Ten Advantages to a Business Partnership

Many people are hesitant to enter into a business partnership and there are certainly some disadvantages to business partnerships that need to be considered.  But that is a topic for another blog.  The following are ten advantages to a business partnership:

1. Makes the business stronger by having the strengths of all the partners available to the business
2. Increases the amount of investment in the business, thus making lending to a partnership more attractive (in some cases) that it would be for a sole proprietorship. 
3. Gives the flexibility to the partners to have different "hands on" hours in the business.  One partner may only be able to work 25 hours a week on weekends in the evenings but the other partner can work 40 hours a week.  This will give good coverage to the business and the profits can be divided to reflect the actual time each partner works
4. Paperwork and tax filing for a partnership is similar to a sole proprietorship and therefore less costly than the tax requirements for a corporation.
5. Year ends are calendar year with the final income tax returns (the owners' personal returns) due in June. 
6. A partnership can hire employees. 
7. Family members of the partners can be paid employees of the business as long as fair value is exchanged. The family members provides the work and is paid the market rate. 
8. Succession planning may be easier as a potential buyer may be one of the partners. There is still legal requirements to transfer the ownership from two or more partners to one of them. 
9. Decisions can be made within the management/ownership of the business.  The partners can seek professional opinions if necessary and they can also arrange for an independent opinion in the case of disagreements amoung the partners.
10. The set up and dissolution of a partnership is easier than it is for a corporation. 

This is a brief overview. Before entering into a partnership it is suggested that you seek the advice of your lawyer and your accountant.

When Choosing Accounting Software

Business owners have so much to do and plan and manage that the administration and accounting tasks associated with a business sometimes do not receive much attention. The task of finding and installing, setting up and using an accounting software package can be daunting and intimidating. The following are a few things that may make the process easier.

1. Make a list of the features that you would like to see in your software package.  While there are accounting principles that require things to be done in a certain way there are several different packages available to choose from.  Will you be using the software from more than one computer, do you have a network and consequently need a software package that can be accessed from several machines. Do you want to have the ability to preschedule certain tasks, such as writing recurring monthly payments? 
2. Is there training and support available locally for the software package? If you are going to be relying on this package to track all your financial records then you may want to have classes available in your area where your staff, and you, can receive training on the use of the package. 
3. What software package are other businesses using? Are they satisfied with the performance and with the support from the developer? 
4. If you are using the services of a public accounting firm to have your tax returns and other reports generated, do they have a recommendation for a specific software package?  If they are using one package, it might be to your advantage, financially and otherwise to use the same package. This will reduce time in completing your year ends and other regular reports. 
5. Will you require the ability to track expenses and revenues by project or job? Do you have an inventory that you would like to have recorded and tracked through your software package? How many employees do you have and will you be using this software package to calculate wages and any subcontractor payments? 
6. Can you make changes in tax rates for federal or provincial sales taxes?  If the GST rate drops or if that tax is eliminated you will want to be able to make that change without having to purchase a software update. 

The above are a few of the things to consider when you are starting the process of choosing an accounting software package.

Top Ten Reasons to Review Your Marketing Plan

Many business owners are so pleased when they get all the planning done, the business plan, the marketing plan, the strategic plan and the HR plan that they heave a sign of relief and put the "plans" on the shelf, never to be used again.

Your marketing plan is a living document, at least it should be. The plan needs to be implemented and then monitored and then corrected and the process starts again.


Reasons to Review your marketing plan:

1.  To learn if it is working
2.  To monitor the results of your marketing activities
3.  To implement any updates and changes, using social media for example
4.  To develop a consistent look and feel to your marketing efforts
5.  To develop a budget for your marketing activities
6.  To monitor repeat business
7.  To learn where your customers are hearing about you
8.  Get referrals
9.  Build sales results
10.  Develop marketing materials, brochures, business cards, other promotional material.

Ten Sites with Great Business Advice

1.  http://www.entrepreneur.com

2.   http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2009/10/05/f-entrepreneurs-business-tips.html

3.   http://entrepreneur.lifetips.com/

4.  For Young Entrepreneurs   http://sbinformation.about.com/lw/Business-Finance/Small-business-and-entrepreneurs/10-Business-Success-Tips-for-Young-Entrepreneurs.htm

5.   For Young Entrepreneurs    http://blogs.sitepoint.com/top-tips-young-entrepreneurs/

6. For Artists and Craft Producers     http://ezinearticles.com/?Art-and-Craft-Business-Tips-for-Entrepreneurs&id=1041437

7.  Business Networking Tips.   http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/businessnetworking/Business_Networking_for_Entrepreneurs.htm


8.  http://www.scribd.com/doc/14021497/Buying-a-Distressed-Business-Ten-Tips-for-Entrepreneurs


9.  Home Based Businesses   http://www.powerhomebiz.com/112007/business-tips-entrepreneurs.htm

10.  Great Canadian Content for all provinces  http://www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/

Ten Reasons to Vote

1. Become involved
2. Influence the outcome
3. Without voting you lose your voice
4. Make changes
5. Reshape the face of parliment
6. Support worthy candidates
7. An opportunity to learn about the candidates and their platforms
8. Raise awareness in others
9. Have an opinion
10. This is your government, without voting you have no say in who will form the next government.

