The RollerCoaster of Entrepreneurship
Today I enjoyed an hour in a quaint Syracuse restaurant sitting in a circular booth with three of my favorite friends and women entrepreneurs discussing the roller coaster effect of life and 
entrepreneurship. Each of us have just experienced or have recently survived the sudden death of a loved one, a divorce, a struggling business or a major health crisis. The sisterly conversation spoke of the roller coaster emotions produced by the experiences on us as entrepreneurs and women. Since business is intertwined in life, it’s hard for a woman entrepreneur to keep struggles in business from not affecting their personal lives or personal sufferings from not influencing our role as entrepreneurs.
What we discovered as we caught each other up on the upswing or downswing of our personal and business lives was the fact we all were surviving and doing well. Entrepreneurship can produce emotions found on a roller coaster ride – anticipating the high points and dreading the plunge to the bottom. There have been times when the bottom never seemed to come. One day when we thought a situtation was at its very worst, at the very bottom it could reach, we sometimes found the following day was actually lower. Only over time, did we start the slow climb towards the top again. Eventually we rejoiced in the view from the top knowing we survived that one specific bad time.
Sharing the reality of business life with other women has always been one of the main reasons I love promoting women entrepreneurship through my company Women TIES. I like the opportunity of surrounding women with other women who “get” what they’re going through, aren’t afraid to acknowledge it, and are willing to jump in the roller coaster with a sister entrepreneur to keep her company until the ride is over. Life is good sometimes even at the bottom as long as you have other women entrepreneurs at your side.
Reputation Management
As the news continues to unfold about the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, one of the most important issues rising to the surface isn’t the oil itself but whose fault it is the oil continues to spew out into the beautiful Gulf waters. Is it BP’s fault for wasting so much time? President Obama’s error for not demanding stronger action quick enough? Highly educated engineers’ mistake for not having an air tight mechanical solution? In every major crisis, fingers are pointed towards parties involved in the problem.
Women entrepreneurs can face public relations crisis as well. There are many times in our business life when problems arise with disgruntled clients, aggressive competitors, and negative community reaction that challenge our personal and corporate reputation. Most women business owners haven’t faced the height of criticism the CEO of BP or the President of the USA has dealt with over this tragic environmental situation, but we have or should expect sometime to face some sort of public relations crisis. Will we be prepared? Do we have a good reputation management plan in place? Would we know where to turn if we needed advice on the subject?
Just like the devastation of the oil spill was hard to predict, so are future challenging events that could negatively affect our corporate reputation. Witnessing two months of the oil spill tragedy has reminded me how vital it is to have some type of reputation management plan in place – and not only one that keeps constituents happy – but one that is sincere, honest and action-orientated.
Today’s Women TIES blog is to challenge you to invest time contemplating what you would do, who you would turn to, and how you might handle a reputation management issue. Do you need to become more educated in this public relations issue? Do you have a professional you could turn to for advice? Let’s not wait until a crisis occurs in our company to think about solutions. It doesn’t mean we are pessimistic or paranoid, it means we are prepared and poised to face any unexpected situation that rises to the surface and challenges the beautiful environment we created.
Growing Pains
Women TIES member Terre Slater, President of Empire Interpreting Service, and I are two of the three contributors to the bi-weekly Post Standard “Ask the 
Entrepreneurs” column. This week’s question was an interesting one on expansion and growth. I thought readers of my blog could benefit from the question and answers.
Over the past five years running Women TIES, I have had a number of women faced with this situation. In most cases, they just grew too quickly without taking enough time to judge the different regional market before they took the leap. I have also had conversations with numerous women who have successfully grown their businesses. In every instance, a slower more conservative approach served them well. They began expansion in the prospective growth region by gaining clients before investing alot of money in creating a physical space in the location first. These women also said they made sure to have enough money to tackle challenging expansion issues they couldn’t foresee before making the move.
This week’s question was: “I doubled the size of my business a couple years ago by increasing my rental space and number of employees. Now my sales revenue has dipped and I’m losing customers. What do you think I did wrong?”
