By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the May 14, 2012 Daily Herald

            There’s stuff to do:

            * Make your business important.  You probably think it is. Hopefully, family and employees do, too.  We’re aiming at customers, however.

            Determine your five most important customers, keeping in mind that most important going forward may not equate to biggest today, and meet them, individually, in a strategic planning session that cements your business and theirs.

            The idea is for you to discuss how your business can help them achieve their goals, which means you may need to do some research.  You want to show how important your business is to them – not just because you supply products or services they need but because by working together both businesses can prosper.

            Get your top people involved, at least in planning your approach.  Maybe the meeting is you and your counterpart, plus your top people and theirs.

            The process is somewhat different if yours is a retail business.  For example, you may want to bring compatible, non-competitive retailers from the shopping center or downtown where you’re located together to plan your joint futures.  Talk promotions.  Customer demographics.  Cross selling.  Image.  Advertising.

            * Now that you have something of a plan, do a talent check.  Do you have the people you need – for now, of course, but employees who can help you grow?  Do you know where to find new staff?

            * You likely have a cadre of customers that aren’t yet top five but are ones you want to impress with your business’ leadership capabilities.

            Host a morning “Coffee and Ideas” seminar that features three speakers, each limited to 30 minutes.  Possible topics:  What do to about health insurance (after the Supreme Court has ruled).  How to sell in today’s market.  Who cares about social media?

            The intent is to get your customers thinking about your business as a source of information – not just the product or service you sell.

            * Plan to quit.  Sell to the kids.  Sell to the management team.  Sell to any buyer you can find.  Whatever your situation today, you should begin to plan your exit, even if your business is young.

            Balance sheet issues matter to any buyer.  You may understand why a number doesn’t quite measure up, but a buyer won’t care about the reasons.  Buyers want good data.

            Buyers also want to see a solid future.  That means you should have a clearly defined, and profitable, growth plan – which you should have anyway.

            There are other things in the getting-out process.  How much money do you need from a sale of the business?  That’s something you should know.  Do you want it in a big check?  Will you finance the sale?  Your tax advisor and a good business broker are worth a phone call.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the May 7, 2012 Daily Herald

                It’s been a while since many small businesses hired a new employee.  A brief refresher about the process might help:

                * There’s a difference between hiring a new employee and hiring what Joel Goldberg defines as the ‘A’ player. “Anyone can put somebody into an opening,” says Goldberg, CEO, Aurico Reports, Inc.  “What you want is to fill that space with a high performer who will do well.”

                * The hiring essentials, according to Goldberg and management attorney Julie Proscia, include a good job description; an ability to ask interview questions that will get the information you want; and background checks that verify the information an applicant provides and assesses her, or his, past performance.

                The hiring process should begin with “a good position description, so you can match the skill set you need to the individual,” says Proscia, a partner in the St. Charles office of SmithAmundsen, LLC, a Chicago-based law firm that specializes in management support.

                “Do your prep work in the beginning.”

                That prep work likely will include firming up your questions.  Contrary to what many business owners believe, there are questions you can ask.  “You can’t ask questions that pertain to protected categories – whether an applicant is married or if they’d need time off if they had sick children,” Proscia says.

                But, she continues, you can ask about an applicant’s ability to perform the essentials of the job.  “For example, ‘Our hours are 9 to 5.  Can you work those hours?  And sometimes we have overtime on short notice.  Will that be a problem?’”

                Listen and you’ll discover much of the information you want.

                Proscia also suggests having two people in the interview.  “You’ll have two sets of eyes and ears to determine whether the applicant is a good fit for your company and its culture,” she says, and you’ll have a witness to the process if, for example, any discrimination charges are brought if an applicant doesn’t get your job.

                Aside from the information you glean directly from the applicant sitting in your office, there are two additional key parts of the hire-or-not decision:  How the prospective employee has performed in previous jobs, and who the applicant is.

                “Don’t think you know everything there is to know about the individual you’re interviewing,” warns Goldberg, whose Arlington Heights-headquartered Aurico provides a range of background screens, verifications and testing.  Information on resumes and applications tends to be “stretched” seven times out of 10, with “outright lies,” mostly concerning salaries and degrees, occurring one-third of the time, he says.

                While many businesses do little more than verify an applicant’s employment dates, Aurico’s people seek out an applicant’s previous supervisor.

                “The supervisor generally will share factual information and opinions,” says Goldberg, whose interviewers probe about an applicant’s actual performance.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the April 30, 2012 Daily Herald

            There’s good news and bad for small businesses about the just completed tax season.  First the good:

            * We made more money.  “We saw the best (client) earnings since 2008,” says Tony Massaro, tax partner at Porte Brown, LLC, Elk Grove Village.  “A lot of people bought new equipment and took advantage of the Section 179 write-off.”

            Businesses could write-off as much as $500,000 of qualifying equipment purchases in 2011.  The write-off is lower this year, but, assuming cash flow works, 2012 “still can be a good time to buy equipment” and write off at least some of the cost, says Wheaton CPA Paul Asheim, president, Paul W. Asheim, Ltd.

            * QuickBooks helps.  Even though some business owners “have a fear of setting things up,” Asheim says that QuickBooks “has changed the accounting world.  Once business owners get past the learning curve, I get a disk, not a box of receipts.

“QuickBooks is pretty easy to work with.”

            * We’re talking to our accountants more often.  “We aim to have very few surprises on March 15 (when corporate taxes are due) and April 15 (when those 1040s must be filed),” says Massaro.  “We get as much information as possible from clients in October and November,” partly so clients know early whether they must write a big year-end check.

            “It’s like a health check-up,” Asheim says.  “Where do you really stand?  What do you need to do?”

            * 401(k) plans are coming back.  “We saw a lot of new retirement plans starting up,” Massaro says.  That’s an indication business owners are seeing more cash and feeling better about their prospects.

Still, less than two weeks since tax-due day, why does it feel like we’re not done with the tax season?  Well, we’re not.

            * The Supreme Court’s decision on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) will set in motion, change or kill a passel of taxes scheduled to become effective in 2014, the year the health plan really takes effect.

            “People are scared about all the taxes in the healthcare bill,” says Asheim.  “It’s not just the penalty (for individuals who do not buy healthcare coverage), it’s the taxes created to fund the program.”

            * What Congress does, or doesn’t do, about the expiring-again Bush-era tax cuts will effect this year’s taxes and tax planning – but Congress seems unlikely to act before year-end.

            * Tax-related identity theft has become an issue – up 97 percent in FY 2011, according to the IRS.

            Criminals use a stolen Social Security number to file a false return that generates a refund early in the tax season.  When a legitimate return is e-filed, Massaro says, the IRS “rejects the form because somebody else already filed with your Social Security number.”

            The problem is solvable, Massaro says, but time consuming.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the April 23, 2012 Daily Herald

            Of course Kindles and Nooks have changed book retailing, but maybe not as much as doomsayers once predicted.  According to Pew Internet, part of the Washington, D.C.-based Pew Research Center:

            * 21 percent of American adults read an e-book in the last year.  That number jumped from 17 percent after a passel of e-reader holiday gifts.

            * The printed book isn’t dead, however.  Again according to Pew, 72 percent of us read a printed book last year.  In fact, 88 percent of those who read an e-book also read a traditionally formatted book.

            Yet there’s no doubt that “E-books have taken a certain part of the market,” says Donna Paz Kaufman, a trainer at The Bookstore Training Group of Paz & Associates, Inc., a Fernandina Beach, FL, consultant to bookstore owners and start-ups.  “Entrepreneurs must realize they must change how they serve customers.”

            Two suburban indie bookstores that connect well with their markets are Forest Park’s Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore, and Read Between the Lynes, Woodstock. 

            Both stores sell e-books on their websites.  “Of course,” answers Arlene Lynes, owner at Read Between the Lynes, Inc.  “Why would I send my customers someplace else to buy an e-book?  Why would I want to give up that market share?”

            But, adds Augie Aleksy, whose Centuries & Sleuths won a national award last year for contributions to the mystery community, “There’s an evolution.  People go back to books.  On a business trip, they may read their Kindle, but at home, when they read for enjoyment, people want a real book.”

            Promotions at both stores are event driven.  Author signings are a staple, but events fit the store.

            Lynes is a believer that “An independent bookstore can bring a lot of heart and soul to a community.”  Thus a birthday party April 14 for the store’s canine mascots (family pets) requested no gifts other than a donation to Woodstock’s Helping Paws Animal Shelter, and Sourcebooks, a Naperville publisher, is chipping in with donations based on the store’s sales of “Things Your Dog Doesn’t Want You to Know.”

            This past weekend, Lynes organized an event that began with champagne, cheese and paté at Woodstock’s La Petite Creperie & Bistrot, included a chocolate tasting by Ethereal Confections, Woodstock, and wrapped up with a presentation by Amy Thomas, author of “Paris, My Sweet: A Year in the City of Light and Dark Chocolate.”

            Activities at Centuries & Sleuths range from discussions with historical characters portrayed by members of the store’s history discussion group to a publisher-backed Great Mystery Bus Tour that last week brought four important authors to the store for a signing, and meetings of the Midwest chapter of Mystery Writers of America, whose meeting yesterday was scheduled to focus on blood stain evidence.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the April 9, 2012 Daily Herald

            The Supremes took their vote on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare, if you prefer) March 30.  The rest of us – including the apparently endless parade of talking heads and other experts, many self-appointed – aren’t going to know how the vote went until the Court hands down its decision in June.

            Whatever the decision – kill the law, keep it, or wipe out just the mandate that requires all of us to either have health insurance or pay a fine – the best approach for employers may be to wait.

            The Court’s decision will include an effective date, says Oak Park benefits attorney Larry Grudzien.  “People can stop tearing their hair out.”

            Assuming for discussion purposes that the Supreme Court makes at least some changes in the healthcare act, it is insurance companies and providers who will take the next steps.  For the most part, employers will have to wait to see what changes happen when.

            “My best advice,” says Tim Lavin, “is to hold tight.  Insurers are likely to leave everything in place for a period of time, to give everyone a chance to catch their breath.

            “Stick close to your broker or agent.  For a while, anyway, it will be business as usual.”

            Lavin, president of The Lavin Insurance Agency, Schaumburg, suggests for example that “The provision that allows adult children up to the age of 26 to be part of their parents’ health coverage may not change that quickly.”

            Although most provisions of the legislation don’t kick in until 2014, there are provisions that are scheduled to become effective this year.  Some employers will be required to report the cost of employer-sponsored coverage on 2012 W-2 forms – but only if the business has at least 250 employees.

            However, all employers must provide a four-page summary of the company’s benefits and coverage to applicants and enrollees, Grudzien says.  There are details, but the purpose of the summary plan – called both the SPD and SBC in industry literature – is to allow employees to compare their options.

            “Insurance companies will provide the information,” Grudzien says, “but employers must distribute the data.”  There’s a fine of $1,000 per each employee if the employer fails to distribute the information.

            The shouting from both sides over the healthcare act has tended to obscure some small business basics:

            * Businesses with 25 or fewer employees who are paid average annual wages below $50,000 may qualify for a tax credit of up to 35 percent to help offset the cost of insurance.  The tax credit is scheduled to rise to 50 percent in 2014.

            * If you have as few as two or as many as 50 employees, insurers cannot deny or cancel coverage based on the health of your employees or dependents.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the April 2, 2012 Daily Herald

            Face-to-face networking – you know, where you meet real people and actually talk with them – is harder, says Lillian Bjorseth.  But, she continues, that traditional style of networking “is so much more effective” than emails, Tweets and other types of e-marketing that may or may not get read.

            The primary benefit is the instant feedback you get when you deliver your marketing message in a live networking session.

