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Small Business Success Index Articles

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Small Business Use of Social Media up 200% since 2009 says, Small Biz Report.

May 7th, 2010 ::

Social media adoption by small businesses has doubled from 12 percent to 24 percent in the last year was one of the big take aways from the most recent edition of the Small Business Success Index™ (SBSI). This third wave of the report, sponsored by Network Solutions® and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business reports that small business are mainly using social media to identify and attract new customers.

Social Media is a Call to Action and not just a Buzzword

If you use social media in any way for your small business you are probably saying “heck yeah” to that confirmation which you have known about for a while. Many small businesses however have been starting to figure this out and in 2009 the buzzword was also a call to action.

The report quotes Connie Steele, Director at Network Solutions, “Tough market conditions mandate small businesses to think and act creatively to sustain themselves”. “Social media can be the best friend for small business owners who constantly seek new ways to attract new customers and retain the ones they have at a relatively low cost.”

Also from the report, the SBSI found that nearly one out of five small business owners are actively using social media in their business. Small businesses are increasingly investing in social media applications, including blogs, Facebook® and LinkedIn® profiles. The biggest expectation small business owners have from social media is expanding external marketing and engagement, including identifying and attracting new customers, building brand awareness and staying engaged with customers.  Sixty-one percent of the respondents indicated that they use social media to identify and attract new customers. Listen to a podcast on how small businesses are leveraging social media for customer engagement at http://bit.ly/JayEhret

Really Cool Statistics

Small business owners use social media to attract new customers:

  • 75% surveyed have a company page on a social networking site
  • 61% use social media for identifying and attracting new customers
  • 57% have built a network through a site like LinkedIn
  • 45% expect social media to be profitable in the next twelve months

Small business owners still have concerns with social media:

  • 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected
  • 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the Internet
  • Only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it

“Social media levels the playing field for small businesses by helping them deliver customer service,” says Janet Wagner, director of the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “Time spent on Twitter®, Facebook® and blogs is an investment in making it easier for small businesses to compete.”

People Are Getting More Creative

The main theme of this edition of the report is “Creativity as a strategy for success”. From the report, the executive summary mentions how “Small businesses are highly successful in getting referrals from existing customers, but struggle to be creative and differentiate themselves.” The major ways that small businesses differentiate themselves from competitors are:

  • Superior customer service (78 percent)
  • Higher quality products and services (76 percent)
  • Creative ideas to address customers’ needs (65 percent)
  • Lower prices (44 percent)

Among these four areas of differentiation, superior service and creativity are correlated with competitive success, while quality and low prices make little difference to small business success.   Perhaps everyone claims to have high quality, making it a marginal strategy for differentiation, while cutting prices is not sustainable for small enterprises that lack the economies of scale to keep costs low.

About the SBSI Report and Other Key Findings

In addition to tracking how small business owners use technology, the SBSI Index measures how they are doing in six key areas of business: capital access, marketing and innovation, workforce, customer service, computer technology and compliance.

Other key findings from the December 2009 Small Business Success Index include:

Small businesses experience positive effects from the economic downturn:

  • 72%  have found ways to operate more efficiently (up significantly from 66% in June)
  • 47% have been led to find new products and services that benefit customers
  • 43% have become better teams as hard times force people to work together

Building online presence continues to be key focus for small businesses:

  • Company Web sites are a top technology investment in the next two years, with small businesses either adding new features/functionality to their existing Web sites or building one from scratch.
  • The ability to showcase their products and services online to attract new customers is second in the hierarchy of technology investments small business owners plan to make in the next two years.
  • Social media investments rank third in small business investments to be made in the next two years.

Come On You Know You Are Dying to Read the Rest of It

To download a copy of the Small Business Success Index and also find out how your business scores on the six key dimensions of small business success, visit www.growsmartbusiness.com.

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Marketing, the Small Business Success Index, and You

March 19th, 2010 ::

Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business released the findings of their Small Business Success Index survey on February 16.  The index is designed to track the competitive health of the small business sector over time, and the results are always interesting.  Scores in 6 categories are graded; marketing and innovation got a C-.  Let’s see why: 

From celestehodges on Flickr[S]mall businesses perceive themselves at a disadvantage in marketing and innovation.

That statement surprised me, because one of the key findings of the survey was that small business owners have embraced social media: social media usage has increased from 12% to 24% in just 12 months.  Since social media is widely seen as an excellent tool to level the playing field between big, multi-national companies and small, me-myself-and-I businesses, it would seem to me that the small business owners who are using Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn (the most popular social media sites) are doing something right with their marketing strategy. 

