Home Wealth Project

What Will It Take to Get You to Start Hiring Again?

Sure there’s lot of political talk about job creation, but let’s ignore what the politicians have to say. Instead, I want to look at what it would really take for small businesses, long touted as the “engine of job growth,” to start hiring again.

Actually small businesses do want to hire. In fact, 40.7 percent of those surveyed in an ongoing study of privately owned businesses conducted by the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Project and Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp are planning to do so in the next six months, compared to 38.1% who have no plans to hire and 21.2% who are uncertain.

But access to capital is a huge stumbling block for the companies in the survey, all of which had annual sales under $5 million. Asked what policies were most likely to encourage them to hire in 2012, “increased access to capital” was cited by (34.8 percent), with tax incentives ranking second (23.2 percent) and regulatory reform third (18.3 percent).

Where would small businesses like to get capital? Bank loans were the preferred financing source for the majority (70.7 percent). Angel capital, the second most desirable funding option on the list, fell far short, cited by just 35.7 percent of survey respondents. Private equity (28.1 percent) and venture capital (27.2 percent) were close behind.

However, of those small businesses that had actually approached banks for loans in the past 12 months, only 44.5% obtained a loan. Whether or not they were successful, the study showed that the average business owner contacted 2.2 banks and spent 16 to 24 hours of time on the loan process.

In announcing the results, John Paglia, lead researcher of the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Project and associate professor of finance at Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, suggests that small businesses may be losing their incentive to pursue bank loans.

“Many businesses are now questioning whether contacting banks for credit is worth the time invested. Taking 16-24 hours away from ‘minding the store’ to pursue a loan can be extremely detrimental to any small business, especially when the odds are not in their favor,” Paglia says.

Personally, I realize that 16 to 24 hours is a substantial time investment, but if the result could potentially be a capital infusion that saves your business or helps it grow exponentially, I’d consider that a small price to pay. I’d also note that getting capital from VCs, private investors or angels is likely to take substantially longer than 16 to 24 hours.

But I also see Paglia’s point. Small businesses are losing faith. They doubt going through the normal channels will get them anywhere. And if small businesses can’t count on finding capital, they won’t have the confidence (or money) to hire.

Any entrepreneur who had to lay off staff in the Great Recession most certainly doesn’t want to do it again. As business owners, letting go of a team member hurts, so hiring isn’t a decision we make lightly.

From Small Business Trends

View full post on Small Business News, Tips, Advice – Small Business Trends

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Roulette Assault – Assault the Casino. Take Money Hostage.

Jul 18th

Casino gambling strategy that will blow your mind. The game of roulette has never experienced a bigger threat, and the players are going to eat this one alive! Consider this casino robbery because this baby will sell! Earn a generous 75%/sale. Get On It!
Roulette Assault – Assault the Casino. Take Money Hostage.

Assault, Casino, Hostage., money, Roulette, Take

Save Money From Day 1, Take Your Own Lunch to Work

Jun 12th

Posted by Home Wealth Project in Home Biz Opportunities

A sure way to save money & your health. Take your own lunch to work/school. Recipes with pictures, guide you, step-by-step, to make your own delicious lunch. Even make your lunch at work. No waiting in line for service at fast food restaurants.
Save Money From Day 1, Take Your Own Lunch to Work

From, lunch, money, save, Take, work

How else are you supposed to take it?

May 20th

“Don’t take it personally.”

This is tough advice. Am I supposed to take it like a chair? Sometimes it seems as though the only way to take it is personally. That customer who doesn’t like your product (your best work) or that running buddy who doesn’t want to run with you any longer…

Here’s the thing: it’s never personal. It’s never about you. How could it be? That person doesn’t truly know you, understand what you want or hear the voices in your head. All they know is themselves.

When someone moves on, when she walks away or even badmouths you or your work, it’s not personal about you. It’s personal about her. Her agenda, her decisions, her story.

Do your work, the best way you know how. Is there any other option?