Tracy:
Something similar happened to a small company in our community when they decided to triple their building size and staff. Unfortunately when they grew they forgot what made them unique which was excellent customer service and a welcoming business environment. Today they are out of business.
Every company has a unique market niche that attracts customers. If you do your job right as an entrepreneur, you create a loyal customer following based on your niche. Although growing is an essential part of business, you can’t grow so fast that you lose what you are known for – no matter what that is. Sometimes a more conservative growth plan works. I suggest you take a look back and analyze your unique position in the marketplace, survey current customers for instant feedback, and revise your marketing plan based on these two tasks. It’s not too late to make adjustments to get your business back on track. Trust in your abilities and make necessary changes now.
Theresa:
It’s impossible to say what you did wrong without knowing the specifics of the situation. Most importantly would be that any business owner look at their return on investment each time they add employees and/or expand space. What was the anticipated outcome of each move and how did you measure that outcome?
My second concern would be that you evaluate why your sales has dipped; are you losing customers because of a lack of quality control and you’ve grown too quickly or are you losing revenue due to the economy in general?
This is a time to bring in your support team; your CPA to help you understand your numbers better, your attorney to see what your options might be regarding your rental property and your banker to see where your lines of credit stand and how this is affecting your relationship with them.
Creating A Buzz
Women TIES member Laura Ponticello, President of Laura’s List: Books for Women, has a special knack of exciting a crowd with her lively presentations. Recently at a one of our 
events, Laura energized the audience with new buzz about her own business – a national television appearance – promoting her very own “Creating A Buzz” presentation she first presented at a Women TIES event last November. Since then, she has taken her speech on the road, increased her visibility, bounced up her branding, and secured a number of public relations clients all interested in creating their own buzz through Laura’s expertise. Smart business, smart buzzness.
What I have witnessed from watching alot of great speakers is their passion and expertise of the subject. Laura is never short on passion and her corporate career and entrepreneurial experience has given her a wealth of expertise in the arena of creating excitement around a company. If you are looking for spirit, energy and great advice to take your business to a higher PR playing field, look no farther than Laura’s List: Books for Women and her Blog.
Celebrate Your Business Anniversary
Most women entrepreneurs I know are so busy running and growing their companies, they don’t take time to stop and celebrate the big moments. Big moments come when we finally secure a large contract we’ve worked months to get, when we hit a major growth goal, when we hire our first employee or when we approach a major anniversary. We are so hard working we sometimes forget we have all the time we desire to recognize our accomplishments. But it’s up to us to set the date on our calendar and plan the celebration! 
I knew when Women TIES fifth anniversary approached in March, I wanted to gather as many of our 300 members together in one location to celebrate our success and theirs. Women TIES wouldn’t exist if we didn’t have women who believed in our services, lived our mission of buying from other women, and invested time and money in our organization. Our success is due to their participation. Their success is due to their participation. The more women believe in the buying and selling power of women, the sooner we will all become more financially successful together.
So with 85 regional members gathered in the room, some of the members from my amazing advisory board, toasted to the success of all women entrepreneurs. It was a joyous celebration and one meant to inspire each and every woman in the room to strive for, and celebrate, their own accomplishments.
If you are a woman entrepreneur reading this blog today, pick up your calendar and mark down your business anniversary. Plan a celebration – big or small – and enjoy it! Invite your supporters, clients, and friends to join you. A party is enjoyed the most when you are surrounded by those you cherish.
Launching New Products and Services
Recently a woman entrepreneur posed the following question, “I just finished creating an exciting new product line for our business and now it’s time to launch it. Do you have any new product or service line launch advice for me?” As an event planner and public relations specialist, I love the idea of 
launching a new product or service around a public event.
Launch elements could involve a big open public event complete with a comprehensive advertising campaign; an invitation-only client event with a more personal communication approach; or social media marketing announcements for national or global recognition. An entrepreneur could combine them all or pick one or two. It depends on how big they want to go, who they are targeting and the scope of the outreach. I personally think a combination of an event combined with advertising and personal marketing communication is the most effective way to launch new developments.