But then I read this: 

Common marketing methods for reaching potential customers include print advertising (37%), email marketing (24%), social media marketing (19%), telephone sales (18%), direct mail (17%) and broadcast advertising (14%).

I honestly do not understand why so many small businesses still use print and broadcast advertising.  I considered advertising in a local magazine for business women last year.  But then I realized how tiny the chance was that potential customers would not only see my ad but remember it, too.  I’d have to invest a lot of money to run that ad every month. Think about it: what if your potential customers don’t have time to read that newspaper issue, or listen to the radio that week because they’re on vacation, or watch TV because they lost cable during a big snowstorm?   You just spent all that money, and what kind of leads did it generate?  If you’re getting a great ROI using traditional advertising methods, good for you, but if you’re not, time to talk to a marketing strategist, who will save you time and money (in the long run).

Back to social media:

The majority of small business owners who use social media (58%) feel the medium has so far ‘met expectations.’  Another 12% feel it has ‘exceeded expectations’ but twice as many, 26%, feel it has ‘fallen short of expectations.’ 

The fact that 70% of small businesses are finding new customers, engaging with current customers, and generating awareness with social media is encouraging, as it proves that integrating social media into your marketing efforts is worthwhile.   

Half of users, though, said social media has used up more time than expected.  Yes, it does take time, but it is time well-spent.  Being able to so easily connect with people who want, need, and/or use your company’s product or service is an amazing opportunity that was not possible just a few years ago.  Embrace technology, don’t run from it.     

I am active on Facebook (professionally only—I do not use it for my “regular” life), Twitter, and LinkedIn, and I write blog posts for Grow Smart Business.  You need not be active on a handful of sites, though.  Pick one or two and stick with them.  There are lots of guides, white papers, and articles online that contain valuable information on how to use social media effectively.  Spend an hour or two on research, and either put together a new marketing strategy yourself or, like I said above, hire an expert to help you.

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Posted in Marketing, Small Business Success Index, social media | 10 Comments »

Show Me the Money, or at Least Where I Can Get Some

March 12th, 2010 ::

Remember the film Jerry McGuire? In the film, Cuba Gooding who plays the star football player and only client of sports agent Jerry McGuire, played by Tom Cruise. As he is negotiating for his client, they start trading the mantra “show me the money” and increase in volume until it is a cry for getting the most for what you do.

For the past two years, small businesses have been challenged about getting banks to “show them the money “and get loans or other sources of capital to run their business. Over the last year the Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business has released the findings of their Small Business Success Index survey. The index is designed to track the competitive health of the small business sector over time, and the results are always interesting.  Scores in 6 categories are graded; on February 16, the third edition came out and capital access got even lower marks this quarter with a D+. We are going to dive in and see what the challenges are facing small businesses with getting access to capital.

Everyone Talks About a Tough Economy. Are We at the Bottom?

If you listen to some news reports, the economy is a major factor holding back the success of small businesses. The economic outlook deteriorated in the first half of the year, and has not improved between June and December.

From the SBSI report, “Has the economy hit bottom? Half of small businesses – 50 percent – have been highly impacted by the downturn in the last 12 months, compared to only 36 percent a year ago. In the past six months, the recession has touched more small businesses. In June, one out of four small businesses (25 percent) had been minimally impacted by the recession, but by December, less than a fifth (19 percent) had been minimally impacted”.

Another interesting factor from the report is that “half of small businesses – 50 percent – have been highly impacted by the downturn in the last 12 months, compared to only 36 percent a year ago”. This data was supported from the fact that in the past six months, the recession has touched more small businesses. In June, one out of four small businesses (25 percent) had been minimally impacted by the recession, but by December, less than a fifth (19 percent) had been minimally impacted.

