Over the holidays, I had a friend\u2019s 10 year-old son ask me if I could help him with a small business that he wanted to open in 2012. Really? A 10 year-old kid?\u00a0 I know kids are much more advanced than I was at 10 with smart-phones, tablets and all the techno-devices but a business?\u00a0 Yup, he was serious!<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cI\u2019d like to open up a lemonade stand when it gets hot in the summer; my dad says you help businesses grow\u201d. And on we went discussing some basic principles about starting a business and operating an existing one; specifically, marketing.<\/p>\n
I was so impressed by this \u201clittle-guy\u2019s\u201d insight and enthusiasm and his willingness to learn, along with the turn of the calendar year, it got me thinking about what I had learned in the past year; a natural ritual for entrepreneurs in January of any year!<\/p>\n
So, here is what I have experienced as a successful Toronto web design and small business marketing company in my interactions with dozens and dozens of entrepreneurs in 2011, I found the following three trends to be most noticeable:<\/p>\n
I found an overwhelming number of small business owners did not have a good sense of the profitability of their business; whether they were a start-up or established. This means knowing your expenses and understanding the revenue potential of your product\/service. This exercise is sophisticated but it starts with a very simple question: \u201cHow much do I want to get paid per year from my business?\u201d From this number, calculate how much revenue you need per month to achieve this. This doesn\u2019t include costs of doing business or other expenses which must be factored in, but it is a start. Whether you are a start-up or are a young company, understand your business model and your expenses and determine how realistic it is going to be to generate the revenue you want. Having lofty sales goals with no justification of its viability or means of attaining them is no good without understanding the impact on the bottom line. Don\u2019t just create a job for yourself in 2012, create and grow a business!<\/p>\n
Taking it one step further, the ensuing discussion that I would find myself in (after #1) was discovering that these small business owners didn\u2019t have a marketing budget identified.\u00a0 Again, whether they were start-up or established, even if they did have an aggressive set of sales targets, they still had no means or plan of attaining these goals. In some cases, it was even unrealistic. For examples, it would be very difficult, if not impossible to double your 2011 sales of $150,000 per year with a $500 marketing budget for 2012. The old adage is correct: \u201cyou have to spend money to make money\u201d. If you are trying to defy this, then it will be increasingly more difficult to generate revenue and grow your business. The key for a small business owner is to understand what is the best \u201cbang-for-your-buck\u201d. Don\u2019t do \u201cone-off\u201d marketing tactics; you WILL waste your money. Marketing is a process and it needs to be integrated with various other business strategies and goals. The key is to be practical. If your business model is realistic, calculating your marketing budget will be easier. Take the time and create a marketing budget in 2012, you\u2019ll save a lot of time and money in the long-run.<\/p>\n
Usually my first question when I meet entrepreneurs is: \u201cTell me about your business\u201d. What I\u2019m expecting is a short one or two sentence statement about what they offer; basically, an opportunity for them to express the \u201cvalue\u201d of their business\u2026 \u201cwhy would I want to purchase from them?\u201d Instead, I get this\u2026
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