Lead Your Small Business To Success Using SWOT Analysis

Did you know that a SWOT analysis is really a gift? This is not a practice typically embraced by the average small business owner.In fact, there are many business owners who dread this exercise and avoid it. Smart entrepreneurs do not consider this business analysis as a measure of how badly you are doing.Instead, they consider it a gift.

A SWOT analysis looks at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of a business. This can be challenging as it requires a look at one's financial statements and inventory. For service providers, it includes the stability of their client base.Beyond the usual way of evaluating the business, add a variation to this exercise. As a small business owner, include yourself by examining recent skills learned, personal events or crises, and anything that is supporting your business' success. For example, joining a networking group or mastermind group may reduce your feelings of isolation and panic. This allows you to keep your creative juices flowing so you produce great products and/or services which make you money.

As you go through the SWOT analysis, write it on paper and/or create a file so there is a record of the company's strategic planning and growth. Many of my clients tell me that they do it in their heads.One catch to this is that you can fool yourself into thinking things are not so great or not so bad. A written version creates the distance to see more accurately how the business is performing. Use measurements that are verifiable such as the profit and loss statement, number of clients, inventory, and any other resources that illustrate each of the four areas.

Here is the process:

1. Strengths. What is going well? Identify what supports meeting the business goals. Include any recent skills you have developed that are producing an ROI (Return on Investment) as well as the products or services that produce revenue. Give yourself a pat on the back for what you do better than anyone else. 2. Weaknesses. What is not going well? This can be a difficult section for many business owners. Keep an open, curious mind about what is keeping the business from flying high. Some of the reasons may include difficulty delegating tasks or a poor marketing strategy.An underrated area that can deeply affect a business is the entrepreneur's personal issues. Divorces, medical issues, and other personal crises can interfere with how you run your business. As long as your energy is focused on coping with your crisis, it is difficult to maintain a high level of engagement in your business. 3. Opportunities. It is too easy to think that the economy or other circumstances are eating up your opportunities. Look for low-lying fruit.Are you and your sales staff calling all of your prospects?Have you asked your past clients for referrals or repeat business? Is there something that is staring you in the face that you are avoiding? Basically, use what is currently present to grow your business. Examine trends, changes in laws, technology, and anything else that could produce revenue and profit. 4. Threats. What could hinder or hurt the business right now? These obstacles can include environmental circumstances, skills that you have not mastered, or your competitors. For one client, it was as simple as removing the word, "should" from her vocabulary.Another client is faced with explaining how his company's investment strategies are affected by the recent economic crisis so his clients keep their faith in him. The gift of a SWOT analysis is a clear picture of your business. You know how it is growing, your obstacles, and your opportunities. This process challenges you to objectively look at your business and your role as the leader of your organization.It takes strength to tell yourself the truth and the will to avoid complacency.Now you can make smart decisions and take action no matter if it includes re-working your business plan or adding a new product or service. Article Source: http://business-small-business-gw.blogspot.com/2008/10/gift-of-swot-analysis.html

How to save your business from Bankruptcy

The best way to save your business from bankruptcy is to begin by setting up your finances securely. By setting up your finances with solid original financing, along with a good budget and self-restraint, will help you save your business from ever falling into bankruptcy.

Saving your business from bankruptcy begins with solid financing

If you are going to save your business from financing, first, you need to consider your financing options. You can finance your business through a combination or a sole method: personal financing, friend and family financing, credit card financing, a commercial finance method, or possibly grants from local governments. Ensure that you research all of your options. Setting up your finances also includes determining what all of your expenses are, what your expenses will be, and using accounting software to help control and track your finances.

Business finances have so many different components and things to control that sometimes it seems impossible to keep track of everything. You have to know how much money is going to your expenses, your payables, payroll, inventory, cash, and more. You also have to track your cash flow and any profit that you make. When you make lists of all of your different expenses things become even more difficult to track.

Come up with the most detailed budget you possibly can. Also determine how you are going to track your business finances. Do you have a system in place that is universal across the board? Is it easy to understand your expense tracking system? Do you have guidelines in place for your different kinds of money and how it may be used for different expenses? Are all of your employees trained in your guidelines and how to record expenses?

Using accounting software geared just for small businesses can make it infinitely easier for you to streamline how you track your expenses and control your finances. Accounting software can help you track all of the different aspects listed above, like your payroll, your inventory, and more. Also, accounting software can be adapted for the needs of different types of businesses.

When you are looking for accounting software for your small business, there are several key questions that you need to ask yourself when evaluating your different accounting software options. Here are the questions that you need to review for each particular product.