Ten Things to Issue A Press Release About

There are a lot of missed opportunities by business owners, many don't issue press releases. One reason is that a business owner doesn't think they are doing anything that is newsworthy.  The following are a few ideas that could be used for press releases:

1. A business milestone, having the 1,000 customer, or celebrating 10 years in business.
2. Hiring additional employees
3. Adding a new product line or service
4. Being a supplier for a celebrated business
5. Supporting a local charity or organization
6. Being interviewed or featured in a magazine article
7. Starting a newsletter or blog
8. Being nominated for an award, and of course winning an award 
9. Being honoured 
10. Being the guest speaker at an event
11. And the list goes on. 

Is there anything in the above list that you could use to prepare and issue a press release?

Press releases should be no more than one page in length and should be to the point. Enclose or attach a photo if that is appropriate. And be sure to give the name and contact information of the media contact.

Ten Tips for Motivating Employees

1. Say thank you
2. Recognize employee excellence
3. Treat every employee fairly, no favourites
4. Clearly communicate your expectations
5. Create win/win situations
6. Don't micro manage
7. Establish reasonable deadlines
8. When hiring new employees, hire skills and build on the existing base 
9. When forced to lay off employees, give fair notice and give references if they are warranted
10. Be truthful and honest with your employees. They are people who deserve your respect.

Ten Reasons To Start A Business

While many people scratch their heads in confusion when someone suggests starting a new business, others see the challenge, the sense of accomplishment and the future. The following list includes a few of the reasons who people choose to start a new business:

1. Can find a job that they like. 
2. Can find a job.
3. Is tired of working for someone else
4. Wants the autonomy of owning a business and doing things their way
5. See a gap in the services and products available
6. Wants to increase earnings
7. Wants to create a legacy for family members
8. Wants to create jobs and give back to the community
9. Wants to reduce work hours (although that one is usually quickly proved incorrect)
10. Wants the opportunity to work with family, friends etc. 

These are just a few and none of the above are right or wrong in every situation.  If you are starting a business research your options carefully and tread lightly. You may get what you wish for:-)

Enhance your e-Business Practices - Internship program for SMEs

Enhance your e-Business Practices with the Small Business Internship Program

A significant number of established small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are currently only connected to the Internet or are passively on-line, and might not be taking advantage of the possibilities offered by e-business. The Small Business Internship Program seeks to improve the competitiveness of SMEs by supporting businesses to actively market on-line and improve their competitiveness with e-business practices and technologies.
Join the Small Business Internship Program Team, as they explain how the Program could work for your business. Victor Paul-Elias will present the English Webinar and Lynne Antoine will present the French Webinar.
The webinar takes place on Friday, April 15, 2011 at 12:00pm EST in English and at 1:30pm EST in French. If you're interested in attending, complete the English Webinar or the French Webinar registration form.
For more information, please send an email to SBTBWebinar-DGPETWebinaire@ic.gc.ca

Ten Tips for Making Sales

There have been many, many books written about making sales, closing sales and the sales dialogue.  The following tips are what I have found to be the most helpful from all the materials I have read.

1. Be prepared.  Find out about the client and what they are currently using.
2. Know your product and the benefits for your client
3. Answer objections
4. Ask probing questions
5. Make sure you understand what the customer is saying, ask for clarification if needed. 
6. Enjoy yourself, smile
7. Establish trust and consequently an excellent reputation for you and the product or service you are selling
8. People love to buy, they do not like to be sold.
9. Realize that not everyone is your customer, respect that.
10. Talk to the decision maker. You are wasting your time if you are talking to someone who doesn't have the authority to make the purchase. 

And 10.5  Follow up after every sale.  Fix what is wrong. 

Ten Tacky Things

We all have heard about the importance of networking. The messages are constant and frequent about what to do to be effective in networking.  Well I recently had the chance to observe someone who was doing a lot of things incorrectly...she was annoying people.

1. Don't monopolize the conversation.  Talking non-stop about your business, how your product will be the answer to all problems and how you will solve the customer's every wish does not work. 
2. I can do that... I know someone who can help you...  I know who you should call...  I know just the organization you should join...  You can't possibly have all the answers, so don't start every sentence with ''I".
3. Going to a business event sponsored and presented by one business organization, and telling someone there that they shouldn't bother with the sponsoring group but they should join another group.  This is rude and tacky to the nth degree. 
4. Interrupt conversations because you want to have a chance to talk to everyone there.  Join a discussion certainly but don't take it over and make it about you and your business. 
5. Work with other businesses, getting them to refer business to you is always more effective than blowing your own horn
6. Criticize the organizers, the food, the location, the attendees and everything else you can think of. 
7. Sexy and revealing clothing has a place, but it usually isn't at a business event.  Dress appropriately, your clothing and accessories shouldn't be the centre of attention.  
8. Too much jewellery that jingles and jangles and is distracting. Less is more and quality beats quantity.
9. Forget your business cards and then make do by borrowing and writing on the back of another business's card.  
10. Talk, talk, talk, especially if you have a high pitched voice that is annoying to listen to. We all have flaws, but minimize them. If your voice has an annoying quality work to change that, speak slowly and distinctly and make every word you say count. Cut the fluff. 

Be courteous, business like, and professional in everything you do. 

Top Ten Business Ideas

The entrepreneur who would like to start a home based business has a lot of choice. Sometimes too much choice.

