Real World Business

RSS Feed Homepage

Little Success and Great New Happenings
2007-10-19 18:25:00
Marketing was one of the first things on my agenda when I came aboard. Marketing was only second to straightening out the bank register.We needed new customers. I began reading everything I could get my hands on about marketing, advertising and sales. Direct mail continually came up as a good beginning to our marketing plan.All I had to do was design some post cards, figure out how to say what I wanted to say, my list of companies I wanted to mail to, and slap some stamps on them.The post card designs were fairly easy, not to mention a little fun. I decided to do two styles for two different industries we deal with. The first industry I targeted was a big money earning industry. The second is what I consider our bread and butter customers. I played with words and phrases for about a week until I was satisfied with what I was saying and sent each of the designs to the printer.In order to understand how well direct mail would do for us, I selected 100 companies in each of our t...
More About: Great , Success , Happenings

Taking Risks With the Future
2007-10-17 22:05:00
I've mentioned that I get to see what it's like to own a business without the risks. This is only partially true. I never had to make an investment, and I'm not responsible to buy things for the shop out of my checking account. However, be careful what you ask for.I have been interested in owning my own business for a few years. Since a friend of mine owned a business, I thought it would be a grand idea to learn how to go through the motions. This business isn't a startup, but after being crushed by the post 9/11 economy we're in a rebuilding phase (or going out of business phase).When we perform a job and then have to wait more than 30 days to be paid for it our cash flow isn't healthy enough to get us through. The guys on the shop floor are, in my opinion, more important than I am. We wouldn't be in business if our manufacturing floor had no employees. Whereas the business would only suffer without an office person to smooth things out.My ego is large enough to caus...
More About: Future , The Future , Taking

A View from Two Sides
2007-10-16 01:50:00
As a customer walking into a business with depressed, stressed, irritated, unyielding employees, I pause. If it happens to be a restaurant or any food service with irritated, angry employees, I walk out. If it happens to be a retail store with depressed, non-functioning salespeople, I walk out. I prefer to support a business who likes their customers enough to leave their personal problems at home.When you are faced with this situation do you choose to open your wallet and support a business who obviously has some personal issues to deal with? I am told, and it is half believable, that consumers have all the power over the economy.It is only half believable because I see how much power a business has over the economy as well. Yet, are consumers giving business that much power by opening their wallets when they shouldn't?I'm sure you have heard how much power you have as an individual over money matters in America. Next time you need or want to buy something, consider who you...
More About: Sides , View

Bread and Butter - Part 2
2007-10-12 17:54:00
The company I spoke of in my last post is still in business. They have lost many of their employees along with the bread and butter customers. I was one of those employees.Last I heard, that formerly $14,000,000/yr company is now worth only about $6,000,000/yr, and still sinking. All of my old co-workers who I'd built friendships with are no longer there, so I will not know for sure how that company is doing from now on. I only have one small clue... I visit their website about twice a year to see if there have been any changes. So far, there are 3 pages that come up with a 404 error, the starting flash page has some glitches, and there has been nothing added or updated in about 3 years. It's only a small clue, but it's a revealing one.My current company will stop working on large jobs to take care of the little guys. The little guys are the easiest to take care of and negotiate with (not to mention they're fun, the big dogs seem to have lost their sense of humor somewher...
More About: Bread , Part , Butter , Brea

Bread and Butter - Part 1
2007-10-10 18:01:00
I used to work for a small/mid-sized manufacturing company that made an incredible mistake. The owner bought it when it was only worth $250,000/yr. He built it to a $14,000,000/yr company in only 9 years. It was exciting to work for a company in growth. The atmosphere was one of friendship and fun. All the employees knew each other, we liked each other, we worked as a team, we spent time with each other after work, we were proud to work for this company. And all of us liked and respected the owner, my direct boss (note: past tense). He was the first boss I'd ever had who I truly liked.This atmosphere of friendship and respect extended to our customers as well. We knew our customers by first name. Many of us built friendships with our customers. We invited our customers to barbeques, pot lucks, and weekend sports bar hopping.We suddenly started seeing big pretty carrots placed in front of our faces. We had three very large companies make wild claims about how much product ...
More About: Bread , Part , Butter , Brea

Irritate the Gatekeeper for Sales
2007-10-08 21:53:00
Who thought it would be a grand idea to have recorded telemarketing calls? When these calls come to my home phone, I am irritated. How much more irritating do you think it is when I'm at work attempting to help a customer and the phone rings... and I hear a recorded telemarketing call.The first thing that pops into my head is our current economy, and I begin to ponder how many people are out of work because of a recording. The second thing that pops into my head is how cowardly these companies are that they can't even have a live person listen to me hang up on them.However, I will stop and listen when I have the time. I make careful notes on the business described in the recording (if they ever get around to announcing it). And I make sure the shop I work for doesn't become a customer of theirs.Here is a tip to keep in mind if you are considering this avenue of sales. The first person to answer the phone in any business is the one you really need to impress. We are the gat...
More About: Sales , The G