View full post on Seth’s Blog

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How to Take on a Giant

Apr 28th

How to Take on a Giant

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

Marketing podcast with Stephen Denny (Click to play or right click and “Save As” to download – Subscribe now via iTunes or subscribe via other RSS device (Google Listen)

Some years ago I wrote a post called the Natural Advantages of Small Business. The topic is one that I’ve also delivered as a presentation for Chambers of Commerce and the like. In this week’s episode of the Duct Tape Marketing I visit with Stephen Denny, author of Killing Giants - 10 Strategies to Topple the Goliath in Your Industry.

Denny tackles the question that many small businesses face and that’s “what to do when you’re faced with competition that has more money, name recognition and customers?”

If I were to sum up Killing Giants it would be this – Identify a competitor’s vulnerability and exploiting the heck out of it.

Interestingly Denny’s research showed the speed and nimbleness isn’t the answer because, by itself, it doesn’t scale. Companies that use speed also make better decisions based on fact, not gut.

The book uses case studies to illustrate how successful smaller businesses took on giants in their industry to do just that.

One of my personal favorite case studies is Method’s taking on Proctor and Gamble.

From the book:
Everyone thought Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry were crazy to start Method, a new cleaning products company. The category had long been dominated by P&G, Unilever, and Colgate-Palmolive. Those giants had so much clout with the retail chains that their soaps had barely needed updating for decades.

But by taking advantage of its underdog position, Method carved out a very profitable niche: environmentally sound products in stylish, innovative packaging. Despite a far smaller marketing budget than their competitors, Method connected with a substantial minority of people who wanted to “buy green” but who also wanted high-quality products.

Some of my favorite strategic approaches from the book include:

Win in the last three feet. Leverage someone else’s investment—just be there the moment the customer grabs their wallet.
Create “thin ice” arguments. Shift the conversation to places where the competition can’t—or won’t—go.
Fight unfairly. Learn how the underdog can turn the tables, pick unfair fights and create awkward mis-matches.

You can listen to the show by subscribing the feed in iTunes or a variety of other free services such as Google Listen (Use this RSS feed) or you can buy the Duct Tape Marketing iPhone app. (iTunes link – Cost is $2.99) or

View full post on Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing

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My Very Initial Take on Empire Avenue

Apr 27th

My Very Initial Take on Empire Avenue

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

The latest shiny object to grab the buzz of the online marketers and social media set is something called Empire Avenue.

As you know, I like to jump into many new things to stir around and see if I can find practical value to share with my readers and I usually don’t write about something unless I feel it does merit you taking a look at. Having said that, Empire Avenue is something that is primarily for those that already have a decent amount of involvement in social media. If you’re just getting started, this isn’t the place to focus.

First off, what is it. On the surface it’s a stock market like game where individuals and companies offer shares of stock for sale and that stock value is measured based on demand, actions taken on Empire Avenue and the collective participation and engagement in social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Players try to increase the value of their profile and also invest in other individuals to earn a return on their virtual dollars, or eaves as they are called, in the game. There are countless ways to increase your value and participate in the game so I won’t even attempt to cover that for now.

I have to admit there is a certain appeal to the entire game aspect, trying to get your stock price to rise and betting on those that you know will do well, but there’s a giant time drain factor that can be costly if there’s no real value or return. (One of the first things you might notice if you start to participate is all the silly little things that people are doing to try to get your buy their stock – don’t let the silliness factor be a complete turnoff just yet.)

Critics of the recent hype suggest this is little more than an ego boosting toy for social media gurus and wanna be gurus and on the surface you can certainly see why this claim is pretty easy to level.

However, as I’ve toyed with it for less than a week now I’ve found something valuable enough for me to suggest that those heavily engaged in social media and other online pursuits take a look at it and here’s why.