The following listing contain some of the obvious and hopefully some of the not so obvious ideas for home based businesses:

1. Dog walking services
2. House sitting for folks lucky enough to be vacationing in the sun during the winter, or for those folks who have accepted short term work out of province. 
3. Specialty baking. (In an approved kitchen) This can include health foods, decadent treats for you or for your pooch, or full course meals for the time challenged working parent.
4. "Go fors" Errand providers. This can work very well in an area where there are seniors or physically challenged individuals who need just a bit of extra help with grocery shopping or picking up perscriptions. 
5. Event organizer.  This works best if you specialize in a niche market, maybe tradeshow production or maybe specializing in wedding planning. 
6. Writer or artist.  These require alone time to create and then the finished products are marketed.  Know your markets and be prepared to work as hard at the selling part of the business as you do at the creative side. 
7. Bookkeeping services for small businesses or non-profits who do not have the work or budget for a full time staff member to complete the essential bookkeeping tasks. 
8. Teach, talk and train. Be a facilitator and presenter on a topic you are knowledgeable about and have interest in. 
9. Provide administration support services to businesses with employees on vacation of sick leave. Operate your own temporary staffing agency...with you as the only staff. 
10. Offer contracting or design services for the home construction industry. 

As with any business idea, you must do your research and make sure there is a demand for the services you will be offering. Meet all the legal requirements and enjoy what you do. 

23 Public Speaking Secrets Gleaned from the Greats

  This post is giving readers a bonus... 23 Public Speaking Secrets.  Thank you to Carol Brown for suppling the link to this great information. 

http://www.onlinecollege.org/2011/02/01/23-public-speaking-secrets-gleaned-from-the-greats/

10 Tips and Facts on Taxes

The following list can help as a review prior to preparing your tax return:

1. Make sure you have all your information slips. T-4"s etc must be prepared and mailed by February 28th. 
2. Review your room to contribute to RRSP's  If possible top up your contributions
3. Review and invest in RESP's if applicable
4. Are you able to take advantage of tax free savings accounts.  Check with your financial institution to see if your account qualifies, and make arrangements for 2011 now so you can capture tax free interest earnings next year. 
5. Educations credits, possibly transferable from a family member of for yourself.
6. Northern living allowances, travel expenses. If you lived and worked in a designed Northern area then a portion of your income may be a living allowance with can have special tax treatment.  Check with your tax advisor.
7. If you operate a home based business, save all your home operating expense receipts...a portion of them will be a business deduction if your business made a net income. 
8. If you are using your vehicle in your business save your vehicle operating receipts and keep a log of the business km. driven,.
9. If you are and your spouse are drawing pensions, then you may benefit from income splitting.  
10. File your income tax return on time. If you owe taxation dollars, you may be subject to fines and penalties if you file after the deadline. 

Seek professional tax advice when you have a question.  

Ten Tips for Networking at an Event

1. Show up 
2. Show up prepared
3. Bring Business Cards
4. Wear a name tag on your right side
5. Don't spend all your time talking to people you already know
6. Ask questions
7. Listen to the answers
8. Have a plan before you arrive, how many people you want to meet, referrals, testimonials, have goals
9. Compare your results to your plan, revise, update and try again
10. Send follow-up information or correspondence within one day of the event.

Tips for Public Speaking

Public speaking can be daunting for many people.  However, it is often necessary if you wish to get your ideas across. The following tips may be of help:

1. Join an organization such as toastmasters that helps you develop public speaking skills and a whole lot more. 
2. Remember your body language, keep your body relaxed. Any tension will "appear" in your voice. 
3. Don't cross your arms or look down at your audience. Crossed arms build a wall/division between you and the audience. 
4. Many people prefer not to use a podium, again the podium can be a barrier between you and the audience. 
5. Look at the audience...scan it frequently with you eyes. Talk to people, not over their heads. 
6. Dress comfortably and that is especially important for shoes. Don't pick presentation day to break in a new pair of shoes. 
7. Keep your hands out of your pockets. 
8. Women should avoid large gaudy jewellery, dangling earrings and low necklines.  You want people to listen to what you are saying...don't distract them 
9. Don't turn to face a powerpoint presentation, keep your face to your audience.  This is very easy to achieve if you have a laptop and it is in front of you.  You can use the laptop screen as your source and you know your audience is seeing the same thing on the screen(s). 
10. Smile, relax and enjoy. You know your topic. Strive to work from a minimum of notes. Reading isn't nearly as effective as talking. 

Practice, practice and more practice will make you more comfortable making presentations to small and large groups of people. Use the energy in the room and be in control

Ten More Tax Tips

There are many rules and regulations when it comes to calculating and reporting taxes.  A few more tips to help you through the process:

1. All Canadian T-4 slips must be prepared and distributed by February 28th.  
2. All RRSP contributions for 2010 must be done by the end of February. 
3. If you have a home based business, a portion of your household expenses may be eligible as a deduction against your home based business net income.
4. A portion of your vehicle expenses may be an eligible deduction if you use your vehicle for business purposes. Canada Revenue Agency requires that you keep a vehicle log, tracking the total number of kms driven, the business kms driven.  
5. Keep all your vehicle receipts and calculate the % allowed based on your vehicle log. 
6. If you have transferred some personal assets into the business, determine a realistic valuation. For example, the black book valuation for your vehicle rather than the original purchase price.
7. If you or your spouse are self employed both marriage partners must pay any taxes owning by April 30th but have until June 15th to file their tax returns. 
8. The owners of a sole proprietorship or a partner in a partnership must file the tax information for their business on their personal tax return. The business activities must be reported on a calendar year basis. 
9. Incorporated companies can select their year end at any time throughout the year. However, once the year end has been selected it cannot be changed with the written permission of CRA. 
10. As the tax laws are constantly changing, it is often advisable to hire a professional tax prepared to complete your tax return. 

The above information is intended for information purposes only, please consult your professional advisor for recommendations for your particular situation. 

