5 Tips for Small Business Owners in 2010

Since we are all considered small business owners, I thought it might be a good idea to grab a few good tips from the many articles that are out there on the web and put them here in ConcessionCentral (with proper citation and links of course). As I'm sure you're fully aware, there is a ton of information on the Internet on just about every subject possible. For many of us, it can be a daunting task to wade through it all to find a few good nuggets of helpful information.

With the year just getting underway, this seems to be a good time to review and refine some business practices for most of us. If your business is seasonal, this is a great time because it's cold out there and most seasonal business are closed.

So, from one small business owner to another, here's what I have found so far that I felt like passing on to you:

1. Offer Good Quality at a Fair Price
The second principle for business success with any product or service is that it must be of good quality at a fair price. If it's in competition with other similar products or services, it must have what's called a Unique Selling Proposition—one or more features or benefits that make it unique, different and superior to any competitive product or service.

This area of uniqueness is central to success in business. No product or service can succeed unless it's somehow unique and superior to any other product or service that competes with it. There's seldom any opportunity to build a business around a "me too" product—a product or service that's just the same as all the others, where the only difference is that it's you who happens to be selling it.

The safest business strategy is to start off with an accepted product that already has a widespread market and then find a way to improve upon it in some way. Deliver it faster, make it better or of higher quality, or lower the price of the product or service in some way. Instead of trying to invent a new business or industry, start off with a product or service that people are already using and find some way to make it more desirable. Courtesy of Score.org

2. Cut Personal Expenses: Find ways to cut costs outside of the business, because you’ll likely have to take home less pay and even go into your savings: 69 percent of small business owners say that current economic conditions are forcing them to reduce the amount of money they take home from their businesses, and 61 percent think they are very or somewhat likely to use their personal assets in the next year to keep their businesses afloat. Courtesy of Yahoo! Finance.

3. Create a social media policy: Social media is not a fad any more. It’s time to stop experimenting and start managing your social media strategy. Create a policy around social media, even if you’re only a one-person operation. Your social media policy should include your objectives for each site and any rules you have around posts, articles, pictures, etc. Creating this policy will eliminate employee confusion, problems and PR and potential digital reputation management nightmares. Courtesy of American Express Small Business Open Forum

4. Keep all documents.
When it comes to your taxes, it’s a good idea to be a pack rat. You’ll have peace of mind knowing you can produce any document at anytime, no matter what questions may come up. Always organize and carefully file away:

Credit card bills and receipts
Old checkbooks
Bills and invoices
Mileage logs and documentations
Canceled checks or proofs of payment (VERY important)
Any evidence that supports deductions and credit claims on your tax returns
Courtesy of ESB Journal

5. Put all agreements in writing.

The laws of your state require you to put some contracts and agreements in writing:
Contracts that will last longer than a year.
Contracts that involve the sale of goods worth $500 or more.
Contracts that transfer the ownership of copyrights or real estate.
Even if not legally required, it's wise to put almost everything in writing, because oral agreements can be difficult or impossible to prove. This includes leases or rental agreements, storage agreements, contracts for services (such as consulting or electrical work), purchase orders or contracts for goods worth more than a couple hundred dollars, offer letters of employment, and employment policies. Get in the habit of getting and giving receipts for all goods, services, and deposits, regardless of how much. Courtesy of Yahoo! Small Business

As you can see, I have pulled one tip from each of these sites. I would encourage you to go back and read each of these articles. They contain a lot of great information for business owners. Whether you're just starting out or you're a seasoned business owner, there are some great tips in these articles that will help you make your business more successful and profitable.

Branding

What sets you apart from your competition? We have discussed several things that definitely assist you in differentiating yourself from your local competition such as:

* Superior Customer Service
* Competitive Pricing
* Offering Superior Products Made from the Best Equipment and Served in High Quality Materials

These things all make a huge impact on gaining and retaining customers.

One thing we haven’t discussed much at all is branding and the important role it has in creating your identity as a business. Branding is a “package deal” because it involves several different things. Here are a few things to get you thinking about how to shape your branding or polish/revise what is perhaps a dated or weak branding strategy.

1. Logo Design. Your logo is the visual icon for your brand. Creating a unique, visually appealing logo is an important and critical step in establishing your company’s identity.
2. Purpose Statement. What do you stand for? Say something. Let people know what you’re passionate about. Think about Ben & Jerry’s…they are more than just ice cream; they are a company that stands for a cause.
3. Make purchasing your product an experience, not just a transaction. Give them something positive to remember.
4. Give Back. You rely on the community around you for your customers. Make sure that you in turn are active in the community with your business. Get behind a local cause and support it…either financially or with your time.
5. Be dedicated to always being the best and only offering the best of everything to your customers.