Of all the tools out there that are trying to measure influence and engagement, tools like Klout and Peer Index, I think Empire Avenue may have developed one of the best for doing so. It doesn’t seem to be all about pure follower numbers as it weighs comments and other activity as well. So, from that standpoint there exists some value.

The other thing I’ve noticed since playing with it is that it does a very good job of helping me focus on the important aspects of my social media engagement outside of Empire Avenue. Because the game measures the important things I do on Twitter and Facebook, for example, and rewards me in the game for doing them, it has the impact of making active social media participation more fun.

Now, that may not be enough for some to trudge through learning another interface, but I think it’s reason enough to recommend you put it on your radar of things to look at while it’s still in the early stages.

View full post on Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing

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How To Use Marketing Thinking to Take Over Your World

Apr 6th

How To Use Marketing Thinking to Take Over Your World

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

This week I was asked to guest lecture to a group of senior marketing students at the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business on the importance of marketing in an organization.

I used the opportunity to talk about the fact that while the fundamentals of marketing, still taught in most college programs, had not changed much, the way we need to view and think about marketing and markets has changed dramatically.

One student set this up nicely for me when I asked for her definition of marketing and she promptly offered the four Ps of Marketing as a definition.

As most of the students in attendance had either recently accepted a position with a firm or were in the throes of a job search, I took the opportunity to offer some marketing advice tinged with just a bit of parental preaching.

I believe that anyone, regardless of job title, that approaches the completion of their job with marketing thinking can make themselves indispensible to the organization they choose to work for and in effect control their destiny.

This talk was aimed specifically at students, but what I had to say is a recipe for success, regardless of where you currently reside in the career process.

Here’s how I suggested they employ marketing thinking.

Find mission first – Yes, you may need to take what seems like a good job so you can move our of your parent’s house (trust me they want this as much as you do), but dig deep and find out about the culture of this organization, find out why they do what they do, find out what their story is, and find out if their mission (not mission statement) is something that excites you.

Ask people that already work for the company you’re considering what they love about the company. Ask them to tell you a story that illustrates what the company is really passionate about.

In The Referral Engine I recounted Zappo’s now well known practice of offering all new employees $2,000 to quit upon finishing their training. The thought is that if someone is willing to leave for $2,000 this isn’t the place for them. I challenged them to apply the reverse thinking and asked them how much someone would have to offer them to not take the job they were considering. It just might be one way to measure the connection with the organization.

Get good at content and context – We’re all drowning in information overload and one of the master marketing thinking skills is filtering and aggregating content in ways that allow us to gain deep knowledge in subjects without having to invest our days and nights in it. Bonus points for being able to condense and communicate reams of information into snack size educational value.

I implored them to subscribe to blogs, create content alerts and connect to every social pipeline available for the companies and industries they were considering.

Question everything you’re asked to do – They liked that one, but I had to clarify that I didn’t mean that as in question authority, I meant it as question why you are doing what you are asked to do, how it connects with the overall objectives of the department or company, and how, particularly if it benefited the customer, you could improve upon the experience.

Anyone with a college degree can operate from the manual – difference makers have the confidence to create value.

Create change in favor of the customer – In almost every job situation there will be a manager. Now, great managers encourage growth, change, innovation and maybe even the occasional flat out challenge of authority, but great managers are rare.

Most managers want to know that you will do what’s asked, not ruffle feathers and keep hitting assignments and deadlines.

But, even weak managers will come to trust you if you make them look good by creating change that benefits the customer. Think this way and you’ll soon be on your way to creating change the impacts your entire organization as well.

Construct a platform – Look all around you and start asking what your boss, managers, co-workers, vendors, and customers need to be more successful. What resources and other professionals could you assemble to become the go to person to help other get what they need?

College students and young professionals are always instructed to go out there and meet people and network with folks that might help them get ahead, but what if we showed them instead how to build a platform for helping others get ahead?

Now that’s marketing thinking applied at its most effective level.

So, let me ask you this . . . if you’re employed by an organization, even if you run that organization, are you applying marketing thinking to all that you do? What other advice would you give these students and job seekers?