Getting Creative to Get Capital to Make It Through

The sources of funding relied on by small businesses has changed markedly in the past 6 months as cash reserves and traditional funding sources have disappeared. The following are steps taken in the past two years and how this has changed since the last survey wave in June:

  • Almost half of small businesses (46 percent) have met their capital needs by cutting their own pay; just six months ago, only a third (33 percent) had resorted to this step
  • 42 percent have had to take a loan from owner savings, compared with only 32 percent six months ago.
  • 39 percent have relied on credit cards (compared to 33 percent in June)
  • 33 percent used a business line of credit (compared to 31 percent in June)
  • 21 percent used a bank loan (20 percent in June)
  • 14 percent took out a home equity loan (10 percent in June)

The SBSI survey found that few have relied on outside investors (5 percent) or SBA loans (4 percent), and only a fifth report having relied on no special funding sources in the past two years. Bank loans have become increasingly scarce. A fifth (18 percent) of all businesses indicate the source has gotten scarcer in the past year, compared with just 13 percent noting this in June; among those who took out bank loans, 43 percent believe the source is getting scarcer.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. And it is not a freight train.

Despite all these challenging issues, companies are learning to be lean and do without making their balance sheets primed and ready as the economy improves. Granted, we do need lines of credit and other sources of capital to fill in gaps when customers don’t pay exactly on time but small businesses must meet payroll and keep the lights on. The economy is improving although not as fast as we would like it to, still there is a light at the end of the tunnel and it is not a freight train. It is a sunnier day and a positive P&L report.

Download the SBSI Report Right Now

If you are reading this on the web site, GrowSmartBusiness.com, you should see a link to the report or if you don’t or a looking at this in a feed reader, you can get the report at http://growsmartbusiness.com/wp-content/files/SBSI_February_2010.pdf

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Posted in Capital Access, Raising Capital, small business, Small Business Success Index | No Comments »

Compliance is Easy. If You Love Regulations.

March 9th, 2010 ::

On February 16, Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business released the findings of their Small Business Success Index survey.  The index is designed to track the competitive health of the small business sector over time, and the results are always interesting.  Scores in 6 categories are graded; compliance got an A-.
The area of compliance, including complying with laws and regulations, keeping customer information secure, and keeping up with laws and regulations. Small businesses are generally successful in this area and have been for the last 12 months the report has been done. This is not bad but there are still some things to address.

Don’t Let the Man Get You Down

According to the SBSI report, even though compliance is not a problem area, 54 percent of owners feel that government regulation is becoming more burdensome. This sentiment has also grown in the past year, raising the question of why small businesses have these concerns. One possible explanation for the perception of increasing burdens may be the economy and how it affects the behavior of governments. Local, state and federal agencies may be becoming more stringent in the enforcement of fines and seeking new ways to tax small businesses in an effort to make up for their own revenue shortfall. One example is real estate assessments, an area where local governments are often accused of exaggerating values when they need to raise revenue.

Protect and Serve….Your Data

The other side of compliance is keeping customer information secure. This does tie into regulations that might apply to some data (HIPPA, Sarbanes-Oxley) but overall companies are up on the technology and have implemented systems to secure and protect data. Where they feel the pressure is the aforementioned burden of government regulation. Currently, small businesses feel they can comply but are concerned that any more regulation might cause them to incur infrastructure and personnel expenses that they are not able to support putting them out of business.

Download the SBSI Report Right Now

If you are reading this on the web site, GrowSmartBusiness.com, you should see a link to the report or if you don’t or a looking at this in a feed reader, you can get the report at http://growsmartbusiness.com/wp-content/files/SBSI_February_2010.pdf.

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Innovate or Perish. Small Businesses are Having a Tough Time Innovating.

March 8th, 2010 ::

Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business released the findings of their Small Business Success Index survey on February 16.  The index is designed to track the competitive health of the small business sector over time, and the results are always interesting.  Scores in 6 categories are graded; innovation got a C-.  Let’s see why:

Innovation is Not Just About Creating a Cooler Widget. It is about Business Innovation Overall.

When many people hear the word innovation they immediately think of products like the iPhone that change the landscape and innovate an industry. While not every business can create a product like the iPhone, they can innovate. Slightly less than half of small businesses are successful in innovation. This is around the areas business process innovation, which includes coming up with new ideas before competitors and finding ideas to increase revenue.

