Taking the Plunge
How long have you been waiting to take the plunge? And I don’t mean the plunge off a diving board of a crystal blue pool at a seaside resort. I mean the plunge of taking a big, new entrepreneurial risk?
For some women entrepreneurs nerve-racking risk is created when they think about accepting a public speaking opportunity, borrowing money for expansion, or adding a new product. As seen in an old time cartoon, the decision to take a risk can be worsened when an angel appears on our right shoulder and the devil appears on our left shoulder whispering the pros and cons of each decision in our ears.
Instead of depending on heavenly or devilish advice to help with decision making, I’ve used the following three factors to guide me:
◦The length of time the decision has been brewing
Sometimes the concept has been bubbling and resurfacing for years. Significant developments in my business have always taken one to three years to come to fruition. The new concept presents itself internally at first, but outside factors such as meeting the right people, having more money, seeing a demand in the marketplace or learning new information ultimately prompts final action.
◦The reasons and people to support the decision
I’ve heard goal setting experts say the “why” and the “who” of setting new goals and taking big risks are integral to success or failure. The reason (or the “why”) behind taking a new business risk is the most important part of setting and achieving the goal. When the “why” is understood, it’s imperative to have the right people (or the “who”) to support the entrepreneur and concept.
◦The downside to not making the decision
Many times I have taken a risk because I didn’t want to live with regret. I refused to let fear replace hope especially if I had the “why” and “who” in place. So asking the question, “What will happen if I don’t take the risk now,” usually provides the answer.So take the plunge after considering these factors. The decision might be so perfect you end up celebrating your success a year from now by jumping into a crystal clear blue pool at the seaside resort of your dreams.
Working Backwards Works
Do you ever wonder how an author writes a beautifully written book or how an inventor creates a new invention? In most cases, they work backwards. They start with the ending in mind and work backwards until they are at the beginning. I have a secret to share with you…I’ve been working backwards recently and it has worked really well.
Only three months ago I said, “Twitter…I just don’t get it. I don’t know how using it could ever help my business.” After our annual Retreat and speaking with 3 women entrepreneurs who took time to explain its benefits, I decided to make it work for my business. My goal was to use it to increase hits to our website to increase online exposure for my members. I discovered starting backwards was the key.
Everyday on Twitter there are popular trends. I now start my day looking at the trends and then writing original, short blog posts so I can then promote the posts on Twitter driving traffic back to Women TIES. For example, when the recent Powerball jackpot was the rave, I wrote a blog piece about the insane jackpot fever and marketing tactics small businesses could glean from the Powerball frenzy. Then I tweeted the link to major news sources. What happened? The hits on the Women TIES website tripled in two days and NPR retweeted the post. Now that’s what I call “power” ful!
Just like thinking twice before walking away from a chance to win a million dollar jackpot, you need to think twice about learning how to “hit” it big through Twitter or other social media marketing you aren’t using yet. The opportunity to gain major media attention and connections are better than the chances of depositing millions in your bank account from a huge jackpot. It takes a small commitment to begin to make it a habit.
Today’s blog post is to inspire you to learn about Twitter this month and to start being more active writing in your blog. If you don’t have a blog, think about establishing one. Once you have one, actively write about trends of the day that relate to your business. Make sure you promote your posts on all your social media because the new connections you could make might really surprise you while exploding your website hits and rankings in search engines.
There is nothing more powerful than seeing an end goal and working backwards to accomplish it. I hope you set some new goals in 2013 which include using a blog and Twitter to gain national media attention and increase your website hits.
End of the Year Business Wisdom – Roots & Wings
On the walls of my exercise room are motivational posters with inspirational quotes. One of the posters is a photo of two parents and two sons standing on a mountain holding hands. The quote reads “Direction: There are two important gifts we give our children, one of these are roots and the other is wings.” Having spent the last six months on college visits with my youngest son realizing this time next year he won’t be here made the particular statement more meaningful to me today. It is time to let him go, time to let him fly. It was one of those happy/sad moments a parent experiences.
As I ran this morning looking at the poster I realized the “Direction” quote has meaning for women entrepreneurs as another business year ends. In order to constantly direct our businesses and ourselves as leaders to higher levels of success in a new year, we must be rooted in our past successes but willing to fly to take new chances. When we stand on the precipice of an “entrepreneurial mountain” we’ve just climbed, we must bask in the accomplishment. But sooner than later, we have to find another mountain to climb. We can’t stay on top forever. We have to tackle another milestone.