In Quite a State
2007-10-05 16:36:00
State taxes are a completely different animal! The employees who work with state taxation cannot, under any circumstances, speak in human language. If you read the pamphlets they send out, or read the websites they provide, you will hear it parroted. Go ahead, I dare you to ask these people a question! I challenge you to try to get them to speak in their own words.You will hear "In paragraph number... section number... revised date... amendment to..." It really is the most amazing thing. It's nice to know that robotics has achieved this level of advancement. But, when I ask a question, I need help. I need help beyond what the booklets and websites are telling me. The problem I needed to sort out was that a tax was paid that we don't owe (not the right kind of business for that tax), the tax we owe was not paid, one tax went to the wrong department and they kept it... It was a confusing mess. And again there was 4 years of this confusing mess to sort out.It would have bee...
More About: State

In Quite a State
2007-10-05 16:36:00
State taxes are a completely different animal! The employees who work with state taxation cannot, under any circumstances, speak in human language. If you read the pamphlets they send out, or read the websites they provide, you will hear it parroted. Go ahead, I dare you to ask these people a question! I challenge you to try to get them to speak in their own words.You will hear "In paragraph number... section number... revised date... amendment to..." It really is the most amazing thing. It's nice to know that robotics has achieved this level of advancement. But, when I ask a question, I need help. I need help beyond what the booklets and websites are telling me. The problem I needed to sort out was that a tax was paid that we don't owe (not the right kind of business for that tax), the tax we owe was not paid, one tax went to the wrong department and they kept it... It was a confusing mess. And again there was 4 years of this confusing mess to sort out.It would have bee...
More About: State

The Big Bad IRS Man
2007-10-04 16:26:00
I am not a tax expert. I'm not a tax accountant. I have no formal training in taxation. I've acquired limited business tax knowledge through different avenues in life. The owners of this little shop had gone 4 years without filing or paying tax to the big bad IRS man. This is one of the reasons they asked for my help.So, I started this job in a firestorm of IRS letters that were quite unsettling and a bit threatening. We've all heard the horror stories of people who have gone through IRS audits. We've all heard about what can happen when you don't pay taxes. And here I am, with limited knowledge, trying to appease people who have been described as no less than monsters.What I have discovered is that the IRS is the easiest, most helpful, most informative tax agency in existence.My first action was to call them and make sure I had the right to talk about the taxes on behalf of my employer. A few papers and faxes later, with help and advice from the big bad IRS people, I ...

The Big Bad IRS Man
2007-10-04 16:26:00
I am not a tax expert. I'm not a tax accountant. I have no formal training in taxation. I've acquired limited business tax knowledge through different avenues in life. The owners of this little shop had gone 4 years without filing or paying tax to the big bad IRS man. This is one of the reasons they asked for my help.So, I started this job in a firestorm of IRS letters that were quite unsettling and a bit threatening. We've all heard the horror stories of people who have gone through IRS audits. We've all heard about what can happen when you don't pay taxes. And here I am, with limited knowledge, trying to appease people who have been described as no less than monsters.What I have discovered is that the IRS is the easiest, most helpful, most informative tax agency in existence.My first action was to call them and make sure I had the right to talk about the taxes on behalf of my employer. A few papers and faxes later, with help and advice from the big bad IRS people, I ...

Family Business
2007-10-02 17:59:00
A family business can be a great idea. There are several success stories. Many families work very well together and are quite a team.Then there are those families who would be better off staying away from each other. Unfortunately, as a small business owner with not a lot of money, you can't always afford the people you need. You have a choice of becoming an expert in every area of your business, or hiring someone to take care of the aspects you aren't skilled in.If you choose to do it all yourself, you will be up against: knowing your product/service inside and out, sales, marketing, advertising, customer service, accounting, bookkeeping, payables, receivables, taxes (better not forget taxes, they won't forget out you!), payroll, employment procedures, safety procedures, insurance, licenses, security of your building/office, quoting, invoicing, collections, planning (including exit planning!), researching your best vendors, website development (if you want an online presence...
More About: Business , Family , Family Business , Sine

Family Business
2007-10-02 17:59:00
A family business can be a great idea. There are several success stories. Many families work very well together and are quite a team.Then there are those families who would be better off staying away from each other. Unfortunately, as a small business owner with not a lot of money, you can't always afford the people you need. You have a choice of becoming an expert in every area of your business, or hiring someone to take care of the aspects you aren't skilled in.If you choose to do it all yourself, you will be up against: knowing your product/service inside and out, sales, marketing, advertising, customer service, accounting, bookkeeping, payables, receivables, taxes (better not forget taxes, they won't forget out you!), payroll, employment procedures, safety procedures, insurance, licenses, security of your building/office, quoting, invoicing, collections, planning (including exit planning!), researching your best vendors, website development (if you want an online presence...
More About: Business , Family , Family Business , Sine