Top Ten To Do's for After the Trade Show

After all the work of preparing for, and then working at, a trade show it is always tempting to let out a sign of relief and relax.  However, that will have to wait. The after show activities are the what will convert those maybes into actual sales. There are always a number of routine tasks that need attention as well. The following list will help you  make every show as productive as possible.

1. Unpack all merchandise and props, inspect for damage and make the necessary repairs, or replacements. You want everything to be ready for the next show. 
2. Follow up on all promises made at the show.  If you promised to provide additional information or pricing do it immediately after returning home from the show. 
3. Many trade show organizers provide the exhibitors with a listing of show visitors.  If you have access to such a list, plan a program to contact everyone on the list with announcements of new products or other show dates. Keep in touch. Just because they may not be ready to purchase now that doesn't mean they won't be interested in a few weeks or months. 
4. Evaluate your actual results by comparing them to what you had budgeted. Did you meet your goals? 
5. Review your sales by items or category. Were there items that didn't do as well as you expected? Were there some that did better? 
6. If appropriate prepare a brief survey/feedback form and ask some of your key customers to complete it. The object would be to get information on which items are selling well, and if possible find out why these items are particularly attractive to customers. 
7. Record any notes about the show that will be of value to you when making the decision to display in this show in future years. Particularly note and comments by other exhibitors about other shows they have attended and which they found to be the best for them. 
8. Issue a press release about the success you had at the show. Include a picture and send to all local media outlets. 
9.  Include a couple of pictures and a writeup on your website or in your newsletter. 
10. Don't forget to add any new contacts to your social media pages. That will  give you a very economical way to update them on new events and products that you are involved in. 

 Now relax and take a deep breath. It will soon be time to get packed up for the next show. 

Tax Tips for Small Businesses

Don't we all enjoy the process of "getting ready for the taxman"? The following tips and suggestions are based on Canadian tax laws and they are not meant to be advice.  Consult your Tax professional to determine what would be best for you.

1. Be organized. File your receipts in a logical manner. This will reduce the time spent during the actual income tax preparation exercise. 
2. If you do not understand basic bookkeeping, hire someone who does.
3. Keep your record keeping up to date. Don't save six months of paperwork to do all at once.
4. Separate the invoices and receipts for all capital expenditures, things that have a life of more than one year. 
5. Make a list of all the money owed to you.
6. Make a list of all the bills you owe
7. Count your inventory...don't estimate!
8. Give your information to your accountant as soon as possible after your year end. Accountants get extremely busy between mid February and the end of April so avoid the rush. 
9. Prepare a list of questions you may have for your tax preparer. Don't rely on your memory.
10. If you are hiring an accountant this year, ask for references and talk to other small business owners to find out who they use and if they are satisfied with the service they are receiving. 

These are a few of the basics.  More in future blogs for home based businesses and retail. 

Ten Tips for When the Customer Isn't Pleased

We have all encountered the customer that there is no pleasing, they are never satisfied and they take up time and resources with little benefit. Or is the benefit little?  Sometimes the best referrals come from the most demanding customers. Other businesses give up and let the customer go away angry and dissatisfied. A few tips to deal with dissatisfied customers:

1. Understand the problem. The customer has a complaint, don't assume that you know what is wrong. Ask questions until you understand exactly what is wrong.
2. Under what the customer expects.  What will make the situation right for them.  For example some customers don't know what it is they want you to do...just fix the problem. If the new tires that you sold to the customer are faulty what does the customer want...new tires, a refund, a credit for the tread remaining on the tires, or ???
3. Give the customer you undivided attention. Don't let them feel that their concern isn't important to you. 
4. Don't promise more than you can deliver
5. Deliver on time and more that you committed too
6. Ask the customer what it would take to make them happy. A gutsy move so be prepared to follow through if you use this one. 
7. Let the customer know what is happening to solve the problem. If you have to resolve the complaint over time, keep in touch with the customer. 
8. Follow up with the customer to make sure the solution that you put in place is working.
9. Follow up again after a few months to make sure everything is still all right. 
10. Treat your customers like the valuable asset that they are...no shortcuts and no "good enoughs". 

Sounds like a lot, but customer service will make or break your business. 

Ten email do's and don'ts

I read the other day that email is fast becoming a thing of the past, we are now using social media to communicate, fast and brief messages about our life, work and dreams. It seems hard to believe that email is going the way of snail mail...or is there a place for both? The following tips are for business communications.

1. Formal communications require formal format...use letterhead and write a business letter.  You may chose to send it by "snail mail" or attach to an email. 
2. If you are sending important communications as attachments to emails, ask for a read receipt.
3. Don't assume that all emails find their destination. While some will bounce back to you, other can vanish into servers that don't forward them on or back.  
4. Legal documents should be dealt with in a paper based mode, print and mail. 
5. Remember that you have no control over who will eventually see your email. Don't write in haste and regret at leisure. 
6. Always be polite, no profanity and avoid abbreviations that some may not understand. 
7. Limit the size of the files you are sending by email. Not everyone has the storage capacity for large video or picture files. 
8. Not everyone has the internet speed to download large files. Limit the information in an email to must have and follow up with faxes or letters. 
9. Respect the reader's time. Don't fill up their in box with several emails when one well written on will do. 
10. Use the subject line to describe what the email is about. Even when replying to an email change the subject line to describe what you are including in your response. 

Email is a fast and convenient means of communicating. It can also be very effective if used correctly.

