North San Diego Business@Large

A message from the Chamber for all small business owners!

Make your voice heard! Attend the FINAL California Public Utilities Commission hearing on 760 in Carlsbad this Thursday, September 4, 2008 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at City Hall, 1200 Carlsbad Village Dr.

Carlsbad Chamber along with Assemblyman Garrick and other local chamber’s have filed a petition with the CPUC to Modify their decision and to keep 760 in North County. Join us this Thursday, September 4, by testifying and telling the CPUC commissioners how much money this area code change will cost your business and why you support the Chamber’s PETITION TO MODIFY DECISION 08-04-058 (to split area code 760)!

What: FINAL California Public Utilities Commission Public Participation Hearing on Petition to Modify Decision of 760 area code split.

When: Thursday, September 4, 2008

Where: Carlsbad City Council Chambers,1200 Carlsbad Village Dr, Carlsbad, CA 92008

If you wish to attend please contact Michael Babowal at (760) 931-8400 x 208 or MBabowal@carlsbad.org

Can’t attend,but want to help? Click here to find out how.

HISTORY

With over 1,700 members, representing over 75,000 employees, the Carlsbad Chamber is the 10th largest chamber of commerce in the State of California. Over 90% of our members are small businesses, so we have had serious concern with the California Public Utilities Commission’s Proposed Decision in the 760 Area Code proceedings since it was announced in 2007. The Chamber attended a meeting in Carlsbad and submitted letters opposing the potential split of the 760 area code and urged an area code overlay. We believe subjecting the people and businesses of Northern San Diego County to yet another area code change is especially unfair since for many in the area this will be the third time they have had to change their area codes from 714 to 619 (November 1982) to 760 (March 1997) to 442 (April 2009) in less than 30 years.

Area code changes are burdensome and inconvenient for anyone with a phone, but the burdens are particularly significant for companies which rely on their telephones to conduct their businesses. Companies expend significant financial resources to promote their businesses contact information.  For a business, a change in area code means they must incur costs to change a number of key documents including, but not limited to: stationary, yellow pages entries, advertisements, business cards and to effectively "re-market" their new number.  More significantly, our members face the very real risk that they will lose business and revenue from customers who cannot locate their business because of a new phone number.  These costs are significant for all business, but are extremely burdensome for our core membership; small businesses.

On April 24, 2008, the California Public Utilities Commission voted to split the 760 area code in a majority of North San Diego County to the newly proposed 442 area code. This was against the recommendation of the impartial North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA). Starting in November of 2008, those in the affected region will be forced to switch to area code 442. (A list of affected phone number prefixes is here.

Assemblyman Garrick along with several of their state and local colleagues and several affect chamber of commerce have composed and signed a letter address to the CPUC and Governor.

ARTICLES/LINKS

760 area code could be pulled from San Diego

REGION: Cell phones, too, will switch to 442 area code

KEEP760.ORG

When was the last time you asked a customer/client for a referral? So many times I hear that as a business owner it is uncomfortable asking for a referral. Yet last week I listened to three rookie insurance/financial advisors talk about how they began their businesses and what were the important keys that have made them successful. Asking for a referral was right up on top. Your current customers can be your best influences on prospective clients. So what can you do to break through the "discomfort" of asking for the name of someone they know that could use your product or service?

If you had to guess, what percentage of people are visually oriented: that is, they need to see something before buying it - you know they need to drive a car, feel the material of a suit/dress or preview a house before purchasing it? More then 95% of people are visual consumers. So how do you a service provider create this opportunity?

Why not start with a testimonial from a client who has had a very positive experience working with you? How many times have you heard, "I don’t know how to thank you"? That is the perfect time to ask them to put their gratitude in writing. Testimonials can become part of your powerful arsenal for opening the door to new prospects. Something magical happens when you read those testimonials, a special relationship develops with that customer opening the door to relaxing the "discomfort" of taking the next step and asking for referrals.

