Small Business Blog

Seth Godin has a great post on the concept of “free” today.

“The interaction you seek as a marketer often disappears when something is free. The fascinating thing is that it often doesn’t matter if you’re paying or being paid… it’s the transaction either way that changes the posture of the person you’re working with.”

Seattle’s own Cathy Goodwin, copywriter extraordinaire, first sold me on the idea that money makes a relationship more productive on both sides and inspired a change in the way I do business. When I stopped having all those free coffee dates my income went up and my interactions were more meaningful.

The same is true when asking for something from your customers. About a year ago I did a targeted marketing survey and offered a donation to a local charity to the participants who chose to give me their feedback. I got valuable information from a hard-to-reach segment of my business and they got a donation to something they believe in. If I had just called out of the blue asking for free help I do not think I would have had the same response.

Seth’s point is right on: a “free” product or service does not have the same perceived value as even a nominally priced item.

So when you offer your next “free”special report, seminar, or service, keep this in mind. Payment can come in many forms - a refundable deposit, information, publicity, a case study - but you should always have some form of payment to make it a true transaction.

Respect your business by giving it the protection it deserves.

As you know, I am a huge believer in delegating and outsourcing to get your business where it needs to be. After all, you can’t be an expert at everything, and there are only so many hours in the day.

BUT…you have to maintain control of your business.

Just today I spoke to a potential customer who let her web designer/developer go at the end of their contract. She did not like the website, and after viewing it I can see why. The developer inserted pages of affiliate links to benefit himself as well as some totally unrelated pages linking back to his hobbies.

When she did not renew the service contract with him, he put up a semi-pornographic picture on the front page and told her the site “must have been hacked” and he could fix it for $5000. Not only is her website content unavailable to her right now, she has potential customers coming to the website and being greeted by the image of a scantily-dressed teenage girl smoking a cigarette. There are other details that make this an absolutely heartbreaking small business story, but you get the general idea.

Yes, she has legal options she can pursue, and yes she will eventually gain access to her domain name and probably get damages from this vendor. But it doesn’t do her any good to know this in the meantime while her business is at a complete standstill.

Remember that you have the ultimate say-so in your business…that’s why you are the boss. So keep track of your usernames, passwords, accounts, important documents, and backups. You can certainly have help managing them, but the ultimate ownership should always be yours and never turned over completely to another person. Read your contracts closely, make sure full payment equals full ownership and that you can take your property with you if you no longer want to do business with that person or company.

A quality vendor will never try to hold you hostage to keep you as a customer after your transaction is complete.

There is a reason the flight attendants tell you to put your air mask on before helping the person in the seat next to you. You have to help yourself first if you want to survive in business.

Making sure your company is profitable gives you the means to perform charity/pro bono work long-term and from a position of abundance. Helping everyone else and disrespecting your own needs is an almost sure path to failure.

Many of my friends with service-based businesses have told me their battles with the “coffee date.” They meet someone at a networking event, the person expresses interest in getting to know them, and a date is set up. When my friends arrive, however, they find the date is really not about networking and helping each other succeed; it is about getting free advice.

Coaches, healers, organizers, computer technicians, etc., – they all have a great deal of knowledge as their “product.” No one would ask a widget maker to give away free widgets over coffee, so I’m not sure why it is expected that service professionals would give away free advice. The reason their information is so valuable is that it took them a long time to learn and master it.

If you are a service provider who regularly gets asked to coffee dates that turn into free consulting sessions, here are some tips to get your time back:

• Set up your coffee date via phone rather than email. You can usually find out quickly if the person truly wants to get to know you or just wants the benefit of your expertise.  Even better, make it 3- or 4-some coffee date with a few others you want to get to know.
• While on the phone, ask them the top 3 things you will learn about their business and referral needs and tell them the top 3 things they will learn about yours. This sets the expectation for the give-and-take of a true networking meeting.
• There is nothing wrong with giving away occasional free consulting – if you are doing so by your choice. Make sure you do this deliberately and let your audience know the market value of your services. This helps them appreciate it as well as making sure they don’t tell other people to come to you for similar free sessions.
• Devise a playbook for these situations. I have a mental checklist for new contacts who want to “get to know me better” and you can do the same (this also works well with people who only want to sell to you and are not interested in a true referral relationship).