Ten Websites for Businesses

There are several excellent websites that offer reliable information for business owners.  The following are just a few that you might find helpful:

1. http://www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/ 
2. http://www.entrepreneur.com/bizopportunities/index.html
3. http://www.gov.ns.ca/snsmr/access/business/a2b.asp#register 
4. http://www.gov.ns.ca/snsmr/access/business/bizpal.asp 
5. http://www.acsbe.com/consulting/acsbes-self-employment-benefits-program.html 
6. Jeffrey Gitomer - Sales info 
7. http://marketing.about.com/ 
8. http://www.gov.ns.ca/econ/ 
9. http://www.sba.gov/ 
10. ScotiaBank 

This is only a few of the many business related websites that are available.  For example all Canadian Financial Institutions have a business banking section on their website which provides information re loans and lending criteria.  

Ten Tips for Trade Show Effectiveness

Trade shows can be a great marketing tool, if the business owner is well prepared. The following tips are meant to give you ideas on how to make your trade show experience more productive.

1. Be prepared. Practice setting up your display prior to the show and use every square inch effectively. 
2. Avoid clutter and confusion. Our eyes can only absorb so much at once. While it is always tempting to display everything and hope the visitors to your booth find what they want, it is your job to help them make your booth display a positive one. 
3. Track the visitors to your booth. Have a draw and ask for business cards as entry forms, or ask visitors to sign up for a free newsletter. 
4. Have a system for tracking the names of people that have asked for additional information, placed orders, or want to meet with you during a show break. 
5. Pass out brochures and business cards to potential buyers. Since advertising material can be expensive you will need to make a decision about who you will give information to. 
6. Keep you display area neat and tidy and clean. Take a few minutes every hour to step back and view your display and do any housekeeping that is required. 
7. Don't sit behind a table. If you must sit down between talking to buyers, have a stool that will keep you at eye level with the people visiting the show. 
8. Dress appropriately. Wear comfortable shoes, not runners. 
9. Make a good first impression, smile, welcome your visitors and make them feel welcome without hovering or hard selling. 
10. Enjoy your experience by being prepared and living in the moment of the show. Take advantage of everything that is offered, seminars and networking with other exhibitors.

And 10.5  Have someone to help you in your booth if the show is several hours or days. Be realistic about how much you can do. 

Ten Things that Keep Managers up at Night - by Dan McCarthy

This article was provided as a link on the Globe and Mail face book page this morning.  Written by Dan McCarthy.  

After two decades in management, leadership development expert Dan McCarthy, on his Great Leadership blog, identifies 10 things that keep managers up at night:
Confronting a performance issue
He calls this the granddaddy of all managerial headaches, but argues that while they are never easy to handle, they don't have to be so hard. Often they can be preventing by better selection in employee recruitment, establishing clear expectations, regular feedback, coaching and development, and using a progressive discipline process. "Yes, you'll still need to confront poor performance, but when you do, it shouldn't be a surprise and it'll be the right thing to do," he writes

Having to dismiss or lay off an employee
No matter how assiduous you are in performance management, there will still be gut-wrenching moments when you must fire or lay off someone. The fact it's not easy is fine; nobody should be too comfortable with this responsibility.
A tough hiring decision
Choosing between the final candidates when hiring can be agonizing, because if you pick the wrong one, your organization will suffer and you may face some of the other bad moments on this sleepless-nights list. "Use a good selection process - do not wing it (most managers actually do)," Mr. McCarthy notes.
Guilt from doing something unethical or wrong
Before making decisions, he suggests you consider how comfortable you would be reading about it on page one of the newspaper (rather than scheming about what your chances are of being caught). However, if you screw up - and he notes we all do -come clean, and own up to it.
Boss confrontations
Most people don't like to be told they're wrong, so if that's your goal in a confrontation, it won't be a productive conversation. Try putting yourself in your manager's shoes and offer an alternative that will help that person meet his or her objectives.
Team-member conflicts
As with being a parent, bosses must adjudicate disputes. However, a lot of team-member conflicts can be avoided by searching in hiring people who excel at teamwork and collaboration. Make sure you don't create conflict by ignoring the fact a star performer has become a prima donna, and is irritating everyone else.
Peer confrontations
When the stakes are high, you must confront peers on issues and behaviour. If you find this awkward, he recommends the book Crucial Confrontations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler.
Doing something new
It's always difficult to leave our comfort zone and feel less than competent - or even incompetent - again. "If you never do anything new and different, you're not developing. The most impactful way to develop as a leader is new jobs and challenging assignments," Mr. McCarthy writes.
Losing a star performer
It can be excruciating when a star performer walks into your office, closes the door, and announces he or she is leaving. Avoid those sleepless nights by making sure those folks are paid properly, are challenged, are supported, are learning, and know how much you appreciate their fine work.
Burnout
Take care of your health. Maintain perspective about what is truly important in life. Make sure you are doing something you enjoy.

Ten Tips for Telephone Communications

A telephone is usually seen as an essential business tool, however, many businesses do not maximize the benefits a telephone can provide.

1. Have voice mail or an answering machine if you are not always going to be able to answer calls
2. Answer the phone promptly, on the second or no later than the third ring
3. Identify the company and give your name 
4. Always have a smile on your face when talking on the phone, the other person can "hear"the smile in your voice
5. Be business like without being abrupt
6. Have an informative message on your voice mail, give an update on a new item, mention a sale...make the message more informative than "you have reached the voicemail of ________, please leave a message"
7. Return messages within two or three hours
8. Play telephone tag if you must. Give a good time to call you so people can reach you in person. 
9. Consider getting a call forward feature on your phone so all calls can be sent directly to your cell phone if you are out of your office. 
10. Reduce background noises on your voice mail messages. Try to have your phone in a quiet location so there is a minimum amount of distraction when you are answering calls.

