Posted on Friday, 5th March 2010 by admin

You’ve heard the statistics: Fewer than 30 percent of family businesses survive to the second generation, and just 10 percent hold on through the third. Sound bleak? It’s not. Those are far better survival odds than for small businesses not run by a team of family members. A tight-knit managerial circle, and the flexibility of related – and deeply invested – employees, has been proven to make a business resilient. It also can confer a significant competitive advantage and impress customers, who appreciate knowing they’re dealing with someone who cares deeply, and who has the same surname that’s on the letterhead. But family management presents unique and intense challenges, including day-to-day emotional dynamics and big-picture issues such as succession planning.Inc.com spoke with experts who have firsthand family business experience as well as coaches and consultants who specialize in the psychology and the logistics of running a family business. They shared their research, pointers, and life experience.Dig Deeper: Resources for Running a Family Business Running a Family Business: Planning is Everything. It’s easy to say any start-up needs a business plan, mission statement, and revenue projections. In a family business, it’s not that simple. [...]

Original post via Inc.com

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Posted on Friday, 5th March 2010 by admin

via Tony Robbins Training Blog

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Posted on Thursday, 4th March 2010 by admin

Opportunities abound for small businesses to cut their tax bills. The key is understanding what’s deductible for your business.

A good tax preparer can guide you, but it is your responsibility to save receipts throughout the year.

“Organization and good record keeping are the keys to lower tax preparation fees and painless IRS audits,” says Sam Fawaz, a certified financial planner and certified public accountant with Y.D. Financial Services in Franklin, Tenn. “Bringing a shoe box to your CPA or accountant and saying, ‘Here are my tax records; please prepare my return’ will undoubtedly cost you more in compilation and accounting fees to arrive at tax return numbers.” [...]

Original post via Entrepreneur

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Posted on Thursday, 4th March 2010 by admin

To many small-business owners, the facts and figures their daily work casts off are more incidental than instrumental. Reluctantly storing it all on disks, in file cabinets and on scraps of paper strewn about the back room, business owners often think this constant stream of information is useless (except maybe to the IRS). They see it as a burden, another onerous management task in a work day that is already too short. [...]

Original post via Entrepreneur

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Posted on Thursday, 4th March 2010 by admin

For a week, forget the expensive, complicated marketing efforts and focus on something simple, cheap (and very achievable): Make a referral.

In an effort to jump start small businesses – and remind them of the power of a single referral – marketing expert John Jantsch is launching Make a Referral Week 2010 March 8 through 12. [...]

via Inc. Magazine Blog

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Posted on Thursday, 25th February 2010 by admin

Dr. Dean Severidt is the President and Founder of Pet Doctors of America.  Dr. Severidt has been a veterinarian and business owner for 30 years.  Pet Doctors of America was recently named to Inc. Magazines 500|5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in North America.

In my experience, veterinarians have raised two arguments when asked why they do not advertise as much as other industries. First, they will argue that advertising is too expensive. While this may be true if the advertising is not done properly, many times veterinarians do not realize just how quickly their practices can grow with the right kind of advertising.  To read the entire post, click here.

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Posted on Friday, 5th February 2010 by admin

via Marcus Buckingham

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Posted on Saturday, 30th January 2010 by admin

If you understand every aspect that determines good small business management, then that means you understand what motivates your workers.  As a manager, what are you going to do in order to build an environment where every employee feels comfortable and able to participate?  What can you do to increase the productivity and satisfaction of your employees at the same time?  How can you employ talented people and keep them?  How will you train your staff in an effective way, introducing them properly to the business while involving others in the process?  All these questions are the fundamentals of small business management that must be answered sooner or later.

Many powerhouse businesses have been around for many years.  When deciding on your business operations, you need not reinvent the wheel.  Think of past experiences you have had working with various companies and remember what you liked the most or what left you feeling dissatisfied.  Contact specific people who are managers of successful companies and ask how they do it.  By doing this, you will be on your way to establishing what makes them successful and what you can emulate in your own small business management techniques.

One important area of small business management that you duplicate is the financial aspect of a thriving business.  Budgeting is essential in keeping your finances in a healthy, comfortable place.  If you find that you are continually in the red month after month, do not continue with your same tactics hoping something will change on its own.  Step back and reevaluate what you can change to begin producing some profits.  This could include making employee cuts, skimping on the luxuries in your office and cutting back on stock.  Remember, in the first year or more of owning and operating a small business, you will likely not see a turnaround in profits.  Be patient and continue to emulate other prosperous businesses.

You will undoubtedly face problems in your small business management.  Do not let issues fester but rather expose them and resolve them as they occur.  What was once a solution may not be anymore.  Do not get stuck in your comfort zone because that is not how problems are solved.  You will note that successful businesses never seclude themselves but are constantly observing the behaviors of their competitors in an effort to stay one step ahead.

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