The Ends Don't Meet
2007-10-02 05:52:00
Offering terms of payment is fairly common in business. Many vendors offer a 30-day net, some offer 10 day net, and another few allow a bit of a discount if we pay early. This is fairly typical.I do not get the option to tell my vendors when I will pay. The vendors have the right to tell me as their customer what they will allow.As a consumer, you do not get to tell a retail store that you will pay them differently than what they expect. You don't get an opportunity to tell your lender that your loan payment will only be made quarterly. And you certainly don't have the option to tell you car dealer that you will be driving the car off the lot, but financing will be completed after 90 days.As a small business, we experience situations that become a bit stretched out. We have customers who completely ignore the due date on invoices because they have their own payment terms of 45, 60, 90 and sometimes 120 days. We have a customer who only pays quarterly. We have experienced c...
More About: Meet , Ends

The Ends Don't Meet
2007-10-02 05:52:00
Offering terms of payment is fairly common in business. Many vendors offer a 30-day net, some offer 10 day net, and another few allow a bit of a discount if we pay early. This is fairly typical.I do not get the option to tell my vendors when I will pay. The vendors have the right to tell me as their customer what they will allow.As a consumer, you do not get to tell a retail store that you will pay them differently than what they expect. You don't get an opportunity to tell your lender that your loan payment will only be made quarterly. And you certainly don't have the option to tell you car dealer that you will be driving the car off the lot, but financing will be completed after 90 days.As a small business, we experience situations that become a bit stretched out. We have customers who completely ignore the due date on invoices because they have their own payment terms of 45, 60, 90 and sometimes 120 days. We have a customer who only pays quarterly. We have experienced c...
More About: Meet , Ends

Made in China - Behind the Scenes
2007-09-28 23:29:00
Business was going very badly last year. So bad, in fact, that we considered selling or liquidating. And then a new customer walked through the door.A multinational company had enough work for us that the dollar amount would have been in the neighborhood of $150K per year. Keep in mind that I work for a very little bitty shop, so one customer who's willing to spend that kind of money on our work is nothing short of a godsend.We completed the first job with flying colors and a bottle of champaign. The second and third jobs met with raving approval. And then.... nothing. We tried to call, but only got voice mail. We left messages that went into space for all we know, no returned calls.We warranty our work, so any dissatisfaction would have been handled immediately. Not to mention that we like to know if we've done something wrong.Still nothing.Months went by and we forgot about our new tremendously large customer.In August of 2007 we received a call. The old person we had d...
More About: China , Behind The Scenes , Made , Made In China , Scenes

Made in China - Behind the Scenes
2007-09-28 23:29:00
Business was going very badly last year. So bad, in fact, that we considered selling or liquidating. And then a new customer walked through the door.A multinational company had enough work for us that the dollar amount would have been in the neighborhood of $150K per year. Keep in mind that I work for a very little bitty shop, so one customer who's willing to spend that kind of money on our work is nothing short of a godsend.We completed the first job with flying colors and a bottle of champaign. The second and third jobs met with raving approval. And then.... nothing. We tried to call, but only got voice mail. We left messages that went into space for all we know, no returned calls.We warranty our work, so any dissatisfaction would have been handled immediately. Not to mention that we like to know if we've done something wrong.Still nothing.Months went by and we forgot about our new tremendously large customer.In August of 2007 we received a call. The old person we had d...
More About: China , Behind The Scenes , Made , Made In China , Scenes

Small Business Woes
2007-09-28 22:19:00
Mortgage companies going bankrupt? Everything you buy is "made in China"? Working more than you used to for less money?We are a small business (sole proprietor) who is suffering through this strange economy. We are a very small shop with only 1 full-time employee, 2 part-timers and 2 sub contractors. And we lose jobs to China just like the big dogs.This shop has been in business for 25 years, so we've seen ups and downs. This current economy is about the strangest one we've seen. Some lessons have been learned, and some situations are terribly confusing. Political decisions have impacted us considerably. Mass layoffs in almost every industry throughout the US over the years have impacted us terribly. Business closures, bankruptcies and sell-outs have impacted us harshly.We lose customers because they've lost customers and must shut their doors. Our competition is dwindling with shops going out of business every month (I guess that's sort of good - in a selfish anti-free-enterpri...
More About: Small Business , Small , Sine

Small Business Woes
2007-09-28 22:19:00
Mortgage companies going bankrupt? Everything you buy is "made in China"? Working more than you used to for less money?We are a small business (sole proprietor) who is suffering through this strange economy. We are a very small shop with only 1 full-time employee, 2 part-timers and 2 sub contractors. And we lose jobs to China just like the big dogs.This shop has been in business for 25 years, so we've seen ups and downs. This current economy is about the strangest one we've seen. Some lessons have been learned, and some situations are terribly confusing. Political decisions have impacted us considerably. Mass layoffs in almost every industry throughout the US over the years have impacted us terribly. Business closures, bankruptcies and sell-outs have impacted us harshly.We lose customers because they've lost customers and must shut their doors. Our competition is dwindling with shops going out of business every month (I guess that's sort of good - in a selfish anti-free-enterpri...
More About: Small Business , Small , Sine