Testimonials should be used in all of your promotional materials, they can be developed into case studies that you can verbally convey when someone asks, "how do you do that?". Testimonials are one of the most effective and powerful strategies, they create an air of credibility for your business and gives you confidence when approaching new prospects.

The Challenge:Review your marketing strategy and begin asking for testimonials! Let us know if you have any concerns.

Barbara will be holding a third quarter workshop Monday, June 30th. Get details here.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

On Friday, June 6th Barbara Eldridge, Mind Masters was my special guest in Conquering Digital Divide, presenting "Strategic Planning for Your Business, Part One".

Take a listen and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.

Visit The Digital Divide page for upcoming Free Friday webinars.

When was the last time you asked a customer/client for a referral? So many times I hear that as a business owner it is uncomfortable asking for a referral. Yet last week I listened to three rookie insurance/financial advisors talk about how they began their businesses and what were the important keys that have made them successful. Asking for a referral was right up on top. Your current customers can be your best influences on prospective clients. So what can you do to break through the "discomfort" of asking for the name of someone they know that could use your product or service?

If you had to guess, what percentage of people are visually oriented: that is, they need to see something before buying it - you know they need to drive a car, feel the material of a suit/dress or preview a house before purchasing it? More then 95% of people are visual consumers. So how do you a service provider create this opportunity?

Why not start with a testimonial from a client who has had a very positive experience working with you? How many times have you heard, "I don’t know how to thank you"? That is the perfect time to ask them to put their gratitude in writing. Testimonials can become part of your powerful arsenal for opening the door to new prospects. Something magical happens when you read those testimonials, a special relationship develops with that customer opening the door to relaxing the "discomfort" of taking the next step and asking for referrals.

Testimonials should be used in all of your promotional materials, they can be developed into case studies that you can verbally convey when someone asks, "how do you do that?". Testimonials are one of the most effective and powerful strategies, they create an air of credibility for your business and gives you confidence when approaching new prospects.

The Challenge: Review your marketing strategy and begin asking for testimonials! Let us know if you have any concerns.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

Customers make the heart of your business beat with their desire to choose products, services and experiences that meet their needs, fit their values, engage their emotions and respond to their desires. Your role is to transform prospects into customers and customers into fiercely loyal advocates. As your own marketer you have to be heard over the marketing noise that is everywhere, (TV, newspapers, on every street corner, now even at the movies). You then have to overcome the skepticism of the more sophisticated consumer.

Many of you have taken one of our "Personal Branding" workshops to learn more about standing out, creating interest so that people take action. It is important to understand that all of this starts with what you say about who you are, what you do, but most importantly what is the outcome you deliver that satisfies someone’s desire to buy.

I would like to suggest you start by asking yourself some questions that can flush out the things you need to know about your customer, and what your customer needs to know about you. If you have targeted a market, what is their challenge, issue or problem. The better prepared you are to answer that question the better prepared you will be to know what your customer needs to know about you.

What is the value of your product or service in terms of saving customers time and effort? Does what you offer add value by offering an enhancement – beauty, status, advancement or guarantees? Can you demonstrate that your product or service is not a cost but an investment? How about your competition, why do people buy from you rather than your competition? What makes you different? What do your customers tell each other about your product or service?

Amazon.com and eBay have capitalized on this by giving buyers a chance to comment and/or review what they purchased and in the case of eBay how well the seller fulfilled what he sold. You need to be able to tell the stories and quote the testimonials of happy customers so others can see how you are different.

Few products or services are unique, you make them unique by looking at your strengths to create your competitive edge. What strengths do you have that you can effectively capitalize on? When you have answers to the questions that apply to you, you must be able to deliver that information verbally and in all your written and hand out materials. Remember people want to know "what’s in it for them." So what is the outcome and value you deliver; this is not the how, but the what, that will keep them coming back over and over again.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

According to Alan Kay from Disney’s R&D Department: "When you … offer unique value your competition cannot, then you … make headway by giving your ideas away."