This certainly isn’t comprehensive by any means, it’s just meant to get you thinking about the process of developing your company’s brand.

More to come…

Bookkeeping

For some folks…this is a terrible topic to bring up. Keeping accurate records is an absolutely necessity. Yes, it takes time…but, in the long run it is well worth the effort. Accurate, up to date books give you the ability to truly know if the products and services you are offering are profitable or not. It will also save you a myriad of headaches at the end of the year when your taxes are due. In the event of an audit…you will be ready.

Daily record keeping is a necessity in order to keep track of your sales and expenses. It will be necessary to keep up with daily sales, sales tax owed, expenses, payroll and payroll taxes.

If you prefer to keep track of your income and expenses manually, you can buy an accounting ledger book at your local office supply store for around $15.00. If you prefer to use an electronic method, there are several great bookkeeping programs out there. QuickBooks is a great, easy to use software program to help with record keeping. Another option is to use a secure online system (there is a version of Quickbooks set up this way). I will be researching a few of the online systems and reporting my finding to you shortly.

Another wise course of action is to talk with your accountant about the best ways to keep your records organized. Your accountant can also give advice on how to best setup your payroll system. He or she should be able to advise you on what deductions you will need to withhold from employee’s paychecks.

Do you already use a particular bookkeeping system? If so, please let us know what you use and how well it works for you. If you have questions about a particular system, please ask them and I will try to get some answers for you. Keeping accurate books is essential to the success of your business. At 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com and CottonCandyExpress.com, we’re interested in helping you succeed! Thanks!

Check Out Other Shaved Ice Vendors

It's always good to look at other companies that are in the same industry as you. What are they doing well? What are they doing wrong? How does my own business rate in comparison?

There are good, helpful lessons to be learned in observing how another shaved ice company operates. I know this is beginning of the busy time for most concessionaires. But, I think it would be prudent to perhaps take an afternoon and observe some other shaved ice businesses operations. While doing so, ask yourself a few questions:

1. What is the initial appeal that draws customers to their stand?
2. Do they serve unique products?
3. Pricing - Are your prices in line with theirs?
4. Customer Service. Are they friendly and helpful?
5. Is their stand clean and visually appealing?
6. Does their staff operate in a professional, respectful manner?

If you are up to it (and if they don't necessarily know who you are), go ahead and order a shaved ice from them. Pay attention to their interaction with you. Watch how they make your shaved ice.

Taking the time to observe and perhaps interact with another stand from a customer viewpoint can give you insight into some areas where you may need to improve the operation of your own concessions business. It can also reassure you on some things that you are doing well.

As I've said before, I label these as "Magic Lanterns" - events and information that you can always go back to and use to refine your business. It's important to take time to evaluate your business and how it operates.

Start Making Money with Your Own Shaved Ice or Snow Cone Business

In today's tough employment market, are you looking to start your own side business? The beauty of starting your own shaved ice or snow cone business is that you can start out small (inexpensively) or on a large scale. It's all up to you and your desired investment.

To learn more about starting your own shaved ice or snow cone business, we recommend that you read through our FREE business manual, COLD CASH. It features great, insightful information about opening your own concessions business. Click here to request your free copy today!

Our free 106 page shaved ice business manual is filled with time tested tips on how to open and operate your own shaved ice stand. Topics covered include:

Types of Shaved Ice and Snow Cone Machines
RTU Syrups and Flavor Concentrates
Secret Specialty Recipes
Business Revenue and Expenses
Advertising
Business Equipment & Supplies
State and Local Business Requirements
And much more!

Basic Business Principles

I came across this slideshow recently and thought it was worth sharing with you.

As business owners (or potential business owners), it's important to establish these principles from the very beginning. However, if you haven't established some basic operating principles for your company...it's not too late! In light of today's fragile economy I would encourage you to seriously take the time to analyze your business, streamline your operations, and stay on top of everything.

Top10 Basic Business Principles

View more presentations or upload your own. (tags: business principles)

In future posts, I hope to delve into some of these points a little more in-depth. Greg Fisher (creator of this presentation) is a fan of Guy Kawasaki, as I am too. I think Guy has a lot of great wisdom and experience on business operations and how to maximize the impact of your company. So, I plan on looking to him for well qualified information along with personal experiences in my business dealings over the past 20 years.

So...there's more coming. But, for now I encourage you to view the slideshow and also visit Greg Fisher's site too - he has quite a bit of good, helpful information on his site.

Thanks!