5 Tips for Employees, 5 Tips for Employers

Employees:

1. Show up on time
2. Leave the attitude at the curb
3. Ask if you don't understand
4. Remember your employer has to earn money in order to pay you
5. Contribute ideas and suggestions 

Employers

1. Provide training, employees are not usually mind readers
2. Know what you expect and clearly communicate your expectations
3. Be pleasant, don't take your bad mood out on employees
4. Treat everyone with dignity and courtesy
5. Enjoy what you do and others will enjoy being around you.

Ten Tips for Selling

1. Know your product/service
2. Know who your customer is
3. Listen to what is said 
4. Watch body language
5. Ask probing questions
6. Deal with objections
7. Show don't tell
8. Listen - I know that is #3 but it is VERY important
9. Be courteous, be on time, be prepared and be motivated
10. Smile

And your customer isn't always right...just don't tell them that!

Ten Ways to Keep a Meeting on Track

We've all been to them, meetings that go on and on, and nothing seems to get accomplished. The following guidelines will help you organize your meetings, whether they are staff training sessions or client  presentations.

1. Know what the primary purpose of the meeting is.  The good old days of long lunches and chats is gone. Productivity is key. Even brainstorming sessions need structure to have maximum effectiveness.
2. Have the right players involved in the meeting. A common problem is having too many people or even worse, not having the key decision makers involved when they should be. 
3. Have an agenda. And stick to it. Pace the meeting so the last five minutes are not spent trying to cover three or four important topics. Start and end the meeting on time. Don't insult the people who arrived on time by waiting another few minutes in case someone else is planning on attending.
4. Allow time for discussion on key points but clearly show the amount of time allocated and stick to it
5. Reduce reading time during the meeting by distributing materials a couple of days before the meeting, and explain to the attendees that the expectation is that they will prepare by reading the materials.
6. If a meeting is going to last several hours, schedule short health breaks. 
7. Provide non alcoholic drinks and low sugar snacks
8. Have someone take notes of the discussions.  Distribute the typed version of the notes if appropriate.
9. Have the tools needed. Check the laptop and projectors to make sure they work prior to the presentation. Chose an appropriate room (not overly large or so small it is cramped)
10. Ask for feedback, on how you did and on the material presented.

Ten Things to Include in Your Marketing Plan

Marketing is such a broad term, covers so many things. Marketing is knowing what you are selling, who you are selling to, identifying your delivery channels and telling your customers about your brand. The following points should be covered in a marketing plan for product sales:

1. What are you selling, give a clear description including whether the item is a necessity or a luxury.
2. Where is your products in price compared to your competition?
3. Where do you expect your potential customers to hear about your product?
4. Who is your primary customer? Your secondary customer?
5. Where will you be selling your product?
6. What are you doing (going to do) to promote your product?
7. What guarantee or warranty are you offering?
8. Do you have a plan for sales follow up?
9. How will you deal with complaints (of course you don't want any, but...)
10. Do you have a sales budget that you can used to measure how effective your marketing plan was? 

and 10.5  Do you have a marketing budget prepared that includes all marketing activities as well as all associated costs?

Ten Tips for Retail Store Owners

The demands of operating a store, keeping regular hours, staffing issues, and getting sales in a slow economy are all challenges for the retail store owner. Some of the following tips may help.

1. Keep in touch with past customers. This may be through a regular newsletter or face book or maybe your own website. Update the information regularly but don't be annoying by sending out hourly updates on a face book or twitter account. 
2. Be selective about the information you share, make it quality and people will be looking forward to hearing from you.
3. Develop a marketing plan for the next six months, the next year and the next two to three years. 
4. Clearly define who your potential customer is and target your marketing efforts to that person. 
5. Cross market with another business that has a similar customer base to yours but who is not in direct competition. For example take out restaurants often find success if they have the local gas bar pass out food coupons with a gas purchase. 
6. If you are selling clothing, shoes or accessories work with other stores selling similar items to promote an event, maybe a fashion show with proceeds to a local charity. 
7. Sales and discounts can be effective. They help you reduce excess or out of season merchandise and offer value for money to your customers. If you have a mailing list, you can invite those folks to a preview sale for "members" only. 
8. Work with any local business association to sponsor an event or to host an after hours event at your store. 
9. Use press releases as a marketing tool. For example January and February are often slow news times so if your have something newsworthy about your business that would be a good time to get the word out through news releases.
10. Always have your store and your store displays looking attractive and inviting. If you have the luxury of a store front window, change your displays often without having them cluttered. If there is too much happening the details are lost and the effectiveness of the display is lost. 

These are just a few ideas for a retail store owner to try. Not everything works for everyone, but nothing will work if you don't try.

Building Your Team

Every business owner relies on so many people to make his/her business a success. Sometimes in the day to day we forget about our advisors and our employees. The following ten tips are to help you build and keep a great team.