You can expand your visibility by disseminating information as one of your prime marketing tactics. Don’t make the same mistakes most small business people do, and think that the knowledge and experience you have is widely known, on the contrary, you are the owner of a capital asset that others do not possess and have no easy way of possessing it.

There are many avenues available to you to present what you know. Trade association journals and newsletters are always looking for articles. What organizations are you associated with? Approach them with a suggested topic.

On staying current with your clients, you need to create information tools such as newsletters or e-mail newsletters that will give you consistent visibility. Clients start to see you as a valuable resource.

Seminars, workshops and talks to groups and organizations put you out ahead of the competition. Your exposure to your market place helps you to build credibility.

When you make your information available to your market place, you position yourself as an expert. Experts produce and sell information. This lets clients sample your information and expands your market to people who can’t hire you. Products can be given away or can bring you significant incremental revenue.

The market place of today wants concise information, whether you record it or put it in print, it will create a definite advantage over your competition. Where do you want to be in the market place? You must put yourself there. The next time a client asks you a question, make note of it - others want that answer too.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

One of the questions I often get from my members is, "when is the right time to incorporate"? The answer is often the question of liability that one needs to take into consideration before deciding which entity best suits ones business needs. Do you have employees that put you at risk driving your business vehicle or dealing with customers? Each business entity has its advantages and drawbacks, benefits and tax consequences.

Picture a situation where an employee is driving with you in your vehicle and you are in an accident. The accident is not your fault but your employee gets injured. You are now in a position where the employee’s lawyer decides they need to sue you too. What kind of protection do you have?

Most small businesses are started as sole proprietorships to allow an individual the independence, flexibility and minimum government red tape giving him/her absolute control. Taxes are filed on a regular 1040 form with a schedule C attached. Employee benefit premiums are deductible. However, Linda Harris of Harris Insurance and Financial Services says that the disadvantages of the sole proprietor are so profound that I will quote her explanation.

"The sole proprietorship is limited by the personal financial resources of the owner and the ability to obtain credit and borrow money. The sole proprietorship is also limited in terms of business talent and ability and the success of the business generally is tied to the ingenuity, initiative, resourcefulness and managerial abilities of the sole owner. "

Without proper planning the employee in the above scenario could wind up owning the assets of the business and other personal assets as well. Creditors may attach personal resources (home, bank accounts, retirement accounts, etc) in the event of a business failure. Also what happens to a sole proprietorship upon the death of the owner? In general, state laws provide that all of a sole proprietor’s business activities cease at the owner’s death.

Without getting over my head in legalities, let’s look at the General Corporation advantages that could offset the sole proprietorship disadvantages. There is limited liability as all responsibility for debt and liability fall on the corporation. That means creditors cannot attach personal assets of the share holders. Financing is generally more easily secured, as corporations have a more stable appearance, whether or not it is true. Unless there is a restriction on the transfer of stock, shareholder’s interests are freely transferable. As a separate legal entity, a corporation enjoys perpetual existence.

Often small business owners fail to value their sole proprietorships and do not adequately plan for its security or continuance. It is important to review all of the benefits and drawbacks of incorporating with your attorney, CPA and financial planner so you understand the financial impact on the business and your family.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

Here we are in the second month of the year, are you already finding yourself coming and going, wondering how to get done all the things your business demands of you? Is it more like being in a batting cage with things coming at you, rather then in the game playing to win? Over the years I have experienced my clients suffering through those long lists of "got to get done" things, but what I have come to understand is most of those "things" are not focused, nor do they consistently support the things that really matter, your dreams and goals.

But, you ask, when the list is so long what does really matter? That sounds more like you are striking out instead of scoring. So let’s think about your game - how many up at bats have you skipped this week? This month? Managing the high priority, high pay off areas of the business means first having a clear focus on the mission and goals of the business. Anything that distracts you from realizing those goals is likely producing inconsistent results. The question to ask yourself to stay focused is, "is this activity helping me reach my goal?"