The most recent SBSI wave examined marketing and innovation in greater detail, including the methods used by small businesses to attract new customers. When asked about six common categories used to obtain new business, the most common method – relied on by over a third of small businesses – is traditional print advertising such as newspapers, trade journals, and magazines. After this, email marketing is the second most common method used by a quarter of small businesses, and social media marketing which is used by a fifth. Half of small businesses do not use any of the six standard categories for marketing leads, but the majority of these “other” channels consists of reliance on referrals and word of mouth; this includes direct referrals, leads that come to the business because of its general reputation, or referrals by other businesses. Besides referrals, “other” types of marketing methods tend to be idiosyncratic methods related to the business such as:

  • Walk- in traffic
  • Outdoor advertising such as signs and vehicles
  • Farm markets, craft shows, etc.
  • Conferences, trade shows, and meetings (e.g., the Chamber of Commerce)
  • Agricultural commodities markets
  • Directories (print and online)
  • Personal selling and cold calling
  • The GSA Schedule for federal government business
  • Volunteering in the community

The Economy has Been an Innovation Catalyst

An interesting thing I saw in the SBSI is that the economy has a silver lining in a dark cloud. The recession has had some positive effects on small business innovation, including leading them to:

  • Find more efficient ways to operate (72 percent)
  • Find new products and services to meet customer needs (47 percent)
  • Become a better team (43 percent)
  • Reduce inefficient or unnecessary staff (31 percent)

The Economy: A silver lining in a dark cloud. The recession has had some positive effects onsmall businesses, including leading them to:· Find more efficient ways to operate (72 percent)· Find new products and services to meet customer needs (47 percent)· Become a better team (43 percent)· Reduce inefficient or unnecessary staff (31 percent)

The Bottom Line: Innovate or Perish

So you now know that innovation is not just for making newer cooler electronics or widget. It is about innovating with your processes, learning about how to go against your competitors and use tools like social media to stand out. To survive you must innovate or perish. That’s it. So what are you waiting for?

Download the SBSI Report Right Now

If you are reading this on the web site, GrowSmartBusiness.com, you should see a link to the report or if you don’t or a looking at this in a feed reader, you can get the report at http://growsmartbusiness.com/wp-content/files/SBSI_February_2010.pdf

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Posted in Innovation, small business, Small Business Success Index | 6 Comments »

Getting Access to Capital for Your Small Business – GrowsmartBiz Podcast with John Backus

March 4th, 2010 ::

In our second episode of the GrowSmartBiz Podcast we speak with John Backus, Founder and Managing Partner of New Atlantic Ventures (www.navfund.com). He is a seasoned technology investor and entrepreneur with 25+ years of experience investing in and managing rapidly growing, high-technology companies.

His thoughts on Small Business’ challenge to getting access to capital

Here is the podcast:

Video thumbnail. Click to play.
Click to play

John shared some of his thoughts on how small business’

  • Funding will be challenging through 2010 and should be
  • Understand Your Customer and What They Expect in Return from Buying and using your product
  • Deliver a product that solves real problems and saves money in the short term

He had some thoughts on those who have become entrepreneurs or thinking about becoming one:

  • Follow your dream
  • Don’t be afraid to start in a downturn. It is actually to your advantage
  • Be doing it, not just talking about it

Top 3 Messages that a Small Business should take away:

  1. Do Your Research before You Jump
  2. Get Very Close to Your Customer and Understand What They Want and are Willing to Pay for It
  3. Focus on generating revenue early

More About John

Prior to founding New Atlantic Ventures in 1998, John was a founding investor and the President and Chief Executive Officer of InteliData Technologies, a Fast 50 growth company in both 1997 & 1998.  John led InteliData’s predecessor, US Order, through a successful $65 million IPO in 1995. John currently manages a $225 million venture portfolio at New Atlantic Ventures.

He currently serves on the board of directors of MPowerPlayer, Ftrans, Koofers, Qliance & RemitPro. He is the past Chairman of the Wolf Trap Foundation Board of Directors, the past Chairman of the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) Board of Directors, the founding Chairman and current Board member of the NVTC TechPAC, and was appointed by former Virginia Governor Mark Warner to co-chair the Virginia Research and Technology Advisory Commission which he served on for 4 years.   John began his career at Bain & Co. and Bain Capital, where he was the first Bain & Co. management consultant to take a full time operating role (as CFO) in a portfolio company.

Tell Us How You are Doing

So how are you and your small business doing out there? What things have you learned on getting access to capital that you would share with your fellow entrepreneurs?

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Posted in Capital Access, Entrepreneurs, Interviews, Raising Capital, small business, Small Business Success Index, Venture Capital | 3 Comments »

Small Business Success Index — Workforce Dimension

March 2nd, 2010 ::

According to the Small Business Success Index, small businesses are scoring, on average, a C+ when it comes to workforces — but that grade is trending upwards. Many small businesses are facing staffing issues as a direct result of the poor economy. Many small businesses have reported having to take steps like reducing employee benefits, shortening the work week or even reducing staff in response to the recession.