Keep in mind you’ll also want to make sure when preparing for the launch to have a clear communication message about why you are introducing a new line, who will benefit from the new line, and why they should be excited about the changes. You must have a strong marketing message ready in order to launch a new line properly and effectively.
Be Inspired – Fill Your Mind
Often we wake up in the morning with a full task list racing through our minds, a full day of business and personal responsibilities lined up, or a full pile of bills to pay. Sometimes the weight of what we have packed into the day overwhelms us before the sun rises. It’s not the best way to start the day, but many times it’s reality.
This morning as I woke up to take an early morning run my mind wasn’t full of bills, task lists and worries; instead it was full of positive thoughts after being with 85 women yesterday at Women TIES’ anniversary event. What a collection of amazing women gathered in one room to share another woman’s success as well as their own. It’s what makes doing business with other women entrepreneurs so unique. We love celebrating each other’s success as much as our own.
As I listened to seven members share their best business lessons learned and how Women TIES has influenced them personally and professionally, I noticed each of them took advantage of services we offer, attended events, and took to heart the lessons learned from other women in order to grow their businesses. Success always takes action. Women entrepreneurs are inspired to act when they hear other women’s successful stories. These stories fill their minds with potential for their own achievements.
The common theme in each one of the presenter’s speeches on what has made them successful over the past five years was their willingness to take risks, to ask for help, and to take big leaps of faith in moving their businesses forward. Many times listening to another woman inspired them to take a leap of faith with a business risk that paid off. It’s why we plan so many events with different women sharing their success strategies. We know it influences other women to positive action.
Today’s blog is to encourage you to open your mind and your calendar to attend events where other women can inspire and educate you. When you think your calendar is just too full for one more event, remember you might just wake up the morning after the event with a full mind of great business ideas instead of a full mind of worries. Allow yourself to be inspired and watch what happens next!
Customer Excellence
One year Friendly’s corporate office decided to challenge all its stores to a customer service contest. They wanted excellence running through their company. By hosting this expansive contest, they hoped to motivate each store to higher levels of customer service superiority. Our manager wanted our store in the small city of Rome, New York to win this award. We were told every customer we served could be a corporate representative rating us.Our manager demanded perfection. He trained us in the exact practices, policies, and behavior he expected so we could win the award. We learned to approach every customer like they were the most important customer, to deliver exceptional service and products, and to be “friendly” in the face of any problems. We won the contest and I walked away with $200 in Friendly money and an approach to customer service I never forgot. It’s probably one of the reasons I give all I can to each and every Women TIES member, event attendee, and inquiry that comes through this company. I was trained to believe the customer is the most important asset of all. I still believe this.
Influences on a Business
A wise woman once told me as a young entrepreneur in 1995 to “follow the natural path of my business,” little did I know following that path would open up my world to an abundance of dynamic women passionately pursuing their own business dreams. The power of each woman’s ambition, their determined spirit, and ability to support and share in the success of other women climbing next to them, has lifted, inspired and motivated me for the past five years. I pause to consider what I would have missed if I never took the risk to create a unique business organization that came from a need I heard from women across Central New York.Of course the path hasn’t been easy. As women entrepreneurs, we know the road gets rough. But in the midst of good times or bad, we must concentrate on the doors that have opened for us because of our belief and resolve in our abilities and destiny. The theme for next week’s celebration is “Celebrating Every Woman’s Success” because I believe, and know for sure, that each and every woman who has crossed my path the past five years is successful because every day they choose to walk a “path less traveled” with grit, vision, and passion determined to influence the world around them.
Today’s blog is simply a thank you to every single woman who has read one of our weekly e-newsletters, attended an event, been a member of our organization, lived our mission by buying from women, or simply supported women who have entrepreneurial dreams. You inspire me every day through your action and words.
I hope women entrepreneurs all over New York State, our nation and the world will join me in spirit on May 26th as Women TIES celebrates the individual and collective successes of our members and our organization. I know for sure together we will continue to gain positive financial and personal strides to influence and change the world for women.
Change is Good
Women TIES 