Weekly you must carefully define your work and break it down to essential tasks which will give you a game plan. Growing a business means having consistent up at bats, i.e. activities that produce high pay off results, that means prospecting for new clients, calling for appointments and having face to face encounters with them. In addition it means staying in touch with your "centers of influence" who recommend you.

Paul J. Meyer, Founder of Success Motivation Institute once wrote "There is a world of difference between mere action and constructive action." So instead of just adding to that "to do" list, take time to plan a week of constructive action, focusing on the things that hit the mark consistently. I recommend that you break your activities down to Business Development, Contract Fulfillment/Work to be Completed, Follow up, Personal/Home, and Administration. When you have your goals in front of you it is easier to see what needs to be done.

Challenge: Take one half hour each week to review your accomplishments and plan for the next growth steps for your business.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

Your success in business comes down to the difference between managing your work or letting your work manage you. What’s it going to be? The biggest contributors to clutter are those good old fashion letters, junk mail, memos, e-mail printouts and sticky notes, So how do you sort through all the junk and all the distractions and concentrate only on the things that are important to you and your business? In business ownership and management, as in war and other activities, you are only as good as your last success. Just as you always have to be on the lookout for the next opportunity, you also have to be on the alert for the next crisis. That is what being organized is all about. You don’t want to waste your time on useless trivia when important issues that have significant impact on your customers or your organization deserve your attention.

Delegation is an ideal way that allows you to work on important tasks. As your business grows, your functional responsibilities normally grow past the point where you can cope with all the duties which must be handled. As this process of growth occurs, you must begin to delegate specific duties to insure that all necessary tasks are carried out. This means hiring someone on a full or part time basis and properly training them. It is important to have performance guidelines with proper follow up procedures for the delegated assignments. In some instances people who do outside services can take up the slack.

Remember, a well managed business achieves results. Good management requires passing down the authority to get the job done and allows you to get on with the high priority, high payoff activities of your business.

One of the most important steps in the success of your business is planning. A business plan requires an action plan that will have specific and measurable results. Here is a suggested proven planning method that if you are truly committed to improving your management skills you can become a planning master overnight. What would it mean to you if you planned every business day on paper prior to the day starting?

• Block 30 minutes each week to review the week and your Quarterly plan and determine the actions you will need to take that week to achieve those results.
• Block 10-14 minutes daily to plan the day. No cell phone, no e-mail, no distractions, just planning.
• With your goals in front of you ask yourself if the activities you listed will help you achieve those goals.
• Prioritize your action items for the day. Put an asterisk next to your 5 most important (valuable) action items.

I challenge you to prepare for business growth through better organization, delegation and time management. Remember as a business owner setting a standard of consistent behaviors leads you to achieve results that carry over to all areas of your life.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

A New Year, new goals, new opportunities! Now that you have things sorted out and put together, put last year behind you, scrap the old plans and get ready for a new start. New things require new strategies, new tactics and new plans. There’s an old saying – if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got. Einstein may have put it better when he defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over, while expecting different results.

Over the last 15 years as I have worked with business owners who had dreams and big ideas, many would set out ignoring the previous year’s sales and profitability results. Success in anything means you have overcome the obstacles, made adjustments to the plan and strategized a new focus.

I’m suggesting that you take time now to review, revise or better yet create a new plan of action. Outline some new tools and tactics for managing, marketing, financing and leading your business and how you are going to balance your time to handle it all.

Investing the time to reflect on which strategies worked and which didn’t last year, and then carefully mapping out your next actions based on this information, will pay dividends. Be realistic about your time, define the roles that you play along with action steps in order to plan your time reasonably. But remember to give yourself the boundless encouragement, kindly patience and unqualified support that you give to others. Much success in 2008, make it a GREAT Year!!!!

The Challenge: Stop! Take some time now and review the plans and action steps that truly answer the question, how can I achieve that goal?

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams.