don’t know about them. In our experience it is hard to hold together a partnership because it is rare that two (or more) people share the same values, grow at the same rate or see risk the same way. We strongly urge that you review a written partnership agreement (sold at office supply stores) before you talk seriously about joining together.

 #3: Corporation – A lot of new entrepreneurs think that they need to be a corporation. But in reality, few new businesses need to be incorporated. The first step is to realize that your life becomes more regulated if you incorporate. We also estimate that it will cost you $700-$1000 more per year in accounting and legal bills to be a corporation. However, there are many potential tax savings for corporations. The second step is to decide with whom you will organize the corporation (incorporators). The third step is to decide if you want to operate as “plain vanilla” corporation (“C” corporation) or as a “S” corporation (requires approval of the IRS). For the next steps see “How to Register” which follows.

 No matter what legal form your new business takes, some branch of government (or several) wants to know about it, But note: before you attempt to legally register, you must have selected a business name and address.

 How to Register Your Company

 Proprietorships and Partnerships Most proprietorships and partnerships use a business name other than the name on the owner’s birth certificate. This business name is known legally as a fictitious name, assumed name or as a DBA (Doing Business As). The county in which you live requires you to register this assumed name. The procedure usually goes as follows:

 Call your County Clerk’s Office and request an Assumed Name Registration form and ask the fee.

Fill in all forms with the legal name of the business, its official address, your real name arid your home address. One of the forms may have to be notarized, so see the accompanying instructions.

Usually you send back one form, the longer one, and keep the shorter form. Include a check made our to the County Clerk for the registration fee.

Take the shorter form to any newspaper in your county (call first to get their rate for an assumed name ad) and place an ad for three consecutive weeks. The newspaper will give you proof that the ad ran.

Send proof of ad placement back to your County Clerk, right away.

In three to four weeks you wilt receive a registration certificate.  

Corporations Registering a corporation is more involved than the assumed name registration. Here is the procedure commonly found. It may vary in your state:

 Call your Secretary of State and ask for Corporate Name Registration.

Have two or three name choices written down by the phone. Ask if the first name is available. If not, go to the next, and the next. Hopefully one of the three is available.

While you have them on the phone, request two copies of the registration paperwork known as the Articles of Incorporation (or similar name).

Use an attorney or one of the Small Business Development Centers for help in filling out the Articles of incorporation. They are pretty easy, but the section on issuing stock can be a little tricky. Check the form for how to calculate the incorporation fee.

Send two copies of the Articles with a certified check or money order for the incorporation fee made out to the Secretary of State at the address in the instructions.

In a few weeks you will receive the official notice of incorporation. After this time whenever you use your business name it must be ended by one of four suffixes: “Inc.”, “Corp.”, “LTD”, or “Co.”. Place the certificate in a safe place. You will need it for a number of purposes but most importantly you must show it in order to open a corporate checking account.

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