1. Hire people to fit the job, don't design the job to fit the people. This is a mistake many business owners make especially when hiring the first few employees.  Just because you have a great rapore with someone doesn't mean they are the best employee choice.
2. Hire a team player BUT in many cases this person must also be able to work independently 
3. Employees should show initiative within the guidelines your provide
4. Don't hire a "yes" person, your business needs the very best.
5. Take a page our of Bill Gates' playbook and hire people who are better than you are. Your business needs the very best, hire the brightest and the best.
6. It is your responsibility to make sure you know what you expect from your employees ( job descriptions are good tools) and to share those expectations with the employees (regular reviews of performance as a minimum)
7. What advisers do you need? You may want an accountant, a lawyer, an IT or computer consultant and maybe a website designer to name a few. The larger your business and the more diverse your markets the more specialists you will need access to. Know what to expect from each of your advisers...make sure that everyone's expectations are the same. 
8. Do your employees have the attitude and the ability to do the job you are asking them to do? If not can you provide the training required. Attitude is another matter, there is little you can do to change an employee's attitude. 
9. Check references, for potential employees and for all advisers you hire. Ask the hard questions, know exactly what you are getting. Make an informed decision, not a decision that is the path of least resistance and work. 
10. Just because you have a good team in place don't assume that will continue, monitor, train, encourage, make adjustments as required and make sure your expectations are clearly communicated.   Also a well deserved word of praise goes a long way.

Ten Places to Advertise

A few of the many places to place your ad:

1. Yellow Pages
2. Television
3. Radio
4. Newspapers
5. Flyers
6. Promotional Items, Pens, Calendars, Mugs 
7. Bill Boards and other outdoor signs
8. Your website
9. Other business websites
10. Your Business Card 

Which are you using? Do the ads deliver the results you are looking for? How to improve results in future blogs.

Ten Home Office Musts

If you are spending several hours a week in an office, then make that area as pleasant as possible. The following ideas may help make your work area pleasant AND productive.

1. Avoid clutter
2. Include one or two items that are meaningful and inspiring to you...not necessarily just practical
3. Get a comfortable chair that offers good back support
4. Adjust the chair height so your feet can be placed flat on the floor 
5. Have your tools handy, a telephone that is within reach.
6. Have proper lighting to avoid eye strain and glare
7. Make sure your computer screen is at the height and angle that avoid strain and discomfort in your neck and shoulders
8.  Make sure you can have quiet if needed. A room with a door is good but may not always be available to you in a home office.  For example my own home office is in the loft area of our home, open and airy but the sounds from the main floor carry into my work area. Not a problem in my case but this might be disruptive if you are the parent of young children.
9. Have adequate storage space, file cabinets, shelves and drawers
10. If possible have a window, natural light is always an added bonus but not always available in a home office especially those located in finished basements.

Ten Musts When Preparing for a Trade Show

Trade shows are a lot of work and it is very disappointing if, after the show, you are not sure if it was successful for you. The following list contains preparation tips so your trade show experience is a good one.

1. What do you expect to achieve by participating in a trade show? Immediate sales at the show, orders to ship later, or are you more interested in promoting business, raising awareness and getting leads to follow up after the show? Choosing the right show means knowing exactly what you expect. 
2. Develop a show plan clearly listing your objectives for the show. Write it down in an easy to use format so you can compare your actual results to your targets after the show is over. 
3. Investigate the shows that are available and select the one that best suits your goals. Consider the history of the show, the number of visitors, the length of time the show runs.  Have you attended the show as a visitor or as an exhibitor in the past? What do some of the former exhibitors say about the results from the show?
4. What is your display going to look like? If you are selling product, how will you display it? Do you have a prefabricated booth or do you need to bring props such as shelving and walls to have surfaces to display your products?  Find out exactly how much space you would have and build your display at home in a corresponding size space so you know what it will look like and if you have everything you need. Try to avoid the approach of having a table across the front of your booth and your product piled on the table. Take a look at trade show websites to get some good ideas for layout.
5. Pack an emergency kit (and know where you can get additional items if needed during the show).  Some of the things to include: stick pins, nails, hammer, tape, markers, extra price tags, rags and bottle of cleaning solution, stapler and extra staples, electrical cord... and the list goes on. 
6. Have a system for collecting the names of people visiting your booth. There will be several people who are tire kicking but there will also be many others that are genuine leads and these are the names and contact information you need to capture. Don't count on being able to write down the information and keep track of the conversation without a well thought out plan.  Maybe a questionnaire that you can use for each person you talk to.  A clip board and forms will give you a place to make notes during your conversation, also a place to attach their business card for future follow up. 
7. Clearly label the boxes you are packing to take to the show. Have a system that lets you know what is in which box or container. This will save time during show setup. 
8. Will you be able to get everything set up by yourself during the time allowed or will you need to have help?  Arrange for any staff/help that you may need during the show. Be realistic, a four day trade show is a lot of work and long hours, you will need help. Of course shows that are only part of a day or even a day may be manageable by one person.
9. Allow yourself lots of time to get your materials gathered together before the show and to have everything ready. Get printing requirements completed two to three weeks prior to the show so if there are any typos you can have additional materials prepared. Have all printed materials on the best stock and paper that you can afford.  Have a consistent look and feel to all materials, maybe the same background colour and font. 
10. Be well rested and relax. The best results will be achieved when you are calm and organized...plan ahead and have a successful show. 

The above material is a brief overview of some of the things to consider when choosing and participating in a trade show. Future blogs will contain more detailed information on some of the above points. 

Ten Ways to Lose Customers - Poor Customer Service

We all have them, examples of poor customer service. Here are a few examples of what a business owner/manager should avoid:

1. A business is open from 9:00 to 5:00 Monday to Friday with no consideration for appointments or open hours in evenings or on weekends. It's a fact of life, not everyone can shop, do errands or visit your business during the Monday to Friday hours. 
2. Ignore a person who is browsing because you don't think they will buy anyway
3. Encourage staff (and yourself) to take personal phone calls and let those pesky customers wait. After all you life is important too.
4. Always charge full price, sales don't work anyway
5. Ignore your customers once they have made their purchase,  they know where you are so they can find you if they need to buy something else. 
6. Complaints are just a pain, there isn't anything you can do to make a dissatisfied customer happy anyway, so why spend time and money trying?
7. The only thing customers are interested in is how cheap they can buy something so there isn't any reason to find out anything more about the customer. 
8. There is no such thing as customer loyalty so it isn't important to get to know your customers
9. Charge for everything, those giveaways and promotional items are just profit eaters, and the customers don't appreciate them anyway.
10. Don't smile or be friendly, after all it is serious business running a business.