            Bjorseth, president of Duoforce Enterprises, Inc., Lisle, is quick to agree that “It’s easier to sit at a computer and type a (marketing) message.  But that doesn’t mean someone will read your message or understand it.”

            Conversely, you’ll know right away whether your message resonates with a conversation partner at a live get-together.  “If I furrow my brow, shake my head ‘No’ or fold my arms, that lets you know that I may not be understanding your message,” Bjorseth says.  “Over half of a listener’s response comes through body language.”

            Those who know Bjorseth – she has been helping business owners connect with prospects and referral sources for more than 20 years – won’t be surprised by her focus on face-to-face networking.  Yet Bjorseth also has a significant LinkedIn presence, and the Greater Chicago Networking Extravaganza which she co-founded and which will have its 11^th annual meeting next month has a LinkedIn sibling.

            In fact, Bjorseth says, many LinkedIn groups are trying local meet-ups – a good thing, she believes.  “We need to know each other before I’m comfortable referring someone.”

            A big part of success at face-to-face marketing is knowing how to start a conversation.  “Never open with a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ question,” Bjorseth says.  “Ask open-ended questions so people have to respond with more than one word.

            “Don’t ask, ‘Is this your first time here?’  Ask ‘Why did you choose to come to this meeting?’”

            Listen to the answer and respond appropriately.  “One way to put people at ease is to talk about them and their business, not about yourself,” Bjorseth says.  With any luck at all, you’ll pick up information that will be useful – if not at the moment then in a follow-up contact.

            “I espouse relationship building,” Bjorseth says.  “Tell me what you do, for whom and where you find your customers.”  Armed with that information, you can drop in appropriate nuggets about your own business as the conversation rolls.

            There’s nothing wrong with e-mail or phone follow-ups to networking connections, Bjorseth says, especially if you suggest an hour over coffee to extend your new relationship or forward a referral.

            There’s nothing wrong with e-mail marketing, either – although our company’s experience is that email blasts, newsletters and similar tools are much more effective when they are sent to people who know your name.  That’s another benefit of face-to-face networking.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the March 26, 2012 Daily Herald

            Let’s begin with Jason Burton’s simplified explanation of cloud computing, which, he says, is your ability to “access data and software that is stored on another system, away from your business.”

            The remote servers housing information that once lived on your desktop “could be in Virginia, Indonesia or Japan.”  Depending on the providers you choose and the project you’re doing, the data you need could come from one or “all those places working together,” he says.

            The primary reason for a small business to embrace the cloud is back-up.  “If the walls in your office fall down, your data are just a few clicks away,” says Burton, president of Chicago Technology Consulting.

            Burton’s Chicago-based firm specializes in IT services for small businesses.

            Back-up is one reason Sharon Joseph is a fan of cloud computing. 

            “I didn’t back up anything at all,” Joseph says.  “Nothing – until I realized I was incredibly vulnerable.  I had a lot of intellectual thought and effort in thousands of files.  Now everything is off-site,” Joseph says.  “I have no hard drive.  I don’t have to worry about a fire in my office.  Everything is stored off-site.”

            Joseph uses Carbonite, which provides “incredibly easy” system back-up.  But Joseph is further into cloud computing than simply data back-up.

            For example, Joseph no longer wonders whether she’s working on the latest version of a document for a client.  Instead, she utilizes Google Docs.  “We share the document and work collaboratively,” Joseph says.

            Actually, Joseph, who is principal at Spectrum Consulting Services, Inc., Hoffman Estates, prefers Drop Box to Google Docs.  “It’s a little more sophisticated,” she explains. “I load (my) file into the cloud and it goes right into the client’s system.  I can take my laptop anywhere.  If they’ve changed the document, I’m already working on it.”

            As easy as Joseph’s cloud experiences seem, cloud computing isn’t for every small business.  Back-up is easy and cheap, but “I’d be a little concerned about up-time (data availability),” Burton says – although he is quick to add that “Catastrophic failures at (the server) end almost never happen.  It’s more likely that something will happen at your end” to interfere with your Internet connection.

