MelindaEmerson.com - Newsletter

Volume 1 No. 1
Issue Date: January 2008
Publisher: Melinda Emerson
© 2008 Melinda Emerson. All Rights Reserved
Inside this Issue:
A. Tip of the Month
B. Sage Advice: On Hiring
C. Help Me Melinda
D. Feature Article: Five lessons for common mistakes in small businesses
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Welcome to my inaugural e-newsletter Grow Your Business. This quarterly publication is designed to provide you with tips to keeping your business strong and to help you start your new business the right way.
I became a small business coach and consultant to help people take advantage of all of my successes as well as my mistakes. This will help you save time and money. Each e-newsletter will feature advice on how to start and stay in business. It will feature “how-to” articles, an OFB tip of the month, Sage Advice from a great entrepreneur, and many other helpful tidbits.

Tip of the Month
Try making sales calls only on Tues, Weds and Thurs between the hours of 10am-3pm, and do not call anyone during lunchtime unless it is scheduled in advance. By adding this process to your sales calls, it can make a big difference on whether you are talking to a person directly or to their voicemail.
Sage Advice
“When hiring employees it’s best to interview at least 3 candidates, use a formal application, conduct panel interviews, check all references and try to find other references not supplied.”
Michael Pearson, President Union Packaging
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Help Me Melinda
Many problems start up businesses face can be averted by seeking expert guidance in the planning stages, long before leases are signed, the website is up and payroll is due. The right advisor can help you build a solid foundation to launch your enterprise and steer you through the rocky times once you are open for business.
I work with small business owners on a long term basis as a business coach or on a specific project or issue as a business consultant. I also provide group coaching through various tele-classes and tele-seminar series.
This March, I am kicking off my annual Business Plan Boot Camp Program. This 6-week tele-seminar series is designed to help you Get Your Business Plan Done! or revise your initial business plan and offers problem-solving skills to move your business forward.
The program holds 10 participants only to provide for specialized attention, so reserve your space NOW. It is a great time to plan how you are going to fulfill your goal of becoming a small business owner. Are you transitioning your hobby to a full-time business or finally getting your house in order after running your business for that last year without a clear plan for success? This is the peak period for progress Sign up for my Business Plan Boot Camp Program today.
Make your life great in 08! Get your business plan done NOW! Register today! HYPERLINK "http://www.melindaemerson.com/bootcamp" \t "_blank" www.melindaemerson.com/bootcamp
Feature Article: Five Lessons For Common Mistakes In Small Businesses
There are five common mistakes that hamper small business success. They include failing to delegate tasks, not doing thorough market research, being inflexible, not developing a focused target market and not exercising fiscal discipline.
After years of working with entrepreneurs, I have seen the same challenges over and over again and, while my research is not scientific, it is a fact that if you look out for these 5 areas your business will be better for it. Consider it ‘working smarter and not working harder.’

Lesson 1
When you first start out in business many times you are an army of one. It’s you alone with your laptop and a dream trying to become the next Bill Gates from your back bedroom. While your initial drive, ideas and enthusiasm is what brings forth the business, it will not be what will propel it. You must figure out what your time is worth. By that I mean if you can bill out your time at $100/per hour, you need to make sure you are not spending the majority of your time doing $10/per hour work.
From the beginning, figure out what you are best at and as soon as you can engage others in the dream. Learn to delegate tasks. People will be happy to help you, especially if you give them a clearly defined task. Use friends, family, co-workers, interns, co-op students etc. to do things that you can let someone else do. Focus on your core skill, and understand that it is okay for someone to have a good idea about your business other than you.

Lesson 2
Nothing can kill a business faster than a trend or technology that comes along and changes the complete landscape of the industry. Think Polaroid. Do you even remember it? Don’t let this happen to you. Knowing everything you can about your market and the upcoming trends in the market is one of the most important elements of your business planning.
Just because there’s a need, does not mean there’s a demand for your product or service. There are four key elements of market research: know your industry, know your market, know your competition and know your target audience.

Lesson 3
The song that made Kenny Rogers famous has a refrain that goes, “You got to know when the hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away and (most important) know when to run.” While we are not talking about a poker game, when it comes to business you can lose your shirt by sticking to your original plan.
In business you must be flexible, sometimes what you think is your target market isn’t quite so. Your business plan is your best guess about what you think will happen. Sometimes your true target market will reveal itself by evaluating who is actually doing repeat business with you.

Lesson 4
Marketing and sales are the lifeblood of any business. Make sure you are not so focused on what you LIKE to do in your business that you forget what you NEED to do to keep the business going. 90% of all small business transactions occur from networking and word of mouth referrals. Make sure you are networking at every opportunity so that you do not starve your business of sales.
It’s also critical to narrow your target market as much as possible. Consider a niche market. You have limited time and resources, so the more narrow the target focus the more your firm stands out as a specialist. This also gives you an advantage as you may be able to charge more as a highly trained expert.

Lesson 5
Lack of fiscal discipline and proper accounting systems is the most common mistake small businesses make in the first few years of business. Set up your financial records and systems professionally from the very beginning. Use accounting software or hire expert help if you are not familiar with accounting. At least, hire a bookkeeper to reconcile the accounts monthly.
Use a budget and track expenses month to month. Make sure you have up to date financial records by the 15th of the following month and use those financial records to make financial decisions. Investing in the financial management of your business will pay-off significantly in the long run.
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Melinda Emerson is a Seasoned Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker, and Small Business Coach. In addition, to hosting TV news and radio segments on small business. Melinda is a columnist for several traditional and on-line publications about small business issues. Her first book, “Be Your Own Boss! How to Quit Your Job and Start Your Own Business in 18 Months or Less!” is an 18 month planning guide to start your own business and never have a boss again. She also has an audio CD, 10 Things You Must Never Forget in Business.
Melinda has information products on how to start and grow a small business, how to transition from a job to small business ownership and women business owner success strategies.

For more information contact: 610-256-8719

Melinda@melindaemerson.com
www.melindaemerson.com

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