1. Can this product upgrade and change in its scale as my business grows and changes? 2. Does this product have the different features that my business needs? 3. Can I learn how to use this product easily? Is it easy to use? 4. Is this particular product compatible with my computer system? 5. Does the majority of this product consist of features that I don't actually need? 6. Is this product compatible with the network used by my office? 7. Does the price fit with my business' budget? 8. Does this product's vendor provide online customer support and phone customer support?

Here are some overviews of different small business account software options.

Microsoft Small Business Accounting

Microsoft manufactures a small business accounting software that is similar in interface and procedures to Microsoft Office. If you regularly use Microsoft Office and you like it, then this might be a good choice for you. Microsoft Small Business Accounting software comes with sales order and purchase order processing, inventory management, banking and payroll, and job tracking.

MYOB Mac small business accounting software

If you are a Mac lover, then you will want to investigate MYOB small business accounting software. The basic version of MYOB comes with customer management, expenses, banking, sales, and basic accounting necessities.

If you need more options and features for your business, the higher versions of MYOB come with comprehensive accounting features like purchases and payables, payroll, time billing, contact management, inventory management, appointment scheduling, forecasting, budgeting, banking, contact management, appointment scheduling, logo design, and employee file management.

If it is too late for you and your business is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, then you should contact a specialist who works solely with businesses who are worried about bankruptcy. Call up your creditors and arrange payment plans. See if you can get an emergency loan from the bank. Work with a finance specialist who can help you work out arrangements with your creditors and can help you find solutions.

Article Source: http://www.businessknowledgesource.com/finance/how_to_save_your_business_from_bankruptcy_025410.html

Some Great Small Business Ideas

Small businesses are these days preferred by many individuals rather than jobs. They need to work for about 6 to 8 hours per day and get limited salaries. They can plan their own time and work towards gaining substantial profits if they start their own business. You can start a business even if you just have any small business idea but you don't have any ready capital. It is so because many banks offer you loans to start your businesses.

You can take a personal loan or a business loan or a mortgage loan too. The banks review your business and idea and do their own research and evaluate the feasibility of the idea. If they think your business proposal can work, they provide you a business loan on the basis of certain terms and conditions. Therefore, you can put your small business ideas to use very easily. Given below are some small business ideas.

1. Business planner:

It is one of the most exciting jobs that one ever can do. You have to actually plan out the business strategies for your client and help him or her gain maximum profits. To start this business though, you need some expert knowledge about start up businesses. You should know all about the financial transactions and other important aspects.

2. Event organizer:

If you have the skill to organize things, you can definitely go for event organizing as your business. People need event organizers to organize marriages, receptions, meetings, trips and all other things that need planning. You can act as the planner and plan out the things foe them considering their financial capacity. This can be the most exciting job that one can ever get. Along with the knack of organizing things, one needs to be creative in mind to organize events in the most elegant way.

3. Public relations:

If you are good at pursuing people, you can start your own business as a public relations official. In this job you need to organize press releases or press conferences. You need to be the link between the media and the public on one side and the events on the other side. As a public relations official you act as a perfect link between the company and its customers. A public relations career is extremely respected everywhere and there is a lot of money in this business.

4. Computer repair:

You can start computer repairing business if you have taken a hardware course. You can also hire experienced computer repairmen and build a team of them. Computer repairing is as easy as any household repairing work. But you should definitely see to it that you have a degree that goes with your business or you can get caught into scandals even if you are perfect at your work.

Thus, one can easily start a small business instead of doing a job. It is not necessary that one should follow ideas already used by people but, one can also innovate and develop new ideas to start a small business.

Article Source: http://business-small-business-gw.blogspot.com/2008/10/some-great-small-business-ideas.html

What Small Business Support Do You Need?

If you are looking for a venture capitalist in order to get your business started, you are in for a fight with other startup ideas. If you plan to take up a loan, be prepared to pay the capital and interest amount for a long period of time. The best way to obtain funds for your startup is via the government small business grant.

However, to get the grant, you must first submit your expenses for scrutiny. Apart from determining your approval outcome, your list of expenses will also determine the amount of grant that you will be getting for your business.

The key to keep in mind when planning your expenses is to keep them as low as possible but at the same time, you have to remember that a cheap grant will not help you in expansion. Padding your expenses by a little might help you to get more money but overdoing it will get you a outright rejection.

How to Minimize Your Startup Business Expenses

There are a lot of aspects in a business where you can cut down your expenses and the following are some of the quick tips that you can you to trim your startup expenses.