Morale

Despite the workforce difficulties facing small businesses recently, most remain moderately successful — few struggle to keep employees productive, especially in light of the high unemployment rates. Those businesses in a position to hire have no trouble finding the right employee. While employees in businesses that are struggling may experience lower morale, many small businesses are in a position to find out just how efficient they can make their businesses.

You may find that your workforce is stretching itself to cover projects with fewer staff members. While not all methods that you use to cover gaps in your business will be sustainable in the long-term, they can be useful in determining how to make your business more efficient overall. It also offers up opportunities to refine and focus your attentions on the most important aspects of your business.

The uncertainty surrounding many jobs right now does mean that keeping employees updated and working with them to improve morale is key for many small businesses. If you’ve been cutting back, it’s especially important to allow employees the opportunity air concerns — you may not be able to resolve them, but even a simple conversation can improve morale. No matter how things are going for your business, your employees’ morale can make a difference.

Benefits

One of the most difficult areas for small businesses, at least when it comes to managing a workforce, is providing benefits packages that can attract and retain employees. Recently, the issue of benefits has become more pronounced. In order to respond to the recession, 29 percent of small businesses reduced employee benefits. It may not be an option to attempt to improve benefits packages in the near future, either.

However, you can make effective use of those benefits that you are in a position to offer. It may be worth discussing with your workforce which benefits are particularly important to them. If something like health insurance is crucial, your employees may be willing to drop other benefits in order to keep insurance in place. It’s also worth thinking creatively about which benefits you can offer. If you’re in the position to allow your employees to telecommute, for instance, that sort of benefit may improve morale without breaking your budget. You’ll likely find that your workforce is more willing to discuss questions like which benefits are necessary currently, especially with the numbers of small businesses finding it necessary to make pay cuts, ask employees to take furloughs or shortening the work week in order to reduce workforce costs.

Image by Flickr user Steve Rhodes

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I Love You, You Love Me: Customer Service Gets High Marks from SBSI

March 1st, 2010 ::

In case you missed my last blog post, Marketing, the Small Business Success Index, and You, I wrote about the C- score that marketing and innovation earned in the Small Business Success Index survey that was conducted by Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. The index was released on February 16 and is designed to track the competitive health of the small business sector over time.  Scores in 6 categories are graded; customer service, something that is near and dear (or should be) to marketing folks, scored an A-.

The major strength of small business is in customer service, with the great majority of businesses reporting success in all six areas that comprise this component of the SBSI. 

In all honesty, this did not surprise me at all.  High-quality customer service is a differentiator that small business owners embrace.  In this age of faceless technology, we all crave a personal transaction.   Automated phone menus, customer service departments on the other side of the world staffed by people who are not empowered to make decisions, and multi-national corporations that don’t even post a customer service phone number on their website create nothing but negative feelings and poor experiences.  And we all know how eager people are to share a bad customer service experience.

From Captain Camera on FlickrCase in point: I decided to save a little money, bypass Sephora, and buy mascara at CVS.  I saw an ad for L’Oreal’s Extra Volume Collagen Mascara in InStyle Magazine.  Just the thing my skimpy little lashes need, I thought.  The mascara was flaky and clumpy, and it looked terrible.  Since I couldn’t find the CVS receipt, I decided to contact L’Oreal’s customer service department via email to see if I could get a voucher or coupon. L’Oreal is a massive company; they own 21 other skincare, cosmetics, fragrance, and hair care brands.  Long story short, you can’t email them, but you can waste your time in a chat session with an Online Beauty Advisor.  Turns out you are not chatting with a person, you are chatting with a computer.  The computer could not understand what I was telling it, so I gave up.  I have zero patience with adults, less with technology, and I hate wasting time.  Now I shop for mascara—and all other cosmetics—exclusively at Sephora.

Around nine out of ten small businesses are highly successful at answering customer questions, ensuring customer satisfaction, showing empathy, providing consistent service, resolving problems and winning repeat business. 

And that quote perfectly illustrates what makes us small businesses so special:

Successful at answering customer questions: Because many of us are the business, we know all of our clients personally, and we certainly know our products and/or services intimately. 

Ensuring customer satisfaction: We work hard to make our clients are happy, whether it’s quick turnaround on a project, special pricing based on their loyalty, or a gift card to a favorite shop or café just to say thanks, you are valuable to me.

