Net Neutrality a Bad Idea For Small Business
I think it will be quite a while before all the dust settles that got kicked up during the FCC net neutrality power grab, so it is difficult to comment on many of the specifics of the regulations. However, let’s look at the larger picture for a few moments. Much of what I’ve been hearing from the FCC regulators sounds like, “Hello Small Business, we’re from the government and we’re here to help you.” Unfortunately, proponents and opponents have both claimed to be the protectors of small business in this debate. Those in favor of the FCC regulations said repeatedly that without this version of net neutrality it will be difficult for a startup to challenge Netflix. Why regulate now? Whether or not that’s true I can’t say. However, what I do know is that of the hundreds of thousands of small businesses across our land, few – if any – have plans on challenging Netflix and this brings us to the real cause of the debate: a squabble between Netflix and Comcast. Rather than let this commercial fight play out in the courts and marketplace, the FCC decided to step into the fray. Further, I think President Obama’s vocal support for net neutrality must have been a major factor in the FCC’s decision to become so deeply involved. In any case, pending the legal battles that will surely ensue now, the FCC is positioned to regulate the Internet. With the exception of those involved in the Netflix-Comcast fight and a cadre of activists, I think most individual consumers and small business owners are generally okay with the performance of the Internet. They haven’t been crying out for regulation from Washington and this brings us to the main point. The de-regulation era ends? The last 30-40 years has been one of government de-regulation and in all cases, competition has increased when industries were deregulated. Some of us remember when airlines were deregulated; that created the entire market segment of “low-cost” airlines. Our long distance phone service was deregulated and the monopolistic AT&T broken into “Baby Bells.” Soon after that local phone service was deregulated. Deregulation opened the way for competitors. Companies like MCI and Sprint were able to get into the phone business. Long distance rates went down and success in the traditional phone business marketplace paved the way for the competition among cell phone providers that we have today. Have you ever seen government regulators increase competition, innovation, or supply? Have government regulators ever lowered the barriers to entry for any industry? The FCC ruling makes the Internet a utility like electricity. Over the last decade has anyone seen electricity rates come down and the supply of electricity increase in the same way as we have seen Internet connectivity improve in both availability and speed? I don’t think it’s going too far to say that small businesses, via their websites, have enjoyed tremendous entry into people’s homes and lives because of the build out and improvements in the Internet over the years. Would this have happened so quickly – or ever – had the Internet been under the control of government regulators? Who will pay for improvements? The basic law of economics – There’s no such thing as a free lunch – applies here. Someone will pay for any...
read moreIf You Don’t Want To Go It Alone, Try Piggybacking
A friend of mine likes to watch the gold mining shows on cable television. He recently noted how the miners are lucky to break even each year, but the guys who lease heavy equipment and sell replacement parts are making out like bandits. That story is as old as the California Gold Rush, which played an important role in giving us brands like Levi Strauss, Armour meats and Wells Fargo; and it continues to be played out today, even with some high-tech twists. The concept is called piggybacking. The idea is to find a fast growing startup or new sector and develop a service that that makes it easier to use, more profitable, or is supportive in some other way. eBay offshoots Were you around when eBay originally launched? If so, you may have noticed that it didn’t take long for a whole bevy of businesses to get started that made it easier to post or track your items. As eBay grew, so did the demand for these ancillary businesses. This phenomenon will continue. If you are looking for a business idea, keep tabs on where the venture capital is going and watch the business pages for stories about startup trends. If you’ve been following the trends, you will know that peer-to-peer enterprises are hot today and consequently, this area is experiencing a lot of piggybacking. Services to manage your Airbnb listings are being established, for example. How many homeowners really know what their room should rent for or want to deal with booking and cleaning the rentals? This could give local housecleaning companies an area into which they can expand. Breeze leases cars to Uber and Lyft wannabe-drivers who lack wheels. So far neither Uber nor Lyft have shown interest in leasing vehicles themselves, but this does point out one of the dangers of going “all in” on a piggybacking venture: Eventually the big player in the game may decide to provide the service itself. And if you add in the possibility that the company on which you are piggybacking might go under, it can be a very risky venture. New laws make new businesses Just as the creation of a new business model can create piggybacking opportunities in the private sector, in the public sector new laws can create new business opportunities. The upheaval in health care caused by the Affordable Care Act is creating demand for a wide range of new services, such as converting records to a digital format and payments processing. However, even beyond that, all the newly insured patients flocking to hospitals and clinics are causing significant growth in many parts of our country. Traditional services – even basic needs such as janitorial – can “piggyback” on the growth that is resulting from the law. With all of this in mind, as you see changes happening around you, whether they are new businesses, new social phenomena or new laws, demand is being created for new products and services that are complementary. Always be watching for those...
read moreThis Week in Small Business: All the news you can use right now
We always talk about thinking outside the box, but did you know that folks who video themselves taking things out of boxes are a YouTube and marketing phenomena? Learn about unboxers, the export-import bank debate, “intrepreneurism” and a lot more from the week’s news and information highlights. Marketing Email Here are 30 good ideas when you’re not sure what to send in your email marketing campaign. B2B marketers need to move beyond email to true marketing automation where they automate the personalization of all messages across all channels. Not all of these email subject line words to use and to avoid deal with marketing, some will simply help improve your personal emails. Content and Social Media Aaron Agius takes us through 9 Lessons Content Marketers Can Learn from Traditional Journalism. If your content marketing efforts include Twitter, here are three ways that creating lists will boost performance. Let’s face it, lessons from a guy who bills himself as “The Naked Chef” are a lot more engaging than listening to an MBA drone on and on, so check out what we can learn about social media from Jamie Oliver. Tools, tips, general advice Would a product listing ad in Google search results benefit your business? If the answer is “yes” scan this primer to learn how they work. Finally, when you need a mega-dose inspiration for your marketing efforts, check out Matt Zilli’s It’s Never Too Early to Be a Marketing Genius. Scan this list of seven marketing tools for your small business and see if there are any you need to add to your arsenal. And if you prefer “secrets” to tips, here are two marketing secrets growing tech companies know. Hey, who should know more about mobile marketing than travel industry experts? Here are five tips from that group of cognoscenti. If you’re pressed for time, Darren Shaw shows you a way to do a basic local SEO audit in 30 minutes…or less! Are you put off by sales phone scripts? Paul Castain offers three alternatives. If you’ve made some marketing mistakes in your career, check out this article from Steve Olenski, 7 Mammoth Marketing Mistakes And What To Learn From Them. There’s no way your screw-ups can be as bad as the Civil War…I’m hoping. On the edge Are you up on unboxers, haulers and vlogging? They are charting new paths in marketing, but the same laws and rules apply. Keeping the pulse of pop culture is critical to many marketing efforts. Here’s advice from expert Shea Serrano, a staff writer for sports and pop culture site Grantland. Today it may take launching a proximity or hyper local media campaign to really make your business stand out from the crowd. Entrepreneurism and startups In case you need more prodding, here are 10 reasons to start that small business you’ve been thinking about right now. No document was recorded the day Mohed Altrad was born into a Bedouin tribe wandering the Syrian desert. Today he is Europe’s billionaire scaffolding king. The majority of young girls in Australia don’t know what an entrepreneur is. Jo Burston and Rare Birds are out to change that with a model that could work anywhere. Instagram has been called the most powerful selling tool and now there’s a startup that will turn your Instagram account into an ecommerce...
read more3 Tips For Building a Turbocharged Sales Team
Several recent surveys are telling us that small business hiring is on the way up. This is great news after a long period of retrenchment. It shows that we’ve moved from guarding the herd to growing the herd. The SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard reflects this. Last year only 19 percent of small business owners said they would hire a salesperson. Now that figure is up to 28 percent. However, more important than being in the mood to hire is to employ the best modes of hiring. We know that small businesses, especially in their early years, have a high failure rate. The blame for that can often be placed squarely on the shoulders of the sales team. So if you plan to hire a sales professional, go about it the right way. Don’t leave it to chance. Here are some tips: 1. Cast a wide and well constructed net. There are many places to find a good sales professional and these include everything from the business next door, to industry publications, recruiters, and websites. If you are advertising, make sure your ad really expresses your requirements. Don’t just say something like, “Help Wanted: Outside sales.” Go into detail. While hiring is heating up right now, if your business depends on top sales professionals, you should always have your eyes open. When you find great salespeople around town or with other companies in your industry, engage them and see if they are happy with their current situation. Give them a card and nurture the relationship. There are general employment sites like Monster.com as well as specialty sites, such as SalesForceSearch and Time to Hire. Of course there are also traditional recruiters. But your best people may already be working for you. If you see the kind of drive and attitude that makes good salespeople in one of your current employees, why not give this person an opportunity to try sales? Also, ask your employees for referrals. Be sure to give any new sales hire sufficient support and training. 2. Talk to enough candidates. If you’re hiring a commission-only salesperson, it’s easy to get lazy about the selection process and anxious about putting someone in the field. It may seem that you have little to lose. Actually you have a lot to lose. Failing to take sufficient time in your search will result in mediocre sales at best and can also hurt your reputation, which will kill markets for you. 3. Consider a commission-based compensation pay structure. In most cases, having the salaries of your sales team based on commissions is a good idea. You just can’t get around the fact that humans are motivated by material gain and when your sales professionals are bringing in big commissions, your business is growing its top line. Be sure that you know what kinds of commissions are being paid in your industry and also by other sales-orientated businesses in your area. Set your commission structure to make it competitive. Throughout the first chapter in the history of many small businesses, the founder is the sales professional. If you’re in a position to hire a salesperson, it shows that you’re ready to write a new chapter in your business. It’s an exciting time. Do it...
read moreOperator, Get My Telecommuters on the Line!
The federal, state and local governments can pass laws restricting people’s behaviors or controlling automobile manufacturing in ways that they hope will reduce air pollution. Those same agencies can spend billions of dollars on rapid transit and highway expansion projects hoping to reduce traffic congestion. While these efforts may be well intended, we know that they have had somewhat limited success, especially in the area of reducing the backups on our highways. However, at the same time an organic movement in society begins to take shape that has tremendous potential to reduce traffic and air pollution. Not one law was passed and no one’s taxes were raised. I’m talking about telecommuting. Improved family life Telecommuting has many other benefits as well. It allows people to stay home and this can greatly ease all kinds of challenging family situations. It can make someone available to pick up children after school or be home when the cable guy finally shows up. Telecommuters can get the family dinner started and this results in less fast food consumption, better health and lower insurance premiums! The way modern life has evolved, flexibility is a valuable attribute in a job and the flexibility that is offered by telecommuting can boost employee job satisfaction and company loyalty. It can help you keep talented people on board who might otherwise head out the door to sign on with the competition. Reduced travel expenses Further, if your business involves making calls to clients, having telecommuters located in various territories can make you much more efficient. Your reps can make more calls because they have less distance to travel. You also save in mileage reimbursements or wear and tear on a company car. March 1-7 is Telecommuter Appreciation Week, which has been established by the American Telecommuting Association. It’s a good time to stop and reflect on our policies regarding telecommuting and make sure we are taking advantage of telecommuting as much as possible. Take time to offer praise It’s also a great time to check in with your telecommuters and make sure they still feel like they are part of the team. While telecommuters appreciate the flexibility, there can be some isolation as well. Bringing everyone together for a meal can give a boost to your entire team. And on a daily basis, be sure that you are communicating sufficiently with anyone who telecommutes. You never want one of your distant employees to say, “Why didn’t anyone tell me about that?” Keep the personal touch With all the cheap and even free online conferencing that’s available today, you should be able to include your telecommuters in all the important meetings. Video chats can also be used to help maintain a certain “personal” connection to your telecommuters. It’s an exciting time to be operating a business and the telecommuting phenomenon is one of the reasons why. Let’s not consider it just during the first week of March, let’s find ways leverage the advantages of telecommuting throughout the entire...
read more