Safe feels good. Safe feels comfortable. Safe feels familiar. Jumping off a mountain, setting a new bold goal, and even watching your last child leave the house for college, is unsettling. But with the unsettled feeling comes excitement. Nothing can stay the same forever -no matter how much we want it to. We are challenged in life and in business to move forward. So we have the choice to move forward in fear or to move forward with confidence – or maybe a combination of both. But we have to keep trusting that our roots and our wings will take us to new levels.
Today’s blog is to nudge you to jump off the mountain you’ve been standing on too long. If you recently accomplished a major business feat, root the
achievement in your memory and relish the moment. If you have been sitting on the mountain for awhile enjoying the view, it’s time to take off to a new vista. If you’ve just started a rigorous new climb, keep going. You’ll get there.
Go forth today with the knowledge it’s much more fun climbing to new heights than it is to sit on top forever. Life is all about change. Direct yourself and go forth with both roots and wings as you plan a more successful 2013 business year.
Struggling to Turn a Profit
Holiday music was playing in the background at a beautiful, free civic symphony concert given by a shopping mall. I was drawn to the event because a woman entrepreneur I knew had opened up a café in the mall and wanted to show me her new venue.
In the midst of symphonic tunes, this woman told me about her six year struggle to keep her business afloat at the old venue. The quaint brick house, which was home to her restaurant, boutique and catering business for six years, simply didn’t attract the clientele she needed to be profitable. Every year she contemplated closing the business and giving up on her dream.
The week she finally decided she would make the heart wrenching decision to close up shop, a woman who found her business through our online business directory, approached her about opening up a second café in their expanding shopping mall. After inspecting the space, which was double the size of her current café, with an affordable rental fee and automatic higher traffic pattern, she seized the unexpected opportunity. Proudly she told me she had been making monthly profits since making the decision – the first monthly profits in years. I’m not sure which was more joyful – her smile or the music playing behind us.
If you have been struggling with making a profit, take some advice from this story. Women start companies to make money and create a financial income and future for themselves. We don’t intend our businesses to be hobbies where we dedicate time to something we love without generating revenue. So if you’ve been struggling for three to five years to turn a profit, something’s not right. You owe it to yourself to make some changes; and those changes might involve larger risks.
Second, trust your instinct. Pay close attention to why you believe your business is not doing well. Is it location? Is it pricing? Is it a saturated marketplace? Is it your sales appr
oach? Empty your gut instincts onto a piece of paper and then research the hard, cold facts of your business to see if your instincts are valid. Third, if you want to make your company profitable, seek counsel from a business advisor, revise your business plan and take the extra risks you need.
If you find yourself on the precipice of giving up, dedicate more time to making the right decision to lead you to a more joyful new entrepreneurial year
Golden Bridges – Keeping Connections Alive
As an adolescent I was instructed by older and wiser women on proper personal and business etiquette. One of the most important lessons I heard repeatedly was “to never burn a bridge.” No matter how often a teacher sent me in the hall for being too talkative or a strict employer corrected me on the accuracy of my food orders, I was taught to keep my thoughts to myself, control my emotions and not burn any bridges. I benefited from this wisdom when my sixth grade teacher, the one who loved sending me in the hall, was the person who selected me for the elementary school graduation speech; and how my tough first employer helped me secure my first College food service job.
Once I became an entrepreneur there were many times when a really demanding client, an unappreciative vendor, or a vocal competitor tested the limits of my civility. But always in the back of my mind I could hear those wise women telling me to bite my tongue, take the emotion out of the moment, and think to the future. No matter how difficult the situations were, I remained mindful of that old lesson, saw the bridge, and kept looking forward.
In the last week, I have had three past connections surface with fantastic new business opportunities for Women TIES. They are bigger opportunities than I could have ever imagined but fate had a hand in rewarding my patience and business etiquette. I’m not the first woman entrepreneur to realize unexpected, fruitful opportunities appear when you least expect them. All of these new business opportunities are coming from relationships I established years ago when I was a young entrepreneur. Time ended up being my biggest ally.