Showing empathy:  We’re not robots, computers, or customer service reps who don’t give a damn.  We care, and we show it.

Providing consistent service:  When you go out to eat, you never know what kind of server you might get stuck with: a veteran or a newbie.  Our clients know what to expect from us.    

Resolving problems: If there’s a problem in the middle of a project, our clients can reach us directly by phone, text, or email.  We can immediately start working on resolving the issue.   

Winning repeat service: It’s a lot of work to look for new vendors or partners.  If we do a good job the first time, our clients will come back and recommend us.

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Does great CRM software exist for an independent professional?

February 17th, 2010 ::

One of the greatest frustrations for many independent professionals is the lack of a really good, flexible, economical contact relationship management system.

Does such a thing exist for a solo business person?

Everyone’s needs are unique. Your knowledge and experience may make the selection and implementation easy or difficult. You may have to compromise on a few features and functionality and settle for at least 80% of your requirements. I have spoken with many colleagues and clients who are all dissatisfied with what they are using. So, a fundamental question is this: Is there a resource for doing a fair assessment of all options? Well, it depends.

All successful systems and software selection projects begin with a list of requirements or wish list (Must have vs. Would like to have). You may ask, “Where should one start? Are there knowledgeable people who can guide a person or team toward an intelligent selection of a contact management system?” The answer is YES.  They exist at www.360salesfocus.com. 360SF will hold your hand through the entire selection process or provide just-in-time coaching on an as needed basis. For individuals who want to do it themselves, below are some initial considerations.

Regardless of the nature of your practice as an independent professional or the size of a company, its sales value and volume, business development for simple or complex opportunities, I always suggest to clients to first clearly define their processes before evaluating and selecting a technology or automation tool for anything.

For example: What does a typical sales cycle look like for you? How do you process new leads/contacts? How soon do you follow up?  What method do you prefer (email, letter, greeting card, phone call, etc.)? What’s the message? Do you have a sales/biz dev process? What are the steps, decisions, possible outcomes, etc.?

Processes enable people and technology enables processes

Technology without a correctly defined process will speed up poor results. It’s the old garbage in, garbage out concept…but faster.

MY PREFERED METHOD when I was an independent consultant: Even though I’ve implemented, used, optimized, and managed several CRM projects for clients (including SalesForce.com and ACT!), for 20 plus years as a solo consultant or, as the only business development person, my preferred CRM & Sales Force Automation (SFA) has consisted mostly of Microsoft Outlook for basic contact profile descriptions & management. I first had to learn effective relationship management without technology to make this work, thanks to Stephen Covey’s 7-Habits of Effective People. Outlook has all the basics such as detail contact info, calendar, and task, space for tons of notes, attachments, and links on every item. I think this may be true for most PC & Mac office-like contact/calendar/email applications.

For forecasting and tracking sales/business development opportunities, a spreadsheet does it all on one sheet, one line per opportunity (forecast of qualified opportunities…date, company, contact, offer, value, priority, close date, win-probability percentage, next Step (notes/remarks). If you want to see a good example, contact www.360salefocus.com/contact-us for a free Microsoft Excel forecasting spreadsheet that we use often and that you may use and modify for your unique purposes.

One of my requirements is mobility. Both Outlook and the spreadsheet interface well and are mobile (works on my smart phone).  I use Card Scan to scan business cards that I receive from meetings and networking events. I import and synchronize contacts with Outlook. It’s also great for mail merges (letters and emails). I’ve also incorporated David Allen’s Getting Things Done method for processing all my action items.

Once you get your process defined, then you can go shopping. Effective contact relationship management is at the core of what I do and coach my clients to do. Technology can bog you down if you are not careful. Let’s face it; nothing gets done unless you do it…whether on paper or on-screen. A discipline to keep records up to date, follow-up and follow-through still requires the consistent human touch.

One other consideration might be a marketing campaign management system for managing high volumes (> 500 contacts per campaign) of outbound/inbound lead generation efforts of large and frequent marketing campaigns (direct mail, events, website leads, etc.). This is ideal for processing and managing hundreds of leads that you will try to convert to clients. You still need a process first.

Unless you are trying to track contacts for a multiple people, I would keep it simple and use your desktop office apps for contact profiles, scheduling events/meetings and tasks, date all detail notes, and use every reminder and alert possible.

If you need help implementing a program like this, consider contacting a sales consultant.

Share your experience by leaving a comment.