Some of my entrepreneur friends have come up with terrific ideas for warding off the takers and sussing out true customer leads and networking relationships.

The best by far?

Offer an introductory consulting package with a price that goes toward any of your services. For example, a phone/in-person consultation could go for $150, and if future services are booked that money goes toward the package. If not, the customer got $150 worth out of the first meeting and you both walk away satisfied. Pitch this package for every “iffy” coffee date request and check the response. If you do have a free networking coffee date that goes off track, you can always refer back to this package and let your date know you are happy to help them at that rate.

Remember that as a service professional your store’s inventory is in your head. Treat it as well as you would a product, and in no time you will have the means to offer pro bono work by choice and on a grander scale than you can as a new business owner.

Looking for a little advice for your small business but don’t have the time or money to consult an expert?

Check out the Microsoft Small Business Summit on March 24-27 for a virtual seminar on topics of interest to you.  The seminar is free and has some top-name experts I’m interested in, like John Jantsch from Duct-Tape Marketing.  Each day has 4 hours of live speakers you can access right from your computer.

Click here to register for the free event, then sit back and get some expert help from the comfort of your own office.  “See” you there!

Have you heard of Squidoo? It is an online community of single-page websites discussing everything from the best Thai food in town to the latest in technology. The founder of Squidoo is Seth Godin, who is one of my favorite marketing gurus.

The single-page websites are called “lenses” and are the viewpoint of the creator. You don’t need to know how to build a website in order to create one - in fact, you can have a lens ready to publish in under 10 minutes! You can even set up a feed to have your regular blog show up in your lens like I did.

Check out the lens I wrote today in response to Seth Godin’s blog post on digital coaches. It took me less than 10 minutes to put together. I will keep you posted on the amount of traffic it brings in over the course of the next couple of weeks.

Since it is free, can help your search engine optimization, and introduces you to a new audience of potential customers, there is really no reason why you shouldn’t Squidoo.

Have you developed a Squidoo lens? Share it in the comments below so we can all visit.

Over time I’ve used everything from online timers to good old index cards to track time, and none of have been ideal. Recently, I discovered the Time Tracker by Quickbooks and have been using it for a month.

Each employee is given a website login to track time. There is a dropdown list of clients pulled from your Quickbooks system as well as a dropdown list of billable items. The employee (or you) simply clicks on the client, the billable item, and the number in the corresponding date.

The timesheets are submitted on a schedule you designate, and when it comes time to invoice you will be prompted to pull all that information in. It is so easy I finished my invoicing in record time. In addition, I was able to track time spent on package pricing projects and come up with a more reliable profit margin than my previous guesstimates.

The service is free for 60 days if you are a Quickbooks customer, and after that the price varies depending on the number of employees, though it is not expensive. Check it out and let me know what you think. You will be surprised at the ease of use, and you may be surprised to find out how much time you are spending on some of your projects!

Thanks to my “technology consultant” Ken (who is actually a well-informed friend who keeps me updated at no charge - thanks, Ken!), I have a great new product for you. Microsoft Groove is a easy way to transfer files without the headache of zipping, relying on email, or wondering if everyone is working from the same version of the file.

I used this for the first time a few weeks ago to transfer a hundred or so pictures to Ken from a recent trip. It worked like a charm and took less than minute, start to finish!

Microsoft Groove allows you to create “workspaces” where you can share files with others. For instance, a web developer might have a Groove workspace with a designer and the client to collaborate on a website project. On a personal note, a mother may create a workspace to share pictures of her children with grandparents, aunts and uncles. You simply create the workspace(s), invite the appropriate members, and then add files as needed for everyone to retrieve. One of the best features of this product is that you can access your Groove folders even when you are offline. What a great way to be productive in an airport or train when you don’t have internet access! The minute you go back online your work is synced up.

You can get a free trial of Microsoft Groove for 60 days. After 60 days you can continue using Groove for free for a year, but you will not be able to add any new workspaces.

Feel free to add me to your first workspace if you want to try this out. I’ll send you a picture of the official Small Business Blog Dog, Max.

As we draw closer to the holiday season, many small business owners are considering what to give their valued clients and business associates. Depending on your industry and budget, your gift could range from an email greeting card to an expensive personal gift. The goal is to show your clients you appreciate them and look forward to a continued business relationship in the new year.