            Cloud or not, your connection can fail “Because someone threw the wrong switch on a Comcast pole,” he says.

            Your local connection’s bandwidth may be a bigger issue, Burton says, especially if, for example, you do a lot of online photo editing.

            If you’ve just spent real money to load the newest version of Microsoft Office on your company PCs, you may not be keen on abandoning that investment.  On the plus side, using cloud-supplied software means you don’t have to spend $350 for Office suites for every PC in your business, Burton says.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the March 19, 2012 Daily Herald

            Family businesses can get especially dicey when the brother who runs the business – say Marchese and Sons, Inc., a land surveyor in Roselle – lays off staff.

            “I laid off my daughter-in-law and my wife,” says Paul N. Marchese, officially secretary-treasurer of the 43-year old business but the de facto CEO.

“My brother (Dominick J., technically president but a guy who prefers working in the field) and sister (Mary Steinbach, who functions as the business’ CFO) and I took no paychecks.”

            Worse, it looked last year as though Marchese’s hope of passing the business along to the third generation, his son Paul W. Marchese, never would happen.

            But Paul N., who had been running the business since 1996, had an even bigger problem:  He had no idea what the business’ financial statements meant.

            Fortunately, this story seems headed toward a happy ending.  Here in Marchese’s words are the details:

            “Things got shaky in the beginning of 2011.  We had finished an IDOT contract (and the business’ pipeline was empty).  Money became very scarce.  There was no income.  I had to use our bank line of credit to make payroll.

            “When I went to the bank to renew the line, they pulled it.  Stopped it cold.  One of the co-signers (Marchese’s mother, Edith) had died and the bank couldn’t reissue the line.  They started talking to me about P&L statements.  I didn’t understand.

            “I don’t think anyone in the family realized my lack of knowledge.  For 16 years we had been making money.  Never had a payroll issue.  We always had money in the bank.

            “I got a newsletter from Elgin Community College.  I thought I might sign up for an accounting class.  I was trying to understand my business, the way it looks to the bank.  I saw information about the SBDC (Illinois Small Business Development Center, managed at ECC by Sybil Ege).” 

            Marchese swallowed his pride and connected with Ege.  “I thought it would be a big embarrassment.  I don’t know what I’m doing.  But Sybil was a breath of fresh air.  Mary and I went there every two weeks.

            “She tore me down to the basics and started me over.  She gave me that spark I had had in the ’70s.  The energy she put back into us is amazing.

            “Sybil told me that every good business had a business plan, so we did our first one in 41 years.  We set priorities and goals.  I redid job descriptions for everyone.  We had never had defining roles.”

            Now, after six months with Ege and the Elgin SBDC, “I can look at the business’ numbers, and they mean something.  Our situation is back to normal.

            “We’re right on the cusp of growing again, and I’ve got a good handle on things.  I won’t be surprised.”

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the March 12, 2012 Daily Herald

            With the economy apparently improving, small business owners are thinking business development again.

            Websites are essential.  Tweets might work, but Twitter really isn’t about new business development.  And there are hints that Facebook users are beginning to  “un-like” company pages that either post too frequently or whose wall has too many marketing posts.

            So how does a small business get in front of its marketplace?  Two thoughts:  Go with your strengths, and remember that traditional networking still works.

            “It’s still about people and relationships,” says Alison Hall, a wordsmith and owner of AlisonInk Creative Communications, Arlington Heights.  She advises businesses on marketing strategies and writes copy.

            “I initially didn’t want to bother people,” Hall says of her own new business efforts, “but recently I’ve been like the doctor who has to take his own medicine.

            “The problem is that nobody understands what I do, so now I talk to people.”

            It helps, suggests Arlington Heights consultant Larry Hayes, when business-seeking entrepreneurs “decide what your business is, who it serves and what customers get from it.”  Using the Internet as “a real equalizer, small businesses can be as effective as Proctor & Gamble,” Hayes says.