Today’s post is meant to remind you of the people in your life who are staunch supporters, key networkers or future collaborators helping you to change the world. They may be someone from the past whose bridge was never burnt or someone you met recently that instantly struck a chord with you. These relationships can be golden if we take the time to network and develop them further.
Power Ball Marketing Ideas for Small Business
Like most people I didn’t win the Power Ball yesterday. Was I disappointed – maybe a little bit? But what I gleaned from all the hype that surrounded the big jackpot fever will help my business today and maybe yours too. Here’s what I know:
* Even if you aren’t giving away 600 million dollars, you can excite your customers with periodic giveaways to increase event attendance, social media marketing traffic or survey responses. Think of ways you can offer an exciting set of services or products if someone enters to win a contest you create. Consider the interests of your customer base when designing the prize.
* Once you create a “give away” or promotion, make sure you market it big time. Use all forms of media to promote the event – your website, blog, Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, mobile media and other social media first. If the prize is big enough, buy some traditional advertising too.
* The most important thing to do is then stir enthusiasm amongst your followers and friends. They can be the energetic word-of-mouth advertising you need to spread the promotion like wildfire. Anyone in your immediate circle has a circle of people you don’t know – ask them to pass along the promotion so it spreads.
* Once someone wins the prize, highlight their names and comments through social media again. Put them in the spotlight which also gives your company 
additional attention at the same time. Publicity fuels publicity – so use it well!
This business advice might not be worth $600 million dollars like the Power Ball jackpot was worth but hopefully it will trigger you to create exciting new promotions to market your business in the near future. I’m sure you’ll hit the jackpot with your customers by offering opportunities for them to win something big.
December Business Planning – Go Big or Go Home
“Go big or go home” is a quote you’ve heard before. The visual of that quote came to life when my sons cut down a 10′ pine tree as our traditional holiday centerpiece last week. This “go big” concept almost didn’t fit in our “home” as we maneuvered it through small doorways. As I stared at this big, beautiful tree this morning, which is double my size in height, I thought how much larger the Rockefellar Christmas Tree must look and of this quote.
The quote’s sentiment also resonates with this time of year from a business perspective. Women entrepreneurs have one more month in the calendar year to hit bold goals set eleven months ago. If we haven’t achieved some of them yet, shouldn’t we push harder to “go big” one more month and end the year on a high note? I think we should.
In order to do that, it will take focus and organization. December is full of personal holiday obligations, family visits, shopping duties, thanking customers and end of the year financial planning. In order to fit it all in, we must have razor sharp vision, a detailed to do list and the intention to finish strong.
Before the third week of December approaches when everyone turns their full attention to enjoying the holidays, dedicate the next 3 weeks to accomplishing or finishing the goals you set for yourself and your business. If you feel you can’t quite get there, spend time analyzing why you didn’t and begin a detailed plan for accomplishing them in 2013.
Today’s post is to remind you any goals that must be accomplished – big or small – need focus and discipline. I suggest starting three to do lists – “Must Do December Business Tasks,” “Must Do 2013 Business Planning Items” and “Must Do Holiday Personal Tasks.” By creating your lists, you will more likely complete them in time. The “success strategies” can be found on the Women TIES website by clicking here
Sant
a isn’t the only one who needs to “make a list and check it twice,” so do women entrepreneurs at the close of the business year. I encourage you to make your lists this week in the company of some eggnog, holiday tunes and perhaps a colorful Christmas tree. There’s plenty of time to enjoy this season while “going big” and ending the year strong at the same time.
How to Be a Trendsetter
Do you remember a time when the only place you could find news was on television or in the newspaper? Can you think back to an era when smoking cigarettes was a normal part of society? How about when ski resorts only had downhill skiers schussing down the slopes not snow boarders doing a ‘backside 180’? If you were good at predicting trends fifteen years ago, you might have been the one to invent the concept of receiving news on a computer or phone, or started smoki
ng cessation classes for people trying to kick the habit or invented the brightest and coolest snowboarding equipment.
How much revenue did entrepreneurs who thought outside of the box earn predicting and watching new trends and then creating and incorporating innovative concepts into their businesses? Forecasting a trend might not be easy, but how much do we really know about spotting or even starting one? It isn’t a subject taught in school, generally discussed at business seminars or part of an entrepreneur’s business pla
n. Yet the potential for forecasting and capitalizing on a future trend then placing your company at the right place at the right time, can put your name on the map, designate you as an expert and increase your revenue substantially.