Below are several ideas to fit any budget:

• Use your email marketing system to design an electronic holiday card you can send to every client in your database. This is the least expensive option and can also be used in conjunction with gifts for your special clients. Average cost is $15 total to email up to 500 people.
• An online system for generating cards like Send Out Cards allows you to send personalized custom cards directly from your computer to as many people as you want. The cost is as low as $1.03 per card including postage, so if you have a large database or want to make an impact with a custom card, this is a great solution for you.
• A gift of meaning is always appropriate. Buy a product that benefits a cause, or make a donation on behalf of your clients in causes you both believe in. One of my favorites is the Pay It Forward Program at Affirmagy which sends a blanket printed with positive affirmations along with the book Chicken Soup for the Breast Cancer Survivor’s Soul to a breast cancer patient as an anonymous gift. The cost is $39.95.
• Looking for an easy solution that fits a variety of different people? Check out Magic Envelopes for a selection of gift catalogs at various price ranges you can send to your clients. Let them pick out their own gifts without knowing how much you spent (catalogs start at $25 and go up to $500). This gift even includes shipping charges, so your client only has to pick their favorite item.
• A service is always a welcome gift, anything from a book of car wash coupons to hiring a personal chef for a month’s worth of meals.

What are you doing to show your appreciation for your clients and trusted business contacts this year?

This is a great monthly contact solution that is effective, unbelievably inexpensive, and takes no effort from you after the initial 15-minute setup. The brains behind this operation is Amber Riviere, my accountability partner and one of the savviest business people I know. I keep thinking just by knowing her some of that will rub off on me!

Email Newsletters with No Heavy-Lifting Required

Staying in touch with customers and clients can be a challenge, and finding an effective and affordable solution is even more difficult. Now, with 411 Real Estate Place, it’s never been easier to maintain contact and establish lasting relationships with your clients. This monthly email newsletter goes out automatically, no heavy-lifting required! Agents simply submit their images, contact information, and mailing list, and the editors and staff of 411 Real Estate Place take care of the rest. Prices start at just $39 per month, and for all the Web Women Giving Circle supporters out there, 100% of proceeds from character illustrations go to benefit the CARE organization!

Here’s one agent’s testimonial:

411 Real Estate Place is a terrific new tool for those of us in the real estate profession. Eye-catching graphics, informative content, and ease of use cause me to rate this one of the most effective tools I’ve ever used! The first edition was sent out this week. The newsletter was sent to approximately 100 people in my email database at 9:00 am. I’m not kidding at all - by 12:00 noon I had heard from 5 people who received the newsletter. Not only was the feedback good, but these people all needed real estate help or knew of someone else they were referring to me! In the past 3 years, I have not had such a quick and positive response to a mailing (email or snail-mail). I would highly recommend looking into this great service! Thanks for jump-starting my business!
- Chrissy, Colorado

http://www.411realestateplace.com/

If you are the creative type, you have probably developed customized systems and even products for your business. A way to protect those inventions is through the patent process, but long before you reach the application process you need to properly document your idea in an Inventor’s Notebook.

An inventor’s notebook helps to establish your “first to invent” claim. Of course, it can work against you if you have not been diligent in your record-keeping, have not made efforts to bring your product to the market, or if another claim has an earlier date, but without any documentation you really have no argument.

How is an Inventor’s Notebook different from a regular notebook?

• It must be permanently bound (no loose leaf, spiral-bound, or sticky notes)
• The pages must be consecutively numbered (you can do this yourself)
• Do not leave blank spaces in your book or erase anything. Draw a line through mistakes.
• Sign and date the bottom of every page before moving on to the next page.
• Periodically have a non-inventor colleague sign and date your work in a “Disclosed and Understood by”entry.

Many inventors keep more than one notebook: one for ideas, and one for each idea that becomes a project. The important thing to remember is to follow the guidelines appropriate to the patent process. You can consult your patent attorney for specifics.

You can buy inventor’s notebooks already formatted from several stores or online by entering “inventor’s notebook” in your favorite search engine.

If you even think you may want to apply for a patent someday, prepare yourself now by keeping properly documented notes.