At http://www.360salesfocus.com we have an entire integrated sales and marketing company at your disposal. How can we help you generate more business? Let’s talk about making something happen for your company.

Carlos Diggs is Managing Partner at 360 Sales Focus, a full service sales and marketing consultancy. His LinkedIn profile can be viewed at www.linkedin.com/in/carlosdiggs. Reach Carlos at cdiggs@360salesfocus.com or 410.782.0360 or follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/360salesfocus.

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Posted in Business Development, Coaches Corner, Customer Service, Entrepreneurs, Grow Smart Business Conference, Lunch with Entrepreneurs, Marketing, sales process, Sales Teams, small business, Small Business Success Index, social media, Technology | 1 Comment »

Small Business Social Media Adoption Doubles Since 2009

February 16th, 2010 ::

It seems that small business are mainly using social media to identify and attract new customers. That is that big take away from the most recent edition of the Small Business Success Index™ (SBSI). This third wave of the report, sponsored by Network Solutions® and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business reports social media adoption by small businesses has doubled from 12 percent to 24 percent in the last year.

From the press release, “American small businesses are pushing the limits on new ways to improve efficiency in the prolonged downturn, including a steady increase in social media adoption.”

It goes on to quote Connie Steele, Director at Network Solutions, “Tough market conditions mandate small businesses to think and act creatively to sustain themselves”. “Social media can be the best friend for small business owners who constantly seek new ways to attract new customers and retain the ones they have at a relatively low cost.”

Also from the report, the SBSI found that nearly one out of five small business owners are actively using social media in their business. Small businesses are increasingly investing in social media applications, including blogs, Facebook® and LinkedIn® profiles. The biggest expectation small business owners have from social media is expanding external marketing and engagement, including identifying and attracting new customers, building brand awareness and staying engaged with customers.  Sixty-one percent of the respondents indicated that they use social media to identify and attract new customers. Listen to a podcast on how small businesses are leveraging social media for customer engagement at http://bit.ly/JayEhret

“In order to meet the growing challenges of a tough market last year, I was forced to consider alternative options to keep my business visible,” says small business owner, Dr. Alan Glazier, CEO and Founder, Shady Grove Eye and Vision Care. “With a very small investment in social media marketing, I was able to generate new business opportunities. Our Google® ranking is consistently number one for many of the phrases people use to search for eye doctors in and around my city, and we have received a “bump” in terms of new visitors to the site.  My blog has been picked up by different news sources and led to media interviews. I am now recognized as a thought leader in social networking within my profession and lastly but most importantly, my marketing budget has been reduced by more than 80 percent.”

Small business owners use social media to attract new customers:

  • 75% surveyed have a company page on a social networking site
  • 61% use social media for identifying and attracting new customers
  • 57% have built a network through a site like LinkedIn
  • 45% expect social media to be profitable in the next twelve months

Small business owners still have concerns with social media:

  • 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected
  • 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the Internet
  • Only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it

“Social media levels the playing field for small businesses by helping them deliver customer service,” says Janet Wagner, director of the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “Time spent on Twitter®, Facebook® and blogs is an investment in making it easier for small businesses to compete.”

In addition to tracking how small business owners use technology, the SBSI Index measures how they are doing in six key areas of business: capital access, marketing and innovation, workforce, customer service, computer technology and compliance.  Other key findings from the December 2009 Small Business Success Index include:

Small businesses experience positive effects from the economic downturn:

  • 72%  have found ways to operate more efficiently (up significantly from 66% in June)
  • 47% have been led to find new products and services that benefit customers
  • 43% have become better teams as hard times force people to work together

Building online presence continues to be key focus for small businesses:

  • Company Web sites are a top technology investment in the next two years, with small businesses either adding new features/functionality to their existing Web sites or building one from scratch.
  • The ability to showcase their products and services online to attract new customers is second in the hierarchy of technology investments small business owners plan to make in the next two years.
  • Social media investments rank third in small business investments to be made in the next two years.

Small business owners interested in finding out how your business can start using social media should join us for a Tweet Chat #sbbuzz on Feb 23rd, 8-10PM (EST). Anita Campbell, Editor of Small Business Trends, will moderate the discussion to provide additional insight on how to effectively use social networks to generate results.

To download a copy of the Small Business Success Index and also find out how your business scores on the six key dimensions of small business success, visit www.growsmartbusiness.com.

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Posted in Entrepreneurs, Marketing, small business, Small Business Success Index, social media | 18 Comments »

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