As entrepreneurs we need to stay on top of trends like understanding baby boomers are getting older and need more senior services, or knowing Generation X spends money on the latest electronic gadgets or how working mothers, who now make up a majority of the work force, are spending money buying home cooked, prepared meals for their families. There are golden opportunities to create, package and market our services and products differently if we understand trends. I strongly encourage you to start thinking about how to spot future opportunities for your business.
This post is to remind you that we have to always be thinking to the future. Nothing stays the same for too long. We need to stay ahead of the curve in order to capitalize on tomorrow.
Celebrating Business Milestones and Customers At the Same Time
A long time business associate called me seeking advice on ways to celebrate her company’s twentieth anniversary since I have owned Five Star Events since 1995. She wasn’t interested in hosting the traditional anniversary party with confetti, cake and champagne instead she wanted to use public relations to celebrate the occasion. She wanted to find a way to thank clients while at the same time highlighting various corporate services she has performed for clients over two decades.
Women entrepreneurs should never overlook anniversaries without announcing the milestone in some way to gain publicity for their business. For decades, companies have used holidays and corporate anniversaries to advertise specials and market products. Here are some public relations and marketing tips to use if you have a business milestone approaching:
- First, traditional media is a great first source for announcing special occasions. Consider placing a weekly advertisement in your local media announcing your anniversary and highlighting a specific customer each week or month for a year. Each advertisement could list your client name with their logo and website address. Make sure to send them a copy with a hand written thank you note once it is promoted.
- Second, if you have a popular website place a small banner advertisement about a different customer each month on your homepage. Choose twelve customers and send a letter thanking them for their years of service and your interest in promoting them on your homepage. Make the advertisement link to the customer’s website to help drive traffic to their business.
- Third, use social media marketing to highlight customers too. If you have more than twelve customers to thank, choose another twelve to promote monthly on your blog and social media marketing channels. Include the same information as you would in a banner advertisement.
Celebrating your clients on your anniversary is like raising a glass to toast your spouse on a special night. Successful businesses, like happy marriages, are hard work – and every once in awhile it is important to recognize that you didn’t get there alone
Times Square Sales
We rose up out of the subway the busiest place on earth, Times Square in New York City. Thousands of people were moving in all directions. The energy was palpable. Lights were flashing, horns were honking, and the flow of the crowd enveloped you and forced you down the sidewalk like you were on a conveyor belt.
As we slipped into the first store trying to get out of the tsunami crowd, we took a breath and looked around. In this regular size retail store were at least 20 salespeople ready to “service” us. We were “the sale” and they were prepared to greet, meet, ask, help, show and deliver us to the sales counter. The approach was more enthusiastic than forceful. It was more upbeat than annoying. It was prepared readiness to make the most of every single possible sales opportunity that entered their doors. As we left that store and went to the next one, we found the same thing.
It’s hard to imagine an “upstate” business working the way a Times Square retail store would since the crowds aren’t always pouring in due to location. So what lessons can a business, not located in the largest metropolitan world with the hottest traffic flow, implement in their business to make it more successful? For one thing, your existence must be more focused on sales.
If we own a sustainable business with happy customers and relatively good sales, why aren’t we hitting higher revenue goals? I think it’s because we don’t focus enough attention on sales. We either don’t have enough sales staff to sell for us or we aren’t intense enough about the sales process to make it a priority. Other responsibilities get in the way. But imagine how much money the Times Square businesses would lose every day if they didn’t prepare to sell and to sell really well.
Today’s blog post is to inspire you to make sales a number one priority for your business from Black Friday to the New Year and into 2013 to increase your
revenue potential. I know you own a fantastic business. I know it isn’t located in Times Square. But could you use additional sales staff, some sales incentive and more focused attention on sales to finally hit larger revenue goals?
I hope you are thankful this holiday for the business you have grown and developed because you have done a great job to this point. I hope when Friday comes you think about how to turn your own enterprise into a hustling, bustling New York Times type of enterprise capturing more revenue than you thought possible.
Women TIES 