Capital expenditure. Yes, you will be able to claim government small business grant for capital expenditure such as plant and machinery purchases, office equipment expenses and furniture acquisitions. Even so, this does not mean that you should include every assets that you desire. Plan your purchases as if you are spending your own money.

Rental expenses. All businesses need a location to get started. Apart from a business address, you definitely need a place to receive calls, meet people and conduct your operations. Renting a garage will definitely be cheaper than renting a full fledge office building. Fancy offices is nothing if your business is not profitable. You may also consider offering your services or goods in exchange for a business location.

Labor expenses. Labor expenses is not cheap nowadays unless part of your business can be outsourced to places like China and India. Talents don't come cheap and securing them is hard. One great way to acquire some talents is to work with colleges and universities as fresh graduates will not mind working for a small business as long as they can pump up their resume.

With all the expenses management tips for startups above, you definitely be able to convince the government that you will utilize the grant properly. Also, the amount of government small business grant will be very desirable for your business.

Article Source: http://business-small-business-gw.blogspot.com/2008/10/what-small-business-support-do-you-need.html

Eleven Land Mines to Avoid When Selling Your Small Business

Now that you are ready to leave or transition your business, how do you do it? It is a question that many small business owners ask - but often when it is too late. Whether you are ready to move on to retirement, or a new business, a successful exit strategy should start three years before your target exit date.

The life of a business owner is both rewarding and exhausting. Many business owners are forced to sell without an exit strategy because of burn out, health problems or financial issues. When you sell your business without a plan, you run the risk of falling hostage to poor financials and bottom-feeding buyers. The sale of a business should be a planned process to yield a business owner the highest possible price for their company.

I see business owners make the same common mistakes when it comes to planning for the next phase of their business. The good news is that with a bit of planning, these 'land mines' can be avoided.

Eleven Land Mines to Avoid When Selling Your Small Business

1. Don't become emotional and overprice your business.
2. Don't forget to meet with your accountant. Make sure you understand the tax consequences of the sale of your business.
3. Don't go to market without a complete marketing package, including three years of financial statements, for potential buyers to review.
4. Don't share confidential information about your business with buyers unless they have signed a confidentiality agreement and are financially and professionally qualified.
5. Don't let your sales drop after you put your business on the market. No buyer wants to buy a business that is losing money.
6. Don't leave deferred maintenance for a buyer. Curb appeal counts in business sales, too.
7. Don't rely solely on your competitors to be your only potential buyers. Placing the business on the open market will increase your chances for multiple offers and potentially a higher price.
8. Don't wait for an offer to determine if the lease for your space is transferable.
9. Don't give a buyer access to all of your financial, customer, and/or employee records until you have agreed in writing on the price and terms of the sale.
10. Don't accept an offer without a substantial "good faith" deposit of two to three percent of the offering price.
11. Never tell your employees or customers that the business is being sold because it's not over until you have the check in hand!

Creating and implementing an exit strategy for your business can mean the difference between taking a long vacation and retiring to a little tropical island somewhere after the closing. By developing a solid plan, you can leave your company knowing you created something bigger than yourself and have the financial stability to provide for the next stage of your life.

2007 Julie Gordon White

Articl Source: http://business-small-business-gw.blogspot.com/2008/10/selling-your-small-business-11-land.html

The Importance of Key Business Performance Indicators to Small Business Management

How do you know how well your small business is doing? Do you look at profit? Do you look at your sales numbers? Do you measure growth?

Most businesses use monthly financial statements, which include sales revenues. Some compare those monthly results to the plan and/or to the previous year's results. All business should continue to use that information to manage their business. However, all small businesses should also include more significant key performance indicators as part of their measurement process. As a small business owner, managing-by-measuring performance is a significant key to your success.

Develop a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) to track your business growth and success. These measures will keep you focused on your business goals. When you write your business plan make sure that you include measurable goals and objectives. Then set in place a system that will provide you with regular indications of performance.

KPIs can be easily developed and monitored however each business needs to customize the measurement process to their own business needs.

