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Corporate and government experts agreed small businesses must work their certifications by participating in events, trainings and social networks offered by certifying organizations.
Shell Oil Company’s representative stated; “We look for businesses that can add value to our supply chain, have done research on Shell and understand where they fit with our upstream and downstream companies.” 

When you know what works, you need money and time to do what you know.  Your banker needs to know who you are and how you do what you do in order to lend you money.  Networking to really build long standing relationships allows bankers, corporations, angel investors and others with competitive grants to get to know you, see your company growth and believe in your business ideas.  You’ve got to make time for opportunities and dedicate resources to promote your business growth, so that you can go after sure business.  That means freeing the visionary\owner from the day-to-day operations so they can get out and sell the company because no-one knows the company better. 

All agreed entrepreneurs become so ingrained in doing the day-to-day operations, that they also don’t get\take time to plan their growth and sell their business outside of immediate consumers.  In order to grow the business, owners must move from time consuming activities as chief administrator and window washer to recruit, train and retain qualitative and talented staff that can take over important day-to-day tasks efficiently and effectively.  Growth through sales is the answer on how not to get deeper into debt.  You need to hire talent to get new business and you need enough business to hire new talent – it can be a catch 22.  However, the best business revisions come out of tight times like recessions, one advisor stated. “A recession is where you really see what you need and where can cut costs to find the funds and resources to bring in the people, talent and\or relationships that lead to more time and opportunity. Think out of the box and connect between high schools, vocational programs and apprenticeships to get\help students interested in what you do. 

Try talking to colleges and graduate programs to create work\mentor relationships with interns and advisors.” Other’s followed, the first few lines of help a business owner needs is administration support to cover calls and billing; assistance with the day-to-day operations; concentration on sales; lowering transaction costs to increase liquidity; work with banks and others who you support; and then pay to join networks which can bring opportunities for revenue.  The Small Business Enterprise Center offers 80 free workshops, one-on-one expert counseling, and networking events designed to help business owners and employees improve their business skills.  You should also check your local\state universities and public libraries as sources for free small business workshops and advisory sessions.   

Another advisor stated; “You eat what you can kill in sales.  You’ve got to exhaust local to global opportunities.  There are three different types of business revenue: anchor business or steady customers; project work for us that’s 12 to 24 weeks and taking on larger projects to go worldwide.  The latter allowed us to sustain and grow our business.” The overall theme was, a business owner has got to be willing (and able) to network, use word of month and leverage connections.  You can’t be so caught up in the silo of your day-to-day operations that you’ve closed yourself to opportunities.  You’ve’ got to make the time to get out and network with those who allow you to get beyond your immediate circle of people.  You can start by finding programs that are out there to see if they fit, who there is compatible and can help.  Business owners need to know where projects are and where they aren’t and to go where they are.     

There was also a lot of focus on having respect for the consumer by consistently delivering high quality products and services.  The lesson was educated consumers shop by need, pocket and taste and they have options.  Educated consumers tend to shop where they already know they can get what they need at the best prices.  That means businesses have to win consumers over by initiating, growing and maintaining consumer trust and interest in supporting the sensibility of the company.  One way to stay in touch with consumers is to get information out regularly and get feedback as often as possible.

Recognize what is holding you back and as well as what is pushing you forward and you will have the gift of accuracy.  You can only do this if you concentrate on building relationships with customers.  Grow your contracts beyond those who walk in the door by making the time to use old-fashioned manners and develop presentation skills so that you can showcase your new products and services. You’ve got to entangle yourself with your customers, peers, advisors, lawyers, accountants and anyone else who can recommend you because these are the people that you support who can also help you to grow your business. 

We live in a 21st Century economy where hard assets are not as important as they once were.  “There’s a new game in town and high touch is king,” an expert stated.  Innovation is important in this century and there is a huge opportunity to stay in contact and cut costs with all-in-one, web-based and open source applications.  Business owners need to invest in high touch technologies.  Web applications and other operational resources designed for the marketplace can keep clients informed about the company and its products and services like the web application Sales Force.com.  The pulse of your customer surveys, phone calls and holiday presence counts.  Your customers can and will talk about you on the web through a variety of applications.  You need to know what these applications are as well as what your customers are saying about you and your company.  How you dive into available web applications can help you to improve business relationships.  You can see business is booming with those who have good relationships through social media networks. 

Bottom line, business ownership is worthwile but not easy. According to the Small Business Administration, over 50% of small businesses fail within the first five years and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports two out of every three businesses started fail.  The BLS stated a focus on communications skills in salesmanship & public relations creates the best opportunities to showcase expertise, and those that do it well are the ones who succeed.

While the Small Business Matters summit promotional discussions centered on the expanded ways to use word of mouth by personally networking with those you support, 80% or more of the discussions about getting-the-word-out incorporated internet based social networks. 

What was missing was information on newspaper, billboard, train\bus ads, magazine, radio, TV and neighborhood-to-global campaigns targeting tourism and other nomadic populations that move through cities for events and attractions.  There were no discussions on creating public relations materials, designing promotional campaigns, what to do about advertising from annual costs to where\when to place ads nor how to create credible market outreach research or best practices in showcase opportunities. But then, that’s our area of expertise! 

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