And 10.5    Stay with the customer, follow them wherever they go in the store. If you chat and talk and follow them they will eventually get fed up and leave.

While hopefully you got a smile from the above list, I have personally experienced all of the above to one degree or another...and I'm afraid most people have. To improve your sales and grow your business none of the above can be allowed to live at your place of business.

Ten Things to Include in Your Business Plan

Many business owners see the business planning process as something to put off as long as possible.  However, there are definite advantages to having an up to date business plan. And business planning doesn't have to be the huge task that many see it as.  The following are THE ten things to include in your business plan.

1. Executive Summary - a page summarizing the whole plan. Write it last.  Nobody looks forward to reading 50 to 70 pages of print about a business...so do the executive summary. 
2. A clear description of just what you business is and does. Consulting services isn't a good enough description. What kind of consulting, how long have you been in business, and who are the owners/principals in the business. 
3. A brief overview of the industry you are in.  For example if you are have a retail shop that sell bicycles, includes statistics on how many bicycles are sold annually in your service area, the price point of your product compared to others, the percentage of the business that you currently have and your expectations. 
4. A description of the Operating requirements, store space, storage space, equipment required...maybe a delivery van for example, and the location of your business. If this is a plan for a business that will be opened, include the information about two or three options that you are considering. 
5. Describe your product or service.  What niche are you targeting? If you have a restaurant, what makes your hamburger different from every other one out there?  Or do you even sell hamburgers? 
6. Describe your customer base. Are you offering arts and crafts items that are hand made and unique? If yes, not everyone will be interested in buying them...too expensive for many. So who are your customers? Do they come to you or do you go to them...through shows and exhibitions.
7. What is your marketing plan? This is usually a separate document but the basics should also be included in your business plan. It is great to know what you are selling and who you want to sell it to but you also need to give thought to how you are going to make the sale, how are you going to let your potential customers know what you are offering and where you are. 
8. Short term and long term goals with action plans.  It is fairly easy to come up with six or eight goals, the tricky part is planning how you will make those goals reality. So for every goal there should be a detailed listing of the actions required to complete the goal. The action plans should also include who will be responsible and the completion date.  Actions without a completion date have a way of not getting done. 
9. Listing of all assets including, equipment and inventories, with prices, that are required.
10. And finally the dreaded financial history and projections. Cash flow projections, Historical Income statements and balance sheets and proforma statements for the next three to five years.

Not necessarily an easy task but a business plan can be a valuable tool for the savvy business owner. Your successful competitors have one...enough said.

Ways to Promote Your Business

There are many more than ten ways to promote your business.  This blog will list only ten of the many many ways. More blogs will follow with more suggestions.

1. Social Media. Accounts on facebook or twitter give business owners the opportunity to make daily announcements and updates without being annoying and "getting in the faces" of customers.  Two of the pages for restaurants that I follow on facebook keep me updated daily with the special of the day.  Gives me info of interest in a quick and easy way. 
2. Network.  Build a network of contacts. Join organizations, but more importantly show up and show up prepared to participate with business cards! Have you ever asked someone for a business card and they "left them home", they don't do much good there.
3. News releases.  Most business owners I know are not using press releases.  I don't have anything new to say about my business is often the reason given. What about an employee of the month, a monthly draw for a give away, an announcement of an upcoming exhibit of drawings by school children on a specific topic, an event in support of a charity, and the list goes on. 
4. Ask for referrals. Don't be shy about it, ask your happy satisfied customers if they know of someone who may be interested in your products or services. Then follow up. 
5. Advertising and promotional materials.  Well designed and the best quality you can afford. Home made business cards can be an excellent marketing tool, as long as they are well designed and on the best quality paper you can get. Attention to detail in everything you do for your business reflects the standards you set in your business. 
6. Take part in local community events, be a sponsor or a judge or a competitor. 
7. Take part in trade shows or sales. Get information about your business out to potential customers
8. Have a well planned marketing plan. It doesn't have to be expensive, just well planned. Know your customer and how to reach them with updates about your business
9. Monthly, quarterly newsletters, either by snail mail or electronically.  Of course electronically is cheaper to distribute but that may not reach your customers. 
10. Join organizations that support and encourage the growth of businesses in your area. The local branch of the Chamber of Commerce often offers networking events and other business related activities.

Ten Ideas to Expand or Start a Business

Business ideas are everywhere.  Consider the following:

1. Magazines, Internet and Newspapers.  There are often stories of products or services that are available in other regions but not in your business community. 
2. Expanding an existing product or service.  Add to what you already offer.  Maybe offer classes on how to use a product you sell.
3. Supply what is missing from the local market.  
4. Improve an existing product. Products often go through an evolution.  Build on what already exists. 
5. Partner with another business to service the products they sell.
6. Patent databases may provide a product already developed that you can distribute or manufacture.  Legal agreements with the patent owner(s) are necessary.
7. Visit tradeshows and exhibitions to see what is available.
8. Update previous products.  (your own or the competition's)
9. Ask people what they would like to see available locally
10. Expand your existing customer base by using internet, social networking and technology.