View full post on Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing

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4 Trends Your Business Should Take Advantage of Now

Mar 30th

4 Trends Your Business Should Take Advantage of Now

Every once in a while it’s a good idea to sit back, take stock and assess how some of today’s current trends could benefit your business. Here are four to consider that have both marketing and operations implications for your company.

1. Going mobile. Mobile marketing is becoming increasingly important as consumer adoption of smartphones increases. Whether you market to businesses or consumers, your customers are increasingly accessing the Internet and using phones as shopping tools. But according to the fifth Small Business Success Index survey released recently, few small business owners currently use mobile marketing methods such as texting promotions to customers, creating a mobile site or mobile application, and advertising on mobile sites. Just 15 percent of entrepreneurs surveyed said these activities have the potential to be “extremely” or “very valuable” to their businesses. I think this is a big mistake. Young people are an obvious market for mobile marketing, but with smartphones becoming essential tools for everyone from soccer moms to businesspeople, no business can afford to ignore this trend.

And speaking of busy businesspeople, are you taking full advantage of your smartphone’s capabilities? With phones doing more and more, lugging your laptop is becoming less and less necessary. Whatever type of smartphone you have, explore its features so you can streamline essential tasks you need to do on the road.

2. Social deal sites. Social deal sites—where customers sign up to get daily emails of deep discounts on products and services in their areas—are sizzling hot. Currently, Groupon and LivingSocial are the biggest names in this industry, but there are plenty of local and regional offerings too. If your business caters to local customers, you’ll want to explore these sites as a marketing tool.

Wish there was a social deal site where businesses could sign up to save on the products and services you need? Then check out Bizy, a company I’m working with, which just launched this week. Bizy bills itself as the first dedicated deal site for small businesses. The site (BizyDeals.com) offers discounts of 50 percent or more on a range of products and services including office supplies, software and hardware, shipping, legal and accounting services, travel and insurance.

3. Subscription services. Slowly but surely, subscriptions have become woven into our daily lives. I’m not talking about magazine subscriptions (although they still exist) but the subscription business model in which everything from software to IT services to consulting is paid for on a monthly basis by automatic charge. Subscription services can streamline your expenses because you pay only for what you need. On the flip side, remember to keep track of your subscriptions and reassess them regularly, or it’s easy to end up paying for things you never use.

For your business, providing products or services on a subscription basis can be a smart way to boost your cash flow by generating recurring income streams. Just about everything can be sold on a set-it-and-forget-it basis, whether it’s a quarterly shipment of skin-care products, a monthly phone consultation or ongoing access to premium information on your website.

4. Seniors. Americans age 65 and older are a hot market, but one that’s too often ignored by small business. A recent MarketWatch article cited one expert who noted that while the teenage market is trendy, “there is … 10 times as much money to be made from seniors.” In fact, Census data show seniors are more affluent than most segments of the population, with the median net worth of households aged 65 and over at $108,885 in 2000, compared to a measly $7,240 for households under age 35. By 2030, people over 65 will account for 20 percent of the population—so if you’re not already targeting this market, figure out how you can.

Seniors can benefit your business in another way: as employees. If you’re like most small businesses, you could use some extra help right now, but you’re not ready to hire a full-time worker. Consider hiring retirees as part-time employees. Their experience and work ethic can make them valuable assets to your business, without the full-time commitment.

From Small Business Trends

View full post on Small Business News, Tips, Advice – Small Business Trends

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Initiative isn’t given, you take it

Mar 28th

The amazing thing is that unlike taking an apple or a chocolate bar, there’s no loss to the rest of us. After you take it, we all benefit.

There’s one other thing you can take at work, easily and with approval: responsibility. In fact, they sort of have to go together. One without the other is a mess.

View full post on Seth’s Blog

Given, initiative, Isn't, Take

Take Your Time Developing Your Brand

Mar 17th