Here are just a few KPIs you can consider for your business:

• Number of orders in a day/week/month/year
• Number of estimates in a day/week/month/year
• What kind of 'win' ratio does your business enjoy (e.g. do you 'win' 15% of all estimates - track this data)?
• How long does it take for you to respond to customer queries: estimate turn-around times; order processing; time from order placement to order delivery; responsiveness in handling customer complaints; and so on?
• How often do you hit your 'promise' date (i.e. the date you promised to deliver the order to your customer)? Analyze the 'misses': ship dates you don't make. Are they with one product line? Or with one customer or type of customer? Or with one employee?
• What kind of employee turn-over rate do you have?
• What kind of customer turn-over rate do you have?
• Percentage of business your largest customer holds?
• Sales by customer
• Sales by customer by product
• Sales by product

These would be in addition to your regular monthly financials but consider KPIs more of a daily or weekly measurement. Set up KPIs to help you see what is going on in your business presently and to help you forecast the near term (this week, this month, next month). If you track some of these statistics daily you will begin to develop trend lines that will highlight both the positives and negatives of your business growth.

Once you start to collect the data, it becomes much easier to see where the problem lies. If you are a manufacturer and you are always late delivering to your largest customer, find out why. Analyze your process. If you are a distributor and you are always late delivering a certain product, find out why. Is your supplier always late? Do you need to carry more inventory of that item? Or in both these examples is it because your employee turn-over is particularly high in the shipping department? Why is turn-over in shipping high? Are you hiring the right people? Are you under-paying? Does your shipping supervisor have weak people skills?

Developing good performance indicators will help you identify and solve issues quickly. Once you have developed KPIs that are aligned with your business goals, and once you track your performance regularly, you will be in a better position to manage your business.

Article Source: http://business-small-business-gw.blogspot.com/2008/07/importance-of-key-business-performance.html

Two Time Management Concepts That Will Help Grow Your Small Business

Time management is an important tool for small business owners - organizing your time and understanding its value to your small business is a great way to become more focused and successful.

1. Time Allocation In order to grow and develop a small business brand, owners and managers need to allocate time to three key functional areas:

• Servicing existing customers
• Searching for new business
• Administration

The time required to achieve a balance between the day-to-day and long term needs of a small business will vary from situation to situation - A good time allocation rule of thumb to start is:

Existing Customers - 60%

Once you get a new customer make sure you keep them by allocating time to:

• Continuing to present your client base with the high level of quality products and services that gained their trust in the first place
• Offering a superior level of ongoing customer service and support
• Developing Incremental business by offering existing customers new products and services

Business Development - 30%

Allocate approximately three quarters of your business development time on marketing, advertising and sales. Some of the tasks you can set aside time for are:

• Preparing quotes and proposals
• Marketing planning and execution which can include (but not be limited to) thinking about your target markets, researching advertising options, implementing ad campaigns such as Google Adwords, newsletter marketing, website content management, etc.
• Sales prospecting i.e. cold calling, etc.
• Researching potential clients, market segments, etc.

Allocate approximately one quarter of your business development time to networking and publishing. Set aside time for:

• Networking events put on by your local chamber of commerce or industry associations
• Meeting with strategic allies, vendors, etc.
• Public speaking
• Tradeshow marketing
• Online social networking i.e. keeping your LinkedIn profile updated; commenting on blogs, etc
• Writing content such as website articles, regular blog posts, etc.
• Writing press releases

Administration - 10%

Small business owners get caught up in the day-to-day and often sacrifice staying up to date on their "paperwork" because it's not a revenue generator - but, if neglected for too long, administration can become costly. Dedicate some time each day, week or month to administration including:

• Bookkeeping and accounting (particularly paying bills and invoicing!)
• Staying up to date with any government documents, important registrations, etc.

2. Time Value Yes, we all know that "time is money"...but, besides direct payment for products/services, how can your small business use time to create value and build brand equity? Here's a hint: don't just think about your time when it's billable...view the time you spend as an investment in building your small business brand and creating trust and value over the long term. Some examples:

• Spend face-to-face time with customers...take time to learn about their business so you are able to better serve them in the future
• Take time to really engage with clients and prospects...don't rush through situations that may not pay immediate dividends...listening builds respect.
• Take time to think...about your business, your strategies, your employees, your vendors...it's too easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and forget the value of spending time developing ideas
• Respect the value of other people's time...when you gain permission to share time with a prospect or client, don't risk eroding the goodwill: Don't be late for meetings; Don't overstay your welcome; Don't waste people's time.

Mark Smiciklas is a Vancouver Marketing Consultant. His firm, Intersection Consulting, helps small to mid-sized businesses address challenges in the areas of marketing, management and business development.

To find out more about Intersection Consulting, please visit http://www.intersectionconsulting.com

For more thoughts and ideas on marketing and management for small business please visit the Intersection Blog at http://www.intersectionconsulting.typepad.com

Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Two-Time-Management-Concepts-That-Will-Help-Grow-Your-Small-Business&id=1499619