            Hall is of typical of many entrepreneurs who are good at what they do but uncomfortable marketing their capabilities to potential clients.  Still, Hall talks to “friends of friends,” and is less shy about telling people what she does at social gatherings.  She’ll also bring her iPad so she can show samples.

            Today, Hall says, “I’ll ask, ‘Do you know anyone in marketing at your company?’ and people will say, ‘Oh, I know her.’”

            Being visible so your business is top of mind when potential customers need what you do matters, too.  “You have to put yourself out there,” says Kathy Miller, president of Total Event Resources, Inc., a Schaumburg company that produces corporate meetings and events for Fortune 1000 companies.  “We volunteer a lot,” which, Miller says, “gets us paying jobs.”

            Miller, for example, is president elect of the International Special Events Society.  With 7,200 members in 38 countries, ISES is a connection point for everyone from show producers to convention center managers and special effects technicians.

            For Miller, however, volunteering also includes in-kind contributions for not-for-profits that may have a fundraising gala.

            “We build relationships with associations and organizations” as part of Total Event’s business development process, Miller says.  It helps that “People know who you are.”

            She seeks referrals, as well.  “We ask now,” Miller says.  “We get business through people who are happy with our services.”

            Miller also isn’t shy about telling prospects that Total Event Resources is a Certified Women’s Business Enterprise.  Suppliers, Miller says, “want diversity.  They want women- and other minority-owned businesses for the tax breaks.”

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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By JIM KENDALL

This column originally appeared in the March 5, 2012 Daily Herald

            “The new worker who doesn’t quite fit isn’t the end of the world – if your company has 15,000 employees,” says Jeff Rosset.  “But if you have 11 employees, it’s a problem.”

            Looking only at a prospective employee’s job skills and ignoring character traits is one of the mistakes small businesses tend to make when they hire, says Bob Podgorski.  He’s manager of extension services at Harper College’s Prospect Heights satellite location, but since 2003 has coordinated the St. Hubert Job and Networking Ministry in Hoffman Estates.

            Hiring does seem to be happening.  “It’s not 2006, when a business might have had 20 employees before it went down to 14,” notes Rosset, director of marketing at MidwestHR, LLC, a Warrenville PEO (professional employer organization) that serves the Chicago market.  “But now that business is at 16 or 17 employees and going in the right direction.”

            The key is finding the right employee.  “Small businesses should screen for people eager to learn, because in small businesses new skills often are required quickly,” Podgorski says.  “New employees must be collaborative, able to work in close-knit teams, and flexible, able to wear different hats because goals often change.”

            Your interview with a prospective employee may matter most.  “Never ask ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions,” advises Jeff Krug, president, J. L. Krug & Associates, Inc., a Geneva coaching firm.  “Ask scenario, or open-ended, questions.  If your interview style is ‘This is the job.  Can you do it?’, the response will be, ‘Of course I can do it.’”

            Suppose, however, you’re in retail.  Krug suggests scenario questions such as “Tell me about the last time a dissatisfied customer came in.  How did you handle the situation?”  The answer, Krug says, will give you a good feel for how the candidate might perform.

            (If you roll your eyes at the thought of developing what-would-you-do-if questions, type “open-ended questions” into your search engine and you’ll find dozens of samples.)

            Even a good interview process “gets you only 15 to 20 percent of what you need to know,” Krug says.  Background checks and references are important.  Check driving records and education.  Do a criminal check.  Know what to listen for when you call references.

            You also can pick up information from the walk-around as you show your facility to the candidate.  “Candidates think the interview is over at that point, but it’s not,” Krug says.

            You need qualified candidates to interview, of course.  Job boards are one place to look.  Rosset adds LinkedIn posts and “Telling people, ‘I’m hiring a sales rep.  Do you know someone?’”

            Podgorski suggests community centers, community colleges, job groups and outplacement firms.  With 2,700 job seekers, many of them senior executives or managers, the St. Hubert program is a potential source, too.

Jim Kendall welcomes comments at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.

© 2012 121 Marketing Resources, Inc.

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